CHAPTER V.
Little Ned, who was not very well, began fretting and reaching out hisarms to be taken by his father. The captain lifted him tenderly, sayingsomething in a soothing tone, and carried him away to another part ofthe deck.
Then the young people, gathering about Grandma Elsie, who had been analmost silent listener to Captain Raymond's account of the attacks uponthe forts, and the gallant conduct of their defenders, begged her totell them something more of the stirring events of those revolutionarydays.
"You have visited the places near here where there was fighting in thosedays, haven't you, mamma?" asked Walter.
"Yes, some years ago," she replied. "Ah, how many years ago it was!" sheadded musingly; then continued, "When I was quite a little girl, myfather took me to Philadelphia, and a number of other places, whereoccurred notable events in the war of the Revolution."
"And you will tell us about them, won't you, mamma?" Walter asked, incoaxing tones.
"Certainly, if you and the rest all wish it," she returned, smilinglovingly into the eager young face, while the others joined in therequest.
"Please tell about Philadelphia first, mamma," Walter went on. "You wentto Independence Hall, of course, and we've all been there, I believe;but there must be some other points of interest in and about the city,I should think, that will be rather new to us."
"Yes, there are others," she replied, "though I suppose that to everyAmerican Independence Hall is the most interesting of all, since it wasthere the Continental Congress held its meetings, and its bell thatproclaimed the glad tidings that that grand Declaration of Independencehad been signed and the colonies of Great Britain had become free andindependent States--though there was long and desperate fighting to gothrough before England would acknowledge it."
"Mamma, don't you hate old England for it?" cried Walter impulsively,his eyes flashing.
"No, indeed!" she replied, laughing softly, and patting his rosy cheekwith her still pretty white hand. "It was not the England of to-day, youmust remember, my son, nor indeed the England of that day, but her halfcrazy king and his ministers, who thought to raise money for him byunjust taxation of the people of this land. 'Taxation withoutrepresentation is tyranny.' So they felt and said, and as such resistedit."
"And I'm proud of them for doing so!" he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling."Now, what other revolutionary places are to be seen in Philadelphia,mamma?"
"There is Christ Church, where Washington, Franklin, members ofCongress, and officers of the Continental army used to worship, with itsgraveyard where Franklin and his wife Deborah lie buried. Major-GeneralLee too was laid there; also General Mercer, killed at the battle ofPrinceton, but his body was afterward removed to Laurel Hill Cemetery."
"We will visit Christ Church, I hope," said Rosie. "Carpenter's Halltoo, where the first Continental Congress met, and Loxley House, whereLydia Darrah lived in Revolutionary times. You saw that, I suppose,mamma?"
"Yes," replied her mother, "but I do not know whether it is, or is not,still standing."
"That's a nice story about Lydia Darrah," remarked Walter, withsatisfaction. "I think she showed herself a grand woman; don't you,mamma?"
"I do, indeed," replied his mother. "She was a true patriot."
"There were many grand men and women in our country in those times,"remarked Evelyn Leland. "The members of that first Congress that met inCarpenter's Hall on Monday, the 5th of September, 1774, were such. Doyou not think so, Grandma Elsie?"
"Yes, I quite agree with you," replied Mrs. Travilla; "and it was JohnAdams--himself by no means one of the least--who said, 'There is in theCongress a collection of the greatest men upon the continent in point ofabilities, virtues, and fortunes.'"
"Washington was one of them, wasn't he, Grandma Elsie?" asked Lulu.
"Yes, one of the members from Virginia. The others from that State wereRichard Henry Lee, Peyton Randolph, Richard Bland, Benjamin Harrison,Edmund Pendleton, and Patrick Henry. Peyton Randolph was chosenpresident, and Charles Thomson, of Pennsylvania, secretary."
"And then, I suppose, they set to work on their preparations forfighting their oppressor, George the Third," remarked Lulu, halfinquiringly.
