The Chainbearer; Or, The Littlepage Manuscripts Read online

  CHAPTER VI.

  "They love their land, because it is their own, And scorn to give aught other reason why; Would shake hands with a king upon his throne, And think it kindness to his majesty; A stubborn race, fearing and flattering none, Such are they nurtured, such they live and die; All but a few apostates, who are meddling With merchandise, pounds, shillings, pence and peddling." --Halleck.

  A day or two after my return to Lilacsbush, was presented one of thesefamily scenes which are so common in the genial month of June, on theshores of the glorious old Hudson. I call the river the _old_ Hudson,for it is quite as old as the Tiber, though the world has not talked ofit as much, or as long. A thousand years hence, this stream will beknown over the whole earth; and men will speak of it as they now speakof the Danube and the Rhine. As good wine may not be made on its banksas is made on the acclivities of the latter river; but, even to-day,better, both as to quality and variety, is actually drunk. On this lastpoint, all intelligent travellers agree.

  There stands a noble linden on the lawn of Lilacsbush, at no greatdistance from the house, and necessarily within a short distance of thewater. The tree had been planted there by my grandmother Mordaunt'sfather, to whom the place once belonged; and was admirably placed forthe purposes of an afternoon's lounge. Beneath its shade we often tookour dessert and wine, in the warm months; and thither, since theirreturn from the army, General Littlepage and Colonel Dirck Follock usedto carry their pipes, and smoke over a campaign, or a bottle, as chancedirected the discourse. For that matter, no battle-field had ever beenso veiled in smoke, as would have been the case with the linden inquestion, could there have been a concentration of all the vapor it hadseen.

  The afternoon of the day just mentioned, the whole family were seatedbeneath the tree, scattered round, as shade and inclination tempted;though a small table, holding fruits and wine, showed that the usualbusiness of the hour had not been neglected. The wines were Madeira andclaret, those common beverages in the country; and the fruits werestrawberries, cherries, oranges and figs; the two last imported, ofcourse. It was a little too early for us to get pines from the islands,a fruit which is so common in its season as to be readily purchased intown at the rate of four of a good size for a dollar. But, theabundance, and even luxury, of a better sort of the common Americantables, is no news; viands, liquors and fruits appearing on them, thatare only known to the very rich and very luxurious in the countries ofEurope. If the service were only as tasteful, and the cooking as goodwith us, as both are in France, for instance, America would be the veryparadise of the epicure, let superficial travellers say what they pleaseto the contrary. I have been abroad in these later times, and speak ofwhat I know.

  No one sat _at_ the table, though my father, Colonel

  Dirck, and I were near enough to reach our glasses, at need. My motherwas next to me, and reasonably close; for I did not smoke, while auntMary and Kate had taken post just without the influence of the tobacco.On the shore was a large skiff, that contained a tolerably sized trunkor two, and a sort of clothes-bag. In the first were a portion of myclothes, while those of Jaap filled the bag. The negro himself wasstretched on the grass, about half-way between the tree and the shore,with two or three of his grandchildren rolling about, at his feet. Inthe skiff was his son, seated in readiness to use the sculls, as soon asordered.

  All this arrangement denoted my approaching departure for the north. Thewind was at the south, and sloops of various degrees of promise andspeed were appearing round the points, coming on one in the wake ofanother, as each had been able to quit the wharves to profit by thebreeze. In that day, the river had not a tenth part of the craft it nowpossesses; but still, it had enough to make a little fleet, so neartown, and at a moment when wind and tide both became favorable. At thattime, most of the craft on the Hudson belonged up the river, and theypartook largely of the taste of our Dutch ancestors. Notable travellersbefore the gales, they did very little with foul winds, generallyrequiring from a week to a fortnight to tide it down from Albany, withthe wind at all from the south. Nevertheless, few persons thought ofmaking the journey between the two largest towns of the state (York andAlbany), without having recourse to one of these sloops. I was at thatmoment in waiting for the appearance of a certain "Eagle, of Albany,Captain Bogert," which was to run in close to Lilacsbush, and receive meon board, agreeably to an arrangement previously made in town. I wasinduced to take a passage in this vessel from the circumstance that shehad a sort of after-cabin that was screened by an ample green curtain,an advantage that all the vessels which then plied on the river did notpossess; though great improvements have been making ever since theperiod of which I am now writing.

