Letters From An American Farmer

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Everyman, I will go with thee, and be thy guide,
In thy most need to go by thy side.

EVERYMAN'S LIBRARY
No. 640

TRAVEL & TOPOGRAPHY

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN FARMER

BY HECTOR ST. JOHN DE CREVECCEUR

INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY WARREN

BARTON BLAKE

MICHEL-GUILLAUME JEAN DE CREVE-
CCFUR, commonly known as Hector St.
John de Crevecceur, was born in 173$ in
Normandy. After spending some time in
England he emigrated to America and settled
in 176^ in New York State. After the
Revolution he became French Consul at
New York. He returned to Europe and
died in 1813.

LETTERS FROM
AN AMERICAN FARMER

HECTOR ST. JOHN DE CREVECCEUR

LONDON: J. M. DENT & SONS LTD.
NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO. INC.

All nVJ,ts reserved
Mj'lc in Gie.it Britain

by
Thr Temple Press Letchworth

For

j. M. Dent & Sons Ltd.

Airline House Bedford St. London

HrM published in this edition 1912

Last reprinted 19^1

INTRODUCTION

MORE than eighty years ago Hazlitl wrote that of the three
notable writers whom the eighteenth century had produced,
in the North American colonies, one was " the author
(whoever he was) of the American Farmer 1 P 6 Letters.''
Crevecceur was that unknown author; and Hazlitt said
further of him that he rendered, in his own vividly charac-
teristic manner, " no! only the objects, but the feelings, of
a new coin; try/' Great is the essayist's relish for passages
descriptive of " a battle between two snakes," of " the
dazzling, almost invisible flutter of the humming-bird's
wing," ol the manners of " the Nan tucket people, their
frank simplicity, and festive lejoicings after the penis arid
hardships of the whale- fishing." " The power to sym-
pathise witli nature, without thinking of ourselves or
others, if it is not a definition of genius, comes very near
to it," writes Hazlitt of our author. And his references to
Crevecccnr are closed with the remark: " We have said
enough of this ILLUSTRIOUS OBSCURE; for it is the rule of
criticism to praise none but the over-praised, and to off or
fresh incense to the idol of the day."

Others, at least, have followed that " rule of criticism,"
and the American Farmer has long enjoyed undisturbed
seclusion. Only once since the eighteenth century lias
th^re been a new edition of his Letters, that were first
published at London in 1782, and reissued, with a few
corrections, in the next year. The original American
edition of this book about America was that published at
Philadelphia in 1793, and there was no reprint till 1904,*
wh^n careless editing did all it could to destroy the value
of the work, the name of whose very author was misstated.

1 References may be found to American editions of 170.1 and 1798,
but no copies of such editions are preserved in any library to which
the editor has had access.

viii Letters from an American Farmer

Yet the facts which we have concerning him are few enough
to merit truthful presentation.

Except by naturalisation, the author of Letters from an
American Farmer was not an American; and he was no
ordinary farmer. Yet why quarrel with him for the
naming of his book, or for his signing it " J. Hector Saint-
John," when the " Hector " of his title-pages and American
biographers was only a prenom de faintaisie ? We owe
some concessions to the author of so charming a book, to
the eighteenth-century Thoreau. His life is certainly more
interesting than the real Thoreau's and would be, even if
it did not present many contradictions. Our records of
that life are in the highest degree inexact; he himself is
wanting in accuracy as to the date of more than one event.
The records, however, agree that Cr^vecoeur belonged to the
petite noblesse of Normandy. The date of his birth was
January 31, 1735, the place was Caen, and his full name
(his great-grandson and biographer vouches for it) was
Michel -Guillaume- Jean de Crevecoeur. The boy was well
enough brought up, but without more than the attention
that his birth gave him the right to expect; he divided the
years of his boyhood between Caen, where his father's
town-house stood, and the College du Mont, where the
Jesuits gave him his education. A letter dated 1785 and
addressed to his children tells us all that we know of his
school-days; though it is said, too, that he distinguished
himself in mathematics. " If you only knew," the reminis-
cent father of a faniily exclaims in this letter, " in what
shabby lodging, in what a dark and chilly closet, I was
mewed up at your age; with what severity I was treated;
how I was fed and dressed ! " Already his powers of
observation, that were so to distinguish him, were quickened
by his old-world milieu.

" From my earliest youth," he wrote in 1803, " I had a
passion for taking in all the antiques that I met with:
moth-eaten furniture, tapestries, family portraits, Gothic
manuscripts (that I had learned how to decipher), had for
me an indefinable charm. A little later on, I loved to

Introduction ix

walk in the solitude of cemeteries; to examine the tombs
and to trace out their mossy epitaphs. I knew most of the
churches of the canton, the date of their foundation, and
what they contained of interest in the way of pictures and
sculptures."

The boy's gift of accurate and keen observation was to
be tested soon by a very different class of objects: there
were to be no crumbling saints and canvases of Brd-
Chamber Grooms for him to stud)'' in the forests of America ;
no reminders of the greatness of his country's past, and
the honour of his family.

From school, the future woodsman passed over into
England. A distant relative was living near Salisbury;
for one reason or another the boy was sent thither to finish
his schooling. From England, with what motives we know
not, he set out for the New World, where he was to spend
his busiest and happiest d ays. In the Bibliothcca A mericana
Nova Rich makes the statement that Crevecoeur was b\:t
sixteen when he made the plunge, and others have followed
Rich in this error. The lad's age was really not less than
nineteen or twenty. According to the family legend, his
ship touched at Lisbon on the way out; one cannot decide
whether this was just before or immediately after the great
earthquake. Then to New France, where he joined Mont-
calm. Entering the service as cadet, he advanced to the
rank o1 lieutenant ; was mentioned in the Gazette ; shared
hi the French successes; drew maps of the forests and
block-houses that found their way to the king's cabinet;
served with Montcalm in the attack upon Fort William
Henry. With that the record is broken off: we can less
definitely associate his name with the humiliation of the
French in America than with their brief triumphs. Yet
it is quite certain, says Robert de Crdvecoeur, his descendant,
that he did not return to France with the rag-tag of the
defeated army. Quebec fell before Wolfe's attack in
September 1759; at some time in the course of the year
1760 we may suppose the young officer to have entered the
British colonies; to have adopted his family name of
" Saint John " (Saint-Jean), and to have gradually worked
his way south, probably by the Hudson. The reader of the
Letters hardly supposes him to have enjoyed his frontier

x Letters from an American Farmer

life; nor i* there any means of knowing how much of that
life it was his fortune to lead. In time, he found himself as
far south as Pennsylvania. He visited Shippensbnrg and
Lancaster and Carlisle; perhaps he resided at or near one
of these towns. Many years later, when his son Louis
purchased a farm of two hundred acres from Chancellor
Livingstone, at Navesink, near the Blue Mountains, Creve-
creur the elder was still remembered; and it may have
been at this epoch that he visited the place. During the
term of hi.s military service under Montcalm, Crevecceur
saw something of the Great Lakes and the outlying country;
prior to hi* experience as a cultivator, and, indeed , after
he had settled down as such, he " travelled like Plato," even
visited Bermuda, by his own account. Not until 1764,
however, have we any positive evidence of his whereabouts;
it wae. in April of that year that he took out naturalisation
paper? at New V.;L Some months later, he installed
himself on the (arm variously called Greycourt and Pine-
Hill, in the same state; he drained a great marsh there, and
soems to have practised agriculture upon a generous scale.
The certificate of the marriage of Cre"veco?ur to Mehi table
Tippet, of Yonkers, is dated September 20, 1769; and of
this union three children were the issue. And more than
children: for with the marriage ceremony once performed
bv the worthy Tfitard, a clergyman of New York, formerly
settled over a French Reformed Church at Charleston,
South Carolina, Crevecoeur is more definitely than ever the
" American Farmer "; he has thrown in his lot with that
new country; his children are to be called after their
parent's adopted name, Saint-John; the responsibilities of
the adventurer are multiplied; his life in America has
become a matter more easy to trace and richer, perhaps,
in meaning.

II

One of the historians ol American literature has written
that these Letters furnish " a greater number of delightful
pages than any other book written in America during the
eighteenth century, save only Franklin's Autobiography.* 9
A safe compliment, this; and yet does not the very empti-

Introduction xi

ness of American annals during the eighteenth century
make for our cherishing all that they offer of the vivid and
the significant? Professor Moses Coit Tyler long ago sug-
gested what was the literary influence of the American
Farmer, whose " idealised treatment of rural life in America
wrought quite traceable effects upon the imaginations of
Campbell, Byron, Sou they, Coleridge, and furnished not
a few materials for such captivating and airy schemes of
literary colonisation in America as that of ' Pantisocracy.' "
Hazlitt praised the book to his friends and, as we have seen,
commended it to readers of the Edinburgh Review. Lamb
mentions it in one of his letters which is already some
distinction. Yet when was a book more completely lost to
popular viow even among the books that have deserved
oblivion ? The Letters were published, ail the same, at
Belfast and Dublin and Philadelphia, as well as at London;
they were recast in French by the author, translated into
German and Dutch by pirating penny-a-liners, and given a
" sequel " by a publisher at Paris. 1

The American Farmer made his first public appearance
cle\ en years before Chateaubriand found a publisher for his
E'^ai sur les Revolutions, wherein the great innovator first
used the American materials that he worked over more
effectively in his travels, tales, and memoirs. In Saint-
John de Crevecu;iir, we have a contemporary -a corre-
spondent, even of Franklin; but if our author shared
many of poor Richard's interests, one may travel far
without finding a more complete antithesis to that common-
sense philosopher.

Cievecceur expresses mild wonderment that, while so
many travellers visit Italy and " the town of Pompey under
ground," few come to the new continent, where may be
studied, not what is found in books, but " the humble
rudiments and embryos of society spreading everywhere,
the recent foundations of our towns, and the settlements of
so many rural districts." In the course of his sixteen or
seventeen years' experience as an American farmer he
himself studied all these matters; and he gives us a

1 Oitvrage pour sernr de suite an*. I ettrcs d'ufi cultivateur Amcrmnn,
Paris, 1785. The work so offered seems to have been a translation of
John Filson's History of Kentucky (Wilmington, Del., 1764).

xii Letters from an Amei ican Farmer

charming picture of them. Though his book has very
little obvious system, its author describes for us frontier
and farm; the ways of the Nan tucket fishermen and their
intrepid wives; life in the Middle Colonies; the refinements
and atrocities of Charleston. Crdvecoeur's account of the
South (that he knew but superficially and who knows?
more, it may be, by Tetard's anecdotes than through
personal knowledge) is the least satisfactory part of his
performance. One feels it to be the most " literary "
portion of a book whose beauty is naivete. But whether
we accept or reject the story of the negro malefactor hung
in a cage from a tree, and pecked at by crows, it is certain
that the traveller justly regarded slavery as the one con-
spicuous blot on the new country's shield. CreVecreur was
not an active abolitionist, like that other naturalised French-
man, Benezet of Philadelphia; he had his own slaves to
work his northern farms; he was, however, a man of
humane feelings one who " had his doubts." 1 And his
narrative description of life in the American colonies hi the
years immediately preceding the Revolution is one that
social historians cannot ignore.

Though our Farmer emphasises his plainness, and
promises the readers of his Letters only a matter-of-fact
account of his pursuits, he has his full share of eighteenth-
century " sensibility." Since he is, however, at many
removes from the sophistications of London and Paris, he
is moved, not by the fond behaviour of a lap-dog, or the
" little arrangements " carters make with the bridles of
their faithful asses (that they have driven to death, belike),
but by such matters as he finds at home. " When I con-
template my wife, by my fire-side, while she either spins,
knits, darns, or suckles our child, I cannot describe the
various emotions of love, of gratitude, or conscious pride
which thrill in my heart, and often overflow in voluntary
tears ..." He is like that old classmate's of Fitzgerald's,
buried deep " in one of the most out-of-the-way villages in
all England," for if he goes abroad, " it is always involun-

1 In his Voyage dans la Haute Pensylvanie (sic) et dans VEtat de New
York (Paris, 1801) slavery is severely attacked by Crdvecoeur. His
descendant, Robert de Crevecceur, refers to him as " a friend of
Wilberforce."

Introduction xiii

tary. I never return home without feeling some pleasant
emotion, which I often suppress as useless and foolish."
He has his reveries; but they are pure and generous ; their
subject is the future of his children. In midwinter, instead
of trapping and " murthering " the quail, " often in the
angles of the fences where the motion of the wind prevents
the snow from settling, I carry them both chaff and grain:
the one to feed them, the other to prevent their tender feet
from freezing fast to the earth as I have frequently observed
them to do." His love of birds is marked: this in those
provinces of which a German traveller wrote: " In the
thrush kind America is poor; there is only the red-breasted
robin. . . . There are no sparrows. Very few birds nest
in the woods; a solemn stillness prevails through them,
interrupted only by the screaming of the crows." It is
good, after such a passage as this has been quoted, to set
down what Crdvecoeur says of the bird kingdom. " In the
spring," he writes, " I generally rise from bed about that
indistinct interval which, properly speaking, is neither night
nor day: " fur then it is that he enjoys " the universal
vocal choir." He continues more and more lyrically:
" Who can listen unmoved, to the sweet love- tales of our
robins, told from tree to tree ? Or to the shrill cat birds ?
The sublime accents of the thrush from on high, always
retard ray steps, that I may listen to the delicious music."
And the Farmer is no less interested in " the astonishing
art which all birds display in the construction of their nests,
ill provided as we may suppose them with proper tools ;
their neatness, their convenience." At some time during
his American residence he gathered the materials for an
unpublished study of ants; and his bees proved an unfailing
source of entertainment. " Their government, their in-
dustry, their quarrels, their passions, always present me
with something new," he writes; adding that he is most
often to be found, in hours of rest, under the locust tree
where his beehive stands. "By their movements," says
h~, " T can predict the weather, and can tell the day of their
warming." When other men go hunting game, he goes
bee-hunting. Such are the matters he tells of in his
Letters.

One difference from the stereotyped " sensibility " of the

xiv Letters from an American Farmer

old world one may discover in the openness of Cr&vecoeur's
heart; and that is the completeness of his interest in all
the humbler sorts of natural phenomena. Nature is, for
him, no mere bundle of poetic stage-properties, soiled by
much handling, but something fresh and inviting and full
of interest to a man alive. He takes more pleasure in
hunting bees than in expeditions with his dogs and gun;
the king-birds destroy his bees but, he adds, they drive
the crows away. Ordinarily he could not persuade himself
to shoot them. On one occasion, however, he fired at a
more than commonly impertinent specimen, " and im-
mediately opened his maw, from which I took 171 bees;
I laid them all on a blanket in the suri, and to my great
surprise fifty-four returned to life, licked themselves clean,
and joyfully went back to the hive, where they probably
informed their companions of such an adventure and
escape, as I believe had never happened before to American
bees." Must one regard this as a fable ? It is by no means
as remarkable a yarn as one may find told by other
naturalists of the same century. There is, for example, that
undated letter of John Bartram's, in which he makes
inquiries of his brother William concerning " Ye Wonderful
Flower; " 1 there is, too, Kalm's report of Bartram's bear:
" When a bear catches a cow, he kills her in the following
manner: he bites a hole into the hide and blows with all
his power into it, till the animal swells excessively and dies;
for the air expands greatly between the flesh and the hide."
After these fine fancies, where is the improbability of
Crevecneur's modest adaptation of the Jonah-allegory that
he applies to the king-bird and his bees? The episode
suggests, for that matter, a chapter in Mitchell's My Farm
at Edgcwood. Mitchell, a later American farmer, describes
the same king-birds, the same bees; has, too, the same
supremely gentle spirit. " 1 have not the heart to shoot at
the king-birds; nor do I enter very actively into the battle
of the bees. ... I give them fair play, good lodging,
limitless flowers, willows bending (as Virgil advises) into
the quiet water of a near pool ; I have even read up the
stories of a poor blind Huber, who so dearly loved the bees,

1 See " A Botanical Marvel," in The Nation (New York), August 5.
1909, and Jsiote vii. in this book (p. 239).

Introduction xv

and the poem of Giovanni Rucellai, for their benefit." Can
the reader state, without stopping to consider, which author
it was that wrote thus Mitchell or Crevecoeur ? Certainly
it is the essential modernity of the earlier writer's style that
most impresses one, after the charm of his pictures. His
was the age of William Livingston later Governor of the
State of New Jersey; and in the very year when a London
publisher was bringing out the first edition of the Farmer's
Letters, Livingston, described on his title-page as a " young
gentleman educated at Yale College," brought out his
Philosophic Solitude at Trenton, in his native state. It is
worth quoting Philosophic Solitude for the sake of the
comparison to be drawn between Crevecoeur's prose and
contemporary American verse:

" Let ardent heroes seek renowii in arms,
Pant after fame, and rush to war's alarms . . .
Mine be the pleasures of a rural life."

The thought is, after all, the same as that which we have
found less directly phrased in Crevecoeur. But let us quote
the lines that follow the exordium now we should find the
poet unconstrained and fancy-free:

" Me to sequestred scenes, ye muses, guide,
Where nature wantons in her virgin-pride;
To mossy banks edg'd round with op'ning flow'rs,
Elysian fields, and ainaranthm bow'rs. . . .

" Welcome, ye shades! all hail, ye vernal blooms!
Ye bow'ry thickets, and prophetic glooms!
Ye forests hail! ye solitary woods. . . ."

and the " solitary woods " (rhyming with " floods ") are a
good place to leave the " young gentleman educated at
Yale College." Livingston was, plainly enough, a poet of
his time and place. He had a fine eye for Nature seen
through library windows. He echoed Goldsmith and a
whole line of British poets echoed them atrociously.

That one finds no " echoes " in Crevecceur is one of our
reasons for praising his spontaneity and vigour. He did
not import nightingales into his America, as some of the
poets did. He blazed away, rather, toward our present
day appreciation of surrounding nature which was not
banal then. Crevecoeur's honest and unconven tionaliscd

xvi Letters from an American Farmer

love of his rural environment is great enough to bridge the
difference between the years 1782 and 1912. It is as easy
for us to pass a happy evening with him as it was for
Thomas Campbell, figuring to himself a realisation of
Cowley's dreams and of Rousseau's poetic seclusion ; " till
at last," in Southey's words, "comes an ill-looking Indian
with a tomahawk, and scalps me a most melancholy proof
that society is very bad." It is the freshness, the youthful-
ness, of these Letters, after their century and more of dust-
gathering, that is least likely to escape us. And this
" Farmer in Pennsylvania " is almost as unmistakably of
kin with good Gilbert White of Selborne as he is the
American Thoreau's eighteenth- century forerunner.

Ill

It is time, indeed, that we made the discovery that
Crdvecoeur was a modern. He was, too, a dweller in the
young republic even before it was a republic. Twice a
year he had " the pleasure of catching pigeons, whose
numbers are sometimes so astonishing as to obscure the sun
in their flight." There is, then, no poetic licence about
Longfellow's description, in Evangeline, of how

" A pestilence fell on the city

Presaged by wondrous signs, and mostly by flocks of wild pigeons,
Darkening the sun in their flight, with naught in their craws but an
acorn."

Longfellow could have cited as his authority for this flight
of pigeons Mathew Carey's Record of the Malignant Fever
lately Prevalent, published at Philadelphia, which, to be
sure, discusses a xlifferent epidemic, but tells us that
" amongst the country people, large quantities of wild
pigeons in the spring are regarded as certain indications of
an unhealthy summer. Whether or not this prognostic
has ever been verified, I cannot tell. But it is very certain
that during the last spring the numbers of these birds
brought to market were immense. Never, perhaps, were
there so many before."

Carey wrote in 1793, the year, as has been noted, of the
first American reprint of the Letters, that had first been
published at London. Carey was himself Crdvecoeur's

Introduction xvii

American publisher; and he may well have thought as he
wrote the lines quoted of Crevecoeur's earlier pigeons
" obscuring the sun in their flight." Crevecceur had by
this time returned to France, and was never more to ply the
avocations of the American farmer. In the interval, much
had happened to this victim of both the revolutions.
Though the Letters are distinguished by an idyllic temper,
over them is thrown the shadow of impending civil war.
The Farmer was a man of peace, for all his experience under
Montcalm in Canada (and even there his part was rather an
engineer's than a combatant's); he long hoped, therefore,
that peaceful counsels would prevail, and that England and
the colonies would somehow come to an understanding
without hostilities. Then, after the Americans had boldly
broken with the home government, he lent them all his
sympathy but not his arms. He had his family to watch
over; likewise his two farms, one in Orange County, New
York, one in New Jersey. As it was, the Indians in the
royal service burned his New Jersey estate; and after his
first return to France (he was called thither by his father,
we are told, though we know nothing of the motives of this
recall) he entered upon a new phase of his career. " After
his first return to France," I have said, as if that had been
an entirely simple matter. One cannot here describe all
its alleged difficulties; his arrest at New York as a sus-
pected spy (though after having secured a pass from the
American commander, General MacDougal, he had secured
a second pass from General Clinton, and permission to
embark for France); his detention in the provost's prison
in New York; the final embarkation with his oldest son
this on September i, 1780; the shipwreck which he de-
scribed as occurring off the Irish coast; his residence for
some months in Great Britain, and during a part of that
time in London, where he sold the manuscript of the
Letters for thirty guineas. One would like to know
Crevecoeur's emotions on finally reaching France and joining
his father and relatives at Caen. One would like to
describe his romantic succour of five American seamen, who
had escaped from an English prison and crossed the Channel
in a sloop to Normandy. A cousin of one of these seamen,
a Captain Fellowes of Boston, was later to befriend Creve-

xviii Letters from an American Farmer

creur's daughter and younger son in the new country; that
was after the Loyalists and their Indian allies had destroyed
the Farmer's house at Pine Hill, after his wife had fled to
Westchester with her two children, and had died there soon
after, leaving them unprotected. But all this must, in
nautical phrase, "go by the board/' including the novel
founded upon the episode. Nor can we linger over Creve-
coenr's entry into polite society, both in the Norman capital
and at Paris. Fancy the returned prodigal if one may
so describe him in the salon of Madame d'Houdetot,
Rousseau's former mistress! He was fairly launched, this
American Farmer, in the society of the lettres.

" Twice a week/' he wrote, some years after, " I went
with M. de Turgot to see the Duchesse de Beauvilliers, his
sister; and another twice-a-week I went with him to the
Comte de Buffon's. ... It was at the table of M. de
BufTon, it was in his salon, during long winter evenings, that
I was awakened once more to the graces, the beauties, the
timid purity of our tongue, which, during my long sojourn
in North America, had become foreign to me, and of which
I had almost lost command though not the memory."

Madame d'Houdetot presented Crdvecoeur to the families
of La Rochefoucauld, Liancourt, d'Estissac, Breteuil,
Rohan-Chabot, Beauvau, Necker; to the academicians
d'Alembert, La Harpe, Grimm, Suard, Rulbriere; to the
poet-academician Delille. We have in the Memoircs of
Brissot an allusion to his entrance into this society, under
the wing of his elderly protectress:

" Proud of possessing an American savage, she wished to form him,
and to launch him in society. He had the good sense to refuse and
to confine himself to the picked society of men of letters."

It was at a later period that Brissot and Crdvecceur were to
meet; their quarrel, naturally, came later still.

Madame d'Houdetot did more than entertain the Farmer,
whose father had been one of her oldest friends. She
secured his nomination as Consul-General to the United
States, now recognised by France; it was at New York that
he took up residence. Through the influence of Madame
d'Houdetot and her friends, he retained the appointment
through the stormy years that followed, though in the end

Introduction xix

he was obliged to make way for a successor more in sym-
pathy with the violent republicanism of the age. Through-
out the years of the French Revolution, the ex-farmer lived
a life of retirement, and, if never of conspicuous danger, of
embarrassment enough, and of humiliation. We need not
discuss those years spent at Paris; or the visits paid, after
the close of the Revolution, to his son-in-law and daughter,
for his daughter Frances- America was married to a French
Secretary of Legation, who became a Count of the Empire.
Now he was in Paris or the suburbs; now in London, or
Munich. Five years of the Farmer's later life were spent
at the Bavarian capital ; Maximilian entertained him there,
and told him that he had read his book with the keenest
pleasure and great profit too. He busied himself in pre-
paring his three-volume Voyage dans la Haute Pensylvanie
(sic) et dans I'Etat de New York, and in adding to his paper
on potato culture, 1 a second on the false acacia; but his
best work was done and he knew it. Crevecceur lived on
until 1813, dying in the same year with Madame d'Houdetot,
who was so much his elder. He paid a worthy tribute to
that lady's character; perhaps we do her an injustice in
knowing her only for the liaison with Jean- Jacques. He
died on November 12, 1813: member of agricultural
societies and of the Academy (section of moral and political
science), and of Franklin's Philosophical Society at Phila-
delphia. A town in Vermont had been named St. Johns-
bury in his honour; he had the freedom of more than one
New England city. It is, none the less, as the author of
the Letters from an American Farmer, published in 1782,
and written, for the most part, years before that date, that
we remember him so far as we do remember.

IV

Much remains unsaid much, even, of the essential.
Some of the facts are still unknown ; others may be looked
for in the biography written by his great-grandson, Robert
de CreVecceur, and published at Paris some thirty years
ago. There is hardly occasion to discuss here what Crdve-
cceur did, as consul at New York, to encourage the exchange
1 Ttaitt de la Culture dcs Pommes de Tcrre, 1782.

xx Letters from an American Farmer

of French manufactures and American exports; or to tell
of his packet-line the first established between New York
and a French port; or to set down the story of his children;
or to describe those last sad years, at home and abroad,
after the close of his consular career. There is no room at
all for the words of praise that were spoken of the Letters
by Franklin and Washington, who recommended them to
intending immigrants as a faithful, albeit " highly coloured "
picture. We must let the writings of the American Farmer
speak for themselves: they belong, after all, to literature.

It was a modest man a modest life; a life filled, none
the less, with romantic incident. All this throws into relief
the beauty of its best fruits. Cr^vecceur made no claim to
artistry when he wrote his simple, heartfelt Letters ; and
yet his style, in spite of occasional defects and extra
flourishes, seems to us worthy of his theme. These Letters
from an American Farmer have been an inspiration to
poets and they " smell of the woods."

In a prose age, Crdvecoeur lived a kind of pastoral poetry ;
in an age largely blind, he saw the beauties of nature, less
through readings in the Nouvelle Heloisc and Bernardin's
Etudes than with his own keen eyes; he was a true idealist,
besides, and as such kindles one's enthusiasm. The man's
optimism, his grateful personality, his saneness, too for
here is a dreamer neither idle nor morbid are qualities no
less enduring, or endearing, than his fame as " poet-
naturalist." The American Farmer might have used
Cotton's Retirement for an epigraph on his title-page:

" Farewell, them busy world, and may

We never meet again,
Here I can eat and sleep and pray. . . ."

but for the fact that he found time to turn the clods, withal,
and eyes to watch the earth blackening behind the plough.
" Our necessities," wrote Poe, who contended, in a half-
hearted way, that the Americans of his generation were as
poetical a people as any other, " have been mistaken for
our propensities. Having been forced to make railroads,
it has been deemed impossible that we should make verse."
But here was Saint- John de Crdvecoeur writing, in the
eighteenth century, his idyllic Letters, while, if he did not

Introduction xxi

build railways, he interested himself in the experiments of
Fitch and Rumsey and Parmentier, and organised a
packet-line between New York and Lorient, in Brittany.
This Crdvecoeur should from the first have appealed to the
imagination especially to the American imagination
combining as he did the faculty of the ideal and the achieve
ment of the actual. It is not too late for him to appeal
to-day; in spite of all his quaintness, Crdvecceur is a
contemporary of our own.

WARREN BARTON BLAKE.

BRADFORD HILLS, WEST CHESTER.
PENNSYLVANIA.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

WORKS: Letters from an American Farmer (London), 1782, 1783;
(Dublin), 1782; (Belfast), 1783; (Philadelphia), 1793; (New York),
1904; (London), 1908; translated into French (with gratuitous addi-
tions) as Lettres d'un cultivateur Amencain (Paris), 1784 and 1787; into
German as Brief e eines Amerikanischen Landmanns (Leipzig), 1788,
1789. Vovage dans la Haute Pensylranie et dans Fetat de New York
(Paris), 1801. In 1928 there appeared posthumously a play, Land-
scapes, and some essays entitled Sketches of Eighteenth-century America.

LIFE: S. /. de C\: sa vie et ses ouvrages, ////-/ <?/.?, by Robert de
Crevecoeur (Paris), 1883; Un Colon Norniand en Amtrique an dix-hmt-
itme siecle, by Count E. Fourier de Bacourt (Evreux), 1908 (?).

CONTENTS

LETTER PAGE

I. INTRODUCTION ....... 7

II. ON THE SITUATION, FEELINGS, AND PLEASURES OF

AN AMERICAN FARMER . . . .21

III. WHAT is AN AMERICAN ..... 39

IV. DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND OF NANTUCKET, WITH

THE MANNERS, CUSTOMS, POLICY, AND TRADE
. OF THE INHABITANTS . . . . 87

V. CUSTOMARY EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT OF THE

INHABITANTS OF NANTUCKET . . 113

VI. DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND OF MARTHA'S VINE-
YARD, AND OF THE WHALE FISHERY . . IIQ

VII. MANNERS AND CUSTOMS AT NANTUCKET . . 131
VIII. PECULIAR CUSTOMS AT NANTUCKET . . .144

IX. DESCRIPTION OF CHARLES-TOWN; THOUGHTS ON
SLAVERY; ON PHYSICAL EVIL; A MELAN-
CHOLY SCENE 158

X. ON SNAKES; AND ON THE HUMMING BIRD . -174

XI. FROM MR. Iw N AL z, A RUSSIAN GENTLEMAN,
DESCRIBING 1HE VlSIT HE PAID AT MY REQUEST
TO MR. JOHN BERTRAM, THE CELEBRATED
PENNSYLVANIA BOTANIST . . . .182

XII. DISTRESSES OF A FRONTIER MAN . . .198
NOTES ........ 233

INDEX 253

XX 111

LETTERS

FROM AN

AMERICAN FARMER;

DESCRIBING

CERTAIN PROVINCIAL SITUATIONS,

MANNERS, AND CUSTOMS,
NOT GENERALLY KNOWN;

AND CONVEYING

SOME IDEA OF THE LATE AND PRESENT

INTERIOR CIRCUMSTANCES

OF T H E

BRITISH COLONIES

IN

NORTH AMERICA.

WRITTEN FOR THE INFORMATION OF A FRIEND
IN ENGLAND,

By J. HECTOR ST. JOHN,

A FARMER IN PENNSYLVANIA

LONDON,

PRINTED FOR. THOMAS DAVIES IN RUSSELL STREET COVKNT-

GARDEN, AND LOCKYER DAVIS IN HOLBORN.

M DCC LXXXII.

ADVERTISEMENT

[To the first edition, 1782.]

The following Letters are the genuine production of the
American Farmer whose name they bear. Tlicy were
privately written to gratify the curiosity of a friend ; and
are made public, because they contain much authentic
information, little known on this side the Atlantic : thcv
cannot therefore fail of beiiig higJily interesting to the
people of England, at a time when everybody's attention
is directed toward the affairs of America.

That these letters are the actual result of a private corre-
spondence may fairly be inferred (exclusive of other
evidence] from the style and manner in which they are con-
ceived ; for though plain and familiar, and sometimes
animated, they are by no means exempt from such inac-
curacies as must unavoidably occur in the rapid effusions
of a confessedly inexperienced writer.

Our Farmer had long been an eye-witness of transactions
that have deformed the face of America: he is one of
those who dreaded, and has severely felt, the desolating
consequences of a rupture between the parent state and
her colonies : for he has been driven from a situation,
the enjoyment of which the reader will find pathetically
described in the early letters of this volume. The unhappy
contest is at length, however, drawing toward a period ;
and it is now only left us to hope, that the obvious interests

3

4 Letters from an American Farmer

and mutual wants of both countries, may in due time, and
in spite of all obstacles, happily re-unite them.

Should our Farmer's letters be found to afford matter
of useful entertainment to an intelligent and candid public,
a second volume, equally interesting with those now
published, may soon be expected.

ADVERTISEMENT

[To the Second Edition, 1783.]

Since the publication of this volume, we hear thai Mr.
St. John has accepted a public employment at New York.
It is therefore, perhaps, doubtful whether he will soon
be at leisure to revise his papers, and give the world a
second collection of the American Fanner Letters.

TO THE

ABBfi RAYNAL, F.R.S.

BEHOLD, Sir, an humble American Planter, a simple
cultivator of the earth, addressing you from the farther
side of the Atlantic; and presuming to fix your name
at the head of his trifling lucubrations. I wish they
were worthy of so great an honour. Yet why should
not I be permitted to disclose those sentiments which
I have so often felt from my heart? A few years since,
I met accidentally with your Political and Philosophical
History, and perused it with infinite pleasure. For the
first time in my life I reflected on the relative state of
nations; I traced the extended ramifications of a com-
merce which ought to unite but now convulses the world ;
I admired that universal benevolence, that diffusive
goodwill, which is not confined to the narrow limits
of your own country; but, on the contrary, extends to
the whole human race. As an eloquent and powerful
advocate you have pleaded the cause of humanity in
espousing that of the poor Africans: you viewed these
provinces of North America in their true light, as the
asylum of freedom ; as the cradle of future nations, and
the refuge of distressed Europeans. Why then should
I refrain from loving and respecting a man whose
writings I so much admire? These two sentiments are
inseparable, at least in my breast. I conceived your
genius to be present at the head of my study: under its
invisible but powerful guidance, I prosecuted my small
labours: and now, permit me to sanctify them under
the auspices of your name. Let the sincerity of the

5

6 Letters from an American Farmer

motives which urge me, prevent you from thinking thai
this well meant address contains aught but the purest
tribute of reverence and affection. There is, no doubt,
a secret communion among good men throughout the
world; a mental affinity connecting them by a simili-
tude of sentiments: then, why, though an American,
should not I be permitted to share in that extensive
intellectual consanguinity? Yes, I do: and though
the name of a man who possesses neither titles nor
places, who never rose above the humble rank of a
farmer, may appear insignificant; yet, as the sentiments
1 have expressed are also the echo of those of my
countrymen; on their behalf, as well as on my own,
give me leave to subscribe myself,

Sir,
Your very sincere admirer,

J. HECTOR ST. JOHN.

CARLISLE IN PENNSYLVANIA.

LETTERS FROM
AN AMERICAN FARMER

LETTER I

INTRODUCTION

WHO would have thought that because I received you
with hospitality and kindness, you should imagine me
capable of writing with propriety and perspicuity?
Your gratitude misleads your judgment. The know-
ledge which I acquired from your conversation has
amply repaid me for your five weeks' entertainment.
I gave you nothing more than what common hospitality
dictated; but could any other guest have instructed
me as you did? You conducted me, on the map, from
one European country to another ; told me many extra-
ordinary things of our famed mother-country, of which
I knew very little; of its internal navigation, agriculture,
arts, manufactures, and trade: you guided me through
an extensive maze, and I abundantly profited by the
journey; the contrast therefore proves the debt of
gratitude to be on my side. The treatment you received
at my house proceeded from the warmth of my heart,
and from the corresponding sensibility of my wife;
what you now desire must flow from a very limited
power of mind: the task requires recollection, and a
variety of talents which I do not possess. It is true I
can describe our American modes of farming, our
manners, and peculiar customs, with some degree of

8 Letters from an American Farmer

propriety, because I have ever attentively studied them ;
but my knowledge extends no farther. And is this
local and unadorned information sufficient to answer
all your expectations, and to satisfy your curiosity? I
am surprised that in the course of your American
travels you should not have found out persons more
enlightened and better educated than I am; your
predilection excites my wonder much more than my
vanity ; my share of the latter being confined merely to
the neatness of my rural operations.

My father left me a few musty books, which his
father brought from England with him ; but what help
can I draw from a library consisting mostly of Scotch
Divinity, the Navigation of Sir Francis Drake, the
History of Queen Elizabeth, and a few miscellaneous
volumes ? Our minister often comes to see me, though
he lives upwards of twenty miles distant. I have
shown him your letter, asked his advice, and solicited
his assistance; he tells me, that he hath no time to spare,
for that like the rest of us must till his farm, and is more-
over to study what he is to say on the sabbath. My
wife (and I never do anything without consulting her)
laughs, and tells me that you cannot be in earnest.
What! says she, James, wouldst thee pretend to send
epistles to a great European man, who hath lived
abundance of time in that big house called Cambridge;
where, they say, that worldly learning is so abundant,
that people gets it only by breathing the air of the place ?
Wouldst not thee be ashamed to write unto a man who
has never in his life done a single day's work, no, not
even felled a tree; who hath expended the Lord knows
how many years in studying stars, geometry, stones,
and flies, and in reading folio books? Who hath
travelled, as he told us, to the city of Rome itself! Only
think of a London man going to Rome ! Where is it that
these English folks won't go? One who hath seen the

Introductory Letter 9

factory of brimstone at Suvius, and town of Pompey
under ground! wouldst thou pretend to letter it with
a person who hath been to Paris, to the Alps, to Peters-
burg, and who hath seen so many fine things up and
down the old countries; who hath come over the great
sea unto us, and hath journeyed from our New Hamp-
shire in the East to our Charles Town in the South;
who hath visited all our great cities, knows most of our
famous lawyers and cunning folks; who hath conversed
with very many king's men, governors, and counsellors,
and yet pitches upon thee for his correspondent, as thee
calls it? surely he means to jeer thee! I am sure he
does, he cannot be in a real fair earnest. James, thee
must read this letter over again, paragraph by paragraph,
and warily observe whether thee can'st perceive some
words of jesting; something that hath more than one
meaning: and now I think on it, husband, I wish thee
wouldst let me see his letter; though I am but a woman,
as thee mayest say, yet I understand the purport of
words in good measure, for when I was a girl, father
sent us to the very best master in the precinct. She
then read it herself very attentively: our minister was
present, we listened to, and weighed every syllable: we
all unanimously concluded that you must have been in
a sober earnest intention, as my wife calls it; and your
request appeared to be candid and sincere. Then again,
on recollecting the difference between your sphere of
life and mine, a new fit of astonishment seized us all!

Our minister took the letter from my wife, and read
it to himself; he made us observe the two last phrases,
and we weighed the contents to the best of our abilities.
The conclusion we all drew made me resolve at last to

write. You say you want nothing of me but what

lies within the reach of my experience and knowledge;
this I understand very well; the difficulty is, how to
collect, digest, and arrange what I know? Next you

B ^40

io Letters from an American Farmer

assert, that writing letters is nothing more than talking
on paper; which, I must confess, appeared to me quite
a new thought. Well then, observed our minister,
neighbour James, as you can talk well, I am sure you
must write tolerably well also; imagine, then, that
Mr. F. B. is still here, and simply write down what you
would say to him. Suppose the questions he will put
to you in his future letters to be asked by his viva voce,
as we used to call it at the college; then let your answers
be conceived and expressed exactly in the same language
as if he was present. This is all that he requires from
you, and I am sure the task is not difficult. He is your
friend : who would be ashamed to write to such a person ?
Although he is a man of learning and taste, yet I am
sure he will read your letters with pleasure: if they be
not elegant, they will smell of the woods, and be a little
wild; I know your turn, they will contain some matters
which he never knew before. Some people are so fond
of novelty, that they will overlook many errors oi
language for the sake of information. We are all apt
to love and admire exotics, tho' they may be often
inferior to what we possess; and that is the reason I
imagine why so many persons are continually going to
visit Italy. That country is the daily resort of modern
travellers.

James. I should like to know what is there to be
seen so goodly and profitable, that so many should wish
to visit no other country ?

Minister. I do not very well know. I fancy their
object is to trace the vestiges of a once flourishing people
now extinct. There they amuse themselves in viewing
the ruins of temples and other buildings which have
very little affinity with those of the present age, and
must therefore impart a knowledge which appears
useless and trifling. I have often wondered that no
skilful botanists or learned men should come over here;

Introductory Letter 1 1

methinks there would be much more real satisfaction in
observing among us the humble rudiments and embryos
of societies spreading everywhere, the recent foundation
of our towns, and the settlements of so many rural
districts. I am sure that the rapidity of their growth
would be more pleasing to behold, than the ruins of old
towers, useless aqueducts, or impending battlements.

James. What you say, minister, seems very true:
do go on : I always love to hear you talk.

Minister. Don't you think, neighbour James, that
the mind of a good and enlightened Englishman would
be more improved in remarking throughout these
provinces the causes which render so many people
happy? In delineating the unnoticed means by which
we daily increase the extent of our settlements ? How
we convert huge forests into pleasing fields, and exhibit
through these thirteen provinces so singular a display
of easy subsistence and political felicity.

In Italy all the objects of contemplation, all the
reveries of the traveller, must have a reference to ancient
generations, and to very distant periods, clouded with
the mist of ages. Here, on the contrary, everything is
modern, peaceful, and benign. Here we have had no
war to desolate our fields : l our religion does not oppress
the cultivators : we are strangers to those feudal institu-
tions which have enslaved so many. Here nature
opens her broad lap to receive the perpetual accession
of new comers, and to supply them with food. I am
sure I cannot be called a partial American when I say
that the spectacle afforded by these pleasing scenes
must be more entertaining and more philosophical than
that which arises from beholding the musty ruins of
Rome. Here everything would inspire the reflecting

1 The troubles that now convulse the American colonies
had not broke out when this and some of the following
letters were written.

1 2 Letters from an American Farmer

traveller with the most philanthropic ideas; his imagina-
tion, instead of submitting to the painful and useless
retrospect of revolutions, desolations, and plagues,
would, on the contrary, wisely spring forward to the
anticipated fields of future cultivation and improve-
ment, to the future extent of those generations which
are to replenish and embellish this boundless continent.
There the half-ruined amphitheatres, and the putrid
fevers of the Campania, must fill the mind with the most
melancholy reflections, whilst he is seeking for the
origin and the intention of those structures with which
he is surrounded, and for the cause of so great a decay.
Here he might contemplate the very beginnings and
outlines of human society, which can be traced nowhere
now but in this part of the world. The rest of the earth,
I am told, is in some places too full, in others half de-
populated. Misguided religion, tyranny, and absurd
laws everywhere depress and afflict mankind. Here
we have in some measure regained the ancient dignity
of our species; our laws are simple and just, we are a
race of cultivators, our cultivation is unrestrained, and
therefore everything is prosperous and flourishing. For
my part I had rather admire the ample barn of one of
our opulent farmers, who himself felled the first tree in
his plantation, and was the first founder of his settle-
ment, than study the dimensions of the temple of Ceres.
I had rather record the progressive steps of this in-
dustrious farmer, throughout all the stages of his
labours and other operations, than examine how
modern Italian convents can be supported without
doing anything but singing and praying.

However confined the field of speculation might be
here, the time of English travellers would not be wholly
lost. The new and unexpected aspect of our extensive
settlements ; of our fine rivers ; that great field of action
everywhere visible; that ease, that peace with which

Introductory Letter 13

so many people live together, would greatly interest
the observer: for whatever difficulties there might
happen in the object of their researches, that hospitality
which prevails from one end of the continent to the
other would in all parts facilitate their excursions.
As it is from the surface of the ground which we till
that we have gathered the wealth we possess, the surface
of that ground is therefore the only thing that has
hitherto been known. It will require the industry of
subsequent ages, the energy of future generations, ere
mankind here will have leisure and abilities to penetrate
deep, and, in the bowels of this continent, search for
the subterranean riches it no doubt contains. Neigh-
bour James, we want much the assistance of men of
leisure and knowledge, we want eminent chemists to
inform our iron masters; to teach us how to make and
prepare most of the colours we use. Here we have none
equal to this task. If any useful discoveries are there-
fore made among us, they are the effects of chance, or
else arise from that restless industry which is the prin-
cipal characteristic of these colonies.

James. Oh! could I express myself as you do, my
friend, I should not balance a single instant, I should
rather be anxious to commence a correspondence which
would do me credit.

Minister. You can write full as well as you need, and
will improve very fast; trust to my prophecy, your
letters, at least, will have the merit of coming from the
edge of the great wilderness, three hundred miles from
the sea, and three thousand miles over that sea: this will
be no detriment to them, take my word for it. You
intend one of your children for the gown, who knows but
Mr. F. B. may give you some assistance when the lad
comes to have concerns with the bishop; it is good for
American fanners to have friends even in England.
What he requires of you is but simple what we speak

14 Letters from an American Farmer

out among ourselves we call conversation, and a letter
is only conversation put down in black and white.

James. You quite persuade me if he laughs at my
awkwardness, surely he will be pleased with my ready
compliance. On my part, it will be well meant let the
execution be what it may. I will write enough, and so
let him have the trouble of sifting the good from the
bad, the useful from the trifling; let him select what
he may want, and reject what may not answer his
purpose. After all, it is but treating Mr. F. B. now
that he is in London, as I treated him when he was in
America under this roof; that is with the best things I
had; given with a good intention ; and the best manner
I was able. Very different, James, very different
indeed, said my wife, I like not thy comparison; our
small house and cellar, our orchard and garden afforded
what he wanted; one half of his time Mr. F. B., poor
man, lived upon nothing but fruit-pies, or peaches and
milk. Now these things were such as God had given
us, myself and wench did the rest; we were not the
creators of these victuals, we only cooked them as well
and as neat as we could. The first thing, James, is to
know what sort of materials thee hast within thy own
self, and then whether thee canst dish them up. Well,
well, wife, thee art wrong for once; if I was filled with
worldly vanity, thy rebuke would be timely, but thee
knowest that I have but little of that. How shall I
know what I am capable of till I try ? Hadst thee never
employed thyself in thy father's house to learn and to
practise the many branches of house-keeping that thy
parents were famous for, thee wouldst have made but a
sorry wife for an American farmer; thee never shouldst
have been mine. I married thee not for what thee
hadst, but for what thee knewest; doest not thee observe
what Mr. F. B. says beside; he tells me, that the art of
writing is just like unto every other art of man; that

Introductory Letter 15

it is acquired by habit, and by perseverance. That is
singular ly true, said our minister, he that shall write a
letter every day of the week, will on Saturday perceive
the sixth flowing from his pen much more readily than
the first. I observed when I first entered into the
ministry and began to preach the word, I felt perplexed
and dry, my mind was like unto a parched soil, which
produced nothing, not even weeds. By the blessing of
heaven, and my perseverance in study, I grew richer
in thoughts, phrases, and words; I felt copious, and now
I can abundantly preach from any text that occurs to
my mind. So will it be with you, neighbour James;
begin therefore without delay; and Mr. F. B.'s letters
may be of great service to you : he will, no doubt, in-
form you of many things: correspondence consists in
reciprocal letters. Leave off your diffidence, and I will
do my best to help you whenever I have any leisure.
Well then, I am resolved, I said, to follow your counsel ;
my letters shall not be sent, nor will I receive any,
without reading them to you and my wife; women are
curious, they love to know their husband's secrets; it
will not be the first thing which I have submitted to
your joint opinions. Whenever you come to dine with
us, these shall be the last dish on the table. Nor will
they be the most unpalatable, answered the good man.
Nature hath given you a tolerable share of sense, and
that is one of her best gifts let me tell you. She has
given you besides some perspicuity, which qualifies you
to distinguish interesting objects; a warmth of imagina-
tion which enables you to think with quickness; you
often extract useful reflections from objects which
presented none to my mind: you have a tender and a
well meaning heart, you love description, and your
pencil, assure yourself, is not a bad one for the pencil of
a farmer; it seems to be held without any labour; your
mind is what we called at Yale college a Tabula rasa,

1 6 Letters from an American Farmer

where spontaneous and strong impressions are delineated
with facility. Ah, neighbour! had you received but
half the education of Mr. F. B. you had been a worthy
correspondent indeed. But perhaps you will be a more
entertaining one dressed in your simple American garb,
than if you were clad in all the gowns of Cambridge.
You will appear to him something like one of our wild
American plants, irregularly luxuriant hi its various
branches, which an European scholar may probably
think ill placed and useless. If our soil is not remark-
able as yet for the excellence of its fruits, this exuberance
is however a strong proof of fertility, which wants
nothing but the progressive knowledge acquired by
time to amend and to correct. It is easier to retrench
than it is to add; I do not mean to flatter you, neighbour
James, adulation would ill become my character, you
may therefore believe what your pastor says. Were I
in Europe I should be tired with perpetually seeing
espaliers, plashed hedges, and trees dwarfed into
pigmies. Do let Mr. F. B. see on paper a few American
wild cherry trees, such as nature forms them here, in
all her unconfined vigour, in all the amplitude of their
extended limbs and spreading ramifications let him
see that we are possessed with strong vegetative embryos.
After all, why should not a farmer be allowed to make
use of his mental faculties as well as others; because a
man works, is not he to think, and if he thinks usefully,
why should not he in his leisure hours set down his
thoughts ? I have composed many a good sermon as 1
followed my plough. The eyes not being then engaged
on any particular object, leaves the mind free for the
introduction of many useful ideas. It is not in the noisy
shop of a blacksmith or of a carpenter, that these studious
moments can be enjoyed; it is as we silently till the
ground, and muse along the odoriferous furrows of our
low lands, uninterrupted either by stones or stumps;

Introductory Letter 17

it is there that the salubrious effluvia of the earth
animate our spirits and serve to inspire us ; every other
avocation of our farms are severe labours compared to
this pleasing occupation: of all the tasks which mine
imposes on me ploughing is the most agreeable, because
I can think as I work ; my mind is at leisure ; my labour
flows from instinct, as well as that of my horses; there
is no kind of difference between us in our different
shares of that operation; one of them keeps the furrow,
the other avoids it; at the end of my field they turn
either to the right or left as they are bid, whilst I thought-
lessly hold and guide the plough to which they are
harnessed. Do therefore, neighbour, begin this corre-
spondence, and persevere, difficulties will vanish in
proportion as you draw near them; you'll be surprised
at yourself by and by: when you come to look back
you'll say as I have often said to myself; had I been
diffident I had never proceeded thus far. Would you
painfully till your stony up-land and neglect the fine
rich bottom which lies before your door? Had you
never tried, you never had learned how to mend and
make your ploughs. It will be no small pleasure to
your children to tell hereafter, that their father was not
only one of the most industrious farmers in the country,
but one of the best writers. When you have once
begun, do as when you begin breaking up your summer
fallow, you never consider what remains to be done, you
view only what you have ploughed. Therefore, neigh-
bour James, take my advice; it will go well with you,

I am sure it will. And do you really think so, Sir?

Your counsel, which I have long followed, weighs much
with me, I verily believe that I must write to Mr. F. B.

by the first vessel. If thee persistcst in being such a

foolhardy man, said my wife, for God's sake let it be
kept a profound secret among us ; if it were once known
abroad that thee writest to a great and rich man over

1 8 Letters from an American Farmer

at London, there would be no end of the talk of the
people; some would vow that thee art going to turn an
author, others would pretend to foresee some great
alterations in the welfare of thy family ; some would say
this, some would say that: Who would wish to become
the subject of public talk? Weigh this matter well
before thee beginnest, James consider that a great deal
of thy time, and of thy reputation is at stake as I may
say. Wert thee to write as well as friend Edmund,
whose speeches I often see in our papers, it would be the
very self same thing ; thee wouldst be equally accused of
idleness, and vain notions not befitting thy condition.
Our colonel would be often coming here to know what
it is that thee canst write so much about. Some would
imagine that thee wan test to become either an assembly-
man or a magistrate, which God forbid; and that thee
art telling the king's men abundance of things. Instead
of being well looked upon as now, and living in peace
with all the world, our neighbours would be making
strange surmises: I had rather be as we are, neither
better nor worse than the rest of our country folks. Thee
knowest what I mean, though I should be sorry to
deprive thee of any honest recreation. Therefore as I
have said before, let it be as great a secret as if it was
some heinous crime; the minister, I am sure, will not
divulge it; as for my part, though I am a woman, yet
I know what it is to be a wife. I would not have thee,
James, pass for what the world calleth a writer; no, not
for a peck of gold, as the saying is. Thy father before
thee was a plain dealing honest man, punctual in all
things; he was one of yea and nay, of few words, all he
minded was his farm and his work. I wonder from
whence thee hast got this love of the pen? Had he
spent his time in sending epistles to and fro, he never
would have left thee this goodly plantation, free from
debt. All I say is in good meaning; great people over

Introductory Letter 19

sea may write to our town's folks, because they have
nothing else to do. These Englishmen are strange
people ; because they can live upon what they call bank
notes, without working, they think that all the world
can do the same. This goodly country never would
have been tilled and cleared with these notes. I am
sure when Mr. F. B. was here, he saw thee sweat and
take abundance of pains; he often told me how the
Americans worked a great deal harder than the home
Englishmen; for there he told us, that they have no
trees to cut down, no fences to make, no negroes to buy
and to clothe: and now I think on it, when wilt thee
send him those trees he bespoke? But if they have
no trees to cut down, they have gold in abundance,
they say; for they rake it and scrape it from all parts
far and near. I have often heard my grandfather tell
how they live there by writing. By writing they send
this cargo unto us, that to the West, and the other to
the East Indies. But, James, thee knowest that it is
not by writing that we shall pay the blacksmith, the
minister, the weaver, the tailor, and the English shop.
But as thee art an early man follow thine own inclina-
tions; thee wantest some rest, I am sure, and why
shouldst thee not employ it as it may seem meet unto
thee. However let it be a great secret; how wouldst
thee bear to be called at our country meetings, the man
of the pen? If this scheme of thine was once known,
travellers as they go along would point out to our house,
saying, here liveth the scribbling farmer; better hear
them as usual observe, here liveth the warm substantial
family, that never begrudge th a meal of victuals, or a
mess of oats, to any one that steps in. Look how fat
and well clad their negroes are.

Thus, Sir, have I given you an unaffected and candid
detail of the conversation which determined me to
accept of your invitation. I thought it necessary thus

20 Letters from an American Farmer

to begin, and to let you into these primary secrets, to
the end that you may not hereafter reproach me with
any degree of presumption. You'll plainly see the
motives which have induced me to begin, the fears
which I have entertained, and the principles on which
my diffidence hath been founded. I have now nothing
to do but to prosecute my task Remember you are to
give me my subjects, and on no other shall I write, lest
you should blame me for an injudicious choice How-
ever incorrect my style, however unexpert my methods,
however trifling my observations may hereafter appear
to you, assure yourself they will all be the genuine
dictates of my mind, and I hope will prove acceptable
on that account. Remember that you have laid the
foundation of this correspondence; you well know that
I am neither a philosopher, politician, divine, nor
naturalist, but a simple farmer. I flatter myself, there-
fore, that you'll receive my letters as conceived, not
according to scientific rules to which I am a perfect
stranger, but agreeable to the spontaneous impressions
which each subject may inspire. This is the only line
I arn able to follow, the line which nature has herself
traced for me; this was the covenant which I made
with you, and with which you seemed to be well pleased.
Had you wanted the style of the learned, the reflections
of the patriot, the discussions of the politician, the
curious observations of the naturalist, the pleasing garb
of the man of taste, surely you would have applied to
some of those men of letters with which our cities
abound. But since on the contrary, and for what
reason I know not, you wish to correspond with a
cultivator of the earth, with a simple citizen, you must
receive my letters for better or worse.

LETTER II

ON THE SITUATION, FEELINGS, AND PLEASURES, OF AN
AMERICAN FARMER

As you are the first enlightened European I have ever
had the pleasure of being acquainted with, you will not
be surprised that I should, according to your earnest
desire and my promise, appear anxious of preserving
your friendship and correspondence. By your accounts,
I observe a material difference subsists between your
husbandry, modes, and customs, and ours; everything
is local; could we enjoy the advantages of the English
farmer, we should be much happier, indeed, but this
wish, like many others, implies a contradiction; and
could the English farmer have some of those privileges
we possess, they would be the first of their class in the
world. Good and evil I see is to be found in all societies,
and it is in vain to seek for any spot where those in-
gredients are not mixed. I therefore rest satisfied, and
thank God that my lot is to be an American farmer,
instead of a Russian boor, or an Hungarian peasant.
I thank you kindly for the idea, however dreadful,
which you have given me of their lot and condition;
your observations have confirmed me in the justness of
my ideas, and I am happier now than I thought myself
before. It is strange that misery, when viewed in others,
should become to us a sort of real good, though I am
far from rejoicing to hear that there are in the world
men so thoroughly wretched ; they are no doubt as harm-
less, industrious, and willing to work as we are. Hard
is their fate to be thus condemned to a slavery worse

21

22 Letters from an American Farmer

than that of our negroes. Yet when young I enter-
tained some thoughts of selling my farm. I thought it
afforded but a dull repetition of the same labours and
pleasures. I thought the former tedious and heavy,
the latter few and insipid; but when I came to consider
myself as divested of my farm, I then found the world
so wide, and every place so full, that I began to fear
lest there would be no room for me. My farm, my house,
my barn, presented to my imagination objects from
which I adduced quite new ideas; they were more
forcible than before. Why should not I find myself
happy, said I, where my father was before? He left
me no good books it is true, he gave me no other educa-
tion than the art of reading and writing; but he left
me a good farm, and his experience; he left me free
from debts, and no kind of difficulties to struggle with.
I married, and this perfectly reconciled me to my
situation ; my wife rendered my house all at once cheer-
ful and pleasing; it no longer appeared gloomy and
solitary as before; when I went to work in my fields I
worked with more alacrity and sprightliness ; I felt that
I did not work for myself alone, and this encouraged
me much. My wife would often come with her knitting
in her hand, and sit under the shady trees, praising the
straightness of my furrows, and the docility of my
horses; this swelled my heart and made everything
light and pleasant, and I regretted that I had not
married before.