"Lossing tells us," replied Mrs. Travilla, "that the delegates from thedifferent colonies then presented their credentials, and after thatthere was silence, while deep anxiety was depicted on every countenance.It seemed difficult to know how to begin upon the work for which theyhad been called together. But at length a grave-looking member, in aplain suit of gray, and wearing an unpowdered wig, arose. So plain washis appearance that Bishop White, who was present, afterward telling ofthe circumstances, said he 'felt a regret that a seeming country parsonshould so far have mistaken his talents and the theatre for theirdisplay.' However, he soon changed his mind as the plain-looking manbegan to speak; his words were so eloquent, his sentiments so logical,his voice was so musical, that the whole House was electrified, whilefrom lip to lip ran the question, 'Who is he? who is he?' and the fewwho knew the stranger, answered, 'It is Patrick Henry of Virginia.'"
"O mamma, was it before that that he had said, 'Give me liberty or giveme death'?" queried Walter, his eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.
"No, he said that a few months afterward; but about nine years before,he had startled his hearers in the Virginia House of Burgesses by hiscry, 'Caesar had his Brutus, Charles the First his Cromwell, and Georgethe Third may profit by their example'!"
"And now he was starting the Congress at its work!"
"You are right; there was no more hesitation; they arranged theirbusiness, adopted rules for the regulation of their sessions, andthen--at the beginning of the third day, and when about to enter uponthe business that had called them together--Mr. Cushing moved that thesessions should be opened with prayer for Divine guidance and aid.
"Mr. John Adams, in a letter to his wife, written the next day, saidthat Mr. Cushing's motion was opposed by a member from New York, and onefrom South Carolina, because the assembly was composed of men of so manydifferent denominations--Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Quakers,Anabaptists, and Episcopalians,--that they could not join in the sameact of worship.
"Then Mr. Samuel Adams arose, and said that he was no bigot and couldhear a prayer from any gentleman of piety and virtue who was at the sametime a friend to his country. He was a stranger in Philadelphia, but hadheard that Mr. Duche deserved that character; so he moved that he--Mr.Duche, an Episcopal clergyman--be desired to read prayers beforeCongress the next morning.
"Mr. Duche consented, and the next morning read the prayers and thePsalter for the 7th of September; a part of it was the thirty-fifthpsalm, which seemed wonderfully appropriate. Do you remember how itbegins? 'Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me: fightagainst them that fight against me. Take hold of shield and buckler, andstand up for mine help.'"
"It does seem wonderfully appropriate," said Evelyn. "Oh, I'm sure thatGod was on the side of the patriots, and helped them greatly in theirhard struggle with their powerful foe!"
"Yes, only by His all-powerful aid could our liberties have been won,and to Him be all the glory and the praise," said Grandma Elsie,gratitude and joy shining in her beautiful eyes.
"But that wasn't the Congress that signed the Declaration?" Walterremarked, half inquiringly, half in assertion.
"No; this was in 1774, and the Declaration was not signed until July,1776," replied his mother.
"It seems to me," remarked Lulu, "that the Americans were very slow ingetting ready to say they would be free from England--free from Britishtyranny."
"But you know you're always in a great hurry to do things, Lu," put inGrace softly, with an affectionate, admiring smile up into her sister'sface.
"Yes, I believe you're right, Gracie," returned Lulu, with a pleasedlaugh and giving Grace's hand a loving squeeze.
"Yes," assented Grandma Elsie, "our people were slow to break with themother country--as they used to call old England, the land of theirance
stors; they bore long and patiently with her, but at last wereconvinced that in that case patience had ceased to be a virtue, andliberty for themselves and their children must be secured at all costs."
"How soon were they convinced of it, mamma?" asked Walter.
"The conviction came slowly to all, and to some more slowly than toothers," she replied. "Dr. Franklin, Samuel Adams, and Patrick Henrywere among the first to see the necessity of becoming, politically,entirely free and independent.
"It is stated on good authority that Patrick Henry in speaking of GreatBritain, as early as 1773, said, 'She _will_ drive us to extremities; noaccommodation _will_ take place; hostilities _will soon_ commence, and adesperate and bloody touch it will be.'
"Some one, present when the remark was made, asked Mr. Henry if hethought the colonies strong enough to resist successfully the fleets andarmies of Great Britain, and he answered that he doubted whether theywould be able to do so alone, 'but that France, Spain, and Holland werethe natural enemies of Great Britain.'