  Of course, the interval thus passed in waiting for the appearance of theEagle was filled up, more or less, by discourse. Jaap, who was toaccompany me in my journey to Ravensnest, knew every vessel on theriver, as soon as he could see her, and we depended on him to let usknow when I was to embark, though the movements of the sloop herselfcould not fail to give us timely notice of the necessity of takingleave.

  "I should like exceedingly to pay a visit to old Mrs. Vander Heyden, atKinderhook, Mordaunt," said my mother, after one of the frequent pausesthat occurred in the discourse. "She is a relation, and I feel a greatregard for her; so much the more, from the circumstance of her beingassociated in my mind with that frightful night on the river, of whichyou have heard me speak."

  As my mother ceased speaking, she glanced affectionately toward thegeneral, who returned the look, as he returned all my mother's looks,with one filled with manly tenderness. A more united couple than myparents never existed. They seemed to me ordinarily to have but one mindbetween them; and when there did occur any slight difference of opinion,the question was not which should prevail, but which should yield. Ofthe two, my mother may have had the most native intellect, though thegeneral was a fine, manly, sensible person, and was very universallyrespected.

  "It might be well, Anneke," said my father, "if the major were to pay avisit to poor Guert's grave, and see if the stones are up, and that theplace is kept as it should be. I have not been there since the year '68,when it looked as if a friendly eye might do some good at no distantday."

  This was said in a low voice, purposely to prevent aunt Mary fromhearing it; and, as she was a little deaf, it is probable the intentionwas successful. Not so, however, with Colonel Dirck, who drew the pipefrom his mouth, and sat attentively listening, in the manner of one whofelt great interest in the subject. Another pause succeeded.

  "T'en t'ere ist my Lort Howe, Corny," observed the colonel, "how is itwit' his grave?"

  "Oh! the colony took good care of that. They buried him in the mainaisle of St. Peter's, I believe; and no doubt all is right with him. Asfor the other, major, it might be well to look at it."

  "Great changes have taken place at Albany, since we were there as youngpeople!" observed my mother, thoughtfully. "The Cuylers are much brokenup by the revolution, while the Schuylers have grown greater than ever.Poor aunt Schuyler, she is no longer living to welcome a son of ours!"

  "Time will bring about such changes, my love; and we can only bethankful that so many of us remain, after so long and bloody a war."

  I saw my mother's lips move, and I knew she was murmuring a thanksgivingto the power which had preserved her husband and son through the latestruggle.

  "You will write as often as opportunities occur, Mordaunt," said thatdear parent, after a longer pause than usual. "Now there is peace, I canhope to get your letters with some little regularity."

  "They tell me, cousin Anneke"--for so the colonel always called mymother when we were alone--"They tell me, cousin Anneke," said ColonelDirck, "t'at t'ey actually mean to have a mail t'ree times a weekpetween Alpany and York! T'ere ist no knowing, general, what t'isglorious revolution will not do for us!"

  "If it bring me letters three times a week from those I love,"
rejoinedmy mother, "I am sure my patriotism will be greatly increased. How willletters get out from Ravensnest to the older parts of the colony--Ishould say state, Mordaunt?"

  "I must trust to the settlers for that. Hundreds of Yankees, they tellme, are out looking for farms this summer. I may use some of them formessengers."

  "Don't trust 'em too much, or too many"--growled Colonel Dirck, who hadthe old Dutch grudge against our eastern brethren. "See how they behav'tto Schuyler."

  "Yes," said my father, replenishing his pipe, "they _might_ havemanifested more justice and less prejudice to wise Philip; butprejudices will exist, all over the world. Even Washington has had hisshare."

  "T'at is a great man!" exclaimed Colonel Dirck, with emphasis, and inthe manner of one who felt certain of his point. "A _ferry_ great man!"

