a8694
Fishkill village lies pleasantly in the lap of a plain near the foot of the mountains, and is a place of much interest to the student of our history. Securely sheltered by high mountains from invasion from below, and surrounded by a fertile country, it was chosen as a place of safe depository for military stores; for the confinement of Tory prisoners and others captured by strategy or in partisan skirmishes upon the Neutral Ground, in West Chester;
a9694
and, for a while, as the place of encampment of a portion of the Continental army, and the quiet deliberations of the state Legislature.
* The barracks were about half a mile south of the village, extending along the line of the road, to the foot of the mountains. The headquarters of the officers were at Mr. Van Wyck's, then the property of a Mr. Wharton. From this circumstance it is known as "The Wharton House." The burial-place of the soldiers is at the foot of the mountains, where a road of Isaac Van Wyck, branches eastward from the turnpike. This vicinity is the scene of many of the most thrilling events portrayed by Cooper in his "Spy; aTale of the Neutral Ground." In the Wharton House, Enoch Crosby, the alleged reality of the novelist's fictitious Harvey Birch, was subjected to a mock trial by the Committee of Safety, and then confined in irons in the old Dutch church in the village Crosby engaged in the "secret service" of his country in the autumn of 1776, and eminent were his personal achievements in making revelations to his Whig friends of the movements and plans of the Tories. At that period, secret enemies were more to be feared than open foes among these, in West Chester and the southern portions of Dutchess, Crosby mingled freely, for a long time, without incurring their distrust. While on one of his excursions, he solicited lodgings for the night at the house of a woman who proved to be a Tory. From her he learned that a company of Loyalists were forming in the neighborhood to march to
* The Marquis de Chastellux, who visited Fishkill in the autumn of 1780, says, in his interesting narrative, "This town, in which there are not more than fifty houses in the space of two miles, has been long the principal depot of the American army. It is there they have placed their magazines, their hospitals, their work-shops, &c.; but all these form a town of themselves, composed of handsome large barracks, built in the wood at the foot of the mountains; for the Americans, like the Romans in many respects, have hardly any other winter quarters than wooden towns or barricaded camps, which may be compared to the hiemalia of the Romans."—Travels in North America, i., 54. The war-sword of Washington, carefully preserved in a glass case in the National Museum at Washington City, was manufactured by J. Bailey, in Fishkill, and bears his name. His shop was yet in existence when I was there, but used as a stable. It was demolished in 1849. A drawing of the sword, and of the stall which Franklin bequeathed to Washington, may be found in another part of this work.
** This picture is from a sketch from life by Captain H. L. Barnum, the author of a small, thin volume, entitled The Spy Unmasked, dedicated to James Fennimore Cooper, Esq. It contains the memoirs of Enoch Crosby, who, the author asserts, was the original of Mr. Cooper's "Harvey Birch." The narratives were taken from Crosby's own lips, in short-hand, by Captain Barnum. Attempts have been made to cast discredit upon the work; but Doctor White, of Fishkill, who kindly accompanied me to the localities in that vicinity, assured me that his father, an aged man still living, was well acquainted with Crosby, and says the narrative of Barnum is substantially correct. Enoch Crosby was a native of Harwich, Barnstable county, in Massachusetts, where he was born on the 4th of January, 1750. During his infancy his parents went to the State of New York, and settled in Southeast, in Dutchess (now Putnam) county. In the midst of the noble and picturesque scenery of that region his childhood was passed. He learned the trade of a shoemaker. When the Revolution broke out, he laid aside his lapstone and last, and shouldered a musket. He was then residing at Danbury, and was one of the hundred men before mentioned, who, in 1775, marched to Lake Champlain, and were engaged in the battles in that quarter until Quebec was stormed. After his return, Crosby remained quiet for a while, and then became engaged in the "secret service." He caused many Tory companies to fall into the hands of the Whigs, and on such occasions he was usually captured, suffered imprisonment, but was generally allowed to escape. At length his successful exits from durance excited the suspicion of the Tories, and Crosby, deeming it unsafe to mingle with them longer, joined the detachment of the Continental army under Heath, then stationed in the Highlands. When his term of service expired, he returned to Southeast, where he cultivated a small farm, until his death in 1834. Captain Barnum asserts that the plan of Cooper's Spy was conceived at the house of John Jay, at Bedford, in West Chester county. Mr. Jay was one of the Committee of Safety who employed Crosby, and was necessarily acquainted with his exploits. Crosby was a witness at a court in New York city in 1827, and was recognized by an old gentleman, who introduced him to the audience as the original of "Harvey Birch."* The fact became noised abroad. The Spy, dramatized, was then in course of performance at one of the theaters; Crosby was invited to attend; his acceptance was announced; and that evening a crowded audience greeted the old soldier. Our gifted countrywoman, Miss Anne C. Lynch, has written thus doubtingly,
"On a Picture of Harvey Birch."I know not if thy noble worthMy country's annals enliven,For in her brief, bright history,I have not read thy name."I know not if thou e'er didst live,Save in the vivid thoughtOf him who chronicled thy life,With silent suffering fraught."Yet in thy history I seeFull many a great soul's lot.Who joins the martyr-army's ranks.That the world knoweth not."