I felt myself happy in my new situation, and where is
that station which can conifer a more substantial system
of felicity than that of an American farmer, possessing
freedom of action, freedom of thoughts, ruled by a
mode of government which requires but little from us?
I owe nothing, but a pepper corn to my country, a small
tribute to my king, with loyalty and due respect; I
know no other landlord than the lord of all land, to whom

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 23

I owe the most sincere gratitude. My father left me
three hundred and seventy-one acres of land, forty-
seven of which are good timothy meadow, an excellent
orchard, a good house, and a substantial barn. It is
my duty to think how happy I am that he lived to build
and to pay for all these improvements; what are the
labours which I have to undergo, what are my fatigues
when compared to his, who had everything to do, from
the first tree he felled to the finishing of his house?
Every year I kill from 1500 to 2000 weight of pork,
1 200 of beef, half a dozen of good wethers in harvest
of fowls my wife has always a great stock: what can I
wish more? My negroes are tolerably faithful and
healthy ; by a long series of industry and honest dealings,
my father left behind him the name of a good man; I
have but to tread his paths to be happy and a good
man like him. I know enough of the law to regulate my
little concerns with propriety, nor do I dread its power;
these are the grand outlines of my situation, but as I
can feel much more than I am able to express, I hardly
know how to proceed.

When my first son was born, the whole train of my
ideas were suddenly altered; never was there a charm
that acted so quickly and powerfully; I ceased to
ramble in imagination through the wide world; my
excursions since have not exceeded the bounds of my
farm, and all my principal pleasures are now centred
within its scanty limits: but at the same time there is
not an operation belonging to it in which I do not find
some food for useful reflections. This is the reason, I
suppose, that when you was here, you used, in your
refined style, to denominate me the farmer of feelings;
how rude must those feelings be in him who daily holds
the axe or the plough, how much more refined on the
contrary those of the European, whose mind is improved
by education, example, books, and by every acquired

24 Letters from an American Farmer

advantage ! Those feelings, however, I will delineate as
well as I can, agreeably to your earnest request.

When I contemplate my wife, by my fire-side, while she
either spins, knits, darns, or suckles our child, I cannot
describe the various emotions of love, of gratitude, of
conscious pride, which thrill in my heart and often over-
flow in involuntary tears. I feel the necessity, the
sweet pleasure of acting my part, the part of an husband
and father, with an attention and propriety which may
entitle me to my good fortune. It is true these pleasing
images vanish with the smoke of my pipe, but though
they disappear from my mind, the impression they have
made on my heart is indelible. When I play with the
infant, my warm imagination runs forward, and eagerly
anticipates his future temper and constitution. I
would willingly open the book of fate, and know in
which page his destiny is delineated; alas! where is the
father who in those moments of paternal ecstasy can
delineate one half of the thoughts which dilate his heart ?
I am sure I cannot; then again I fear for the health of
those who are become so dear to me, and in their sick-
nesses I severely pay for the joys I experienced while
they were well. Whenever I go abroad it is always
involuntary. I never return home without feeling
some pleasing emotion, which I often suppress as useless
and foolish. The instant I enter on my own land, the
bright idea of property, of exclusive right, of independ-
ence exalt my mind. Precious soil, I say to myself, by
what singular custom of law is it that thou wast made
to constitute the riches of the freeholder ? What should
we American farmers be without the distinct possession
of that soil? It feeds, it clothes us, from it we draw
even a great exuberancy, our best meat, our richest
drink, the very honey of our bees comes from this
privileged spot. No wonder we should thus cherish its
possession, no wonder that so many Europeans who

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 25

have never been able to say that such portion of land
was theirs, cross the Atlantic to realise that happiness.
This formerly rude soil has been converted by my father
into a pleasant farm, and in return it has established all
our rights ; on it is founded our rank, our freedom, our
power as citizens, our importance as inhabitants of such
a district. These images I must confess I always behold
with pleasure, and extend them as far as my imagina-
tion can reach: for this is what may be called the true
and the only philosophy of an American farmer.

Pray do not laugh in thus seeing an artless country-
man tracing himself through the simple modifications of
his life; remember that you have required it, therefore
with candour, though with diffidence, I endeavour to
follow the thread of my feelings, but I cannot tell you
all. Often when I plough my low ground, I place my
little boy on a chair which screws to the beam of the
plough its motion and that of the horses please him,
he is perfectly happy and begins to chat. As I lean over
the handle, various are the thoughts which crowd into
my mind. I am now doing for him, I say, what my
father formerly did for me, may God enable him to live
that he may perform the same operations for the same
purposes when I am worn out and old! I relieve his
mother of some trouble while I have him with me, the
odoriferous furrow exhilarates his spirits, and seems to do
the child a great deal of good, for he looks more bloom-
ing since I have adopted that practice; can more
pleasure, more dignity be added to that primary occupa-
tion ? The father thus ploughing with his child, and to
feed his family, is inferior only to the emperor of China
ploughing as an example to his kingdom. In the evening
when I return home through my low grounds, I am
astonished at the myriads of insects which I perceive
dancing in the beams of the setting sun. I was before
scarcely acquainted with their existence, they are so

26 Letters from an American Farmer

small that it is difficult to distinguish them; they are
carefully improving this short evening space, not daring
to expose themselves to the blaze of our meridian sun.
I never see an egg brought on my table but I feel pene-
trated with the wonderful change it would have under-
gone but for my gluttony; it might have been a gentle
useful hen leading her chickens with a care and vigilance
which speaks shame to many women. A cock perhaps,
arrayed with the most majestic plumes, tender to its
mate, bold, courageous, endowed with an astonishing
instinct, with thoughts, with memory, and every dis-
tinguishing characteristic of the reason of man. I never
see my trees drop their leaves and their fruit in the
autumn, and bud again in the spring, without wonder;
the sagacity of those animals which have long been the
tenants of my farm astonish me: some of them seem to
surpass even men in memory and sagacity. I could
tell you singular instances of that kind. What then is
this instinct which we so debase, and of which we are
taught to entertain so diminutive an idea? My bees,
above any other tenants of my farm, attract my atten-
tion and respect; I am astonished to see that nothing
exists but what has its enemy, one species pursue and
live upon the other: unfortunately our kingbirds are
the destroyers of those industrious insects; but on the
other hand, these birds preserve our fields from the
depredation of crows which they pursue on the wing
with great vigilance and astonishing dexterity.

Thus divided by two interested motives, I have long
resisted the desire I had to kill them, until last year,
when I thought they increased too much, and my
indulgence had been carried too far; it was at the time
of swarming when they all came and fixed themselves
on the neighbouring trees, from whence they catched
those that returned loaded from the fields. This made
me resolve to kill as many as I could, and I was just

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 27

ready to fire, when a bunch of bees as big as my fist,
issued from one of the hives, rushed on one of the birds,
and probably stung him, for he instantly screamed,
and flew, not as before, in an irregular manner, but in a
direct line. He was followed by the same bold phalanx,
at a considerable distance, which unfortunately becoming
too sure of victory, quitted their military array and
disbanded themselves. By this inconsiderate step they
lost all that aggregate of force which had made the
bird fly off. Perceiving their disorder he immediately
returned and snapped as many as he wanted; nay, he
had even the impudence to alight on the very twig from
which the bees had drove him. I killed him and im-
mediately opened his craw, from which I took 171 bees ;
I laid them all on a blanket in the sun, and to my great
surprise 54 returned to life, licked themselves clean,
and joyfully went back to the hive; where they
probably informed their companions of such an adven-
ture and escape, as I believe had never happened before
to American bees ! I draw a great fund of pleasure from
the quails which inhabit my farm; they abundantly
repay me, by their various notes and peculiar tameness,
for the inviolable hospitality I constantly show them in
the winter. Instead of perfidiously taking advantage
of their great and affecting distress, when nature offers
nothing but a barren universal bed of snow, when irre-
sistible necessity forces them to my barn doors, I permit
them to feed unmolested ; and it is not the least agreeable
spectable which that dreary season presents, when I see
those beautiful birds, tamed by hunger, intermingling
with all my cattle and sheep, seeking in security for the
poor scanty grain which but for them would be useless
and lost. Often in the angles of the fences where the
motion of the wind prevents the snow from settling, I
carry them both chaff and grain; the one to feed them,
the other to prevent their tender feet from freezing

28 Letters from an American Farmer

fast to the earth as I have frequently observed them
to do.

I do not know an instance in which the singular
barbarity of man is so strongly delineated, as in the
catching and murthering those harmless birds, at that

cruel season of the year. Mr. , one of the most

famous and extraordinary farmers that has ever done
honour to the province of Connecticut, by his timely
and humane assistance in a hard winter, saved this
species from being entirely destroyed. They perished all
over the country, none of their delightful whistlings
were heard the next spring, but upon this gentleman's
farm; and to his humanity we owe the continuation of
their music. When the severities of that season have
dispirited all my cattle, no farmer ever attends them
with more pleasure than I do; it is one of those duties
which is sweetened with the most rational satisfaction.
I amuse myself in beholding their different tempers,
actions, and the various effects of their instinct now
powerfully impelled by the force of hunger. I trace their
various inclinations, and the different effects of their
passions, which are exactly the same as among men;
the law is to us precisely what I am in my barn yard, a
bridle and check to prevent the strong and greedy from
oppressing the timid and weak. Conscious of superiority,
they always strive to encroach on their neighbours;
unsatisfied with their portion, they eagerly swallow it in
order to have an Opportunity of taking what is given to
others, except they are prevented. Some I chide, others,
unmindful of my admonitions, receive some blows.
Could victuals thus be given to men without the assist-
ance of any language, I am sure they would not behave
better to one another, nor more philosophically than
my cattle do.

The same spirit prevails in the stable; but there I
have to do with more generous animals, there my well-

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 29

known voice has immediate influence, and soon restores
peace and tranquillity. Thus by superior knowledge I
govern all my cattle as wise men are obliged to govern
fools and the ignorant. A variety of other thoughts
crowd on my mind at that peculiar instant, but they all
vanish by the time I return home. If in a cold night I
swiftly travel in my sledge, carried along at the rate oi
twelve miles an hour, many are the reflections excited
by surrounding circumstances. I ask myself what sort
of an agent is that which we call frost? Our minister
compares it to needles, the points of which enter our
pores. What is become of the heat of the summer; in
what part of the world is it that the N. W. keeps these
grand magazines of nitre ? when I see in the morning a
river over which I can travel, that in the evening before
was liquid, I am astonished indeed! What is become
of those millions of insects which played in our summer
fields, and in our evening meadows; they were so puny
and so delicate, the period of their existence was so
4iort, that one cannot help wondering how they could
learn, in that short space, the sublime art to hide them-
selves and their of spring in so perfect a manner as to
baffle the rigour of the season, and preserve that precious
embryo of life, that small portion of ethereal heat, which
if once destroyed would destroy the species! Whence
that irresistible propensity to sleep so common in all
those who are severely attacked by the frost. Dreary as
this season appears, yet it has like all others its miracles,
it presents to man a variety of problems which he can
never resolve; among the rest, we have here a set of
small birds which never appear until the snow falls;
contrary to all others, they dwell and appear to delight
in that element.

It is my bees, however, which afford me the most
pleasing and extensive themes; let me look at them
when I will, their government, tbeir industry, their

30 Letters from an American Farmer

quarrels, their passions, always present me with some-
thing new; for which reason, when weary with labour
my common place of rest is under my locust-tree, close
by my bee-house. By their movements I can predicl
the weather, and can tell the day of their swarming
but the most difficult point is, when on the wing, tc
know whether they want to go to the woods or not. 11
they have previously pitched in some hollow trees, i1
is not the allurements of salt and water, of fennel
hickory leaves, etc., nor the finest box, that can induce
them to stay; they will prefer those rude, rough habita-
tions to the best polished mahogany hive. When thai
is the case with mine, I seldom thwart their inclinations ,
it is in freedom that they work: were I to confine them )
they would dwindle away and quit their labour. IE
such excursions we only part for a while ; I am generally
sure to find them again the following fall. This elope-
ment of theirs only adds to my recreations; I know
how to deceive even their superlative instinct ; nor do ]
fear losing them, though eighteen miles from my house,
and lodged in the most lofty trees, in the most impervious
of our forests. I once took you along with me in one oi
these rambles, and yet you insist on my repeating the
detail of our operations: it brings back into my mind
many of the useful and entertaining reflections with
which you so happily beguiled our tedious hours.

After I have done sowing, by way of recreation, 1
prepare for a week's jaunt in the woods, not to hunt
either the deer or the bears, as my neighbours do, but
to catch the more harmless bees. I cannot boast that
this chase is so noble, or so famous among men, but I
find it less fatiguing, and full as profitable; and the last
consideration is the only one that moves me. I take
with me my dog, as a companion, for he is useless as tc
this game ; my gun, for no man you know ought to enter
the woods without one; my blanket, some provisions,

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 3 i

some wax, vermilion, honey, and a small pocket compass.
With these implements I proceed to such woods as are
at a considerable distance from any settlements. I
carefully examine whethei they abound with large trees,
if so, I make a small fire on some flat stones, in a con-
venient place ; on the fire I put some wax ; close by this
fire, on another stone, I drop honey in distinct drops,
which I surround with small quantities of vermilion,
laid on the stone; and then I retire carefully to watch
whether any bees appear. If there are any in that
neighbourhood, I rest assured that the smell of the
burnt wax will unavoidably attract them; they will
soon find out the honey, for they are fond of preying on
that which is not their own; and in their approach
they will necessarily tinge themselves with some particles
of vermilion, which will adhere long to their bodies. I
next fix my compass, to find out their course, which they
keep invariably straight, when they are returning home
loaded. By the assistance of my watch, I observe how
long those are returning which are marked with
vermilion. Thus possessed of the course, and, in some
measure, of the distance, which I can easily guess at, I
follow the first, and seldom fail of coming to the tree
where those republics are lodged. I then mark it; and
thus, with patience, I have found out sometimes eleven
swarms in a season; and it is inconceivable what a
quantity of honey these trees will sometimes afford.
It entirely depends on the size of the hollow, as the bees
never rest nor swarm till it is all replenished; for like
men, it is only the want of room that induces them to
quit the maternal hive. Next I proceed to some of the
nearest settlements, where I procure proper assistance
to cut down the trees, get all my prey secured, and then
return home with my prize. The first bees I ever pro-
cured were thus found in the woods, by mere accident;
for at that time I had no kind of skill in this method of

32 Letters from an American Farmer

tracing them. The body of the tree being perfectly
sound, they had lodged themselves in the hollow of one
of its principal limbs, which I carefully sawed off and
with a good deal of labour and industry brought it home,
where I fixed it up again in the same position in which I
found it growing. This was in April ; I had five swarms
that year, and they have been ever since very prosperous.
This business generally takes up a week of my time every
fall, and to me it is a week of solitary ease and relaxation.
The seed is by that time committed to the ground ;
there is nothing very material to do at home, and thk
additional quantity of honey enables me to be more
generous to my home bees, and my wife to make a due
quantity of mead. The reason, Sir, that you found
mine better than that of others is, that she puts two
gallons of brandy in each barrel, which ripens it, 3nd
takes off that sweet, luscious taste, which it is apt to
retain a long time. If we find anywhere in the woods
(no matter on whose land) what is called a bee-tree, we
must mark it; in the fall of the year when we propose
to cut it down, our duty is to inform the proprietor of
the land, who is entitled to half the contents; if this is
not complied with we are exposed to an action of trespass,
as well as he who should go and cut down a bee-tree
which he had neither found out nor marked.

We have twice a year the pleasure of catching pigeons,
whose numbers are sometimes so astonishing as to
obscure the sun in their flight. Where is it that they
hatch? for such multitudes must require an immense
quantity of food. I fancy they breed toward the plains
of Ohio, and those about lake Michigan, which abound
in wild oats; though I have never killed any that had
that grain in their craws. In one of them, last year, 1
found some undigested rice. Now the nearest rice
fields from where I live must be at least 560 miles; and
cither their digestion must be suspended while they are

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 33

flying, or else they must fly with the celerity of the wind.
We catch them with a net extended on the ground, to
which they are allured by what we call tame wild pigeons,
made blind, and fastened to a long string; his short
flights, and his. repeated calls, never fail to bring them
down. The greatest number I ever catched was four-
teen dozen, though much larger quantities have often
been trapped. I have frequently seen them at the
market so cheap, that for a penny you might have as
many as you could carry away ; and yet from the extreme
cheapness you must not conclude, that they are but an
ordinary food; on the contrary, 1 think they are excel-
lent. Every farmer has a tame wild pigeon in a cage at
his door all the year round, in order to be ready when-
ever the season comes for catching them.

The pleasure I receive from the warblings of the birds
in the spring, is superior to my poor description, as the
continual succession of their tuneful notes is for ever
new to me. I generally rise from bed about that in-
distinct interval, which, properly speaking, is neither
night or day ; for this is the moment of the most universal
vocal choir. Who can listen unmoved to the sweet love
tales of our robins, told from tree to tree? or to the
shrill cat birds ? The sublime accents of the thrush from
on high always retard my steps that I may listen to the
delicious music. The variegated appearances of the
dew drops, as they hang to the different objects, must
present even to a clownish imagination, the most
voluptuous ideas. The astonishing art which all birds
display in the construction of their nests, ill provided
as we may suppose them with proper tools, their neat-
ness, their convenience, always make me ashamed oi
the slovenliness of our houses ; their love to their dame,
their incessant careful attention, and the peculiar songs
they address to her while she tediously incubates their
eggs, remind me of my duty could I ever forget it. Their

34 Letters from an American Farmer

affection to their helpless little ones, is a lively precept ;
and in short, the whole economy of what we proudly
call the brute creation, is admirable in every circum-
stance; and vain man, though adorned with the
additional gift of reason, might learn from the perfection
of instinct, how to regulate the follies, and how to temper
the errors which this second gift often makes him commit.
This is a subject, on which I have often bestowed the
most serious thoughts; I have often blushed within
myself, and been greatly astonished, when I have com-
pared the unerring path they all follow, all just, all
proper, all wise, up to the necessary degree of perfection,
with the coarse, the imperfect systems of men, not
merely as governors and kings, but as masters, as
husbands, as fathers, as citizens. But this is a sanctuary
in which an ignorant farmer must not presume to enter.

If ever man was permitted to receive and enjoy some
blessings that might alleviate the many sorrows to which
he is exposed, it is certainly in the country, when he
attentively considers those ravishing scenes with which
he is everywhere surrounded. This is the only time of
the year in which I am avaricious of every moment, I
therefore lose none that can add to this simple and
inoffensive happiness. I roam early throughout all my
fields; not the least operation do I perform, which is
not accompanied with the most pleasing observations;
were I to extend them as far as I have carried them, I
should become tedious; you would think me guilty of
affectation, and I should perhaps represent many things
as pleasurable from which you might not perhaps receive
the least agreeable emotions. But, believe me, what I
write is all true and real.

Some time ago, as I sat smoking a contemplative pipe
in my piazza, I saw with amazement a remarkable
instance of selfishness displayed in a very small bird,
which I had hitherto respected for its inoffensiveness.

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 35

Three nests were placed almost contiguous to each
other in my piazza: that of a swallow was affixed in the
corner next to the house, that of a phebe in the other, a
wren possessed a little box which I had made on purpose,
and hung between. Be not surprised at their tame-
ness, all my family had long been taught to respect
them as well as myself. The wren had shown before
signs of dislike to the box which I had given it, but I
knew not on what account; at last it resolved, small as
it was, to drive the swallow from its own habitation, and
to my very great surprise it succeeded. Impudence
often gets the better of modesty, and this exploit was no
sooner performed, than it removed every material to its
own box with the most admirable dexterity; the signs
of triumph appeared very visible, it fluttered its wings
with uncommon velocity, an universal joy was perceiv-
able in all its movements. Where did this little bird
learn that spirit of injustice ? It was not endowed with
what we term reason! Here then is a proof that both
those gifts border very near on one another; for we see
the perfection of the one mixing with the errors of the
other 1 The peaceable swallow, like the passive Quaker,
meekly sat at a small distance and never offered the
least resistance; but no sooner was the plunder carried
away, than the injured bird went to work with unabated
ardour, and in a few days the depredations were repaired.
To prevent however a repetition of the same violence, I
removed the wren's box to another part of the house.

In the middle of my new parlour I have, you may
remember, a curious republic of industrious hornets;
their nest hangs to the ceiling, by the same twig on
which it was so admirably built and contrived in the
woods. Its removal did not displease them, for they
find in my house plenty of food; and I have left a hole
open in one of the panes of the window, which answers
all their purposes. By this kind usage they are become

36 Letters from an American Farmer

quite harmless; they live on the flies, which are very
troublesome to us throughout the summer; they are
constantly busy in catching them, even on the eyelids
of my children. It is surprising how quickly they
smear them with a sort of glue, lest they might escape,
and when thus prepared, they carry them to their nests,
as food for their young ones. These globular nests are
most ingeniously divided into many stories, all provided
with cells, and proper communications. The materials
with which this fabric is built, they procure from the
cottony furze, with which our oak rails are covered;
this substance tempered with glue, produces a sort of
pasteboard, which is very strong, and resists all the
inclemencies of the weather. By their assistance, I
am but little troubled with flies. All my family are so
accustomed to their strong buzzing, that no one takes
any notice of them; and though they are fierce and
vindictive, yet kindness and hospitality has made them
useful and harmless.

We have a great variety of wasps ; most of them build
their nests in mud, which they fix against the shingles of
our roofs, as nigh the pitch as they can. These aggre-
gates represent nothing, at first view, but coarse and
irregular lumps, but if you break them, you will observe,
that the inside of them contains a great number of
oblong cells, in which they deposit their eggs, and in
which they bury themselves in the fall of the year.
Thus immured they securely pass through the severity
of that season, and on the return of the sun are enabled
to perforate their cells, and to open themselves a passage
from these recesses into the sunshine. The yellow
wasps, which build under ground, in our meadows, are
much more to be dreaded, for when the mower un-
wittingly passes his scythe over their holes they im-
mediately sally forth with a fury and velocity superior
even to the strength of man. They make the boldest

Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures 37

fly, and the only remedy is to lie down and cover our
heads with hay, for it is only at the head they aim their
blows ; nor is there any possibility of finishing that part
of the work until, by means of fire and brimstone, they
are all silenced. But though I have been obliged to
execute this dreadful sentence in my own defence, I
have often thought it a great pity, for the sake of a little
hay, to lay waste so ingenious a subterranean town,
furnished with every conveniency, and built with a most
surprising mechanism.

I never should have done were I to recount the many
objects which involuntarily strike my imagination in
the midst of my work, and spontaneously afford me
the most pleasing relief. These appear insignificant
trifles to a person who has travelled through Europe and
America, and is acquainted with books and with many
sciences; but such simple objects of contemplation
suffice me, who have no time to bestow on more exten-
sive observations. Happily these require no study,
they are obvious, they gild the moments I dedicate to
them, and enliven the severe labours which I perform.
At home my happiness springs from very different
objects; the gradual unfolding of my children's reason,
the study of their dawning tempers attract all my
paternal attention. I have to contrive little punish-
ments for their little faults, small encouragements for
their good actions, and a variety of other expedients
dictated by various occasions. But these are themes
unworthy your perusal, and which ought not to be
carried beyond the walls of my house, being domestic
mysteries adapted only to the locality of the small
sanctuary wherein my family resides. Sometimes I
delight in inventing and executing machines, which
simplify my wife's labour. I have been tolerably
successful that wa} r ; and these, Sir, are the narrow
circles within which I constantly revolve, and what can

38 Letters from an American Farmer

I wish for beyond them ? I bless God for all the good he
has given me; I envy no man's prosperity, and with no
other portion of happiness than that I may live to teach
the same philosophy to my children; and give each of
them a farm, show them how to cultivate it, and be like
their father, good substantial independent American
farmers an appellation which will be the most fortunate
one a man of my class can possess, so long as our civil
government continues to shed blessings on our husbandry.
Adieu.

LETTER III

WHAT IS AN AMERICAN

I WISH I could be acquainted with the feelings and
thoughts which must agitate the heart and present
themselves to the mind of an enlightened Englishman,
when he first lands on this continent. He must greatly
rejoice that he lived at a time to see this fair country
discovered and settled; he must necessarily feel a share
of national pride, when he views the chain of settlements
which embellishes these extended shores. When he
says to himself, this is the work of my countrymen, who,
when convulsed by factions, afflicted by a variety of
miseries and wants, restless and impatient, took refuge
here. They brought along with them their national
genius, to which they principally owe what liberty they
enjoy, and what substance they possess. Here he sees the
industry of his native country displayed in a new manner,
and traces in their works the embryos of all the arts,
sciences, and ingenuity which flourish in Europe. Here he
beholds fair cities, substantial villages, extensive fields,
an immense country filled with decent houses, good roads,
orchards, meadows, and bridges, where an hundred years
ago all was wild, woody, and uncultivated! What a
train of pleasing ideas this fair spectacle must suggest;
it is a prospect which must inspire a good citizen with
the most heartfelt pleasure. The difficulty consists in
the manner of viewing so extensive a scene. He is
arrived on a new continent; a modern society offers
itself to his contemplation, different from what he had
hitherto seen. It is not composed, as in Europe, of

39

4.o Letters from an American Farmer

great lords who possess everything, and of a herd of
people who have nothing. Here are no aristocratical
families, no courts, no kings, no bishops, no ecclesiastical
dominion, no invisible power giving to a few a very
visible one; no great manufacturers employing thou-
sands, no great refinements of luxury. The rich and
the poor are not so far removed from each other as they
are in Europe. Some few towns excepted, we are all
tillers of the earth, from Nova Scotia to West Florida.
We are a people of cultivators, scattered over an
immense territory, communicating with each other by
means of good roads and navigable rivers, united by
the silken bands of mild government, all respecting the
laws, without dreading their power, because they are
equitable. We are all animated with the spirit of an
industry which is unfettered and unrestrained, because
each person works for himself. If he travels through
our rural districts he views not the hostile castle, and
the haughty mansion, contrasted with the clay-built
hut and miserable cabin, where cattle and men help to
keep each other warm, and dwell in meanness, smoke,
and indigence. A pleasing uniformity of decent com-
petence appears throughout our habitations. The
meanest of our log-houses is a dry and comfortable
habitation. Lawyer or merchant are the fairest titles
our towns afford; that of a farmer is the only appellation
of the rural inhabitants of our country. It must take
some time ere he can reconcile himself to our dictionary,
which is but short in words of dignity, and names of
honour. There, on a Sunday, he sees a congregation of
respectable farmers and their wives, all clad in neat
homespun, well mounted, or riding in their own humble
waggons. There is not among them an esquire, saving
the unlettered magistrate. There he sees a parson as
simple as his flock, a farmer who does not riot on the
labour of others. We have no princes, for whom we

What is an American 41

toil, starve, and bleed: we are the most perfect society
now existing in the world. Here man is free as he ought
to be ; nor is this pleasing equality so transitory as many
others are. Many ages will not see the shores of our
great lakes replenished with inland nations, nor the
unknown bounds of North America entirely peopled.
Who can tell how far it extends? Who can tell the
millions of men whom it will feed and contain? for no
European foot has as yet travelled half the extent of
this mighty continent!

The next wish of this traveller will be to know whence
came all these people? they are a mixture of English,
Scotch, Irish, French, Dutch, Germans, and Swedes.
From this promiscuous breed, that race now called
Americans have arisen. The eastern provinces must
indeed be excepted, as being the unmixed descendants
of Englishmen. I have heard many wish that they had
been more intermixed also : for my part, I am no wisher,
and think it much better as it has happened. They
exhibit a most conspicuous figure in this great and
variegated picture; they too enter for a great share in
the pleasing perspective displayed in these thirteen
provinces. I know it is fashionable to reflect on them,
but I respect them for what they have done; for the
accuracy and wisdom with which they have settled
their territory ; for the decency of their manners ; for their
early love of letters; their ancient college, the first in
this hemisphere; for their industry; which to me who
am but a farmer, is the criterion of everything. There
never was a people, situated as they are, who with so
ungrateful a soil have done more in so short a time. Do
you think that the monarchical ingredients which are
more prevalent in other governments, have purged them
from all foul stains ? Their histories assert the contrary.

In this great American asylum, the poor of Europe
have by some means met together, and in consequence of

C 6 4

42 Letters from an American Farmer

various causes; to what purpose should they ask one
another what countrymen they are? Alas, two thirds
of them had no country. Can a wretch who wanders
about, who works and starves, whose life is a continual
scene of sore affliction or pinching penury; can that
man call England or any other kingdom his country?
A country that had no bread for him, whose fields pro-
cured him no harvest, who met with nothing but the
frowns of the rich, the severity of the laws, with jails
and punishments; who owned not a single foot of the
extensive surface of this planet? No! urged by a
variety of motives, here they came. Every thing has
tended to regenerate them; new laws, a new mode of
living, a new social system; here they are become men:
in Europe they were as so many useless plants, wanting
vegetative mould, and refreshing showers ; they withered,
and were mowed down by want, hunger, and war; but
now by the power of transplantation, like all other
plants they have taken root and flourished! Formerly
they were not numbered in any civil lists of their country,
except in those of the poor; here they rank as citizens.
By what invisible power has this surprising meta-
morphosis been performed? By that of the laws and
that of their industry. The laws, the indulgent laws,
protect them as they arrive, stamping on them the
symbol of adoption; they receive ample rewards for
their labours; these accumulated rewards procure them
lands; those lands confer on them the title of freemen,
and to that title every benefit is affixed which men can
possibly require. This is the great operation daily per-
formed by our laws. From whence proceed these laws?
From our government. Whence the government? It
is derived from the original genius and strong desire of
the people ratified and confirmed by the crown. This
is the great chain which links us all, this is the picture
which every province exhibits, Nova Scotia excepted.

What is an American 43

There the crown has done all; either there were no
people who had genius, or it was not much attended to:
the consequence is, that the province is very thinly
inhabited indeed; the power of the crown in conjunction
with the musketos has prevented men from settling
there. Yet some parts of it flourished once, and it con-
tained a mild harmless set of people. But for the fault of
a few leaders, the whole were banished. The greatest
political error the crown ever committed in America,
was to cut off men from a country which wanted nothing
but men!

What attachment can a poor European emigrant
have for a country where he had nothing? The know-
ledge of the language, the love of a few kindred as poor
as himself, were the only cords that tied him: his country
is now that which gives him land, bread, protection, and
consequence: Ubi panis ibi patria, is the motto of all
emigrants. What then is the American, this new man?
He is either an European, or the descendant of an
European, hence that strange mixture of blood, which
you will find in no other country. I could point out to
vou a family whose grandfather was an Englishman,
whose wife was Dutch, whose son married a French
woman, and whose present four sons have now four
wives of different nations. He is an American, who,
leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and
manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life
he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and
the new rank he holds. He becomes an American by
being received in the broad lap of our great Alma Mater.
Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new
race of men, whose labours and posterity will one day
cause great changes in the world. Americans are the
western pilgrims, who are carrying along with them
that great mass of arts, sciences, vigour, and industry
which began long since in the east; they will finish the

44 Letters from an American Farmer

great circle. The Americans were once scattered all
over Europe ; here they are incorporated into one of the
finest systems of population which has ever appeared,
and which will hereafter become distinct by the power
of the different climates they inhabit. The American
ought therefore to love this country much better than
that wherein either he or his forefathers were born.
Here the rewards of his industry follow with equal steps
the progress of his labour; his labour is founded on the
basis of nature, self-interest ; can it want a stronger
allurement? Wives and children, who before in vain
demanded of him a morsel of bread, now, fat and frolic-
some, gladly help their father to clear those fields whence
exuberant crops are to arise to feed and to clothe them
all; without any part being claimed, either by a despotic
prince, a rich abbot, or a mighty lord. Here religion
demands but little of him; a small voluntary salary to
the minister, and gratitude to God ; can he refuse these ?
The American is a new man, who acts upon new prin-
ciples ; he must therefore entertain new ideas, and form
new opinions. From involuntary idleness, servile
dependence, penury, and useless labour, he has passed"
to toils of a very different nature, rewarded by ample
subsistence. This is an American.

British America is divided into many provinces,
forming a large association, scattered along a coast 1500
miles extent and about 200 wide. This society I would
fain examine, at least such as it appears in the middle
provinces; if it does not afford that variety of tinges
and gradations which may be observed in Europe, we
have colours peculiar to ourselves. For instance, it is
natural to conceive that those who live near the sea,
must be very different from those who live in the woods ;
the intermediate space will afford a separate and distinct
class.

Men are like plants; the goodness and flavour of the

What is an American 45

fruit proceeds from the peculiar soil and exposition in
which they grow. We are nothing but what we derive
from the air we breathe, the climate we inhabit, the
government we obey, the system of religion we profess,
and the nature of our employment. Here you will find
but few crimes; these have acquired as yet no root
among us. I wish I was able to trace all my ideas; if
my ignorance prevents me from describing them properly,
I hope I shall be able to delineate a few of the outlines,
which are all I propose.

Those who live near the sea, feed more on fish than
on flesh, and often encounter that boisterous element.
This renders them more bold and enterprising; this
leads them to neglect the confined occupations of the
land. They see and converse with a variety of people,
their intercourse with mankind becomes extensive. The
sea inspires them with a love of traffic, a desire of trans-
porting produce from one place to another; and leads
them to a variety of resources which supply the place
of labour. Those who inhabit the middle settlements,
by far the most numerous, must be very different; the
simple cultivation of the earth purifies them, but the
indulgences of the government, the soft remonstrances
of religion, the rank of independent freeholders, must
necessarily inspire them with sentiments, very little
known in Europe among people of the same class. What
do I say ? Europe has no such class of men ; the early
knowledge they acquire, the early bargains they make,
give them a great degree of sagacity. As freemen they
will be litigious ; pride and obstinacy are often the cause
of law suits; the nature of our laws and governments
may be another. As citizens it is easy to imagine, that
they will carefully read the newspapers, enter into every
political disquisition, freely blame or censure governors
and others. As farmers they will be careful and anxious
to get as much as they can, because what they get is

46 Letters from an American Farmer

their own. As northern men they will love the cheerful
cup. As Christians, religion curbs them not in their
opinions; the general indulgence leaves every one to
think for themselves in spiritual matters; the laws
inspect our actions, our thoughts are left to God.
Industry, good living, selfishness, litigiousness, country
politics, the pride of freemen, religious indifference, are
their characteristics. If you recede still farther from
the sea, you will come into more modern settlements;
they exhibit the same strong lineaments, in a ruder
appearance. Religion seems to have still less influence,
and their manners are less improved.

Now we arrive near the great woods, near the last
inhabited districts; there men seem to be placed still
farther beyond the reach of government, which in some
measure leaves them to themselves. How can it per-
vade every corner; as they were driven there by mis-
fortunes, necessity of beginnings, desire of acquiring
large tracts of land, idleness, frequent want of economy,
ancient debts; the re-union of such people does not
afford a very pleasing spectacle. When discord, want
of unity and friendship; when either drunkenness or
idleness prevail in such remote districts; contention,
inactivity, and wretchedness must ensue. There are
not the same remedies to these evils as in a long estab-
lished community. The few magistrates they have,
are in general little better than the rest; they are often
in a perfect state of war; that of man against man,
sometimes decided by blows, sometimes by means of the
law; that of man against every wild inhabitant of these
venerable woods, of which they are come to dispossess
them. There men appear to be no better than car-
nivorous animals of a superior rank, living on the flesh
of wild animals when they can catch them, and when
they are not able, they subsist on grain. He who would
wish to see America in its proper light, and have a true

What is an American 47

idea of its feeble beginnings and barbarous rudiments,
must visit our extended line of frontiers where the last
settlers dwell, and where he may see the first labours of
settlement, the mode of clearing the earth, in all their
different appearances; where men are wholly left de-
pendent on their native tempers, and on the spur of
uncertain industry, which often fails when not sanctified
by the efficacy of a few moral rules. There, remote
from the power of example and check of shame, many
families exhibit the most hideous parts of our society.
They are a kind of forlorn hope, preceding by ten or
twelve years the most respectable army of veterans
which come after them. In that space, prosperity will
polish some, vice and the law will drive off the rest, who
uniting again with others like themselves will recede
still farther; making room for more industrious people,
who will finish their improvements, convert the loghouse
into a convenient habitation, and rejoicing that the first
heavy labours are finished, will change in a few years
that hitherto barbarous country into a fine fertile, well
regulated district. Such is our progress, such is the
march of the Europeans toward the interior parts of this
continent. In all societies there are off-casts; this
impure part serves as our precursors or pioneers; my
father himself was one of that class, but he came
upon honest principles, and was therefore one of the few
who held fast; by good conduct and temperance, he
transmitted to me his fair inheritance, when not above
one in fourteen of his contemporaries had the same
good fortune.

Forty years ago this smiling country was thus in-
habited ; it is now purged, a general decency of manners
prevails throughout, and such has been the fate of our
best countries.

Exclusive of those general characteristics, each
province has its own, founded on the government,

48 Letters from an American Farmer

climate, mode of husbandly, customs, and peculiarity of
circumstances. Europeans submit insensibly to these
great powers, and become, in the course of a few genera-
tions, not only Americans in general, but either Penn-
sylvanians, Virginians, or provincials under some other
name. Whoever traverses the continent must easily
observe those strong differences, which will grow more
evident in time. The inhabitants of Canada, Massa-
chusetts, the middle provinces, the southern ones will be
as different as their climates ; their only points of unity
will be those of religion and language.

As I have endeavoured to show you how Europeans
become Americans; it may not be disagreeable to show
you likewise how the various Christian sects introduced,
wear out, and how religious indifference becomes pre-
valent. When any considerable number of a particular
sect happen to dwell contiguous to each other, they
immediately erect a temple, and there worship the
Divinity agreeably to their own peculiar ideas. Nobody
disturbs them. If any new sect springs up in Europe
it may happen that many of its professors will come and
settle in American. As they bring their zeal with them,
they are at liberty to make proselytes if they can, and
to build a meeting and to follow the dictates of their
consciences; for neither the government nor any other
power interferes. If they are peaceable subjects, and
are industrious, what is it to their neighbours how and
in what manner they think fit to address their prayers
to the Supreme Being? But if the sectaries are not
settled close together, if they are mixed with other
denominations, their zeal will cool for want of fuel, and
will be extinguished in a little time. Then the Americans
become as to religion, what they are as to country, allied
to all. In them the name of Englishman, Frenchman,
and European is lost, and in like manner, the strict
modes of Christianity as practised in Europe are lost

What is an American 49

also. This effect will extend itself still farther here-
after, and though this may appear to you as a strange
idea, yet it is a very true one. I shall be able perhaps
hereafter to explain myself better ; in the meanwhile, let
the following example serve as my first justification.

Let us suppose you and I to be travelling ; we observe
that in this house, to the right, lives a Catholic, who
prays to God as he has been taught, and believes in
traiisubstantiation ; he works and raises wheat, he has
a large family of children, all hale and robust ; his belief,
his prayers offend nobody. About one mile farther on the
same road, his next neighbour may be a good honest
plodding German Lutheran, who addresses himself to
the same God, the God of all, agreeably to the modes
he has been educated in, and believes in consubstantia-
tion ; by so doing he scandalises nobody ; he also works
in his fields, embellishes the earth, clears swamps, etc.
What has the world to do with his Lutheran principles ?
He persecutes nobody, and nobody persecutes him, he
visits his neighbours, and his neighbours visit him.
Next to him lives a seceder, the most enthusiastic of all
sectaries; his zeal is hot and fiery, but separated as he
is from others of the same complexion, he has no con-
gregation of his own to resort to, where he might cabal
and mingle religious pride with worldly obstinacy. He
likewise raises good crops, his house is handsomely
painted, his orchard is one of the fairest in the neigh-
bourhood. How does it concern the welfare of the
country, or of the province at large, what this man's
religious sentiments are, or really whether he has any
at all? He is a good farmer, he is a sober, peaceable,
good citizen: William Penn himself would not wish for
more. This is the visible character, the invisible one is
only guessed at, and is nobody's business. Next again
lives a Low Dutchman, who implicitly believes the rules
laid down by the synod of Dort. He conceives no other

50 Letters from an American Farmer

idea of a clergyman than that of an hired man; if he
does his work well he will pay him the stipulated sum;
if not he will dismiss him, and do without his sermons,
and let his church be shut up for years. But notwith-
standing this coarse idea, you will find his house and
farm to be the neatest in all the country; and you will
judge by his waggon and fat horses, that he thinks more
of the affairs of this world than of those of the next.
Me is sober and laborious, therefore he is all he ought
to be as to the affairs of this life ; as for those of the next,
he must trust to the great Creator. Each of these people
instruct their children as well as they can, but these
instructions are feeble compared to those which are
given to the youth of the poorest class in Europe.
Their children will therefore grow up less zealous and
more indifferent in matters of religion than their parents.
The foolish vanity, or rather the fury of making
Proselytes, is unknown here; they have no time, the
seasons call for all their attention, and thus in a few
years, this mixed neighbourhood will exhibit a strange
religious medley, that will be neither pure Catholicism
aor pure Calvinism. A very perceptible indifference
even in the first generation, will become apparent; and
it may happen that the daughter of the Catholic will
marry the son of the seceder, and settle by themselves
at a distance from their parents. What religious
education will they give their children? A very im-
perfect one. If there happens to be in the neighbour-
hood any place of ^worship, we will suppose a Quaker's
meeting; rather than not show their fine clothes, they
will go to it, and some of them may perhaps attach
themselves to that society. Others will remain in a
perfect state of indifference; the children of these
zealous parents will not be able to tell what their
religious principles are, and their grandchildren still
less. The neighbourhood of a place of worship generallv

What is an American 5 1

leads them to it, and the action of going thither, is the
strongest evidence they can give of their attachment to
any sect. The Quakers are the only people who retain
a fondness for their own mode of worship; for be they
ever so far separated from each other, they hold a sort
of communion with the society, and seldom depart from
its rules, at least in this country. Thus all sects are
mixed as well as all nations ; thus religious indifference
is imperceptibly disseminated from one end of the
continent to the other; which is at present one of
the strongest characteristics of the Americans. Where
this will reach no one can tell, perhaps it may leave a
vacuum fit to receive other systems. Persecution,
religious pride, the love of contradiction, are the food
of what the world commonly calls religion. These
motives have ceased here; zeal in Europe is confined;
here it evaporates in the great distance it has to travel;
there it is a grain of powder inclosed, here it burns away
in the open air, and consumes without effect.

But to return to our back settlers. I must tell you,
that there is something in the proximity of the woods,
which is very singular. It is with men as it is with the
plants and animals that grow and live in the forests;
they are entirely different from those that live in the
plains. I will candidly tell you all my thoughts but you
are not to expect that I shall advance any reasons. By
living in or near the woods, their actions are regulated
by the wildness of the neighbourhood. The deer often
come to eat their grain, the wolves to destroy their
sheep, the bears to kill their hogs, the foxes to catch
their poultry. This surrounding hostility immediately
puts the gun into their hands; they watch these
animals, they kill some; and thus by defending their
property, they soon become professed hunters; this is
the progress; once hunters, farewell to the plough.
The chase renders them ferocious, gloomy, and un-

52 Letters from an American Farmer

sociable; a hunter wants no neighbour, he rather hates
them, because he dreads the competition. In a little
time their success in the woods makes them neglect
their tillage. They trust to the natural fecundity of
the earth, and therefore do little; carelessness in fencing
often exposes what little they sow to destruction; they
are not at home to watch ; in order therefore to make up
the deficiency, they go oftener to the woods. That new
mode of life brings along with it a new set of manners,
which I cannot easily describe. These new manners
being grafted on the old stock, produce a strange sort of
lawless profligacy, the impressions of which are indelible.
The manners of the Indian natives are respectable,
compared with this European medley. Their wives
and children live in sloth and inactivity; and having
no proper pursuits, you may judge what education the
latter receive. Their tender minds have nothing else
to contemplate but the example of their parents; like
them they grow up a mongrel breed, half civilised, half
savage, except nature stamps on them some constitu-
tional propensities. That rich, that voluptuous senti-
ment is gone that struck them so forcibly; the possession
of their freeholds no longer conveys to their minds the
same pleasure and pride. To all these reasons you must
add, their lonely situation, and you cannot imagine
what an effect on manners the great distances they live
from each other has! Consider one of the last settle-
ments in its first view: of what is it composed?
Europeans who have not that sufficient share of know-
ledge they ought to have, in order to prosper; people
who have suddenly passed from oppression, dread of
government, and fear of laws, into the unlimited
freedom of the woods. This sudden change must have
a very great effect on most men, and on that class par-
ticularly. Eating of wild meat, whatever you may think,
tends to alter their temper: though all the proof I can

What is an American 53

adduce, is, that I have seen it: and having no place of
worship to resort to, what little society this might afford
is denied them. The Sunday meetings, exclusive of
religious benefits, were the only social bonds that might
have inspired them with some degree of emulation in
neatness. Is it then surprising to see men thus situated,
immersed in great and heavy labours, degenerate a
little? It is rather a wonder the effect is not more
diffusive. The Moravians and the Quakers are the only
instances in exception to what I have advanced. The
first never settle singly, it is a colony of the society
which emigrates; they carry with them their forms,
worship, rules, and decency: the others never begin so
hard, they are always able to buy improvements, in
which there is a great advantage, for by that time the
country is recovered from its first barbarity. Thus our
bad people are those who are half cultivators and half
hunters; and the worst of them are those who have
degenerated altogether into the hunting state. As old
ploughmen and new men of the woods, as Europeans
and new made Indians, they contract the vices of both;
they adopt the moroseness and ferocity of a native,
without his mildness, or even his industry at home. If
manners are not refined, at least they are rendered
simple and inoffensive by tilling the earth; all our
wants are supplied by it, our time is divided between
labour and rest, and leaves none for the commission of
great misdeeds. As hunters it is divided between the
toil of the chase, the idleness of repose, or the indul-
gence of inebriation. Hunting is but a licentious idle
life, and if it does not always pervert good dispositions;
yet, when it is united with bad luck, it leads to want:
want stimulates that propensity to rapacity and in-
justice, too natural to needy men, which is the fatal
gradation. After this explanation of the effects which
follow by living in the woods, shall we yet vainly flatter

54 Letters from an American Farmer

ourselves with the hope of converting the Indians?
We should rather begin with converting our back-
settlers ; and now if I dare mention the name of religion,
its sweet accents would be lost in the immensity of these
woods. Men thus placed are not fit either to receive or
remember its mild instructions; they want temples and
ministers, but as soon as men cease to remain at home,
and begin to lead an erratic life, let them be either tawny
or white, they cease to be its disciples.

Thus have I faintly and imperfectly endeavoured to
trace our society from the sea to our woods! yet you
must not imagine that every person who moves back,
acts upon the same principles, or falls into the same
degeneracy. Many families carry with them all their
decency of conduct, purity of morals, and respect of
religion; but these are scarce, the power of example is
sometimes irresistible. Even among these back-
settlers, their depravity is greater or less, according to
what nation or province they belong. Were I to adduce
proofs of this, I might be accused of partiality. If there
happens to be some rich intervals, some fertile bottoms,
in those remote districts, the people will there prefer
tilling the land to hunting, and will attach themselves
to it; but even on these fertile spots you may plainly
perceive the inhabitants to acquire a great degree of
rusticity and selfishness.

It is in consequence of this straggling situation, and
the astonishing power it has on manners, that the back-
settlers of both the Carolmas, Virginia, and many other
parts, have been long a set of lawless people; it has been
even dangerous to travel among them. Government
can do nothing in so extensive a country, better it should
wink at these irregularities, than that it should use
means inconsistent with its usual mildness. Time will
efface those stains: in proportion as the great body of
population approaches them they will reform, and

What is an American 55

become polished and subordinate. Whatever has been
said of the four New England provinces, no such
degeneracy of manners has ever tarnished their annals;
their back-settlers have been kept within the bounds
of decency, and government, by means of wise laws, and
by the influence of religion. What a detestable idea
such people must have given to the natives of the
Europeans! They trade with them, the worst of people
are permitted to do that which none but persons of the
best characters should be employed in. They get
drunk with them, and often defraud the Indians.
Their avarice, removed from the eyes of their superiors,
knows no bounds; and aided by the little superiority of
knowledge, these traders deceive them, and even some-
times shed blood. Hence those shocking violations,
those sudden devastations which have so often stained
our frontiers, when hundreds of innocent people have
been sacrificed for the crimes of a few. It was in con-
sequence of such behaviour, that the Indians took the
hatchet against the Virginians in 1774. Thus are our
first steps trod, thus are our first trees felled, in general,
by the most vicious of our people; and thus the path is
opened for the arrival of a second and better class, the
true American freeholders; the most respectable set of
people in this part of the world: respectable for their
industry, their happy independence, the great share of
freedom they possess, the good regulation of their
families, and for extending the trade and the dominion
of our mother country.

Europe contains hardly any other distinctions but
lords and tenants; this fair country alone is settled by
freeholders, the possessors of the soil they cultivate,
members of the government they obey, and the framers
of their own laws, by means of their representatives.
This is a thought which you have taught me to cherish;
our difference from Europe, far from diminishing, rather

56 Letters from an American Farmer

adds to our usefulness and consequence as men and
subjects. Had our forefathers remained there, they
would only have crowded it, and perhaps prolonged
those convulsions which had shook it so long. Every
industrious European who transports himself here, may
be compared to a sprout growing at the foot of a great
tree; it enjoys and draws but a little portion of sap;
wrench it from the parent roots, transplant it, and it
will become a tree bearing fruit also. Colonists are
therefore entitled to the consideration due to the most
useful subjects; a hundred families barely existing in
some parts of Scotland, will here in six years, cause an
annual exportation of 10,000 bushels of wheat: 100
bushels being but a common quantity for an industrious
family to sell, if they cultivate good land. It is here
then that the idle may be employed, the useless become
useful, and the poor become rich; but by riches I do
not mean gold and silver, we have but little of those
metals; I mean a better sort of wealth, cleared lands,
cattle, good houses, good clothes, and an increase of
people to enjoy them.

There is no wonder that this country has so many
charms, and presents to Europeans so many tempta-
tions to remain in it. A traveller in Europe becomes
a stranger as soon as he quits his own kingdom; but it
is otherwise here. We know, properly speaking, no
strangers; this is every person's country; the variety
of our soils, situations, climates, governments, and
produce, hath something which must please everybody.
No sooner does an European arrive, no matter of what
condition, than his eyes are opened upon the fair
prospect; he hears his language spoke, he retraces many
of his own country manners, he perpetually hears the
names of families and towns with which he is acquainted;
he sees happiness and prosperity in all places dis-
seminated; he meets with hospitality, kindness, and

What is an American 57

plenty everywhere; he beholds hardly any poor, he
seldom hears of punishments and executions; and he
wonders at the elegance of our towns, those miracles of
industry and freedom. He cannot admire enough our
rural districts, our convenient roads, good taverns, and
our many accommodations; he involuntarily loves a
country where everything is so lovely. When in
England, he was a mere Englishman ; here he stands on
a larger portion of the globe, not less than its fourth
part, and may see the productions of the north, in iron
and naval stores; the provisions of Ireland, the grain
of Egypt, the indigo, the rice of China. He does not
find, as in Europe, a crowded society, where every place
is over-stocked; he does not feel that perpetual collision
of parties, that difficulty of beginning, that contention
which oversets so many. There is room for everybody
in America; has he any particular talent, or industry?
he exerts it in order to procure a livelihood, and it
succeeds. Is he a merchant ? the avenues of trade are
infinite; is he eminent in any respect? he will be
employed and respected. Does he love a country life?
pleasant farms present themselves; he may purchase
what he wants, and thereby become an American
farmer. Is he a labourer, sober and industrious? he
need not go many miles, nor receive many informations
before he will be hired, well fed at the table of his
employer, and paid four or five times more than he can
get in Europe. Does he want uncultivated lands?
thousands of acres present themselves, which he may
purchase cheap. Whatever be his talents or inclina-
tions, if they are moderate, he may satisfy them. I do
not mean that every one who comes will grow rich in
a little time; no, but he may procure an easy, decent
maintenance, by his industry. Instead of starving he
will be fed, instead of being idle he will have employ-
ment; and these are riches enough for such men as

58 Letters from an American Farmer

come over here. The rich stay in Europe, it is only the
middling and the poor that emigrate. Would you wish
to travel in independent idleness, from north to south,
you will find easy access, and the most cheerful reception
at every house ; society without ostentation, good cheer
without pride, and every decent diversion which the
country affords, with little expense. It is no wonder
that the European who has lived here a few years, is
desirous to remain; Europe with all its pomp, is not to
be compared to this continent, for men of middle
stations, or labourers.

An European, when he first arrives, seems limited in
his intentions, as well as in his views; but he very
suddenly alters his scale; two hundred miles formerly
appeared a very great distance, it is now but a trifle ; he
no sooner breathes our air than he forms schemes, and
embarks in designs he never would have thought of in his
own country. There the plenitude of society confines
many useful ideas, and often extinguishes the most
laudable schemes which here ripen into maturity. Thus
Europeans become Americans.

But how is this accomplished in that crowd of low,
indigent people, who flock here every year from all parts
of Europe ? I will tell you ; they no sooner arrive than
they immediately feel the good effects of that plenty of
provisions we possess: they fare on our best food, and
they are kindly entertained; their talents, character,
and peculiar industry are immediately inquired into;
they find countrymen everywhere disseminated, let
them come from whatever part of Europe. Let me
select one as an epitome of the rest ; he is hired, he goes
to work, and works moderately; instead of being
employed by a haughty person, he finds himself with
his equal, placed at the substantial table of the farmer,
or else at an inferior one as good ; his wages are high, his
bed is not like that bed of sorrow on which he used to

What is an American 59

lie: if he behaves with propriety, and is faithful, he i
caressed, and becomes as it were a member of the family,
He begins to feel the effects of a sort of resurrection;
hitherto he had not lived, but simply vegetated; he
now feels himself a man, because he is treated as
such; the laws of his own country had overlooked him in
his insignificancy; the laws of this cover him with their
mantle. Judge what an alteration there must arise in
the mind and thoughts of this man ; he begins to forget
his former servitude and dependence, his heart involun-
tarily swells and glows; this first swell inspires him
with those new thoughts which constitute an American.
What love can he entertain for a country where his
existence was a burthen to him; if he is a generous
good man, the love of this new adoptive parent will
sink deep into his heart. He looks around, and sees
many a prosperous person, who but a few years before
was as poor as himself. This encourages him much, he
begins to form some little scheme, the first, alas, he ever
formed in his life. If he is wise he thus spends two or
three years, in which time he acquires knowledge, the
use of tools, the modes of working the lands, felling
trees, etc. This prepares the foundation of a good name,
the most useful acquisition he can make. He is en-
couraged, he has gained friends; he is advised and
directed, he feels bold, he purchases some land; he
gives all the money he has brought over, as well as what
he has earned, and trusts to the God of harvests for the
discharge of the rest. His good name procures him
credit. He is now possessed of the deed, conveying to
him and his posterity the fee simple and absolute pro-
perty of two hundred acres of land, situated on such a
river. What an epocha in this man's life I He is
become a freeholder, from perhaps a German boor he
is now an American, a Pennsylvanian, an English sub-
ject. He is naturalised, his name is enrolled with those

60 Letters from an American Farmer

of the other citizens of the province. Instead of being
a vagrant, he has a place of residence; he is called the
inhabitant of such a county, or of such a district, and
for the first time in his life counts for something; for
hitherto he has been a cypher. I only repeat what I
have heard many say, and no wonder their hearts should
glow, and be agitated with a multitude of feelings, not
easy to describe. From nothing to start into being;
from a servant to the rank of a master; from being the
slave of some despotic prince, to become a free man,
invested with lands, to which every municipal blessing
is annexed! What a change indeed! It is in conse-
quence of that change that he becomes an American.
This great metamorphosis has a double effect, it extin-
guishes all his European prejudices, he forgets that
mechanism of subordination, that servility of disposition
which poverty had taught him; and sometimes he is
apt to forget too much, often passing from one extreme
to the other. If he is a good man, he forms schemes of
future prosperity, he proposes to educate his children
better than he has been educated himself; he thinks of
future modes of conduct, feels an ardour to labour he
never felt before. Pride steps in and leads him to
everything that the laws do not forbid: he respects
them; with a heart-felt gratitude he looks toward the
east, toward that insular government from whose wisdom
all his new felicity is derived, and under whose wings
and protection he now lives. These reflections con-
stitute him the good man and the good subject. Ye
poor Europeans, ye, who sweat, and work for the great
ye, who are obliged to give so many sheaves to the
church, so many to your lords, so many to your govern-
ment, and have hardly any left for yourselves ye, who
are held in less estimation than favourite hunters or
useless lap-dogs ye, who only breathe the air of nature,
because it cannot be withheld from you; it is here that

What is an American 61

ye can conceive the possibility of those feelings I have
been describing; it is here the laws of naturalisation
invite every one to partake of our great labours and
felicity, to till unrented, untaxed lands! Many,
corrupted beyond the power of amendment, have
brought with them all their vices, and disregarding the
advantages held to them, have gone on in their former
career of iniquity, until they have been overtaken and
punished by our laws. It is not every emigrant who
succeeds; no, it is only the sober, the honest, and
industrious: happy those to whom this transition has
served as a powerful spur to labour, to prosperity, and
to the good establishment of children, born in the days of
their poverty; and who had no other portion to expect
but the rags of their parents, had it not been for their
happy emigration. Others again, have been led
astray by this enchanting scene; their new pride,
instead of leading them to the fields, has kept them in
idleness ; the idea of possessing lands is all that satisfies
them though surrounded with fertility, they have
mouldered away their time in inactivity, misinformed
husbandry, and ineffectual endeavours. How much
wiser, in general, the honest Germans than almost all
other Europeans ; they hire themselves to some of their
wealthy landsmen, and in that apprenticeship learn
everything that is necessary. They attentively consider
the prosperous industry of others, which imprints in
their minds a strong desire of possessing the same
advantages. This forcible idea never quits them, they
launch forth, and by dint of sobriety, rigid parsimony,
and the most persevering industry, they commonly
succeed. Their astonishment at their first arrival from
Germany is very great it is to them a dream; the
contrast must be powerful indeed; they observe their
countrymen flourishing in every place; they travel
through whole counties where not a word of English is

6 2 Letters from an American Farmer

spoken; and in the names and the language of the
people, they retrace Germany. They have been an
useful acquisition to this continent, and to Pennsyl-
vania in particular; to them it owes some share of its
prosperity: to their mechanical knowledge and patience
it owes the finest mills in all America, the best teams of
horses, and many other advantages. The recollection of
their former poverty and slavery never quits them as
long as they live.