  "No one will dispute with you, colonel, on that subject; but have you nomessage to send to our old comrade, Andries Coejemans? He must have beenat Mooseridge, with his party of surveyors, now near a twelvemonth, andI'll warrant you has thoroughly looked up the old boundaries, so as tobe ready for Mordaunt to start afresh as soon as the boy reaches thepatent."

  "I hope he has not hiret a Yankee surveyor, Corny," put in the colonel,in some little alarm. "If one of t'em animals gets upon the tract, hewill manage to carry off half of the lant in his compass-box! I hope oltAndries knows petter."

  "I dare say he'll manage to keep all the land, as well as to survey it.It is a thousand pities the captain has no head for figures; for hishonesty would have made his fortune. But I have seen him tried, and knowit will not do. He was a week once making up an account of some storesreceived from head-quarters, and the nearest he could get to the resultwas twenty-five per cent. out of the way."

  "I would sooner trust Andries Coejemans to survey my property, figuresor no figures," cried Colonel Dirck, positively, "than any dominie inNew England."

  "Well, that is as one thinks," returned my father, tasting the Madeira."For my part, I shall be satisfied with the surveyor he may happen toselect, even though he should be a Yankee. Andries is shrewd, if he beno calculator; and I dare to say he has engaged a suitable man. Havingtaken the job at a liberal price, he is too honest a fellow not to hirea proper person to do the head-work. As for all the rest, I would trusthim as soon as I would trust any man in America."

  "T'at is gospel. Mordaunt will haf an eye on matters too, seein' he hasso great an interest in the estate. T'ere is one t'ing, major, you mustnot forget. Five hundred goot acres must be surveyed off for sisterAnneke, and five hundred for pretty Kate, here. As soon as t'at is done,the general and I will give each of the gals a deet."

  "Thank you, Dirck," said my father, with feeling. "I'll not refuse theland for the girls, who may be glad enough to own it some time orother."

  "It's no great matter now, Corny; put, as you say, it may be of use oneday. Suppose we make old Andries a present of a farm, in his pargain."

  "With all my heart," cried my father, quickly. "A couple of hundredacres might make him comfortable for the rest of his days. I thank youfor the hint, Dirck, and we will let Mordaunt choose the lot, and sendus the description, that we may prepare the deed."

  "You forget, general, that the Chainbearer has, or will have hismilitary lot, as a captain," I ventured to remark. "Besides, land willbe of little use to him, unless it might be to measure it. I doubt ifthe old man would not prefer going without his dinner, to hoeing a hillof potatoes."

  "Andries had three slaves while he was with us; a man, a woman, andtheir daughter," returned my father. "He would not sell them, he said,on any consideration; and I have known him actually suffering for moneywhen he was too proud to accept it from his friends, and too benevolentto part with family slaves, in order to raise it. 'They were bornCoejemans,' he always said, 'as much as I was born one myself, and theyshall die Coejemans.' He doubtless has these people with him, at theRidge, where you will find them all encamped, near some spring, withgarden-stuff and other small things growing around him, if he can findopen land enough for such a purpose. He has permission to cut and tillat pleasure."

  "This is agreeable news to me, general," I answered, "since it promisesa sort of home. If the Chainbearer has really these blacks with him, andhas hutted judiciously, I dare say we shall have quite as comfortable atime as many of those we passed together in camp. Then, I shall carry myflute with me; for Miss Priscilla Bayard has given me reason to expect avery wonderful creature in Dus, the niece, of which old Andries used totalk so much. You remember to have heard the Chainbearer speak of such aperson, I dare say, sir; for he was quite fond of mentioning her."

  "Perfectly well; Dus Malbone was a sort of toast among the young men ofthe regiment at one time, though no one of them all ever could get asight of her, by hook or by crook."

  Happening to turn my head at that moment, I found my dear mother's eyesturned curiously on me; brought there, I fancy, by the allusion to Tom'ssister.

  "What does Priscilla Bayard know of this Chainbearer's niece?" thatbeloved parent asked, as soon as she perceived that her look hadattracted my attention.