"'Where will they be all this while?' he asked. 'Do you suppose theywill stand by, idle and indifferent spectators to the contest? WillLouis XVI. be asleep all this time? Believe me, no! When Louis XVI.shall be satisfied, by our serious opposition and our _Declaration_ of_Independence_, that all prospect of a reconciliation is gone, then, andnot till then, will he furnish us with arms, ammunition, and clothing:and not with them only, but he will send his fleets and armies to fightour battles for us; he will form a treaty with us, offensive anddefensive, against our unnatural mother. Spain and Holland will join theconfederation! Our independence will be established! and we shall takeour stand among the nations of the earth!'"
"And it all happened so; didn't it, mamma?" exclaimed Rosie exultantly;"just as Patrick Henry predicted."
"Yes," replied her mother, with a proud and happy smile, "and we havecertainly taken our place--by God's blessing upon the efforts of thosebrave and gallant heroes of the revolution--as one of the greatestnations of the earth.
"Yet not all the credit should be awarded them, but some of it given totheir successors in the nation's counsels and on the fields of battle.The foundations were well and strongly laid by our revolutionaryfathers, and the work well carried on by their successors."
"Grandma Elsie, what was the story about Lydia Darrah?" asked Gracie. "Idon't remember to have heard it."
"She lived in Philadelphia when the British were in possession thereduring the winter after the battle of the Brandywine," replied Mrs.Travilla. "She belonged to the Society of Friends, most of whom, as youdoubtless remember, took no active part in the war; at least, did noneof the fighting, though many helped in other ways; but some were Tories,who gave aid and comfort to the enemy in other ways than by the use ofarms."
"What a shame!" cried Walter. "You will tell us about the doings of someof those when you are done with the story of Lydia Darrah, won't you,mamma?"
"If you all wish it," she answered; then went on with her narrative:
"Judging from her conduct at that time, Lydia must have been an ardentpatriot; but patriots and Tories alike had British officers quarteredupon them. The adjutant-general took up his quarters in Loxley House,the home of the Darrahs, and, as it was a secluded place, the superiorofficers frequently held meetings there for private conference onmatters connected with the movements of the British troops."
"One day the adjutant-general told Mrs. Darrah that such a meeting wasto be held that evening, and that he wanted the upper back room madeready for himself and the friends who would be present. He added thatthey would be likely to stay late and she must be sure to see that allher family were early in their beds.
"His tone and manner led Mrs. Darrah to think something of importancewas going forward, and though she did not dare disobey his order, sheresolved to try to find out what was their object in holding thisprivate night meeting, probably hoping to be able to do something toprevent the carrying out of their plans against the liberties of hercountry.
"She sent her family to bed, according to directions, before theofficers came, and after admitting them retired to her own couch, butnot to sleep, for her thoughts were busy with conjectures in regard tothe mischief they--the unwelcome intruders into her house--might beplotting against her country.
"She had lain down without undressing and after a little she rose andstole softly, in her stocking feet, to the door of the room where theywere assembled.
"All was quiet at the moment when she reached it. She put her ear to thekeyhole and--doubtless, with a fast beating heart--waited there,listening intently for the sound of the officers' voices.
"For a few moments all was silence; then it was broken by a single voicereading aloud an order from Sir William Howe for the troops to march outof the city the next night and make an attack upon Washington's camp atWhitemarsh.
"Lydia waited to hear no more, for that was sufficient, and it wouldhave been dangerous indeed for her to be caught there.
"She hastened back to her own room and again threw herself on the bed;but not to sleep, as you may well imagine.
"Presently the opening and shutting of doors told her that the visitorsof the adjutant-general were taking their departure; then there was arap on her door. But she did not answer it. It was repeated, but stillshe did not move or speak; but at the third knock she rose, went to thedoor, and found the adjutant-general there.
"He informed her that his friends had gone and she might now close herhouse for the night.
"She did so, then lay down again, but not to sleep. She lay thinking ofthe momentous secret she had just learned, considering how she mighthelp to avert the threatened danger to the patriot army, and asking helpand guidance from her heavenly Father.
"Her prayer was heard; she laid her plans, then at early dawn arose.Waking her husband she told him flour was wanted for the family and shemust go immediately to the mill at Frankford for it. Then taking a bagto carry it in, she started at once on foot.
"At General Howe's headquarters she obtained a passport to leave thecity.
"She had a five miles' walk to Frankford, where she left her bag at themill, and hurried on toward the American camp to deliver her tidings.