The Scotch and the Irish might have lived in their
own country perhaps as poor, but enjoying more civil
advantages, the effects of their new situation do not
strike them so forcibly, nor has it so lasting an effect.
From whence the difference arises I know not, but out of
twelve families of emigrants of each country, generally
seven Scotch will succeed, nine German, and four Irish.
The Scotch are frugal and laborious, but their wives
cannot work so hard as German women, who on the
contrary vie with their husbands, and often share with
them the most severe toils of the field, which they under-
stand better. They have therefore nothing to struggle
against, but the common casualties of nature. The
Irish do not prosper so well; they love to drink and to
quarrel; they are litigious, and soon take to the gun,
which is the ruin of everything; they seem beside to
labour under a greater degree of ignorance in husbandry
than the others; perhaps it is that their industry had
less scope, and was less exercised at home. I have heard
many relate, how the land was parcelled out in that
kingdom; their ancient conquest has been a great
detriment to them, by over-setting their landed property.
The lands possessed by a few, are leased down ad
infinitum, and the occupiers often pay five guineas an
acre. The poor are worse lodged there than anywhere
else in Europe; their potatoes, which are easily raised,
are perhaps an inducement to laziness: their wages are
too low, and their whisky too cheap.

What is an American 63

There is no tracing observations of this kind, without
making at the same time very great allowances, as there
are everywhere to be found, a great many exceptions.
The Irish themselves, from different parts of that king-
dom, are very different. It is difficult to account for
this surprising locality, one would think on so small an
island an Irishman must be an Irishman: yet it is not so,
they are different in their aptitude to, and in their love
of labour.

The Scotch on the contrary are all industrious and
saving; they want nothing more than a field to exert
themselves in, and they are commonly sure of succeed-
ing. The only difficulty they labour under is, that
technical American knowledge which requires some time
to obtain; it is not easy for those who seldom saw a
tree, to conceive how it is to be felled, cut up, and split
into rails and posts.

As I am fond of seeing and talking of prosperous
families, I intend to finish this letter by relating to you
the history of an honest Scotch Hebridean, who came
here in 1774, which will show you in epitome what the
Scotch can do, wherever they have room for the exertion
of their industry. Whenever I hear of any new settle-
ment, I pay it a visit once or twice a year, on purpose to
observe the different steps each settler takes, the gradual
improvements, the different tempers of each family, on
which their prosperity in a great nature depends; their
different modifications of industry, their ingenuity, and
contrivance; for being all poor, their life requires
sagacity and prudence. In the evening I love to hear
them tell their stories, they furnish me with new ideas ;
I sit still and listen to their ancient misfortunes, observ-
ing in many of them a strong degree of gratitude to God,
and the government. Many a well meant sermon have
I preached to some of them. When I found laziness
and inattention to prevail, who could refrain from

64 Letters from an American Farmer

wishing well to these new countrymen, after having
undergone so many fatigues. Who could withhold
good advice? What a happy change it must be, to
descend from the high, sterile, bleak lands of Scotland,
where everything is barren and cold, to rest on some
fertile farms in these middle provinces ! Such a transi-
tion must have afforded the most pleasing satisfaction.

The following dialogue passed at an out-settlement,
where I lately paid a visit :

Well, friend, how do you do now; I am come fifty
odd miles on purpose to see you ; how do you go on witli
your new cutting and slashing ? Very well, good Sir, we
learn the use of the axe bravely, we shall make it out;
we have a belly full of victuals every day, our cows run
about, and come home full of milk, our hogs get fat of
themselves in the woods: Oh, this is a good country!
God bless the king, and William Penn; we shall do
very well by and by, if we keep our healths. Your log-
house looks neat and light, where did you get these
shingles ? One of our neighbours is a New-England man,
and he showed us how to split them out of chestnut-trees.
Now for a barn, but all in good time, here are fine trees
to build with. Who is to frame it, sure you don't
understand that work yet ? A countryman of ours who
has been in America these ten years, offers to wait for
his money until the second crop is lodged in it. What
did you give for your land? Thirty-five shillings per
acre, payable in seven years. How many acres have you
got? An hundred and fifty. That is enough to begin
with; is not your land pretty hard to clear? Yes, Sir,
hard enough, but it would be harder still if it were ready
cleared, for then we should have no timber, and I love
the woods much; the land is nothing without them.
Have not you found out any bees yet? No, Sir; and if
we had we should not know what to do with them. 1
will tell you by and by. You are very kind. Farewell,

What is an American 65

honest man, God prosper you; whenever you travel

toward , inquire for J . S. He will entertain you kindly,

provided you bring him good tidings from your family
and farm. In this manner I often visit them, and care-
fully examine their houses, their modes of ingenuity,
their different ways; and make them all relate all they
know, and describe all they feel. These are scenes
which I believe you would willingly share with me. I
well remember your philanthropic turn of mind. Is it
not better to contemplate under these humble roofs, the
rudiments of future wealth and population, than to
behold the accumulated bundles of litigious papers in
the office of a lawyer? To examine how the world is
gradually settled, how the howling swamp is converted
into a pleasing meadow, the rough ridge into a fine field;
and to hear the cheerful whistling, the rural song, where
there was no sound heard before, save the yeU of the
savage, the screech of the owl 01 the hissing of the
snake? Here an European, fatigued with luxur}-,
riches, <md pleasures, may find a sweet relaxation in a
scries of interesting scenes, as affecting as they are new.
England, which now contains so many domes, so many
castles, was once like this; a place woody and marshy;
its inhabitants, now the favourite nation for arts and
commerce, were once painted like our neighbours. The
country will flourish in its turn, and the same observa-
tions will be made which I have just delineated. Pos-
terity will look back with avidity and pleasure, to trace,
if possible, the era of this or that particular settlement.
Pray, what is the reason that the Scots are in general
more religious, more faithful, more honest, and in-
dustrious than the Irish? I do not mean to insinuate
national reflections, God forbid! It ill becomes any
man, and much less an American; but as I know men
are nothing of themselves, and that they owe all their
different modifications either to government or other

66 Letters from an American Farmer

local circumstances, there must be some powerful causes
which constitute this great national difference.

Agreeable to the account which several Scotchmen
have given me of the north of Britain, of the Orkneys,
and the Hebride Islands, they seem, on many accounts,
to be unfit for the habitation of men; they appear to
be calculated only for great sheep pastures. Who then
can blame the inhabitants of these countries for trans-
porting themselves hither? This great continent must
in time absorb the poorest part of Europe ; and this will
happen in proportion as it becomes better known; and
as war, taxation, oppression, and misery increase there.
The Hebrides appear to be fit only for the residence of
malefactors, and it would be much better to send felons
there than either to Virginia or Maryland. What a
strange compliment has our mother country paid to
two of the finest provinces in America! England has
entertained in that respect very mistaken ideas; what
was intended as a punishment, is become the good
fortune of several; many of those who have been trans-
ported as felons, are now rich, and strangers to the
stings of those wants that urged them to violations oi
the law: they are become industrious, exemplary, and
useful citizens. The English government should pur-
chase the most northern and barren of those islands;
it should send over to us the honest, primitive Hebri-
deans, settle them here on good lands, as a reward for
their virtue and ancient poverty; and replace them
with a colony of her wicked sons. The severity of the
climate, the inclemency of the seasons, the sterility of
the soil, the tempestuousness of the sea, would afflict
and punish enough. Could there be found a spot
better adapted to retaliate the injury it had received
by their crimes? Some of those islands might be con-
sidered as the hell of Great Britain, where all evil spirits
should be sent. Two essential ends would be answered

What is an American 67

by this simple operation. The good people, by emigra-
tion, would be rendered happier; the bad ones would
be placed where they ought to be. In a few years the
dread oi being sent to that wintry region would have
a much stronger effect than that of transportation.
This is no place of punishment; were I a poor hopeless,
breadless Englishman, and not restrained by the power
of shame, I should be very thankful for the passage.
It is of very little importance how, and in what manner
an indigent man arrives; for if he is but sober, honest,
and industrious, he has nothing more to ask of heaven.
Let him go to work, he will have opportunities enough
to earn a comfortable support, and even the means of
procuring some land; which ought to be the utmost
wish of every person who has health and hands to work.
I knew a man who came to this country, in the literal
sense of the expression, stark naked; I think he was
a Frenchman, and a sailor on board an English man-of-
war. Being discontented, he had stripped himself and
swam ashore; where, finding clothes and friends, he
settled afterwards at Maraneck, in the county of Chester,
in the province of New York: he married and left a good
farm to each of his sons. I knew another person who
was but twelve years old when he was taken on the
frontiers of Canada, by the Indians; at his arrival at
Albany he was purchased by a gentleman, who gener-
ously bound him apprentice to a tailor. He lived to
the age of ninety, and left behind him a fine estate and
a numerous family, all well settled; many of them I
am acquainted with. Where is then the industrious
European who ought to despair?

After a foreigner from any part of Europe is arrived,
and become a citizen; let him devoutly listen to the
voice of our great parent, which says to him, " Welcome
to my shores, distressed European; bless the hour in
which thou didst see my verdant fields, my fair navig-

68 Letters from an American Farmer

able rivers, and my green mountains! If thou wilt
work, I have bread for thee; if thou wilt be honest,
sober, and industrious, I have greater rewards to confer
on thee ease and independence. I will give thee fields
to feed and clothe thee; a comfortable fireside to sit
by, and tell thy children by what means thou hast
prospered; and a decent bed to repose on. I shall
endow thee beside with the immunities of a freeman.
If thou wilt carefully educate thy children, teach them
gratitude to God, and reverence to that government,
that philanthropic government, which has collected
here so many men and made them happy. I will also
provide for thy progeny; and to every good man this
ought to be the most holy, the most powerful, the most
earnest wish he can possibly form, as well as the most
consolatory prospect when he dies. Go thou and work
and till; thou shalt prosper, provided thou be just,
grateful, and industrious/ 1

HISTORY OF ANDREW, THE HEBRIDEAN

Let historians give the detail of our charters, the
succession of our several governors, and of their adminis-
trations ; of our political struggles, and of the foundation
of our towns: let annalists amuse themselves with
collecting anecdotes of the establishment of our modern
provinces: eagles soar high I, a feebler bird, cheerfully
content myself with skipping from bush to bush, and
living on insignificant insects. I am so habituated to
draw all my food and pleasure from the surface of the
earth which I till, that I cannot, nor indeed am I able
to quit it I therefore present you with the short history
of a simple Scotchman; though it contain not a single
remarkable event to amaze the reader; no tragical
scene to convulse the heart, or pathetic narrative to

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 69

draw tears from sympathetic eyes. All I wish to
delineate is, the progressive steps of a poor man, advanc-
ing from indigence to ease ; from oppression to freedom ;
from obscurity and contumely to some degree of con-
sequence not by virtue of any freaks of fortune, but
by the gradual operation of sobriety, honesty, and
emigration. These are the limited fields, through which
I love to wander; sure to find in some parts, the smile
of new-born happiness, the glad heart, inspiring the
cheerful song, the glow of manly pride excited by vivid
hopes and rising independence. I always return from
my neighbourly excursions extremely happy, because
there I see good living almost under every roof, and
prosperous endeavours almost in every field. But you
may say, why don't you describe some of the more
ancient, opulent settlements of our country, where even
the eye of an European has something to admire ? It is
true, our American fields are in general pleasing to
behold, adorned and intermixed as they are with so
many substantial houses, flourishing orchards, and
copses of woodlands; the pride of our farms, the source
of every good we possess. But what I might observe
there is but natural and common; for to draw com-
fortable subsistence from well fenced cultivated fields,
is easy to conceive. A father dies and leaves a decent
house and rich farm to his son; the son modernises the
one, and carefully tills the other; marries the daughter
of a friend and neighbour: this is the common prospect;
but though it is rich and pleasant, yet it is far from
being so entertaining and instructive as the one now in
my view.

I had rather attend on the shore to welcome the poor
European when he arrives, I observe him in his first
moments of embarrassment, trace him throughout his
primary difficulties, follow him step by step, until he
pitches his tent on some piece of land, and realises that

70 Letters from an American Farmer

energetic wish which has made him quit his native land,
his kindred, and induced him to traverse a boisterous
ocean. It is there I want to observe his first thoughts
and feelings, the first essays of an industry, which
hitherto has been suppressed. I wish to see men cut
down the first trees, erect their new buildings, till their
first firlds, reap their first crops, and say for the first
time in their lives, " This is our own grain, raised from
American soil on it we shall feed and grow fat, and
convert the rest into gold and silver/' I want to see
how the happy effects of their sobriety, honesty, and
industry are first displayed: and who would not take
a pleasure in seeing these strangers settling as new
countrymen, struggling with arduous difficulties, over-
coming them, and becoming happy.

Landing on this great continent is like going to sea,
they must have a compass, some friendly directing
needle; or else they will uselessly err and wander for
a long time, even with a fair wind: yet these are the
struggles through which our forefathers have waded;
and they have left us no other records of them, but the
possession of our farms. The reflections I make on
these new settlers recall to my mind what my grand-
father did in his days; they fill me with gratitude to
his memory as well as to that government, which invited
him to come, and helped him when he arrived, as well
as many others. Can I pass over these reflections
without remembering thy name, O Penn! thou best of
legislators ; who by the wisdom of thy laws hast endowed
human nature, within the bounds of thy province, with
every dignity it can possibly enjoy in a civilised state;
and showed by thy singular establishment, what all
men might be if they would follow thy example!

In the year 1770, I purchased some lands in the

county of , which I intended for one of my sons;

and was obliged to go there in order to see them properly

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 71

surveyed and marked out: the soil is good, but the
country has a very wild aspect. However I observed
with pleasure, that land sells very fast; and I am in
hopes when the lad gets a wife, it will be a well-settled
decent country. Agreeable to our customs, which
indeed are those of nature, it is our duty to provide
for our eldest children while we live, in order that our
homesteads may be left to the youngest, who are the
most helpless. Some people are apt to regard the
portions given to daughters as so much lost to the
family; but this is selfish, and is not agreeable to my
way of thinking; they cannot work as men do; they
marry young: I have given an honest European a farm
to till for himself, rent free, provided he clears an acre
of swamp every year, and that he quits it whenever my
daughter shall marry. It will procure her a substantial
husband, a good farmer and that is all my ambition.

Whilst I was in the woods I met with a party of
Indians; I shook hands with them, and I perceived
they had killed a cub; I had a little Peach brandy,
they perceived it also, we therefore joined company,
kindled a large fire, and ate an hearty supper. I made
their hearts glad, and we all reposed on good beds of
leaves. Soon after dark, I was surprised to hear a
prodigious hooting through the woods; the Indians
laughed heartily. One of them, more skilful than the
rest, mimicked the owls so exactly, that a very large
one perched on a high tree over our fire. We soon
brought him down; he measured five feet seven inches
from one extremity of the wings to the other. By

Captain I have sent you the talons, on which I

have had the heads of small candlesticks fixed. Pray
keep them on the table of your study for my sake.

Contiary to my expectation, I found myself under
the necessity of going to Philadelphia, in order to pay
the purchase money, and to have the deeds properly

72 Letters from an American Farmer

recorded. I thought little of the journey, though it
was above two hundred miles, because I was well
acquainted with many friends, at whose houses I in-
tended to stop. The third night after I left the woods,

I put up at Mr. 's, the most worthy citizen I know;

he happened to lodge at my house when you was there.
He kindly inquired after your welfare, and desired
I would make a friendly mention of him to you. The
neatness of these good people is no phenomenon, yet I
think this excellent family surpasses everything I know.
No sooner did I lie down to rest than I thought myself
in a most odoriferous arbour, so sweet and fragrant
were the sheets. Next morning I found my host in the
orchard destroying caterpillars. I think, friend B.,
said I, that thee art greatly departed from the good
rules of the society; thee seemeth to have quitted that
happy simplicity for which it hath hitherto been so
remarkable. Thy rebuke, friend James, is a pretty
heavy one; what motive canst thee have for thus
accusing us? Thy kind wife made a mistake last
evening, I said; she put me on a bed of roses, instead
of a common one; I am not used to such delicacies.
And is that all, friend James, that thee hast to reproach
us with? Thee wilt not call it luxury I hope? thee
canst but know that it is the produce of our garden;
and friend Pope sayeth, that " to enjoy is to obey."
This is a most learned excuse indeed, friend B., and
must be valued because it is founded upon truth. James,
my wife hath done nothing more to thy bed than what
is done all the year round to all the beds in the family;
she sprinkles her linen with rose-water before she puts
it under the press; it is her fancy, and I have nought
to say. But thee shalt not escape so, verily I will send
for her; thee and she must settle the matter, whilst I
proceed on my work, before the sun gets too high.
Tom, go thou and call thy mistress Philadelphia. What.

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 73

said I, is thy wife called by that name ? I did not know
that before. I'll tell thee, James, how it came to pass:
her grandmother was the first female child born after
William Penn landed with the rest of our brethren;
and in compliment to the city he intended to build,
she was called after the name he intended to give it;
and so there is always one of the daughters of her family
known by the name of Philadelphia. She soon came,
and after a most friendly altercation, I gave up the
point; breakfasted, departed, and in four days reached
the city.

A week after news came that a vessel was arrived
with Scotch emigrants. Mr. C. and I went to the dock
to see them disembark. It was a scene which inspired
me with a variety of thoughts: here are, said I to my
friend, a number of people, driven by poverty, and
other adverse causes, to a foreign land, in which they
know nobody. The name of a stranger, instead of
implying relief, assistance, and kindness, on the con-
trary, conveys very different ideas. They are now
distressed; their minds are racked by a variety of
apprehensions, fears, and hopes. It was this last power-
ful sentiment which has brought them here. If they
are good people, I pray that heaven may realise them.
Whoever were to see them thus gathered again in five
or six years, would behold a more pleasing sight, to
which this would serve as a very powerful contrast.
By their honesty, the vigour of their arms, and the
benignity of government, their condition will be greatly
improved ; they will be well clad, fat, possessed of that
manly confidence which property confers; they will
become useful citizens. Some of the posterity may
act conspicuous parts in our future American trans-
actions. Most of them appeared pale and emaciated,
from the length of the passage, and the jadiS^?3lr
provision on which they had lived. The/number of

74 Letters from an American Farmer

children seemed as great as that of the people; they
had all paid for being conveyed here. The captain
told us they were a quiet, peaceable, and harmless
people, who had never dwelt in cities. This was a
valuable cargo; they seemed, a few excepted, to be in
the full vigour of their lives. Several citizens, impelled
either by spontaneous attachments, or motives of
humanity, took many of them to their houses; the
city, agreeable to its usual wisdom and humanity,
ordered them all to be lodged in the barracks, and
plenty of provisions to be given them. My friend
pitched upon one also and led him to his house, with
his wife, and a son about fourteen years of age. The
majority of them had contracted for land the year
before, by means of an agent; the rest depended
entirely upon chance; and the one who followed us
was of this last class. Poor man, he smiled on receiving
the invitation, and gladly accepted it, bidding his wife
and son do the same, in a language which I did not
understand. He gazed with uninterrupted attention
on everything he saw; the houses, the inhabitants, the
negroes, and carriages: everything appeared equally
new to him; and we went slow, in order to give him
time to feed on this pleasing variety. Good God ! said
he, is this Philadelphia, that blessed city of bread and
provisions, of which we have heard so much? I am
told it was founded the same year in which my father
was born; why, it is finer than Greenock and Glasgow,
which are ten times as old. It is so, said my friend to
him, and when thee hast been here a month, thee will
soon see that it is the capital of a fine province, of which
thee art going to be a citizen: Greenock enjoys neither
such a climate nor such a soil. Thus we slowly pro-
ceeded along, when we met several large Lancaster six-
horse waggons, just arrived from the country. At this
stupendous sight he stopped short, and with great diffi-

History of Andrew, the Hebridcan 75

dence asked us what was the use of these great moving
houses, and where those big horses came from? Have
you none such at home, I asked him? Oh, no; these
huge animals would eat all the grass of our island!
We at last reached my friend's house, who in the glow
of well-meant hospitality, made them all three sit down
to a good dinner, and gave them as much cider as they
could drink. God bless this country, and the good
people it contains, said he; this is the best meal's
victuals I have made a long time. I thank you kindly.
What part of Scotland dost thee come from, friend
Andrew, said Mr. C. ? Some of us come from the main,
some from the island of Barra, he answered I myself
am a Barra man. I looked on the map, and by its
latitude, easily guessed that it must be an inhospitable
climate. What sort of land have you got there, I asked
him? Bad enough, said he; we have no such trees
as I see here, no wheat, no kine, no apples. Then, I
observed, that it must be hard for the poor to live.
We have no poor, he answered, we are all alike, except
our laird; but he cannot help everybody. Pray what
is the name of your laird? Mr. Neiel, said Andrew;
the like of him is not to be found in any of the isles;
his forefathers have lived there thirty generations ago,
as we are told. Now, gentlemen, you may judge what
an ancient family estate it must be. But it is cold, the
land is thin, and there were too many of us, which are
the reasons that some are come to seek their fortunes
here. Well, Andrew, what step do you intend to take
in order to become rich? I do not know, Sir; I am
but an ignorant man, a stranger besides I must rely
on the advice of good Christians, they would not deceive
me, I am sure. I have brought with me a character
from our Barra minister, can it do me any good here?
Oh, yes; but your future success will depend entirely
on your own conduct; if you are a sober man, as the

j6 Letters from an American Farmer

certificate says, laborious, and honest, there is no fear
but that you will do well. Have you brought any
money with you, Andrew? Yes, Sir, eleven guineas
and an half. Upon my word it is a considerable sum
for a Barra man; how came you by so much money?
Why seven years ago I received a legacy of thirty-seven
pounds from an uncle, who loved me much; my wife
brought me two guineas, when the laird gave her to me
for a wife, which 1 have saved ever since. I have sold
all I had; I worked in Glasgow for some time. I am
glad to hear you are so saving and prudent; be so still;
you must go and hire yourself with some good people;
what can you do ? I can thresh a little, and handle the
spade. Can you plough? Yes, Sir, with the little
breast plough I have brought with me. These won't
do here, Andrew; you are an able man; if you are
willing you will soon learn. I'll tell you what I intend
to do; I'll send you to my house, where you shall stay
two or three weeks, there }^ou must exercise yourself
with the axe, that is the principal tool the Americans
want, and particularly the back-settlers. Can your
wife spin? Yes, she can. Well then as soon as you
are able to handle the axe, you shall go and live with
Mr. P. R., a particular friend of mine, who will give you
four dollars per month, for the first six, and the usual
price of five as long as you remain with him. I shall
place your wife in another house, where she shall receive
half a dollar a week for spinning; and your son a dollar
a month to drive the team. You shall have besides
good victuals to eat, and good beds to lie on; will all
this satisfy you, Andrew ? He hardly understood what
I said; the honest tears of gratitude fell from his eyes
as he looked at me, and its expressions seemed to quiver
on his lips. Though silent, this was saying a great
deal; there was besides something extremely moving
to see a man six feet high thus shed tears; and they

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 77

did not lessen the good opinion I had entertained of
him. At last he told me, that my offers were more
than he deserved, and that he would first begin to work
for his victuals. No, no, said I, if you are careful and
sober, and do what you can, you shall receive what I
told you, after you have served a short apprenticeship
at my house. May God repay you for all your kind-
nesses, said Andrew; as long as I live I shall thank you,
and do what I can for you. A few days after 1 sent

them all three to , by the return of some waggons,

that he might have an opportunity of viewing, and
convincing himself of the utility of those machines
which he had at first so much admired.

The further descriptions he gave us of the Hebrides
in general, and of his native island in particular ; of the
customs and modes of living of the inhabitants ; greatly
entertained me. Pray is the sterility of the soil the
cause that there are no trees, or is it because there are
none planted? What are the modern families of all
the kings of the earth, compared to the date of that oi
Mr. Neiel ? Admitting that each generation should last
but forty years, this makes a period of 1200; an extra-
ordinary duration for the uninterrupted descent of any
family! Agreeably to the description he gave us of
those countries, they seem to live according to the rules
of nature, which gives them but bare subsistence; their
constitutions are uncontaminated by any excess or
effeminacy, which their soil refuses. If their allowance
of food is not too scanty, they must all be healthy by
perpetual temperance and exercise; if so, they are
amply rewarded for their poverty. Could they have
obtained but necessary food, they would not have left
it; for it was not in consequence of oppression, either
from their patriarch or the government, that they had
emigrated. I wish we had a colony of these honest
people settled in some parts of this province; their

78 Letters from an American Farmer

morals, their religion, seem to be as simple as their
manners. This society would present an interesting
spectacle could they be transported on a richer soil.
But perhaps that soil would soon alter everything; for
our opinions, vices, and virtues, are altogether local:
we are machines fashioned by every circumstance
around us.

Andrew arrived at my house a week before I did, and
1 found my wife, agreeable to my instructions, had
placed the axe in his hands, as his first task. For some
time he was very awkward, but he was so docile, so
willing, and grateful, as well as his wife, that I foresaw
he would succeed. Agreeably to my promise, I put
them all with different families, where they were well
liked, and all parties were pleased. Andrew worked
hard, lived well, grew fat, and every Sunday came to
pay me a visit on a good horse, which Mr. P. R. lent
him. Poor man, it took him a long time ere he could
sit on the saddle and hold the bridle properly. I be-
lieve he had never before mounted such a beast, though
I did not choose to ask him that question, for fear it
might suggest some mortifying ideas. After having
been twelve months at Mr. P. R/s, and having received
his own and his family's wages, which amounted to
eighty-four dollars; he came to see me on a week-day,
and told me, that he was a man of middle age, and
would willingly have land of his own, in order to procure
him a home, as a shelter against old age: that whenever
this period should come, his son, to whom he would
give his land, would then maintain him, and thus
live altogether; he therefore required my advice and
assistance. I thought his desire very natural and praise-
worthy, and told him that I should think of it. but that
he must remain one month longer with Mr. P. R., who
had 3000 rails to split. He immediately consented.
The spring was not far advanced enough yet for Andrew

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 79

to begin clearing any land even supposing that he had
made a purchase; as it is always necessary that the
leaves should be out, in order that this additional
combustible may serve to burn the heaps of brush more
readily.

A few days after, it happened that the whole family
of Mr. P. R. went to meeting, and left Andrew to take
care of the house. While he was at the door, attentively
reading the Bible, nine Indians just come from the
mountains, suddenly made their appearance, and
unloaded their packs of furs on the floor of the piazza.
Conceive, if you can, what was Andrew's consternation
at this extraordinary sight! From the singular appear-
ance of these people, the honest Hebridean took them
lor a lawless band come to rob his master's house. He
therefore, like a faithful guardian, precipitately withdrew
and shut the doors, but as most of our houses are with-
out locks, he was reduced to the necessity of fixing his
knife over the latch, and then flew upstairs in quest of
a broadsword he had brought from Scotland. The
Indians, who were Mr. P. R.'s particular friends, guessed
at his suspicions and fears; they forcibly lifted the
door, and suddenly took possession of the house, got
all the bread and meat they wanted, and sat themselves
down by the fire. At this instant Andrew, with his
broadsword in his hand, entered the room ; the Indians
earnestly looking at him, and attentively watching his
motions. After a very few reflections, Andrew found
that his weapon was useless, when opposed to nine
tomahawks; but this did not diminish his anger, on
the contrary; it grew greater on observing the calm
impudence with which they were devouring the family
provisions. Unable to resist, he called them names
in broad Scotch, and ordered them to desist and be
gone; to which the Indians (as they told me afterwards)
replied in their equally broad idiom. It must have

80 Letters from an American Farmer

been a most unintelligible altercation between this
honest Barra man, and nine Indians who did not much
care for anything he could say. At last he ventured
to lay his hands on one of them, in order to turn him
out of the house. Here Andrew's fidelity got the better
of his prudence; for the Indian, by his motions,
threatened to scalp him, while the rest gave the war
hoop. This horrid noise so effectually frightened poor
Andrew, that, unmindful of his courage, of his broad-
sword, and his intentions, he rushed out, left them
masters of the house, and disappeared. I have heard
one of the Indians say since, that he never laughed so
heartily in his life. Andrew at a distance, soon recovered
from the fears which had been inspired by this infernal
yell, and thought of no other remedy than to go to the
meeting-house, which was about two miles distant.
In the eagerness of his honest intentions, with looks of
affright still marked on his countenance, he called
Mr. P. R. out, and told him with great vehemence of
style, that nine monsters were come to his house
some blue, some red, and some black; that they had
little axes in their hands out of which they smoked;
and that like highlanders, they had no breeches; that
they were devouring all his victuals, and that God only
knew what they would do more. Pacify yourself, said
Mr. P. R., my house is as safe with these people, as if
I was there myself; as for the victuals, they are heartily
welcome, honest Andrew; they are not people of much
ceremony; they help themselves thus whenever they
are among their friends; I do so too in their wigwams,
whenever I go to their village: you had better therefore
step in and hear the remainder of the sermon, and when
the meeting is over we will all go back in the waggon
together.

At their return, Mr. P. R., who speaks the Indian
language very well, explained the whole matter; the

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 81

Indians renewed their laugh, and shook hands with
honest Andrew, whom they made to smoke out of their
pipes; and thus peace was made, and ratified according
to the Indian custom, by the calumet.

vSoon after this adventure, the time approached when
I had promised Andrew my best assistance to settle
him; for that purpose I went to Mr. A. V. in the county

of 1 who, I was informed, had purchased a tract of

land, contiguous to settlement. I gave him a

faithful detail of the progress Andrew had made in the
rural arts; of his honesty, sobriety, and gratitude, and
pressed him to sell him an hundred acres. This I cannot
comply with, said Mr. A. V., but at the same time I
will do better; I love to encourage honest Europeans
as much as you do, and to see them prosper: you tell
me he has but one son; I will lease them an hundred
acres for any term of years you please, arid make it
more valuable to your Scotchman than if he was pos-
sessed of the fee simple. By that means he may, with
what little money he has, buy a plough, a team, and
some stock; he will not be incumbered with debts and
mortgages ; what he raises will be his own ; had he two
or three sons as able as himself, then I should think it
more eligible for him to purchase the fee simple. I join
with you in opinion, and will bring Andrew along with
me in a few days.

Well, honest Andrew, said Mr. A. V., in consideration
of your good name, I will let you have an hundred acres
of good arable land, that shall be laid out along a new
road ; there is a bridge already erected on the creek that
passes through the land, and a fine swamp of about
twenty acres. These are my terms, I cannot sell, but
I will lease you the quantity that Mr. James, your
friend, has asked; the first seven years you shall pay
no rent, whatever you sow and reap, and plant and
gather, shall be entirely your own; neither the king,

* n 649

82 Letters from an American Farmer

government, nor church, will have any claim on your
future property: the remaining part of the time you
must give me twelve dollars and an half a year; and
that is all you will have to pay me. Within the three
first years you must plant fifty apple trees, and clear
seven acres of swamp within the first part of the lease ;
it will be your own advantage: whatever you do more
within that time, I will pay you for it, at the common
rate of the country. The term of the lease shall be
thirty years; how do you like it, Andrew? Oh, Sir,
it is very good, but I am afraid, that the king or his
ministers, or the governor, or some of our great men,
will come and take the land from me ; your son may say
to me, by and by, this is my father's land, Andrew, you
must quit it. No, no, said Mr. A. V., there is no such
danger; the king and his ministers are too just to take
the labour of a poor settler; here we have no great men,
but what are subordinate to our laws; but to calm all
your fears, I will give you a lease, so that none can
make you afraid. If ever you are dissatisfied with the
land, a jury of your own neighbourhood shall value all
your improvements, and you shall be paid agreeably
to their verdict. You may sell the lease, or if you die,
you may previously dispose of it, as if the land was
your own. Expressive, yet inarticulate joy, was mixed
in his countenance, which seemed impressed with
astonishment and confusion. Do you understand me
well, said Mr. A. V. ? No, Sir, replied Andrew, I know
nothing of what you mean about lease, improvement,
will, jury, etc. That is honest, we will explain these
things to you by and by. It must be confessed that
those were hard words, which he had never heard in his
life; for by his own account, the ideas they convey
would be totally useless in the island of Barra. No
wonder, therefore, that he was embarrassed; for how
could the man who had hardly a will of his own since

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 83

he was born, imagine he could have one after his death ?
How could the person who never possessed anything,
conceive that he could extend his new dominion over
this land, even after he should be laid in his grave?
For my part, I think Andrew's amazement did not
imply any extraordinary degree of ignorance; he was
an actor introduced upon a new scene, it required some
time ere he could reconcile himself to the part he was
to perform. However he was soon enlightened, and
introduced into those mysteries with which we native
Americans are but too well acquainted.

Here then is honest Andrew, invested with every
municipal advantage they confer; become a freeholder,
possessed of a vote, of a place of residence, a citizen of
the province of Pennsylvania. Andrew's original hopes
and the distant prospects he had formed in the island
of Barra, were at the eve of being realised; we therefore
can easily forgive him a few spontaneous ejaculations,
which would be useless to repeat. This short tale is
easily told; few words are sufficient to describe this
sudden change of situation; but in his mind it was
gradual, and took him above a week before he could be
sure, that without disturbing any money he could
possess lands. Soon after he prepared himself; I lent
him a barrel of pork, and 200 Ib. weight of meal, and
made him purchase what was necessary besides.

He set out, and hired a room in the house of a settler
who lived the most contiguous to his own land. His
first work was to clear some acres of swamp, that he
might have a supply of hay the following year for his
two horses and cows. From the first day he began to
work, he was indefatigable; his honesty procured him
friends, and his industry the esteem of his new neigh-
bours. One of them offered him two acres of cleared
land, whereon he might plant corn, pumpkins, squashes,
and a few potatoes, that very season. It is astonishing

84 Letters from an American Farmer

how quick men will learn when they work for themselves.
I saw with pleasure two months after, Andrew holding
a two-horse plough and tracing his furrows quite
straight; thus the spade man of the island of Barra
was become the tiller of American soil. Well done,
said I, Andrew, well done; I see that God speeds and
directs your works; I see prosperity delineated in all
your furrows and head lands. Raise this crop of corn
with attention and care, and then you will be master
of the art.

As he had neither mowing nor reaping to do that
year, I told him that the time was come to build his
house; and that for the purpose I would myself invite
the neighbourhood to a frolic; that thus he would have
a large dwelling erected, and some upland cleared in
one day. Mr. P. R., his old friend, came at the time
appointed, with all his hands, and brought victuals in
plenty: I did the same. About forty people repaired
to the spot; the songs, and merry stories, went round
the woods from cluster to cluster, as the people had
gathered to their different works; trees fell on all sides,
bushes were cut up and heaped; and while many were
thus employed, others with their teams hauled the big
logs to the spot which Andrew had pitched upon for
the erection of his new dwelling. We all dined in the
woods; in the afternoon the logs were placed with
skids, and the usual contrivances: thus the rude house
was raised, and above two acres of land cut up, cleared,
and heaped.

Whilst all these different operations were performing,
Andrew was absolutely incapable of working; it was
to him the most solemn holiday he had ever seen; it
would have been sacrilegious in him to have defiled it
with menial labour. Poor man, he sanctified it with
joy and thanksgiving, and honest libations he went
from one to the other with the bottle in his hand, pressing

History of Andrew, the Hebridean 85

everybody to drink, and drinking himself to show the
example. He spent the whole day in smiling, laughing,
and uttering monosyllables : his wife and son were there
also, but as they could not understand the language,
their pleasure must have been altogether that of the
imagination. The powerful lord, the wealthy merchant ,
on seeing the superb mansion finished, never can feel
half the joy and real happiness which was felt and
enjoyed on that day by this honest Hebridean: though
this new dwelling, erected in the midst of the woods,
was nothing more than a square inclosure, composed of
twenty-four large clumsy logs, let in at the ends. When
the work was finished, the company made the woods
resound with the noise of their three cheers, and the
honest wishes they formed for Andrew's prosperity.
He could say nothing, but with thankful tears he shook
hands with them all. Thus from the first day he had
landed, Andrew marched towards this important event :
this memorable day made the sun shine on that land on
which he was to sow wheat and other grain. What
swamp he had cleared lay before his door; the essence
of future bread, milk, and meat, were scattered all
round him. Soon after he hired a carpenter, who put
on a roof and laid the floors ; in a week more the house
was properly plastered, and the chimney finished. He
moved into it, and purchased two cows, which found
plenty of food in the woods his hogs had the same
advantage. That very year, he and his son sowed three
bushels of wheat, from which he reaped ninety-one
and a half; for I had ordered him to keep an exact
account of all he should raise. His first crop of other
corn would have been as good, had it not been for the
squirrels, which were enemies not to be dispersed by
the broadsword. The fourth year I took an inventory
of the wheat this man possessed, which I send you.
Soon after, further settlements were made on that road,

86 Letters from an American Farmer

and Andrew, instead of being the last man towards the
wilderness, found himself in a few years in the middle
of a numerous society. He helped others as generously
as others had helped him ; and I have dined many times
at his table with several of his neighbours. The second
year he was made overseer of the road, and served on
two petty juries, performing as a citizen all the duties
required of him. The historiographer of some great
prince or general, does not bring his hero victorious
to the end of a successful campaign, with one half of
the heart-felt pleasure with which I have conducted
Andrew to the situation he now enjoys: he is indepen-
dent and easy. Triumph and military honours do not
always imply those two blessings. He is unencumbered
with debts, services, rents, or any other dues; the
successes of a campaign, the laurels of war, must be
purchased at the dearest rate, which makes every cool
reilecting citizen to tremble and shudder. By the
literal account hereunto annexed, you will easily be
made acquainted with the happy effects which con-
stantly flow, in this country, from sobriety and industry,
when united with good land and freedom.

The account of the property he acquired with his
own hands and those of his son, in four years, is under:

Dollars

The value of his improvements and lease . 225

Six cows, at 13 dollars .... 78

Two breeding mares ..... 50

The rest of the stock ..... 100

Seventy-three bushels of wheat ... 66

Money due to him on notes ... 43

Pork and beef in his cellar .... 28

Wool and flax ...... 19

Ploughs and other utensils of husbandry . 31

240 Pennsylvania currency dollars . 640

LETTER IV

DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND OF NANTUCKET, WITH
THE MANNERS, CUSTOMS, POLICY, AND TRADE OF
THE INHABITANTS

THE greatest compliment that can be paid to the best
of kings, to the wisest ministers, or the most patriotic
rulers, is to think, that the reformation of political
abuses, and the happiness of their people are the primary
objects of their attention. But alas! how disagreeable
must the work of reformation be; how dreaded the
operation; for we hear of no amendment : on the
contrary, the great number of European emigrants,
yearly coming over here, informs us, that the severity
of taxes, the injustice of laws, the tyranny of the rich,
and the oppressive avarice of the church; are as in-
tolerable as ever. Will these calamities have no end?
Are not the great rulers of the earth afraid of losing,
by degrees, their most useful subjects? This country,
providentially intended for the general asylum of the
world, will flourish by the oppression of their people;
they will every day become better acquainted with the
happiness we enjoy, and seek for the means of transport-
ing themselves here, in spite of all obstacles and laws.
To what purpose then have so many useful books and
divine maxims been transmitted to us from preceding
ages? Are they all vain, all useless? Must human
nature ever be the sport of the few, and its many
wounds remain unhealed? How happy are we here,
in having fortunately escaped the miseries which at-

87

88 Letters from an American Farmer

tended our fathers; how thankful ought we to be, that
they reared us in a land where sobriety and industry
never fail to meet with the most ample rewards! You
have, no doubt, read several histories of this continent,
yet there are a thousand facts, a thousand explanations
overlooked. Authors will certainly convey to you a
geographical knowledge of this country; they will
acquaint you with the eras of the several settlements,
the foundations of our towns, the spirit of our different
charters, etc., yet they do not sufficiently disclose the
genius of the people, their various customs, their modes
of agriculture, the innumerable resources which the
industrious have of raising themselves to a comfortable
and easy situation. Few of these writers have resided
here, and those who have, had not pervaded every
part of the country, nor carefully examined the nature
and principles of our association. It would be a task
worthy a speculative genius, to enter intimately into
the situation and characters of the people, from Nova
Scotia to West Florida; and surely history cannot
possibly present any subject more pleasing to behold.
Sensible how unable I am to lead you through so vast
a maze, let us look attentively for some small unnoticed
corner; but where shall we go in quest of such a one?
Numberless settlements, each distinguished by some
peculiarities, present themselves on every side ; all seem
to realise the most sanguine wishes that a good man
could form for the happiness of his race. Here they
live by fishing on the most plentiful coasts in the world ;
there they fell trees, by the sides of large rivers, for
masts and lumber; here others convert innumerable
logs into the best boards; there again others cultivate
the land, rear cattle, and clear large fields. Yet I have
a spot in my view, where none of these occupations are
performed, which will, I hope, reward us for the trouble
of inspection; but though it is barren in its soil, insig-

Description of Nan tucket 89

mficant in its extent, inconvenient in its situation,
deprived of materials for building; it seems to have been
inhabited merely to prove what mankind can do when
happily governed! Here I can point out to you exer-
tions of the most successful industry; instances of
native sagacity unassisted by science ; the happy fruits
of a well directed perseverance. It is always a refresh-
ing spectacle to me, when in my review of the various
component parts of this immense whole, I observe the
labours of its inhabitants singularly rewarded by
nature; when I see them emerged out of their first
difficulties, living with decency and ease, and conveying
to their posterity that plentiful subsistence, which their
fathers have so deservedly earned. But when their
prosperity arises from the goodness of the climate, and
fertility of the soil; I partake of their happiness, it is
true; yet stay but a little while with them, as they
exhibit nothing but what is natural and common. On
the contrary, when I meet with barren spots fertilised,
grass growing where none grew before; grain gathered
from fields which had hitherto produced nothing better
than brambles; dwellings raised where no building
materials were to be found; wealth acquired by the
most uncommon means: there I pause, to dwell on the
favourite object of my speculative inquiries. Will-
ingly do I leave the former to enjoy the odoriferous
furrow, or their rich valleys, with anxiety repairing to
the spot, where so many difficulties have been overcome;
where extraordinary exertions have produced extra-
ordinary effects, and where every natural obstacle has
been removed by a vigorous industry.

I want not to record the annals of the island of
Nantucket its inhabitants have no annals, for they
are not a race of warriors. My simple wish is to trace
them throughout their progressive steps, from their
arrival here to this present hour; to inquire by what

90 Letters from an American Farmer

means they have raised themselves from the most
humble, the most insignificant beginnings, to the ease
and the wealth they now possess ; and to give you some
idea of their customs, religion, manners, policy, and
mode of living.

This happy settlement was not founded on intrusion,
forcible entries, or blood, as so many others have been;
it drew its origin from necessity on the one side, and
from good will on the other; and ever since, all has
been a scene of uninterrupted harmony. Neither
political, nor religious broils; neither disputes with the
natives, nor any other contentions, have in the least
agitated or disturbed its detached society. Yet the
first founders knew nothing either of Lycurgus or Solon ;
for this settlement has not been the work of eminent
men or powerful legislators, forcing nature by the
accumulated labours of art. This singular establish-
ment has been effected by means of that native industry
and perseverance common to all men, when they are
protected by a government which demands but little
for its protection; when they are permitted to enjoy
a system of rational laws founded on perfect freedom.
The mildness and humanity of such a government
necessarily implies that confidence which is the source
of the most arduous undertakings and permanent
success. Would you believe that a sandy spot, of
about twenty-three thousand acres, affording neither
stones nor timber, meadows nor arable, yet can boast
of an handsome town, consisting of more than 500
houses, should possess above 200 sail of vessels, con-
stantly employ upwards of 2000 seamen, feed more than
15,000 sheep, 500 cows, 200 horses; and has several
citizens worth 20,000 sterling! Yet all these facts
are uncontroverted. Who would have imagined that
any people should have abandoned a fruitful and
extensive continent, filled with the riches which the

Description of Nantucket 91

most ample vegetation affords; replete with good soil,
enamelled meadows, rich pastures, every kind of timber,
and with all other materials necessary to render life
happy and comfortable: to come and inhabit a little
sandbank, to which nature had refused those advantages ;
to dwell on a spot where there scarcely grew a shrub to
announce, by the budding of its leaves, the arrival of the
spring, and to warn by their fall the proximity of winter.
Had this island been contiguous to the shores of some
ancient monarchy, it would only have been occupied
by a few wretched fishermen, who, oppressed by poverty,
would hardly have been able to purchase or build little
fishing barks; always dreading the weight of taxes, or
the servitude of men-of-war. Instead of that boldness
of speculation for which the inhabitants of this island
are so remarkable, they would fearfully have confined
themselves, within the narrow limits of the most trifling
attempts; timid in their excursions, they never cou]d
have extricated themselves from their first difficulties.
This island, on the contrary, contains 5000 hardy people,
who boldly derive their riches from the element that
surrounds them, and have been compelled by the
sterility of the soil to seek abroad for the means of
subsistence. You must not imagine, from the recital
of these facts, that they enjoyed any exclusive privileges
or royal charters, or that they were nursed by particular
immunities in the infancy of their settlement. No, their
freedom, their skill, their probity, and perseverance,
have accomplished everything, and brought them by
degrees to the rank they now hold.

From this first sketch, I hope that my partiality to
this island will be justified. Perhaps you hardly know
that such an one exists in the neighbourhood of Cape
Cod. What has happened here, has and will happen
everywhere else. Give mankind the full rewards of
their industry, allow them to enjoy the fruit of their

92 Letters from an American Farmer

labour under the peaceable shade of their vines and
fig- trees, leave their native activity unshackled and
free, like a fair stream without dams or other obstacles;
the first will fertilise the very sand on which they tread,
the other exhibit a navigable river, spreading plenty
and cheerfulness wherever the declivity of the ground
leads it. If these people are not famous for tracing the
fragrant furrow on the plain, they plough the rougher
ocean, they gather from its surface, at an immense
distance, and with Herculean labours, the riches it
affords ; they go to hunt and catch that huge fish which
by its strength and velocity one would imagine ought
to be beyond the reach of man. This island has nothing
deserving of notice but its inhabitants; here you meet
with neither ancient monuments, spacious halls, solemn
temples, nor elegant dwellings; not a citadel, nor any
kind of fortification, not even a battery to rend the
air with its loud peals on any solemn occasion. As for
their rural improvements, they are many, but all of the
most simple and useful kind.

The island of Nantucket lies in latitude 41 10'.
60 miles S. from Cape Cod; 27 S. from Hyanes or
Barnstable, a town on the most contiguous part of
the great peninsula; 21 miles E. by S. from Cape Pog,
on the vineyard; 50 E. by S. from Wood's Hole, on
Elizabeth Island; 80 miles S. from Boston; 120 from
Rhode Island; 800 N. from Bermudas. Sherborn is
the only town on ^the island, which consists of about
530 houses, that have been framed on the main; they
are lathed and plastered within, handsomely painted
and boarded without; each has a cellar underneath,
built with stones fetched also from the main: they
are all of a similar construction and appearance; plain,
and entirely devoid of exterior or interior ornament.
I observed but one which was built of bricks, belonging
to Mr. , but like the rest it is unadorned. The town

Description of Nantucket 93

stands on a rising sandbank, on the west side of the
harbour, which is very safe from all winds. There are
two places of worship, one for the society of Friends, the
other for that of Presbyterians; and in the middle of
the town, near the market-place, stands a simple
building, which is the county court-house. The town
regularly ascends toward the country, and in its vicinage
the} r have several small fields and gardens yearly
manured with the dung of their cows, and the soil of
their streets. There are a good many cherry and peach
trees planted in their streets and in many other places;
the apple tree does not thrive well, they have therefore
planted but few. The island contains no mountains,
yet is very uneven, and the many rising grounds and
eminences with which it is filled, have formed in the
several valleys a great variety of swamps, where the
Indian grass and the blue bent, peculiar to such soils,
grow with tolerable luxuriancy. Some of the swamps
abound with peat, which serves the poor instead of
firewood. There are fourteen ponds on this island,
all extremely useful, some lying transversely, almost
across it, which greatly helps to divide it into partitions
for the use of their cattle; others abound with peculiar
lish and sea fowls. Their streets are not paved, but
this is attended with little inconvenience, as it is never
crowded with country carriages; and those they have
in the town are seldom made use of but in the time of
the coming in and before the sailing of their fleets. At
my first landing I was much surprised at the disagree-
able smell which struck me in many parts of the town;
it is caused by the whale oil, and is unavoidable; the
neatness peculiar to these people can neither remove
nor prevent it. There are near the wharfs a great many
storehouses, where their staple commodity is deposited,
as well as the innumerable materials which are always
wanted to repair and fit out so many whalemen. They

94 Letters from an American Farmer

have three docks, each three hundred feet long, and
extremely convenient; at the head of which there are
ten feet of water. These docks are built like those in
Boston, of logs fetched from the continent, filled with
stones, and covered with sand. Between these docks
and the town, there is room sufficient for the landing
of goods and for the passage of their numerous carts;
for almost every man here has one: the wharfs to the
north ami south of the docks, are built of the same
materials, and give a stranger, at his first landing, an
high idea of the prosperity of these people; and there
is room around these three docks for 300 sail of vessels.
When their fleets have been successful, the bustle and
hurry of business on this spot for some days after their
arrival, would make you imagine, that Sherborn is the
capital of a very opulent and large province. On that
point of land, which forms the west side of the harbour,
stands a very neat lighthouse; the opposite peninsula,
called Coitou, secures it from the most dangerous winds.
There are but few gardens and arable fields in the
neighbourhood of the town, for nothing can be more
sterile and sandy than this part of the island; they
have, however, with unwearied perseverance, by
bringing a variety of manure, and by cow-penning,
enriched several spots where they raise Indian corn,
potatoes, pumpkins, turnips, etc. On the highest part
of this sandy eminence, four windmills grind the grain
they raise or import; and contiguous to them their rope
walk is to be seen, where full half of their cordage is
manufactured. Between the shores of the harbour, the
docks, and the town, there is a most excellent piece of
meadow, inclosed and manured with such cost and
pains as show how necessary and precious grass is at
Nantucket. Towards the point of Shemah, the island
is more level and the soil better; and there they have
considerable lots well fenced and richly manured,

Description of Nan tucket 95

where they diligently raise their yearly crops. There
are but very few farms on this island, because there
are but very few spots that will admit of cultivation
without the assistance of dung and other manure;
which is very expensive to fetch from the main. This
island was patented in the year 1671, by twenty-seven
proprietors, under the province of New York; which
then claimed all the islands from the Neway Sink to
Cape Cod. They found it so universally barren and
so unfit for cultivation, that they mutually agreed not
to divide it, as each could neither live on, nor improve
that lot which might fall to his share. They then cast
their eyes on the sea, and finding themselves obliged
to become fishermen, they looked for a harbour, and
having found one, they determined to build a town in
its neighbourhood and to dwell together. For that
purpose they surveyed as much ground as would afford
to each what is generally called here a home lot. Forty
acres were thought sufficient to answer this double
purpose; for to what end should they covet more land
than they could improve, or even inclose; not being
possessed of a single tree, in the whole extent of their
new dominion. This was all the territorial property
they allotted; the rest they agreed to hold in common,
and seeing that the scanty grass of the island might
feed sheep, they agreed that each proprietor should be
entitled to feed on it if he pleased 560 sheep. By this
agreement, the national flock was to consist of 15,120;
that is the undivided part of the island was by such
means ideally divisible into as many parts or shares;
to which nevertheless no certain determinate quantity
of land was affixed: for they knew not how much the
island contained, nor could the most judicious surveyor
fix this small quota as to quality and quantity. Further
they agreed, in case the grass should grow better by
feeding, that then four sheep should represent a cow,

96 Letters from an American Farmer

and two cows a horse: such was the method this wise
people took to enjoy in common their new settlement ;
such was the mode of their first establishment, which
may be truly and literally called a pastoral one. Several
hundred of sheep-pasture titles have since been divided
on those different tracts, which are now cultivated;
the rest by inheritance and intermarriages have been
so subdivided that it is very common for a girl to have
no other portion but her outset and four sheep pastures
or the privilege of feeding a cow. But as this privilege
is founded on an ideal, though real title to some un-
known piece of land, which one day or another may be
ascertained; these sheep-pasture titles should convey to
your imagination, something more valuable and of
greater credit than the mere advantage arising from the
benefit of a cow, which in that case would be no more
than a right of commonage. Whereas, here as labour
grows cheaper, as misfortunes from their sea adventures
may happen, each person possessed of a sufficient
number of these sheep-pasture titles may one day
realise them on some peculiar spot, such as shall be
adjudged by the council of the proprietors to be adequate
to their value ; and this is the reason that these people
very unwillingly sell those small rights, and esteem
them more than you would imagine. They are the
representation of a future freehold, they cherish in the
mind of the possessor a latent, though distant, hope,
that by his success in his next whale season, he may be
able to pitch on some predilected spot, and there build
himself a home, to which he may retire, and spend
the latter end of his days in peace. A council of pro-
prietors always exists in this island, who decide their
territorial differences; their titles are recorded in the
books of the county, which this town represents, as well
as every conveyance of lands and other sales.
This island furnishes the naturalist with few or no

Description of Nantucket 97

objects worthy observation: it appears to be the uneven
summit of a sandy submarine mountain, covered here
and there with sorrel, grass, a few cedar bushes, and
scrubby oaks; their swamps are much more valuable
for the peat they contain, than for the trifling pasture
of their surface; those declining grounds which lead
to the seashores abound with beach grass, a light fodder
when cut and cured, but very good when fed green.
On the east side of the island they have several tracts
of salt grasses, which being carefully fenced, yield a
considerable quantity of that wholesome fodder. Among
the many ponds or lakes with which this island abounds,
there are some which have been made by the intrusion
of the sea, such as Wiwidiah, the Long, the Narrow, and
several others; consequently those are salt and the
others fresh. The former answer two considerable
purposes, first by enabling them to fence the island
with greater facility; at peculiar high tides a great
number of fish enter into them, where they feed and
grow large, and at some known seasons of the year the
inhabitants assemble and cut down the small bars
which the waves always throw up. By these easy
means the waters of the pond are let out, and as the
fish follow their native element, the inhabitants with
proper nets catch as many as they want, in their way
out, without any other trouble. Those which are most
common, are the streaked bass, the blue fish, the torn-
cod, the mackerel, the tew-tag, the herring, the flounder,
eel, etc. Fishing is one of the greatest diversions the
island affords. At the west end lies the harbour of
Mardiket, formed by Smith Point on the south-west, by
Eel Point on the north, and Tuckanut Island on the
north-west; but it is neither so safe nor has it so good
anchoring ground, as that near which the town stands.
Three small creeks run into it, which yield the bitterest
eels I have ever tasted. Between the lots of Palpus

98 Letters from an American Farmer

on the east, Barry's Valley and Miacomet pond on the
south, and the narrow pond on the west, not far from
Shemah Point, they have a considerable tract of even
ground, being the least sandy, and the best on the
island. It is divided into seven fields, one of which is
planted by that part of the community which are
entitled to it. This is called the common plantation,
a simple but useful expedient, for was each holder of
this track to fence his property, it would require a
prodigious quantity of posts and rails, which you must
remember are to be purchased and fetched from the
main. Instead of those private subdivisions each man's
allotment of land is thrown into the general field which
is fenced at the expense of the parties; within it eve^
one does with his own portion of the ground whatever
he pleases. This apparent community saves a very
material expense, a great deal of labour, and perhaps
raises a sort of emulation among them, which urges
every one to fertilise his share with the greatest care
and attention. Thus every seven years the whole of
this tract is under cultivation, and enriched by manure
and ploughing yields afterwards excellent pasture; to
which the town cows, amounting to 500 are daily led
by the town shepherd, and as regularly drove back in
the evening. There each animal easily finds the house
to which it belongs, where they are sure to be well
rewarded for the milk they give, by a present of bran,
grain, or some farinaceous preparation; their economy
being very great in that respect. These are commonly
called Ttoukemah lots. You must not imagine that
every person on the island is either a landholder, or
concerned in rural operations; no, the greater part are
at sea; busily employed in their different fisheries;
others are mere strangers, who come to settle as handi-
crafts, mechanics, etc., and even among the natives few
are possessed of determinate shares of land: for engaged

Description of Nantucket 99

in sea affairs, or trade, they are satisfied with possessing
a few sheep pastures, by means of which they may have
perhaps one or two cows. Many have but one, for the
great number of children they have, has caused such
sub-divisions of the original proprietorship as is some-
times puzzling to trace; and several of the most fortu-
nate at sea, have purchased and realised a great number
of these original pasture titles. The best land on the
island is at Palpus, remarkable for nothing but a house
of entertainment. Quayes is a small but valuable track,
long since purchased by Mr. Coffin, where he has erected
the best house on the island. By long attention,
proximity of the sea, etc., this fertile spot has been well
manured, and is now the garden of Nantucket. Adjoin-
ing to it on the west side there is a small stream, on
which they have erected a fulling mill; on the east is
the lot, known by the name of Squam, watered likewise
by a small rivulet, on which stands another fulling mill.
Here is fine loamy soil, producing excellent clover, which
is mowed twice a 3^ear. These mills prepare all the
cloth which is made here: you may easily suppose that
having so large a flock of sheep, they abound in wool;
part of this they export, and the rest is spun by their
industrious wives and converted into substantial
garments. To the south-east is a great division of the
island, fenced by itself, known by the name of Siasconcet
lot. It is a very uneven track of ground, abounding
with swamps ; here they turn in their fat cattle, or such
as they intend to stall-feed, for their winter's provisions.
It is on the shores of this part of the island, near Pochick
Rip, where they catch their best fish, such as sea bass,
tew-tag, or black fish, cod, smelt, perch, shadine, pike,
etc. They have erected a few fishing houses on this
shore, as well as at Sankate's Head, and Suffakatch
Beach, where the fishermen dwell in the fishing season.
Many red cedar bushes and beach grass grow on the

ioo Letters from an American Farmer

peninsula of Coitou; the soil is light and sandy, and
serves as a receptacle for rabbits. It is here that their
sheep find shelter in the snow storms of the winter.
At the north end of Nantucket, there is a long point
of land, projecting far into the sea, called Sandy Point;
nothing grows on it but plain grass ; and this is the place
from whence they often catch porpoises and sharks, by
a very ingenious method. On this point they commonly
drive their horses in the spring of the year, in order to
feed on the grass it bears, which is useless when arrived
at maturity. Between that point and the main island
they have a valuable salt meadow, called Croskaty,
with a pond of the same name famous for black ducks.
Hence we must return to Squam, which abounds in
clover and herds grass; those who possess it follow no
maritime occupation, and therefore neglect nothing
that can render it fertile and profitable. The rest of
the undescribed part of the island is open, and serves
as a common pasture for their sheep. To the west of
the island is that of Tackanuck, where in the spring
their young cattle are driven to feed; it has a few oak
bushes and two fresh-water ponds, abounding with teals,
brandts, and many other sea fowls, brought to this
island by the proximity of their sand banks and shal-
lows; where thousands are seen feeding at low water.
Here they have neither wolves nor foxes; those in-
habitants therefore who live out of town, raise with all
security as much poultry as they want; their turkeys
are very large and excellent. In summer this climate
is extremely pleasant; they are not exposed to the
scorching sun of the continent, the heats being tempered
by the sea breezes, with which they arc perpetually
refreshed. In the winter, however, they pay severely
for those advantages; it is extremely cold; the north-
west wind, the tyrant of this country, after having
escaped from our mountains and forests, free from all

Description of Nantucket 101

impediment in its short passage, blows with redoubled
force and renders this island bleak and uncomfortable.
On the other hand, the goodness of their houses, the
social hospitality of their firesides, and their good cheer,
make them ample amends for the severity of the season ;
nor are the snows so deep as on the main. The necessary
and unavoidable inactivity of that season, combined
with the vegetative rest of nature, force mankind to
suspend their toils: often at this season more than half
the inhabitants of the island are at sea, fishing in milder
latitudes.