  "A great deal, it would seem; since she tells me they are fast friends;quite as great, I should judge from Miss Bayard's language and manner,as Kate and herself."

  "That can scarcely be," returned my mother, slightly smiling, "sincethere the principal reason must be wanting. Then, this Dus can hardly bePriscilla Bayard's equal."

  "One never knows such a thing, mother, until he has had an opportunityof making comparisons; though Miss Bayard herself says Dus is much hersuperior in many things. I am sure her uncle is _my_ superior in somerespects; in carrying chain, particularly so."

  "Ay, but scarcely in station, Mordaunt."

  "He was the senior captain of the regiment."

  "True; but revolutions are revolutions. What I mean is, that yourChainbearer can hardly be a gentleman."

  "That is a point not to be decided in a breath. He is, and he is not.Old Andries is of a respectable family, though but indifferentlyeducated. Men vastly his inferiors in birth, in habits, in the generalnotions of the caste, in the New England States, are greatly hissuperiors in knowledge. Nevertheless, while we must all admit hownecessary a certain amount of education has become, at the present time,to make a gentleman, I think every gentleman will allow hundreds amongus have degrees in their pockets with small claims to belong to theclass. Three or four centuries ago, I should have answered that oldAndries _was_ a gentleman, though he had to bite the wax with his teethand make a cross, for want of a better signature."

  "And he what you call a chainbearer, Mordaunt!" exclaimed my sister.

  "As well as late senior captain in your father's regiment, MissLittlepage. But, no matter, Andries and Dus are such as they are, and Ishall be glad to have them for companions this summer. Jaap is makingsignals, and I must quit you all. Heigho! It is very pleasant here,under this linden, and home begins to entwine its fibres around myheart. Never mind; it will soon be autumn, and I shall see the whole ofyou, I trust, as I leave you, well and happy in town."

  My dear, dear mother had tears in her eyes, when she embraced me; so hadKate, who, though she did love Tom Bayard most, loved me very warmlytoo. Aunt Mary kissed me, in her quiet but affectionate way; and I shookhands with the gentlemen, who accompanied me down to the boat. I couldsee that my father was affected. Had the war still continued, he wouldhave thought nothing of the separation; but in that piping time of peaceit seemed to come unseasonably.

  "Now don't forget the great lots for Anneke and Katrinke," said ColonelDirck, as we descended to the shore. "Let Andries pick out some of thebest of the lant, t'at is well watered and timbered, and we'll call thelots after the gals; that is a goot idea, Corny."

  "Excellent, my friend. Mordaunt, my son, if you come across any placesthat look like graves, I wish you would set up marks by which they maybe known. It is true, a quarter of a century or more makes many changesin the woods; and it is quite likely no such remains will be found."

/>   "A quarter of a century in the American forests, sir," I answered, "issomewhat like the same period in the wanderings of a comet; lost, in thenumberless years of its growth. A single tree will sometimes outlast thegenerations of an entire nation."

  "You wilt rememper, Mordaunt, that I wilt haf no Yankee tenants on _my_estate. Your father may lease 'em one-half of a lot, if he please; but Iwill not lease t'other."

  "As you are tenants in common, gentlemen," I answered, smiling, "it willnot be easy to separate the interests in this manner. I believe Iunderstand you, however; I am to sell the lands of Mooseridge, orcovenant to sell, as your attorney, while I follow out my grandfatherMordaunt's ideas, and lease those that are not yet leased, on my ownestate. This will at least give the settlers a choice, and those who donot like one plan of obtaining their farms may adopt the other."

  I now shook hands again with the gentlemen, and stepping into the skiff,we pulled away from the shore. Jaap had made this movement in goodseason, and we were compelled to row a quarter of a mile down the riverto meet the sloop. Although the wind was perfectly fair, it was not sofresh as to induce Mr. Bogert to round-to; but throwing us a rope, itwas caught, when we were safely transferred, bag and baggage, to thedecks of the Eagle.