"It was still quite early, but before reaching the camp she met anAmerican officer, Lieutenant Craig, whom Washington had sent out to seekinformation in regard to the doings of the enemy.
"Lydia quickly told him her story, then hastened back to the mill forher bag of flour and hurried home with it."
"Mamma," exclaimed Walter, "how could she carry anything so big andheavy?"
"Perhaps it was but a small bag," returned his mother, with a smile. "Inever saw or read any statement as to its size, and perhaps the joy andthankfulness she felt in having been permitted and enabled to do suchservice to the cause of her country may have helped to strengthen her tobear the burden."
"What a day it must have been to her!" exclaimed Evelyn, "hope andfear alternating in her breast; and how her heart must have gone upconstantly in prayer to God for his blessing upon her bleeding country."
"And how it must have throbbed with alternating hope and fear as shestood at the window that cold, starry night and watched the departureof the British troops to make the intended attack upon Washington andhis little army," said Rosie. "And again when the distant roll of a drumtold that they were returning."
"Yes," said Lulu; "and when the adjutant-general came back to the house,summoned Lydia to his room, and when he got her in there shut and lockedthe door."
"Oh," cried Grace, "did he know it was she that had told of his plans?"
"No," said Mrs. Travilla; "from the accounts I have read he does notseem to have even suspected her. He invited her to be seated, thenasked, 'Were any of your family up, Lydia, on the night when I receivedcompany in this house?' 'No,' she replied; 'they all retired at eighto'clock.' 'It is very strange,' he returned. 'You I know were asleep,for I knocked at your door three times before you heard me, yet it iscertain we were betraye
d. I am altogether at a loss to conceive whocould have given information to Washington of our intended attack. Onarriving near his camp, we found his cannon mounted, his troops underarms, and so prepared at every point to receive us, that we have beencompelled to march back like a parcel of fools, without injuring ourenemy!'"
"I hope the British did not find out, before they left Philadelphia, whohad given the information to the Americans, and take vengeance on her?"said Walter.
"No," replied his mother, "fearing that, she had begged Lieutenant Craigto keep her secret; which he did; and so it has happened that her gooddeed finds no mention in the histories of that time and is recorded onlyby well authenticated tradition."
"So all the Quakers were not Tories?" remarked Walter in a satisfied yethalf inquiring tone.
"Oh, no indeed!" replied his mother, "there were ardent patriots amongthem, as among people of other denominations. Nathaniel Green--afterWashington one of our best and greatest generals--was of Quaker family,and I have heard that when his mother found he was not to be persuadedto refrain from taking an active part in the struggle for freedom, shesaid to him, 'Well, Nathaniel, if thee must fight, let me never hear ofthee having a wound in thy back!'"
"Ah, she must have been brave and patriotic," laughed Walter. "I doubtif she was so very sorry that her son was determined to fight for thefreedom of his country."
"No," said Rosie, "I don't believe she was, and I don't see how shecould help feeling proud of him--so bright, brave, talented, andpatriotic as he showed himself to be all through the war."
"Yes," said Lulu, "and I don't think he has had half the honors hedeserved, though at West Point we saw a cannon with an inscription on itsaying it had been taken from the British army and presented by Congressto Major-General Green as a monument of their high sense of his servicesin the revolutionary war."
"Weren't the Tories very bad men, Grandma Elsie?" asked Grace.
"Not all of them, my dear," replied Mrs. Travilla, smiling lovingly intothe sweet, though grave and earnest, little face; "some were reallyconscientiously opposed to war, even when waged for freedom fromunbearable tyranny and oppression, but were disposed to be merelyinactive witnesses of the struggle, some of them desiring the success ofthe patriots, others that of the king's troops; then there was anotherset who, while professing neutrality, secretly aided the British,betraying the patriots into their hands.
"Such were Carlisle and Roberts, Quakers of that time, living inPhiladelphia. While the British were in possession of the city those twomen were employed as secret agents in detecting foes to the government,and by their secret information caused many patriots to be arrested andthrown into prison. Lossing tells us that Carlisle, wearing the meekgarb and deportment of a Quaker, was at heart a Torquemada."
"And who was Torquemada, mamma?" queried Walter.