Exploits of Enoch Crosby.—Incidents of his Life.—Ancient Dutch Church. Fishkill Village.
New York and join the British army. He became excessively loyal, and, agreeing to enlist with them, he obtained the unbounded confidence of the captain, who revealed to him all his plans. That night, when all was quiet, Crosby left his bed stealthily, hastened to "White Plains, where the Committee of Safety resided, * communicated the secrets of the expedition to them, and was back to his lodgings, unobserved, before daylight.
a9695
At Crosby's suggestion, a meeting of the company was held the following evening, and while in session, the house was surrounded by a band of Whigs, sent for the purpose by the Committee of Safety, and the inmates were all made prisoners. They were conveyed to Fishkill, and confined in manacles in the old stone church, one of the relies of the Revolution yet remaining. The Committee of Safety, who had come up to try them, were at the Wharton House. After an examination, the prisoners were all remanded to prison, Crosby among the
* The Committee of Safety then consisted of Messrs. Jay, Platt, Duer, and Sackett, distinguished patriots during the Revolution.
** This is from a pencil sketch by Miss Newlin, taken from the yard, looking southwest, the same point of view from whence I made a drawing, less pleasing to myself than the one kindly furnished me by the fail artist. The church is built of rough-hewn stone, stuccoed on three sides.
* In a monthly historical work, published at Concord, New Hampshire, in 1823, by Jacob B. Moore, Esq., late librarian of the Mew York Historical Society, is a brief biographical sketch of David Gray, who was a "spy" of the "Neutral Ground." The writer says, "The incidents of his life correspond in many particulars with the character of Harvey Birch, in the popular novel of the 'Spy.'" This was written six years before the publication of "The Spy Unmasked."
Escape of Crosby.—His Exploits at Teller's Point.—A very old Man and rejected Lover.—Trinity Church.
rest. By apparent accident he was left alone with the committee a few minutes, and a plan of escape was devised. He effected it through a window at the northwest corner of the church, which was hidden by a willow. On reaching the ground, he divested himself of his loose manacles; and with the speed of a deer he rushed by the sentinels, and escaped unhurt to a swamp, followed by three or four bullets, fired at random in the gloom. He was made a prisoner, with Tories, twice afterward, but managed to escape.
a8696
Several British and Hessian soldiers were at one time prisoners in the old stone church. The former were captured by stratagem at Teller's Point, near the mouth of the Croton River; the latter were stragglers, who fell in with a party of Loyalists near Yonkers, on the Neutral Ground. The British soldiers were captured by Crosby and a few men who composed part of a detachment under Colonel Van Cortlandt, then stationed on the east side of the Hudson to watch operations upon the Neutral Ground. While they were near Teller's Point, a British sloop of war sailed up the river and cast anchor in the channel opposite. Crosby and six others proceeded to the Point, five of whom, with himself, concealed themselves in the bushes; the other, dressed in infantry uniform, paraded the beach. The officers on the vessel observed him, and eleven men were dispatched in a boat to capture him. When the Englishmen landed, the American took to his heels. Unsuspicious of danger, they followed, when Crosby and his five men, making a noise in the bushes as if half a regiment was there, rushed out and bade the enemy surrender. Deceived and alarmed, they complied without firing a shot. The next day they were prisoners in the stone church in Fishkill.