This island, as has been already hinted, appears to
be the summit of some huge sandy mountain, affording
some acres of dry land for the habitation of man ; other
submarine ones lie to the southward of this, at different
depths and different distances. This dangerous region
is well known to the mariners by the name of Nantucket
Shoals: these are the bulwarks which so powerfully
defend this island from the impulse of the mighty ocean,
and repel the force of its waves; which, but for the
accumulated barriers, would ere now have dissolved its
foundations, and torn it in pieces. These are the banks
which afforded to the first inhabitants of Nantucket
their daily subsistence, as it was from these shoals that
they drew the origin of that wealth which they now
possess; and was the school where they first learned
how to venture farther, as the fish of their coast receded.
The shores of this island abound with the soft-shelled,
the hard-shelled, and the great sea clams, a most
nutritious shell-fish. Their sands, their shallows are
covered with them; they multiply so fast, that they
are a never-failing resource. These and the great variety
of fish they catch, constitute the principal food of the
inhabitants. It was likewise that of the aborigines,
whom the first settlers found here; the posterity of
whom still live together in decent houses along the

IO2 Letters from an American Farmer

shores of Miacomet pond, on the south side of the
island. They are an industrious, harmless race, as
expert and as fond of a seafaring life as their fellow
inhabitants the whites. Long before their arrival they
had been engaged in petty wars against one another;
the latter brought them peace, for it was in quest of
peace that they abandoned the main. This island was
then supposed to be under the jurisdiction of New York,
as well as the islands of the Vineyard, Elizabeth's, etc.,
but have been since adjudged to be a part of the province
of Massachusetts Bay. This change of jurisdiction pro-
cured them that peace they wanted, and which their
brethren had so long refused them in the days of their
religious frenzy: thus have enthusiasm and persecution
both in Europe as well as here, been the cause of the
most arduous undertakings, and the means of those
rapid settlements which have been made along these
extended sea-shores. This island, having been since
incorporated with the neighbouring province, is become
one of its counties, known by the name of Nantucket,
as well as the island of the Vineyard, by that of Duke's
County. They enjoy here the same municipal establish-
ment in common with the rest; and therefore every
requisite officer, such as sheriff, justice of the peace,
supervisors, assessors, constables, overseer of the poor,
etc. Their taxes are proportioned to those of the
metropolis, they are levied as with us by valuations,
agreed on and fixed, according to the laws of the pro-
vince; and by assessments formed by the assessors,
who are yearly chosen by the people, and whose office
obliges them to take either an oath or an affirmation.
Two thirds of the magistrates they have here are of the
society of Friends.

Before I enter into the further detail of this people's
government, industry, mode of living, etc., I think it
necessary to give you a short sketch of the political

Description of Nantucket 103

state the natives had been in, a few years preceding the
arrival of the whites among them. They are hastening
towards a total annihilation, and this may be perhaps
the last compliment that will ever be paid them by any
traveller. They were not extirpated by fraud, violence,
or injustice, as hath been the case in so many provinces;
on the contrary, they have been treated by these people
as brethren; the peculiar genius of their sect inspiring
them with the same spirit of moderation which was
exhibited at Pennsylvania. Before the arrival of the
Europeans, they lived on the fish of their shores; and
it was from the same resources the first settlers were
compelled to draw their first subsistence. It is uncer-
tain whether the original right of the Earl of Sterling, or
that of the Duke of York, was founded on a fair purchase
of the soil or not; whatever injustice might have been
committed in that respect, cannot be charged to the
account of those Friends who purchased from others
who no doubt founded their right on Indian grants:
and if then* numbers are now so decreased, it must not
be attributed either to tyranny or violence, but to some
of those causes, which have uninterruptedly produced
the same effects from one end of the continent to the
other, wherever both nations have been mixed. This
insignificant spot, like the sea-shores of the great penin-
sula, was filled with these people; the great plenty of
clams, oysters, and other fish, on which they lived,
and which they easily catched, had prodigiously in-
creased their numbers. History does not inform us
what particular nation the aborigines of Nantucket
were of; it is however very probable that they anciently
emigrated from the opposite coast, perhaps from the
Hyannees, which is but twenty-seven miles distant.
As they then spoke and still speak the Nattick, it is
reasonable to suppose that they must have had some
affinity with that nation; or else that the Nattick, like

104 Otters from an American Farmer

the Huron, in the north-western parts of this continent,
must have been the most prevailing one in this region.
Mr. Elliot, an eminent New England divine, and one
of the first founders of that great colony, translated the
Bible into this language, in the year 1666, which was
printed soon after at Cambridge, near Boston; he
translated also the catechism, and many other useful
books, which are still very common on this island, and
are daily made use of by those Indians who are taught
to read. The young Europeans learn it with the same
facility as their own tongues; and ever after speak it
both with ease and fluency. Whether the present
Indians are the decendants of the ancient natives of
the island, or whether they are the remains of the
many different nations which once inhabited the
regions of Mashpe and Nobscusset, in the peninsula
now known by the name of Cape Cod, no one can
positively tell, not even themselves. The last opinion
seems to be that of the most sensible people of the
island. So prevailing is the disposition of man to
quarrel, and shed blood; so prone is he to divisions and
parties; that even the ancient natives of this little spot
were separated into two communities, inveterately
waging war against each other, like the more powerful
tribes of the continent. What do you imagine was the
cause of this national quarrel? All the coast of their
island equally abounded with the same quantity of fish
and clams; in that instance there could be no jealousy,
no motives to anger; the country afforded them no
game; one would think this ought to have been the
country of harmony and peace. But behold the
singular destiny of the human kind, ever inferior, in
many instances, to the more certain instinct of animals;
among which the individuals of the same species are
always friends, though reared in different climates'
they understand the same language, they shed not each

Description of Nantucket 105

other's blood, they eat not each other's flesh. That
part of these rude people who lived on the eastern
shores of the island, had from time immemorial tried
to destroy those who lived on the west; those latter
inspired with the same evil genius, had not been behind
hand in retaliating : thus was a perpetual war subsisting
between these people, founded on no other reason, but
the adventitious place of their nativity and residence.
In process of time both parties became so thin and
depopulated, that the few who remained, fearing lest
their race should become totally extinct, fortunately
thought of an expedient which prevented their entire
annihilation. Some years before the Europeans came,
they mutually agreed to settle a partition line which
should divide the island from north to south ; the people
of the west agreed not to kill those of the east, except
they were found transgressing over the western part
of the line; those of the last entered into a reciprocal
agreement. By these simple means peace was estab-
lished among them, and this is the only record which
seems to entitle them to the denomination of men.
This happy settlement put a stop to their sanguinary
depredations, none fell afterward but a few rash impru-
dent individuals; on the contrary, they multiplied
greatly. But another misfortune awaited them; when
the Europeans came they caught the smallpox, and
their improper treatment of that disorder swept away
great numbers: this calamity was succeeded by the
use of rum; and these are the two principal causes
which so much diminished their numbers, not only here
but all over the continent. In some places whole
nations have disappeared. Some years ago three
Indian canoes, on their return to Detroit from the falls
of Niagara, unluckily got the smallpox from the
Europeans with whom they had traded. It broke out
near the long point on Lake Erie, there they all perished;

io6 Letters from an American Farmer

their canoes, and their goods, were afterwards found
by some travellers journeying the same way; their
dogs were still alive. Besides the smallpox, and the
use of spirituous liquors, the two greatest curses they
have received from us, there is a sort of physical anti-
pathy, which is equally powerful from one end of the
continent to the other. Wherever they happen to be
mixed, or even to live in the neighbourhood of the
Europeans, they become exposed to a variety of acci-
dents and misfortunes to which they always fall victims:
such are particular fevers, to which they were strangers
before, and sinking into a singular sort of indolence and
sloth. This has been invariably the case wherever the
same association has taken place; as at Nattick, Mashp&,
Soccanoket in the bounds of Falmouth, Nobscusset,
Houratonick, Monhauset, and the Vineyard. Even
the Mohawks themselves, who were once so populous,
and such renowned warriors, are now reduced to less
than 200 since the European settlements have circum-
scribed the territories which their ancestors had reserved.
Three years before the arrival of the Europeans at
Cape Cod, a frightful distemper had swept away a great
many along its coasts, which made the landing and
intrusion of our forefathers much easier than it other-
wise might have been. In the year 1763, above half of
the Indians of this island perished by a strange fever,
which the Europeans who nursed them never caught;
they appear to be a race doomed to recede and disappear
before the superior genius of the Europeans. The only
ancient custom of these people that is remembered is,
that in their mutual exchanges, forty sun-dried clams,
strung on a string, passed for the value of what might
be called a copper. They were strangers to the use and
value of wampum, so well known to those of the main.
The few families now remaining are meek and harmless;
their ancient ferocity is gone: they were early Christian-

Description of Nantucket 107

ised by the New England missionaries, as well as those
of the Vineyard, and of several other parts of Massa-
chusetts; and to this day they remain strict observers
of the laws and customs of that religion, being carefully
taught while young. Their sedentary life has led them
to this degree of civilisation much more effectually, than
if they had still remained hunters. They are fond of
the sea, and expert mariners. They have learned from
the Quakers the art of catching both the cod and whale,
in consequence of which, five of them always make part
of the complement of men requisite to fit out a whale-
boat. Many have removed hither from the Vineyard,
on which account they are more numerous on Nantucket,
than anywhere else.

It is strange what revolution has happened among
them in less than two hundred years! What is become
of those numerous tribes which formerly inhabited the
extensive shores of the great bay of Massachusetts?
Even from Numkeag (Salem), Saugus (Lynn), Shawmut
(Boston), Pataxet, Napouset (Milton), Matapan (Dor-
chester), Winesimet (Chelsea), Po'iasset, Pokcinoket
(New Plymouth), Suecanosset (Falmouth), Titicut (Chat-
ham), Nobscusset (Yarmouth), Naussit (Eastham),
Ilyannees (Barnstable), etc., and many others who
lived on sea-shores of above three hundred miles in
length; without mentioning those powerful tribes
which once dwelt between the rivers Hudson, Con-
necticut, Pisk^taqua, and Kennebeck, the Mehikaudret,
Mohiguine, Pequods, Narragansets, Nianticks, Massa-
chusetts, Wamponougs, Nipnets, Tarranteens, etc.
They are gone, and every memorial of them is lost;
no vestiges whatever are left of those swarms which
once inhabited this country, and replenished both sides
of the great peninsula of Cape Cod: not even one of the
posterity of the famous Masconomeo is left (the sachem
of Cape Ann); not one of the descendants of Massasoit,

io8 Letters from an American Farmer

father of Metacomet (Philip] , and Wamsutta (Alex-
ander), he who first conveyed some lands to the Plymouth
Company. They have all disappeared either in the
wars which the Europeans carried on against them, or
else they have mouldered away, gathered in some of
their ancient towns, in contempt and oblivion: nothing
remains of them all, but one extraordinary monument,
and even this they owe to the industry and religious
zeal of the Europeans, I mean the Bible translated into
the Nattick tongue. Many of these tribes giving way to
the superior power of the whites, retired to their ancient
villages, collecting the scattered remains of nations
once populous; and in their grant of lands reserved to
themselves and posterity certain portions, which lay
contiguous to them. There forgetting their ancient
manners, they dwelt in peace; in a few years their
territories were surrounded by the improvements of the
Europeans; in consequence of which they grew lazy,
inactive, unwilling, and unapt to imitate, or to follow
any of our trades, and in a few generations, either totally
perished or else came over to the Vineyard, or to this
island, to re-unite themselves with such societies of
their countrymen as would receive them. Such has
been the fate of many nations, once warlike and in-
dependent; what we see now on the main, or on those
islands, may be justly considered as the only remains
of those ancient tribes. Might I be permitted to pay
perhaps a very useless compliment to those at least who
inhabited the great peninsula of Namset, now Cape Cod,
with whose names and ancient situation I am well
acquainted. This peninsula was divided into two great
regions; that on the side of the bay was known by
the name of Nobscusset, from one of its towns; the
capital was called Nausit (now Eastham); hence the
Indians of that region were called Nausit Indians,
though they dwelt in the villages of Pamet, Nosset,

Description of Nantuckct 1 09

Pashee, Potomaket, Soktoowoket, Nobscusset (Yar-
mouth).

The region on the Atlantic side was called Mashpee,
and contained the tribes of Hyannees, Costowet,
Waquoit, Scootin, Saconasset, Mashpee, and Namset.
Several of these Indian towns have been since converted
into flourishing European settlements, known by dif-
ferent names; for as the natives were excellent judges
of land, which they had fertilised besides with the shells
of their fish, etc., the latter could not make a better
choice; though in general this great peninsula is but
a sandy pine track, a few good spots excepted. It is
divided into seven townships, viz. Barnstable, Yar-
mouth, Harwich, Chatham, Eastham, Pamet, Namset,
or Province town, at the extremity of the Cape. Yet
these are very populous, though I am at a loss to con-
ceive on what the inhabitants live, besides clams,
oysters, and fish; their piny lands being the most
ungrateful soil in the world. The minister of Namset
or Province Town, receives from the government of
Massachusetts a salary of fifty pounds per annum ; and
such is the poverty of the inhabitants of that place, that,
unable to pay him any money, each master of a family
is obliged to allow him two hundred horse feet (sea spin)
with which this primitive priest fertilises the land of
his glebe, which he tills himself: for nothing will grow
on these hungry soils without the assistance ot this
extraordinary manure, fourteen bushels of Indian corn
being looked upon as a good crop. But it is time to
return from a digression, which I hope you will pardon.
Nan tucket is a great nursery of seamen, pilots, coasters,
and bank-fishermen; as a country belonging to the
province of Massachusetts, it has yearly the benefit of a
court of Common Pleas, and their appeal lies to the
supreme court at Boston. I observed before, that the
Friends compose two-thirds of the magistracy of this

i 10 Letters from an American Farmer

island; thus they are the proprietors of its territory,
and the principal rulers of its inhabitants; but with all
this apparatus of law, its coercive powers are seldom
wanted or required. Seldom is it that any individual
is amerced or punished; their jail conveys no terror;
no man has lost his life here judicially since the founda-
tion of this town, which is upwards of an hundred years.
Solemn tribunals, public executions, humiliating punish-
ments, are altogether unknown. I saw neither gover-
nors, nor any pageantry of state; neither ostentatious
magistrates, nor any individuals clothed with useless
dignity: no artiiicial phantoms subsist here either civil
or religious; no gibbets loaded with guilty citizens offer
themselves to your view; no soldiers are appointed to
bayonet their compatriots into servile compliance.
But how is a society composed of 5000 individuals
preserved in the bonds of peace and tranquillity ? How
are the weak protected from the strong? I will teh 1
you. Idleness and poverty, the causes of so many
crimes, are unknown here; each seeks in the prosecution
of his lawful business that honest gain which supports
them ; every period of their time is full, either on shore
or at sea. A probable expectation of reasonable profits,
or of kindly assistance, if they fail of success, renders
them strangers to licentious expedients. The simplicity
of their manners shortens the catalogues of their wants ;
the law at a distance is ever ready to exert itself in the
protection of those -who stand in need of its assistance.
The greatest part of them are always at sea, pursuing
the whale or raising the cod from the surface of the
banks: some cultivate their little farms with the utmost
diligence; some are employed in exercising various
trades; others again in providing every necessary
resource in order to refit their vessels, or repair what
misfortunes may happen, looking out for future markets,
etc. Such is the rotation of those different scenes of

Description of Nantuckct 1 1 1

business which fill the measure of their days; of that
part of their lives at least which is enlivened by health,
spirits, and vigour. It is but seldom that vice grows
on a barren sand like this, which produces nothing
without extreme labour. How could the common
follies of society take root in so despicable a soil; they
generally thrive on its exuberant juices: here there are
none but those which administer to the useful, to the
necessary, and to the indispensable comforts of life.
This land must necessarily either produce health,
temperance, and a great equality of conditions, or the
most abject misery. Could the manners of luxurious
countries be imported here, like an epidemical disorder
they would destroy everything; the majority of them
could not exist a month, they would be obliged to emi-
grate. As in all societies except that of the natives,
some difference must necessarily exist between individual
and individual, for there must be some more exalted
than the rest either by their riches or their talents; so
in this, there are what you might call the high, the
middling, and the low; and this difference will always
be more remarkable among people who live by sea
excursions than among those who live by the cultivation
of their land. The first run greater hazard, and adven-
ture more: the profits and the misfortunes attending
this mode of life must necessarily introduce a greater
disparity than among the latter, where the equal
divisions of the land offers no short road to superior
riches. The only difference that may arise among them
is that of industry, and perhaps of superior goodness
of soil: the gradations I observed here, are founded on
nothing more than the good or ill success of their
maritime enterprises, and do not proceed from educa-
tion; that is the same throughout every class, simple,
useful, and unadorned like their dress and their houses.
This necessary difference in their fortunes does not

1 1 2 Letters from an American Farmer

however cause those heart burnings, which in other
societies generate crimes. The sea which surrounds
them is equally open to all, and presents to all an equal
title to the chance of good fortune. A collector from
Boston is the only king's officer who appears on these
shores to receive the trifling duties which this com-
munity owe to those who protect them, and under
the shadow of whose wings they navigate to all parts
of the world.

LETTER V

CUSTOMARY EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT OF THE
INHABITANTS OF NANTUCKET

THE easiest way of becoming acquainted with the
modes of thinking, the rules of conduct, and the prevail-
ing manners of any people, is to examine what sort of
education they give their children ; how they treat them
at home, and what they are taught in their places of
public worship. At home their tender minds must be
early struck with the gravity, the serious though cheer-
ful deportment of their parents; they are inured to a
principle of subordination, arising neither from sudden
passions nor inconsiderate pleasure; they are gently
held by an uniform silk cord, which unites softness and
strength. A perfect equanimity prevails in most of
their families, and bad example hardly ever sows in their
hearts the seeds of future and similar faults. They are
corrected with tenderness, nursed with the most affec-
tionate care, clad with that decent plainness, from
which they observe their parents never to depart: in
short, by the force of example, which is superior even
to the strongest instinct of nature, more than by pre-
cepts, they learn to follow the steps of their parents, to
despise ostentatiousness as being sinful. They acquire
a taste for neatness for which their fathers are so con-
spicuous; they learn to be prudent and saving; the
very tone of voice with which they are always addressed,
establishes in them that softness of diction, which ever
after becomes habitual. Frugal, sober, orderly parents,
attached to their business, constantly following some

* 6 4 u

1 14 Letters from an American Farmer

useful occupation, never guilty of riot, dissipation, or
other irregularities, cannot fail of training up children
to the same uniformity of life and manners. If they are
left with fortunes, they are taught how to save them,
and how to enjoy them with moderation and decency;
if they have none, they know how to venture, how to
work and toil as their fathers have done before them.
If they fail of success, there are always in this island
(and wherever this society prevails) established resources,
founded on the most benevolent principles. At their
meetings they are taught the few, the simple tenets of
their sect ; tenets as fit to render men sober, industrious,
just, and merciful, as those delivered in the most
magnificent churches and cathedrals : they are instructed
in the most essential duties of Christianity, so as not to
offend the Divinity by the commission of evil deeds;
to dread his wrath and the punishments he has de-
nounced; they are taught at the same time to have a
proper confidence in his mercy while they deprecate his
justice. As every sect, from their different modes of
worship, and their different interpretations of some
parts of the Scriptures, necessarily have various
opinions and prejudices, which contribute something
in forming their characters in society; so those of the
Friends are well known: obedience to the laws, even
to non-resistance, justice, goodwill to all, benevolence
at home, sobriety, meekness, neatness, love of order,
fondness and appetite for commerce. They are as
remarkable here tor those virtues as at Philadelphia,
which is their American cradle, and the boast of that
society. At schools they learn to read, and to write
a good hand, until they are twelve years old; they are
then in general put apprentices to the cooper's trade,
which is the second essential branch of business followed
here; at fourteen they are sent to sea, where in their
leisure hours their companions teach them the art of

Education at Nantucket 1 15

navigation, which they have an opportunity of practis-
ing on the spot. They learn the great and useful art
of working a ship in all the different situations which
the sea and wind so often require; and surely there
cannot be a better or a more useful school of that kind
in the world. Then they go gradually through every
station of rowers, steersmen, and harpooners; thus
they learn to attack, to pursue, to overtake, to cut, to
dress their huge game: and after having performed
several such voyages, and perfected themselves in thh
business, they are fit either for the counting house or
the chase.

The first proprietors of this island, or rather the first
founders of this town, began their career of industry
with a single whale-boat, with which they went to fish
for cod; the small distance from their shores at which
they caught it, enabled thcrn soon to increase their
business, and those early successes first led them to
conceive that they might likewise catch the whales,
which hitherto sported undisturbed on their banks.
After many trials and several miscarriages, they suc-
ceeded; thus they proceeded, step by step; the profits
of one successful enterprise helped them to purchase
and prepare better materials for a more extensive one:
as these were attended with little costs, their profits grew
greater. The south sides of the island from east to
west, were divided into four equal parts, and each part
was assigned to a company of six, which though thus
separated, still carried on their business in common.
In the middle of this distance, they erected a mast,
provided with a sufficient number of rounds, and near
it they built a temporary hut, where five of the asso-
ciates lived, whilst the sixth from his high station care-
fully looked toward the sea, in order to observe the
spouting of the whales. As soon as any were discovered,
the sentinel d scended, the whale-boat was launched,

i 1 6 Letters from an American Farmer

and the company went forth in quest of their game.
It may appear strange to you, that so slender a vessel
as an American whale-boat, containing six diminutive
beings, should dare to pursue and to attack, in its
native element, the largest and strongest fish that
nature has created. Yet by the exertions of an admir-
able dexterity, improved by a long practice, in which
these people are become superior to any other whale-
men; by knowing the temper of the whale after her
first movement, and by many other useful observations;
they seldom failed to harpoon it, and to bring the huge
leviathan on the shores. Thus they went on until
the profits they made, enabled them to purchase larger
vessels, and to pursue them farther, when the whales
quitted their coasts; those who failed in their enter-
prises, returned to the cod-fisheries, which had been
their first school, and their first resource; they even
began to visit the banks of Cape Breton, the isle of
Sable, and all the other fishing places, with which this
coast of America abounds. By degrees they went
a-whaling to Newfoundland, to the Gulf of St. Lawrence,
to the Straits of Belleisle, the coast of Labrador, Davis's
Straits, even to Cape Desolation, in 70 of latitude;
where the Danes carry on some fisheries in spite of the
perpetual severities of the inhospitable climate. In
process of time they visited the western islands, the
latitude of 34 famous for that fish, the Brazils, the coast
of Guinea. Would .you believe that they have already
gone to the Falkland Islands, and that I have heard
several of them talk of going to the South Sea! Their
confidence is so great, and their knowledge of this
branch of business so superior to that of any other
people, that they have acquired a monopoly of this
commodity. Such were their feeble beginnings, such
the infancy and the progress of their maritime schemes ;
such is now the degree of boldness and activity to which

Education at Nantucket 117

they are arrived in their manhood. After their ex-
amples several companies have been formed in many
of our capitals, where every necessary article of pro-
visions, implements, and timber, are to be found. But
the industry exerted by the people of Nantucket, hath
hitherto enabled them to rival all their competitors;
consequently this is the greatest mart for oil, whalebone,
and spermaceti, on the continent. It does not follow
however that they are always successful, this would be
an extraordinary field indeed, where the crops should
never fail; many voyages do not repay the original
cost of fitting out : they bear such misfortunes like true
merchants, and as they never venture their all like
gamesters, they try their fortunes again; the latter
hope to win by chance alone, the former by industry,
well judged speculation, and some hazard. I was there

when Mr. had missed one of his vessels; she had

been given over for lost by everybody, but happily
arrived before I came away, after an absence of thirteen
months. She had met with a variety of disappoint-
ments on the station she was ordered to, and rather
than return empty, the people steered for the coast of
Guinea, where they fortunately fell in with several
whales, and brought home upward of 600 barrels of oil,
beside bone. Those returns are sometimes disposed
of in the towns on the continent, where they are ex-
changed for such commodities as are wanted ; but they
are most commonly sent to England, where they always
sell for cash. When this is intended, a vessel larger
than the rest is fitted out to be filled with oil on the spot
where it is found and made, and thence she sails immedi-
ately for London. This expedient saves time, freight,
and expense; and from that capital they bring back
whatever they want. They employ also several vessels
in transporting lumber to the West Indian Islands,
from whence they procure in return the various pro-

1 1 8 Letters from an American Farmer

ductions of the country, which they afterwards exchange
wherever they can hear of an advantageous market.
Being extremely acute they well know how to improve
all the advantages which the combination of so many
branches of business constantly affords; the spirit of
commerce, which is the simple art of a reciprocal supply
of wants, is well understood here by everybody. They
possess, like the generality of Americans, a large share
of native penetration, activity, and good sense, which
lead them to a variety of other secondary schemes too
tedious to mention: they are well acquainted with the
cheapest method of procuring lumber from Kennebeck
river, Penobscot, etc., pitch and tar, from North Caro-
lina; flour and biscuit, from Philadelphia; beef and pork,
from Connecticut. They know how to exchange their
cod fish and West-Indian produce, for those articles
which they are continually either bringing to their
island, or sending off to other places where they are
wanted. By means of all these commercial negotia-
tions, they have greatly cheapened the fitting out of
their whaling fleets, and therefore much improved their
fisheries. They are indebted for all these advantages
not only to their national genius but to the poverty of
their soil ; and as proof of what I have so often advanced,
look at the Vineyard (their neighbouring island) which
is inhabited by a set of people as keen and as sagacious
as themselves. Their soil being in general extremely
fertile, they have fewer navigators; though they are
equally well situated for the fishing business. As in
my way back to Falmouth on the main, I visited this
sister island, permit me to give you as concisely as I
can, a short but true description of it; I am not so
limited in the principal object of this journey, as to
wish to confine myself to the single spot of Nan tucket.

LETTER VI

DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND OF MARTHA'S VINEYARD;
AND OF THE WHALE FISHERY

THIS island is twenty miles in length, and from seven
to eight miles in breadth. It lies nine miles from the
continent, and with the Elizabeth Islands forms one
of the counties of Massachusetts Bay, known by the
name of Duke's County. Those latter, which are six in
number, are about nine miles distant from the Vineyard,
and are all famous for excellent dairies. A good ferry
is established between the Edgar Town, and Falmouth
on the main, the distance being nine miles. Martha's
Vineyard is divided into three townships, viz. Edgar,
Chilmark, and Tisbury; the number of inhabitants is
computed at about 4000, 300 of which are Indians.
Edgar is the best seaport, and the shire town, and as
its soil is light and sandy, many of its inhabitants
follow the example of the people of Nantucket. The
town of Chilmark has no good harbour, but the land is
excellent and no way inferior to any on the continent:
it contains excellent pastures, convenient brooks for
mills, stone for fencing, etc. The town of Tisbury is
remarkable for the excellence of its timber, and has a
harbour where the water is deep enough for ships of the
line. The stock of the island is 20,000 sheep, 2000 neat
cattle, beside horses and goats; they have also some
deer, and abundance oi sea-fowls. This has been from
the beginning, and is to this day, the principal seminary
of the Indians; they live on that part of the island
which is called Chapoquidick, and were very early

119

I2O Letters from an American Farmer

christianised by the respectable family of the Mahews,
the first proprietors of it. The first settler of that name
conveyed by will to a favourite daughter a certain
part of it, on which there grew many wild vines; thence
it was called Martha's Vineyard, after her name, which
in process of time extended to the whole island. The
posterity of the ancient Aborigines remain here to this
day, on lands which their forefathers reserved for them-
selves, and which are religiously kept from any encroach-
ments. The New England people are remarkable for
the honesty with which they have fulfilled, all over that
province, those ancient covenants which in many others
have been disregarded, to the scandal of those govern-
ments. The Indians there appeared, by the decency
of their manners, their industry, and neatness, to be
wholly Europeans, and nowise inferior to many of the
inhabitants. Like them they are sober, laborious, and
religious, which are the principal characteristics of the
four New England provinces. They often go, like the
young men of the Vineyard, to Nantucket, and hire
themselves for whalemen or fishermen ; and indeed their
skill and dexterity in all sea affairs is nothing inferior
to that of the whites. The latter are divided into two
classes, the first occupy the land, which they till with
admirable care and knowledge; the second, who are
possessed of none, apply themselves to the sea, the
general resource of mankind in this part of the world.
This island therefore, like Nantucket, is become a great
nursery which supplies with pilots and seamen the
numerous coasters with which this extended part of
America abounds. Go where you will from Nova
Scotia to the Mississippi, you will find almost every-
where some natives of these two islands employed in
seafaring occupations. Their climate is so favourable
to population, that marriage is the object of every man's
earliest wish; and it is a blessing so easily obtained,

Description of Martha's Vineyard 121

that great numbers are obliged to quit their native land
and go to some other countries in quest of subsistence.
The inhabitants are all Presbyterians, which is the
established religion of Massachusetts; and here let me
remember with gratitude the hospitable treatment I
received from B. Norton, Esq., the colonel of the island,
as well as from Dr. Mahew, the lineal descendant of the
first proprietor. Here are to be found the most expert
pilots, either for the great bay, their sound, Nantucket
shoals, or the different ports in their neighbourhood.
In stormy weather they are always at sea, looking out
for vessels, which they board with singular dexterity,
and hardly ever fail to bring safe to their intended
harbour. Gay-Head, the western point of this island,
abounds with a variety of ochres of different colours,
with which the inhabitants paint their houses.

The vessels most proper for whale fishing are brigs
of about 150 tons burthen, particularly when they are
intended for distant latitudes; they always man them
with thirteen hands, in order that they may row two
whale-boats; the crews of which must necessarily
consist of six, four at the oars, one standing on the bows
with the harpoon, and the other at the helm. It is
also necessary that there should be two of these boats,
that if one should be destroyed in attacking the whale,
the other, which is never engaged at the same time,
may be ready to save the hands. Five of the thirteen
are always Indians ; the last of the complement remains
on board to steer the vessel during the action. They
have no wages; each draws a certain established share
in partnership with the proprietor of the vessel; by
which economy they are all proportionately concerned
in the success of the enterprise, and all equally alert
and vigilant. None of these whalemen ever exceed the
age of forty: they look on those who are past that period
not to be possessed of all that vigour and agility which

122 Letters from an American Farmer

so adventurous a business requires. Indeed if you
attentively consider the immense disproportion between
the object assailed and the assailants; if you think on
the diminutive size, and weakness of their frail vehicle ;
if you recollect the treachery of the element on which
this scene is transacted; the sudden and unforeseen
accidents of winds, etc., you will readily acknowledge
that it must require the most consummate exertion of
all the strength, agility, and judgment, of which the
bodies and minds of men are capable, to undertake these
adventurous encounters.

As soon as they arrive in those latitudes where they
expect to meet with whales, a man is sent up to the mast
head; if he sees one, he immediately cries out AWAITE
PA WAN A, here is a whale ; they all remain still and
silent until he repeats PAWANA, a whale, when in less
than six minutes the two boats are launched, filled with
every implement necessary for the attack. They row
toward the whale with astonishing velocity; and as the
Indians early became their fellow-labourers in this new
warfare, you can easily conceive how the Nattick
expressions became familiar on board the whale-boats.
Formerly it often happened that whale vessels were
manned with none but Indians and the master ; recollect
also that the Nantucket people understand the Nattick,
and that there are always five of these people on board.
There are various ways of approaching the whale,
according to their peculiar species; and this previous
knowledge is of the utmost consequence. When these
boats are arrived at a reasonable distance, one of them
rests on its oars and stands off, as a witness of the ap-
proaching engagement ; near the bows of the other the
harpooner stands up, and on him principally depends
the success of the enterprise. He wears a jacket closely
buttoned, and round his head a handkerchief tightly
bound : in his hands he holds the dreadful weapon, made

Description of Martha's Vineyard I2J

of the best steel, marked sometimes with the name of
their town, and sometimes with that of their vessel;
to the shaft of which the end of a cord of due length,
coiled up with the utmost care in the middle of the boat,
is firmly tied; the other end is fastened to the bottom
of the boat. Thus prepared they row in profound
silence, leaving the whole conduct of the enterprise to
the harpooner and to the steersman, attentively follow-
ing their directions. When the former judges himself
to be near enough to the whale, that is, at the distance
of about fifteen feet, he bids them stop; perhaps she
has a calf, whose safety attracts all the attention of the
dam, which is a favourable circumstance; perhaps she
is of a dangerous species, and it is safest to retire, though
their ardour will seldom permit them; perhaps she is
asleep, in that case he balances high the harpoon, trying
in this important moment to collect all the energy of
which he is capable. He launches it forth she is
struck: from her first movements they judge of her
temper, as well as of their future success. Sometimes
in the immediate impulse of rage, she will attack the
boat and demolish it with one stroke of her tail; in an
instant the frail vehicle disappears and the assailants
are immersed in the dreadful element. Were the whale
armed with the jaws of a shark, and as voracious, they
never would return home to amuse their listening wives
with the interesting tale of the adventure. At other
times she will dive and disappear from human sight;
and everything must give way to her velocity, or else
all is lost. Sometimes she will swim away as if un-
touched, and draw the cord with such swiftness that it
will set the edge of the boat on fire by the friction. If
she rises before she has run out the whole length, she is
looked upon as a sure prey. The blood she has lost in
her flight, weakens her so much, that if she sinks again,
it is but for a short time; the boat follows her course

1 24 Letters from an American Farmer

with almost equal speed. She soon re-appears; tired
at last with convulsing the element; which she tinges
with her blood, she dies, and floats on the surface. At
other times it may happen that she is not dangerously
wounded, though she carries the harpoon fast in her
body; when she will alternately dive and rise, and swim
on with unabated vigour. She then soon reaches
beyond the length of the cord, and carries the boat
along with amazing velocity: this sudden impediment
sometimes will retard her speed, at other times it only
serves to rouse her anger, and to accelerate her progress.
The harpooner, with the axe in his hands, stands ready.
When he observes that the bows of the boat are greatly
pulled down by the diving whale, and that it begins to
sink deep and to take much water, he brings the axe
almost in contact with the cord; he pauses, still flatter-
ing himself that she will relax; but the moment grows
critical, unavoidable danger approaches: sometimes
men more intent on gain, than on the preservation of
their lives, will run great risks ; and it is wonderful how
far these people have carried their daring courage at
this awful moment ! But it is vain to hope, their lives
must be saved, the cord is cut, the boat rises again. If
after thus getting loose, she re-appears, they will attack
and wound her a second time. She soon dies, and when
dead she is towed alongside of their vessel, where she
is fastened.

The next operation is to cut with axes and spades,
every part of her body which yields oil; the kettles are
set a boiling, they fill their barrels as fast as it is made;
but as this operation is much slower than that of cutting
up, they fill the hold of their ship with those fragments,
lest a storm should arise and oblige them to abandon
their prize. It is astonishing what a quantity of oil
some of these fish will yield, and what profit it affords
to those who are fortunate enough to overtake them.

Description of Martha's Vineyard 125

The river St. Lawrence whale, which is the only one 1
am well acquainted with, is seventy-five feet long,
sixteen deep, twelve in the length of its bone, which
commonly weighs 3000 Ibs., twenty in the breadth of
their tails and produces 180 barrels of oil: I once saw
16 boiled out of the tongue only. After having once
vanquished this leviathan, there are two enemies to be
dreaded beside the wind; the first of which is the shark:
that fierce voracious fish, to which nature has given
such dreadful offensive weapons, often comes alongside,
and in spite of the people's endeavours, will share with
them their prey; at night particularly. They are very
mischievious, but the second enemy is much more
terrible and irresistible; it is the killer, sometimes
called the thrasher, a species of whales about thirty
feet long. They are possessed of such a degree of
agility and fierceness, as often to attack the largest
spermaceti whales, and not seldom to rob the fisher-
men of their prey; nor is there any means of defence
against so potent an adversary. When all their barrels
are full, for everything is done at sea, or when their
limited time is expired and their stores almost expended,
they return home, freighted with their valuable cargo;
unless they have put it on board a vessel for the
European market. Such are, as briefly as I can relate
them, the different branches of the economy practised
by these bold navigators, and the method with which
they go such distances from their island to catch this
huge game.

The following are the names and principal charac-
teristics of the various species of whales known to these
people :

The St. Lawrence whale, just described.

The disko, or Greenland ditto.

The right whale, or seven feet bone, common on the
coasts of this country, about sixty feet long.

iz6 Letters from an American Farmer

The spermaceti whale, found all over the world, and
of all sizes; the longest are sixty feet, and yield about
100 barrels of oil.

The hump-backs, on the coast of Newfoundland,
from forty to seventy feet in length.

The finn-back, an American whale, never killed, as
being too swift.

The sulphur-bottom, river St. Lawrence, ninety foot
long; they are but seldom killed, as being extremely
swift.

The grampus, thirty feet long, never killed on the
same account.

The killer or thrasher, about thirty feet; they often
kill the other whales with which they are at perpetual
war.

The black fish whale, twenty feet, yields from eight
to ten barrels.

The porpoise, weighing about 160 Ib.

In 1769 they fitted out 125 whalemen; the first fifty
that returned brought with them 11,000 barrels of oil.
In 1770 they fitted out 135 vessels for the fisheries, at
thirteen hands each; four West-Indiamen, twelve
hands; twenty-five wood vessels, four hands; eighteen
coasters, five hands; fifteen London traders, eleven
hands. All these amount to 2158 hands, employed in
197 vessels. Trace their progressive steps between the
possession of a few whale-boats, and that of such a fleet !

The moral conduct, prejudices, and customs of a
people who live two-thirds of their time at sea, must
naturally be very different from those of their neigh-
bours, who live by cultivating the earth. That long
abstemiousness to which the former are exposed, the
breathing of saline air, the frequent repetitions of danger,
the boldness acquired in surmounting them, the very
impulse of the winds, to which they are exposed; all
these, one would imagine must lead them, when on shore,

Description of Martha's Vineyard 127

to no small desire of inebriation, and a more eager
pursuit of those pleasures, of which they have been so
long deprived, and which they must soon forego. There
are many appetites that may be gratified on shore, even
by the poorest man, but which must remain unsatisfied
at sea. Yet notwithstanding the powerful effects of all
these causes, I observed here, at the return of their
fleets, no material irregularities; no tumultuous drink-
ing assemblies: whereas in our continental towns, the
thoughtless seaman indulges himself in the coarsest
pleasures ; and vainly thinking that a week of debauchery
can compensate for months of abstinence, foolishly
lavishes in a few days of intoxication, the fruits of half a
year's labour. On the contrary all was peace here, and
a general decency prevailed throughout; the reason I
believe is, that almost everybody here is married, for
they get wives very young; and the pleasure of return-
ing to their families absorbs every other desire. The
motives that lead them to the sea, are very different
from those of most other sea-faring men; it is neither
idleness nor profligacy that sends them to that element;
it is a settled plan of life, a well founded hope of earning
a livelihood; it is because their soil is bad, that they
are early initiated to this profession, and were they to
stay at home, what could they do? The sea therefore
becomes to them a kind of patrimony; they go to
whaling with as much pleasure and tranquil indifference,
with as strong an expectation of success, as a landsman
undertakes to clear a piece of swamp. The first is
obliged to advance his time, and labour, to procure oil
on the surface of the sea; the second advances the same
to procure himself grass from grounds that produced
nothing before but hassocks and bogs. Among those
who do not use the sea, I observed the same calm appear-
ance as among the inhabitants on the continent; here
I found, without gloom, a decorum and reserve, so

ia8 Letters from an American Farmer

natural to them, that I thought myself in Philadelphia.
At my landing I was cordially received by those to
whom I was recommended, and treated with unaffected
hospitality by such others with whom I became ac-
quainted; and I can tell you, that it is impossible for
any traveller to dwell here one month without knowing
the heads of the principal families. Wherever I went
I found a simplicity of diction and manners, rather more
primitive and rigid than I expected; and I soon per-
ceived that it proceeded from their secluded situation,
which has prevented them from mixing with others. It
is therefore easy to conceive how they have retained
every degree of peculiarity for which this sect was
formerly distinguished. Never was a bee-hive more
faithfully employed in gathering wax, bee-bread, and
honey, from all the neighbouring fields, than are the
members of this society; every one in the town follows
some particular occupation with great diligence, but
without that servility of labour which I am informed
prevails in Europe. The mechanic seemed to be
descended from as good parentage, was as well dressed
and fed, and held in as much estimation as those who
employed him; they were once nearly related; their
different degrees of prosperity is what has caused the
various shades of their community. But this accidental
difference has introduced, as yet, neither arrogance nor
pride on the one part, nor meanness and servility on the
other. All their houses are neat, convenient, and com-
fortable; some of them are filled with two families, (or
when the husbands are at sea, the wives require less
house-room. They all abound with the most sub-
stantial furniture, more valuable from its usefulness
than from any ornamental appearance. Wherever I
went, I found good cheer, a welcome reception; and
after the second visit I felt myself as much at my ease as
if I had been an old acquaintance of the family. They

Description of Martha's Vineyard 129

had as great plenty of everything as if their island had
been part of the golden quarter of Virginia (a valuable
track of land on Cape Charles) : I could hardly persuade
myself that I had quitted the adjacent continent, where
everything abounds, and that I was on a barren sand-
bank, fertilised with whale oil only. As their rural im-
provements are but trifling, and only of the useful kind,
and as the best of them are at a considerable distance
from the town, I amused myself for several days in con-
versing with the most intelligent of the inhabitants of
both sexes, and making myself acquainted with the
various branches of their industry; the different objects
of their trade; the nature of that sagacity which,
deprived as they are of every necessary material, pro-
duce, etc., yet enables them to flourish, to live well, and
sometimes to make considerable fortunes. The whole
is an enigma to be solved only by coming to the spot
and observing the national genius which the original
founders brought with them, as well as their unwearied
patience and perseverance. They have all, from the
highest to the lowest, a singular keenness of judgment,
unassisted by any academical light; they all possess a
large share of good sense, improved upon the experience
of their fathers ; and this is the surest and best guide to
lead us through the path of life, because it approaches
nearest to the infallibility of instinct. Shining talents
and University knowledge, would be entirely useless
here, nay, would be dangerous; it would pervert their
plain judgment, it would lead them out of that useful
path which is so well adapted to their situation; it
would make them more adventurous, more presumptu-
ous, much less cautious, and therefore less successful.
It is pleasing to hear some of them tracing a father's
progress and their own, through the different vicissi-
tudes of good and adverse fortune. I have often, by
their fire-sides, travelled with them the whole length of

130 Letters from an American Farmer

their career, from their earliest steps, from their first
commercial adventure, from the possession of a single
whale-boat, up to that of a dozen large vessels! This
does not imply, however, that every one who began
with a whale-boat, has ascended to a like pitch of
fortune; by no means, the same casualty, the same
combination of good and evil which attends human
affairs in every other part of the globe, prevails here:
a great prosperity is not the lot of every man, but there
are many and various gradations; if they all do not
attain riches, they all attain an easy subsistence. After
all, is it not better to be possessed of a single whale-
boat, or a few sheep pastures; to live free and inde-
pendent under the mildest governments, in a healthy
climate, in a land of charity and benevolence; than to
be wretched as so many are in Europe, possessing nothing
but their industry: tossed from one rough wave to
another ; engaged either in the most servile labours for
the smallest pittance, or fettered with the links of the
most irksome dependence, even without the hopes of
rising ?

The majority of those inferior hands which are
employed in this fishery, many of the mechanics, such
as coopers, smiths, caulkers, carpenters, etc., who do not
belong to the society of Friends, are Presbyterians, and
originally came from the main. Those who are pos-
sessed of the greatest fortunes at present belong to the
former; but they all began as simple whalemen: it is
even looked upon as honourable and necessary for the
son of the wealthiest man to serve an apprenticeship
to the same bold, adventurous business which has
enriched his father; they go several voyages, and these
early excursions never fail to harden their constitutions,
and introduce them to the knowledge of their future
means of subsistence.

LETTER VII

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS AT NANTUCKET

As I observed before, every man takes a wife as soon as
he chooses, and that is generally very early; no portion
is required, none is expected; no marriage articles are
drawn up among us, by skilful lawyers, to puzzle and
lead posterity to the bar, or to satisfy the pride of the
parties. We give nothing with our daughters, their
education, their health, and the customary out-set, are
all that the fathers of numerous families can afford: as
the wife's fortune consists principally in her future
economy, modesty, and skilful management; so the
husband's is founded on his abilities to labour, on his
health, and the knowledge of some trade or business.
Their mutual endeavours, after a few years of constant
application, seldom fail of success, and of bringing them
the means to rear and support the new race which accom-
panies the nuptial bed. Those children born by the
sea-side, hear the roaring of its waves as soon as they
are able to listen; it is the first noise with which they
become acquainted, and by early plunging in it they
acquire that boldness, that presence of mind, and
dexterity, which makes them ever after such expert
seamen. They often hear their fathers recount the
adventures of their youth, their combats with the
whales: and these recitals imprint on their opening
minds an early curiosity and taste for the same life.
They often cross the sea to go to the main, and learn
even in those short voyages how to qualify themselves
for longer and more dangerous ones ; they are therefore

132 Letters from an American Farmer

deservedly conspicuous for their maritime knowledge
and experience, all over the continent. A man born
here is distinguishable by his gait from among an
hundred other men, so remarkable are they for a
pliability of sinews, and a peculiar agility, which attends
them even to old age. I have heard some persons
attribute this to the effects of the whale oil, with which
they are so copiously anointed in the various operations
it must undergo ere it is fit either for the European
market or the candle manufactory.

But you may perhaps be solicitous to ask, what
becomes of that exuberancy of population which must
arise from so much temperance, from healthiness of
climate, and from early marriage? You may justly
conclude that their native island and town can contain
but a limited number. Emigration is both natural and
easy to a maritime people, and that is the very reason
why they are always populous, problematical as it may
appear. They yearly go to different parts of this
continent, constantly engaged in sea affairs; as our
internal riches increase, so does our external trade,
which consequently requires more ships and more men:
sometimes they have emigrated like bees, in regular and
connected swarms. Some of the Friends (by which
word I always mean the people called Quakers) fond of
a contemplative life, yearly visit the several congrega-
tions which this * society has formed throughout the
continent. By their means a sort of correspondence
is kept up among them all; they are generally good
preachers, friendly censors, checking vice wherever
they find it predominating; preventing relaxations in
any parts of their ancient customs and worship. They
everywhere carry admonition and useful advice; and
by thus travelling they unavoidably gather the most
necessary observations concerning the various situations
of particular districts, their soils, their produce, their

Manners and Customs at Nantucket 133

distance from navigable rivers, the price of land, etc.
In consequence of informations of this kind, received
at Nantucket in the year 1766, a considerable number of
them purchased a large track of land in the county of
Orange, in North Carolina, situated on the several
spring heads of Deep River, which is the western branch
of Cape Fear, or North -West River. The advantage of
being able to convey themselves by sea, to within forty
miles of the spot, the richness of the soil, etc., made them
cheerfully quit an island on which there was no longer
any room for them. There they have founded a beauti-
ful settlement, known by the name of New Garden,
contiguous to the famous one which the Moravians
have at Bethabara, Bethamia, and Salem, on Yadkin
River. No spot of earth can be more beautiful; it is
composed of gentle hills, of easy declivities, excellent
low lands, accompanied by different brooks which
traverse this settlement. I never saw a soil that rewards
men so early for their labours and disbursements ; such
in general with very few exceptions, are the lands which
adjoin the innumerable heads of all the large rivers
which fall into the Chesapeak, or flow through the
provinces of North and South Carolina, Georgia, etc.
It is perhaps the most pleasing, the most bewitching
country which the continent affords; because while it
preserves an easy communication with the sea-port
towns, at some seasons of the year, it is perfectly free
from the contagious air often breathed in those flat
countries, which are more contiguous to the Atlantic.
These lands are as rich as those over the Alleghany; the
people of New Garden are situated at the distance of
between 200 and 300 miles from Cape Fear; Cape Fear
is at least 450 from Nantucket: you may judge therefore
that they have but little correspondence with this their
little metropolis, except it is by means of the itinerant
Friends. Others have settled on the famous river

134 Letters from an American Farmer

Kennebeck, in that territory of the province of Massa-
chusetts, which is known by the name of Sagadahock.
Here they have softened the labours of clearing the
heaviest timbered land in America, by means of several
branches of trade which their fair river, and proximity
to the sea affords them. Instead of entirely consuming
their timber, as we are obliged to do, some parts of it are
converted into useful articles for exportation, such as
staves, scantlings, boards, hoops, poles, etc. For that
purpose they keep a correspondence with their native
island, and I know many of the principal inhabitants of
Sherburn, who, though merchants, and living at Nan-
tucket, yet possess valuable farms on that river; from
whence they draw great part of their subsistence, meat,
grain, fire-wood, etc. The title of these lands is vested
in the ancient Plymouth Company, under the powers
of which the Massachusetts was settled ; and that com-
pany which resides in Boston, are still the granters of
all the vacant lands within their limits.

Although this part of the province is so fruitful, and
so happily situated, yet it has been singularly overlooked
and neglected: it is surprising that the excellence of that
soil which lies on the river should not have caused it to be
filled before now with inhabitants; for the settlements
from thence to Penobscot are as yet but in their infancy.
It is true that immense labour is required to make room
for the plough, but the peculiar strength and quality
of the soil never fails most amply to reward the indus-
trious possessor; I know of no soil in this country more
rich or more fertile. I do not mean that sort of transi-
tory fertility which evaporates with the sun, and dis-
appears in a few years ; here on the contrary, even their
highest grounds are covered with a rich moist swamp
mould, which bears the most luxuriant grass, and never-
failing crops of grain.
If New Gardens exceeds this settlement by the soft-

Manners and Customs at Nantucket 135

ness of its climate, the fecundity of its soil, and a greater
variety of produce from less labour; it does not breed
men equally hardy, nor capable to encounter dangers
and fatigues. It leads too much to idleness and effemi-
nacy ; for great is the luxuriance of that part of America,
and the ease with which the earth is cultivated. Were
I to begin life again, I would prefer the country of
Kennebeck to the other, however bewitching; the
navigation of the river for above 200 miles, the great
abundance of fish it contains, the constant healthiness
of the climate, the happy severities of the winters
always sheltering the earth with a voluminous coat
of snow, the equally happy necessity of labour: all these
reasons would greatly preponderate against the softer
situations of Carolina; where mankind reap too much,
do not toil enough, and are liable to enjoy too fast the
benefits of life. There are many I know who would
despise my opinion, and think me a bad judge; let those
go and settle at the Ohio, the Monongahela, Red Stone
Creek, etc., let them go and inhabit the extended shores
of that superlative river ; I with equal cheerfulness would
pitch my tent on the rougher shores of Kennebeck; this
will always be a country of health, labour, and strong
activity, and those are characteristics of society which
I value more than greater opulence and voluptuous ease.
Thus though this fruitful hive constantly sends out
swarms, as industrious as themselves, yet it always
remains full without having any useless drones : on the
contrary it exhibits constant scenes of business and new
schemes; the richer an individual grows, the more
extensive his field of action becomes; he that is near
ending his career, drudges on as well as he who has
just begun it; nobody stands still. But is it not
strange, that after having accumulated riches, they
should never wish to exchange their barren situation
for a more sheltered, more pleasant one on the main?

136 Letters from an American Farmer

Is it not strange, that after having spent the morning
and the meridian of their days amidst the jarring waves,
weary with the toils of a laborious life, they should not
wish to enjoy the evenings of those days of industry
in a larger society, on some spots of terra firma, where
the severity of the winters is balanced by a variety of
more pleasing scenes, not to be found here? But the
same magical power of habit and custom which makes
the Laplander, the Siberian, the Hottentot, prefer their
climates, their occupations, and their soil, to more
beneficial situations, leads these good people to think,
that no other spot on the globe is so analagous to their
inclinations as Nantucket. Here their connections are
formed; what would they do at a distance removed
from them? Live sumptuously, you will say, procure
themselves new friends, new acquaintances, by their
splendid tables, by their ostentatious generosity, and by
affected hospitality. These are thoughts that have
never entered into their heads; they would be filled
with horror at the thought of forming wishes and plans
so different from that simplicity, which is their general
standard in affluence as well as in poverty. They abhor
the very idea of expending in useless waste and vain
luxuries, the fruits of prosperous labour; they are
employed in establishing their sons and in many other
useful purposes: strangers to the honours of monarchy
they do not aspire to the possession of affluent fortunes,
with which to purchase sounding titles, and frivolous
names !