  Captain Bogert was smoking at the helm, when he returned my salute.Removing the pipe, after a puff or two, he pointed with the stem towardthe group on the shore, and inquired if I wished to say "good-by."

  "_Allponny_"--so the Dutch were wont to pronounce the name of their townin the last century--"is a long way off," he said, "and maype you woultlike to see the frients ag'in."

  This business of waving hats and handkerchiefs is a regular thing on theHudson, and I expressed my willingness to comply with the usage, as amatter of course.[5] In consequence, Mr. Bogert deliberately sheered intoward the shore, and I saw the whole family collecting on a low rock,near the water, to take the final look. In the background stood theSatanstoes, a dark, woolly group, including Mrs. Jaap, and twogenerations of descendants. The whites were weeping; that is to say, mydear mother and Kate; and the blacks were laughing, though the old ladykept her teeth to herself about as much as she exposed them. A sensationalmost invariably produces laughter with a negro, the only exceptionsbeing on occasions of singular gravity.

  [Footnote 5: Such were the notions of Mr. Mordaunt Littlepage, at thecommencement of this century, and such his feeling shortly after thepeace of 1783. Nothing of the sort more completely illustrates thegeneral change that has come over the land, in habits and materialthings, than the difference between the movements of that day and thoseof our own. Then, the departure of a sloop, or the embarkation of apassenger along the shore, brought parties to the wharves, and wavingsof handkerchiefs, as if those who were left behind felt a lingering wishto see the last of their friends. Now, literally thousands come and godaily, passing about as many hours on the Hudson as their grandfatherspassed days; and the shaking of hands and leave-takings are usually doneat home. It would be a bold woman who would think now of waving ahandkerchief to a Hudson River steamboat!--EDITOR.]

  I believe, if the truth were known, Mr. Bogert greatly exulted in thestately movement of his sloop, as she brushed along the shore, at nogreat distance from the rocks, with her main-boom guyed out tostarboard, and studding-sail boom to port. The flying-topsail, too, wasset; and the Eagle might be said to be moving in all her glory. She wentso near the rocks, too, as if she despised danger! Those were not thedays of close calculations that have succeeded. Then, an Albany skipperdid not mind losing a hundred or two feet of distance in making his run;whereas, now, it would not be an easy matter to persuade a Liverpooltrader to turn as much aside in order to speak a stranger in the centreof the Atlantic; unless, indeed, he happened to want to get the other'slongitude.

  As the sloop swept past the rocks, I got bows, waving of hats andhandkerchiefs, and good wishes enough to last the whole voyage. EvenJaap had his share; and "good-by, Jaap," came to my ears, from even thesweet voice of Kate. Away we went, in stately Dutch movement, slow _butsure_. In ten minutes Lilacsbush was behind us, and I was once morealone in the world, for months to come.

  There was now time to look about me, and to ascertain who were mycompanions in this voyage. The skipper and crew were as usual themasters; and the pilots, both whites, and both of Dutch extraction, anold wrinkled negro, who had passed his life on the Hudson as a foremasthand, and two younger blacks, one of whom was what was dignified withthe name of cabin-steward. Then there were numerous passengers; some ofwhom appeared to belong to the upper classes. They were of both sexes,but all were strangers to me. On the main-deck were six or eight sturdy,decent, quiet, respectable-looking laborers, who were evidently of theclass of husbandmen. Their packs were lying in a pile, near the foot ofthe mast, and I did not fail to observe that there were as many axes asthere were packs.

  The American axe! It has made more real and lasting conquests than thesword of any warlike people that ever lived; but they have beenconquests that have left civilization in their train instead of havocand desolation. More than a million of square miles of territory[6] havebeen opened up from the shades of the virgin forest, to admit the warmthof the sun; and culture and abundance have been spread where the beastof the forest so lately roamed, hunted by the savage. Most of this, too,has been effected between the day when I went on board the Eagle, andthat on which I am now writing. A brief quarter of a century has seenthese wonderful changes wrought; and at the bottom of them all lies thisbeautiful, well-prized, ready and efficient implement, the American axe!

  [Footnote 6: More than two millions at the present day.]