Before visiting the Wharton House, I called upon the Reverend Mr. Kip, the pastor of the old church. He kindly allowed me to examine the records of the society, which, until a late period, were made in the Dutch language. They extend back to 1730, at whieh time, and for many years afterward, the church at Fishkill and another at Poughkeepsie were united, with the title of "The Parish Church at Fishkill and Poughkeepsie." I could find no account of the building of the church, but there is reason to believe that it was erected about the year 1725. Mr. Kip showed me a silver tankard, belonging to the communion-service of the church, which was presented to the society by Samuel Verplanek, Esq., chiefly for the purpose of commemorating, by an inscription upon it, a resident Norwegian, who died at the extraordinary age of six score and eight years. *
I passed half an hour at the Wharton House, and, returning to the village, sketched the old English church (now called Trinity) by the way. It stands upon the west side of the road, in the suburbs of the village, and in form is about the same as it was when it was used as an hospital for the
* The following is a copy of the inscription: "Presented by Samuel Verplanek, Esq., to the First Reformed Dutch Church in the town of Fishkill, to commemorate Mr. Englebert Huff, by birth a Norwegian, in his lifetime attached to the life guards of the Prince of Orange, afterward King William III. of England. He resided for a number of years in this country, and died, with unblemished reputation, at Fishkill, 21st of March, 1765, aged 128 years." It is related of Huff, that when he was a hundred and twenty years old he made love to a pretty girl of twenty. She already had an accepted lover of her own age, and of course rejected the suit of the Nestor. The old suitor was indignant at the refusal. He thought he had the best right to claim the heart and hand of the maiden, for he had a hundred years more experience than "the foolish boy," and knew better how to treat a wife than the interfering stripling.
** This picture is also from a pencil sketch by Miss Newlin.
Printing of the first Constitution of the State of New York.—Head quarters of Baron Steuben.—Anecdote of the Baron.
sick, and as a meeting-place of the flying Legislature of New York, when it adjourned from White Plains to Fishkill. According to the records, the session here commenced on the 3d of September, 1776. A few years since, while digging a grave in the yard, the sexton discovered a skeleton, with bits of scarlet cloth and a brass button, the remains, doubtless, of a British soldier, who was buried in his uniform.
a8697
An interesting bibliographic fact, connected with Fishkill, was communicated to me by Gulian C. Verplanck, Esq. I have already noticed the harassing circumstances under which the first republican Constitution of the State of New York was elaborated, discussed, and adopted the Legislature retiring before the approach of British bayonets, first to Harlem, then to Kingsbridge, Yonkers, White Plains, Fishkill, and Kingston. "TheConstitution of the State of New York,"says Mr. Verplanck, "was printed in 1777, and was the first, as well as the most important book, ever printed in the state. The people could find but one press in their domain with which to print this work of their representatives. It was done at Fishkill, by Samuel Loudon, who had been a Whig editor and printer in the city of New York, and who had retired with his press to Fishkill, where was the chief deposit of stores, hospitals, &c., of the northern army of the United States." ** Mr. Verplanck possesses a copy of this precious piece of American typography. They have become almost as scarce as the Sibylline Books, and quite as relatively valuable, for the principles therein embodied foreshadowed the destiny of the commonwealth. Unlike Tarquin the Proud, the possessor values it above all price.
I left the village toward noon, and, taking a more northerly route for the ferry, visited the residence of the late Judge Verplanck, situated in a beautiful, isolated spot, about a mile from the east bank of the Hudson, and two miles northeast of Fishkill landing. It is approached from the highway by a winding carriage track which traverses a broad, undulating lawn, shaded by venerable trees. The old mansion is ol stone, a story and a half high, with dormer windows, and in the style of the best class of Dutch-built houses erected one hundred years ago. It was owned by Samuel Verplanck, Esq., during the Revolution. An' addition, two stories high, has been erected at the north end. I sketched only the ancient edifice. This house is remarkable, in connection with my subject, as the head-quarters of the Baron Steuben when the American army was encamped in the vicinity of Newburgh, *** and also as the place wherein the celebratedSociety of the Cincinnatiwas organized in 1783. The meeting for that purpose was held in the large square room on the north side of the passage. **** The room is carefully preserved in its original style.
* See page 387, this volume.