Yet there are not at Nantucket so many wealth}'
people as one would imagine after having considered
their great successes, their industry, and their know-
ledge. Many die poor, though hardly able to reproach
Fortune with a frown; others leave not behind them
that affluence which the circle of their business and of
their prosperity naturally promised. The reason of this

Manners and Customs at Nantucket 137

is, I believe, the peculiar expense necessarily attending
their tables; for as their island supplies the town with
little or nothing (a few families excepted) every one
must procure what they want from the main. The very
hay their horses consume, and every other article
necessary to support a family, though cheap in a country
of so great abundance as Massachusetts; yet the neces-
sary waste and expenses attending their transport,
render these commodities dear. A vast number of little
vessels from the main, and from the Vineyard, are con-
stantly resorting here, as to a market. Sherburn is
extremely well supplied with everything, but this very
constancy of supply, necessarily drains off a great deal
of money. The first use they make of their oil and bone
is to exchange it for bread and meat, and whatever
else they want ; the necessities of a large family are very
great and numerous, let its economy be what it will;
they are so often repeated, that they perpetually draw
off a considerable branch of the profits. If by any
accidents those profits are interrupted, the capital must
suffer ; and it very often happens that the greatest part
of their property is floating on the sea.

There are but two congregations in this town. They
assemble every Sunday in meeting houses, as simple
as the dwelling of the people ; and there is but one priest
on the whole island. What would a good Portuguese
observe? But one single priest to instruct a whole
island, and to direct their consciences! It is even so;
each individual knows how to guide his own, and is
content to do it, as well as he can. This lonely clergy-
man ic a Presbyterian minister, who has a very large
and respectable congregation; the other is composed
of Quakers, who you know admit of no particular person,
who in consequence of being ordained becomes exclu-
sively entitled to preach, to catechise, and to receive
certain salaries for his trouble. Among them, every

138 Letters from an American Farmer

one may expound the Scriptures, who thinks he is called
so to do; beside, as they admit of neither sacrament,
baptism, nor any other outward forms whatever, such
a man would be useless. Most of these people are
continually at sea, and have often the most urgent
reasons to worship the Parent of Nature in the midst
of the storms which they encounter. These two sects
live in perfect peace and harmony with each other,
those ancient times of religious discords are now gum-
(I hope never to return) when each thought it meri-
torious, not only to damn the other, which would have
been nothing, but to persecute and murther one another,
for the glory of that Being, who requires no more of us,
than that we should love one another and live! Every
one goes to that place of worship which he likes best.
and thinks not that his neighbour does wrong by not
following him; each busily employed in their temporal
affairs, is less vehement about spiritual ones, and fortu-
nately you will find at Nan tucket neither idle drones,
voluptuous devotees, ranting enthusiasts, nor sour
demagogues. I wish I had it in my power to send the

most persecuting bigot I could find in to the

whale fisheries; in less than three or four years you
would find him a much more tractable man, and there-
fore a better Christian.

Singular as it may appear to you, there are but two
medical professors on the island; for of what service
can physic be in a primitive society, where the excesses
of inebriation are so rare? What need of galenical
medicines, where fevers, and stomachs loaded by the
loss of the digestive powers, are so few? Temperance,
the calm of passions, frugality, and continual exercise,
keep them healthy, and preserve unimpaired that
constitution which they have received from parent^
as healthy as themselves; who in the unpolluted
embraces of the earliest and chastest love, conveyed

Manners and Customs at Nantucket 130

to them the soundest bodily frame which nature could
give. But as no habitable part of this globe is exempt
from some diseases, proceeding either from climate or
modes of living; here they are sometimes subject to
consumptions and to fevers. Since the foundation of
that town no epidemical distempers have appeared,
which at times cause such depopulations in other
countries; many of them are extremely well acquainted
with the Indian methods of curing simple diseases, ami
practise them with success. You will hardly find any-
where a community, composed of the same number of
individuals, possessing such uninterrupted health, and
exhibiting so many green old men, who show then
advanced age by the maturity of their wisdom, rather
than by the wrinkles of their faces; and this is indeet ;
one of the principal blessings of the island, which richh
compensates their want of the richer soils of the south;
where iliac complaints and bilious fevers, grow by tin
side of the sugar cane, the ambrosial ananas, etc. The
situation of this island, the purity of the air, the natmv
of their marine occupations, their virtue and moderation,
are the causes of that vigour and health which the}'
possess. The poverty of their soil has placed them, I
hope, beyond the danger of conquest, or the wanton
desire of extirpation. Were they to be driven from
this spot, the only acquisition of the conquerors would
be a few acres of land, inclosed and cultivated; a few
houses, and some movables. The genius, the industry
of the inhabitants would accompany them; and it is
those alone which constitute the sole wealth of their
island. Its present fame would perish, and in a few
years it would return to its pristine state of barrenness
and poverty: they might perhaps be allowed to trans-
port themselves in their own vessels to some other spot
orisland, which they would soon fertilise by the same
means with which they have fertilised this.

140 Letters from an American Farmer

One single lawyer has of late years found means to
live here, but his best fortune proceeds more from
having married one of the wealthiest heiresses of the
island, than from the emoluments of his practice : how-
ever he is sometimes employed hi recovering money
lent on the main, or in preventing those accidents to
which the contentious propensity of its inhabitants
may sometimes expose them. He is seldom employed
as the means of self-defence, and much seldomer as the
channel of attack; to which they are strangers, except
the fraud is manifest, and the danger imminent. Law-
yers are so numerous in all our populous towns, that
I am surprised they never thought before of establishing
themselves here: they are plants that will grow in any
soil that is cultivated by the hands of others ; and when
once they have taken root they will extinguish every
other vegetable that grows around them. The fortunes
they daily acquire in every province, from the mis-
fortunes of their fellow-citizens, are surprising! The
most ignorant, the most bungling member of that pro-
fession, will, if placed in the most obscure part of the
country, promote litigiousness, and amass more wealth
without labour, than the most opulent farmer, with all
his toils. They have so dexterously interwoven their
doctrines and quirks with the laws of the land, or rather
they are become so necessary an evil in our present
constitutions, that it seems unavoidable and past all
remedy. What a pity that our forefathers, who happily
extinguished so many fatal customs, and expunged
from their new government so many errors and abuses,
both religious and civil, did not also prevent the intro-
duction of a set of men so dangerous ! In some provinces,
where every inhabitant is constantly employed in tilling
and cultivating the earth, they are the only members
of society who have any knowledge ; let these provinces
attest what iniquitous use they have made of that know-

Manners and Customs at Nantuckct 141

ledge. They are here what the clergy were in past
centuries with you; the reformation which clipped the
clerical wings, is the boast of that age, and the happiest
event that could possibly happen ; a reformation equally
useful is now wanted, to relieve us from the shameful
shackles and the oppressive burthen under which we
groan; this perhaps is impossible; but if mankind
would not become too happy, it were an event most
devoutly to be wished.

Here, happily, unoppressed with any civil bondage,
this society of fishermen and merchants live, without
any military establishments, without governors or any
masters but the laws; and their civil code is so light,
that it is never felt. A man may pass (as many have
done whom I am acquainted with) through the various
scenes of a long life, may struggle against a variety of
adverse fortune, peaceably enjoy the good when it
comes, and never in that long interval, apply to the
law either for redress or assistance. The principal
benefit it confers is the general protection of individuals,
and this protection is purchased by the most moderate
taxes, which are cheerfully paid, and by the trifling
duties incident in the course of their lawful trade (for
they despise contraband). Nothing can be more simple
than their municipal regulations, though similar to those
of the other counties of the same province; because
they are more detached from the rest, more distinct in
their manners, as well as in the nature of the business
they pursue, and more unconnected with the populous
province to which they belong. The same simplicity
attends the worship they pay to the Divinity; their
elders are the only teachers of their congregations, the
instructors of their youth, and often the example of their
flock. They visit and comfort the sick; after death,
the society bury them with their fathers, without pomp,
prayers, or ceremonies; not a stone or monument is

142 Letters from an American Farmer

erected, to tell where any person was buried; their
memory is preserved by tradition. The only essentia]
memorial that is left of them, is their former industry,
their kindness, their charity, or else their most con-
spicuous faults.

The Presbyterians live in great chanty with them,
a.nd with one another; their minister as a true pastor of
the gospel, inculcates to them the doctrines it contains,
the rewards it promises, the punishments it holds out
to those who shall commit injustice. Nothing can be
more disencumbered likewise from useless ceremonies
and trifling forms than their mode of worship; it might
with great propriety have been called a truly primitive
one, had that of the Quakers never appeared. As fellow
Christians, obeying the same legislator, they love and
mutually assist each other in all their wants; as fellow
labourers they unite with cordiality and without the
least rancour in all their temporal schemes: no other
emulation appears among them but in their sea
excursions, in the art of fitting out their vessels ; in that
of sailing, in harpooning the whale, and in bringing
home the greatest harvest. As fellow subjects they
cheerfully obey the same laws, and pay the same duties:
but let me not forget another peculiar characteristic of
this community: there is not a slave I believe on the
whole island, at least among the Friends ; whilst slavery
prevails all around them, this society alone, lamenting
that shocking insult offered to humanity, have given tin-
world a singular example of moderation, disinterested-
ness, and Christian charity, in emancipating their
negroes. I shall explain to you farther, the singular
virtue and merit to which it is so justly entitled by
having set before the rest of their fellow-subjects, so
pleasing, so edifying a reformation. Happy the people
who are subject to so mild a government; happy the
government which has to rule over such harmless, and
such industrious subjects!

Manners and Customs at Nantucket 143

While we are clearing forests, making the face of
nature smile, draining marshes, cultivating wheat, and
converting it into flour; they yearly skim from the
surface of the sea riches equally necessary. Thus, had I
leisure and abilities to lead you through this continent, I
could show you an astonishing prospect very little known
in Europe ; one diffusive scene of happiness reaching from
the sea-shores to the last settlements on the borders of
the wilderness: an happiness, interrupted only by the
folly of individuals, by our spirit of litigiousness, and
by those unforeseen calamities, from which no human
society can possibly be exempted. May the citizens of
Nantucket dwell long here in uninterrupted peace, un-
disturbed either by the waves of the surrounding
element, or the political commotions which sometimes
agitate our continent.

LETTER VIII

PECULIAR CUSTOMS AT NANTUCKET

THE manners of the Friends are entirely founded on
that simplicity which is their boast, and their most
distinguished characteristic; and those manners have
acquired the authority of laws. Here they are strongly
attached to plainness of dress, as well as to that of
language; insomuch that though some part of it may
be ungrammatical, yet should any person who was born
and brought up here, attempt to speak more correctly,
he would be looked upon as a fop or an innovator. On
the other hand, should a stranger come here and adopt
their idiom in all its purity (as they deem it) this accom-
plishment would immediately procure him the most
cordial reception; and they would cherish him like an
ancient member of their society. So many impositions
have they suffered on this account, that they begin now
indeed to grow more cautious. They are so tenaciou?
of their ancient habits of industry and frugality, that if
any of them were to be seen with a long coat made of
English cloth, on any other than the first-day (Sunday),
he would be greatly ridiculed and censured; he would
be looked upon as a careless spendthrift, whom it would
be unsafe to trust, and in vain to relieve. A few years
ago two single-horse chairs were imported from Boston,
to the great offence of these prudent citizens; nothing
appeared to them more culpable than the use of such
gaudy painted vehicles, in contempt of the more
useful and more simple single-horse carts of their fathers.
This piece of extravagant and unknown luxury almost

144

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 145

caused a schism, and set every tongue a-going; some
predicted the approaching ruin of those families that
had imported them; others feared the dangers of
example; never since the foundation of the town had
there happened anything which so much alarmed this
primitive community. One of the possessors of these
profane chairs, filled with repentance, wisely sent it back
to the continent ; the other, more obstinate and per-
verse, in defiance to all remonstrances, persisted in the
use of his chair until by degrees they became more
reconciled to it; though I observed that the wealthiest
and the most respectable people still go to meeting or to
their farms in a single-horse cart with a decent awning
fixed over it: indeed, if you consider their sandy soil,
and the badness of their roads, these appear to be the
best contrived vehicles for this island.

Idleness is the most heinous sin that can be committed
in Nantucket: an idle man would soon be pointed out
as an object of compassion: for idleness is considered
as another word for want and hunger. This principle
is so thoroughly well understood, and is become so
universal, so prevailing a prejudice, that literally
speaking, they are never idle. Even if they go to the
market-place, which is (if I may be allowed the expres-
sion) the coffee-house of the town, either to transact
business, or to converse with their friends; they always
have a piece of cedar in their hands, and while they are
talking, they will, as it were instinctively, employ them-
selves in converting it into something useful, either in
making bungs or spoyls for their oil casks, or other
useful articles. I must confess, that I have never seen
more ingenuity in the use of the knife; thus the most
idle moments of their lives become usefully employed.
In the many hours of leisure which their long cruises
afford them, they cut and carve a variety of boxes and
pretty toys, in wood, adapted to different uses; which

146 Letters from an American Farmer

they bring home as testimonies of remembrance to their
wives or sweethearts. They have showed me a variety
of little bowls and other implements, executed cooper-
wise, with the greatest neatness and elegance. You will
be pleased to remember they are all brought up to the
trade of coopers, be their future intentions or fortunes
what they may; therefore almost every man in this
island has always two knives in his pocket, one much
larger than the other; and though they hold everything
that is called fashion in the utmost contempt, yet they
are as difficult to please, and as extravagant in the choice
and price of their knives, as any young buck in Boston
would be about his hat, buckles, or coat. As soon as a
knife is injured, or superseded by a more convenient
one, it is carefully laid up in some corner of their desk.

I once saw upwards of fifty thus preserved at Mr. 's,

one of the worthiest men on this island; and among
the whole, there was not one that perfectly resembled
another. As the sea excursions are often very long,
their wives in their absence are necessarily obliged to
transact business, to settle accounts, and in short, to
rule and provide for their families. These circum-
stances being often repeated, give women the abilities
as well as a taste for that kind of superintendency, to
which, by their prudence and good management, thev
seem to be in general very equal. This employment
ripens their judgment, and justly entities them to a rank
superior to that of other wives ; and this is the principal
reason why those of Nantucket as well as those of
Montreal v are so fond of society, so affable, and so
conversant with the affairs of the world. The men at

1 Most of the merchants and young men of Montreal
spend the greatest part of their time in trading with the
Indians, at an amazing distance from Canada; and it
often happens that they are three years together absent
from home.

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 147

their return, weary with the fatigues of the sea, full of
confidence and love, cheerfully give their consent to
every transaction that has happened during their absence,
and all is joy and peace. " Wife, thee hast done well,"
is the general approbation they receive, for their applica-
tion and industry. What would the men do without the
agency of these faithful mates? The absence of so
many of them at particular seasons, leaves the town quite
desolate; and this mournful situation disposes the
women to go to each other's house much oftener than
when their husbands are at home: hence the custom of
incessant visiting has infected every one, and even those
whose husbands do not go abroad. The house is always
cleaned before they set out, and with peculiar alacrity
they pursue their intended visit, which consists of a
social chat, a dish of tea, and an hearty supper. When
the good man of the house returns from his labour, he
peaceably goes after his wife and brings her home;
meanwhile the young fellows, equally vigilant, easily
find out which is the most convenient house, and there
they assemble with the girls of the neighbourhood.
Instead of cards, musical instruments, or songs, they
relate stories of their whaling voyages, their various sea
adventures, and talk of the different coasts and people
they have visited. "The island of Catharine in the
Brazil," says one, " is a very droll island, it is inhabited
by none but men ; women are not permitted to come in
sight of it; not a woman is there on the whole island.
Who among us is not glad it is not so here? The
Nantucket girls and boys beat the world. 1 ' At this
innocent sally the titter goes round, they whisper to one
another their spontaneous reflections: puddings, pies,
and custards never fail to be produced on such occasions ;
for I believe there never were any people in their cir-
cumstances, who live so well, even to superabundance.
As inebriation is unknown, and music, singing, and

148 Letters from an American Farmer

dancing, are held in equal detestation, they never could
fill all the vacant hours of their lives without the repast
of the table. Thus these young people sit and talk, and
divert themselves as well as they can; if any one has
lately returned from a cruise, he is generally the speaker
of the night; they often all laugh and talk together,
but they are happy, and would not exchange their
pleasures for those of the most brilliant assemblies in
Europe. This lasts until the father and mother return ;
when all retire to their respective homes, the men
re-conducting the partners of their affections.

Thus they spend many of the youthful evenings of
their lives; no wonder therefore, that they marry so
early. But no sooner have they undergone this cere-
mony than they cease to appear so cheerful and gay;
the new rank they hold in the society impresses them
with more serious ideas than were entertained before.
The title of master of a family necessarily requires more
solid behaviour and deportment; the new wife follows
in the trammels of Custom, which are as powerful as
the tyranny of fashion; she gradually advises and
directs ; the new husband soon goes to sea, he leaves her
to learn and exercise the new government, in which she
is entered. Those who stay at home are full as passive
in general, at least with regard to the inferior depart-
ments of the family. But you must not imagine from
this account that the Nantucket wives are turbulent, of
high temper, and difficult to be ruled ; on the contrary,
the wives of Sherburn in so doing, comply only with the
prevailing custom of the island: the husbands, equally
submissive to the ancient and respectable manners of
their country, submit, without ever suspecting that
there can be any impropriety. Were they to behave
otherwise, they would be afraid of subverting the prin-
ciples of their society by altering its ancient rules ; thus
both parties are perfectly satisfied, and all is peace and

Peculiar Customs at Nantuckct 149

concord. The richest person now in the island owes all
his present prosperity and success to the ingenuity of
his wife : this is a known fact which is well recorded ; for
while he was performing his first cruises, she traded with
pins and needles, and kept a school. Afterward she
purchased more considerable articles, which she sold
with so much judgment, that she laid the foundation of
a system of business, that she has ever since prosecuted
with equal dexterity and success. She wrote to London,
formed connections, and, in short, became the only
ostensible instrument of that house, both at home and
abroad. Who is he in this country, and who is a citizt n
of Nantucket or Boston, who does not know Awt
Kesiah ? 1 must tell you that she is the wife of Mr.

C n, a very respectable man, who, well pleased

with all her schemes, trusts to her judgment, and relies
on her sagacity, with so entire a confidence, as to be
altogether passive to the concerns of his family. They
have the best country seat on the island, at Quayes,
where they live with hospitality, and in perfect union.
He seems to be altogether the contemplative man.

To this dexterity in managing the husband's business
whilst he is absent, the Nantucket wives unite a great
deal of industry. They spin, or cause to be spun in
their houses, abundance of wool and flax; and would
be for ever disgraced and looked upon as idlers if all the
family were not clad in good, neat, and sufficient home-
spun cloth. First Days are the only seasons when it is
lawful for both sexes to exhibit some garments of English
manufacture ; even these are of the most moderate price,
and of the gravest colours : there is no kind of difference
in their dress, they are all clad alike, and resemble in that
respect the members of one family.

A singular custom prevails here among the women,
at which I was greatly surprised; and am really at a
loss how to account for the original cause that has

150 Letters from an American Farmer

introduced in this primitive society so remarkable a
fashion, or rather so extraordinary a want. They have
adopted these many years the Asiatic custom of taking
a dose of opium every morning; and so deeply rooted
is it, that they would be at a loss how to live without
this indulgence; they would rather be deprived of any
necessary than forego their favourite luxury. This is
much more prevailing among the women than the men,
few of the latter having caught the contagion; though
the sheriff, whom I may call the first person in the
island, who is an eminent physician beside, and whom
I had the pleasure of being well acquainted with, has
for many years submitted to this custom. He takes
three grains of it every day after breakfast, without
the effects of which, he often told me, he was not able
to transact any business.

It is hard to conceive how a people always happy and
healthy, in consequence of the exercise and labour they
undergo, never oppressed with the vapours of idleness,
yet should want the fictitious effects of opium to preserve
that cheerfulness to which their temperance, their
climate, their happy situation so justly entitle them.
But where is the society perfectly free from error or
folly; the least imperfect is undoubtedly that where
the greatest good preponderates; and agreeable to this
rule, I can truly say ,~ that I never was acquainted with a
less vicious, or more harmless one.

The majority of the present inhabitants are the
descendants of the twenty -seven first proprietors, who
paten teed the island; of the rest, many others have
since come over among them, chiefly from the Massa-
chusetts: here are neither Scotch, Irish, nor French,
as is the case in most other settlements; they are an
unmixed English breed. The consequence of this
extended connection is, that they are all in some degree
related to each other: you must not be surprised there-

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 151

fore when I tell you, that they always call each other
cousin, uncle or aunt; which are become such common
appellations, that no other are made use of in their
daily intercourse: you would be deemed stiff and
affected were you to refuse conforming yourself to this
ancient custom, which truly depicts the image of a
large family. The many who reside here that have
not the least claim of relationship with any one in the
town, yet by the power of custom make use of no other
address in their conversation. Were you here yourself
but a few days, you would be obliged to adopt the same
phraseology, which is far from being disagreeable, as
it implies a general acquaintance and friendship, which
connects them all in unity and peace.

Their taste for fishing has been so prevailing, that it
has engrossed all their attention, and even prevented
them from introducing some higher degree of perfection
111 their agriculture. There are many useful improve-
ments which might have meliorated their soil; there are
many trees which if transplanted here would have
thriven extremely well, and would have served to shelter
as well as decorate the favourite spots they have so
carefully manured. The red cedar, the locust, 1 the
button wood, I am persuaded would have grown here
rapidly and to a great size, with many others ; but their
thoughts are turned altogether toward the sea. The
Indian corn begins to yield them considerable crops,
and the wheat sown on its stocks is become a very
profitable grain; rye will grow with little care; they
might raise if they would, an immense quantity of
buck-wheat.

Such an island inhabited as I have described, is not
the place where gay travellers should resort, in order

1 A species of what we call here the two- thorn acacia: it
yields the most valuable timber we have, and its shade is
very beneficial to the growth and goodness of the grass.

152 Letters from an American Farmer

to enjoy that variety of pleasures the more splendid
towns of this continent afford. Not that they are wholly
deprived of what we might call recreations, and innocent
pastimes ; but opulence, instead of luxuries and extrava-
gancies, produces nothing more here than an increase
of business, an additional degree of hospitality, greater
neatness in the preparation of dishes, and better wines.
They often walk and converse with each other, as I have
observed before; and upon extraordinary occasions,
will take a ride to Palpus, where there is an house of
entertainment; but these rural amusements are con-
ducted upon the same plan of moderation, as those in
town. They are so simple as hardly to be described;
the pleasure of going and returning together; of chatting
and walking about, of throwing the bar, heaving stones,
etc., are the only entertainments they are acquainted
with. This is all they practise, and all they seem to
desire. The house at Palpus is the general resort of
those who possess the luxury of a horse and chaise, as
well as of those who still retain, as the majority do, a
predilection for their primitive vehicle. By resorting
to that place they enjoy a change of air, they taste the
pleasures of exercise; perhaps an exhilarating bowl,
not at all improper in this climate, affords the chief
indulgence known to these people, on the days of their
greatest festivity. The mounting a horse, must afford
a most pleasing exercise to those men who are so much
at sea. I was once invited to that house, and had the
satisfaction of conducting thither one of the many
beauties of that island (for it abounds with handsome
women) dressed in all the bewitching attire of the most
charming simplicity: like the rest of the company, she
was cheerful without loud laughs, and smiling without
affectation. They all appeared gay without levity.
I had never before in my life seen so much unaffected
mirth, mixed with so much modesty. The pleasures

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 153

of the day were enjoyed with the greatest liveliness and
the most innocent freedom; no disgusting pruderies,
no coquettish airs tarnished this enlivening assembly:
they behaved according to their native dispositions,
the only rules of decorum with which they were ac-
quainted. What would an European visitor have done
here without a fiddle, without a dance, without cards?
He would have called it an insipid assembly, and ranked
this among the dullest days he had ever spent. This
rural excursion had a very great affinity to those prac-
tised in our province, with this difference only, that
we have no objection to the sportive dance, though
conducted by the rough accents of some self-taught
African fiddler. We returned as happy as we went;
and the brightness of the moon kindly lengthened a
day which had past, like other agreeable ones, with
singular rapidity.

In order to view the island in its longest direction
from the town, I took a ride to the easternmost parts
of it, remarkable only for the Pochick Rip, where their
best fish are caught. I past by the Tetoukemah lots,
which are the fields of the community; the fences were
made of cedar posts and rails, and looked perfectly
straight and neat; the various crops they enclosed
were flourishing: thence I descended into Barrey's
Valley, where the blue and the spear grass looked more
abundant than I had seen on any other part of the island ;
thence to Gib's Pond; and arrived at last at Siisconcet.
Several dwellings had been erected on this wild shore,
for the purpose of sheltering the fishermen in the season
of fishing ; I found them all empty, except that particular
one to which I had been directed. It was like the
others, built on the highest part of the shore, in the
face of the great ocean; the soil appeared to be com-
posed of no other stratum but sand, covered with a
thinly scattered herbage. What rendered this house

154 Letters from an American Farmer

still more worthy of notice in my eyes, was, that it had
tx-en built on the ruins of one of the ancient huts, erected
by the first settlers, for observing the appearance of the
whales. Here lived a single family without a neighbour ;
I had never before seen a spot better calculated to
cherish contemplative ideas; perfectly unconnected
with the great world, and far removed from its pertur-
bations. The ever raging ocean was all that presented
itself to the view of this family; it irresistibly attracted
my whole attention: my eyes were involuntarily
directed to the horizontal line of that watery surface,
which is ever in motion, and ever threatening destruction
to these shores. My ears were stunned with the roar
of its waves rolling one over the other, as if impelled
by a superior force to overwhelm the spot on which I
stood. My nostrils involuntarily inhaled the saline
vapours which arose from the dispersed particles of the
foaming billows, or from the weeds scattered on the
shores. My mind suggested a thousand vague reflec-
tions, pleasing in the hour of their spontaneous birth,
but now half forgot, and all indistinct: and who is the
landman that can behold without affright so singular
an element, which by its impetuosity seems to be the
destroyer of this poor planet, yet at particular times
accumulates the scattered fragments and produces
islands and continents fit for men to dwell on! Who
can observe the regular vicissitudes of its waters without
astonishment; now swelling themselves in order to
penetrate through every river and opening, and thereby
facilitate navigation; at other times retiring from the
shores, to permit man to collect that variety of shell fish
which is the support of the poor? Who can see the
storms of wind, blowing sometimes with an impetuosity
sufficiently strong even to move the earth, without
feeling himself affected beyond the sphere of common
ideas? Can this wind which but a few days ago re-

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 155

freshed our American fields, and cooled us in the shade,
be the same element which now and then so powerfully
convulses the waters of the sea, dismasts vessels, causes
so many shipwrecks, and such extensive desolations?
How diminutive does a man appear to himself when
filled with these thoughts, and standing as 1 did on the
verge of the ocean ! This family lived entirely by fishing,
for the plough has not dared yet to disturb the parched
surface of the neighbouring plain; and to what purpose
could this operation be performed! Where is it that
mankind will not find safety, peace, and abundance,
with freedom and civil happiness ? Nothing was want-
ing here to make this a most philosophical retreat, but
a few ancient trees, to shelter contemplation in its
beloved solitude. There I saw a numerous family of
children of various ages the blessings of an early
marriage; they were ruddy as the cherry, healthy as
the fish they lived on, hardy as the pine knots: the
eldest were already able to encounter the boisterous
waves, and shuddered not at their approach; early
initiating themselves in the mysteries of that seafaring
career, for which they were all intended: the younger,
timid as yet, on the edge of a less agitated pool, were
teaching themselves with nut-shells and pieces of wood,
in imitation of boats, how to navigate in a future day
the larger vessels of their father, through a rougher and
deeper ocean. I stayed two days there on purpose to
become acquainted with the different branches of their
economy, and their manner of living in this singular
retreat. The clams, the oysters of the shores, with the
addition of Indian Dumplings, 1 constituted their daily
and most substantial food. Larger fish were often
caught on the neighbouring rip; these afforded them
their greatest dainties; they had likewise plenty of

1 Indian Dumplings are a peculiar preparation of Indian
meal, boiled in large lumps.

156 Letters from an American Farmer

smoked bacon. The noise of the wheels announced the
industry of the mother and daughters ; one of them had
been bred a weaver, and having a loom in the house,
found means of clothing the whole family; they were
perfectly at ease, and seemed to want for nothing. I
found very few books among these people, who have
very little time for reading; the Bible and a few school
tracts, both in the Nattick and English languages, con-
stituted their most numerous libraries. I saw indeed
several copies of Hudibras, and Josephus; but no one
knows who first imported them. It is something extra-
ordinary to see this people, professedly so grave, and
strangers to every branch of literature, reading with
pleasure the former work, which should seem to require
some degree of taste, and antecedent historical know-
ledge. They all read it much, and can by memory
repeat many passages; which yet I could not discover
that they understood the beauties of. Is it not a little
singular to see these books in the hands of fishermen,
who are perfect strangers almost to any other? Jo-
sephus's history is indeed intelligible, and much fitter
for their modes of education and taste; as it describes
the history of a people from whom we have received the
prophecies which we believe, and the religious laws
which we follow.

Learned travellers, returned from seeing the paintings
and antiquities of Rome and Italy, still filled with the
admiration and reverence they inspire, would hardly
be persuaded that so contemptible a spot, which con-
tains nothing remarkable but the genius and the industry
of its inhabitants, could ever be an object worthy atten-
tion. But I, having never seen the beauties which
Europe contains, cheerfully satisfy myself with atten-
tively examining what my native country exhibits: if
we have neither ancient amphitheatres, gilded palaces,
nor elevated spires; we enjoy in our woods a substantial

Peculiar Customs at Nantucket 157

happiness which the wonders of art cannot communicate.
None among us suffer oppression either from govern-
ment or religion; there are very few poor except the
idle, and fortunately the force of example, and the most
ample encouragement, soon create a new principle of
activity, which had been extinguished perhaps in their
native country, for want of those opportunities which
so often compel honest Europeans to seek shelter among
us. The means of procuring subsistence in Europe are
limited; the army may be full, the navy may abound
with seamen, the land perhaps wants no additional
labourers, the manufacturer is overcharged with super-
numerary hands; what then must become of the un-
employed? Here, on the contrary, human industry
has acquired a boundless field to exert itself in a field
which will not be fully cultivated in many ages !

LETTER IX

DESCRIPTION OF CHARLES-TOWN ; THOUGHTS ON SLAVERY ;
ON PHYSICAL EVIL; A MELANCHOLY SCENE

CHARLES-TOWN is, in the north, what Lima is in the
south; both are Capitals of the richest provinces of their
respective hemispheres: you may therefore conjecture,
that both cities must exhibit the appearances necessarily
resulting from riches. Peru abounding in gold, Lima is
filled with inhabitants who enjoy all those gradations of
pleasure, refinement, and luxury, which proceed from
wealth. Carolina produces commodities, more valuable
perhaps than gold, because they are gained by greater
industry; it exhibits also on our northern stage, a dis-
play of riches and luxury, inferior indeed to the former,
but far superior to what are to be seen in our northern
towns. Its situation is admirable, being built at the
confluence of two large rivers, which receive in their
course a great number of inferior streams ; all navigable
in the spring, for flat boats. Here the produce of this
extensive territory concentres; here therefore is the
seat of the most valuable exportation; their wharfs,
their docks, their magazines, are extremely convenient
to facilitate this great commercial business. The
inhabitants are the gayest in America; it is called the
centre of our beau monde, and is always filled with the
richest planters of the province, who resort hither in
quest of health and pleasure. Here are always to be
seen a great number of valetudinarians from the West
Indies, seeking for the renovation of health, exhausted
by the debilitating nature of their sun, air, and modes

158

Description of Charles-Town 159

of living. Many of these West Indians have I seen, at
thirty, loaded with the infirmities of old age ; for nothing
is more common in those countries of wealth, than for
persons to lose the abilities of enjoying the comforts of
life, at a time when we northern men just begin to taste
the fruits of our labour and prudence. The round of
pleasure, and the expenses of those citizens' tables, are
much superior to what you would imagine: indeed the
growth of this town and province has been astonishingly
rapid. It is pity that the narrowness of the neck on
which it stands prevents it from increasing ; and which
is the reason why houses are so dear. The heat of the
climate, which is sometimes very great in the interior
parts of the country, is always temperate in Charles-
Town; though sometimes when they have no sea
breezes the sun is too powerful. The climate renders
excesses of all kinds very dangerous, particularly those
of the table; and yet, insensible or fearless of danger,
they live on, and enjoy a short and a merry life: the
rays of their sun seem to urge them irresistibly to dis-
sipation and pleasure : on the contrary, the women, from
being abstemious, reach to a longer period of life, and
seldom die without having had several husbands. An
European at his first arrival must be greatly surprised
when he sees the elegance of their houses, their sumptu-
ous furniture, as well as the magnificence of their tables.
Can he imagine himself in a country, the establishment
of which is so recent ?

The three principal classes of inhabitants are, lawyers,
planters, and merchants ; this is the province which has
afforded to the first the richest spoils, for nothing can
exceed their wealth, their power, and their influence.
They have reached the ne plus ultra of worldly felicity ; no
plantation is secured, no title is good, no will is valid,
but what they dictate, regulate, and approve. The
whole mass of provincial property is become tributary

160 Letters from an American Farmer

to this society; which, far above priests and bishops,
disdain to be satisfied with the poor Mosaical portion
of the tenth. I appeal to the many inhabitants, who,
while contending perhaps for their right to a few hundred
acres, have lost by the mazes of the law their whole
patrimony. These men are more properly law givers
than interpreters of the law; and have united here, as
well as in most other provinces, the skill and dexterity
of the scribe with the power and ambition of the prince :
who can tell where this may lead in a future day ? The
nature of our laws, and the spirit of freedom, which
often tends to make us litigious, must necessarily throw
the greatest part of the property of the colonies into the
hands of these gentlemen. In another century, the law
will possess in the north, what now the church possesses
in Peru and Mexico.

While all is joy, festivity, and happiness in Charles-
Town, would you imagine that scenes of misery over-
spread in the country ? Their ears by habit are become
deaf, their hearts are hardened; they neither see, hear,
nor feel for the woes of their poor slaves, from whose
painful labours all their wealth proceeds. Here the
horrors of slavery, the hardship of incessant toils, are
unseen; and no one thinks with compassion of those
showers of sweat and of tears which from the bodies of
Africans, daily drop, and moisten the ground they till.
The cracks of the whip urging these miserable beings to
excessive labour, are far too distant from the gay Capital
to be heard. The chosen race eat, drink, and live happy,
while the unfortunate one grubs up the ground, raises
indigo, or husks the rice; exposed to a sun full as scorch-
ing as their native one ; without the support of good food,
without the cordials of any cheering liquor. This great
contrast has often afforded me subjects of the most con-
flicting meditation. On the one side, behold a people
enjoying all that life affords most bewitching and

Reflections on Negro Slavery 161

pleasurable, without labour, without fatigue, hardly
subjected to the trouble of wishing. With gold, dug
from Peruvian mountains, they order vessels to the
coasts of Guinea ; by virtue of that gold, wars, murders,
and devastations are committed in some harmless,
peaceable African neighbourhood, where dwelt innocent
people, who even knew not but that all men were black.
The daughter torn from her weeping mother, the child
from the wretched parents, the wife from the loving
husband; whole families swept away and brought
through storms and tempests to this rich metropolis!
There, arranged like horses at a fair, they are branded
like cattle, and then driven to toil, to starve, and to
languish for a few years on the different plantations ol
these citizens. And for whom must they work? For
persons they know not, and who have no other power
over them than that of violence, no other right than
what this accursed metal has given them! Strange
order of things ! Oh, Nature, where art thou ? Are not
these blacks thy children as well as we ? On the other
side, nothing is to be seen but the most diffusive misery
and wretchedness, unrelieved even in thought or wish!
Day after day they drudge on without any prospect of
ever reaping for themselves; they are obliged to devote
their lives, their limbs, their will, and every vital exertion
to swell the wealth of masters ; who look not upon them
with half the kindness and affection with which they
consider their dogs and horses. Kindness and affection
are not the portion of those who till the earth, who
carry the burdens, who convert the logs into useful
boards. This reward, simple and natural as one would
conceive it, would border on humanity; and planters
must have none of it !

If negroes are permitted to become fathers, this fatal
indulgence only tends to increase their misery: the
poor companions of their scanty pleasures are likewise

1 62 Letters from an American Farmer

the companions of their labours; and when at some
critical seasons they could wish to see them relieved,
with tears in their eyes they behold them perhaps
doubly oppressed, obliged to bear the burden of nature
a fatal present as well as that of unabated tasks.
How many have I seen cursing the irresistible propensity,
and regretting, that by having tasted of those harmless
joys, they had become the authors of double misery to
their wives. Like their masters, they are not permitted
to partake of those ineffable sensations with which
nature inspires the hearts of fathers and mothers; they
must repel them all, and become callous and passive.
This unnatural state often occasions the most acute,
the most pungent of their afflictions; they have no time,
like us, tenderly to rear their helpless off-spring, to
nurse them on their knees, to enjoy the delight of being
parents. Their paternal fondness is embittered by
considering, that if their children live, they must live to
be slaves like themselves; no time is allowed them to
exercise their pious office, the mothers must fasten them
on their backs, and, with this double load, follow their
husbands in the fields, where they too often hear no
other sound than that of the voice or whip of the task-
master, and the cries of their infants, broiling in the
sun. These unfortunate creatures cry and weep like
their parents, without a possibility of relief; the very
instinct of the brute, so laudable, so irresistible, runs
counter here to their master's interest ; and to that god,
all the laws of nature must give way. Thus planters
get rich; so raw, so unexperienced am I in this mode
of life, that were I to be possessed of a plantation, and
my slaves treated as in general they are here, never
could I rest in peace; my sleep would be perpetually
disturbed by a retrospect of the frauds committed in
Africa, in order to entrap them; frauds surpassing in
enormity everything which a common mind can possibly

Reflections on Negro Slavery 163

conceive. I should be thinking of the barbarous treat-
ment they meet with on ship-board; of their anguish,
of the despair necessarily inspired by their situation,
when torn from their friends and relations; when
delivered into the hands of a people differently coloured,
whom they cannot understand; carried in a strange
machine over an ever agitated element, which they had
never seen before; and finally delivered over to the
severities of the whippers, and the excessive labours of
the field. Can it be possible that the force of custom
should ever make me deaf to all these reflections, and as
insensible to the injustice of that trade, and to their
miseries, as the rich inhabitants of this town seem to be ?
What then is man; this being who boasts so much of
the excellence and dignity of his nature, among that
variety of unscrutable mysteries, of unsolvable problems,
with which he is surrounded? The reason why man
has been thus created, is not the least astonishing! It
is said, I know that they are much happier here than in
the West Indies; because land being cheaper upon this
continent than in those islands, the fields allowed them
to raise their subsistence from, are in general more
extensive. The only possible chance of any alleviation
depends on the humour of the planters, who, bred in the
midst of slaves, learn from the example of their parents
to despise them; and seldom conceive either from
religion or philosophy, any ideas that tend to make their
fate less calamitous; except some strong native tender-
ness of heart, some rays of philanthropy, overcome the
obduracy contracted by habit.

I ha^e not resided here long enough to become
insensible of pain for the objects which I every day
behold. In the choice of my friends and acquaintance,
I always endeavour to find out those whose dispositions
are somewhat congenial with my own. We have slaves
likewise in our northern provinces; I hope the time

1 64 Letters from an American Farmer

draws near when they will be all emancipated: but how
different their lot, how different their situation, in every
possible respect! They enjoy as much liberty as their
masters, they are as well clad, and as well fed; in health
and sickness they are tenderly taken care of; they live
under the same roof, and are, truly speaking, a part of
our families. Many of them are taught to read and
write, and are well instructed in the principles of religion ;
they are the companions of our labours, and treated as
such; they enjoy many perquisites, many established
holidays, and are not obliged to work more than white
people. They marry where inclination leads them;
visit their wives every week; are as decently clad as
the common people; they are indulged in educating,
cherishing, and chastising their children, who are taught
subordination to them as to their lawful parents: in
short, they participate in many of the benefits of our
society, without being obliged to bear any of its burdens.
They are fat, healthy, and hearty, and far from repining
at their fate; they think themselves happier than many
of the lower class whites : they share with their masters
the wheat and meat provision they help to raise; many
of those whom the good Quakers have emancipated
have received that great benefit with tears of regret,
and have never quitted, though free, their former
masters and benefactors.

But is it really true, as I have heard it asserted here,
that those blacks are incapable of feeling the spurs of
emulation, and the cheerful sound of encouragement?
By no means; there are a thousand proofs existing of
their gratitude and fidelity: those hearts in which such
noble dispositions can grow, are then like ours, they are
susceptible of every generous sentiment, of every useful
motive of action; they are capable of receiving lights,
of imbibing ideas that would greatly alleviate the weight
of their miseries. But what methods have in general

Reflections on Negro Slavery 165

been made use of to obtain so desirable an end? None;
the day in which they arrive and are sold, is the first of
their labours; labours, which from that hour admit of
no respite ; for though indulged by law with relaxation
on Sundays, they are obliged to employ that time which
is intended for rest, to till their little plantations. What
can be expected from wretches in such circumstances?
Forced from their native country, cruelly treated when
on board, and not less so on the plantations to which
they are driven; is there anything in this treatment
but what must kindle all the passions, sow the seeds of
inveterate resentment, and nourish a wish of perpetual
revenge ? They are left to the irresistible effects of those
strong and natural propensities; the blows they receive,
are they conducive to extinguish them, or to win their
affections? They are neither soothed by the hopes
that their slavery will ever terminate but with their
lives; or yet encouraged by the goodness of their food,
or the mildness of their treatment. The very hopes
held out to mankind by religion, that consolatory system,
so useful to the miserable, are never presented to them;
neither moral nor physical means are made use of to
soften their chains; they are left in their original and
untutored state; that very state wherein the natural
propensities of revenge and warm passions are so soon
kindled. Cheered by no one single motive that can
impel the will, or excite their efforts; nothing but
terrors and punishments are presented to them; death
is denounced if they run away; horrid delaceration if
they speak with their native freedom ; perpetually awed
by the terrible cracks of whips, or by the fear of capital
punishments, while even those punishments often fail of
their purpose.

A clergyman settled a few years ago at George-Town,
and feeling as I do now, warmly recommended to the
planters, from the pulpit, a relaxation of severity; he

1 66 Letters from an American Farmer

introduced the benignity of Christianity, and patheti-
cally made use of the admirable precepts of that system
to melt the hearts of his congregation into a greater
degree of compassion toward their slaves than had been
hitherto customary; " Sir/ 1 said one of his hearers, " we
pay you a genteel salary to read to us the prayers of the
liturgy, and to explain to us such parts of the Gospel
as the rule of the church directs; but we do not want
you to teach us what we are to do with our blacks. >J
The clergyman found it prudent to withhold any
farther admonition. Whence this astonishing right,
or rather this barbarous custom, for most certainly
we have no kind of right beyond that of force? We
are told, it is true, that slavery cannot be so repugnant
to human nature as we at first imagine, because it ha. 1 -
been practised in all ages, and in all nations: the
Lacedemonians themselves, those great assertors of
liberty, conquered the Helotes with the dei-ign of
making them their slaves; the Romans, whom wo
consider as our masters in civil and military policy,
lived in the exercise of the most horrid oppression ; they
conquered to plunder and to enslave. What a hideous
aspect the face of the earth must then have exhibited!
Provinces, towns, districts, often depopulated! their
inhabitants driven to Rome, the greatest market in the
world, and there sold by thousands! The Roman
dominions were tilled by the hands of unfortunate
people, who had once been, like their victors, free, rich,
and possessed of every benefit society can confer; until
they became subject to the cruel right of war, and to
lawless force. Is there then no superintending power
who conducts the moral operations of the world, as well
as the physical ? The same sublime hand which guides
the planets round the sun with so much exactness, which
preserves the arrangement of the whole with such
exalted wisdom and paternal care, and prevents the

Reflections on Negro Slavery 167

vast system from falling into confusion ; doth it abandon
mankind to all the errors, the follies, and the miseries,
which their most frantic rage, and their most dangerous
vires and passions can produce?

The history of the earth! doth it present anything
but crimes of the most heinous nature, committed from
one end of the world to the other? We observe avarice,
rapine, and murder, equally prevailing in all parts.
History perpetually tells us of millions of people aban-
doned to the caprice of the maddest princes, and of
whole nations devoted to the blind fury of tyrants.
Countries destroyed; nations alternately buried in
ruins by other nations ; some parts of the world beauti-
fully cultivated, returned again to the pristine state;
the fruits of ages of industry, the toil of thousands in
a short time destroyed by a few ! If one corner breathes
in peace for a few years, it is, in turn subjected, torn,
and levelled; one would almost believe the principles
of action in man, considered as the first agent of this
planet, to be poisoned in their most essential parts.
We certainly are not that class of beings which we
vainly think ourselves to be; man an animal of prey,
seems to have rapine and the love of bloodshed implanted
in his heart ; nay, to hold it the most honourable occu-
pation in society: we never speak of a hero of mathe-
matics, a hero of knowledge of humanity; no, this
illustrious appellation is reserved for the most successful
butchers of the world. If Nature has given us a fruitful
soil to inhabit, she has refused us such inclinations and
propensities as would afford us the full enjoyment of it.
Extensive as the surface of this planet is, not one half
of it is yet cultivated, not half replenished; she created
man, and placed him either in the woods or plains, and
provided him with passions which must for ever oppose
his happiness; everything is submitted to the power
of the strongest; men, like the elements, are always at

1 68 Letters from an American Farmer

war; the weakest yield to the most potent; force,
subtlety, and malice, always triumph over unguarded
honesty and simplicity. Benignity, moderation, and
justice, are virtues adapted only to the humble paths
of life : we love to talk of virtue and to admire its beauty,
while in the shade of solitude and retirement; but when
we step forth into active life, if it happen to be in com-
petition with any passion or desire, do we observe it to
prevail? Hence so many religious impostors have
triumphed over the credulity of mankind, and have
rendered their frauds the creeds of succeeding genera-
tions, during the course of many ages; until worn away
by time, they have been replaced by new ones. Hence
the most unjust war, if supported by the greatest force,
always succeeds; hence the most just ones, when sup-
ported only by their justice, as often fail. Such is the
ascendancy of power; the supreme arbiter of all the
revolutions which we observe in this planet: so irre-
sistible is power, that it often thwarts the tendency
of the most forcible causes, and prevents their subse-
quent salutary effects, though ordained for the good
of man by the Governor of the universe. Such is the
perverseness of human nature; who can describe it in
all its latitude?

In the moments, of our philanthropy we often talk
of an indulgent nature, a kind parent, who for the
benefit of mankind has taken singular pains to vary the
genera of plants, fruits, grain, and the different produc-
tions of the earth; and has spread peculiar blessings
in each climate. This is undoubtedly an object of
contemplation which calls forth our wannest gratitude;
for so singularly benevolent have those parental in-
tentions been, that where barrenness of soil or severity
of climate prevail, there she has implanted in the heart
of man, sentiments which overbalance every misery,
and supply the place of every want. She has given

Reflections on Negro Slavery 169

to the inhabitants of these regions, an attachment tc
their savage rocks and wild shores, unknown to tho c e
who inhabit the fertile fields of the temperate zone.
Yet if we attentively view this globe, will it not appear
rather a place of punishment, than of delight? And
what misfortune! that those punishments should fall
on the innocent, and its few delights be enjoyed by
the most unworthy. Famine, diseases, elementary con-
vulsions, human feuds, dissensions, etc., are the produce
of every climate; each climate produces besides, vices,
and miseries peculiar to its latitude. View the frigid
sterility of the north, whose famished inhabitants hardly
acquainted with the sun, live and fare worse than the
bears they hunt: and to which they are superior only
in the faculty of speaking. View the arctic and antarctic-
regions, those huge voids, where nothing lives; regions
of eternal snow: where winter in all his horrors has
established his throne, and arrested every creative
power of nature. Will you call the miserable stragglers
.11 these countries by the name of men? Now contrast
fhis frigid power of the north and south with that of the
sun; examine the parched lands of the torrid zone,
replete with sulphureous exhalations; view those
countries of Asia subject to pestilential infections which
lay nature waste; view this globe often convulsed both
from within and without; pouring forth from several
mouths, rivers of boiling matter, which are impercep-
tibly leaving immense subterranean graves, wherein
millions will one day perish! Look at the poisonous
soil ol the equator, at those putrid slimy tracks, teeming
with horrid monsters, the enemies of the human race;
look next at the sandy continent, scorched perhaps by
the fatal approach of some ancient comet, now the
abode of desolation. Examine the rains, the convulsive
storms of those climates, where masses of sulphur,
bitumen, and electrical fire, combining their dreadful

170 Letters from an American Farmer

powers, are incessantly hovering and bursting over a
globe threatened with dissolution. On this little shell,
how very few are the spots where man can live and
flourish? even under those mild climates which seem
to breathe peace and happiness, the poison of slavery,
the fury of despotism, and the rage of superstition, are
all combined against man! There only the few live
and rule, whilst the many starve and utter ineffectual
complaints: there, human nature appears more debased,
perhaps than in the less favoured climates. The fertile
plains of Asia, the rich low lands of Egypt and of
Diarbeck, the fruitful fields bordering on the Tigris and
the Euphrates, the extensive country of the East Indies
in all its separate districts; all these must to the geo-
graphical eye, seem as if intended for terrestrial para-
dises: but though surrounded with the spontaneous
riches of nature, though her kindest favours seem to be
shed on those beautiful regions with the most profuse
hand; yet there in general we find the most wretched
people in the world. Almost everywhere, liberty so
natural to mankind is refused, or rather enjoyed but
by their tyrants; the word slave, is the appellation of
every rank, who adore as a divinity, a being worse than
themselves; subject to every caprice, and to every
lawless rage which unrestrained power can give. Tears
are shed, perpetual groans are heard, where only the
accents of peace, alacrity, and gratitude should resound.
There the very delirium of tyranny tramples on the
best gifts of nature, and sports with the fate, the happi-
ness, the lives of millions: there the extreme fertility
of the ground always indicates the extreme misery of
the inhabitants!

Everywhere one part of the human species are taught
the art of shedding the blood of the other; of setting
fire to their dwellings; of levelling the works of their
industry: half of the existence of nations regularly

Horrid Treatment of a Negro Slave 171

employed in destroying other nations. What little
political felicity is to be met with here and there, has
cost oceans of blood to purchase ; as if good was never
to be the portion of unhappy man. Republics, king-
doms, monarchies, founded either on fraud or successful
violence, increase by pursuing the steps of the same
policy, until they are destroyed in their turn, either by
the influence of their own crimes, or by more successful
but equally criminal enemies.

If from this general review of human nature, we
descend to the examination of what is called civilised
society; there the combination of every natural and
artificial want, makes us pay very dear for what little
share of political felicity we enjoy. It is a strange
heterogeneous assemblage of vices and virtues, and of
a variety of other principles, for ever at war, for ever
jarring, for ever producing some dangerous, some dis-
tressing extreme. Where do you conceive then that
nature intended we should be happy? Would you
prefer the state of men in the woods, to that of men
in a more improved situation? Evil preponderates in
both ; in the first they often eat each other for want of
food, and in the other they often starve each other for
want of room. For my part, I think the vices and
miseries to be found in the latter, exceed those of the
former; in which real evil is more scarce, more support-
able, and less enormous. Yet we wish to see the earth
peopled; to accomplish the happiness of kingdoms,
which is said to consist in numbers. Gracious God!
to what end is the introduction of so many beings into
a mode of existence in which they must grope amidst
as many errors, commit as many crimes, and meet with
as many diseases, wants, and sufferings!

The following scene will I hope account for these
melancholy reflections, and apologise for the gloomy
thoughts with which I have filled this letter: my mind

172 Letters from an American Farmer

is, and always has been, oppressed since I became a
witness to it. I was not long since invited to dine with

a planter who lived three miles from , where he

then resided. In order to avoid the heat of the sun, I

resolved to go on foot, sheltered in a small path, leading

through a pleasant wood. I was leisurely travelling

along, attentively examining some peculiar plants

which I had collected, when all at once I felt the air

strongly agitated, though the day was perfectly calm

and sultry. I immediately cast my eyes toward the

cleared ground, from which I was but at a small distance,

in order to see whether it was not occasioned by a sudden

shower ; when at that instant a sound resembling a deep

rough voice, uttered, as I thought, a few inarticulate

monosyllables. Alarmed and surprised, I precipitately

looked all round, when I perceived at about six rods

distance something resembling a cage, suspended to the

limbs of a tree; all the branches of which appeared

covered with large birds of prey, fluttering about, and

anxiously endeavouring to perch on the cage. Actuated

by an involuntary motion of rny hands, more than by

any design of my mind, I fired at them; they all flew

to a short distance, with a most hideous noise: when,

horrid to think and painful to repeat, I perceived

a negro, suspended in the cage, and left there to expire!

I shudder when I recollect that the birds had already

picked out his eyes, his cheek bones were bare; his

arms had been attacked in several places, and his body

seemed covered with a multitude of wounds. From

the edges of the hollow sockets and from the lacerations

with which he was disfigured, the blood slowly dropped,

and tinged the ground beneath. No sooner were the

birds flown, than swarms of insects covered the whole

body of this unfortunate wretch, eager to feed on his

mangled flesh and to drink his blood. I found myself

suddenly arrested by the power of affright and terror;

Horrid Treatment of a Negro Slave 173

my nerves were convulsed; I trembled, I stood motion-
less, involuntarily contemplating the fate of this negro,
in all its dismal latitude. The living spectre, though
deprived of his eyes, could still distinctly hear, and in
his uncouth dialect begged me to give him some water
to allay his thirst. Humanity herself would have
recoiled back with horror; she would have balanced
whether to lessen such reliefless distress, or mercifully
with one blow to end this dreadful scene of agonising
torture! Had I had a ball in my gun, I certainly should
have despatched him; but finding myself unable to
perform so kind an office, I sought, though trembling,
to relieve him as well as I could. A shell ready fixed
to a pole, which had been used by some negroes, pre-
sented itself to me; filled it with water, and with
trembling hands I guided it to the quivering lips of the
wretched sufferer. Urged by the irresistible power of
thirst, he endeavoured to meet it, as he instinctively
guessed its approach by the noise it made in passing
through the bars of the cage. " Tanke, you white man,
tanke you, put some poison and give me." " How
long have you been hanging there?" I asked him.
" Two days, and me no die; the birds, the birds; aaah
me!" Oppressed with the reflections which this
shocking spectacle afforded me, I mustered strength
enough to walk away, and soon reached the house at
which I intended to dine. There 1 heard that the
reason for this slave being thus punished, was on account
of his having killed the overseer of the plantation.
They told me that the laws of self-preservation rendered
such executions necessary; and supported the doctrine
of slavery with the arguments generally made use of to
justify the practice; with the repetition of which 1 shall
not trouble you at present. Adieu.

