Author V ee€>eeeeeeet>eeeeeee€jeeeeeeeee9<9<99<999&(»9m€>e /" / '4^Cf.Ar)(H)l,SH OCT 10 19(8 '^■T / C HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT ^ OF PENNSYLVANIA ?THE INDIANS AND THE EARLY SETTLERS OF PENNSYLVANIA Algonquins and Iroquois. The Indians whom the settlers found on their arrival in Pennsylvania were a branch of the ^ Algonquin family called the Lenni Lenape or Delaware Indians. 'I^ Their traditions said that they had come years ago from the -^ west and had finally succeeded in crossing the Alleghanies in spite of the opposition of the Iroquois. For several hundred years the Iroquois had been organized into a great confederacy called the Five Nations. This union made them more effective as fighters, so that, at the coming of Penn, they had succeeded in conquering all the Algonquin tribes in the east. The Indians lived in small huts of bark or skins, grouped in villages, which were generally located along good streams where there was tillable land on which the Indians could raise the corn, beans, squash, pumpkin, and other vegetables which they cultivated. All the tribes were divided into clans each of which had a sachem who was the chief authority. The sachems decided questions concerning peace and war and other matters which affected the tribe as a whole. When the tribe went to war, the authority over the warriors was given to the chiefs who gathered around them enough warriors to undertake an expedition. The Dutch. Interested by the explorations of Henry Hudson, the Dutch sent an expedition to America in 1613 for the purpose of establishing posts for trading with the Indians. One of their . captains, Cornelius May, entered the capes of the Delaware and gave his name to Cape May. On a later expedition May sailed up the river and built a fort which he called Fort Nassau, opposite Philadelphia. ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT A few years afterwards, in 1631, another Hollander, named DeVries, established a trading post just inside Cape Henlopen on the western side of the bay. This little settlement was called Swanendael, or the Valley of the Swans. DeVries returned to Holland, and in his absence the Indians attacked Swanendael and murdered all the inhabitants. Andreas Hudde, who commanded Fort Nassau, crossed the Delaware and built a fort called Beversrode, near the mouth of the Schuylkill in the year 1646. This caused a dispute with some Swedes and Finns who had already settled in the neighbor- hood. Finally, Governor Stuyvesant of New Am- sterdam came with a strong force to protect l3oth Fort Beversrode and Fort Nassau. Stuyvesant did not attack the Swedes, but built a fort called Fort Casimir, just where the Delaware River flows into the bay. The Swedes. Sweden next became interested in the idea of sending colo- Sketch from an old map on which are shown some of the early settle- ments on the Delaware nies to America. In 1638, Queen Christina secured the services of a former governor of New Netherlands, Peter Minuit, who sailed up the Delaware to the mouth of a small river. Here he built a fort which he called Fort Christina in honor of the queen. The country was called New Sweden. From Fort Christina as a center the Swedes spread north- ward along the shores of the Delaware. Soon there were many prosperous settlements. The most important of these was at Upland, now Chester. After the death of Governor Minuit, Peter Ridder made a treaty with the Indians by which HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 3 the Swedes acquired the right to settle along the Delaware as far as Trenton. The next year, 1643, John Printz was made governor. Printz established a new capital for the settlements at a place called Tinicum (now Essington, Pa.). Here he built himself a great house and laid out a large plantation which he called Printz Hof. A church was also built. Quarrels between the Dutch and the Indians. Not long after the death -of Governor Printz, his successor, Rinsing, succeeded in capturing Fort Casimir. News of this aroused the anger of Stuyvesant, who sailed with a number of ships for the Delaware, captured the Swedish settlements and laid waste New Gothen- berg, as Printz had called his settlement at Tinicum. The Swedish officials were sent back to Sweden and the people had to take an oath of allegiance to the Dutch but were permitted to live in accordance with their own laws. The Dutch retained possession of the settlements until the surrender of New Amster- dam to the English in 1664. In 1674, by the treaty of peace, they were transferred to the permanent possession of England. Reminders of the Early Settlers. In Philadelphia and Dela- ware counties there are many reminders of the Swedish occupa- tion. The name of Upland survives in a borough a few miles from Chester; along Darby Creek are remains of old houses and mills which were built by the Swedes. Queen, Christian (Christina), and Swanson streets, in southeast Philadelphia preserve the names of Sweden's great queen, and of the two brothers from whom Penn purchased the site of Philadelphia. In this part of the city can be seen some houses which were built by early Swedish settlers. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. How did the Indians live? 2. What was the "Five Nations"? 3. If possible obtain some specimens of Indian weapons, tools, and pottery that have been found in Pennsylvania. What do you think of the Indian as a workman? 4 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT 4. Name some of the nations that explored or settled in or near what is now Pennsylvania. 5. What places of to-day are on the sites of some of these earliest settle- ments? 6. Make a list of the names that are reminders of the settlers before Penn. REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL READING Heckewelder: History, manners, and customs of the Indian tribes who once inhabited Pennsylvania. Garber: Settlements on the Delaware prior to the coming of Penn. Day: Pennsylvania Historical Collections. THE FOUNDING OF PENNSYLVANIA The Quakers. During the century from 1600 to 1700, various groups of people in England had gradually come to form differ- ing opinions as to the way services in the church should be con- ducted. One of these groups of people who wished to worship as they pleased was called Quakers, who followed the teachings of a man named George Fox. They believed that all the ceremonies and ornaments that were frequently used in churches interfered with true worship. They also thought that all men were equal in the sight of God, and that no especial respect should be shown to the nobles, or even to the king. The Quakers did not believe in war or fighting and refused to pay taxes for warlike purposes. Members of the Society of Friends, as they called themselves, were frequently imprisoned or fined for violating the laws relating to religion. William Penn becomes a Quaker. One day a Quaker named Thomas Loe was preaching in Oxford in England, when a party of students passed. In this party was a young man named William Penn, son of a great English admiral. Young Penn stopped to listen and became shortly convinced of the truth of the preacher's arguments. He joined the Society of Friends and went about preaching their doctrines. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA Admiral Penn was very angry when he heard of his son's attachment for the Quakers, and sent him to Paris. When he returned from the continent, the admiral sent him to Ireland to look after some lands, hoping that the continued separation would cause him to forget his new beliefs. While in Ireland, young Penn again met Thomas Loe and from that time became an ac- tive member of the so- ciety, going about preach- ing, for which he was imprisoned several times. He afterwards became reconciled to his father, and on the death of the admiral was left much wealth. William Penn, now a rich man, resolved to help his oppressed Quaker brethren. Having found it impossible to collect in money a debt which the King had owed his father, Penn proposed that the King should give him a tract of land in America. To Penn's great delight, the King agreed to give him about forty thousand square miles of land along the Dela- ware River, west of the Jerseys. Penn wished to call his new province Sylvania, or the Woodland, to which the Kiiig insisted on prefixing the name Penn in honor of the admiral. Charles II, who was King at the time, signed the charter giving Penn the land on March 4, 1681. Portrait of William Penn as a Young Man This, the so-called "Armor Portrait," was painted when Penn was twenty-two years old, while he was looking after his father's affairs in Ireland. It is now in the rooms of the Pennsylvania Historical Society. ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT Penn Establishes his Colony. Immediately Penn set about securing colonists for his new province. He had made several trips into Holland and had traveled up the Rhine Valley trying to convert the people to Quakerism. Many of the people became Quakers and many more came to know Penn. He wrote letters and had pamphlets printed telling these Quakers of the new colony and the ad- vantages of settling where they could get cheap land and be free from oppression and could live under laws which they them- selves .would be per- mitted to make. Meanwhile Penn was also engaged in organizing many of the Quakers in Eng- land into companies to come to Pennsyl- vania and in prepar- ing for his own voyage to America. Penn sent his cousin, William Markham, to Pennsylvania to meet with the people from Europe who had already made some settle- ments on Penn's lands. Three commissioners were also sent to select the best site for the new capital. Finally, all was ready, and Penn, with a company of about one hundred men, women, and children, sailed on the ship "Wel- come" from London for Pennsylvania on August 30, 1682. Type or Penn's Ship, the "Welcome" No picture of the "Welcome" is in existence. This is a picture of a similar ship of the later seven- teenth century. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 7 Just before the "Welcome" left England, smallpox broke out among the voyagers. Not until late in October did Penn and his company arrive in the Delaware, with their numbers much reduced, thirty of the passengers having died during the voyage. Penn arrived at Newcastle on October 27, 1682, and was wel- comed by some Swedes and Finns who were settled in that neighborhood. Then he proceeded to Upland, where he had called together the first assembly in the new colony. The assembly adopted with few changes a form of constitution which Penn had prepared in England. This constitution, known as the Great Law, provided, amongst other things, that no person should be compelled to frequent any place of religious worship but should enjoy religious liberty; that criminals should be taught a useful trade while serving their sentence; that schools should be established, and that children should be taught a trade. The death penalty was to be inflicted only for treason and murder. At this time in England about two hundred offences were punishable with death. Besides a representative assembly, to be elected by the people, Penn provided for the appointment by the governor of a council, or body of advisers. Penn at Philadelphia; the Great Treaty. From Upland, Penn proceeded to the site of the new city, which he had decided to name Philadelphia. Here Penn met with the Indians to make a treaty with them. Under an old elm tree at Shacka- maxon, Penn addressed the assembled chiefs. He told them that he was a Friend and did not believe in fighting, and that he wished to live in peace and friendship with them. In reply the Indians said that they would live in love with Penn and his children as long as the sun and moon should endure. The treaty was not broken so long as Penn and the Quakers retained control of the colony. A wampum belt, given to Penn on this occasion, is now in the possession of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Penn's next step was to lay out his city on the site chosen. Ten streets were laid out from river to river, and, with the 8 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT exception of High Street, were given the names of forest trees. The streets running north and south were numbered beginning with each river, the two series meeting at Broad Street. Where Broad and High (now Market) streets intersected there was a large square or common. Other squares were located in each of the four quarters of the city. When Penn first landed there were few houses for the colonists to live in, so for the first few years many of the settlers lived in caves dug in the river bank. Penn's first house in Philadelphia was erected near Second and Market streets in Letitia Court, named after his daughter Letitia. At the end of two years six hundred houses had been built. Treaty Belt gi\^n to Penn by the Indians This belt was presented to the Pennsylvania Historical Society by Granville Penn, a descendent of the founder. Emigrants, attracted by the promise of civil and religious freedom, came to Pennsylvania in great numbers. This was particularly true of the Welsh Quakers and of the various German religious sects along the Rhine. In 1684, the population of Pennsylvania was estimated at four thousand, and other thou- sands were coming yearly from almost all the countries of Europe. In 1690 it is said that there were upwards of ten thou- sand poor Germans in camps near London, many of them waiting for passage to Pennsylvania. Penn goes to England in Behalf of his Colony. After estab- lishing his colony Penn returned to England in 1684 to adjust if possible a dispute which had arisen with Lord Baltimore con- cerning the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland. At this time William and Mary came to the throne. The court HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA was unfavorable to Penn and took away his province. It was restored to him, however, in 1694. In 1699, Penn came the second time to his colony. With Penn, came James Logan, a young Irish Quaker, whom Penn employed as his secretary and confidential agent. It was his duty to negotiate with the various Indian tribes the treaties which secured the title to Indian lands so that they could be safely sold again to the settlers. Logan learned to speak many of the Indian dialects and the Indians considered him their good friend. His great house at S ten- ton is still standing, not' far from Wayne Junction on the Reading Railroad. When there was to be a great conference between the Governor's council and the Indians, the floors and even the stair- ways of Stenton would be occupied at night by Logan's Indian guests, sleeping in their robes and blankets. Boundary Disputes; Troubles with Lord Baltimore. The grant by Charles II to Penn included the land west of the Dela- ware River, bounded by a circle drawn twelve miles distant from Newcastle northward and westward unto the beginning of the fortieth degree of northern latitude, thence by a straight line westward through five degrees of longitude. The northern boundary was to be the forty-second parallel. Lord Baltimore had, however, been granted the land west of Delaware Bay which lay "under the fortieth degree of latitude," and which up to that time had remamed uncultivated or settled. Owing to House in which William Penn lived, in Philadelphia This house, formerly in Letitia Court, now stands in Fairmount Park. lO ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT the inaccurate maps, the fact did not appear that a circle drawn twelve miles from Newcastle would be many miles south of the fortieth parallel. If Lord Baltimore's claim were valid, all of Penn's new city would have lain within the limits of Maryland. Penn based his interpretation on the fact that the land in ques- .tion had already been occupied by the Dutch and Swedes and hence was not uncultivat(?d. Map Illustrating the Principal Boundary Disputes The Erie triangle was not involved, having been purchased by Pennsylvania from the United States in order to secure a port on Lake Erie. Disputes had also arisen with Lord Baltimore concerning the boundary between Maryland and the Three Lower Counties. Many conferences were held without result. In the meantime colonists settled in the disputed parts, under authority from both provinces, with the result that many conflicts occurred. Final Settlement; Mason and Dixon's Line. An agreement reached in 1732, provided that a portion of a circle should be drawn twelve miles distant from Newcastle; that a Jine should HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA ii be drawn in a general northerly direction from a point half way between Cape Henlopen and Chesapeake Bay till it reached the twelve-mile circle. From this tangent point a line was to be drawn directly north till it crossed a line fifteen miles south of Philadelphia. This crossing was the northeastern corner of Maryland. From this point a line was to be drawn directly west to form the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland. In 1 761, therefore, two surveyors named Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon were employed to survey the line as agreed upon. This line, later known as the Mason and Dixon's Line, became famous as the boundary between the free and slave states during the period preceding the Civil War. The Dispute with Connecticut. Another important land question was the dispute with Connecticut. Connecticut had been granted the land west to the Pacific which was not occupied by any other colony, and claimed a strip of Pennsylvania about sixty miles wide and three hundred miles long. Settlers from both colonies attempted to colonize the region, first one side and then the other gaining the upper hand. During the Revolu- tion the quarrel slumbered, but was renewed at the close of the war, giving rise to a civil conflict known as the Yankee- Pennamite War. In 1782, a commission of the Continental Congress decided the dispute in favor of Pennsylvania and order was gradually restored. Germantown Founded. The Germans of the Rhine Valley were among the first settlers to come to Pennsylvania. A company was formed at Frankfort to take up several thousand acres of land in Pennsylvania. Francis Daniel Pastorius, a learned man, was sent over in 1683 to select the tract, but Penn refused to allot the land until the arrival of the settlers. Mean- while, a company of Germans had arrived from Crefeld and asked Pastorius to become their leader. He consented, and persuaded Penn to give them land in what is now Germantown. Soon houses were erected, and the colonists planted vines and flax, intending to carry on the industries with which they were 12 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT familiar. The settlers early shifted their attention to the production of crops more suited to the climate, and the linen industry gradually gave place to the spinning and weaving of wool. Workmen in other trades came, and even gold- and silversmiths were mentioned as carrying on these arts in German- town. Pastorius. Francis Daniel Pastorius remained the chief man in the settlement until his death. In 1687 he was elected a member of the assembly, and in 1691, when Germantown was made a borough, Penn made Pastorius the first bailiff. In 1701 a school was started in Germantown under his direction. Christopher Saur. Another famous settler of Germantown was Christopher Saur or Sower. When he came to Germantown he set up a printing press and by 1739 had started the publication of a newspaper. Sower cast his own types and made his own ink. He also published, in German, the first complete Bible used in the colonies. Other Settlers; Count Zinzendorf. Many of the settlers who came to Pennsylvania were men of wealth and position in the old country. Among these was Count Zinzendorf, who was the leader of a religious sect called the United Brethren or Moravians. These people, driven from their homes in Germany, at first went to Georgia, but encountered much persecution because they would not help fight the Indians. About 1740 they came to Pennsylvania. Zinzendorf bought ten thousand acres of land near the junction of the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers, and founded a settlement at Bethlehem. From Bethle- hem groups of men traveled among the hostile Indians, making converts to their religion. One of the most important converts of the Moravians was the great Delaware chieftain, Teedyuscung. Ephrata. The Dunkers or Tunkers were a German religious sect that organized about the year 1708. As a result of much persecution they came to America. Gradually a little settle- ment was formed at a place called Ephrata, in Lancaster County. This settlement became a self-sustaining community, following HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 13 the trades and occupations that would enable them to depend on themselves. They established a printing press, built a paper mill, and printed many books, tracts, and hymns, all in Ger- man. Some of the continental money was printed on the presses at Ephrata. The people abstained from flesh foods, and used wooden blocks for pillows, thin octagonal pieces of board for plates, and even their forks and drinking vessels were made of wood. Manheim ; Baron Stiegel. Manheim was a small village laid out by Baron Stiegel, who came to the province about 1750 and established glass and iron works at several places in Lebanon and Lancaster counties. Many other settlements in the eastern and southeastern parts of Pennsylvania were made by the Germans. Character of the German Settlers. The German settlers were described as being thrifty and persevering. The original cabins were replaced by substantial stone dwellings, and still more substantial barns and storehouses. Although seminaries and academies were occasionally established, there was little oppor- tunity for the boy or girl to acquire an education. In such schools as there were, German was the only language used. Logan, in a letter written about 1730, says that the numbers from Germany will soon produce a German colony here, and fears were entertained that the province might not remain loyal to the English government. Conrad Weiser. Conrad Weiser lived among the Indians of New York and came to Philadelphia to act as their interpreter when they made a treaty. He was induced to become the agent for the proprietary in dealings with the Indians. His honesty and truthfulness brought him the high regard of the savages and helped materially in maintaining good relations between the colonists and the natives. Weiser kept them from being cheated in land purchases and always insisted that the Indian lands be protected from encroachment on the part of the whites. 