  It would not be easy to give the reader a clear notion of the manner inwhich the young men and men of all ages of the older portions of the newrepublic poured into the woods to commence the business of felling theforests, and laying bare the secrets of nature, as soon as the nationrose from beneath the pressure of war, to enjoy the freedom of peace.The history of that day in New York, which State led the van in therighteous strife of improvement, and has ever since so nobly maintainedits vantage-ground, has not yet been written. When it is properlyrecorded names will be rescued from oblivion that better deserve statuesand niches in the temple of national glory, than those of many who havemerely got the start of them by means of the greater facility with whichthe public mind is led away in the train of brilliant exploits, than itis made sensible of the merits of those that are humane and useful.

  It was not usual for settlers, as it has become the practice to termthose who first take up and establish themselves on new lands, to maketheir journeys from the neighborhood of the sea to the interior, otherthan by land; but a few passed out of Connecticut by the way of NewYork, and thence up the river in sloops. Of this character were thosefound on board the Eagle. In all, we had seven of these men, who gotinto discourse with me the first day of our passage, and I was a littlesurprised at discovering how much they already knew of me, and of mymovements. Jaap, however, soon suggested himself to my mind, as theprobable means of the intelligence they had gleaned; and, on inquiry,such I ascertained was the fact.

  The curiosity and the questioning propensities of the people of NewEngland, have been so generally admitted by writers and commentators onAmerican character, that I suppose one has a right to assume the truthof these characteristics. I have heard various ways of accounting forthem; and among others, the circumstances of their disposition toemigrate, which brings with it the necessity of inquiring after thewelfare of friends at a distance. It appears to me, however, this istaking a very narrow view of the cause, which I attribute to the generalactivity of mind among a people little restrained by the conventionalusages of more sophisticated conditions of society. The practice ofreferring so much to the common mind, too, has a great influence on allthe opinions of this peculiar portion of the American population,seeming to confer the right to inquire into matters that are elsewhereprotected by the sacred feeling of individual privacy.

  Let this be as it might,
my axe-men had contrived to get out of Jaap allhe knew about Ravensnest and Mooseridge, as well as my motives in makingthe present journey. This information obtained, they were not slow inintroducing themselves to me, and of asking the questions that wereuppermost in their minds. Of course, I made such answers as were calledfor by the case, and we established a sort of business acquaintancebetween us, the very first day. The voyage lasting several days, by thetime we reached Albany, pretty much all that could be said on such asubject had been uttered by one side or the other.

  As respected Ravensnest, my own property, my grandfather had requestedin his will that the farms might be leased, having an eye to mychildren's profit, rather than to mine. His request was a law to me, andI had fully determined to offer the unoccupied lands of that estate, orquite three-fourths of the whole patent, on leases similar in theirconditions to those which had already been granted. On the other hand,it was the intention to part with the lots of Mooseridge in fee. Theseconditions were made known to the axe-men, as my first essay in settlinga new country; and, contrary to what had been my expectation, I soondiscovered that these adventurers inclined more to the leases than tothe deeds. It is true, I expected a small payment down, in the case ofeach absolute sale, while I was prepared to grant leases, for threelives, at very low rents at the best; and in the cases of a largeproportion of the lots, those that were the least eligible by situation,or through their quality, to grant them leases without any rent at all,for the first few years of their occupation. These last advantages, andthe opportunity of possessing lands a goodly term of years, for rentsthat were put as low as a shilling an acre, were strong inducements, asI soon discovered, with those who carried all they were worth in theirpacks, and who thus reserved the little money they possessed to supplythe wants of their future husbandry.

  We talked these matters over during the week we were on board the sloop;and by the time we came in sight of the steeples of Albany, my men'sminds were made up to follow me to the Nest. These steeples were thentwo in number, viz.: that of the English church, that stood near themargin of the town, against the hill; and that of the Dutch church,which occupied an humbler site, on the low land, and could scarcely beseen rising above the pointed roofs of the adjacent houses; though theselast, themselves were neither particularly high nor particularlyimposing.