** I have a public document, printed there by Loudon, in 1776.
*** An anecdote illustrative of Steuben's generous character is related, the scene of which was at Newburgh, at the time of the disbanding of the army. Colonel Cochrane, whom I have mentioned in a former chapter, was standing in the street, penniless, when Steuben tried to comfort him hy saying that better times would come. "For myself," said the brave officer, "I can stand it; but my wife and daughters are in the garret of that wretched tavern, and I have nowhere to carry them, nor even money to remove them." The baron's generous heart was touched, and, though poor himself, he hastened to the family of Cochrane, poured the whole contents of his purse upon the table, and left as suddenly as he had entered. As he was walking toward the wharf, a wounded negro soldier came up to him, bitterly lamenting that he had no means with which to get to New York. The baron borrowed a dollar, and handing it to the negro, hailed a sloop and put him on board. "God Almighty bless you, baron!" said the negro, as his benefactor I walked away. Many similar acts hallow the memory of the Baron Steuben.
**** The following record of the proceedings at the final meeting of the convention I copied from the original manuscript in the possession of Peter Force, Esq., of Washington City, and print it here as an interesting scrap in the history of the closing scenes of the Revolution.
**** "Cantonment of the American Army, 19th June, 1783.
**** "At a meeting of the general officers, and the gentlemen delegated by the respective regiments,"as a convention for establishing the Society of the Cincinnati, held by the request of the president, at which were present Major-general Baron de Steuben, president; Major-general Howe, Major-general Knox, Brigadier-general Paterson, Brigadier-general Hand, Brigadier-general Huntington, Brigadier-general Putnam, Colonel Webb, Lieutenant-colonel Huntington, Major Pettengill, Lieutenant Whiting, Colonel H. Jackson, Captain Shaw, Lieutenant-colonel Hull, Lieutenant-colonel Maxwell, and Colonel Cortlandt, General Baron de Steuben acquainted the convention that he had, agreeably to their request at the last meeting, transmitted to his excellency the Chevalier de la Luzerne, minister plenipotentiary from the court of France, a copy of the institution of the Society of the Cincinnati, with their vote respecting his excellency and the other characters therein mentioned, and that his excellency had returned an answer declaring his acceptance of the same, and expressing the grateful sense he entertains of the honor conferred on himself and the other gentlemen of the French nation by this act of the convention.
**** "Resolved, That the letter of the Chevalier de la Luzerne be recorded in the proceedings of this day, and deposited in the archives of the society, as a testimony of the high sense this convention entertain of the honor done to the society by his becoming a member thereof.
**** (Here follows the letter.)
**** "The baron having also communicated a letter from Major l'Enfant, inclosing a design for the medal and order containing the emblems of the institution,
**** "Resolved, That the bald eagle, carrying the emblems on its breast, be established as the order of the society, and that the ideas of Major l'Enfant respecting it and the manner of its being worn by the mem-Ders, as expressed in his letter, hereto annexed, be adopted. That the order be of the same size, and in every other respect conformable to the said design, which for that purpose is certified by the Baron de Steuben, president of this convention, and to be deposited in the archives of the society, as the original from which all copies are to be made. Also that silver medals, not exceeding the size of a Spanish milled dollar, with the emblems, as designed by Major l'Enfant and certified by the president, be given to each and every member of the society, together with a diploma, on parchment, whereon shall be impressed the exact figures of the order and medal, as above mentioned, any thing in the original institution respecting gold medals to the contrary notwithstanding.
**** (Here follows Major l'Enfant's letter.)
**** "Resolved, That the thanks of this convention be transmitted by the president to Major l'Enfant for his care and ingenuity in preparing the aforementioned designs, and that he be acquainted that they cheerfully embrace his offer of assistance, and request a continuance of his attention in carrying the designs into execution, for which purpose the president is desired to correspond with him.
**** "Resolved, That his excellency the commander-in-chief be requested to officiate as president general, until the first general meeting, to be held in May next. "That a treasurer general and a secretary general be balloted for, to officiate in like manner.
**** "The ballots being taken, Major-general M'Dougall was^elected treasurer general, and Major-general Knox secretary general, who are hereby requested to accept said appointments.