14 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT First Protest in America against Slavery. A number of the settlers of Germantown, in the year 1688, joined in a protest against slavery. In this protest, signed by Pastorius and three of his friends, it is pointed out that Christians, by making slaves of the blacks, are worse even than the Turks, from whom nothing better is to be expected. And those who steal men and those who purchase them are all alike. The Welsh. The Welsh settled in Montgomery, Chester, and Delaware counties. Prior to the coming of Penn in 1675 there were a few settlements of Welsh Quakers. In 1682, Haverford, Merioneth (Merion), and Radnor townships were organized, and three others in a year or two. These were part of a tract of forty thousand acres which had been bought from Penn. Other land was bought from earlier settlers and a settle- ment was made at Guynned. One of the settlers had lived at Brin Maur, in Merioneth, North Wales. These are names now given to places in southeastern Pennsylvania. The whole district was known as the Welsh Tract. Character of the Welsh Settlers. Many of the Welsh were of good education and family and were of considerable wealth. Some had been persecuted on account of their religion; others sought a better living than could be had at home. Unlike the Germans, the Welsh soon gave up their native tongue, as did both the Swedes and the Scotch, speaking and writing the language of the colony. Early writers speak of the prosperity and industry of the Welsh settlers. They had fine plantations and gave much time to the breeding of cattle, and they were soon classed among the wealthiest settlers in the province. The Scotch-Irish; Who they Were. These people were of Scotch ancestry and emigrated to Ireland during the seventeenth century. About 1720 they decided to emigrate to America. Soon thousands of them had arrived, some settling in the southern colonies, but most of them coming to Pennsylvania. James Logan tells us that the first comers settled in that part of Penn- HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 15 sylvania near the Maryland boundary. In 1730 Logan complains that they unlawfully settled upon 15,000 acres of land in Conestoga Manor. They gave as an excuse that "it was against the laws of God and Nature that so much land should be idle, while so many Christians wanted it." The Indians were much alarmed at this seizure of their land, and bitter hostility soon developed. The Indian troubles which afflicted the later years of the colony were chiefly due to the attitude of the Scotch-Irish toward their Indian neighbors. Scotch-Irish Settlements. Gradually towns and townships were organized and a more settled life ensued. These Scotch- Irish settlements were scattered all through southern Penn- sylvania. Their towns and -villages may be traced through the Scotch and Irish names either of places or of people which most of them bear, such as Carlisle, Harrisburg (located at the point where John Harris had a ferry across the Susquehanna), Berwick, Paxton, etc. Character of the Scotch-Irish Settlers. The people were hardy fighters, well fitted to defend the frontier of a new colony. At the same time they were deeply religious' and had a great love of learning. The effect of these qualities was to give the Scotch-Irish a prominent part in determining the future, not only of Pennsylvania, but of the whole nation. Their Interest in Education; The Log College. Wherever a settlement was fonned a church was built and a school estab- blished. One of the first Latin Schools in the state was taught by an old Scotchman in the vicinity of what is now Gettysburg. One of the most famous of the Scotch-Irish schools was the Log College, founded in 1721 at the forks of the Neshaminy Creek, in Bucks County, by the Rev. William Tennant. It was particularly intended for the training of ministers. Later some of its faculty were invited to help organize the College of New Jersey at Princeton. Education Amongst the Quakers. Penn's Great Law provided that schools should be established. In accordance with this 1 6 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT provision, the Quakers originated the "Friends' PubHc School" in 1689. George Keith became its first master. Six years earlier than this, in 1683, Enoch Flower opened the first English school. His terms were: to read English, four shillings; to write, six shillings; to read, write, and cast accounts, eight shillings; for teaching, lodging, and diet. Flower charged ten pounds a year. The Academy. About 1750 Benjamin Franklin presented a plan for an academy and charity school. Twenty-six hundred pounds were raised, the City Council helped with an annual grant, and the academy was started. In 1753, it was created a college with the right to grant degrees, the charity school being continued. In 1791, the college was chartered by the Assembly under the name of the University of Pennsylvania. The Germans and Education. The Germans did not, as a rule, display the same interest in education as did the Quakers and the Scotch-Irish. The school at Germantown, established by Pastorius, has been mentioned. A few other schools were established, however, particularly schools for higher learning, such as the Academy at Lititz, and seminaries at Bethlehem and Nazareth. Especial mention should be made of Christopher Dock, who came to America in 17 14 and taught school in Germantown and other places, and wrote the first book for teachers printed in America. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. Why do you suppose Penn called his plan a "Holy Experiment"? 2. What differences were there between the government of Pennsylvania and that of Virginia? 3. Give some reasons why Penn's colony was so prosperous. 4. Make a list of a dozen names of places in your neighborhood. Along- side these names write their origin; for example, Chester, English; Cambria, Welsh; Lititz, German; Harrisburg, Scotch-Irish; etc. 5. What were the principal boundary disputes between Pennsylvania and other colonies? There were other less important disputes. See if you can find out what they were. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 17 REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL READING Watson: Annals. BoUes: Pennsylvania, Province and State. Egle: Illustrated History of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Fisher: The Making of Pennsylvania. Walton and Brumbaugh: Stories of Pennsylvania. Penn, William: Description of Pennsylvania. Glenn: Merion and the Welsh Tract. Myers: The Migration of the Irish Quakers into Pennsylvania. Keyser: The History of Germantown. Hanna: The Scotch-Irish. Garber: Schools and School Masters in Early Pennsylvania. Lippincott: Early Philadelphia; her People, Life, and Progress. Wickersham: History of Education in Pennsylvania. mDUSTRIES OF COLONIAL PENNSYLVANIA Agriculture. The first comers to Philadelphia depended for their food on stores brought over in ships, together with what could be gained by hunting and fishing, or by trade with the Indians. Most of the settlers took at once to agriculture, not only to supply themselves with food, but as a profitable occupa- tion. The farmer would clear his land by burning the forest or by girdling the trees, and then plowing and sowing around the bare trunks. The plow was a primitive affair of wood, with the mold board sometimes faced with a thin plate of iron. The harrow was a frame of wood, with wooden or iron teeth driven through it. There was no plan by which the productive- ness of the soil was maintained or increased, except through what was known as rotation of crops. Cattle and hogs were permitted to roam around the country and in the woods, where they fed on grass and acorns. Products. Grain, flour, salt beef, and pork were the principal exports. The potato was looked upon with suspicion. Corn was better known, and was one of the staple foods. The tomato was a curiosity, grown in front yards. Melons, head lettuce, and i8 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT others of our common vegetables were not grown. The few va- rieties of apples, cherries, pears, and other fruits had little flavor and attractiveness. Tropical fruits were scarce and expensive. Manufacturing; Textiles. The spinning and weaving in- dustries were carried on in the homes of the settlers, and not in great mills such as we have to-day. Only the coarser stuffs were woven in the colony, especially a goods composed of linen and wool called linsey-woolsey. When a wealthy colonist wanted finer goods he sent to England or France for them. Hats. Hat making was a common industry in all the colonies, owing to the ease of procuring beaver fur out of which the felt for hats was made. The hatters of Pennsylvania early developed great skill so that a demand arose for Pennsylvania hats not .only in other colonies but also in England. This interfered with the trade of English merchants and an act was passed forbidding the export of hats. Paper. In 1690 William Rittenhouse established the first paper mill in the colonies. Soon paper mills could be found, dotted over the settled parts of the colony. Often printers established their own paper mills so as to be able to assure them- selves a regular supply. Leather. The leather industry early assumed a great im- portance in the colony. The demand for leather in England was great and leather formed a large part of the costurne of the colonial workman. Besides shoes, he wore a pair of leather breeches and a large leather apron. Flour Mills. Flour and gristmills were found at almost every spot where there was a sharp enough descent in the stream to run a water wheel. Often such mills were constructed so that the power could be used in sawing logs into boards. In the less settled sections of the colony the building of a mill did not at first repay its cost so that the pioneers either pounded their grain to a coarse meal, or used a hand mill. Gold and Silver Smithing. Silver smithing and gold smithing were rather uncommon trades. There was little of either of HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 19 these metals in the colony until long after the Revolution. They are mentioned as being the trades of some of the first settlers of old Germantown. Iron Works and Forges. The first furnace was established at Mana tawny (now Colebrookdale) , Berks County, in 1720. In 1 7 19 an unsuccessful attempt was made to have a law passed by Parliament prohibiting the establishment of rolling and slitting mills. In 1750 another attempt to pass such an act succeeded. The furnaces and forges did a great business in supplying articles of iron for home consumption. Nails were hammered out by the children around the big fireplaces in the kitchens, while every little settlement had its blacksmith shop. In 1750 nearly four thousand tons of iron were exported to England. Printing and Publishing. Almost as soon as the city of Phila- delphia was founded, William Bradford set up a printing press in Philadelphia, and in 17 19 his son began the publishing of a gazette called the American Weekly Mercury. In 1728 Keimer began the Pennsylvania Gazette, which later was purchased by Benjamin Franklin. Perhaps Franklin's most famous produc- tion was Poor Richard's Almanac. Christopher Saur printed in German the first Bible in a European language printed in the colonies. Both Saur and Franklin made their own ink and cuts, and Saur made some of his own type and paper. Shipbuilding. In 1683, a letter of Penn's says: ''Some vessels have been built here and many boats." The vessels were probably small ones, but from that beginning has grown Pennsylvania's prominence as a shipbuilding state. The early shipyards occupied