"A Dominican monk of Spain, who lived in the times of Ferdinand andIsabella, and was by them appointed inquisitor-general. He organized theInquisition throughout Spain, drew up the code of procedure, and duringsixteen years caused between nine and ten thousand persons to be burnedat the stake."
"Mamma! what a cruel, _cruel_ wretch!" cried Walter. "Oh, but I'm gladnobody can do such cruel things in these days! I hope Roberts andCarlisle weren't quite so wicked as he."
"No, I should not like to think they would have been willing to go toquite such lengths, though they seem to have shown enough malignitytoward their patriotic fellow-countrymen to make it evident that theyhad something of the spirit of the cruel and bloodthirsty Torquemada.
"Though they would not bear arms for the wealth of the Indies, they wereever ready to act as guides to those whose object was to massacre theirfellow-countrymen; and that only because they were determined to befree."
"Were not some of those in New Jersey known as 'Pine Robbers,' GrandmaElsie?" asked Evelyn.
"Yes; they infested the lower part of Monmouth County, whence they wenton predatory excursions into other parts of the State, coming upon thepeople at night to burn, murder, plunder, and destroy. They burrowedcaves in the sandhills on the borders of the swamps, where theyconcealed themselves and their booty."
"Did they leave their hiding-places only in the night time, mamma?"asked Walter.
"No," she replied, "they would sometimes sally forth during the day andattack the farmers in their fields. So that the men were compelled tocarry muskets and be ready to fight for their lives, while women andchildren were kept in a constant state of terror."
"I think I have read that one of the worst of them was a blacksmith,living in Freehold?" remarked Evelyn, half inquiringly.
"Yes, his name was Fenton; he was a very wicked man, who, like manyothers calling themselves Tories, took advantage of the disturbance ofthe times to rob and murder his fellow-countrymen; he began his careerof robbery and murder very early in the war.
"One of his first acts, as such, was the plundering of a tailor's shopin the township. A committee of vigilance had been already organized,and its members sent Fenton word that if he did not return what he hadstolen he should be hunted out and shot.
"He was a coward, as such villains almost always are, and did return theclothing, sending with it a written message, 'I have returned your ----rags. In a short time I am coming to burn your barns and houses, androast you all like a pack of kittens.'
"One summer night, shortly afterward, he led a gang of desperadoes likehimself against the dwelling of an old man named Farr. There were butthree persons in the house--the old man, his wife, and daughter. Theybarricaded their door and defended themselves for a while, but Fentonbroke in a part of the door, fired through the hole at the old man andbroke his leg. The women could not keep them out much longer; they soonforced an entrance, murdered the old man and woman, and badly woundedthe daughter. She, however, made her escape, and the cowardly ruffiansfled without waiting to secure any plunder; no doubt fearing she wouldbring a band of patriots to avenge the slain."
"I hope that wretch, Fenton, was soon caught and well punished for hisrobberies and murders!" exclaimed Lulu.
"He was," replied Grandma Elsie. "The Bible tells us that 'bloody anddeceitful men shall not live out half their days,' and Fenton's fate wasone amongst many to prove the truth of it.
"He had met a young man on his way to mill, plundered and beaten him;the victim carried his complaint to Lee, and a sergeant and twosoldiers were detailed to capture or kill Fenton.
"They used strategy and with success. The two soldiers were secretedunder some straw in the bottom of a wagon, the sergeant disguisedhimself as a countryman, and the young man took a seat in the vehicle.Then they drove on toward the mill, expecting to meet Fenton on theroad. They were passing a low groggery among the pines, when he came outof it, pistol in hand, and impudently ordered them to stop.
"They drew rein, and he came nearer, asking if they had brandy withthem. They replied that they had, and handed him a bottle. Then, as helifted it to his lips, the sergeant silently signaled to one of hishidden soldiers, who at once rose from his hiding place in the straw andshot Fenton through the head. His body was then thrown into the wagonand carried in triumph to Freehold."
"The people of that part of the country must have felt a good dealrelieved," remarked Rosie. "Still there were Fenton's desperadocompanions left."
"Two of them--Fagan and West--shared Fenton's fate, being shot by theexasperated people," said her mother; "and West's body was hung inchains, with hoop iron bands around it, on a chestnut tree hard by theroadside, about a mile from Freehold."
"O Grandma Elsie, is it there yet?" asked Gracie, shuddering withhorror.