**** "Resolved, That all the proceedings of this convention, including the institution of the society, be recorded from the original papers in his possession by Captain Shaw, who at the first meeting was requested to act as secretary, and that the same, signed by the president and secretary, together with the original papers, be given into the hands of Major-general Knox, secretary general to the society, and that Captain North, aid-de-camp to the Baron de Steuben, and acting secretary to him as president, sign the said records.
**** "The dissolution of a very considerable part of the army, since the last meeting of this convention, having rendered the attendance of some of its members impracticable, and the necessity for some temporary arrangements, previous to the first meeting of the general society, being so strikingly obvious, the convention found itself constrained to make those before mentioned, which they have done with the utmost diffidence of themselves, and relying entirely on the candor of their constituents to make allowance for the measure.
**** "The principal objects of its appointment being thus accomplished, the members of this convention think fit to dissolve the same, and it is hereby dissolved accordingly. "Steuben, Major General, President."
The Society of the Cincinnati.—Final Proceedings in the Organization of the Institution
"While contemplating a final separation of the officers of the army," says Doctor Thacher, "the tenderest feelings of the heart had their afflicting operation. It was at the suggestion of General Knox, and with the acquiescence of the commander-in-chief, that an expedient was devised by which a hope was entertained that their long-cherished friendship and social intercourse might be perpetuated, and that at future periods they might annually communicate, and revive a recollection of the bonds by which they were connected." *. Pursuant to these suggestions, the officers held a meeting. A committee, consisting of Generals
* Military Journal p. 317.
Plan and Name of the Society of the Cincinnati.—The Constitution.—Opposition of Judge Burke and others.
Knox. Hand, and Huntington, and Captain Shaw, was appointed to revise the proposals for the institution. Another meeting was held on the 13th of May, at the quarters of Steuben (Verplanck's), when the committee reported. A plan, in the following words, was adopted, * and the society was duly organized:
"It having pleased the Supreme Governor of the universe, in the disposition of human affairs, to cause the separation of the colonies of North America from the domination of. Great Britain, and, after a bloody conflict of eight years, to establish them free, independent, and sovereign states, connected by alliances, founded on reciprocal advantages, with some of the greatest princes and powers of the earth:
"To perpetuate, therefore, as well the remembrance of this vast event, as the mutual friendships which have been formed under the pressure of common danger, and in many instances cemented by the blood of the parties, the officers of the American army do hereby, in the most solemn manner, associate, constitute, and combine themselves into one society of friends, to endure so long as they shall endure, or any of their eldest male posterity, and in failure thereof, the collateral branches, who may be judged worthy of becoming its supporters and members. **
"The officers of the American army, having generally been taken from the citizens of America, possess high veneration for the character of that illustrious Roman, Lucius Quin-tius Cincinnatus, and being resolved to follow his example, by returning to their citizenship, they think they may with propriety denominate themselves the Society of the Cincinnati.
"The following principles shall be immutable, and form the basis of the Society of the Cincinnati:
"An incessant attention to preserve inviolate those exalted rights and liberties of human nature for which they have fought and bled, and without which the high rank of a rational being is a curse instead of a blessing.
"An unalterable determination to promote and cherish, between the respective states, that unison and national honor so essentially necessary to their happiness and the future dignity of the American empire.
"To render permanent the cordial affection subsisting among the officers, this spirit will dictate brotherly kindness in all things, and particularly extend to the most substantial acts of beneficence, according to the ability of the society, toward those officers and their families who unfortunately may be under the necessity of receiving it.
"The general society will, for the sake of frequent communications, be divided into state societies, and these again into such districts as shall be directed by the state society.
"The societies of the districts to meet as often as shall be agreed on by the state society; those of the state on the 4th day of July annually, or oftener if they shall find it expedient; and the general society on the first Monday in May annually, so long as they shall deem it necessary, and afterward at least once in every three years.
* This document, according to Colonel Timothy Pickering, was drawn up by Captain Shaw, who was the secretary of the committee.