the banks of the Delaware north of High (Market) Street. A large business was done also in the construction of great rafts composed chiefly of timber for the building of ships in English yards. Commerce. In colonial times the commerce of Pennsylvania consisted in exchanging the products of the new country, such as lumber and furs, for the needed manufactured goods from the home country. Grain and flour were also shipped from 20 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT Pennsylvania, principally to the West Indies. The articles of chief export in the earlier days were beef, pork, grain, flour, lumber. Later coarse fabrics, crude iron, and leather became articles of commerce. In 1702, about seven hundred hogsheads of tobacco were sent to England. In 1701 Penn wrote that the customs amounted to eight thousand pounds; a large sum to come from a colony but twenty years old. This trade was car- ried on chiefly with England and her colonies in the West Indies. Considerable illegal commerce was carried on between Pennsyl- vania and the French and Spanish colonies in the West Indies. Industrial Restrictions. Under the rule of Cromwell in England, Parliament passed the first Navigation Act, which provided that colonial trade should be solely with England, or between the ports of English colonies. The owner, captain, and majority of the sailors on a ship had to be Englishmen. This act was reenacted in 1660 and its terms were made even more severe. It also provided that sugar, tobacco, cotton, wool, and dye woods should be exported only to England. On the other hand, tobacco was forbidden to be grown anywhere except in America and bounties were paid for the production of masts and other timber for ships. Later inter-colonial trade in wool and woolens was strictly forbidden, but colonial pro- ducers of naval stores, hemp, and indigo were paid bounties to encourage these industries. In 1732 the exportation of hats was forbidden and in 1750 the colonial manufacture of rolled iron and steel was stopped. These restrictive measures pre- vented the colonists from selling in the best markets, as well as from being able to buy the manufactured goods they needed from England, and eventually forced the people to supply their own needs. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. Tell about the methods of agriculture in colonial Pennsylvania. 2. Make a list of colonial industries. Tell which were most important. 3. What were some of the chief exports to England? What things did the colonists import? HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 21 4. What industries were interfered with by Enghsh laws? What industries were encouraged through bounties or in other ways? 5. What were the effects of these laws (a) on the industries in question, (b) on the attitude of the colonists toward England? 6. Make a scrap book containing pictures pertaining to colonial industry, such as implements, modes of living, old mills and other buildings, etc. 7. Make a list of articles that Pennsylvania exported in colonial times that are no longer exported. REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL READING . Bolles: Pennsylvania, Province and State. Fisher: The Making of Pennsylvania. Garber: Occupations of the Early Inhabitants. (In Keyser and others: The History of Old Germantown.) Philadelphia Commercial Museums: The Port and City of Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Society Colonial Dames of America: Forges and Furnaces in the Province of Pennsylvania. LATER COLONIAL HISTORY The Keith Controversy; Freedom of the Press. When Penn returned to England in 1684 he left Thomas Lloyd as his deputy. A group of Quakers, headed by a man named George Keith, wrote pamphlets attacking Lloyd and some of the magistrates. Keith was sued for libel and fined. The question as to whether the statements were libellous or not was left to the jury to determine. The old English doctrine of "the greater the truth, the greater the libel" was ignored, and the freedom of the press was thus founded in Philadelphia. Disputes between the Governors and the Assembly. In 1699 when Penn returned to Pennsylvania, new charters were granted to the province and to Philadelphia which gave the people greatly increased power, and correspondingly reduced the influence of the governor and council. This was the beginning of a series of difficulties between the authorities and the people. The governors met with determined opposition from the Assembly whenever they tried to obtain money for defensive 22 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT % purposes. The Quakers, who controlled the Assembly, refused to grant money for this purpose. Finally the need for defence against the French and Indians led the Quakers to give up their control of the Assembly in order that the other groups could appropriate money for the defence of the province. Later Relations with the Indians; the Walking Purchase. As the settlers moved toward the mountains it became necessary from time to time to acquire more land from the Indians. Many troubles arose through the misunderstanding by the Indians of the terms of treaties as well as through the eagerness of the pio- neers to settle on Indian lands. One of the most famous quarrels arose through the Walking Purchase. Thomas Holme, Penn's agent, had agreed with the Indians for the land stretching back from Wrightstown on this Pennsylvania side of the Delaware, near Trenton. The distance was to be as far as a man could walk in a day and a half. Edward Marshall, a famous walker, was engaged to do the walking. Much to the anger and disgust of the Indians, Marshall walked for thirty-six hours, practically without food or rest. The Indians had expected that the party would rest from time to time, camp at night, and do the walking in a leisurely way, covering perhaps thirty miles. Instead of that Marshall covered a distance of about seventy miles. The Paxtang Massacre. Some Scotch-Irish had settled near Paxtang Creek on land which had not been bought from the Indians. Difficulties followed, and some Indians murdered a settler. In revenge, a group of Scotch-Irish went to Conestoga, where some Christian Indians lived, and killed all they could find. The next day they went to Lancaster, dragged some more Indians from the jail where they had taken refuge, and barba- rously massacred the lot, men, women, and children. The French and Indian War. So many of the events of the French and Indian War took place in Pennsylvania that much of that portion of the history of the colony will be found treated in its proper place in the main narrative of our country's story (see pages 89-99). Of special interest, however, is the series HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 23 of frontier forts which the colonists built as part of the measures for defence. There were about fifteen of these that were impor- tant. They stretched from Fort Penn, near Easton, through what is now Sunbury and Wilkesbarre, to Bedford, and so down to the Potomac. Forty Fort, near Wilkesbarre, is perhaps the most famous of these. It was the scene of the Wyoming Massacre in June, 1778, by the British and Indians under Colonel Butler. Preliminaries of the Revolution; the Stamp Act. Penn- sylvania stoutly resisted the enforcement of the various acts which were aimed at interference with colonial trade, or which imposed taxes on the colonists. When the Stamp Act went into effect ships put their flags at half mast, bells were tolled as for a funeral, and newspapers appeared with heavy black bands on the margins with a statement that publication would be suspended until the act was repealed. The Philadelphia Tea Party. A few years later, when the tax was placed on tea, a committee of citizens went down the river to meet a vessel bringing tea to the colony. Hand bills were printed addressed to Captain Ayres of the ship "Polly" telling him that fire-rafts would be sent against the ship; that Pennsylvanians believed that no power on earth had a right to tax them without their consent; and that if the captain per- sisted in attempting to land the tea, the citizens would put a halter around his neck, pour ten gallons of tar on his head, and would cover that with the feathers of a dozen wild geese; ending by advising him to fly without the aid of the geese feathers. This hand bill was dated November 27, 1773, three weeks before the Boston Tea Party. As a result Captain Ayres sailed away with the tea. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. What is a libel? What is meant by "freedom of the press"? 2. Explain why the Quakers did not wish lo appropriate money for the defence of the colony. 3. The treaty made by Penn with the Indians was broken about the time of the French and Indian War. Can you explain why? 24 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT 4. On a map of Pennsylvania locate and name all the old frontier forts that you can. 5. What did the people of Pennsylvania do about the Stamp Act and other acts taxing the colonists? 6. Make a list of historical places located within ten miles of your school. For References see the lists of books under preceding sections. FROM THE REVOLUTION TO THE WAR OF 1812 1 First Continental Congress. The First Continental Con- gress, which met in Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, had distin- guished Pennsylvanians in its membership, one of whom, John Dickinson, wrote the Address to the King and the Address to the People of Canada. Dickinson also wrote the Articles of Confederation and many other papers of the Second Congress. Second Continental Congress. When the Second Congress finally resolved to oppose Great Britain by force, they appointed the delegates from Pennsylvania to se- cure money for the pur- chase of the first supplies. Six out of the ten companies of riflemen authorized as the beginnings of an army, were from Pennsylvania. Washington appointed Thomas Mifflin quarter- master-general, and Joseph Reed adjutant-general, both of whom were Pennsylvanians. 1 For further accounts of events of national importance consult the earlier pages of this work. ■Bai^^^^^ ► .-.-'• mri^^ 1 fjii'iiiiil mS 1^ %01/MtiiS 111' 3 ^^^^HKe:*^'-^ * » ■11111 .^ Hall of the Carpenter's Company of Philadelphi.\ In this room, usually known as Carpenters' Hall, the First Continental Congress met. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 25 Declaration of Independence. The delegation from Penn- sylvania was in favor of independence, and on account of their numbers and prominence did much to swing the luke-warm members of Congress to their side. The resolutions, which were adopted on July second, were formulated into a Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The Declaration was first signed by John Hancock, the president of Congress, and by Charles Thompson, the secretary, the latter a Pennsylvanian. The Middle States Campaign. In the battles around New York, thou- sands of Pennsylvania troops were in Washing- ton's army, and just when Washington had given up New York and New Jersey, the arrival of fif- teen hundred Pennsyl- vania militia enabled him to surprise the British at Trenton and Princeton. The next year the war came to Pennsylvania. After an unsuccessful attempt to reach Philadelphia by way of the Delaware, the British landed at the head of Chesapeake Bay, defeated Washington at Chadd's Ford on the Brandywine, and made their way to Philadelphia. A detachment of the British sur- prised a small force at Paoli and totally defeated it. Congress first moved to Lancaster and then to York and the old Liberty Bell was hidden in a church in Allen town. Washington finally escaped to the north of the city and made a stand at Germantown where the battle centered around the Chew Mansion. By mistake, one body of American soldiers Chew Mansion, Germantown British troops held this house during the battle. When the Continentals advanced, they swept past the house, giving the British the opportunity to attack them from the rear. 26 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT attacked another, and in the resulting confusion the Americans were forced to retreat. Howe settled down in Philadelphia while Washington went into winter quarters at Valley Forge, on the Schuykill, about twenty-five miles northwest of the city, which was included in the Mount Joy plantation which Penn had given to his daughter, Letitia. Here the patriot army spent the worst winter of the war. Without food, shoes, or other adequate clothing, the army was nevertheless held together. Many times Washington despaired of the success of the cause, but never so much as in this ter- rible whiter. Meanwhile in Philadelphia the British were living in comfortable houses with plenty of food. In June, 1778, Clinton, who had succeeded Howe, left Philadelphia for New York and, except for oc- casional raids, Pennsyl- vania was thereafter free from the British. The Constitutional Con- vention. When the Arti- cles of Confederation were found to be inadequate, delegates from five states, including Pennsylvania, met at Annapolis to determine, if possible, on amendments. It was found that the desired changes would be so radical that the meeting recoimiiended that a convention be called to be held in Philadelphia in May, 1787. For four months the convention worked, and in September, 1787, the new constitution was presented to the states for adoption. Pennsylvania was the second state to ratify it, Delaware being first. A sufficient number of states having acceded to it, the constitution went into effect in 1789. After the establishment of the new government, Philadelphia was the capital for ten years, from 1790 to 1800. Washington's Headquarters at Valley Forge HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 27 The Whisky Rebellion. The new government, in order to secure revenue, had placed a tax on whisky. Settlers in the western part of Pennsylvania looked upon the tax as being unjust and opposed it. Washington called out the troops and many of the rioters were arrested, thus ending the trouble. A similar difficulty was the so-called Fries' Rebellion which arose from the unposition of a tax on windows. This riot was soon put down. Fries was tried for treason, and convicted, but was pardoned by President Adams. Pennsylvania Democratic. During the second administration of Washington the citizens of Pennsylvania opposed some of the federalist legislation, such as the Excise Law, the Alien and Sedition Laws, and the Jay Treaty. As a result Pennsylvania became Democratic. Jefferson's policy, in general, including the purchase of Louisiana, was approved, though much distress was caused by the embargo. Harrisburg the Capital. In 18 10 the capital of the state was moved to Harrisburg from Lancaster whence it had been moved from Philadelphia in 1799. A capitol building was commenced in 18 1 9 and was first occupied by the Assembly in 1822. The War of 1812. Pennsylvania was strongly in favor of the War of 181 2. The Pennsylvania militia was of chief im- portance in the Battles of Chippewa and Lundy's Lane. In the naval battles of the war Pennsylvanians took a con- spicuous part. Commodore Decatur, who earlier had recaptured the frigate "Philadelphia" from the Tripolitans, was commander of the frigate "United States" when it captured the "Mace- donian." James Biddle commanded the "Wasp" when it captured the British sloop "Frolic." Commodore Stewart suc- ceeded Bainbridge as commander of the "Constitution." On one occasion he fought two British ships and captured both. The preparations for Perry's victory on Lake Erie were made and the ships were built at Erie, Pennsylvania. The country had to finance the War of 181 2 by borrowing money. As the war was unpopular with many people of the ?8 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT country, they subscribed to only a small fraction of the bond issue. Stephen Girard, a Philadelphia banker, then came to the aid of the country, organizing a syndicate that took the rest of the bonds. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. What were the events leading to the British occupation of Philadelphia? 2. Tell the story of the Continental Army at Valley Forge. 3. While the British were in Philadelphia they had a famous entertain- ment called the Meschianza. Find out aU you can about it. 4. Give some reasons why the Continental Congresses and the Constitu- tional Convention met in Philadelphia. 5. Try to find out why the capital of the United States was moved from Philadelphia to Washington. 6. Why would the people of Pennsylvania be opposed to the Jay Treaty? 7. Make a list of Pennsylvania men connected with the War of 181 2, and tell what they did. 8. Collect pictures illustrating the history of Pennsylvania during this period. REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL READING Fisher: Pennsylvania, Colony and Commonwealth. Watson: Annals. Day: Pennsylvania Historical Collections. THE CIVIL WAR PERIOD Slavery. After the War of 181 2, the most important political events centered around the slavery question. Pennsylvania had produced the first protest against slavery, and in 1780 had provided for the freeing of the slaves within her jurisdiction. When abolition became a national issue, Philadelphia became the center of the movement. Anti-slavery newspapers were published and widely circulated. Many of the homes of the Quakers and others who were opposed to slavery were the first stations in the ''Underground Railway." On the other hand, many were favorable to slavery. Mobs collected, burned the houses of negroes, and persecuted them in other ways. The HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 29 first night Pennsylvania Hall, which the abolitionists had built for their meetings, was used, a mob burnt it to the ground. From that time on till the Civil War the opposition to slavery- grew. The Civil War. Pennsylvania furnished many of the soldiers and noted commanders of the Civil War. On only a few occa- sions, however, did the war come within her boundaries. In October, 1862, after the battle of Antietam, General Stuart with a force of Confederate cavalry made a raid into Chambers- burg, ransacked the town for horses and supplies, burnt some of the buildings, and got safely away. Gettysburg. The following June, Lee swung north again into Maryland, threatening to capture Harrisburg, and later Philadelphia and Washington. General Hooker hastened to the defence and forty thousand Pennsylvanians enlisted as an auxiliary force of troops. The Confederates again occupied Chambersburg while Lee began to concentrate his army at Gettysburg. At this critical juncture Lincoln placed General Meade, a native Pennsylvanian, in command. Li the mean- time General Early with Lee's cavalry had occupied Wrights- ville, across the Susquehanna from Columbia, but a regiment of the Emergency Troops burned the bridge at this point and checked the advance. The Confederates were about to attack the defences of Harrisburg when they were recalled by Lee. The two armies finally met at Gettysburg, July i, 1863. General Reynolds was driven back through the town to a rise called Cemetery Ridge, where Meade with the other troops joined him. The Confederates held the town and a hill to the west called Seminary Ridge. The next day, July 2, Lee attacked the center of the Union line. Meade hurried supports to the defence and disaster was averted. Up to now it was a drawn battle. The third day, Lee, fearing the rapidly approaching reinforcements for Meade, ordered another attack on the center, at a point occupied by the Philadelphia brigade. Promptly at a signal the Confederate 30 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT artillery prepared the way. When the bombardment ceased, eighteen thousand Confederate troops under General Pickett charged over the mile of ground between the two armies. As the soldiers in gray fell, the ranks were closed by others. A few succeeded in reaching the low stone wall which the Union troops used as a breastwork. The Confederates were driven, defeated, back to their own lines. The next day, July 4, Lee set off for the south. In the third invasion of Pennsylvania, Chambersburg suffered for the third time. July 30, 1864, a detachment of cavalry raided the town and demanded a ransom. This not being forthcoming, the town was burnt. Pennsylvania's Part in Financing the War. The financing of the war was due largely to the skill and efforts of Jay Cooke, a Philadelphia banker, who conceived and organized the plan by which the government bonds were successfully marketed. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. What was the "Underground Railway"? 2. Can you give some reasons why Pennsylvania should become the center of the anti-slavery movement? 3. Tell the story of the Battle of Gettysburg. Why was it the most im- portant battle of the Civil War? 4. Why was the history of Pennsylvania comparatively uneventful between the War of 181 2 and the Civil War? REFERENCES FOR ADDITION.\L READING Fisher: Pennsylvania, Colony and Commonwealth. Sharpless: Two Centuries of Pennsylvania History. Pennypacker: Pennsylvania, the Keystone. RECENT fflSTORY Pennsylvania, a Republican State. The slavery question had caused the voters of Pennsylvania to favor the election of Lincoln. After the war the people of the state, believing that HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 31 the continuance of the war tariff was essential to their com- mercial prosperity, continued to favor the Republican Party in national elections. In the days of reconstruction a Penn- sylvanian, Thaddeus Stevens, was the leader of the group that believed that the South should be punished for what they called its treason. The Centennial. In 1876, a great world's fair was held in Philadelphia to commemorate the centennial of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Exhibits came from all the countries of the world. The commerce and art of the country, and of Pennsylvania m particular, received much stimulus and benefit from the exhibit of the newest products, processes, and inventions. The Molly Maguires. A few years earlier, a secret organiza- tion of coal miners, known as the Molly Maguires, had banded together for the purpose of securing higher wages and other advantages. The organization did not hesitate to murder those who stood in its way. In 1876 the organization was broken up through the arrest and conviction of the chief ofifenders. The Pittsburgh Riots. The next year (1877) the railroads reduced the wages of their men. As a result riots broke out in Pittsburgh, and much property was burned or otherwise de- stroyed. United States troops were called out, but did not quell the disturbance till many had been killed on each side. The Homestead Riots. Another serious labor difficulty was the trouble at Homestead in 1892, arising through wage ques- tions between the owners of the great iron works at that place and their workmen. During the rioting many workmen as well as officers of the law were killed. Other labor disturbances have occurred, notably the great anthracite coal strike in 1902. This strike was settled through the mediation of President Roosevelt. 