LETTER X
ON SNAKES; AND ON THE HUMMING BIRD

WHY would you prescribe this task; you know that
what we take up ourselves seems always lighter than
what is imposed on us by others. You insist on my
saying something about our snakes; and in relating
what I know concerning them, were it not for two
singularities, the one of which I saw, and the other I
received from an eye-witness, I should have but very
little to observe. The southern provinces are the
countries where nature has formed the greatest variety
of alligators, snakes, serpents; and scorpions, from the
smallest size, up to the pine barren, the largest species
known here. We have but two, whose stings are mortal,
which deserve to be mentioned; as for the black one, it
is remarkable for nothing but its industry, agility, beauty,
and the art of enticing birds by the power of its eyes. I
admire it much, and never kill it, though its formidable
length and appearance often get the better of the philo-
sophy of some people, particularly of Europeans. The
most dangerous one is the pilot, or copperhead ; for the
poison of which no remedy has yet been discovered. It
bears the first name because it always precedes the
rattlesnake; that is, quits its state of torpidity in the
spring a week before the other. It bears the second
name on account of its head being adorned with
many copper-coloured spots. It lurks in rocks near the
water, and is extremely active and dangerous. Let
man beware of it! I have heard only of one person
who was stung by a copperhead in this country. The

174

On Snakes and the Humming Bird 175

poor wretch instantly swelled in a most dreadful manner;
a multitude of spots of different hues alternately
appeared and vanished, on different parts of his body;
his eyes were filled with madness and rage, he cast them
on aU present with the most vindictive looks: he thrust
out his tongue as the snakes do ; he hissed through his
teeth with inconceivable strength, and became an object
of terror to all by-standers. To the lividness of a
corpse he united the desperate force of a maniac; they
hardly were able to fasten him, so as to guard them-
selves from his attacks ; when in the space of two hours
death relieved the poor wretch from his struggles, and
the spectators from their apprehensions. The poison
of the rattlesnake is not mortal in so short a space, and
hence there is more time to procure relief; we are
acquainted with several antidotes with which almost
every family is provided. They are extremely inactive,
and if not touched, are perfectly inoffensive. I once saw,
as I was travelling, a great cliff which was full of them;
I handled several, and they appeared to be dead; they
were all entwined together, and thus they remain until
the return of the sun. I found them out, by following
the track of some wild hogs which had fed on them ; and
even the Indians often regale on them. When they
find them asleep, they put a small forked stick over
their necks, which they keep immovably fixed on the
ground; giving the snake a piece of leather to bite:
and this they pull back several times with great force,
until they observe their two poisonous fangs torn out.
Then they cut off the head, skin the body, and cook it
as we do eels; and their flesh is extremely sweet and
white. I once saw a tamed one, as gentle as you can
possibly conceive a reptile to be; it took to the water
and swam whenever it pleased; and when the boys to
whom it belonged called it back, their summons was
readily obeyed. It had been deprived of its fangs by

176 Letters from an American Farmer

the preceding method; they often stroked it with a
soft brush, and this friction seemed to cause the most
pleasing sensations, for it would turn on its back to enjoy
it, as a cat does before the fire. One of this species was
the cause, some years ago, of a most deplorable accident
which 1 shall relate to you, as I had it from the widow
and mother of the victims. A Dutch farmer of the
Minisink went to mowing, with his negroes, in his boots,
a precaution used to prevent being stung. Inad-
vertently he trod on a snake, which immediately flew
at his legs; and as it drew back in order to renew its
blow, one of his negroes cut it in two with his scythe.
They prosecuted their work, and returned home; at
night the farmer pulled off his boots and went to bed;
and was soon after attacked with a strange sickness at
his stomach ; he swelled, and before a physician could be
sent for, died. The sudden death of this man did not
cause much inquiry; the neighbourhood wondered, as is
usual in such cases, and without any further examina-
tion the corpse was buried. A few days after, the son
put on his lather's boots, and went to the meadow; at
night he pulled them off, went to bed, and was attacked
with the same symptoms about the same time, and died
in the morning. A little before he expired the doctor
came, but was not " able to assign what could be the
cause of so singular a disorder; however, rather than
appear wholly at a loss before the country people, ho
pronounced both father and son to have been bewitched.
Some weeks after, the widow sold all the movables for
the benefit of the younger children; and the farm was
leased. One of the neighbours, who bought the boots,
presently put them on. and was attacked in the same
manner as the other two had been ; but this man's wife
being alarmed by what had happened in the former
family, despatched one of her negroes for an eminent
physician, who fortunately having heard something of

On Snakes and the Humming Bird 177

the dreadful affair, guessed at the cause, applied oil, etc.
and recovered the man. The boots which had been so
fatal, were then carefully examined; and he found that
the two fangs of the snake had been left in the leather,
after being wrenched out of their sockets by the strength
with which the snake had drawn back its head. The
bladders which contained the poison and several of the
small nerves were still fresh, and adhered to the boot.
The unfortunate father and son had been poisoned by
pulling off these boots, in which action they imper-
ceptibly scratched their legs with the points of the fang"',
through the hollow of which, some of this astonishing
poison was conveyed. You have no doubt heard of
their rattles, if you have not seen them; the only
observation I wish to make is, that the rattling is loud
and distinct when they are angry; and on thr
contrary, when pleased, it sounds like a distant trepida-
tion, in which nothing distinct is heard. In the thick
settlements, they are now become very scarce; for
wherever they are met with, open war is declared against
them; so that in a few years there will be none left but
on our mountains. The black snake on the contrary
always diverts me because it excites no idea of danger.
Their swiftness is astonishing; they will sometimes
equal that of a horse; at other times they will climb
up trees in quest of our tree toads ; or glide on the ground
at full length. On some occasions they present them-
selves half in the reptile state, half erect; their eyes
and their heads in the erect posture appear to great
advantage : the former display a fire which I have often
admired, and it is by these they are enabled to fascinate
birds and squirrels. When they have fixed their eyes
on an animal, they become immovable; only turning
their head sometimes to the right and sometimes to the
left, but still with their sight invariably directed to the
object. The distracted victim, instead of flying its

*r_ 64

178 Letters from an American Farmer

enemy, seems to be arrested by some invincible power;
it screams; now approaches, and then recedes; and
after skipping about with unaccountable agitation,
finally rushes into the jaws of the snake, and is swallowed,
as soon as it is covered with a slime or glue to make it
slide easily down the throat of the devourer.

One anecdote I must relate, the circumstances of
which are as true as they are singular. One of my
constant walks when I am at leisure, is in my lowlands,
where I have the pleasure of seeing my cattle, horses,
and colts. Exuberant grass replenishes all my fields,
the best representative of our wealth; in the middle of
that tract I have cut a ditch eight feet wide, the banks
of which nature adorns every spring with the wild
salendine, and other flowering weeds, which on these
luxuriant grounds shoot up to a great height. Over this
ditch I have erected a bridge, capable of bearing a
loaded waggon ; on each side I carefully sow every year
some grains of hemp, which rise to the height of fifteen
feet, so strong and so full of limbs as to resemble young
trees: I once ascended one of them four feet above the
ground. These produce natural arbours, rendered
often still more compact by the assistance of an annual
creeping plant which we call a vine, that never fails to
entwine itself among their branches, and always pro-
duces a very desirable shade. From this simple grove I
have amused myself an hundred times in observing the
great number of humming birds with which our country
abounds: the wild blossoms everywhere attract the
attention of these birds, which like bees subsist by
suction. From this retreat I distinctly watch them in all
their various attitudes; but their flight is so rapid, that
you cannot distinguish the motion of their wings. On
this little bird nature has profusely lavished her most
splendid colours; the most perfect azure, the most
beautiful gold, the most dazzling red, are for ever in

On Snakes and the Humming Bird 179

contrast, and help to embellish the plumes of his majestic
head. The richest palette of the most luxuriant painter
could never invent anything to be compared to the varie-
gated tints, with which this insect bird is arrayed. Its bill
is as long and as sharp as a coarse sewing needle ; like the
bee, nature has taught it to find out in the calix of flowers
and blossoms, those mellifluous particles that serve it for
sufficient food ; and yet it seems to leave them untouched,
undeprived of anything that our eyes can possibly dis-
tinguish. When it feeds, it appears as if immovable
though continually on the wing; and sometimes, from
what motives I know not, it will tear and lacerate
flowers into a hundred pieces: for, strange to tell, they
are the most irascible of the feathered tribe. Where do
passions find room in so diminutive a body ? They often
fight with the fury of lions, until one of the combatants
falls a sacrifice and dies. When fatigued, it has often
perched within a few feet of me, and on such favourable
opportunities I have surveyed it with the most minute
attention. Its little eyes appear like diamonds, reflect-
ing light on every side: most elegantly finished in all
parts it is a miniature work of our great parent; who
^cems to have formed it the smallest, and at the same
time the most beautiful of the winged species.

As I was one day sitting solitary and pensive in my
primitive arbour, my attention was engaged by a strange
sort of rustling noise at some paces distant. I looked all
around without distinguishing anything, until I climbed
one of my great hemp stalks ; when to my astonishment,
I beheld two snakes of considerable length, the one pur-
suing the other with great celerity through a hemp
stubble field. The aggressor was of the black kind, six
feet long; the fugitive was a water snake, nearly of
equal dimensions. They soon met, and in the fury of
their first encounter, they appeared in an instant firmly
twisted together ; and whilst their united tails beat the

8o Letters from an American Farmer

Around, they mutually tried with open jaws to lacerate
each other. What a fell aspect did they present! their
heads were compressed to a very small size, their eyes
flashed fire; and after this conflict had lasted about five
minutes, the second found means to disengage itself
from the first, and hurried toward the ditch. Its
antagonist instantly assumed a new posture, and half
creeping and half erect, with a majestic mien, overtook
and attacked the other again, which placed itself in the
same attitude, and prepared to resist. The scene was
uncommon and beautiful ; for thus opposed they fought
with their jaws, biting each other with the utmost rage;
but notwithstanding this appearance of mutual courage
and fury, the water snake still seemed desirous of re-
treating toward the ditch, its natural element. This
was no sooner perceived by the keen-eyed black one,
than twisting its tail twice round a stalk of hemp, and
seizing its adversary by the throat, not by means of its
jaws, but by twisting its own neck twice round that of
the water snake, pulled it back from the ditch. To
prevent a defeat the latter took hold likewise of a stalk on
the bank, and by the acquisition of that point of resist-
ance became a match for its fierce antagonist. Strange
was this to behold; two great snakes strongly adhering
to the ground mutually fastened together by means of
the writhings which lashed them to each other, and
stretched at their full length, they pulled but pulled in
vain; and in the moments of greatest exertions that
part of their bodies which was entwined, seemed
extremely small, while the rest appeared inflated, and
now and then convulsed with strong undulations,
rapidty following each other. Their eyes seemed on
fire, and ready to start out of their heads ; at one time
the conflict seemed decided; the water snake bent itself
into two great folds, and by that operation rendered the
other more than commonly outstretched; the next

On Snakes and the Humming Bird 181

minute the new struggles of the black one gained an
unexpected superiority, it acquired two great foldb
likewise, which necessarily extended the body of its
adversary in proportion as it had contracted its own.
These efforts were alternate; victory seemed doubtful,
inclining sometimes to the one side and sometimes to the
other; until at last the stalk to which the black snake
fastened, suddenly gave way, and in consequence of this
accident they both plunged into the ditch. The water
did not extinguish their vindictive rage; for by their
agitations I could trace, though not distinguish, their
mutual attacks. They soon re-appeared on the surface
twisted together, as in their first onset; but the black
snake seemed to retain its wonted superiority, for its
head was exactly fixed above that of the other, which it
incessantly pressed down under the water, until it was
stifled, and sunk. The victor no sooner perceived its
enemy incapable of farther resistance, than abandoning
it to the current, it returned on shore and disappeared.

LETTER XI

FROM MR. IW N AL Z, A RUSSIAN GENTLEMAN; DE-
SCRIBING THE VISIT HE PAID AT MY REQUEST TO
MR. JOHN BERTRAM, THE CELEBRATED PENNSYL-
VANIAN BOTANIST

EXAMINE this flourishing province, in whatever light
you will, the eyes as well as the mind of an European
traveller are equally delighted; because a diffusive
happiness appears in every part: happiness which is
established on the broadest basis. The wisdom of
Lycurgus and Solon never conferred on man one half
of the blessings and uninterrupted prosperity which the
Pennsylvanians now possess: the name of Penn, that
simple but illustrious citizen, does more honour to the
English nation than those of many of their kings.

In order to convince you that I have not bestowed
undeserved praises in my former letters on this cele-
brated government; and that either nature or the
climate seems to be more favourable here to the arts
and sciences, than to any other American province;
let us together, agreeable to your desire, pay a visit to
Mr. John Bertram, the first botanist, in this new hemi-
sphere: become such by a native impulse of disposition.
It is to this simple man that America is indebted for
several useful discoveries, and the knowledge of many
new plants. I had been greatly prepossessed in his
favour by the extensive correspondence which I knew
he held with the most eminent Scotch and French
botanists; I knew also that he had been honoured with
that of Queen Ulrica of Sweden.

182

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 183

His house is small, but decent; there was something
peculiar in its first appearance, which seemed to dis-
tinguish it from those of his neighbours : a small tower
in the middle of it, not only helped to strengthen it but
afforded convenient room for a staircase. Every dis-
position of the fields, fences, and trees, seemed to bear
the marks of perfect order and regularity, which in
rural affairs, always indicate a prosperous industry.

I was received at the door by a woman dressed
extremely neat and simple, who without courtesying,
or any other ceremonial, asked me, with an air of
benignity, who I wanted? I answered, I should be
glad to see Mr. Bertram. If thee wilt step in and take
a chair, I will send for him. No, I said, I had rather
have the pleasure of walking through his farm, I shall
easily find him out, with your directions. After a little
time I perceived the Schuylkill, winding through delight-
ful meadows, and soon cast my eyes on a new-made
bank, which seemed greatly to confine its stream. After
having walked on its top a considerable way I at last
reached the place where ten men were at work. I
asked, if any of them could tell me where Mr. Bertram
was? An elderly looking man, with wide trousers and
a large leather apron on, looking at me said, " My name
is Bertram, dost thee want me? " Sir, I am come on
purpose to converse with you, if you can be spared
from your labour. " Very easily," he answered, " I
direct and advise more than I work." We walked
toward the house, where he made me take a chair
while he went to put on clean clothes, after which he
returned and sat down by me. The fame of your
knowledge, said I, in American botany, and your
well-known hospitality, have induced me to pay you
a visit, which I hope you will not think troublesome:
I should be glad to spend a few hours in your garden.
" The greatest advantage," replied he, " which I receive

184 Letters from an American Farmer

from what thee callest my botanical fame, is the pleasure
which it often procureth me in receiving the visits of
friends and foreigners: but our jaunt into the garden
must be postponed for the present, as the bell is ringing
for dinner. " We entered into a large hall, where there
was a long table full of victuals ; at the lowest part sat
his negroes, his hired men were next, then the family
and myself; and at the head, the venerable father and
his wife presided. Each reclined his head and said his
prayers, divested of the tedious cant of some, and of
the ostentatious style of others. " After the luxuries
of our cities/' observed he, " this plain fare must appear
to thee a severe fast." By no means, Mr. Bertram,
this honest country dinner convinces me, that you re-
ceive me as a friend and an old acquaintance. " I am
glad of it, for thee art heartily welcome. I never knew
how to use ceremonies; they are insufficient proofs of
sincerity; our society, besides, are utterly strangers to
what the world calleth polite expressions. We treat
others as we treat ourselves. I received yesterday a
letter from Philadelphia, by which I understand thee
art a Russian ; what motives can possibly have induced
thee to quit thy native country and to come so far in
quest of knowledge or pleasure? Verily it is a great
compliment thee payest to this our young province, to
think that anything it exhibiteth may be worthy thy
attention." I have been most amply repaid for the
trouble of the passage. I view the present Americans
as the seed of future nations, which will replenish this
boundless continent; the Russians may be in some
respects compared to you ; we likewise are a new people,
new I mean in knowledge, arts, and improvements.
Who knows what revolutions Russia and America may
one day bring about ; we are perhaps nearer neighbours
than we imagine. I view with peculiar attention all
your towns, I examine their situation and the police,

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 185

for which many are already famous. Though their
foundations are now so recent, and so well remembered,
yet their origin will puzzle posterity as much as we are
now puzzled to ascertain the beginning of those which
time has in some measure destroyed. Your new build-
ings, your streets, put me in mind of those of the city of
Pompeia, where I was a few years ago; I attentively
examined everything there, particularly the foot-path
which runs along the houses. They appeared to have
been considerably worn by the great number of people
which had once travelled over them. But now how
distant; neither builders nor proprietors remain;
nothing is known! <k Why thee hast been a great
traveller for a man of thy years/ 1 Few years, Sir, will
enable anybody to journey over a great tract of country;
but it requires a superior degree of knowledge to gather
harvests as we go. Pray, Mr. Bertram, what banks
are those which you are making: to what purpose is so
much expense and so much labour bestowed? " Friend
I wan, no branch of industry was ever more profitable
to any country, as well as to the proprietors; the
Schuylkill in its many windings once covered a great
extent of ground, though its waters were but shallow
even in our highest tides : and though some parts were
always dry, yet the whole of this great tract presented
to the eye nothing but a putrid swampy soil, useless
either for the plough or for the scythe. The proprietors
of these grounds are now incorporated; we yearly pay
to the treasurer of the company a certain sum, which
makes an aggregate, superior to the casualties that
generally happen either by inundations or the musk
squash. It is owing to this happy contrivance that so
many thousand acres of meadows have been rescued
from the Schuylkill, which now both enricheth and
embellisheth so much of the neighbourhood of our city.
Our brethren of Salem in New Jersey have carried the

i36 Letters from an American Farmer

art of banking to a still higher degree of perfection."
It is really an admirable contrivance, which greatly
redounds to the honour of the parties concerned; and
shows a spirit of discernment and perseverance which
is highly praiseworthy: if the Virginians would imitate
your example, the state of their husbandry would
greatly improve. I have not heard of any such associa-
tion in any other parts of the continent; Pennsylvania
hitherto seems to reign the unrivalled queen of these
fair provinces. Pray, Sir, what expense are you at
< 'er these grounds be fit for the scythe ? " The expenses
are very considerable, particularly when we have land,
brooks, trees, and brush to clear away. But such is the
excellence of these bottoms and the goodness of the
grass for fattening of cattle, that the produce of three
years pays all advances." Happy the country where
nature has bestowed such rich treasures, treasures
superior to mines, said I: if all this fair province is thus
cultivated, no wonder it has acquired such reputation
for the prosperity and the industry of its inhabitants.

By this time the working part of the family had
finished their dinner, and had retired with a decency
and silence which pleased me much. Soon after I
heard, as I thought, a distant concert of instruments.
However simple and pastoral your fare was, Mr. Bert-
ram, this is the dessert of a prince; pray what is this I
hear? "Thee must not be alarmed, it is of a piece
with the rest of thy treatment, friend Iwan." Anxious
I followed the sound, and by ascending the staircase,
found that it was the effect of the wind through the
strings of an Eolian harp; an instrument which I had
never before seen. After dinner we quaffed an honest
bottle of Madeira wine, without the irksome labour of
toasts, healths, or sentiments; and then retired into
ftis study.

I was no sooner entered, than I observed a coat of

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 187

arms in a gilt frame with the name of John Bertram.
The novelty of such a decoration, in such a place, struck
me; I could not avoid asking, Does the society of
Friends take any pride in those armorial bearings,
which sometimes serve as marks of distinction between
families, and much oftener as food for pride and osten-
tation? " Thee must know/' said he, " that my father
was a Frenchman, he brought this piece of painting
over with him; I keep it as a piece of family furniture,
and as a memorial of his removal hither/' From his
study we went into the garden, which contained a great
variety of curious plants and shrubs; some grew in
a greenhouse, over the door of which were written these
lines :

" Slave to no sect, who takes no private road,
But looks through nature, up to nature's God! "

He informed me that he had often followed General
Bouquet to Pittsburgh, with the view of herbalising;
that he had made useful collections in Virginia, and
that he had been employed by the king of England
to visit the two Floridas.

Our walks and botanical observations engrossed so
much of our time, that the sun was almost down ere I
thought of returning to Philadelphia; I regretted that
the day had been so short, as I had not spent so rational
a one for a long time before. I wanted to stay, yet
was doubtful whether it would not appear improper,
being an utter stranger. Knowing, however, that 1
was visiting the least ceremonious people in the world,
I bluntly informed him of the pleasure I had enjoyed,
and with the desire I had of staying a few days with
him. " Thee art as welcome as if I was thy father; thee
art no stranger; thy desire of knowledge, thy being
a foreigner besides, entitleth thee to consider my house
as thine own, as long as thee pleaseth: use thy time

1 88 Letters from an American Farmer

with the most perfect freedom ; I too shall do so myself."
I thankfully accepted the kind invitation.

We went to view his favourite bank; he showed me
the principles and method on which it was erected;
and we walked over the grounds which had been already
drained. The whole store of nature's kind luxuriance
seemed to have been exhausted on these beautiful
meadows; he made me count the amazing number of
cattle and horses now feeding on solid bottoms, which
but a few years before had been covered with water.
Thence we rambled through his fields, where the right-
angular fences, the heaps of pitched stones, the flourish-
ing clover, announced the best husbandry, as well as
the most assiduous attention. His cows were then
returning home, deep bellied, short legged, having udders
ready to burst ; seeking with seeming toil to be delivered
from the great exuberance they contained: he next
showed me his orchard, formerly planted on a barren
sandy soil, but long since converted into one of the
richest spots in that vicinage.

" This," said he, " is altogether the fruit of my own
contrivance; I purchased some years ago the privilege
of a small spring, about a mile and a half from hence,
which at a considerable expense I have brought to this
reservoir; therein^ throw old lime, ashes, horse-dung,
etc., and twice a week I let it run, thus impregnated;
I regularly spread on this ground in the fall, old hay,
straw, and whatever damaged fodder I have about my
barn. By these simple means I mow, one year with
another, fifty-three hundreds of excellent hay per acre,
from a soil, which scarcely produced five-fingers [a small
plant resembling strawberries] some years before." This
is, Sir, a miracle in husbandry; happy the country
which is cultivated by a society of men, whose applica-
tion and taste lead them to prosecute and accomplish
useful works. " I am not the only person who do these

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 189

things/' he said, " wherever water can be had it is always
turned to that important use; wherever a farmer can
water his meadows, the greatest crops of the best hay
and excellent after-grass, are the sure rewards of his
labours. With the banks of my meadow ditches, I have
greatly enriched my upland fields, those which I intend
to rest for a few years, I constantly sow with red clover,
which is the greatest meliorator of our lands. For
three years after, they yield abundant pasture; when
I want to break up my clover fields, I give them a good
coat of mud, which hath been exposed to the severities
of three or four of our winters. This is the reason that
1 commonly reap from twenty-eight to thirty-six bushels
of wheat an acre; my flax, oats, and Indian corn, 1 raise
in the same proportion. Wouldst thee inform me
whether the inhabitants of thy country follow the same
methods of husbandry?" No, Sir; in the neighbour-
hood of our towns, there are indeed some intelligent
farmers, who prosecute their rural schemes with atten-
tion; but we should be too numerous, too happy, too
powerful a people, if it were possible for the whole
Russian Empire to be cultivated like the province of
Pennsylvania. Our lands are so unequally divided,
and so few of our farmers are possessors of the soil they
till, that they cannot execute plans of husbandry with
the same vigour as you do, who hold yours, as it were
from the Master of nature, unencumbered and free.
Oh, America! exclaimed I, thou knowest not as yet
the whole extent of thy happiness: the foundation of
thy civil polity must lead thee in a few years to a degree
of population and power which Europe little thinks of!
" Long before this happen/' answered the good man,
" we shall rest beneath the turf; it is vain for mortals
to be presumptuous in their conjectures: our country,
is, no doubt, the cradle of an extensive future popula-
tion ; the old world is growing weary of its inhabitants,

190 Letters from an American Farmer

they must come here to flee from the tyranny of the
great. But doth not thee imagine, that the great will,
in the course of years, come over here also ; for it is the
misfortune of all societies everywhere to hear of great
men, great rulers, and of great tyrants." My dear Sir,
I replied, tyranny never can take a strong hold in this
country, the land is too widely distributed: it is poverty
in Europe that makes slaves. " Friend I wan, as I
make no doubt that thee understandest the Latin
tongue, read this kind epistle which the good Queen of
Sweden, Ulrica, sent me a few years ago. Good woman !
that she should think in her palace at Stockholm of poor
John Bertram, on the banks of the Schuylkill, appeareth
to me very strange." Not in the least, dear Sir; you
are the first man whose name as a botanist hath done
honour to America; it is very natural at the same time
to imagine, that so extensive a continent must contain
many curious plants and trees: is it then surprising
to see a princess, fond of useful knowledge, descend
sometimes from the throne, to walk in the gardens of
Linnaeus ? " Tis to the directions of that learned man,"
said Mr. Bertram, " that I am indebted for the method
which has led me to the knowledge I now possess; the
science of botany is so diffusive, that a proper thread
is absolutely wanted to conduct the beginner." Pray,
Mr. Bertram, when did you imbibe the first wish to
cultivate the science of botany; was you regularly
bred to it in Philadelphia ? "I have never received
any other education than barely reading and writing;
this small farm was all the patrimony my father left
me, certain debts and the want of meadows kept me
rather low in the beginning of my life; my wife brought
me nothing in money, all her riches consisted in her
good temper and great knowledge of housewifery. I
scarcely know how to trace my steps in the botanical
career; they appear to me now like unto a dream:

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 191

but thee mayest rely on what I shall relate, though I
know that some of our friends have laughed at it." I
am not one of those people, Mr. Bertram, who aim at
finding out the ridiculous in what is sincerely and
honestly averred. "Well, then, I'll tell thee: One
day I was very busy in holding my plough (for thee
seest that I am but a ploughman) and being weary I
ran under the shade of a tree to repose myself. I cast
my eyes on a daisy, I plucked it mechanically and
viewed it with more curiosity than common country
farmers are wont to do; and observed therein very
many distinct parts, some perpendicular, some hori-
zontal. What a shame, said my mind, or something that
inspired my mind, that thee shouldest have employed so
many years in tilling the earth and destroying so many
flowers and plants, without being acquainted with their
structures and their uses ! This seeming inspiration
suddenly awakened my curiosity, for these were not
thoughts to which I had been accustomed. I returned
to my team, but this new desire did not quit my mind;
I mentioned it to my wife, who greatly discouraged me
from prosecuting my new scheme, as she called it; I
was not opulent enough, she said, to dedicate much of
my time to studies and labours which might rob me of
that portion of it which is the only wealth of the
American farmer. However her prudent caution did
not discourage me; I thought about it continually,
at supper, in bed, and wherever I went. At last I
could not resist the impulse; for on the fourth day of
the following week, I hired a man to plough for me, and
went to Philadelphia. Though I knew not what book
to call for, I ingeniously told the bookseller my errand,
who provided me with such as he thought best, and
a Latin grammar beside. Next I applied to a neigh-
bouring schoolmaster, who in three months taught me
Latin enough to understand Linnaeus, which I purchased

1 92 Letters from an American Farmer

afterward. Then I began to botanise all over my farm ;
in a little time I became acquainted with every vege-
table that grew in my neighbourhood; .and next ventured
into Maryland, living among the Friends: in proportion
as I thought myself more learned I proceeded farther,
and by a steady application of several years I have
acquired a pretty general knowledge of every plant and
tree to be found in our continent. In process of time
I was applied to from the old countries, whither I every
year send many collections. Being now made easy
in my circumstances, I have ceased to labour, and am
never so happy as when I see and converse with my
friends. If among the many plants or shrubs I am
acquainted with, there are any thee wantest to send
to thy native country, I will cheerfully procure them,
and give thee moreover whatever directions thee mayest
want."

Thus I passed several days in ease, improvement, and
pleasure; I observed in all the operations of his farm,
as well as in the mutual correspondence between the
master and the inferior members of his family, the
greatest ease and decorum; not a word like command
seemed to exceed the tone of a simple wish. The very
negroes themselves appeared to partake of such a
decency of behaviour, and modesty of countenance,
as I had never before observed. By what means, said
I, Mr. Bertram, do you rule your slaves so well, that they
seem to do their work with all the cheerfulness of white
men? " Though our erroneous prejudices and opinions
once induced us to look upon them as fit only for slavery,
though ancient custom had very unfortunately taught
us to keep them in bondage ; yet of late, in consequence
of the remonstrances of several Friends, and of the good
books they have published on that subject, our society
treats them very differently. With us they are now
free. I give those whom thee didst see at my table,

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 193

eighteen pounds a year, with victuals and clothes, and
all other privileges which white men enjoy. Our society
treats them now as the companions of our labours ; and
by this management, as well as by means of the educa-
tion we have given them, they are in general become
a new set of beings. Those whom I admit to my table,
1 have found to be good, trusty, moral men ; when they
do not what we think they should do, we dismiss them,
which is all the punishment we inflict. Other societies
of Christians keep them still as slaves, without teaching
them any kind of religious principles: what motive
beside fear can they have to behave well ? In the first
settlement of this province, we employed them as slaves,
I acknowledge; but when we found that good example,
gentle admonition, and religious principles could lead
them to subordination and sobriety, we relinquished
a method so contrary to the profession of Christianity.
We gave them freedom, and yet few have quitted their
ancient masters. The women breed in our families
and we become attached to one another. I taught mine
to read and write; they love God, and fear his judg-
ments. The oldest person among them transacts my
business in Philadelphia, with a punctuality, from
which he has never deviated. They constantly attend
our meetings, they participate in health and sickness,
infancy and old age, in the advantages our society
affords. Such are the means we have made use of, to
relieve them from that bondage and ignorance in which
they were kept before. Thee perhaps hast been sur-
prised to see them at my table, but by elevating them
to the rank of freemen, they necessarily acquire that
emulation without which we ourselves should fall into
debasement and profligate ways/ 1 Mr. Bertram, this
is the most philosophical treatment of negroes that 1
have heard of; happy would it be for America would
other denominations of Christians imbibe the same

194 Letters from an American Farmer

principles, and follow the same admirable rules. A
great number of men would be relieved from those cruel
shackles, under which they now groan; and under this
impression, I cannot endure to spend more time in the
southern provinces. The method with which they are
treated there, the meanness of their food, the severity
of their tasks, are spectacles I have not patience to be-
hold. " I am glad to see that thee hast so much com-
passion; are there any slaves in thy country? " Yes,
unfortunately, but they are more properly civil than
domestic slaves ; they are attached to the soil on which
they live; it is the remains of ancient barbarous customs,
established in the days of the greatest ignorance and
savageness of manners! and preserved notwithstanding
the repeated tears of humanity, the loud calls of policy,
and the commands of religion. The pride of great men,
with the avarice of landholders, make them look on this
class as necessary tools of husbandry; as if freemen
could not cultivate the ground. " And is it really so,
Friend Iwan ? To be poor, to be wretched, to be a slave,
are hard indeed; existence is not worth enjoying on
those terms. I am afraid thy country can never flourish
under such impolitic government." I am very much
of your opinion, Mr. Bertram, though I am in hopes that
the present reign, illustrious by so many acts of the
soundest policy, will not expire without this salutary,
this necessary emancipation; which would fill the
Russian empire with tears of gratitude. " How long
hast thee been in this country?" Four years, Sir.
" Why thee speakest English almost like a native;
what a toil a traveller must undergo to learn various
languages, to divest himself of his native prejudices,
and to accommodate himself to the customs of all those
among whom he chooseth to reside."

Thus I spent my time with this enlightened botanist
this worthy citizen; who united all the simplicity

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist 195

of rustic manners to the most useful learning. Various
and extensive were the conversations that filled the
measure of my visit. I accompanied him to his fields,
to his barn, to his bank, to his garden, to his study,
and at last to the meeting of the society on the Sunday
following. It was at the town of Chester, whither the
whole family went in two waggons ; Mr. Bertram and I
on horseback. When I entered the house where the
friends were assembled, who might be about two
hundred men and women, the involuntary impulse of
ancient custom made me pull off my hat; but soon
recovering myself, I sat with it on, at the end of a bench.
The meeting-house was a square building devoid of any
ornament whatever; the whiteness of the walls, the
conveniency of seats, that of a large stove, which in cold
weather keeps the whole house warm, were the only
essential things which I observed. Neither pulpit nor
desk, fount nor altar, tabernacle nor organ, were there
to be seen ; it is merely a spacious room, in which these
good people meet every Sunday. A profound silence
ensued, which lasted about half an hour; every one had
his head reclined, and seemed absorbed in profound
meditation, when a female friend arose, and declared
with a most engaging modesty, that the spirit moved
her to entertain them on the subject she had chosen.
She treated it with great propriety, as a moral useful
discourse, and delivered it without theological parade
or the ostentation of learning. Either she must have
been a great adept in public speaking, or had studiously
prepared herself; a circumstance that cannot well be
supposed, as it is a point, in their profession, to utter
nothing but what arises from spontaneous impulse:
or else the great spirit of the world, the patronage and
influence of which they all came to invoke, must have
inspired her with the soundest morality. Her discourse
lasted three quarters of an hour. I did not observe one

i 96 Letters from an American Farmer

single face turned toward her; never before had I seen
a congregation listening with so much attention to a
public oration. I observed neither contortions of body,
nor any kind of affectation in her face, style, or manner
of utterance; everything was natural, and therefore
pleasing, and shall I tell you more, she was very hand-
some, although upward of forty. As soon as she had
finished, every one seemed to return to their former
meditation for about a quarter of an hour; when they
rose up by common consent, and after some general
conversation, departed.

How simple their precepts, how unadorned their
religious system: how few the ceremonies through
which they pass during the course of their lives! At
their deaths they are interred by the fraternity, without
pomp, without prayers; thinking it then too late to
alter the course of God's eternal decrees: and as you
well know, without either monument or tombstone.
Thus after having lived under the mildest government,
after having been guided by the mildest doctrine, they
die just as peaceably as those who being educated in
more pompous religions, pass through a variety of sacra-
ments, subscribe to complicated creeds, and enjoy the
benefits of a church establishment. These good people
flatter themselves, with following the doctrines of Jesus
Christ, in that simplicity with which they were delivered :
an happier system could not have been devised for the
use of mankind. It appears to be entirely free from
those ornaments and political additions which each
country and each government hath fashioned after
its own manners.

At the door of this meeting house, I had been invited
to spend some days at the houses of some respectable
farmers in the neighbourhood. The reception 1 met with
everywhere insensibly led me to spend two months
among these good people; and I must say they were

Visit to Mr. Bertram, the Botanist i 97

the golden days of my riper years. I never shall forget
the gratitude I owe them for the innumerable kind-
nesses they heaped on me ; it was to the letter you gave
me that I am indebted for the extensive acquaintance
I now have throughout Pennsylvania. I must defer
thanking you as I ought, until I see you again. Before
that time comes, I may perhaps entertain you with
more curious anecdotes than this letter affords.
Farewell. I N AL Z

LETTER XII

DISTRESSES OF A FRONTIER MAN

I WISH for a change of place; the hour is come at last,
that I must fly from my house and abandon my farm!
But what course shall I steer, inclosed as I am? The
climate best adapted to my present situation and humour
would be the polar regions, where six months day and
six months night divide the dull year: nay, a simple
Aurora Borealis would suffice me, and greatly refresh
my eyes, fatigued now by so many disagreeable objects.
The severity of those climates, that great gloom, where
melancholy dwells, would be perfectly analogous to the
turn of my mind. Oh, could I remove my plantation to
the shores of the Oby, willingly would I dwell in the hut
of a Samoyede ; with cheerfulness would I go and bury
myself in the cavern of a Laplander. Could I but carry
my family along with me, I would winter at Pello, or
Tobolsky, in order to enjoy the peace and innocence of
that country. But let me arrive under the pole, or
reach the antipodes, I never can leave behind me the
remembrance of the dreadful scenes to which I have
been a witness ; therefore never can I be happy ! Happy,
why would I mention that sweet, that enchanting word ?
Once happiness was our portion; now it is gone from
us, and I am afraid not to be enjoyed again by the
present generation! Whichever way I look, nothing
but the most frightful precipices present themselves to
my view, in which hundreds of my friends and acquaint-
ances have already perished: of all animals that live on
the surface of this planet, what is man when no longer

198

Distresses of a Frontier Man 199

connected with society; or when he finds himself sur-
rounded by a convulsed and a half dissolved one ? He
cannot live in solitude, he must belong to some com-
munity bound by some ties, however imperfect. Men
mutually support and add to the boldness and confidence
of each other; the weakness of each is strengthened
by the force of the whole. I had never before these
calamitous times formed any such ideas; I lived on,
laboured and prospered, without having ever studied on
what the security of my life and the foundation of my
prosperity were established: I perceived them just as
they left me. Never was a situation so singularly
terrible as mine, in every possible respect, as a member of
an extensive society, as a citizen of an inferior division
of the same society, as a husband, as a father, as a man
who exquisitely feels for the miseries of others as well
as for his own! But alas! so much is everything now
subverted among us, that the very word misery, with
which we were hardly acquainted before, no longer
conveys the same ideas ; or rather tired with feeling for
the miseries of others, every one feels now for himself
alone. When I consider myself as connected in all
these characters, as bound by so many cords, all uniting
in my heart, I am seized with a fever of the mind, I am
transported beyond that degree of calmness which is
necessary to delineate our thoughts. I feel as if my
reason wanted to leave me, as if it would burst its poor
weak tenement: again I try to compose myself, I grow
cool, and preconceiving the dreadful loss, I endeavour
to retain the useful guest.

You know the position of our settlement ; I need not
therefore describe it. To the west it is inclosed by a

chain of mountains, reaching to ; to the east, the

country is as yet but thinly inhabited; we are almost
insulated, and the houses are at a considerable distance
from each other. From the mountains we have but

2oo Letters from an American Farmer

too much reason to expect our dreadful enemy; the
wilderness is a harbour where it is impossible to find
them. It is a door through which they can enter our
country whenever they please; and, as they seem
determined to destroy the whole chain of frontiers, our
fate cannot be far distant: from Lake Champlain,
almost all has been conflagrated one after another.
What renders these incursions still more terrible is,
that they most commonly take place in the dead of the
uight; we never go to our fields but we are seized with
an involuntary fear, which lessens our strength and
weakens our labour. No other subject of conversation
intervenes between the different accounts, which spread
through the country, of successive acts of devastation;
and these told in chimney-corners, swell themselves in
our affrighted imaginations into the most terrific ideas!
We never sit down either to dinner or supper, but the
least noise immediately spreads a general alarm and
prevents us from enjoying the comfort of our meals.
The very appetite proceeding from labour and peace of
mind is gone; we eat just enough to keep us alive: our
sleep is disturbed by the most frightful dreams; some-
times I start awake, as if the great hour of danger was
come; at other times the howling of our dogs seems to
announce the arrival of the enemy: we leap out of bed
and run to arms; my poor wife with panting bosom and
silent tears, takes leave of me, as if we were to see each
other no more; she snatches the youngest children from
their beds, who, suddenly awakened, increase by their
innocent questions the horror of the dreadful moment.
She tries to hide them in the cellar, as if our cellar was
inaccessible to the fire. I place all my servants at the
windows, and myself at the door, where I am determined
to perish. Fear industriously increases every sound;
we all listen ; each communicates to the other his ideas
and conjectures. We remain thus sometimes for whole

Distresses of a Frontier Man 201

hours, our hearts and our minds racked by the most
anxious suspense: what a dreadful situation, a thousand
times worse than that of a soldier engaged in the midst
of the most severe conflict! Sometimes feeling the
spontaneous courage of a man, I seem to wish for the
decisive minute; the next instant a message from my
wife, sent by one of the children, puzzling me beside with
their little questions, unmans me : away goes nry courage,
and I descend again into the deepest despondency. At
last finding that it was a false alarm, we return once
more to our beds; but what good can the kind sleep of
nature do to us when interrupted by such scenes!
Securely placed as you are, you can have no idea of our
agitations, but by hear-say; no relation can be equal
to what we suffer and to what we feel. Every morning
my youngest children are sure to have frightful dreams
to relate: in vain I exert my authority to keep them
silent, it is not in my power; and these images of their
disturbed imagination, instead of being frivolously
looked upon as in the days of our happiness, are on the
contrary considered as warnings and sure prognostics
of our future fate. I am not a superstitious man, but
since our misfortunes, I am grown more timid, and less
disposed to treat the doctrine of omens with contempt.
Though these evils have been gradual, yet they do not
become habitual like other incidental evils. The nearer
I view the end of this catastrophe, the more I shudder.
But why should I trouble you with such unconnected
accounts; men secure and out of danger are soon
fatigued with mournful details: can you enter with me
into fellowship with all these afflictive sensations;
have you a tear ready to shed over the approaching ruin
of a once opulent and substantial family? Read this I
pray with the eyes of sympathy; with a tender sorrow,
pity the lot of those whom you once called your friends ;
who were once surrounded with plenty, ease, and perfect

TT 640

2O2 Letters from an American Farmer

security; but who now expect every night to be their
last, and who are as wretched as criminals under an
impending sentence of the law.

As a member of a large society which extends to many
parts of the world, my connection with it is too distant
to be as strong as that which binds me to the inferior
division in the midst of which I live. I am told that the
great nation, of which we are a part, is just, wise, and
free, beyond any other on earth, within its own insulai
boundaries; but not always so to its distant conquests:
I shall not repeat all I have heard, because I cannot
believe half of it. As a citizen of a smaller society, I
find that any kind of opposition to its now prevailing
sentiments, immediately begets hatred: how easily do
men pass from loving, to hating and cursing one another!
I am a lover of peace, what must I do ? I am divided
between the respect I feel for the ancient connection, and
the fear of innovations, with the consequence of which I
am not well acquainted; as they are embraced by my
own countrymen. I am conscious that I was happy
before this unfortunate Revolution. I feel that I am
no longer so; therefore I regret the change. This is the
only mode of reasoning adapted to persons in my situa-
tion. If I attach myself to the Mother Country, which
is 3000 miles from me, I become what is called an enemy
to my own region ; if I follow the rest of my countrymen,
I become opposed to our ancient masters: both extremes
appear equally dangerous to a person of so little weight
and consequence as I am, whose energy and example
are of no avail. As to the argument on which the dispute
is founded, I know little about it. Much has been said
and written on both sides, but who has a judgment
capacious and clear enough to decide? The great
moving principles which actuate both parties are much
hid from vulgar eyes, like mine; nothing but the
plausible and the probable are offered to our contem-

Distresses of a Frontier Man 203

plation. The innocent class are a]ways the victim oi
the few; they are in all countries and at all times the
inferior agents, on which the popular phantom is erected;
they clamour, and must toil, and bleed, and are always
sure of meeting with oppression and rebuke. Tt is for
the sake of the great leaders on both sides, that so much
blood must be spilt; that of the people is counted as
nothing. Great events are not achieved for us, though
it is by us that they are principally accomplished; by
the arms, the sweat, the lives of the people. Book?
tell me so much that they inform me of nothing.
Sophistry, the bane of freemen, launches forth in all her
deceiving attire! After all, most men reason 1ron<
passions ; and shall such an ignorant individual as I am
decide, and say this side is right, that side is wrong?
Sentiment and feeling are the only guides I know. Alas,
how should I unravel an argument, in which reason
herself hath given way to brutality and bloodshed 1
What then must I do? I ask the wisest lawyers, the
ablest casuists, the wannest patriots; for I mean
honestly. Great vSource of wisdom 1 inspire me with
light sufficient to guide my benighted steps out of this
intricate maze ! Shall I discard all my ancient principles,
shall I renounce that name, that nation which I held once
so respectable? I feel the powerful attraction; the
sentiments they inspired grew with my earliest know-
ledge, and were grafted upon the iirst rudiments of my
education. On the other hand, shall I arm myself
against that country where I first drew breath, against
the play-mates of my youth, my bosom friends, my
acquaintance? the idea makes me shudder! Must I
be called a parricide, a traitor, a villain, lose the esteem
of all those whom I love, to preserve my own; be
shunned like a rattlesnake, or be pointed at like a bear ?
I have neither heroism not magnanimity enough to
make so great a sacrifice. Here I am tied, I am fastened

204 Letters from an American Farmer

by numerous strings, nor do I repine at the pressure they
cause; ignorant as I am, I can pervade the utmost
extent of the calamities which have already overtaken
our poor afflicted country. I can see the great and
accumulated ruin yet extending itself as far as the
theatre of war has reached; I hear the groans of thou-
sands of families now ruined and desolated by our
aggressors. I cannot count the multitude of orphans
this war has made ; nor ascertain the immensity of blood
we have lost. Some have asked, whether it was a crime
to resist ; to repel some parts of this evil. Others have
asserted, that a resistance so general makes pardon
unattainable, and repentance useless; and dividing the
crime among so many, renders it imperceptible. What
one party calls meritorious, the other denominates
flagitious. These opinions vary, contract, or expand,
like the events of the war on which they are founded.
What can an insignificant man do in the midst of these
jarring contradictory parties, equally hostile to persons
situated as I am? And after all who will be the really
guilty? Those most certainly who fail of success.
Our fate, the fate of thousands, is then necessarily
involved in the dark wheel of fortune. Why then so
many useless reasonings; we are the sport of fate.
Farewell education, principles, love of our country,
farewell ; all are become useless to the generality of us :
he who governs himself according to what he calls his
principles, may be punished either by one party or the
other, for those very principles. He who proceeds with-
out principle, as chance, timidity, or self-preservation
directs, will not perhaps fare better; but he will be less
blamed. What are we in the great scale of events, we
poor defenceless frontier inhabitants ? What is it to the
gazing world, whether we breathe or whether we die?
Whatever virtue, whatever merit and disinterestedness
we may exhibit in our secluded retreats, of what avail ?

Distresses of a Frontier Man 205

We are like the pismires destroyed by the plough ; whose
destruction prevents not the future crop. Self-preserva-
tion, therefore, the rule of nature, seems to be the best
rule of conduct ; what good can we do by vain resistance,
by useless efforts? The cool, the distant spectator,
placed in safety, may arraign me for ingratitude, may
bring forth the principles of Solon or Montesquieu; he
may look on me as wilfully guilty; he may call me by
the most opprobrious names. Secure from personal
danger, his warm imagination, undisturbed by the least
agitation of the heart, will expatiate freely on this grand
question; and will consider this extended field, but as
exhibiting the double scene of attack and defence. To
him the object becomes abstracted, the intermediate
glares, the perspective distance and a variety of opinions
unimpaired by affections, presents to his mind but one
set of ideas. Here he proclaims the high guilt of the
one, and there the right of the other; but let him come
and reside with us one single month, let him pass with
us through all the successive hours of necessary toil,
terror and affright, let him watch with us, his musket in
his hand, through tedious, sleepless nights, his imagina-
tion furrowed by the keen chisel of every passion; let
his wife and his children become exposed to the most
dreadful hazards of death ; let the existence of his pro-
perty depend on a single spark, blown by the breath of
an enemy; let him tremble with us in our fields, shudder
at the rustling of every leaf; let his heart, the seat of the
most affecting passions, be powerfully wrung by hearing
the melancholy end of his relations and friends ; let him
trace on the map the progress of these desolations; let
his alarmed imagination predict to him the night, the
dreadful night when it may be his turn to perish, as so
many have perished before. Observe then, whether the
man will not get the better of the citizen, whether his
political maxims will not vanish ! Yes, he will cease to

2o6 Letters from an American Farmer

glow so warmly with the glory of the metropolis ; all his
wishes will be turned toward the preservation of his
family! Oh, were he situated where 1 am, were his
house perpetually filled, as mine is, with miserable victims
just escaped from the flames and the scalping knife,
telling of barbarities and murders that make human
lature tremble; his situation would suspend every
political reflection, and expel every abstract idea. My
heart is full and involuntarily takes hold of any notion
from whence it can receive ideal ease or relief. I am in-
formed that the king has the most numerous, as well as
the fairest, progeny of children, of any potentate now in
the world: he may be a great king, but he must feel as
we common mortals do, in the good wishes he forms for
their lives and prosperity. His mind no doubt often
springs forward on the wings of anticipation, and con-
templates us as happily settled in the world. If a poor
frontier inhabitant may be allowed to suppose this great
personage the first in our system, to be exposed but for
one hour, to the exquisite pangs we so often feel, would
not the preservation of so numerous a family engross all
his thoughts ; would not the ideas of dominion and other
felicities attendant on royalty all vanish in the hour of
danger? The regal character, however sacred, would
be superseded by the stronger, because more natural
one of man and father. Oh! did he but know the cir-
cumstances of this horrid war, I am sure he would put a
stop to that long destruction of parents and children. 1
am sure that while he turned his ears to state policy,
he would attentively listen also to the dictates of nature,
that great parent ; for, as a good king, he no doubt wishes
to create, to spare, and to protect, as she does. Must I
then, in order to be called a faithful subject, coolly, and
philosophically say, it is necessary for the good of
Britain, that my children's brains should be dashed
against the walls of the house in which they were reared ;

Distresses of a Frontier Man 207

that my wife should be stabbed and scalped before my
face; that I should be either murdered or captivated;
or that for greater expedition we should all be locked up

and burnt to ashes as the family of the B n was ?

Must I with meekness wait for that last pitch of desola-
tion, and receive with perfect resignation so hard a fate,
from ruffians, acting at such a distance from the eyes of
any superior; monsters, left to the wild impulses of the
wildest nature. Could the lions of Africa be transported
here and let loose, they would no doubt kill us in order
to prey upon our carcasses! but their appetites would
not require so many victims. Shall I wait to be
punished with death, or else to be stripped of all food
and raiment, reduced to despair without redress and
without hope. Shall those who may escape, see every-
thing they hold dear destroyed and gone. Shall those
few survivors, lurking in some obscure corner, deplore
in vain the fate of their families, mourn over parents
either captivated, butchered, or burnt; roam among
our wilds, and wait for death at the foot of some tree,
without a murmur, or without a sigh, for the guod of the
cause? No, it is impossible! so astonishing a sacrifice
is not to be expected from human nature, it must belong
to beings of an inferior or superior order, actuated by
less, or by more refined principles. Even those great
personages who are so far elevated above the common
ranks of men, those, I mean, who wield and direct so
many thunders; those who have let loose against us
these demons of war, could they be transported here,
and metamorphosed into simple planters as we are, they
would, from being the arbiters of human destiny, sink
into miserable victims; they would feel and exclaim as
we do, and be as much at a loss what line of conduct to
prosecute. Do you well comprehend the difficulties of
our situation? If we stay we are sure to perish at one
time or another ; no vigilance on our part can save us ;

208 Letters from an American Farmer

if we retire, we know not where to go; every house is
filled with refugees as wretched as ourselves; and if we
remove we become beggars. The property of farmers
is not like that of merchants; and absolute poverty is
worse than death. If we take up arms to defend our-
selves, we are denominated rebels; should we not be
rebels against nature, could we be shamefully passive?
Shall we then, like martyrs, glory in an allegiance, now
become useless, and voluntarily expose ourselves to a
species of desolation which, though it ruin us entirely,
yet enriches not our ancient masters. By this inflexible
and sullen attachment, we shall be despised by our
countrymen, and destroyed by our ancient friends;
whatever we may say, whatever merit we may claim,
will not shelter us from those indiscriminate blows,
given by hired banditti, animated by all those passions
which urge men to shed the blood of others ; how bitter
the thought! On the contrary, blows received by the
hands of those from whom we expected protection,
extinguish ancient respect, and urge us to self-delence
perhaps to revenge ; this is the path which nature herself
points out, as well to the civilised as to the uncivilised.
The Creator of hearts has himself stamped on them those
propensities at their first formation; and must we then
daily receive this treatment from a power once so loved ?
The Fox flies or deceives the hounds that pursue him;
the bear, when overtaken, boldly resists and attacks
them; the hen, the very timid hen, fig! its for the pre-
servation of her chickens, nor does she decline to attack,
and to meet on the wing even the swift kite. Shall man,
then, provided both with instinct and reason, unmoved,
unconcerned, and passive, see his subsistence consumed,
and his progeny either ravished from him or murdered ?
Shall fictitious reason extinguish the unerring impulse
of instinct? No; my former respect, my former
attachment vanishes with my safety; that respect

Distresses of a Frontier Man 209

and attachment was purchased by protection, and
it has ceased. Could not the great nation we belong
to have accomplished her designs by means of her
numerous armies, by means of those fleets which cover
the ocean? Must those who are masters of two thirds
of the trade of the world; who have in their hands the
power which almighty gold can give; who possess a
species of wealth that increases with their desires; must
they establish their conquest with our insignificant
innocent blood!

Must I then bid farewell to Britain, to that renowned
country? Must I renounce a name so ancient and so
venerable? Alas, she herself, that once indulgeni
parent, forces me to take up arms against her. She
herself, first inspired the most unhappy citizens of our
remote districts, with the thoughts of shedding the
blood of those whom they used to call by the name of
friends and brethren. That great nation which now
convulses the world; which hardly knows the extent oi
her Indian kingdoms ; which looks toward the universal
monarchy of trade, of industry, of riches, of power: why
must she strew our poor frontiers with the carcasses of
her friends, with the wrecks of our insignificant villages,
in which there is no gold? When, oppressed by painful
recollection, I revolve all these scattered ideas in my
mind, when I contemplate my situation, and the thou-
sand streams of evil with which I am surrounded; when
I descend into the particular tendency even of the
remedy I have proposed, I am convulsed convulsed
sometimes to that degree, as to be tempted to exclaim
Why has the master of the world permitted so much
indiscriminate evil throughout every part of this poor
planet, at all times, and among all kinds of people?
It ought surely to be the punishment of the wicked only.
I bring that cup to my lips, of which I must soon taste,

and shudder at its bitterness. What then is life, I ask

*u 640

2io Letters from an American Farmer

my^'lf, is it a gracious gift? No, it is too bitter; a gift
means something valuable conferred, but life appears to
be a mere accident, and of the worst kind: we are born
to be victims of diseases and passions, of mischances
and death: better not to be than to be miserable.
Thus impiously I roam, I fly from one erratic thought
to another, and my mind, irritated by these acrimonious
reflections, is ready sometimes to lead me to dangerous
extremes of violence. When I recollect that I am a
father, and a husband, the return of these endearing
ideas strikes deep into my heart. Alas! they once
made it to glow with pleasure and with every ravishing
exultation; but now they fill it with sorrow. At other
times, my wife industriously rouses me out of these
dreadful meditations, and soothes me by all the reasoning
she is mistress of; but her endeavours only serve to
make me more miserable, by reflecting that she must
share with all these calamities, the bare apprehensions
of which I am afraid will subvert her reason. Nor can 1
with patience think that a beloved wife, my faithful help-
mate, throughout all my rural schemes, the principal
hand which has assisted me in rearing the prosperous
fabric of ease and independence I lately possessed, as
well as my children, those tenants of my heart, should
daily and nightly be exposed to such a cruel fate. Self-
preservation is above all political precepts and rules,
and even superior to the dearest opinions of our minds ;
a reasonable accommodation of ourselves to the various
exigencies of the time in which we live, is the most
irresistible precept. To this great evil I must seek some
sortof remedy adapted to remove or topalliate it ; situated
as I am, what steps should I take that will neither injure
nor insult any of the parties, and at the same time save
iny family from that certain destruction which awaits it,
if I remain here much longer. Could I insure them
bread, safety, and subsistence, not the bread of idleness,

Distresses of a Frontier Man 211

but that earned by proper labour as heretofore; could
this be accomplished by the sacrifice of my life, I would
willingly give it up. I attest before heaven, that it is
only for these I would wish to live and to toil: for these
whom I have brought into this miserable existence. I
resemble, rnethinks, one of the stones of a ruined arch,
still retaining that pristine form that anciently fitted the
place 1 occupied, but the centre is tumbled down; I can
be nothing until I am replaced, either in the former
circle, or in some stronger one. I see one on a smaller
scale, and at a considerable distance, but it is within
my power to reach it: and since I have ceased to con-
sider myself as a member of the ancient state now
convulsed, I willingly descend into an inferior one. I
will revert into a state approaching nearer to that of
nature, unencumbered either with voluminous laws, or
contradictory codes, often galling the very necks oi
those whom they protect; and at the same time suffi-
ciently remote from the brutality of unconnected savage
nature. Do you, my friend, perceive the path I have
found out? it is that which leads to the tenants of the

great village of , where, far removed from

the accursed neighbourhood of Europeans, its in-
habitants live with more ease, decency, and peace, than
you imagine: where, though governed by no laws, yet
find, in uncontaminated simple manners all that laws
can afford. Their system is sufficiently complete to
answer all the primary wants of man, and to constitute
him a social being, such as he ought to be in the great
iorest of nature. There it is that I have resolved at
any rate to transport myself and family: an eccentric
thought, you may say, thus to cut asunder all former
connections, and to form new ones with a people whom
nature has stamped with such different characteristics!
But as the happiness of my family is the only object of
my wishes, I care very little where we be, or where we go,

2 1 2 Letters from an American Farmer

provided that we are safe, and all united together. Our
new calamities being shared equally by all, will become
lighter; our mutual affection for each other, will in this
great transmutation become the strongest link of our
new society, will afford us every joy we can receive on
a foreign soil, and preserve us in unity, as the gravity and
coherency of matter prevents the world from dissolution.
Blame me not, it would be cruel in you, it would beside
be entirely useless ; for when you receive this we shall be
on the wing. When we think all hopes are gone, must
we, like poor pusillanimous wretches, despair and die?
No; I perceive beiore me a few resources, though
through many dangers, which I will explain to you
hereaiter. It is not, believe me, a disappointed ambition
which leads me to take this step, it is the bitterness of my
situation, it is the impossibility of knowing what better
measure to adopt: my education fitted me for nothing
more than the most simple occupations of life; I am but
a feller of trees, a cultivator of land, the most honour-
able title an American can have. I have no exploits, no
discoveries, no inventions to boast of; I have cleared
about 370 acres of land, some for the plough, some for
the scythe ; and this has occupied many years of my life.
I have never possessed, or wish to possess anything more
than what could be earned or produced by the united
industry of my family. I wanted nothing more than to
live at home independent and tranquil, and to teach my
children how to provide the means of a future ample
subsistence, founded on labour, like that of their father.
This is the career of life I have pursued, and that which
I had marked out for them and for which they seemed
to be so well calculated by their inclinations, and by
their constitutions. But now these pleasing expecta-
tions are gone, we must abandon the accumulated
industry of nineteen years, we must fly we hardly know
whither, through the most impervious paths, and

Distresses of a Frontier Man 213

become members of a new and strange community.
Oh, virtue! is this all the reward thou hast to confer on
thy votaries ? Either thou art only a chimera, or thou
art a timid useless being; soon affrighted, when ambition,
thy great adversary, dictates, when war re-echoes the
dreadful sounds, and poor helpless individuals are mowed
down by its cruel reapers like useless grass. I have at
all times generously relieved what few distressed people
I have met with ; I have encouraged the industrious ; my
house has always been opened to travellers; I have not
lost a month in illness since I have been a man; I have
caused upwards of an hundred and twenty families to
remove hither. Many of them I have led by the hand in
the days of their first trial; distant as I am from any
places of worship or school of education, I have been
the pastor of my family, and the teacher of many of my
neighbours. I have learnt them as well as I could, the
gratitude they owe to God, the father of harvests; and
their duties to man: I have been as useful a subject;
ever obedient to the laws, ever vigilant to see them
respected and observed. My wife hath faithfully
followed the same line within her province; no woman
was ever a better economist, or spun or wove better
linen; yet we must perish, perish like wild beasts,
included within a ring of fire !