** This clause gave considerable alarm to the more rigid Whigs, because of the recognition of the right of primogeniture in membership succession. Judge Ædanus Burke, of South Carolina, attacked it with much vehemence, as an incipient order of nobility, and an attempt to establish the pretensions of the military to rank above the mass of citizens. The objection was groundless, for no civil, military, political, or social prerogative was claimed. On the other hand, the King of Sweden (Gustavus Adolphus III.) declined permitting the few officers in the French army who were his subjects to wear the order of the Cincinnati, on the ground that the institution had a republican tendency not suited to his government. On this subject, Washington, in a letter to Rochambeau, written in August, 1784. said, "Considering how recently the King of Sweden has changed the form of the government of that country, it is not so much to be wondered at that his fears should get the better of his liberality as to any thing which might have the semblance of republicanism; but when it is further considered how few of his nation had, or could have, a right to the order, I think he might have suffered his complaisance to have overcome them."—See Sparks's Life and Writings of Washington, ix., 56.
Certificate of Membership of the Cincinnati.—The Design and Engraving.—Alteration of the Plate.
"At each meeting, the principles of the institution will be fully considered, and the best measures to promote them adopted.
a0700m
"The state societies will consist of all the members residing in each state respectively, and any member removing from one state to another is to be considered in all respects as belonging to the society of the state in which he shall actually reside. *
* This clause is omitted by Dr. Thacher and others. I find it in a manuscript copy of the Constitution of the society, and records of the proceedings at its formation, among the papers of Colonel Richard Varick, in the handwriting of General William North.
** This engraving is a fac simile of a certificate, about one fourth the size of the original, which is thirteen inches and a half in breadth, and twenty inches in length. Tire originals are printed on fine vellum. The plate was engraved in France by J. J. le Veau, from a drawing by Aug. le Belle. I am indebted to the late James G. Wilson, son of Ensign Wilson, named in the certificate, for the use of the original in making this copy. The former was engraved on copper; this is engraved on wood. The design represents American liberty as a strong man armed, bearing in one hand the Union flag, and in the other a naked sword. Beneath his feet are British flags, and a broken spear, shield, and chain. Hovering by his side is the eagle, our national emblem, from whose talons the lightning of destruction is flashing upon the British lion. Britannia, with the crown falling from her head, is hastening toward a boat to escape to a fleet, which denotes the departure of British power from our shores. Upon a cloud, on the right, is an angel blowing a trumpet, from which flutters a loose scroll. Upon the scroll are the sentences, "Independence declared, A.D. 1776. Treaty of alliance with France declared, A.D. 1778. Peace! independence obtained, A.D. 1783."
** Upon the medallion on the right is a device representing Cincinnatus at his plow, a ship on the sea, and a walled town in the distance. Over his head is a flying angel, holding a ribbon inscribed "Reward of virtue." Below is a heart, with the words "Be thou perpetual." Upon the rim is the legend, "Society of the Cincinnati, instituted 1783." The device upon the medallion on the left is Cincinnatus with his family, near his house. He is receiving a sword and shield from three senators; an army is seen in the distance. Upon the rim are the words "He abandons every thing to serve his country" (referring to Cincinnatus).
* There is a fact connected with this sentence worthy of notice. In the earlier impressions from the plate, taken previous to the year 1785, the sentence is Palam nuntiata libertas, not libertatis. Some person, who doubtless supposed the original word to be incorrect, caused the letters t i s to be crowded into the space occupied by the final s in libertas. I have the authority of one of our most learned Latin critics, to whom the question was submitted, for saying that the original word was correct, and that the alteration renders the sentence ungrammatical and totally incorrect, thereby destroying its meaning. Do any of our historical antiquaries know by whose authority the alteration was made?
The Order of the Society.—The successive Presidents General.—Departure for West Point.
"The state societies to have a president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and assistant treasurer, to be chosen annually by a majority of votes at the stated meeting.
"In order to obtain funds which may be respectable, and assist the unfortunate, each officer shall deliver to the treasurer of the state society one month's pay, which shall remain forever to the use of the state society. The interest only of which, if necessary, to be appropriated to the relief of the unfortunate.
a8701
"The society shall have anorder,by which its members shall be known and distinguished, which shall be a medal of gold, of a proper size to receive the emblems, and be suspended by a deep blue ribbon, two inches wide, edged with white, descriptive of the union of America with France."
I am indebted to the kindness of Colonel Joseph "Warren Scott, of New Brunswick, New Jersey, now (1850) the president of the society of that state, for the following information respecting the successive presidents general of the institution.