32 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. Why should the tariff on imported goods affect the prosperity of Penn- sylvania? 2. Find out if you can some of the new things the people learned about at the Centennial. 3. What causes the labor troubles that are so frequent in Pennsylvania? Can you think of any way that they might be prevented? 4. Find out what you can about the work of the State Constabulary. For Reference see list of books for the preceding sections. DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATE — RESOURCES, COMMERCE, AND INDUSTRY Internal Improvements; Canals, Roads, Bridges. The great loss of foreign commerce resulting from the embargo and the War of 181 2 had caused the people to withdraw much of their money from the shipping industry. The spare capital was in- vested in bridges, turnpike roads on which toll was charged, and in a system of canals, designed to connect the rivers of the state with one another and with the Great Lakes. In order to help these projects the state frequently invested in large blocks of stock. These were often poor investments and the people and the state lost much money. Later state money was also invested in railroads. The first turnpike in the country was the Old Lancaster Pike, built in 1792. One of the earliest bridges is the one over Nes- haminy Creek in Edisonville, Bucks County, built in 1801. The first public canal in the country was commenced in 1792 at Norristown and was intended to connect the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers. During the period from 1791 to 1828, over twenty-two million dollars were expended by the state and by corporations on internal improvements. Railroads. The first railway in the United States was built in 1809 by Thomas Leiper from his quarries near Swarthmore HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 33 34 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT to Ridley Creek. In 1823 a railroad was chartered to run from Philadelphia to Columbia. The first trains were drawn by horses and the cars were drawn up the hills by stationary engines which wound up the ropes to which the cars were fastened. The success of inventors and mechanics in developing locomo- tives soon resulted in the substitution of railroads for canals. The Reading Railroad was begun in 1833, and tapped the great anthracite region in the eastern part of the state. To-day 12,000 miles of railroad bring every part of the state within a few hours' travel of the centers of population. Minerals; Iron. Iron was the earliest mineral to be manufactured in the state. In 181 2, it was found possible to use anthracite in the produc- tion of pig iron. The vast deposits of limestone and rich iron ore soon gave the state a preeminence in the production and manufacture of iron that has never been questioned. This preeminence was assured after the opening of the mines of soft coal in the western part of the state, about 1830, permitted the cheap production of coke. The iron in- dustry thereafter had two centers, one in the neighborhood of Reading and the other near Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh district produces far more iron and steel than any other region in the world. To-day Pennsylvania produces half the pig iron in the United States, and its value is more than that of all the gold, silver, lead, and zinc products in the country. Coal. Anthracite was discovered and used by individuals before the Revolution, but not until about 1825 did it come into Canal along the Susquehanna, at Shickshinny, Luzerne County The cheap and rapid transportation service of the railroad at the left of the picture has taken away most of the business of the canal. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 35 Drilling Machine at work, Bituminous Coal Mine regular use. Bituminous coal was discovered about the same time as anthracite, and was used m smelting iron about 1840. From a historical point of view the chief importance of these industries is the effect they have had on the development, industrially and socially, of the state. The population is largely centered in the industrial regions adjacent to the coal fields, and much of the social disorder in the state has come from the struggles of the workers to improve wages and the conditions of labor. Oil. Petroleum or rock oil had long been known to the In- dians, who had obtained it from certain springs and used it as a medicine. In 1859, a man named Drake drilled the first oil well, and soon Pennsylvania was produc- ing millions of barrels of oil a year. In time the supply diminished and richer fields were dis- covered in western states. Natural gas, associated with the oil, was discov- ered later, and gave rise in particular to the plate glass industry in Pitts- burgh. Two thirds of the plate glass produced by this country is made in Pennsylvania. The oil district is in the north- western part of the state and much of the population there Oil Derricks at McDonald, Pennsylvania Each derrick is directly over an oil well. 36 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT Fitch's Steamboat came as a result of the development of the business of pro- ducing and refining the oil. Inventions and Discoveries. John Fitch in 1786 contrived a boat with paddles which were driven by a steam engine. A similar boat plied be- tween Philadelphia and Burlington for some time. It was finally wrecked on an island in the Dela- ware. Robert Fulton, who invented a more ■ practical steamboat, was born in Pennsyl- vania, and as a boy made paddle-wheeled boats driven on a pond on his father's farm, by boy-power. In 1801 Oliver Evans built a curious machine which could travel either on water or on land, and which was a predecessor of both the steamboat and the automobile. In 1 83 1, Matthias Baldwin made the first American locomotive. Benjamin Tilghman iavented the process of making paper from wood pulp by the sulphite process, in 1866. In 1859, E. C. Knight designed and patented the first sleeping car. Manufactures. After the War of 181 2, and particularly after the discovery of abun- dant supplies of coal, Pennsylvania took the lead in the variety and value of its manufactured products, Philadelphia for a Erecting Siioj^ Haiiuvin Locomotive Works, PmL.^DELPHiA HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 37 long time was the leading city in the country in this respect, and in the census of 1809 it was the only city in which manu- factures were reported separately. The value of the products at that time was ten million dollars. In 1909, the value of the manufactured products of the city was $750,000,000, and of the state $2,650,000,000. Twenty- three different industries each produced goods valued at more than $25,000,000. The five of greatest importance were steel works and rolling mills; foundries and machine shops; blast furnaces; leather; and woolens, worsteds, and other manu- factures of wool. Iron and Steel. In 1756, Pennsylvania was spoken of as the most advanced of all the Ameri- can colonies in regard to its iron works. Steel was first made about 1750, but in 1809 there were only five steel plants which made five hundred tons of steel. At present over 15,000,000 tons are pro- duced annually from nearly two hundred establishments. In 181 2, the first steel mill in Pittsburgh was erected. In 1867, Bessemer steel was first made at Steelton, and the first steel rails made in the country were produced the same year at Johnstown, The first rolling mill in the United States for rolling bar iron was built in 18 17 at Plumsock, where the first refined or puddled iron was produced the same year. Ever since the census of 1879, the mills of Pennsylvania have reported more than one half of the total iron and steel product of the country. Leather. This industry was carried on for the most part in small tanneries scattered through the wooded portion of the state. In old accounts of industries in the state we find tanneries Rolling Steel, Homestead, Pa. 38 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT mentioned about as often as paper mills. The great develop- ment of the leather industry in Pennsylvania has come since 1888, when a Philadelphian, Robert Foerderer, discovered a process for making a glazed leather by the use of chemicals, instead of tanbark. Leather could now be made in great fac- tories. Instead of importing fine leathers, Pennsylvania com- menced to export. $15,000,000 worth of glazed kid are now sent to all parts of the world every year, and Philadelphia alone produces fifty per cent of the world's supply. Textiles. At first this industry was carried on in the homes of the settlers on hand looms. Later water power was used to drive power looms in large mills. The uncertainty of the stream flow and the improvements in steam engines has tended to concentrate the industry in the larger towns where work people are more available. A small spin- ning jenny was operated in Philadelphia in 1775, but the factories of the state are now chiefly concerned with producing the finished goods. The manufacture of hosiery was introduced into Pennsylvania at Germantown about 1698, and Philadelphia has always been the center of hosiery and knit goods manufacture of the country. The manufacture of carpets, established in 1791, and of silk goods two years later, are two industries in which Pennsylvania leads the country. At first the silk manufactures were fringes, ribbons, and other trimmings, but in recent years the manufacture of broad silks has rapidly increased. Allentown, Philadelphia, Scranton, and Wilkesbarre are the centers of silk manufacturing in the state. Philadelphia produces more textiles than the two leading textile manufacturing cities of New England together. Weaving Rugs HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 39 Commerce. For many years Philadelphia was the largest city and the chief port of the American colonies and it has always had an extensive commerce. In 1796, after the inaugu- ration of the new government, the exports of Philadelphia amounted to $17,000,000, and in 191 1 to about $80,000,000. To-day much of the product of the state is sent elsewhere in the country or is shipped to other ports to be sent abroad. Approxi- mately one thousand Vessels clear from Philadelphia for foreign countries each year. During the wars with England and Tripoli and during the Civil War period, the commerce declined. In the interval and since there has been a steady growth. Merchandising has always been one of the chief causes of the prosperity of this state, and the great department stores found in its large cities are worthy successes of the famous merchants and traders of the earlier days. Stephen Girard, known to all through the great public use to which he devoted a fortune made through trade, was a Philadelphian. There are more firms in Philadelphia which have existed for one hundred years than in all the rest of the country put together. The Commercial Museum was established in Philadelphia with the object of fostering foreign trade by increasing the interest in and knowledge of foreign products. Banks. Pennsylvania has always appreciated the use of banks in fostering industry and commerce. The first bank chartered by Congress still maintains its existence as a national bank. The banks of the United States