Yes, I will cheerfully embrace that resource, it is an
holy inspiration: by night and by day, it presents itself
to my mind: I have carefully revolved the scheme; I
have considered in all its future effects and tendencies,
the new mode of living we must pursue, without salt,
without spices, without linen and with little other
clothing; the art of hunting, we must acquire, the new
manners we must adopt, the new language we must
speak; the dangers attending the education of my
children we must endure. These changes may appear
more terrific at a distance perhaps than when grown

214 Letters from an American Farmer

familiar by practice : what is it to us, whether we eat well
made pastry, or pounded alagricheV, well roasted beef,
or smoked venison; cabbages, or squashes? Whether
we wear neat home-spun or good beaver; whether we
sleep on feather-beds, or on bear-skins? The differ-
ence is not worth attending to. The difficulty of the
language, fear of some great intoxication among the
Indians; finally, the apprehension lest my younger
children should be caught by that singular charm, so
dangerous at their tender years ; are the only considera-
tions that startle me. By what power does it come to
pass, that children who have been adopted when young
among these people, can never be prevailed on to re-
adopt European manners? Many an anxious parent
I have seen last war, who at the return of the peace, went
to the Indian villages where they knew their children
had been carried in captivity; when to their inexpres-
sible sorrow, they found them so perfectly Indianised,
that many knew them no longer, and those whose more
advanced ages permitted them to recollect their fathers
and mothers, absolutely refused to follow them, and
ran to their adopted parents for protection against the
effusions of love their unhappy real parents lavished on
them! Incredible as this may appear, I have heard it
asserted in a thousand instances, among persons of

credit. In the village of , where I purpose to go,

there lived, about fifteen years ago, an Englishman and
a Swede, whose history would appear moving, had I
time to relate it. They were grown to the age of men
when they were taken; they happily escaped the great
punishmentof war captives, and were obliged to marry the
Squaws who had saved their lives by adoption. By the
force of habit, they became at last thoroughly naturalised
to this wild course of life. While I was there, their
friends sent them a considerable sum of money to ransom
themselves with. The Indians, their old masters, gave

Distresses of a Frontier Man 215

them their choice, and without requiring any considera-
tion, told them, that they had been long as free as them-
selves. They chose to remain; and the reasons they
gave me would greatly surprise you: the most perfect
freedom, the ease of living, the absence of those cares
and corroding solicitudes which so often prevail with us ;
the peculiar goodness of the soil they cultivated, for the}^
did not trust altogether to hunting; all these, and many
more motives, which I have forgot, made them prefer
that life, of which we entertain such dreadful opinions.
It cannot be, therefore, so bad as we generally conceive
it to be; there must be in their social bond something
singularly captivating, and far superior to anything to
be boasted of among us; for thousands of Europeans
are Indians, and we have no examples of even one of
those Aborigines having from choice become Europeans !
There must be something more congenial to our native
dispositions, than the fictitious society in which we live;
or else why should children, and even grown persons,
become in a short time so invincibly attached to it?
There must be something very bewitching in their
manners, something very indelible and marked by the
very hands of nature. For, take a young Indian lad,
give him the best education you possibly can, load him
with your bounty, with presents, nay with riches; yet
he will secretly long for his native woods, which you
would imagine he must have long since forgot; and on
the first opportunity he can possibly find, you will see
him voluntarily leave behind him all you have given him,
and return with inexpressible joy to lie on the mats of

his fathers. Mr. , some years ago, received from a

good old Indian, who died in his house, a young lad, of
nine years of age, his grandson. He kindly educated
him with his children, and bestowed on him the same
care and attention in respect to the memory of his
venerable grandfather, who was a worthy man. He

216 Letters from an American Farmer

intended to give him a genteel trade, but in the spring
season when all the family went to the woods to make
their maple sugar, he suddenly disappeared ; and it was
not until seventeen months after, that his benefactor
heard he had reached the village of Bald Eagle, where
he still dwelt. Let us say what we will of them, of their
inferior organs, of their want of bread, etc., they are as
stout and wellmade as the Europeans. Without temples,
without priests, without kings, and without laws, they
are in many instances superior to us; and the proofs of
what I advance, are, that they live without care, sleep
without inquietude, take life as it comes, bearing all its
asperities with unparalleled patience, and die without
any kind of apprehension for what they have done, or
tor what they expect to meet with hereafter. What
system of philosophy can give us so many necessary
qualifications for happiness? They most certainly arc
much more closely connected with nature than we arc ;
they are her immediate children, the inhabitants of the
woods are her undefiled off-spring: those of the plains are
her degenerated breed, far, very far removed from her
primitive laws, from her original design. It is therefore
resolved on. I will either die in the attempt or succeed ;
better perish all together in one fatal hour, than to suffer
what we daily endure. I do not expect to enjoy in the

village of an uninterrupted happiness; it cannot

be our lot, let us live where we will; I am not founding
my future prosperity on golden dreams. Place man-
kind where you will, they must always have adverse
circumstances to struggle with; from nature, accidents,
constitution; from seasons, from that great combination
of mischances which perpetually lead us to new diseases,
to poverty, etc. Who knows but I may meet in this
new situation, some accident from whence may spring
up new sources of unexpected prosperity? Who can

Distresses of a Frontier Man 2 1 7

be presumptuous enough to predict all the good ? Who
can foresee all the evils, which strew the paths of our
lives? But after all, I cannot but recollect what
sacrifice I am going to make, what amputation I am
going to suffer, what transition I am going to experience.
Pardon my repetitions, my wild, my trifling reflections,
they proceed from the agitations of my mind, and the
fulness of my heart; the action of thus retracing them
seems to lighten the burden, and to exhilarate my
spirits; this is besides the last letter you will receive
from me; I would fain tell you all, though I hardly know
how. Oh! in the hours, in the moments of my greatest
anguish, could I intuitively represent to you that variety
of thought which crowds on my mind, you would have
reason to be surprised, and to doubt of their possibility.
Shall we ever meet again ? If we should, where will it

be ? On the wild shores of . If it be my doom to

end my days there, 1 will greatly improve them; and
perhaps make room for a few more families, who will
choose to retire from the fury of a storm, the agitated
billows of which will yet roar for many years on our
extended shores. Perhaps I may repossess my house,
if it be not burnt down ; but how will my improvements
look? why, half defaced, bearing the strong marks of
abandonment, and of the ravages of war. However,
at present I give everything over for lost; I will bid a
long farewell to what I leave behind. If ever I repossess
it, I shall receive it as a gift, as a reward for my conduct
and fortitude. Do not imagine, however, that I am a
stoic by no means : I must, on the contrary, confess to
you, that I feel the keenest regret, at abandoning an
house which I have in some measure reared with my
own hands. Yes, perhaps I may never revisit those
fields which I have cleared, those trees which I have
planted, those meadows which, in my youth, were a
hideous wilderness, now converted by my industry into

2i 8 Letters from an American Farmer

rich pastures and pleasant lawns. If in Europe it is
praise-worthy to be attached to paternal inheritances,
how much more natural, how much more powerful
must the tie be with us, who, if I may be permitted the
expression, are the founders, the creators of our own
farms! When I see my table surrounded with my
1 looming offspring, all united in the bonds of the strongest
affection, it kindles in my paternal heart a variety of
tumultuous sentiments, which none but a father and a
husband in my situation can feel or describe. Perhaps
I ma}* see my wife, my children, often distressed, in-
voluntarily recalling to their minds the ease and
abundance which they enjoyed under the paternal roof.
Perhaps I may see them want that bread which I now
leave behind; overtaken by diseases and penury,
rendered more bitter by the recoUection of former days of
opulence and plenty. Perhaps I may be assailed on
every side by unforeseen accidents, which I shall not
be able to prevent or to alleviate. Can I contemplate
such images without the most unutterable emotions?
My fate is determined; but I have not determined it,
you may assure yourself, without having undergone the
most painful conflicts of a variety of passions; interest,
love of ease, disappointed views, and pleasing expecta-
tions frustrated; I shuddered at the review! Would
to God I was master of the stoical tranquillity of that
magnanimous sect; oh, that I were possessed of those
sublime lessons \vhich Appollonius of Chalcis gave to
the Emperor Antoninus ! I could then with much more
propriety guide the helm of my little bark, which is soon
to be freighted with all that I possess most dear on
earth, through this stormy passage to a safe harbour;
and when there, become to my fellow passengers, a surer
guide, a brighter example, a pattern more worthy of
imitation, throughout all the new scenes they must pass,
and the new career they must traverse. I have observed

Distresses of a Frontier Man 219

notwithstanding, the means hitherto made use of, to arm
the principal nations against our frontiers. Yet they
have not, they will not take up the hatchet against a
people who have done them no harm. The passions
necessary to urge these people to war, cannot be routed
they cannot feel the stings of vengeance, the thirst of
which alone can compel them to shed blood : far superior
in their motives of action to the Europeans, who for
sixpence per day, may be engaged to shed that of any
people on earth. They know nothing of the nature oi
our disputes, they have no ideas of such revolutions as
this; a civil division of a village or tribe, are events
which have never been recorded in their traditions:
many of them know very well that they have too long
been the dupes and the victims of both parties ; f oolishly
arming for our sakes, sometimes against each other,
sometimes against our white enemies. They consider
us as born on the same land, and, though they have no
reasons to love us, yet they seem carefully to avoid
entering into this quarrel, from whatever motives. I
am speaking of those nations with which I am best
acquainted, a few hundreds of the worst kind mixed
with whites, worse than themselves, are now hired by
Great Britain, to perpetuate those dreadful incursions.

In my youth I traded with the , under the conduct

of my uncle, and always traded justly and equitably;
some of them remember it to this day. Happily their
village is far removed from the dangerous neighbour-
hood of the whites; I sent a man last spring to it, who
understands the woods extremely well, and who speaks
their language; he is just returned, after several weeks
absence, and has brought me, as I had flattered myself,
a string of thirty purple wampum, as a token that their
honest chief will spare us half of his wigwam until we
have time to erect one. He has sent me word that they
have land in plenty, of which they are not so covetous as

Z2o Letters from an American Farmer

:he whites; that we may plant for ourselves, and that
in the meantime he will procure for us some corn and
meat; that fish is plenty in the waters of

and that the village to which he had laid open my
proposals, have no objection to our becoming dwellers
with them. I have not yet communicated these glad
tidings to my wife, nor do I know how to do it ; I tremble
lest she should refuse to follow me ; lest the sudden idea
of this removal rushing on her mind, might be too power-
ful. I flatter myself I shall be able to accomplish it,
and to prevail on her; I fear nothing but the effects of
her strong attachment to her relations. I will willingly
let you know how I purpose to remove my family to so
great a distance, but it would become unintelligible to
you, because you are not acquainted with the geographi-
cal situation of this part of the country. Suffice it for
you to know, that with about twenty-three miles land
carriage, I am enabled to perform the rest by water;
and when once afloat, I care not whether it be two or
three hundred miles. 1 propose to send all our pro-
visions, furniture, and clothes to my wife's father, who
approves of the scheme, and to reserve nothing but a
few necessary articles of covering; trusting to the furs
of the chase for our future apparel. Were we im-
prudently to encumber ourselves too much with baggage,
we should never reach to the waters of - , which is
the most dangerous as well as the most difficult part of
our journey; and yet but a trifle in point of distance. I
intend to say to my negroes In the name of God, be
free, my honest lads, I thank you for your past services ;
go, from henceforth, and work for yourselves; look on
me as your old friend, and fellow labourer; be sober,
frugal, and industrious, and you need not fear earning a
comfortable subsistence. Lest my countrymen should
think that I am gone to join the incendiaries of our
frontiers, I intend to write a letter to Mr. - , to

Distresses of a Frontier Man 22 i

inform him of our retreat, and of the reasons that have

urged me to it. The man whom I sent to village,

is to accompany us also, and a very useful companion
he will be on every account.

You may therefore, by means of anticipation, behold
me under the Wigwam; I am so well acquainted with
the principal manners of these people, that I entertain
not the least apprehension from them. I rely more
securely on their strong hospitality, than on the wit-
nessed compacts of many Europeans. As soon as
possible after my arrival, I design to build myself a
wigwam, after the same manner and size with the
rest, in order to avoid being thought singular, or giving
occasion for any railleries; though these people are
seldom guilty of such European follies. I shall erect
it hard by the lands which they propose to allot me,
and will endeavour that my wife, my children, and
myself may be adopted soon after our arrival. Thus
becoming truly inhabitants of their village, we shall
immediately occupy that rank within the pale of their
society, which will afford us all the amends we can
possibly expect for the loss we have met with by the
convulsions of our own. According to their customs
we shall likewise receive names from them, by which
we shall always be known. My youngest children
shall learn to swim, and to shoot with the bow, that they
may acquire such talents as will necessarily raise them
into some degree of esteem among the Indian lads of their
own age; the rest of us must hunt with the hunters.
I have been for several years an expert marksman ; but
I dread lest the imperceptible charm of Indian educa-
tion, may seize my younger children, and give them
such a propensity to that mode of life, as may preclude
their returning to the manners and customs of their
parents. I have but one remedy to prevent this great
evil; and that is, to employ them in the labour of the

222 Letters from an American Farmer

fields, as much as I can; I am even resolved to make
their daily subsistence depend altogether on it. As long
as we keep ourselves busy in tilling the earth, there i?
no i-'iir of any of us becoming wild; it is the chase and
the food it procures, that have this strange effect.
Excuse a simile those hogs which range in the woods,
and to whom grain is given once a week, preserve their
former degree of tameness ; but if, on the contrary, they
are reduced to live on ground nuts, and on what they
can get, they soon become wild and fierce. For my
part, I can plough, sow, and hunt, as occasion may-
require; but my wife, deprived of wool and flax, will
have no room for industry; what is she then to do?
like the other squaws, she must cook for us the nasaump,
the ninchicke, and such other preparations of corn as
are customary among these people. She must lean:
to bake squashes and pumpkins under the ashes; to
slice and smoke the meat of our own killing, in order to
preserve it; she must cheerfully adopt the manners and
customs of her neighbours, in their dress, deportment,
conduct, and internal economy, in all respects. Surely
if we can have fortitude enough to quit all we have, to
remove so far, and to associate with people so different
from us; these necessary compliances are but part of
the scheme. The change of garments, when those they
carry with them are worn out, will not be the least of
my wife's and daughter's concerns: though I am in
hopes that self-love will invent some sort of reparation.
Perhaps you would not believe that there are in the
woods looking-glasses, and paint of every colour; and
that the inhabitants take as much pains to adorn their
faces and their bodies, to fix their bracelets of silver,
and plait their hair, as our forefathers the Picts used
to do in the time of the Romans. Not that I would
wish to see either my wife or daughter adopt those savage
customs; we can live in great peace and harmony with

Distresses of a Frontier Man 223

them without descending to every article; the inter-
ruption of trade hath, I hope, suspended this mode of
dress. My wife understands inoculation perfectly well,
she inoculated all our children one after another, and
has successfully performed the operation on several
scores of people, who, scattered here and there through
our woods, were too far removed from all medical
assistance. If we can persuade but one family to sub-
mit to it, and it succeeds, we shall then be as happy
as our situation will admit of; it will raise her into some
degree of consideration, for whoever is useful in an)*
society will always be respected. If we are so fortunate
as to carry one family through a disorder, which is the
plague among these people, I trust to the force of
example, we shall then become truly necessary, valued,
and beloved; we indeed owe every kind office to a
society of men who so readily offer to assist us into their
social partnership, and to extend to my family the
shelter of their village, the strength of their adoption,
and even the dignity of their names. God grant us
a prosperous beginning, we may then hope to be of more
service to them than even missionaries who have been
sent to preach to them a Gospel they cannot under-
stand.

As to religion, our mode of worship will not suffer
much by this removal from a cultivated country, into
the bosom of the woods ; for it cannot be much simpler
than that which we have followed here these many
years: and I will with as much care as I can, redouble
my attention, and twice a week, retrace to them the
great outlines of their duty to God and to man. I will
read and expound to them some part of the decalogue,
which is the method I have pursued ever since I married.

Half a dozen of acres on the shores of , the soil

of which I know well, will yield us a great abundance
of all we want; I will make it a point to give the over-

224 Letters from an American Farmer

plus to such Indians as shall be most unfortunate in
th<'ir huntings; I will persuade them, if I can, to till
a little more land than they do, and not to trust so much
to the produce of the chase. To encourage them still
farther, I will give a quirn to every six families ; I have
built many for our poor back settlers, it being often
the want of mills which prevents them from raising
grain. As I am a carpenter, I can build my own plough,
and can be of great service to many of them; my
example alone, may rouse the industry of some, and
serve to direct others in their labours. The difficulties
of the language will soon be removed; in my evening
conversations, I will endeavour to make them regulate
the trade of their village in such a manner as that those
pests of the continent, those Indian traders, may not
come within a certain distance ; and there they shall be
obliged to transact their business before the old people.
I am in hopes that the constant respect which is paid
to the elders, and shame, may prevent the young hunters

from infringing this regulation. The son of will

soon be made acquainted with our schemes, and I trust
that the power of love, and the strong attachment he
professes for my daughter, may bring him along with
us: he will make an excellent hunter; young and
vigorous, he will equal in dexterity the stoutest man
in the village. Had it not been for this fortunate cir-
cumstance, there would have been the greatest danger ;
for however I respect the simple, the inoffensive society
of these people iri their villages, the strongest prejudices
would make me abhor any alliance with them in blood :
disagreeable no doubt, to nature's intentions which
have strongly divided us by so many indelible characters.
In the days of our sickness, we shall have recourse to
their medical knowledge, which is well calculated for
the simple diseases to which they are subject. Thus
shall we metamorphose ourselves, from neat, decent,

Distresses of a Frontier Man 225

opulent planters, surrounded with every conveniency
which our external labour and internal industry could
give, into a still simpler people divested of everything
beside hope, food, and the raiment of the woods:
abandoning the large framed house, to dwell under the
wigwam; and the featherbed, to lie on the mat, or
bear's skin. There shall we sleep undisturbed by fruit-
ful dreams and apprehensions; rest and peace of mind
will make us the most ample amends for what we shal 1
leave behind. These blessings cannot be purchased
too dear; too long have we been deprived of them. I
would cheerfully go even to the Mississippi, to find that
repose to which we have been so long strangers. My
heart sometimes seems tired with beating, it wants-
rest like my eye-lids, which feel oppressed with so manv
watchings.

These are the component parts of my scheme, the
success of each of which appears feasible ; from whence
I flatter myself with the probable success of the whole.
Still the danger of Indian education returns to my mind,
and alarms me much; then again I contrast it with
the education of the times; both appear to be equally
pregnant with evils. Reason points out the necessity
of choosing the least dangerous, which I must consider
as the only good within my reach; I persuade myself
that industry and labour will be a sovereign preservative
against the dangers of the former; but I consider, at
the same time, that the share of labour and industry
which is intended to procure but a simple subsistence,
with hardly any superfluity, cannot have the same
restrictive effects on our minds as when we tilled the
earth on a more extensive scale. The surplus could be
then realised into solid wealth, and at the same time
that this realisation rewarded our past labours, it
engrossed and fixed the attention of the labourer, and
cherished in his mind the hope of future riches. In

226 Letters from an American Farmer

order to supply this great deficiency of industrious
motives, and to hold out to them a real object to prevent
the fatal consequences of this sort of apathy; I will
keep an exact account of all that shall be gathered, and
give each of them a regular credit for the amount of it
to be paid them in real property at the return of peace.
Thus, though seemingly toiling for bare subsistence on
a foreign land, they shall entertain the pleasing prospect
of seeing the sum of their labours one day realised either
in legacies or gifts, equal if not superior to it. The
yearly expense of the clothes which they would have
received at home, and of which they will then be de-
prived, shall likewise be added to their credit; thus
I flatter myself that they will more cheerfully wear the
blanket, the matchcoat, and the Moccasins. Whatever
success they may meet with in hunting or fishing, shall
only be considered as recreation and pastime; I shall
thereby prevent them from estimating their skill in the
chase as an important and necessary accomplishment.
I mean to say to them: " You shall hunt and fish merely
to show your new companions that you are not inferior
to them in point of sagacity and dexterity." Were 1
to send them to such schools as the interior parts of our
settlements afford at present, what can they learn there ?
How could I support them there ? What must become
of me ; am I to proceed on my voyage, and leave them ?
That I never could submit to. Instead of the perpetual
discordant noise of disputes so common among us,
instead of those scolding scenes, frequent in every house,
they will observe nothing but silence at home and
abroad: a singular appearance of peace and concord are
the first characteristics which strike you in the villages
of these people. Nothing can be more pleasing, nothing
surprises an European so much as the silence and
harmony which prevails among them, and in each
family; except when disturbed by that accursed spirit

Distresses of a Frontier Man 227

given them by the wood rangers in exchange for their
furs. If my children learn nothing of geometrical
rules, the use of the compass, or of the Latin tongue,
the}' will learn and practise sobriety, for rum can no
longer be sent to these people; they will learn that
modesty and diffidence for which the young Indians
are so remarkable; they will consider labour as the
most essential qualification; hunting as the second.
They will prepare themselves in the prosecution oi our
small rural schemes, carried on for the benefit of our
little community, to extend them further when each
shall receive his inheritance. Their tender minds will
cease to be agitated by perpetual alarms; to be made
cowards by continual terrors: if they acquire in the

village of , such an awkwardness of deportment

and appearance as would render them ridiculous in our
^ay capitals, they will imbibe, I hope, a confirmed taste
ior that simplicity, which so well becomes the cultivators
of the land. If I cannot teach them any of those
professions which sometimes embellish and support our
society, I will show them how to hew wood, how to
construct their own ploughs; and with a few tools how
to supply themselves with every necessary implement,
both in the house and in the field. If they are hereafter
obliged to confess, that they belong to no one particular
church, I shall have the consolation of teaching them
that great, that primary worship which is the foundation
of all others. If they do not fear God according to the
tenets of any one seminary, they shall learn to worship
him upon the broad scale of nature. The Supreme
Being does not reside in peculiar cl lurches or communi-
ties; he is equally the great Manitou of the woods and
of the plains; and even in the gloom, the obscurity of
those vtry woods, his justice may be as well understood
and felt as in the most sumptuous temples. Each
worship with us, hath, you know, its peculiar political

228 Letters from an American Farmer

tendency; there it has none but to inspire gratitude
and truth: their tender minds shall receive no other
idea of the Supreme Being, than that of the father of
all men, who requires nothing more of us than what
tends to make each other happy. We shall say with
them, Soungwaneha, esa caurounkyawcrn, nughwon-
shauza neattewek, nesalanga. Our father, be thy will
done in earth as it is in great heaven.

Perhaps my imagination gilds too strongly this distant
prospect; yet it appears founded on so few, and simple
principles, that there is not the same probability of
adverse incidents as in more complex schemes. These
vague rambling contemplations which I here faithfully
retrace, carry me sometimes to a great distance; I am
lost hi the anticipation of the various circumstance^
attending this proposed metamorphosis! Many un-
foreseen accidents may doubtless arise. Alas! it is
easier for me in all the glow of paternal anxiety, reclined
on my bed, to form the theory of my future conduct,
than to reduce my schemes into practice. But when
once secluded from the great society to which we now
belong, we shall unite closer together; and there will
be less room for jealousies or contentions. As I intend
my children neither for the law nor the church, but for
the cultivation of the land, I wish them no literary
accomplishments ; I pray heaven that they may be one
day nothing more than expert scholars in husbandry:
this is the science which made our continent to flourish
more rapidly than any other. Were they to grow up
where I am now situated, even admitting that we were
in safety; two of them are verging toward that period
in their lives, when they must necessarily take up the
musket, and learn, in that new school, all the vices
which are so common in armies. Great God ! close my
eyes for ever, rather than I should live to see this
calamity! May they rather become inhabitants of the
woods.

Distresses of a Frontier Man 229

Thus then in the village of , in the bosom of that

peace it has enjoyed ever since I have known it, con-
nected with mild hospitable people, strangers to our
political disputes, and having none among themselves;
on the shores of a fine river, surrounded with woods,
abounding with game; our little society united in
perfect harmony with the new adoptive one, in which
we shall be incorporated, shall rest I hope from all
fatigues, from all apprehensions, from our perfect
terrors, and from our long watchings. Not a word oi
politics shall cloud our simple conversation; tired
either with the chase or the labour of the field, we shall
sleep on our mats without any distressing want, having
learnt to retrench every superfluous one: we shall have
but two prayers to make to the Supreme Being, that he
may shed his fertilising dew on our little crops, and
that he will be pleased to restore peace to our unhappy
country. These shall be the only subject of our nightly
prayers, and of our daily ejaculations : and if the labour,
the industry, the frugality, the union of men, can be
an agreeable offering to him, we shall not fail to receive
his paternal blessings. There I shall contemplate
nature in her most wild and ample extent ; I shall care-
fully study a species of society, of which I have at
present but very imperfect ideas; I will endeavour to
occupy with propriety that place which will enable me
to enjoy the few and sufficient benefits it confers. The
solitary and unconnected mode of life I have lived in
my youth must fit me for this trial, I am not the first
who has attempted it; Europeans did not, it is true,
carry to the wilderness numerous families; they went
there as mere speculators; I, as a man seeking a refuge
from the desolation of war. They went there to study
the manner of the aborigines; I to conform to them,
whatever they are; some went as visitors, as travellers;
I as a sojourner, as a fellow hunter and labourer, go

230 Letters from an American Farmer

determined industriously to work up among them such
a system of happiness as may be adequate to my future
situation, and may be a sufficient compensation for all
my fatigues and for the misfortunes I have borne: I
have always found it at home, I may hope likewise to
find it under the humble roof of my wigwam.

O Supreme Being! if among the immense variety of
planets, inhabited by thy creative power, thy paternal
and omnipotent care deigns to extend to all the in-
dividuals they contain ; if it be not beneath thy infinite
dignity to cast thy eye on us wretched mortals; if my
future felicity is not contrary to the necessary effects
of those secret causes which thou hast appointed,
receive the supplications of a man, to whom in thy
kindness thou hast given a wife and an offspring: View
us all with benignity, sanctify this strong conflict of
regrets, wishes, and other natural passions; guide our
steps through these unknown paths, and bless our
future mode of life. If it is good and well meant, it must
proceed from thee; thou knowest, Lord, our enter-
prise contains neither fraud, nor malice, nor revenge.
Bestow on me that energy of conduct now become so
necessary, that it may be in my power to carry the
young family thou hast given me through this great
trial with safety and in thy peace. Inspire me with
such intentions and such rules of conduct as may be
most acceptable to thee. Preserve, God, preserve the
companion of my bosom, the best gift thou hast given
me: endue her with courage and strength sufficient to
accomplish this perilous journey. Bless the children
of our love, those portions of our hearts; I implore thy
divine assistance, speak to their tender minds, and
inspire them with the love of that virtue which alone
can serve as the basis of their conduct in this world,
and of their happiness with thee. Restore peace and
concord to our poor afiiicted country; assuage the fierce

Distresses of a Frontier Man 231

storm which has so long ravaged it. Permit, I beseech
thee, Father of nature, th;,t our ancient virtues, and
our industry, may not be totally lost: and that as a
reward for the great toils we have made on this new
land, we may be restored to our ancient tranquillity,
and enabled to fill it with successive generations, that
will constantly thank thee for the ample subsistence
thou hast given them.

The unreserved manner in which I have written
must give you a convincing proof of that friendship and
esteem, of which I am sure you never yet doubted. As
members of the same society, as mutually bound by
the ties of affection and old acquaintance, you certainly
cannot avoid feeling for my distresses; you cannot
avoid mourning with me over that load of physical and
moral evil with which we are all oppressed. My own
-,hare of it I often overlook when I minutely contemplate
all that hath befallen our native country.

NOTES

NOTE I. The Title-page, Advertisements, and Dedication.
The author's use of the name " J. Hector St. John " is dis-
cussed in our Introduction and in Note III. The title-page
of the first French edition (two volumes) is as follows:
LETTRES d'un CULTIVATEUR Americain, ECRITES
A. W. S. ECUYER, Depuis VAnnee 1770, jusqu'd 1781.
Traduites de 1'Anglois par * * * A Paris, chez Cuchet,
Libraire, rue & hotel Serpente. MDCCLXXXIV. The
second edition of this French paraphrase runs to three
volumes, with maps and engravings, and is dated 1787.
There is an English motto Keen feelings inspire resistless
thoughts as well as a Latin one ; the Lettres are not ecrites but
addresees to " W. S. Ecuyer " who now appears as " Wm.
S. . .on. Esqr." Crevecceur's loyalist friend at New York,
William Seaton, is thus indicated.

The " advertisements " which appear in the English edition
of the Letters are omitted in the French. The dedication to
the Abbe Raynal (1713-1796) is replaced by a dedication to
the Marquis de Lafayette the generous young friend of
Washington, whose fame in America was never dimmed by
the failures of his later years. Raynal was an indefatigable
hack-writer of liberal sentiments ; he had talent, but scarcely
deserved Crevecceur's eulogy. His Histoire Philosophique et
politique des etablissemens et du commerce des Europeens dans
les deux Indes (1770), referred to (page 5), and his subsequent
Tableau de la Revolution des colonies Anglaises de V Amerique
Septentrionale , have little value as history (see Note V.).

NOTE II. Hazlitt and Grimm on Crevec&ur. William
Hazlitt's remarks on the American Farmer, referred to in
the Intrcduction, are found in his essay on " American
Literature: Dr. Charming," in the Edinburgh Review of
October 1829. They are reproduced in the tenth volume of
his Collected Works, ed. Waller and Glover ( J. M. Dent & Co.,
i M 233

234 Letters from an American Farmer

1904). A French translation of this essay was published in
the Revue Britannique of January 1832, and the essay is
quoted by Philarete Chasles in his Etudes sur la Litterature ct
les M&urs des Anglo- Americains (Paris, 1851).

It would be easy to collect such French criticism as the
book received, but Grimm's remarks (Correspondance, ed.
Tourneaux, xiv. 88), made in January 1785, must suffice:

" This book, written without method and without art, but
with a high degree of interest and sensibility, perfectly fulfils the
object that the author seerns to have proposed: that of making
America loved. There are to be found in it minute details, very
common truths, repetitions, and lengthy passages; but it
attracts by its simple and true pictures, and by its expression
of an honest soul."

NOTE III. Crevecceur 's Name, Faith) and Offspring. In a
letter to Franklin (see Note IX.) Crvecoeur explains how he
came to call himself St. John. The life of the American
Farmer by his great-grandson, Robert de Crevecceur (Saint-
Jean de Crevecceur : Sa Vie et ses Ouvrages, Paris, 1883)
informs us that his descendants possess his marriage cer-
tificate, dated September 30, 1769. Herein our author is
named Michel-Guillaume Saint- Jean; in the act of baptism,
one of his children is " Michel-Guillaume Saint- John de
Crevecoeur, otherwise named Saint- John." {t If," writes
Robert de Crevecceur, " the name of Saint- John was to him
but a kind of pseudonym, it became the legal name of his
children all three of them born in America." Crevecceur's
marriage to Mehetable (Mahetable) Tippet, daughter of
Isaac Tippet, high sheriff of Westchester County, New York,
said to have sprung of Huguenot stock, 1 was performed by
Rev. J. P. Tetard, a clergyman of the French Reformed
Church, formerly of Charleston, S.C., later of New York
City. Crevecceur had been brought up by the Jesuits, but
his Catholicism was lukewarm, as might be suspected from
the fact that he established such cordial relations with
Madame d'Houdetot, who was, besides, a friend of his father
before him (see Notes IX. and X.). Prof. Moses Coit Taylor,
in his Literary History of the American Revolution (New York,
1897; ii. 348), regards it as probable that Crevecceur became
a member of the Society of Friends, as does Professor Trent

1 Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, xxx., p. 257.

Notes 235

in tiie work already cited. There is no evidence of this,
unless we accept his high regard for Quakers and Quakerism
as such. Crevecceur's two sons seem to have been brought
up as Catholics; his daughter alone, to whom was given
the high-sounding name Frances-America (1770-1823), was
educated as a Protestant, and married a Protestant Count
Louis Otto, born in P>aden in 1754, and christened Ludwig
Wilhelm Otto. This gentleman was a member of the French
Legation in the United States from 1779. Of the sons, the
elder, William Alexander "Ally" died without issue; 1
the younger, Philippe-Louis, had one son, Guillaume-
Alexandre Saint-John de Crevecceur, whose son, Robert
Saint- John de Crevecceur, was born in 1833, was an auditor
of the French Council of State, and wrote the biography of
his great-grandfather cited in these notes. A son of M.
Robert de Crdvecceur is still living at Paris.

NOTE IV. On the Situation, etc., of an American Farmer.
One drawback of this situation, suggested by an English
traveller see Travels in America 100 Years Ago, by Thomas
Twining, in the reprint (New York, 1894; pp. 65, 98) was
the scarcity of such labour as the blacksmith's or baker's.
Neither trade was represented in the stretch of country
one day's ride between Baltimore and Georgetown: this in
1796. "And as for medical assistance in case of sickness
or accident amongst the scattered inhabitants, there was
apparently none whatever." Twining comments:

" The lew farm-houses visible were also formed by bars or
logs of wood, covered with laths and plaster. The situation

1 From Paris, in 1791, Crevecceur addressed to " Monsieur Short,
charg6 d* Affaires of ye Congress " (see Note IX.), a letter dated
December 17, much too long to be reproduced, though it shows a
touching interest in advancing " Ally's " fortunes. Crevecoeur desires
Short to apply to the French Minister of the Interior, M. Cahier de
Gerville, petitioning for the boy's admission to the Ecole des Fonts et
Chaussees at Paris, " for many years past one of the best in Europe."
There are but two ways of being admitted, Crdvecoour writes, " the
first is that of Elfoes Intended to serve in that usefull corps; ye Second
is that of young Foreigners recommended by their Ministers." His
son is, he adds, " tho' the son of a Frenchman, yet in true and legal
sense of ye word a native of the State of New York; and subject
therefore of ve United States of America." Crevecceur encloses a
form to be followed by Short in making the application: it was given
to him by the Administrator of the School, M. de la Mill tore. These
documents are found at the Library of Congress, in Washington.

236 Letters from an American Farmer

of the inhabitants of these sequestered dwellings did not appear
very enviable, though it doubtless had its charms, or its recom-
penses at least. Every first settler in a new country labours
less for the present than for the future, for himself than for
his posterity, and it is this honourable consciousness that
invigorates his toil, cheers his solitude, and alleviates his
privations."

This is so fair a statement that it deserves extended
quotation. Professor W. P. Trent of Columbia University,
in his History of American Literature (New York, 1903),
suggests that Crvecceur may have been responsible for the
evil fortunes of 500 Norman families that emigrated to Ohio
and founded the town of Gallipolis. This familiar charge
may be traced to Volney in his Tableau des Etats-Unis (Paris,
1803). As early as 1783 an Englishman, Rev. Samuel
Ayscough, attacked Cr^vecceur in a pamphlet which expressed
alarm lest his book should encourage emigration from Eng-
land. The pamphlet bears the impressive title: Remarks on
the Letters from an American Farmer ; or a Detection of the
Errors of Mr. J . Hector Saint John ; Pointing out the Per
nicious Tendency of These Letters to Great Britain (London :
John Fielding).

True, Crevecceur boasts in the last of his Letters that he
has " caused upwards of an hundred and twenty families to
remove thither; " true, he writes that American laws are

" Simple and just, we are a race of cultivators, our cultivation
is unrestrained, and therefore everything is prosperous and
flourishing."

Crevecceur makes notable reservations, none the less, and in
his later book, Voyage dans la Haute Pensylvanie (sic), he
adds:

" They are mistaken, who believe that they will enrich them-
selves by agriculture; they will not enrich themselves in these
northern states. The seasons are too rapid, the winters too
long, and labour still too costly; it procures to those who are
industrious ease and abundance. ... It is indispensable to
know the nature and quality of the soils." (I. 62-63; see also
II. I97-)

Benjamin Franklin, in a sprightly pamphlet, probably
written in September 1782, sought to correct ''Ambitious
Ideas or Expectations of what was to be found in America."

Notes 237

" He finds it is imagined by Numbers that the inhabitants
of North America are rich, capable of rewarding and disposed
to reward all sorts of Ingenuity; that they are at the same
time ignorant of all the sciences and, consequently, that Strangers,
possessing Talents in the Belles-lettres, fine arts, &c., must be
highly esteemed, and so well paid, as to be easily rich themselves.
. . . That the Governments too, to encourage Emigration from
Europe, not only pay the Expence of personal Transportation
but give Land gratis to Strangers with Negroes to work for them,
Utensils of Husbandry and Stocks of Cattle. These are all
Imaginations."

Instead, happy mediocrity prevails, rather than extreme
poverty or wealth. The only " gentlemen " in America are
those described in the following " Observation of a Negro ":

" Boccarorra (meaning the white men) make de black man
workee, make de Horse workee, make de Ox warkee, make
eberyting workee: only de Hog. He, de hog, no workee; he
eat, he drink, he walk about, he go to sleep when he pleases,
he libb like a gentleman."

In short, America is the land of labour, and by no means,
according to Franklin, " the French Pays de Cocagne, where
the streets are said to be paved with half-baked loaves, the
houses til'd with Pancakes, and where the Fowls fly about,
ready roasted, crying, Come, eat me ! "

The author of this satire on the would-be lotus-eaters of
the West wrote to Crevecoeur in 1788 that the

" favourable Light in which you have so kindly plac'd our
country will I am persuaded have the good Effect of inducing
many worthy European characters to remove and settle among
us, the Acquisition of whom will be greatly advantageous
to us."

To a " prospective emigrant " Franklin wrote in recom-
mendation of the Letters from an American Farmer :

" As I know the author to be an observing, intelligent man
I suppose the information to be good so far as it goes,"

But the book was not a guide or piece of propaganda, and it
would be a mistake so to consider it. It doubtless had more
to do with the Pantisocracy scheme of Southey and Coleridge
than with European emigration. Southey 's letters to
Grosvenor C. Bedford (Bath, December 14, 1793, and August

238 Letters from an American Farmer

i, 1794) are worth reading in this connection (Life and
Correspondence, London, 1849; l - J 96, 216); so to Coleridge's
letter to Southey, written from London, September 6, 1794:

" 2000 will do ... twelve men may easily clear 300 acres
in 4 or 5 mos . . . every possible assistance will be given us;
we may get credit for the land for 10 yrs. or more, as we settle
upon."

This is the letter in which Coleridge writes that a schoolboy-
friend who had spent five years in America " never saw a bison
in his life, but had heard of them; they are quite backwards.
The mosquitoes are not so bad as our gnats."

NOTE V. What is an American. It would be diverting
to contrast Cre"vecceur's remarks on the religious sects of
America with Voltaire's on the English sects, in his Lcttres
philosophiques ; but perhaps it is more profitable to refer to
the Memoire sur les relations commerciales des Etats-unis
avec V Angleterre, drawn up by Talleyrand, and quoted by
Air. Bernard de Lacombe in Talleyrand the Man (London,
1911; pp. 83-84). Talleyrand's American exile occurred in
1794. He exclaimed at the " perfect calm " in which the
sects existed side by side: " In the same house, father,
mother, and children peacefully follow without opposition
the form of worship which each one prefers ! " The ex-
Archbishop-Duke of Rheims, the future Cardinal-Archbishop
of Paris, concludes :

" The liberty, and above all the equality of all forms of
worship, is one of the strongest guarantees of social tranquillity ;
for where consciences are respected, other rights cannot fail to
be respected likewise."

Crevecceur writes, in this chapter " What is an American "
(p. 43), that in Nova Scotia the population is very thin,
though

" some parts of it flourished once, and it contained a mild harm-
less set of people. But for the fault of a few leaders, the whole
were banished. The greatest political error committed in
America was to cut off men from a country which wanted
nothing but men! "

The story of the " French Neutrals " of Nova Scotia has
been often told: generally from a prejudiced standpoint.

Notes 239

Some of the materials for the historian of their misfortunes
are found in Galerm's Relation of the Misfortunes of the French
Neutrals as laid before the Assembly of the Province of Penn-
sylvania (Philadelphia, 1756). The author was one of the
Acadian exiles, and describes the plight of those sent to
Philadelphia. Francis Parkman's Pioneers of France in the
New World, part one (Boston, 1899), gives some of the facts
as to their deportation. Judge Haliburton's History of Nova
Scotia (1829) states the British side of the case. Crdvecceur's
friend, the unfrocked Jesuit Raynal, sentimentalises the
political issues and hardships involved in volume five of his
History of Settlements and Trade in the East and West Indies
(London, 1798), a mere compilation. See Archibald
MacMechan's instructive essay, " Evangeline and the Real
Acadians," in the Atlantic Monthly (Boston), February 1907.

NOTE VI. The Island of Nantucket, etc. In the eighteenth-
century editions of the Letters, maps of Nantucket and
Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, are included. In this
edition, since the maps are omitted, we omit also the following
sentence: " A table of references to the map is added below "
and the table itself (page 102 of the London, 1782, edition;
corresponding to page 92 of the present volume). One other
change we have made in our text: we have amended the
indications of the position of Nantucket, whicli Cr^vecceur
would have his readers believe to lie north of Boston!
Though certain changes are made in the second edition of
the Letters (London, 1783), Crvecceur failed to correct
these curious errors.

Crvecceur's statements about the opium eating of Nan-
tucket Islanders are curious indeed. There is no evidence
to substantiate them. In the ' ' Proceedings of the Nantucket
Historical Association/' Eleventh Annual Meeting, July 18,
1905, page 43, there is an article entitled " An American
Farmer's Letters from Nantucket." The anonymous con-
tributor of this article says that a copy of the first edition of
Cr^vecoeur's book is found in the Nantucket Library, and
that there are annotations by various hands, among them,
and principally, that of the late F. C. Sanfprd, who protests
against the opium statement. " He believes it to have
grown out of a magnified story of a man well known as a

240 Letters from an American Farmer

gossip and who was an opium eater by his own admission, the
only one so known on the island." " A lie without a shade
of foundation " is the strong statement of another annotator.
A third, thought to be Mr. Sanford again, says : " Dr. Tucker
or Tupper had told the author Cr^vecoeur that the custom
prevailed/' while it is unmistakably Mr. Sanford who writes:
" It was only an old man's whim, and none other on the
island."

NOTE VII. On snakes, etc. Crevecceur, the amateur
naturalist, deserves a book all to himself. It is noteworthy
that in expanding his Letters for French readers (to no good
purpose otherwise) he added pages of natural description
and anecdote. It is scarcely necessary to examine into the
absolute accuracy of all his observations ; both in the present
volume and in his three-volume Voyage dans la Haute
Pensylvanie (sic) et dans lEtat de New York (Paris, 1801), he
is at least far less preposterous than such an arrant " nature-
faker " as the English traveller, John Josselyn, whose New
England s Rareties Discovered (London, 1672) is one of the
jests of colonial literature.

Crevecceur credits his Voyage, on the title-page, to "an
adopted member of the Oneida Nation." He professes to
translate this book from a manuscript written in English,
found in the custom-house at Copenhagen. He tells us that
the manuscript was saved from the wreck of the Morning
Star outbound from Philadelphia. This Voyage is a work of
slight worth; although translated into German and Dutch,
it does not seem to have been reprinted. The book describes
travels in America more extensive than any we positively
know Crevecceur to have made: here he set an example for
Chateaubriand to follow! And that Chateaubriand was
familiar with Cr6vecceur's Letters there is sufficient evidence
in the letter which he addressed to Fontanes, October 2, 1801,
shortly before publishing his Genius of Christianity : " You
see, my dear friend, my eagerness to serve you. I send you
my rimes of the Ohio and I give them a title, which presents
them as a simple extract from the work of M. de Crevecceur "
(Correspondence General?, Paris, 1812; i. 57).

Since Chateaubriand is, from a literary point of view, the
most noteworthy of European travellers in America during

Notes 241

the eighteenth century, it is interesting to compare with his
highly imaginative descriptions of the bison and the Missis-
sippi Basin Crvecceur's practical thoughts on the same
subjects. In the first volume of Cre" vecceur's Voyage (pp. 529
fL) is supplied a note on the " Buffaloes and the Savannas ":

" Before the whites crossed the Alleghanys and founded the
colonies of Tennessee, Kentucky, etc., considerable troops of
buffaloes or bisons appeared in the natural prairies of these vast
regions; and multiplied prodigiously; but for several years
no more of them has been seen : a great part has been destroyed
and the others, fleeing so redoubtable an enemy, have crossed
the Mississippi and rejoined their kind in the great grassy plains
which stretch from the west bank of this river to unknown
distances."

Instead of indulging in picturesque descriptions of the
buffaloes, Crevecceur exclaims at the stupidity of the
" American nations " in not having tried to domesticate the
animal. The Indians' failure to seize upon this idea suggests
to him " that their intellectual organisation is inferior to that
of the European and Asiatic nations."

Some of the natural history recorded in Crevecceur 's
ravage deserves perpetuation. Thus a note to the second
volume (pp. 396-397) gives astonishing information as to the
monches luisantes, or fireflies:

" They much resemble bees in color and size: like scarabs,
they have two pairs of wings . . . when they fly, they develop
a third set whence issue rays of light, which give to the lower
and posterior part of their bodies the appearance of a lighted
coal. . . . They do no harm and never rise to more than four
or six feet above the ground. One can catch them easily and
make use of them as a reading light."

NOTE VIII. John Bertram, Botanist (1699-1777). Crve-
cceur uses the orthography of the Scottish branch of the
Bartram family, which none of the Pennsylvanians ever
used. The house of the sturdy Quaker naturalist still stands,
in West Philadelphia; part of his Botanic Garden l is pre-
served as a city park: for no longer do farms surround it.

1 " . . . He was, perhaps, the first Anglo-American who conceived the
idea of establishing a BOTANIC GARDEN for the reception and cultiva-
tion of the various vegetables, native of the country, as well as of
exotics; and of travelling for the discovery and acquisition of them."
William Bartram (his son, likewise a distinguished naturalist and
traveller) ; see Memorials of John Bartram, etc., by William Darlington
(Philadelphia, 1849).

242 Letters from an American Farmer

Though Cr^vecoeur's account of Bartram is, in general,
accurate enough, he was mistaken in making him say, " My
father was a Frenchman/* A remote ancestor is said to have
" come with William the Conqueror " into England, " and
settled in the north; " but that was as near as Bartram came
to owning French allegiance. Cr^vecoeur represents a
Russian gentleman, Mr. Iwan Al . . . z (Alexiowitz), as having
paid the visit described; but one suspects that he himself
was the " Russian gentleman." Certainly Bartram fulfils
in many ways the requirements of an ideal portrait of the
American Cultivator. Bartram's Observations on the In-
habitants, Climate, Soil, Rivers, Productions, Animals, etc.,
in his Travels from Pennsilvania (sic) to Onondago, Oswego,
and the Lake Ontario in Canada, was published at London in
1751. The travels of his son William Bartram were a source
for Coleridge in England and for Chateaubriand in France.

NOTE IX. Crevec&urs Correspondents. The author of
Letters from an American Farmer was not brilliant in private
correspondence. He was none the less favoured in his friend-
ships. Some of his letters those, for example, to Ethan
Allen, the Vermont patriot have not yet been discovered
by students of his life. There is, however, in the Library
of Congress, at Washington, a formidable budget of letters
addressed to Allen's fellow-countrymen. Givecceur's three
epistles to George Washington are purely formal and con-
gratulatory rather too much so. More interesting is the
correspondence with Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin
Franklin.

Cr^vecoeur's acquaintance with Franklin he owed to the
kindly Madame d'Houdetot (see Note X.). In the summer
of 1781 this lady sent to Franklin a letter, preserved in the
Library of the Pennsylvania Historical Society at Phila-
delphia,, an English translation of a portion of which follows:

" I was given to hope in the Spring, my dear Doctor, that I
should sec you some day at Sanois. . . . May I, my dear Doctor,
make use of it [your good opinion] in regard to a young American
who has just arrived and who should have been presented and
recommended to you before? He is a Frenchman by birth,
but for a long time has been established in your country, under
the protection of your laws, to which he is faithful. His name
is Crevecoeur, and he is the son of a friend, of more than twenty
years' standing, of my husband and myself. . . ."

Notes 243

This letter was written from Paris, August 10, 1781.
With it is preserved a letter from Cr^vecceur himself, indited
a fortnight later:

" CAKN, zftth August, 1781.

" SIR, Chance Enabled me the other day to take 5 Americans
by ye hand who had fortunately escaped from ye English prisons
& Crossed the Channell, Luckily for me as well as for them
I was Just arrived from N. America, where I have resided 27
years I brought them to my father's Seat, who Tells me that
lie had Several Times the pleasure of dining with you at the
Count de Houdctot's the Capt. of ye boat readily brought
them here, and presented them to ye Count de Blanchy the
Commandant of this Province, who received them with Kindness
and left them under my care they gave their declarations
before the admiralty, & were duly acknowledg'd to be Americans
as they are genteel discreet men from the Massachusetts I
have placed them in a good House and procured them the
Hospitality of the City all went on well when I heard that
their boat belonged of right to the Duke of Penthievre In
consequence of this Information I visited the Intendent's, who
Told me that if 1 wrote a petition in their name to the admiral,
he would Inclose it in a Letter of his & recommend the contents;
this I have done & thought it my duty to send you a Copy of ye
Same, that you may if necessary unite your good Endeavours
in order to procure to the 5 brave men the Slender Plank on
which they have reached this shore however, as it is uncertain,
whether or no the Ravens of office will not Swallow all I have
procured them all they want one of the Company Luckily
heard Yesterday that his brother was the Second in Command
on board the black Princess him I have sent off by the Post
with a Sufficient Passeport the other intend for L'orient as
soon as they have heard from you that space of Time they shall
pass at my Father's house

The adventure of these Men as well as that of many more
who have Landed here, hath Suggested me an Idea which I beg
to Communicate Policy as well as humanity points out the
Necessity ot appointing m these Ports some Persons who should
have proper authority to claim protect and befriend all such
Americans as should Land on this Coast by those simple Means
those people would find protection everywhere & not be exposed
as many of them are to be treated as English prisoners, which
Treatment Tends to Nourish prejudices, that ought to be
extinguished if from the Information you might receive of me
from the Count de Houdetot you thought me capable of dis-
charging this office I'd readily accept of it without either fee or
Reward, glad on the contrary as a good Frenchman and as a
good American to contribute my Mite towards the Success ol
this grand this usefull revolution Excuse this Letter it is zeal
and the purest zeal which hath dictated it ; with so much the more

244 Letters from an American Farmer

confidence that tho' I have not the pleasure of being acquainted
with you, yet I well know Mr. John Jay now in Spaign, Mr.
Governor Morris, Mr. Duwane &c. & all the New York delegates
I hope the representations these 5 Americans have made you
will be Successfull, for they are worthy of your patronage. I
hope also that you will approve my conduct and Intentions.
" I Remain with the most unfeigned Respect
" Your very Humble Servant

" ST. JOHN.
" At Mr. Le Mozier Merely, Rue St. Jean."

Acknowledgment of this long letter was promptly made
by the learned Doctor (Passy, September 2, 1781). A draft
of the letter, filed away at Washington, is addressed to
" M. St. John, chez M. Le Mozier, Marchand, Rue St. Jean,
Caen, Normandie," and offers thanks for the other's kindness.
There is, says Franklin, " no doubt of the Success of their
Petition relating to their Boat, the same case having hap-
pened several Times, and such Requests always readily
comply'd with by the Goodness of the Due de Penthi^vre."
Franklin offers to reimburse Crevecceur if he has disbursed
any money on account of the Americans, and adds:

" I am much oblig'd by your offer of continuing your kind
Offices towards our People who may hereafter arrive in your
Parts. The Congress lately sent out a Consul General for France,
with Power of Appointing Sub-Consuls in the different Ports. 1
The Vessel was unfortunately lost with all on board: But it
is probable his Place will soon be Supply'd. On his Arrival
I shall acquaint him with your generous Proposition. With
great Regard,

" I have the honour to be, etc."

Crevecceur's answer to this letter seems not to have been
preserved; but in the same collection at Washington is found
the draft of a second letter from Franklin, written at Passy,
September 21, 1781. This letter is printed in A. H. Smythe's
monumental Life and Writings of Benjamin Franklin (New
York, 1905-1907), viii. 308. In the course of it, Franklin
says :

" Made, la Comtesse d'Houdetot has warmly recommended
to me a M. Crevecoeur who had lived long in America. Please
to informe me if you are the same Person."

1 As Franklin informed Crevecoeur in his next letter, the person
thus appointed was Colonel William Palfrey (1741-1780), a former
aide to General Washington, and Paymaster-General.

Notes 245

Both Madame d'Houdetot and Cr^vecoeur himself hastened
to assure Dr. Franklin that St. John and Crvecceur were one
and the same individual. As he had been so long absent
from France, the former had " no personal knowledge of him "
at this date, but had " always heard him well spoken of by
his father, and it is for his sake, my dear Doctor, that I claim
your kindness for his son. I know that he is very much
attached to the United States, and that no one has felt more
than he the calamities attendant upon the present war."
Crevecceur's letter may well be reproduced at length:

11 CAEN, September 26, 1781.

" SIR, Yes Sir I am the Same Person whom Madame La
Comtesse de Houdetot has been so kind as to mention to you.
the Reason of this mistake proceeds from the Singularity of ye
french Customs, which renders their Names, allmost arbitrary,
& often leads them to forget their Family ones; it is in Conse-
quence of this, that there are more alias dictios in this than in
any other Country in Europe. The name of our Family is St. Jean,
in English St. John, a name as Antient as the Conquest of
England by Wm. the Bastard.

" I am so great a Stranger to the manners of this, tho' my
native Country (having quitted it very young) that I Never
dreamt I had any other, than the old family name I was
greatly astonished when at my late return, I saw myself under
the Necessity of being Called by that of Crevecceur. Excuse
this Tedious explanation, which I hope you will not think
Improper, as I have run the risk of either remaining unknown
to you, or of Losing the good effects which were Intended by
Madame la Comtesse de Houdetot in mentioning me to you
I don't mean to be Troublesome, very far from it, I am much
more ambitious of ye Honor of your Esteem than of any thing
else; I flatter myself with being able to Cultivate that of your
acquaintance this Winter being invited to spend [letter torn]
Le Marquis de Turgot's house brother to yc Late Comptrolleur
general the Intendant of the City has thought proper to write
to ye Insignificant admiralty of Bayeux, in consequence of which
I have been put in possession of ye wherry in which the 5 ameri-
cans Came over; this has prevented the Intendant from Sending
to ye admiral the Memorial, a copy of which I had taken the
Liberty to send you. No sooner had I received the wherry
than I offered it to ye Intendant who accepted of it as soon
as he make me some pecuniary Present, which I expect, I have
informed my friends at Lorient to draw on me for the Sum
granted whatever it will be I have not Seen the Intendant yet.
" Poor Colol. Palfry I am Sincerely sorry for him; after having
served his Country in the field, he wou'd have greatly have

246 Letters from an American Farmer

Served her here also, where such an Establishment is so Neces-
sary I earnestly wish them another equally capable may
succeed him the English Language being Common to both
the Americans as well as to the Inhabitants of Great Britain
the former become often Exposed to be Treated as Ennemies
Instead of being taken by the hand & received as Friends

" I thank you very kindly for your recommendations, I make
no doubt of their Weight

" I have the honor to be with unfeigned Respect Sir

" Your Very Humble Sci vant

" ST. JOHN DE CREVECCEUR.

" Chez Mr. Le Mozier Marchd. Rue St. Jean, Caen."

Again addressing Dr. Franklin from Caen, December 5,
1781, Crevecoeur expresses joy at the successes of the Ameri
cans under General Washington, and in a postscript adds:

" The Americans who escaped from England last summer
are happily embark' d at Nantes for Newberry m the State of
Massachusetts."

A letter of Madame d'Houdetot, addressed to Franklin from
Sanois, October 18, 1782, refers to a presentation copy of
these American Letters, about whose receipt Crevecoeur had
expressed concern. A letter of Franklin's, dated February
1 6, 1788, extends cordial thanks to Crevecoeur for a copy of
this " excellent work " (evidently the French edition of 1787),
as well as for t( the honourable mention you have been so
good as to make of me in it."

Franklin was not, however, Crevecoeur's only friend among
great Americans. Thomas Jefferson, political philosopher,
educator, freethinker, and second President of the United
States, was by the nature of things one of his chief corre-
spondents. Perhaps the first letter which Crevecoeur
addressed to Jefferson was the following: l

" NEW YORK, 23^ January, 1784.

" SIR, Encourag'd by Mr. le Chevr. de Chastelux whom I saw
lately in Paris, as well as by several others, French officers, who
had the Honor of your acquaintance while on this Continent,
I have been led to hope you'd not refuse giving an answer to the
Question I take the Liberty of sending you. Give me leave
to add that I am commissioned to do so by the Minister who is
at the head of the Nurseries established throughout the Kingdom.

1 Library of Congress.

Notes 247

1\ has been said in France that in some of the remotest settle-
ments of Virginia or Carolina, Brandy has been distilled from
Potatoes.