"No, dear child, that could hardly be possible after so many years--morethan a hundred you will remember when you think of it," returned Mrs.Travilla, with a kindly reassuring smile.
"I hope papa will take us to Freehold," said Lulu. "I want to see thebattleground."
"I feel quite sure he will, should nothing happen to prevent," saidGrandma Elsie.
"Wasn't
it at Freehold, or in its neighborhood, that a Captain Huddy wasmurdered by those pine robbers?" asked Evelyn.
"Yes," replied Grandma Elsie. "It was only the other day that I wasrefreshing my memory in regard to it by glancing over Lossing's accountgiven in his Field Book of the Revolution."
"Then please tell us about it, mamma," pleaded Walter.
"Very willingly, since you wish to hear it," she said, noting the lookof eager interest on the young faces about her.
"Captain Huddy was an ardent patriot and consequently hated by his Toryneighbors. He lived at a place called Colt's Neck, about five miles fromFreehold.
"One evening, in the summer of 1780, a party of some sixty refugees,headed by a mulatto named Titus, attacked Huddy's house. There was noone in it at the time but Huddy himself, and a servant girl, some twentyyears old, named Lucretia Emmons."
"She wouldn't be of much use for fighting men," remarked Walter, with aslight sniff of contempt.
"Perhaps Captain Huddy may have thought differently," replied hismother, with a slightly amused smile. "There were several guns in thehouse which she loaded for Huddy while he passed from one window toanother firing through them at his foes. Titus and several others werewounded; then they set fire to the house and Huddy surrendered.
"He was taken on board of a boat from which he jumped into the water andescaped, assisted in so doing by the fire of some militia who were inpursuit of the Tories.
"About two years later Huddy was in command of a block house near thevillage of Tom's River, when it was attacked by some refugees from NewYork, and, his ammunition giving out, he was obliged to surrender. Heand his companions were taken to New York, then back to Sandy Hook,where they were placed on board a guard-ship and heavily ironed.
"Shortly afterward he was taken to Gravelly Point, by sixteen refugeesunder Captain Lippincott, and hung on a gallows made of three rails.
"He met his fate like the brave man that he was, first calmly writinghis will on the head of the barrel upon which he was presently to standfor execution.
"A desperate Tory, named Philip White, had been killed while Huddy was aprisoner in New York, and these men falsely accused Huddy of having hada share in his death. After hanging him that cruel, wicked Lippincottfastened to his breast a notice to the effect that they had killedCaptain Huddy in revenge for the death of Philip White, and that theywere determined to hang man for man while a refugee lived."
"Oh, what dreadful, dreadful things people did in those days!" sighedGrace. "Did anybody venture to take the body down and bury it, GrandmaElsie?"
"Yes, Captain Huddy's body was carried to Freehold and buried with thehonors of war."
"And did people care much about it?"
"Yes, indeed! his death caused great excitement and indignation, and Dr.Woodhull, the Freehold minister, who preached the funeral sermon fromthe piazza of the hotel, earnestly entreated Washington to retaliate inorder to prevent a repetition of such deeds.
"Washington consented, but, ever merciful, first wrote to Sir HenryClinton that unless the murderers of Captain Huddy were given up heshould retaliate.
"Clinton refused, and a young British officer, Captain Asgill, aprisoner in the hands of the Americans, was selected by lot forexecution. Washington, however, mercifully postponed the carrying out ofthe sentence, feeling much pity and sympathy for the youngman--doubtless for his relatives also; letters came from Europeearnestly entreating that Asgill's life might be spared; among them apathetic one from his mother, and an intercessory one from the Frenchminister, Count de Vergennes.
"These letters Washington sent to Congress and that body passed aresolution, 'That the commander-in-chief be, and hereby is, directed toset Captain Asgill at liberty.'"
"It seems to me that our people were far more merciful than theEnglish," remarked Lulu, with a look of patriotic pride.
"I think that is true," assented Grandma Elsie, "not meaning to denythat there are many kindhearted men among the British of to-day, or thatthere were such among them even then, but most of those then in powershowed themselves to be avaricious, hardhearted, and cruel."
"Yes, they wanted to make slaves of the people here," exclaimed Luluhotly. "But they found that Americans wouldn't be slaves; that ratherthan resign their liberty they would die fighting for it."