were both located in Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania bankers have, in every crisis confronting the government, patriotically rallied to its support. Robert Morris used his personal credit to obtain funds for Washington's army, particularly just before the battles of Trenton and Princeton. Stephen Girard used his influence in forming a syndicate that took the bond issue in the War of 181 2, when the people had refused to subscribe. A large part of the money for the Mexican War was furnished the govern- ment by E. W. Clark, and the bonds issued during the Civil 40 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT War were 3old through an organization gotten together by the firm of Jay Cooke and Co. Shipbuilding. An important industry of Pennsylvania, directly connected with commerce, is that of shipbuilding. A Mr. West, of Philadelphia, was the leading shipbuilder of the colonies. Two of his ships were bought by the East India Company for their East India and China fleet. Four of the six frigates of the first navy were built in Phila- delphia, and Joshua Humphreys, a noted shipbuilder, con- Shipyard at Cornwells Heights, Pa. Ships are building on eight ways at once in this yard. structed the frigates ''Philadelphia" and "United States." The first acquired fame in connection with the Tripolitan War, and the second for her victories in the War of 1812. Phila- delphia-built packets and clipper-ships were noted for their speed. One sailed from the Capes to Liverpool in fourteen days. Among important accomplishments credited to Penn- sylvania shipbuilders are the successful development of screw propulsion; the introduction of compound and triple- and quadruple-expansion engines for marine use; the building of the first large iron trans-Atlantic liners in America, and many HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 41 of the first vessels of what has been called the new navy of the United States. At the present time some of the largest ship- yards in the country are on the Delaware. Yards at Bristol and at Hog Island, between Chester and Philadelphia, have been recently established under government auspices to replace the shipping destroyed during the present war. Agriculture. In spite of the great attention paid to mining, manufacturing, and commerce, Pennsylvania still holds a leading position in agriculture. Lancaster county produces a greater value of farm products than any other county in the United States. Of recent years much attention has been paid to scien- tific farming and particularly to the preservation of soil fertility by enrichment and the '*^-%*-^J *ii*i«i*>,«,«fc,« Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh One of Pennsylvania's great technical schools. rotation of crops. The agricultural products of Pennsylvania were formerly exported in large quantities. Since the rise of manufacturing most of Pennsylvania's farm and garden products are con- sumed within the state. In addition to that which is raised on Pennsylvania farms a great quantity has to be imported. Education. The first school district of Pennsylvania was established in Philadelphia in 1818. At that time there were fewer than three thousand pupils. The schools were required to be conducted according to the Lancasterian or monitorial system, which had the only merit of being cheap. There are now in the public schools of the first district two hundred twenty thousand pupils and about one fifth that many in the parochial or church schools. In 1833, a serious effort was made to establish a state system of education and in 1834 a general school law was passed. Two years later there were 285,000 pupils outside of Philadelphia and 27,000 in that city. Recently (191 1) a new 42 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT school code, under which the schools of the state have been united into one great system, took the place of the old laws. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. Make a list of the important inventions made by Pennsylvanians. 2. Find out as many things as you can that were first done in this country by Pennsylvanians. 3. Pennsylvania exported about four thousand tons of iron in 1750. If the state produced 11,000,000 tons in 1909, how many minutes would it have taken in that year to make the quantity exported in 1750? 4. Use the United States Census Reports to find out in what industries Pennsylvania stands first in the United States. 5. Just before the outbreak of the Great War the annual value of Penn- sylvania's manufactures was over three billion dollars. What part of the first three liberty loans would this pay for? 6. Collect pictures of great industrial plants; also pictures showing the development of industries, such as early and recent locomotives; John Fitch's steamboat and a modern ocean steamship; etc. REFERENCES Philadelphia Commercial Museum: Pennsylvania and its various industries. Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce: Pamphlets on various industries. United States: Census Reports on Pennsylvania. THE GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA The Fundamental Laws. William Perm's Great Law, which was accepted by the colonists on his arrival, was the first con- stitution of the colony. On his second trip to the province, in 1699, Penn permitted the repeal of the Great Law, and the adoption of the so-called Charter of Privileges. Under the Charter of Privileges the colonists in Pennsylvania lived until the Revolution, when a state constitution was formed. Changes have from time to time been made in the funda- mental law of the state, and entirely new constitutions adopted in 1790, in 1838, and in 1873.^ 'The present Constitution of Pennsylvania, while adopted in 1873, is generally known as the Constitution of 1874, the year it went into effect. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 43 44 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT The Constitution of 1874. The general organization of the Government of Pennsylvania is much like that of the United States. We find that in Pennsylvania, as in the United States, there are three great departments of government, the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. The Executive Department The Governor. The chief executive of Pennsylvania is called the governor. He is chosen for four years, is ineligible for immediate reelection, but may be chosen again after an interval. He must be a citizen of the United States, at least thirty years of age, and have been an inhabitant of the state for seven years next preceding his election. He must not hold any other office either under the state or the United States. He is chosen at the general election on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, and holds ofhce for four years. It happens that the election of a governor falls on the even numbered years between the years of presidential elections. The returns of the vote are counted in the presence of the House and Senate of the State Legislature and the person having the highest number of votes is declared elected. If there is a tie, the House and Senate jointly choose a governor from the two having the highest number of votes. The governor takes office on the third Tuesday of January following his election. Powers of the Governor. He has the power to veto acts of the Assembly, and in the case of appropriation bills, can veto single items. The governor has the right to appoint judges and United States Senators to fill unexpired terms, subject to ap- proval by the Senate. He also appoints the heads of certain executive departments, the chief officers of the State Militia, and the members of many state boards and commissions, subject to the same approval. The governor is- also, by virtue of his office, a member of many important boards. The salary of the governor is $10,000 a year with the right to the use of the Executive Mansion at Harrisburg. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 45 Lieutenant Governor. This officer is elected at the same time and for the same term as the governor, and must have the same qualifications. He acts in place of the governor in case of the death or disability of the latter. He is president of the State Senate and a member of the State Board of Pardons. If for any reason both the governor and lieutenant governor should be unable to serve, the duties of the governorship would fall upon the president pro tempore of the Senate, who would thereby become governor. The salary of the lieutenant governor is $5,000 a year. The Executive Departments. There are twenty-two execu- tive departments in the state government. Six of these are provided for by the constitution. The remaining ones have been established by the Assembly as the result of the growing complexity of government. Of the first group of departments three of the officers are elected by the people, the auditor-general, the state treasurer, and the secretary of internal affairs. The secretary of the commonwealth, the attorney-general, and the superintendent of public instruction are appointed by the governor and hold office for four years. The Secretary of the Commonwealth. The duties of the secretary of the commonwealth are similar to those of the Secretary of State in the national government. He is custodian of the great seal of the state, and of the laws passed by the Assembly. He has charge of all the state records. The Attorney-General. This officer is the legal adviser of the state government and furnishes opinions on all legal ques- tions arising in the administration of the state. When the state is a party in a law-suit, the attorney-general represents the state. The Superintendent of Public Instruction. This officer has general charge of the schools of the state. Under the new school code of 191 1 he is president of the State Board of Education. He commissions all county and district superintendents. No 46 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT state appropriation can be turned over to a school district without his approval. He appoints the trustees of the state normal schools and the state board of examiners. The Auditor General. The auditor general holds ofhce for three years. He is the chief accounting officer of the state. He sees to the collection of state taxes; approves all warrants for salaries to state officials and appropriations of state money made for general purposes. The Stale Treasurer. The state treasurer takes care of the funds of the state. All taxes are paid to him, and he pays them out again on the order of the proper official, countersigned by the auditor general. The state treasurer holds office for two years. The Secretary of Internal Affairs. This official has charge of state surveys, and general supervision over the work of county commissioners in their administration of counties. The super- vision of industrial conditions comes within the duties of this official, and he takes charge of the reports furnished the state by public service companies. His term of office is four years. Other State Departments and Commissions. In addition to the above there are skteen other special departments or com- missions which have varying duties connected either with the protection of the citizens or the regulation of certain of the economic activities of the state. A brief account of the duties of these departments follows. TJie Adjutanl General. The adjutant general is the acting head of the state militia. He is appointed by the governor, who is commander-in-chief. The