General Washington was the first president general, and continued in office until his death, in December, 1799. In May, 1800, General Alexander Hamilton was elected as his successor. He was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804, and, at the next general meeting, General Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of South Carolina, was elected as his successor.
He died in August, 1825. At a special meeting of the society, held at Philadelphia in November, 1826, Major-general Thomas Pinckney was elected president general.1 At his death, Colonel Aaron Ogden, of New Jersey, was elected to fill his place. He held the office until his decease in April, 1838, when General Morgan Lewis, of New York, became his successor. General Lewis died on the 7th of May, 1844, in his ninetieth year, and the venerable Major Popham, also of New York, was elected as his successor at the general meeting in November following. Major Popham died in the summer of 1848, and, at the meeting in November of that year, General Dearborn, the present incumbent, was elected to supply the vacancy. Such is the brief history of a society over which the venerated Washington first presided.
I left the interesting mansion wherein the society was organized at noon, and reached Newburgh in time to dine and embark at half past one for West Point, eight miles below.
* "At that meeting," says Colonel Scott, in a letter to me dated July 9, 1850, "delegates attended from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and South Carolina. Colonel Ogden and myself were delegates from New Jersey. At that meeting it was ascertained that all the officers of the society but one had departed this life. The survivor was Major Jackson, of Pennsylvania. These communications were given and received in sadness, and a respectful and affectionate notice was taken of those who had left us forever."
** This was drawn from an original in the possession of Edward Phalon, Esq., of New York. The engraving is the exact size of the original. The leaves of the sprigs of laurel are of gold, and green enamel; the head and tail of the eagle gold, and white enamel; and the sky in the center device blue enamel. The device and motto are the same as upon the medallion on the right of the certificate.
West Point and its Associations.—Mrs. Faugeres.—Sufferings of Mrs. Bleeckor
"What though no cloister gray nor ivyed column
Along these cliffs their somber ruins rear;
What though no frowning tower nor temple solemn
Of despots tell, and superstition here;
What though that moldering fort's fast-crumbling walls
Did ne'er inclose a baron's bannered halls,
"Its sinking arches once gave back as proud
An echo to the war-blown clarion's peal—
As gallant hearts its battlements did crowd
As ever beat beneath a breast of steel,
When herald's trump on knighthood's haughtiest day
Called forth chivalric hosts to battle-fray."
C. F. Hoffmax
"Low sunk between the Alleghanian hills
For many a league the sullen waters glide,
And the deep murmur of the crowded tide
With pleasing awe the wondering voyager fills.
On the green summit of yon lofty clift
A peaceful runnel gurgles clear and slow,
Then down the craggy steep-side dashing swift,
Tumultuous falls in the white surge below."
Margaretta V. Faugeres.
a9702
N the midst of wild mountain scenery, picturesque but not magnificent when compared with the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Adirondack and Catskill range in New York, or the Alleghanies in Western Pennsylvania and Virginia, is a bold promontory called West Point, rising more than one hundred and fifty feet above the waters of the Hudson, its top a perfectly level and fertile plateau, and every rood hallowed by associations of the deepest interest. West Point! What a world of thrilling reminiscences has the utterance of that name brought to ten thousand memories in times past, now, alas! nearly all slumbering in the dreamless sleep of the dead! How does it awaken the generous emotions of patriotic reverence for the men, and things, and times of the Revolution, in the bosoms of th*e present generation! Nor is it by the associations alone that the traveler is moved with strong emotions when approaching West Point; the stranger, indifferent to our history and of all but the present, feels a glow of admira-
* Mrs. Faugeres was the grand-daughter of Brandt Schuyler, and daughter of Mrs. Anne Eliza Bleeeker, one of the notable sufferers from the invasion of Burgoyne in 1777. Mrs. Bleecker was then living, with her husband, about eighteen miles from Albany. Mr. Bleecker went to that city to make arrangements for moving his family thither. While absent, Mrs. Bleeeker heard of the approach of Burgoyne and his horde of savages, and, leading her eldest child by the hand, and bearing her youngest in her arms, she started on foot for Albany. After a wearisome journey of a day, and a night passed in a wretched garret, she started forward with her precious charge, and soon met her husband, with whom she returned to the city. Her babe died a few days afterward, and within a month her mother expired in her arms, at Red Hook, in Dutchess county. Her husband was afterward captured by a party of Tories. This event, and his sudden restoration when she thought him dead, so overpowered her, that her constitution sunk beneath the shocks, and she died in the autumn of 1783. Margaretta (afterward Mrs. Faugeres) was the "sweet sister" alluded to in the following lines, extracted from a poem written by Mrs. Bleecker on the death of her child:
"Rich in my children, on my arms I boreMy living treasures from the scalper's power.When I sat down to rest beneath some shade,On the soft grass how innocent she play'd,While her sweet sister from the fragrant wildCollects the flowers to please my precious child."