" That this Root Contains a Spirit as strong as that which is
obtained from grain is beyond a Doubt; but the Method of
bringing it, in a State of Fermentation, is What Puzzles the
Learned Chymists, Spite of the Many Tryals they have Made.
1 shou'd be most Sincerely thankfull, If I cou'd be Informed
o: the American Method, through your kind assistance. From
the Respect with which I have heard your name mentioned as
wll as from your extensive knowledge & Taste for the Arts &
Sciences, I can't but hope you'll be Generous enough to com-
municate [to] me your thoughts on the subject, which is More
a. Matter of Curiosity than of real or usefull Import. I am like-
wise commanded to ask you whether the Map of Virginia under-
taken by subscription before the Revolution has ever been
eLgrav'd & where it may be had? Least [sic] this shou'd Mis-
carry through the Imperfection of American Posts, it will be
torwarded to you by his excellency the Chevr. de la Luserne. I
have the Honor to be with the Most Sincere Respect and Esteem
Your very Humble Servt

" ST. JOHN.

" French Consul for ye States of N.Y., N.J. & Connecticut."

When Jefferson projected a voyage from Boston to a
French port, Crvecceur in New York thus expressed
himself (July 15, 1784):

" 1 . . . am glad for your sake that you shou'd have found
a convenient Vessel, the Capt. of which has engaged to Land
you on ye Coast of France, but I am afraid you'll set your feet
on some barbarous coast [?] where you'll find neither Horses
nor Carriages. . . .

" I intended to have given you Letters of Introduction to
several Persons in Paris worthy of your acquaintance & Esteem.

" I hope you have given orders in Virginia for ye gathering
of those Seeds which you yourself want and part of which you
have promised me you'll find them very acceptable in Paris.

" I beg you'd put Mr. Franklin in Mind of Introducing you
to ye good duke of La rochefoucauld. He is the pearl of all ye
Dukes a Good Man & an most able chymist. his House is ye
center . . . [illegible] where Men of Genius & abilities often
meet. You have therefore a great right to share his Friendship
he honours me with his Esteem and Friendship. I write to
him by this Packet & announce you to him. . . .

" Maiden Lane No. 20: next door where you boarded."

The last of the Cr^vecceur-Jefferson letters which we will
quote is that written from Lorient, July 10, 1790.

Cr^vecoeur refers in this to v

i 1

248 Letters from an American Farmer

" the rising which is to take place in Paris on the i4th Instant.
I tremble lest the Good Marquis [the Marquis de Lafayette]
shou'd not be able to maintain Peace & Good Order among so
great a concourse of People as will Flock there from every Part
of ye Kingdom."

And Crevecceur does not fail to inform his correspondent that
in Brittany (whence he is writing) " the sparks of the old
Fanaticism have been kindled by the Priests."

Other letters of Crevecceur's were addressed to William
Short a long-lived Virginian (1759-1849), who in 1784 went
to France as Jefferson's Secretary of Legation. Subsequent)'
Short held a number of other posts; but he liked Paris so
well, and was so little inclined to " mend his fences " at
home, that when, in 1808, President Jefferson nominated him
to be Minister to Russia, the United States Senate refused to
confirm his nomination.

Mr. Short wrote to Crevecceur from Paris on August 6,
1787 (Crevecceur then acting as French Consul-General at
New York):

" Things now appear to approach an important crisis in
several parts of Europe & particularly m France." *

Some of Crevecceur's letters to Short 2 are written half in
English, half in French. As American charge d'affaires at
Paris, Short seems to have held a high opinion of Crdvecceur's
value as a correspondent. On July 4, 1790, the diplomatist
wrote to him to learn something of his impressions of home
affairs for Crevecceur had recently returned from New
York:

" If you were here in Person I should put you to the question
ordinary and extraordinary I know your turn for observation
& am sure you have a vast fund of new ideas relative to the
United States. I wish your countrymen legislators here would
take lessons from you on the business of making a revolution
& forming a constitution for they are two things that should
be treated very differently experience has taught us this before
I wish this country to learn it without a dear - bought
experience."

NOTE X. La Comtesse d'Houdetot. Several letters from
this lady to Benjamin Franklin have been quoted or sum-
marised in Note IX. Franklin met her in 1782, when

1 Pennsylvania Historical Society. * Library of Congress.

Notes 249

be paid a visit at her country estate at Sanois. She felt
herself greatly honoured by this attention from one who was
" all the cry; " she prepared verses which were recited on
his arrival verses that one of Franklin's American bio-
graphers describes as " none the less fulsome because they
were true." But these stanzas interest us chiefly because of
their self-revelation:

" Jeune, j'aimai; le temps de mon bel age,
Ce temps si court, 1' amour soul le remplit.
Quand j'atteignis la saison d'etre sage,
Toujours j'aimai ; la raison me le dit.
Mais 1'age vient, et le plaisir s'envole;
Mais mon bonheur ne s'envole aujourd'hui;
Car j'aime toujours, et 1' amour me console,
Rien n'aurait pu me consoler de lui."

To quote the chronicler: " The venerable sage (Franklin),
with his gray hair flowing down upon his shoulders, his staff
in hand, the spectacles of wisdom on his nose, was the perfect
picture of true philosophy and wisdom." But Mr. P. E.
More, an American critic, holds that " the ' sage ' must have
found his virtue a burden on that day." The ceremony
closed with the planting of a Virginia locust by the " true
philosopher."

It was as an old lady that Franklin knew the Corntesse
d'Houdetot. Born in 1730, Elisabeth-Francoise-Sophie,
Comtesse d'Houdetot, was of the family of the Live de Belle-
garde, and a daughter of a farmer-general. Though the men
of letters who thronged her salon in the days of her greatness
praised her beauty no less than her wit, she is said to have
been cross-eyed and marked by the smallpox. These
defects did not keep her from marrying the Captain (later
Lieutenant-General) the Count d'Houdetot: this in 1748.
The sister-in-law of Madame d'Epinay, she was the intimate
friend of Rousseau (who has something to say of her in his
Confessions /) and the Encyclopaedists, as well as of Benjamin
Franklin. Franklin's own copies of some of his letters to her
are preserved at Washington in the Congressional Library:

" PHILA., April 17, 1787.

" I received in their time my dear Friend's kind Letters of the
last year. An infinity of Affairs public and private have so
devour 'd my time, that 1 am become necessarily a bad corres-

250 Letters from an American Farmer

pondent. I can however never forget the many Instances of
your Benevolence and Friendship while I resided in France:
They have made indelible Impression on my Mind of Gratitude
and Affection.

" I wish it had been in my Power to have render'd some
Service to the Person you recommended to me. But he landed
far from me in New England, and I have never yet seen him.
I recommended him to the Governor of that State (Massa-
chusetts) and have not since heard of him.

" My Health continues good, my old Malady excepted ; and
that, thanks to God, does not grow worse; so that I am capable
of going thro' the Business of the Station to which I was chosen
for the second year in November last, by the unanimous Vote
of my Country in the General Assembly of their Representatives.
And I am happy in my Family, having an affectionate Daughter
to take care of me, and a Number of her young Children to amuse
me, with whose pretty Actions & Prattle, and promising Tempers
and Qualities of Body & Mind, I am extreamly pleased & enter-
tained.

" Adieu, my dear & much respected Friend, and believe me
ever, with sincere & great Esteem and Affection,

" Your most obedt. humle. Servt.

" B. FRANKLIN."

The following letter is undated:

" I have received several kind Letters from my beloved
Friend, all of which gave me great Pleasure as they inform'd
me of your Welfare. The Memory of your Friendship & of the
happy Hours I pass'd in your Genial Society at Sanois has often
made me regret the Distance, that makes our ever meeting again
impossible. I wrote a few lines to you last year, and sent them
under Cover to M. St. Jean de Crevecoeur, believing him then
in France, but he arrived here soon after. I hope however that
my letter may have reach'd you; for as I grow older, I find
writing more painful; and I never have been more burthen'd
with Business than since my Return. This however will cease
in a great degree with, the third & last year of my Presidentship,
of which near four Months are now spent. The Accounts I have
heard of the Misunderstandings and Troubles that have arisen
in the Government of that dear Country in which I pass'd nine
of the happiest years of my life, gave me a great deal of Pain;
but I hope all will tend to its Good in the End. We have been
labouring here to establish a new form of Federal Government
for all the United States, and there is a Probability of its being
adopted and carried into Execution, tho' it meets with a good
deal of Opposition, it being difficult to reconcile and accomodate
so many different & jarring Interests. If the Project succeeds
our Government will be more energetic, and we shall be in a
better condition of being serviceable to our Friends on many

Notes 251

future Occasions. Adieu ma chere et toujours aimable Amie;
and believe me ever

" Yours most affectionately,

" B. FRANKLIN."

The sprightly bluestocking to whom the philosopher wrote
these letters was herself the author of a few Pensees. She
survived until 1813. Chateaubriand, in his Memoir es, de-
scribes meeting Saint-Lambert, author of the Saisons, etc.,
and Madame d'Houdetot in the Marais, ten years before the
end came:

" Both represented the opinions and the freedom of days
gone by, carefully packed up and preserved; it was the i8th
century dying and married after its own fashion. One need
but hold on to life for unlawfulness to become lawful. Men
feel an infinite esteem for immorality because it has not ceased
to exist, and because time has adorned it with wrinkles. . . .

" It became difficult to understand certain pages of the
Confessions when one had seen the object of Rousseau's trans-
ports. Had Madame d'Houdetot kept the letters which Jean-
Jacques wrote to her, and which he says were more brilliant
than those of the Nouvelle Htlo'ise? It A s believed that she
made a sacrifice of them to Saint-Lambert. . . .

" She never went to bed without striking the floor three times
with her slipper and saying, ' Good-night, dear/ to the late
author of the Saisons. That was what the philosophy of the
1 8th century amounted to in 1803."

A letter of Madame de Remusat to her husband, written
from Sanois, May 12, 1805, says of Madame d'Houdetot:

"... 1 am convinced that her society would be dangerous
to a woman of weak character, or to one whose life was not
happy. Any woman who was hesitating between love and
virtue would do well to shun her; she is a hundred times more
dangerous than an utterly corrupt person. She is so peaceful,
so happy, so free from anxiety as to the next life. It would
seem that she trusts to the words of the Gospel: ' Her sins,
which are many, are forgiven : for she loved much.* "

Another letter from the same correspondent, written toward
the end of January 1813, reports the death of the octo-
genarian relict of the eighteenth- century philosophy, and
remarks on the peacefulness of her old age in spite of political
storms. " No one could possess more- -I will not say good-
ness, but kindness than Madame d'Houdetot. Goodness

252 Letters from an American Farmer

implies the choice of good as against evil; it perceives the
evil and forgives it. Madame d'Houdetot never perceived
evil in any one. . . ." Happy are those who die in their
illusions ! To the end Madame d'Houdetot enjoyed beautiful
landscapes and the song of birds; she loved flowers as well
as verse, and during the Reign of Terror she lived, as Madame
de R6musat writes, u in the country; her place of retreat
was respected, her kinsfolk surrounded her with attentions.
It is quite possible that her only recollections of this time
were those of the family affection and intimacy, to which
danger and anxiety gave an unexpected value."

The better side of Madame d'Houdetot's nature found its
expression in her relations with the American Farmer, whose
friend and protector she became, advancing his interests at
court, and showing for his sons (in the words of Robert
de Crevecoeur) " a truly maternal tenderness." There seems
to have been some sort of coolness between Madame
d'Houdetot and Saint-John de Crevecoeur before the end
came; when she died, however, her old prote'ge' drew up a
set of " recollections."

INDEX

ALBANY, 67 Cape Pog, 92

Alexander, 108 Carolinas, the, 54

Alps, the, () Cat-birds, 33

America, 14, 4*, 43, 66, 70, 189 j Catholicism, 50
Americans, the, 19, 41, 43, 44, 48, | Cattle, 28, 29, 56, 8.. 02

50, 52, 55, 58, 59, 63, 65, 6 9> 73, | Ceres, 12

H7, 213
American farmers, 13, 14, 21, 22,

24, 25, 84
Atlantic, the, 25, 109, 133

Bald Eagle, 216

Barnstable, 92, 107, 109

Barra Island, 7.s

Barry's Valley, 98, 153

Beach grass, 97

Bears, 30

Beef, 23

Bees, 27, 29, 30, 31, 128

Bee-tree, 32

Belleisle, Straits of, 116

Bermudas, 92

Bertram, John, the Botanist, 182-

197

Uethabara, 133
Bethamia, 133
Black ducks, 100
Boston, 92, 93, 104, 107, 109, 134,

144, 146, 149
Botany, 183-187
Bouquet, General, 187
Brandts, 100
Brazil, 116, 147
British America, 44

Calumet, the, 81

Calvinism, 50

Cambridge (Mass.), 104

Campania, 12

Canada, 48, 67, 146

Cape Ann, 107

Cape Breton, 116

Cape Charles, 129

Cape Cod, 91, 94, 104, 106-108

Cape Fear, 133

Chapoquidick Island, 118
Charles Town, 9, 158-160
Chatham, 107, 109
Chelsea, 107
Chesapeak, the, 133
Chester, county, 67
Chester, town, 195
Chilmark, 118
China, Emperor of, 25
Cod-fishing, 115
Connecticut, 28
Connecticut, river, 107
Coitou, 93
Corn, 83, 85
Costowet, 109
Cows, 90, 92, 96, 98, 99
Croskaty, 100

Danes, the, 116
Davis's Strait, 116
Deep, river, 133
Deer, 30, 51
Detroit, 105
Dorchester, 107
Dort, 49

Duke's County, 102, 118
Dutch, the, 41, 43, 49

Eastham f 107-109

East Indies, 19

Edgar Town, 118

Eel Point, 97

Elizabeth Island, 92, 102, 118

England, 8,42, 57, 117

English, the, 8, 12, 19, 39, 41, 57,

59, 61, 66, 67, 150, 214
English farmers, 21
Erie, lake, 105
Europe, 39-42, 44, 45, 55-58, 62,

66, 67, 102, 189

253

254 Letters from an American Farmer

Europeans, 7, 8, 20, 23, 41, 43, 44,
47, 48, 51, 53, 55, 56, 58, 60, 61,
65, 67, 69, 87, 102, 105, 106, 108,

156, 175, 211, 214, 219, 221, 226,

229
European settlements, 109

Falkland Islands, 116

Falmouth, 106, 107, 118

F. B., Mr., 10, 13, 14-17, 19

Fennel, 30

Fishing, 96-101, 115, 116, 116, 153

Florida, 187

Forests, clearing of, 143

Fowls, 23, 26, 51, 100

Foxes, 51, 100

French, the, 41, 48

Gay- Head, 121

Georgia, 133

Germans, the, 41, 59, 61, 62

Germany, 61, 62

German Lutherans, 49

Gibs Pond, 153

Glasgow, 74, 76

Great Britain, 66

Greenock, 74

Guinea coast, 116, 117

Harwich, 109

Hebrides, the, 66

Hickory, 30

History of Andrew, the Hebridean,

68

History of Queen Elizabeth, 8
Hogs, 51
Horses, 90, 100
Houratonick, 106
Hudson, river, 107
Humming birds, 178, 179
Hungarian peasant, 23
Hurons, the, 104
Hyanees, 92, 103, 107, 109

Indians, the, 52-54, 67, 70, 79-81,
105, 108, 118, 122, 139, 146, 214,

2l6, 221, 225

Indian corn, 93, 109
Irish, the, 41, 62, 63, 65
Italy, ii, 156

Kennebeck, river, 107, 117, 134,
135

Labrador, 116

Lake Chmmplain, 200

Lima, 158

London, 8, 14, 117, 149

Long Pond, the, 97

Lycurgus, 90

Lynn, 107

Manitou, the Great, 227
Martha's Vineyard, 118, uq
Masconomeo, 107
Mashpee, 106, IOQ
Massachusetts, 48, 107, 121, 134,

135, 150

Massachusetts Bay, 102
Massosoit, 107
j Matapan, 107
Maraneck, 67
Mardiket, 97
Maryland, 66, 192
Mebekaudret, the, 107
Metacomet, 108
Macomet, 98
Macomet Pond, 102
Michigan, lake, 32
Milton, 107

Mississippi, rivei, 120, 125
Mohigume, 107
Monhauset, 106
Monongahcla, 135
Montreal, 146
Moravians, the, 53, 133

Nam set, 108, 109

Nantucket, island of, 89, 93, 99,

100-103, 109, 117-119, 123, 131,

133, 144-148
Nantucket Shoals, 101
Napouset, 107
Narragansets, 107
Narrow Pond, the, 97
Natticks, 103, 106, 108, 122, 156
Nausit Indians, 108
Natisset ? 107, 108
Navigation of Sir Francis Drake, 8
Negroes, the, 19, 23, 177
Neill, Mr. 75, 76
New England, 55, 64, 119; divine.

104; missionaries, 107
Newfoundland, 116
New Garden, 133, 134
New Hampshire, 9
New Jersey, 185
New Plymouth, 107
New York, 67, 94
Niagara, tails of, 105
Nianticks, 107
Nipuets, 107

Index

255

Nobscusset, 106-109 I

North Carolina, 118, 133 |

North-West River, 133 ;

Nosset, 108

Nova Scotia, 40, 42, 88, 120
Numkeag, 107

Oby, 198
Ohio, 32, 134
Orange County, 133
Orkneys, the, Go

Palpus, 97, 99, 150

Pamet, 108, IOQ

Paris, 9

Pashee, IOQ

Pataxet, 107

Peach brandy, 71

Peat, 92

Pello,'i98

Penn, William, 49, 7o, 73. l8 ~

Pennsylvania, 86, 102, 186, 197

Pennsylvanians, the, 48, 59, iSr

Penobscot, 118, 134

Pequods, 107

Peru, 158, 161

Petersburg, 9

Philadelphia, 71, 72, 7^, 114, 1T 7,

187, 190, 193
Philip, 1 08
Pigeons, 32, 33
Piskataqua, river, 107
Pittsburg, 187
Ploughing, 23, 25, 51
Plymouth Company, 108
Pochick Rip, 99, 153
Poi'asset, 107
PokAnoket, 107
Pompey. 9
Pope, Alexander, 72
Pork, 23
Porpoises, 100
Potatoes, 83, 03
Potomaket, 109

Presbyterians, the, 92, 130, 142
Provence, 109
Pumpkins, 83, 93

Quakers, 30, 51, 53, *<>2, 103, 107,

132, 137, 142
Quayes, 99, 149

Red Stone Creek, 135
Rhode Island, 92
Robins. 33

Rome, 8, n, 156
Russian boor, 23

Saconasset, 109

St. Lawrence, Gulf of, 116

Sapadahock, 134

Salem, 107, 133, 185

Sandy Point, 100

Sangus, 107

Sankate's Head, 99

Scootin, 109

Scotch, the, 41, 62, 63, 65, 66, 08,

73, 79

Scotland, 56, 64, 79
Sharks, 100
Shawmut, 107
Sheep, 90

Sheep pasture titles, 06
Shemah, 93

Sherborn, 92, 93, 134, 135, 148
Siasconcet lot, 99
Single-horse carts, LH, 145
Slavery, 160-165, 167-173
Slave, dreadful punishment of a,

172, 173

Smith Point, 97

Snakes, 174-177, 179-181

Soccanoket, 106

Society of Friends, see Quakers

Soktoowoket, 109

Solon, 90

South Carolina, 133

Squam, 99, 100

Squashes, 83

Sterling, Earl of. 103
! Suecanosset, 107
| Sufiakatche Beach, 99
i Suvius, 9

Swedes, the, 41

Tarranteens, 107
Teals, 100

Tetonkemah lots, 98
Timber, 91
Tisbury, 118
Titicut, 107
Tobolsky, 198
Tuckanut Island, 97, 100
! Turnips, 93
Turkeys, 100

Vineyard Island, 102

Vineyard, the, 106-108, 117,

135

Virginia, 54, 66, 187
Virginians, the, 48, 55

256 Letters from an American Farmer

Wamponougs, 107

Wansutta, 108

W T asps, 36

Waquoit, 109

West Houda, 40, 88

West Indies, 19, 117

Wethus, 23

Whales, 92, 115-117, 122-125, 127,

130

Wheat, 56, 143
Wild cherry trees, 16

Wild oats, 32
Wm6simt, 107
Wuvidiah, 97
Wolves, 51", 100
Wood's Hole, 92
Wilus, 35

Yadkin, river, 133
Yale, 15

Yarmouth, 107, 109
Yoik, duke of, 103

EVERYMAN'S LIBRARY

A LIST OF THE 990 VOLUMES
ARRANGED UNDER AUTHORS

Anonymous works are given under titles
Anthologies, Composite Volumes, Dictionaries, etc., arc
arranged at the end of the list

Abbott's Rollo at Work, etc., 275
Addison's Spectator, 164-7
Aeschylus' Lyrical Dramas, 62
Aesop's and Other Fables, 657
Aimard's The Indian Scout, 428
Aiusworth'B Tower of London, 400
Old St. Paul's, 522
,, Windsor Castle, 760
The Admirable Orichton, 80 L
,. Rook wood, 870
A 1C era pis '& Imitation of Christ, 484
Alcott's Little Women and Good

Wives, 248
Little Men, 512
Alpine Olub: Peaks, Passes, and

Glaciers, 778
Andersen's Fairy Tales, 4

More Fairy Tales, 822
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 621
Alison's Voyasrea, 510
Aquinas'B (Thomas), Selected

Writings, 953
Aristophanes' AcharoianR, ete., 344

Frogs, etc... 516
Aristotle's Ethics, 547

Politics, 605
,, Poetics, and Demetrius

on Style, etc., 901
Arnold's (Matthew) Essays, 115
Pooms, 334
Study of Celtic Literature,

etc., 458

Aucassin and Nicole tte, 497
Augustine's (St.) Confessions, 200

(St.) City of God, 982-3
Aurelius' (Marcus) Meditations, 9
Aust^iiV (Jane) Sense and Sensi-
bility, 21

Pride and Prejudice, 22
Mansfield Park, 23
Emma, 24

Northanger Abbey, and
Persuasion, 2f>

Bacon's Essays, 10

,, Advancement of Learning.

719

Bagehot's Literary Studies, 520, 521
Baker's (Sir S. W.) Cast up by the

Sea, 539
Ballantyne'B Coral Island, 245

Martin Rattler, 246
,, Ungava, 276

Balzac's Wild Ass's Skin, 26

Eueenie Grandet, 169
Old Goriot, 17
Atheist's Moss, etc., 229
Christ in Flanders, etc.,
284

Balzac's The Chouana, 285

Quest of the Absolute, 280
Cat and Racket, etc., 349
Catherine de Medici, 419
Cousin Pone, 463
The Country Doctor, 530
llise and Fall of O6sar

Birottcan, 59R
Lost IBnsionB. G56
The Country Parson, fiSfi
Ursule Mirouet, 733
BarbuRse'a Under I 1 ] re, 798
Baroa's (Mme C. cie ia) Life in

Mexico, 664
Batos's Naturalist on the Amazons,

440
Baxter's (Richard) Autobiography,

868
Beaumont and Fletcher's Selected

Plays, 506

Beaumont's (Mary) Joan Seaton, 597
Bede's Eccle^usticaJ History, 479
Belloc's Stones, Essays, nud Poems,

94$

Belt's Naturalist in Nioamjrna, 561
Bennett's The Old Wires' Tale, 919
Berkeley's (Bishop) Principles of
Human Knowledge, New Theory
of Vision, etc.. 483
Berlioz (Hector), Life of. 601]
Binns's Life of Abraham Lincoln,

783

Bjoruson's Plays, 625, 696
Blackmore'a Lonia Doone, 304
SprinirhaYen, 350

Blnckwell's Pioneer Work for

Women, 667

Klalre's Poems and Prophecies, 792
Bligh's A Book of the 'Bounty,' 950
Boccaccio's Decameron, 845, 846
Boehme's The Signature of All

Things, etc., 569

Bonaventura's The Little Flowers,
The Life of St. Francis, etc., 485
Borrow'8 Wild Wales, 49

Lavenffro, 119
,, Romany Rye, 120
Bible in Spain, 151
.> Gypaies in Spain, 697
BoswcH's Life of Johnson, 1 , 2

,, Tour to the Hebrides, 387
Boult'e Asgard and Norso Heroes,

689

Boyle's The Sceptical Caymist, 559
Bright's (John) Speeches, 252
Bronte's (A.) The Tenant of Wildfell

Hall, and Agnes Grey, 085
Bronte's (C.) Jane Eyre, 287
Shirley, 288

Tbt Publishes regrtt that some of the vtbtmss are out of print.
A Siltrted IMt is avtiUhU showing volurms in stack.

BrontC's (O.) Villette, S51

The Professor, 417
lirontc's (E.) Wuthering Heights,

Hrown's (Dr. John) Ra-b and His

Friends, etc.. 11C

Browne's (Fiancee) Granny's Won-
derful Chair. 112
Browne's (Sir Thos.) Religrio Medici,

etc., 92

Browning's Poems, 1833-44, 41
1844-64, 42
,. 1871-JK), 964
The King & tho Book, 502
Buchanan's Life and Adventures of

Audubon, 60 J

Bmfmch's The Agre of Fable, 472
l^esrends of Charlemagne,

556
Buuyan'b Pilgrim's Progr* sa, 204

( l race Abounding, and

Mr. Badman, 815
Burke'p American Speeches and

Letters, 340
Reflections on the French

Revolution, etc., 460
Bin-net's History of HIH Own Times,

85
Bnrney's (Fanny) Evelina, 352

,. Diary, A Selec-
tion, edited ay Lewis Gihbs, 960
Burns 's Poetns and Son^s, 94
Burton's lat Africa, 500
Burton's (Robert) Auatotny of

Melancholy, 886-8
Butler's Analog of Religion, 90
Butler's (Samuel) Ereivhon and

Erewhon Revisited, 881
Butler's The Way of All Flesh, 895
Buxtou'H Memoirs, 773
Byron 'y Complete Poetical and
Dramatic Works, 486-8
Letters, i>31

Caesar 'K Gallic War, etc., 702
Caldrron's Plays, 8 It)
Can ton's Child's Book of Saints, 61
Invisible Playmate, etc., 500
Carlylo's French Revolution, 31, 32
Letters, etc. of Cromwell,

266-8

Sartor Kesartus, 278
Past and Present. 608
Essay,', 703, 704 ,
Reminiscences, 875
Carroll's (Lewis) Alice in Wonder-
land, etc., 83G

Caetifflione'fl The Courtier, 807
Cellini's Autobiography, 51
Cervootes's Don Quixote. 385, 38(5
Chaucer's Canterbury Tale*. 307
Chesterfield's Lottery to his Son, 823
Chesterton's (Cecil) A History of the

United States, 965
Chesterton's (O. K.) Stories, Essays,

and Poems, 913
Chretien do Troyes's Arthurian

Romances, 698

Cibber's Apology for his Life, 668
Cicero's Select Letters and Orations,

345

Clarke's Talcs from Chaucer, 537
Oobbett'B Rural Rides, 638, 639
Ooleridfre's Biograpbia, 1 1

Coleridge's Golden Book of Poetry,

Lectures on Shakespeare,

162
Colllns'e Woman in White, 404

,, The Moonstone, 979
Collodi'fl Pinoocliio, 538
Conrad's Lord Jim, Q25

Nigger of the 'Narcismis/

etc., 980
Converse's LODK Will. 328

,. House of Prayer. 923

Cook's (Captain) Voyages. 99
Cooper's The Deeralayer, 77
The Pathfinder, 78
Last of the Mohicans, 79
The Pioneer, 171
The Prairie, 172
Cooper's Letters, 774
Poems, 872

Cox's Tales of Ancient Greece, 721
Craik's Manual of English Litera-
ture, 3-U>

Craii (Mrs.). Set: Mulock
Creasy 's Fifteen Decisive Battles,

300

CreveccBur's Letters from an A mor-
ion n Farmer, 640
Curti^'s 1'rue and I, and Lotus, 418

Donn'n Two Years before the Ma it,

538

Dante's Divine Comedy, 308
Darwin's Origin of Species, 81 I

Voyage of the Beagle, 104
Dasent's Story of Burnt Njal, 55H
Daudet's Tartarin of Tarofloon, 423
Defoe's Robinson Cnisoo, 59
Captain Singleton, 74
Memoirs of a Cavalier, 283
Jonrnal of Plague. 289
Tonr through England and

Wales, 820, 832
Moll Flanders, 837
Do Join ville's Memoirs of the
I Crusadf-fi, 333

j cle la Mare's Htoriea and Poems, 910
! Demosthenes' Select Orations. Mo
Dennis's Cities and Cemeteries of

Ktruria, 183, 184
De Qiiinoey's Lake Poets, 163
Opinm-Ifiatcr, 2'J3
English Mail Coach,

etc., G09
De Retz (Cardinal), Momolrs of, 735,

736

Descartes' Discourse on Method, 570
's Harnabv Rndge, 76
Tale of 'Two Cities, 102
Old Curiosity Shop, 173
Oliver Twist, 233
Great Expectations, 234
Pickwick Papers. 235
Bleak House, 23U
Sketches by Bo/, 237
Nicholas NickJeby, 238
Christmas Books, 239
Dombey and Son, '240
Martin Chuzzlewit, 241
David Oopperfleld, 242
American Notes, 290
Child's History of Eng-
land, 291
Hard Time*, 292

Dicken0*o Little Dorrit,. 293

Our Mutual Friend, 294

Christmas Stories, 41
Trnr
54R

Uncommervial

eller,

IMwr. Drood, 7:15
RoprmU-d Pieces, 7-U
Disraeli's Coningsby, 51C;
Dodgre's Hand Briuker, 020
Donne's Poems, 8(>7
Dostoevgky'g Grime and Punish

meat, 501

,. The Houae of the Dead. 533
,. Letters from the Underworld.

etc., 654
., The Idiot, (>82
., Poor Folk, and The Gambler.

711
, The Brothers Karamazo t, 802,

803

.. The Possessed, 861. 862
Dowdeii'B Life <"f K, Brt'vrnjnrr, 701
Dryden's Dro ninth' ftpsriys, M',8

Poems, 910
Dufferiu's Letters from Iliph Lat-

tudes, 4<W

THimae'e The Three Musketeers, 8 !
The Bliu-k Tulip. 174
Twenty Years After, 17 :>
Marguerite do Valois, 3'Jfi
The Count of Monte Cristo,

393, 394

The Forty-Five. 4 '20

Chioot the Jester. 421

Vieorute de Bra^eluune,

.193-5
,. Le Chevalier do Maiden

Rouge, 614

Dn Maurier's Trilby. 803
Duruy'a History of France, 7. ".7, 7.''o

iCddington'a Nature of the PliysicaJ

World, 92
Edgar's Oessy and Poictiors, 17

Kimnymede and Lineoln

Fair, 320

Heroes of England, J 7 I
Ed e worth's Castle Itackren*,, etc.,

410

Eighteenth-Century Plays, 818
Eliot's Adam Bode. 27
Silas Manioc, 121
Romola, 231
Mill on the Floss, 3 23
Felix Holt, 353

Scenes of Clerical Life, 468
Middlemarch, 854, 855
Elite's (Havelock) 8etected Esnavf.

930

Blyot's Gouernour, 227
Emerson'8 Essays, 12

Itepreaentative Men, 270
Nature, Conduct of Life,

etc., 322
Society and Solitude, etc. ,

587

Poerns, 715
Epietetua' Moral Discourses, 404
Erckniann-Chatrian's The Conscript

and Waterloo, 354
,, Story of a Peasant, 700,

707

Euclid's Momenta, 891
Kurlpidefi' Plays, 63, 271

Krana'B Holy Gra^J, 445

Evelyn's Diary, 220, 221

Kverjnacum aud other Interlude?, 381

Evrlngr's (Mrs.) MM. Ovrtheway 'H
Remembraneeif-j, etc., 730
Jaokawapos, Daddy Dar-
win's Dovecot, and The
Story of ft Short Life, 731

Fall of thft NlboiuuRs, 312
l''a,raday's Experimental Reyoarehes

in Electricity, 576
Femer's (Susan) Ma,riiar;e, 816
Fi"M ing's Tom Jones. 365, 356
Amelia, H32. i<53
Joseph Andrews, 4G7
Jonathan Wild, arid tlr
Joaraivl of a Voyac? to
Lisbon, 877
i'jnlay's Byzantine Empire. 33

,. Greece under the llonj&Ln-,

185

Flaubert.'-^ Miuiaiue Bovarv SUH
Siilammbo, 86'.*
Sentimental fcudueatiori,

UG9
Fletcher's fHeauuiout and) Selectet'

Plays. 5Gt>

Ford's (lathering's from ^paiii. 1J2
KorstA^\s Life of Dickens. 781, 7S'.
i'DrsO-r's ( E. M.) A Pas^a^e u> India.

H72
FOX'H ((Hiarles Jainefl) Selcctc.:

Si)occhea, 7M-*

Fox'e (G<*orp"-*) ./onrrial, 751
France 'B (Aaat/ile) Si^rn of the Rome
Pedauquo & Itefolt of the Angel 3,
9C7
Francis' (Saint) Tbo LittV' KJowcr*'

ote., 485
Franklin's Journey to the Polar Sea,

417
Franklin's (Benjamin) Autobio-

graphy, 316
Freeman's Old SngUsh History for

Children, 540

French Medieval Romances, 557
Froiasart's Carouieloe, 57
Frmide'? Short, Studies. 1.1, 705
Henry VIII, 37? -4
Edward VI, 37:>
Mary Tudor, 477
History of Queen Eliza-
beth's RelKn, 5S3-7
Life of Benjamin Uieraeli.
I<ord Beaeonslield, 66G

Galsworthy's Cotintry House, 917
Galt'8 Auiials of tho Pari.sh, 427
Gal ton's Inquiries into Human

Faculty, 263
GaHkell'8 Cranford, 83

Life of Charlotte BrontS,

318

Srlria's Lovers, 524
Mary Barton., 598
Cousin Phillie, etc., 615
North and South. 630
Gatty'e Parables from Nature, 158
Geoffrey of Monmoutli's Ulstorios of

the Kings of Britain, 577
Georffe's 1'rosrees and Poverty, 560
Gibbon's Roman Empire, 434-<j,
474-6

Gibbon's Autobiography, 511
Gilehrisfs Life of Blake, 971
GiltillKn's Literary Portrait*, 348
Giraldus Cainbronsis, "Wales. 27 'J
Gleis'8 Lifo of Wellington, :i ! 1

The Subaltern, 70S
Goethe's Faust, 3u5

Wilhelra Meister, 599, 600
Conversations with Eckev-

mann. 851
Gogol's Dead Souls, 726

Taras Bui ha. 740

Goldsmith's Vicar of \Vakrfield, 295
,, Poems and Plays, 415

Citizen of the World,

etc., 902

Goncharov's Oblomov, 878
Goro'rf Philosophy of the Good Life,

Gorki's Through Ruwaia, 741
GottheLTs Ulric the Farm Ser

228

Gray's Poems arid Letterb. (>28
Green's Short History of the

lish People, 727, 728
Grettir Sapra. 099
Grimms' ]< airy Tales, 56
GroHsmith's Diary of a Nobody
Grote's History of Greece, 1SG-
Gudrun, 880

vant,
Eng-

Hahnennri'd The Organon of the

Rational Art of Healing, GO It
Hakluyt'a Voyages, 'J04, 205, 31 .'5.

314/338, 339, 383, 389
Hallam's Constitutional History,

G21-3

Hamilton's The Federalist, CI9
Harte's Luck of Roaring (-titiip. 081
Harvey's Circulation of lilood, 2(i2
Hawthorne's Wonder Book, 5

T he Scarlet Letter, 1'J-J
HOUHC of Seven GaLlo,,

170

The Marble Faun, 424
Twice Told Tales, 531
Blithedale Romance,

592
Hazlitt's Characters of Shake-

speare's Plays, (J5
Table Talk, 3'Jl
Lectures, 4.11

Spirit of the Apre and Lec-
tures on English Poets,
459

Plain Speaker, 814
Hcbbel's Plays, 094
HeimBkringla: The Olaf Sn^as, 7J7
Sagas of the Norse

Kings, 847

Heine's Prose and Poetry, 911
Helps's (Sir Arthur) Life of Colum-

bus, 332

Herbert's Temple, 309
Herodotus, 405, 406
Herrick'fl Hesperidcs, 310
Hobbes'R Leviathan, 091
Holinshcd's Chronicle, 800
Hobnes's Lh*e of Moxart, 5C4
Holmes's (O. \V.) Autocrat, 00
Professor, 67

Poet, 68
Homer's Iliad, 4.03

Odyssey, 454

Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, 201,

202
Horace's Complete Poetical Works,

515
Ilonghton'R Lifo and Letters of

Kri.'".. 801
Howard's (E.) Ratthn tho Reefer,

857
Howard's (John) State of tho

Prison*, 835
Hudson's (W. H.) A Shepherd's Life,

920
,, Fur A\vay and Long Ago,

956
Hughes 's (E. R.) Chinose Philosophy

in Classical Tunes, 973
Hupluts's (Thomas) Tom Brown'^

Scho<jklu.ys, 68
Hugo's (Victor) Lea Miserables. 30".",

3G4

Notre Dame, 422
Toilers of the Sea,

509
Hume's Treatise of Human Nature,

etc., 548. 549

Hunt's (L'.-iRlu Selected Essays. 829
Hutchinson's (Col.) Memoirs, 317
Huxley's (Aldoua) Stories, Essays.

and Poems, 935
Huxley's (T. H.) Alan's Place in

Nature, 47

Select Lectures and Lay
Sermons, 4!)

Ibsen's The Doll's Hou-f, etc., 494
(ihosta, etc., 55'J
i > retender, Pillars of Society,

Rosmersholm, G59
Brand, 716
Lady Inpfr, etc., 7i'9
Peer Gynt, 747
Ingelow's Mt>ps the Fairy, <;i9
Sketch Book, 117
Conquest of Granada, 478
Life of Mahomet, 513
Italian Short Stories, 870

James's (G. P. R.) Richelieu, 357
James's (Uenry) The Turn of the
Screw, and Tho Aspern Papers,

,, The Ambassadors, 987
James (Wm.) Selections from, 739
Jeffcries's (Richard) After London,
and Amaryllis at the
Fair, 951 '

Beris, 850 [770-1

Johnson's (Dr.) Lives of tho Poets,
Jones (Thomas) & Gwyn Jone f The

Mabinogion, 97

Jonson's (Ben) Plays, 489, 490
Josephus'y Wars of the Jews, 7 1 '2

Kalidasa's Shakuntala, 629

Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, 909

Keats's Poems, 101

Keble'a Christian Year, 690

King's Life of Mazzini, 562

Kinglake's Eothen, 337

Kiugsley's (Chas.) Westward Ho!, 20
Heroes, 113
Hypatia, 230
Water Babies, aud
Glauoud, 277

(Chaw.) Herewurd the
Wake, 29 G
Alton Locko. 462
Yeast. Gil
Madam How and Lady

Why, 777
Poems, 793
Klngsley's (Henry) Ravcnshoo, 28

Geoffrey Harnlyn, 417
Kingston's Peter the Whaler, 6

,, Tiiree Midshipmen, 7

Klrby's Kttlevala, 259, 260
Kor.in. I- 80

Lamb'.-* Tales from Shakespeare, 8
lO.oarB of Elia. 1 -i
Letter*, 34 '2, 343
Lander's Imue-inary Conversations

and Poems, *'.)0
Lane's Modern Egyptians. 315
Langland'K Piers Plowman, 571
Latimer'H Sermons, 40
Law's Serious Call, 91
Lawrence's The White Peacock, 014
BtorieF, F/-)says, ind

POCIUB, 9f..s
Layamon's (Waco ani) Arthurian

Chronicles, 57 S

Lear (Edmund). Scr iimhr Antho-
logies

Leibniz' Philosophical \\ntirujN. 905
Lo Safe's Gil Bias, 4:37, 438
Leslie's*. Memoirs of John Constable,

563

Lcssing'8 Laocoon, el' 1 , M3
Lever's Harry Lorreqver, 177
Levves's Life of Goethe. 26!)
Lincoln's Speeches, ete., 20t<
Livy's History of Homo. <>03. i'>69,

670, 749, 755, 756
Locke's Civil Government, 761

Essay on Human Under-
standing, 9S1

Lockhurt'ri Life of Napoleon, 3
Life of Scou, 55

Life of Burns, 156
Longrlellow'n Poems, 382
Lonnrott's Kalevala, 25U, 260
Loti's Iceland Fisherman. 920
Lover's Handy Andy, 178
Lowell's Among My Books, 607
Lucretius' On the Nature of Things,

750

Liitzow's History of Bohemia, 432
Lyell'a Antiquity of Man, 700
Lynd's Essays on Life and Litera-
ture. 990
Lytton's Harold, 15

Last of the Barons, 1
Last Days of Pompeii, SO
Pilgrims of the Rhino. 390
Rienzi, 532

Macaulay's England, 34 6

Essays, 22:, 226
Speeches on Politics.

etc., 399
Miscellaneous Essays,

439

MacDonald's Sir Glbbie, 07 H
Phan tastes, 732

Machiavelli'H Prince, 280

, , Florentine li istory .370

Maine's Ancient Lmv, 734

Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur, 45, 46
Mai thus on the Principles of

Population, 692, 693
Mandeville's Travels, 812
Mann's (Thomas) Stories & Epi-
sodes, 962
Manning's Sir Thomas Mure, It*

Mary Powell, and De-
borah's Uiary, 324
Marlowe's Plays and Poeru.s, :;;.<;>
Marry at'.; Mr. Midshipman Easy. 2
Little Savage, 159
Maaterman Ready, 160
Peter Simple, 232
Children of New Forest.

247

Percival Keene, 358
Settlers in Canada, 370
King's Own, 580
Jacob Faithful, 618
Martiiieau'p Featf on the Fjords, 429
, MartinenKo-Cesaresco'fi Folk-Loiv
I arid other Essays, 673
! .Marx's Capital, 848, 849
i Maugham's (Somerset) Cakes and

Ale, 932

| MaupaHAant'ti Short Stories, 907
! M&KZi.'ti'fl Duties of Mat:, Hr., 224
i Melville's Moby Dick. 179
I Typee, 180

| ,. Omoo, 297

, Meredith's The Ordeal of Richard
i Feverel, 916
M6rim6e'B Carmen, etc., 834
Meri vale's History of Rome, 43:;
Mickiewicx's Pan Tadeusz. 84.:.'
Mipmet's French Revolution, 7 hi
Mill's Utilitarianism, Liberty, Repre-
sentative Government, 482
Rights of Woman. 825
MiUer's Old Red Sandstone, 103
I Milman's History of the Jewts, 377,

378
Milton'8 Poems. 381

Areopagitica and other

Prose Works, 795
Mitford's Our Village, 927
Moliere's Comedies, 830, 831
Mommsen'a l< istory of Rome. 54 2- j
Montagu ' (Lady) Letters, 69
Montaigne's Essays, 440-2
Moore's (George) Esther Waters,

933

More's Utopia, and Dialogue of
Comfort against Tribulation. 461
M oner's Hajji Baba, 679
Morris's (Win.) Early Romances, 2G1
,, Life and Death of Jason, 575
Morte D'Arthur Romances. G .".4
Motley's Dutch Republic, 86-8
Muloc'k'* John Halifax, 123

Neale's Full of Constantinople, 655
Newcastle'** (Margaret, Duchess of)

Life of the First Duke of New-

castlo, ete., 722
Newman's Apologia Pro Vita Sua,

,, On the Scope and Nature

of University Education, and a
Paper on Christianity aad Scien-
tific Investigation, 723
Nietzsche's Thus Spake Zara-
thufltra. 892

Oliphant'a Salem Chapel, 244
Omar Khayyam, S19
Osborne (Dorothy), Lotter* of. K7 !
Ovid: Soleotfd Works, OOa

Owen's (Robert,) A Ninv View of
Society, etc., 790

Paine'E Hijrhts of Man, 7 it?
Palgravo's Golden Treasury. 90
Paltook's Peter Wilkins. 070
Park's (Mungo) Travels, -J'>5
l^arkman's Con.spira<y of Pontino,

302, 303

Pascal's PetLs6cs, 871
Paste n Lettt'is, r."2, 753
Pater'g Mnrins tLi k Kpioiir^an. 903
Pcaco'.-UV HoAdloLj? Hall, : l .'J7
Pt-arsiuii't-- The Grain mar o[ Scioitce,

03$)
Pcnn's The Pearc of Eurore, Some

Fruits of t ; oliuiiie, etc., 7 V J4
Pepys'a Diary, 53, 54
Percy's Roliqnw, 348, 149
Pinnow'a (11.) History of Germany .

92'J

Pitt's Orations, 145
Plato's Republic, 64

Dialogrues, 456, 457
Plutarch's Lives. 407-1*
Moralia, MK;

Poo's Talcs of JNIystery and Imagina-
tion, 336

Poems and Essays. 791
Polo's C.Iarco) Travels, 306
Popc'a Complete Poetical Works,

Prescott's Conquest, of Pern, 301

Conquest of Mexico, 397.

398

Pre vest's Manon Lescaut, ^l<?., 834
I > rist!i > y*H AngeJ Pavement, 938
Procter's Legends and Lyrics, 150
Pushkin's Tho Captain's Daughter,
etc., S9S

Q oilier-Conch 's Hetty Wesley, 804
Cumbridge Lectiire,
974

Rabelals'a Gargantua and Pauta-

gmel, 826, 827
Radcliffe'a (Mrs. Ann) The Mysterioa

of Udolpho, 865, 866
Ramayaua and Mahabharata, 403
Reade's The Cloister and the

Hearth, 29

,. Peg Wofflngfton, 299
Reid's (Mayne) Boy Hunters of the

MisBisslppi, 582
The B oy Slaves , 797
Kenan's Life of Jesus, 805
Iloynohls'a Dinconrses, 118
Ricardo'a Principles of Political

Economy and Taxation, 5!)0
Richardson's Pamela, 683, 684

Clariaaa, 882-5
Roberts'^ (Morley) Western Aver-

nus, 7(>2

Robertson's Reliprion and Life, 37
,, Christian Doctrine, ,18

Bible Subjects, 39
Robinaon'H (Wade) Sermons, 637
Roset's Theea\arus, 630, 631
~ '"I (I>, G.) Poonm, 627

itoussean's TCmile, 518

Social Contract

other T2wayfl, 000
Confessions, 85. S'*
.Seven Lamps of Arch

ture, 207

Modem Paintora, 208-
Stones of Venice, 213-
Unto this Lost, etc., 2
Elements of Drawing,

etc.,

Pro- Raphael! tism , etc. ,218
: Sesame jvrid Lilies, '219

! ,. Ethics of tho Oust, 282
! ,. Crown of Wild Olive, and

Ccatus of Afflaia, 323
Time and Tide, etc.. -i ."in
The Two Boyhoods, t>8B
Russell's Life of Gladstone, f>61

Sand'* (George) The I>< vil's Pool,

and Franco!^ the Waif, 634
Rchoffel's Ekkvhii.-d. 529
Scott's (M.) Tom Cringle^ Lotf, 710
Scott's (Sir W.) Ivanho* - 16
Fortunes of Nif?<.'!, 71
Woodstock, 72
Waverley, 75
The Abbott, 124
Anne of Gfi'.-retcJn, 125
The Antiquary, 126
Highland Widow, and Bc-

trothexi, 127
Black Dwarf, Legend of

Montrose 128

Bride of Lammermoor, 129
Caetlo DangerotiH, Surgeon's

Daughtrr, 130
Robert of Paris. 131
Fair Maid of Perth, 132
Ouy Marinerinff, 133
Fleart of Midlothian, 1 3 1
Konilworth.136
Th o M onn ftery , 1 3 'i
Old Mortality', 137
Peveril of the Peak, 138
The Pirate, 139
One ntin Durward, 14-0
Redgaiintlet, 141
Rob Hoy, 142
St. Rowan's Well. 143
Tho Talisman ,144
Liv<^n of the Novelists, 331
Poems and Plays, 550, 551
Stcbohm'fl Oxford Reformers, 065
Sueley's Ecoe Homo, 305
S\veU's (Anna) Black Beauty, 748
Shakespeare's Comedies, 153

Histories, etc., 154

,. Tragedies, 155 [90S

Shchedrin'8 The Golovlyov Farnify,
Shelley's Poetical Works, 257, 258
Shelley's (Mra.) Frankenstein, 016
Sheppard'e Charles Anchester, 503
Sheridan's Plays, 95
Sienklewicz's Tales, 871

Quo Vadiaf. 970

Sismondi'8 Italian Republics, 250
Sraeaton's Life of Shakespeare. 514
Smith's Wealth of Nations, 412, 413
Smith's (Goorgre) Life of Wm. Carey,

395
Smollett's Roderick Random, 790

Peregrine Piokle, 838, H39

Smollett's The Expedition of Hum-
phry Clinker, 975
Somervillo and Ross: Experiences

of an Irish R.M., 97 8
Sophocles' DraauiH, 114
Houthoy's Life of Nelson, 52
Spectator, 164-7
Speke'e Source of the Nile, 50
Spencer's (Herbert) Essays on

Education, 501
Spenser's Faerie Queens 443, 444

The Shepherd 'H Calendar,

879

Spinoza's Ethics, etc., 481
Spyrf'8Heid1,4Sl

Stanley'** Memoriate of Canterbury,

HasternCiraroh, 251 f9

Steela'e Tne Spectator, 164-7

fttendhal'fc Scarlet and Black, 04;. f

Sterne's Tristram Shandy, 017 [ V J I '.

Sentimental Journey, and

Journal to Eliza, 796
Sto\enson' Treasure Island, a.nd

Kidnapped. 703
Master of Ballantrac, and Th< N

Black Arrow, 7 64
Virprinihus Puerisqiie. B->.H\
Familiar Studies of Man
urnl BK>ke, 7fl/>

,, An Inland Voyngo, Travels
with a Donkey, and Silver-
ado Squattera, 7 GO
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hydo, The

Merry Men, etc., 7 07
,, Poems, 70S

,, In the South F.O-AP. and Island
Nipht' Entertainments, 7('i
St. Ires, 904
Stow'e Surrey of London, 589
Stowe's Unol Tom's Cabin. 371
Strickland's Queen Elizabeth. 100
Surtees's Jorrookw's Jauntfl.817
bwedeuborg's IT^iTcn and Hell. 37U
I.M vine Lore aud

Wisdom, 635
Divine Providence,

658
The True Christian

Rollfdon. 8J>3

Swift'8 Gulliver's Travels. Un-
abridged Edition, 150
Tale of a Tub, ete., 347
,, Journal to Stella,, 757
Swinburne's (A. C.), Poems and

Prose, 961
Swinnorton'B The Georgian Literary

Scene, IMS

Swiss Family Robinson, 430
8ynge' Plays, Poems & Prose, 9G3

Tacitus ' A miala , 2 7 3

Agri cola and Gennania, 274
Taylor's Words and Places, 51 7
Tcheldio^ 's Plays and Stories, 1 1
Tennyson's Poems, 4.4, (526
Thackeray's Iftraond 73

Vanity Fair, 298

Tlie Hose and the Rlngr,

tc., 359

M Pendennis, 425, 426

Newcomee, 465, 40C

Tho Virginians, 507,508

Knjflteh Humoriste, and

TIM Four Gt>on?e, 610

Thackeray's Ronndabout Pa pears, 587
Thierry 's Norman Conquest, 198, 199
Thoreau'B Walden, 281
T^hucydidos* Peloponnestan War, 455
Tolstoy's Master 8c Man, Other

Parables & Tales, 469
War and Peace, 525-7
Childhood, Boyhood, and

Youth. 591

Anna Karenina. 612, G13
Trench's On the Study ol Woude and

English Post and Present, 788
Trollope'ti Barchester Towers, 30
Framley Parsonage, 181
Tho Warden, 182
Dr. Thornc, 3GQ [361

Small Hoane at AUJngton.
Last Clironicles of Barset.
31,19 [761

Goidn Lion of Granpere,
Phineas Firm. 833, 833
Trottrr'e The Bayard of India, 39"
,, llodson of Hodson's Horse.
Warron Hastings, 452 [401
Tnrpenev*B Vincin Sii, 52S
Liy^v, 677

Fathers and Sons, 742
Smoke, 988
Twain'* (Mark) Tom Sawyer and

Huckleberry Finn. 97 fi
TyiidaH'a ftlp*ciei-B of the Alps, 98
Tvtlor'p lYhiciplefi of Translation,
"108

V aeon's I Ares of the Paint* is, 784-7

Vecnc'B (Jules) Twenty Thousand

ljoaj?nefi wader the So., 310

Drspped from the Ckmds, 367

Abandoned, 3 C8

., The Swret of the Island, 361)
,, Five Weeks in a Balloon, and
Around the World in Eighty
]>ayB. 779
Virgil's ^Kneid, 16t

,, Kclojrue and Georfrio^, 222
Voltaire's I-Afe of ChfiHw X II . 270
Age of Lonte XI V . 7 80
Candid? and Other Tales,
i>36

\\nco and Layamon'e Arttiurian

Chronicles, 578
Wakefield'n Letter from Sydney,

etc.. 8*8

Waipole's Letters, 77 r >
^'alpohi'y (Husrb) 11 r. Pcrrin and

Mr. Trail, 918

Walton's Oompleat, Angler, 70
Watrrtou'p V>':n)derin&8 in South

America, 77'^ [899

Webster and Ford's Selected Plays.
Wells 's The Time Marbino, ami Tlu

Wheels of ChT,^. 15
Ann Veronica, 977
Wesley's Journal, 105-8
Whito'8 Selbomo, 48
Wbitnian's L'^.avcH of Grass, 573
\Vhyte-Mol villc'h Gladiators, ,523
Wilde's Plays, Prose Writiii&H and

Poems, 858
Wollstonecraft's Rights of Wojcoan.

825
Wood's (Mrs. Hary ) The Channin^s,

Woolf's To the Lighthouse, 949
Woolman's Journal, etc., 402
Wordsworth's Shorter Poems, 203
Longer Poems, 311

Xeuophon's Cyropaedia, 672

Yellow Book, 503

Yoage's The Dove in the Eagle's

Nest, 329

., The Book of Golden Deeds, 330
,. The Heir of Redclyfle, 362
The Little Duke. 470
The Lauces of Lynwood, .179

Young's (Arthur) Travels in France
and Italy, 720

Zola's Germinal 897

Jntholoyies, Composite Folumes,

Dictionaries, etc.
A Book of British Ballads, 572
A Book of Heroic Verse, 574
A Book of Nonsense, by Edward

Lear, and Others, 806
A Century of Essays, An Anthology,

653
A New Book of Sense and Nonsense,

813

American Short Stories of the Nine-
teenth Century, 840
An Anthology of English Prose:

From Bede to Stevenson, 675
An Encyclopaedia of Gardening, by

Walter P. Wright, 555
\ncient Hebrew Literature, 4 vols.,
Anglo-Saron Poetry, 7U4 [:25.'>-6
Annals of Fairyland, 365. 366, A 41
Anthology of British Historical

Speeches and O rations, 714
Atlas of Classical Geography, 451
Atlases, Literary and Historical:
Europe, 496; America, 553; Ania.
633; Africa and Australasia, 662
Chinese Philosophy in Classical

Times, 973
Dictionary, Biographical, of English

Literature, 449
Biographical, of Foreign

Literature, 900
of Dates, New Edition to

end of 1939, 554
Everyman's English ,776
of N on -Classical Myth-
ology, 632

Smaller Classical, 495
Enqrlish Galaxy of Shorter Poeras.
The, Chosen and Edited by
Gerald Bullett, 959

English Religions Verse, Edited bj

G.LaceyMay,937

English Short Stories, An An-
thology, 743
Fairy Gold, 157

Fairy Tales from the Arabian Nights,
French Short Stories, 896 [249

Gbost Stories, Edited by John

Hampden, 952
Golden Book of Modern English

Poetry, 921 [746

Golden Treasury of Longer Poems,
Hindu Scriptures, Edited by Dr.

Nicol Macnicol, 944
International Modern Plays, 989
Mabinogion,Tbe,97
Minor Elizabethan Drama, 491, 498
Minor Poets of the Eighteenth Cen-
tury, 844
Minor Poete of the Seventeenth

Century, 873
Modern Humour, Edited by Guy

Pocock and M. M. Bozirmn, 957
Modern Plays, 942
Modern Short Stories, Edited by

John Hadfield, 954
Mother Goose, 473
Muses' Pageant, The, 581 . 606, 67 1
Now Golden Treasury, 695
New Testament, The, 93
Plays for Boys and Girls, 966
Poems of Our Time, 981
Poetry Book for Boys and (iirls. 94
Political Liberty, a Sympopimn, 745
Portugruese Voyages, 986
Prayer Books of Kin^ Edward VI,

First and Second, 418
Prelude to Poetry, 789
Reader's Guide to Everyman's

Library, revised edition, covering

the nrst 950 vote., 889
Restoration Plays, 604
Russian Short Stories, 758
Selections from St. Thomas Aquinas,

Edited by the Rev. Father

M. C. D'Aroy, 953
Shorter Novels : Elizabethan, 824

Jacobean and Restora-
tion, 841

Eighteenth Century- 856
Silver Poets of the Sixteenth Century,

985

Story Book for Boys and Girls, 934
Table Talk, 906
Tales of Detection, 928
Theology in the English Poets, 493
Thesaurus of English Words and

Phrases, Roget's, 630, 631
Twenty One-Act Plays, Selected by

John Hampden, 947

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