Scenery around West Point—The Military Establishment.—Wood's Monument.—Interesting Relics.
tion as he courses along the sinuous channel of the river or climbs the rough hills that embosom it. The inspiration of nature then takes possession of his heart and mind, and
"When he treads
The roek-encumbered crest, and feels the strange
And wild tumultuous throbbings of his heart,
Its every chord vibrating with the touch
Of the high power that reigns supreme o'er all,
He well may deem that lips of angel-forms
Have breathed to him the holy melody
That fills his o'erfraught heart."
Bayard Taylor.
The high plain is reached by a carriage-way that winds up the bank from the landing; the visitor overlooking, in the passage, on the right, the little village of Camptown, which comprises the barracks of United States soldiers and a few dwellings of persons not immediately connected with the military works. On the left, near the summit, is "the Artillery Laboratory," and near by, upon a little hillock, is an obelisk erected to the memory of Lieutenant-colonel Wood. * On the edge of the cliff, overlooking the steam boat landing, is a spacious hotel, where I booked myself as a boarder for a day or two. A more delightful spot, particularly in summer, for a weary traveler or a professed lounger, can not easily be found, than the broad piazza of that public dwelling presents. Breezy in the hottest weather, and always enlivened by pleasant company, the sojourner need not step from beneath its shadow to view a most wonderful variety of pleasing objects in nature and art. Upon the grassy plain before him are buildings of the military establishment—the Academic Halls, the Philosophical and Library buildings, the Observatory, the Chapel, the Hospital, the Barracks and Mess Hall of the cadets, and the beautifully shaded dwellings of the officers and professors that skirt the western side of the plateau at the base of the hills. On the parade the cadets, in neat uniform, exhibit their various exercises, and an excellent band of music delights the ear. Lifting the eyes to the westward, the lofty summit of Mount Independence, crested by the gray ruins of Fort Putnam, and beyond it the loftier apex of Redoubt Hill, are seen. Turning a little northward, Old Cro' Nest and Butter Hill break the horizon nearly half way to the zenith; and directly north, over Martelaer's Roek or Constitution Island, through the magnificent cleft in the chain of hills through which the Hudson flows, is seen the bright waters of Newburgh Bay, the village glittering in the sunbeams, and the beautiful, cultivated slopes of Dutchess and Orange. The scenery at the eastward is better comprehended and more extensive as seen from Fort Putnam, whither we shall presently climb.
I passed the remainder of the afternoon among the celebrities clustered aroundOctober 26, 1848the plain. I first visited the Artillery Laboratory, where are deposited several interesting trophies and relics of the Revolution. In the center of the court is a group of great interest, consisting of a large brass mortar, mounted, which was taken from the English when Wayne captured Stony Point; two small brass mortars, taken from Burgoyne at Saratoga, and a portion of the famous chain whieh the Americans stretched across the river at West Point to obstruct the passage of the vessels of the enemy. The large mortar
* The following is the inscription on this monument: "To the memory of Lieutenant-eolonel E. D. Wood, of the corps of engineers, who fell while leading n charge at the sortie of Fort Erie, Upper Canada, 17th of September, 1814, in the 31st year of his age. He was exemplary as a Christian, and distinguished as a soldier. A pupil of this institution, * he died an honor to his country. This memorial was erected by his friend and commander, Major-general Jacob Brown."
* Military Academy at West Point.
Size of the Mortars and Chain.—Position of the Chain in the River.—Other Relics.—Koseiuszko's Monument
has a caliber of ten and a half inches; the smaller ones, of four inches and three quarters. The former is emblazoned with the English coat of arms, beneath which is engraved"Aschaleh, fecit, 1741."