adjutant general has charge of all the military records and property of the state. Insurance Commissioner. His duties are to see that the insurance laws of the commonwealth are faithfully carried out; to license all companies and their agents, and to collect all taxes and fees. Commissioner of Banking. It is the duty of this official to see that banks, trust companies, savings banks, building and HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 47 loan associations, and similar institutions, conduct their business in accordance with law. Secretary of Agriculture. The Secretary of Agriculture gives advice to farmers as to the best methods to adopt to secure the greatest success in working their farms. He collects and pub- lishes information regarding noxious insects, birds, and animals; he sees that the laws regulating the production and sale of milk, butter, and food products are strictly enforced; and he protects the farmer from the spread of cattle diseases by estab- lishing quarantines. Forestry Commissioner. The department of forestry en- courages the development of forest land in the state, and is empowered to purchase and take care of forest reserves, and to establish a scientific system of forestry upon them. A number of fire wardens are attached to this department for the preven- tion of forest fires. Department of Labor and Industry. This department sees that the laws of the state regarding the hours and conditions of labor and the use of safety devices are enforced. It endeavors to prevent strikes and lock-outs by bringing the employers and workmen together to settle the dispute by arbitration and conciliation. Department of Mines. The chief of this department is charged with the special duty of supervising the conditions of labor in the mining industry of the state. The department also issues certificates of competence to miners, mine-inspectors, and mine-foremen. Department of Health. It is the duty of the commissioner of health to protect the health of the people of the state. He can order the abatement of nuisances prejudicial to health. If an epidemic breaks out he is to investigate for the cause and to remove it. He is also charged with maintaining the purity and safety of the waters of the state by preventing their poUu^ tion by sewage or other waste. The department of health also maintains sanitoriums for the prevention and cure of tuberculosis. 48 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT Highway Department. The highway commissioner cooperates with counties, townships, and boroughs in the maintainence of improved highways. This is done through the construction and maintainence of state highways at the sole expense of the state, and through a system of state-aid highways by which the state pays half of the cost of construction and upkeep. Superintendent of Public Grounds and Buildings. This official is responsible for the care and upkeep of the State Capitol and the surrounding grounds, and the Executive Mansion. He has charge of the Capitol police. Department of Public Printing. This department takes charge of all reports made to the governor by the heads of departments, sees that they are properly printed and bound, and that they are delivered to the proper departments. State Librarian. He has charge of and is responsible for the preservation and safe keeping of the State Library. The State Police. The state established in 1905 the first state police force in the country. The force consists of a few more than two hundred men, in charge of the Superintendent of State Police. The state police act throughout the state in much the same capacity as a city police force. The Department of Fisheries. The duty of this department is to encourage and promote the fishery interests of the state. It maintains fish hatcheries for the propagation of game and food fish. The Public Seroice Commission. This body has the power to supervise and regulate all public service companies doing business within the state. Public service companies include railroads, steamboat lines, pipe lines, bridge companies, tele- phone, telegraph, electric, gas, and water companies, etc. Water Supply Commission. This commission procures in- formation concerning the water supply of the state, and adopts means of utilizing and distributing the waters in such a way that the various communities of the state may be fairly dealt with in such distribution. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 49 State Fire Marshal. This official investigates all fires in the state and determines if they have been the result of violation of the fire laws of the state. He can order the removal of dilapidated buildings or those dangerous to other property. Minor Boards and Commissions. Besides the chief depart- ments just enumerated there are a great number of boards and commissions having duties of various sorts, which carry out the purpose of government in securing the health and safety of its citizens, such as the Board of Pardons, and the Board of Public Charities. The Legislative Department The General Assembly. The General Assembly of Penn- sylvania consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives. Members are chosen every second year at the general election in November, and the term of office begins on the first day of December, They receive $1590 for regular sessions and $500 for extra sessions, regardless of length. The Assembly meets on the first Tuesday of January every second year, but the govemof may call the Assembly at any time by a proclamation. The Senate. The state is divided into fifty senatorial districts. The term of each senator is four years, one half of them being chosen every second year. A senator must be at least twenty- five years of age and a citizen and an inhabitant of the state for four years next preceding his election. During his term of office a senator must reside in his district. Powers and Duties of the Senate. The Senate confirms or rejects nominations made by the governor, with the House of Representatives it can pass laws, and it acts as a court in cases of impeachment. The lieutenant governor is the presiding officer. In case of his disability or absence a president pro tempore is chosen to act in his place. The House of Representatives. The number of representa- tives is ascertained by dividing the population of the state by 200. This gives a ratio of representation which is apportioned 50 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT by counties. Each county gets a representative for each ratio, and for each fraction of a ratio more than one half. Each county is apportioned one representative no matter how small its population. This brings the actual number of representa- tives to a few over two hundred. Representatives are elected for two years. They must be at least twenty-one years of age, and possess otherwise the same qualifications as a senator. They are chosen in the even numbered years. In cases of im- peachment the house acts as the prosecuting body. The presid- ing officer of the house of representatives is called the speaker. Neither house can adjourn for more than three days without the consent of the other. Each house judges the qualifications of its own members, and adopts its own rules, elects its own ofiicers, and publishes its own journal of proceedings. Law Making. A bill to become a law must be voted for by a majority of the members elected to each house. It is then sent to the governor. If he approves he signs it; if he disapproves he returns it to the house in which it originated. If both houses thereupon pass it by a vote of two thirds of the members of each house it becomes a law. If the governor should not sign a bill, and neglects to return it to the Legislature within ten days it becomes a law the same as if he had signed it, unless the General Assembly by adjournment prevents its return. If the governor vetos single items in appropriation bills, such items are subject to reconsideration by the legislature as in the case of bills. Checks on Legislation. No bill can be so amended as to change its original purpose; every bill, except appropriation bills, must have to do with a single subject expressed in its tiile; bills must be read in full on three different days in each house; and all amendments must be printed for the members before the final vote. Every bill must be referred to a com- mittee for consideration. No special or local law may be passed. Laws lengthening the term of office or changing the salary of public oflicials after their election are also prohibited. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 51 52 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT AN ACT Authorizing cities of the third class to appropriate money annually for mueic in public parks and in other -public places 1 Section 1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- 2 sentativea of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in General Assemhlif 3 met and it is hereby enacted hy the authority of the same That 4 from and after the passage of this act it shall be law- 5 ful for any city of the third class to appropriate public 6 moneys for the purpose of having music in any public 7 park or place At the time of making of the annual 8 appropriation ordinance any city, council in a city of 9 the third class may appropriate such sum of money as 10 in their judgment shall be necessary for the purpose of 11 supplying music in any public park or place t^ktt. .A. D. 1!)17. L^ ^ik^^. /v. . An Act of the Pennsylvania State Legislature After It Has Received THE Governor's Signature, Which Makes It a Law, Ready for Filing WITH the Secretary of the Commonwealth. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA ^t, The Judicial Department General Organization. At the head of the judicial system of Pennsylvania are the Supreme Court and the Superior Court. Next below are the District Courts which have jurisdiction over civil and criminal cases and over the adjudication of estates. Below these are the Municipal Courts, the Justices of the Peace, and the Magistrates. The Supreme Court. This was the original court of appeal in Pennsylvania. It consists of seven judges. The chief justice is the one who has served longest as a judge of the supreme court. Their term of ofiEice is twenty-one years, and they are ineligible for reelection. There are three supreme judicial districts in Pennsylvania, the court sitting in succession at Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh. Most of the work of this court consists in hearing appeals from the decisions of lower courts. The Superior Court. Owing to the great amount of work coming to the supreme court, the legislature established in 1895 the superior court. This consists of seven judges, elected for a term of ten years. The superior court holds sessions each year in Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Williamsport, and Scranton. It has jurisdiction over appeals in certain less im- portant kinds of cases. Certain cases can be further appealed from the superior court to the supreme court. The District Courts. The legislature divides the state into judicial districts, composed of one or more counties. Not more than four counties can be combined in a single judicial district. The judges are elected for a term of ten years and receive salaries varying from $5000 to $8500, depending on the population of the district. Power of the District Judges. The judges of the district courts hold on different occasions courts of common pleas, oyer and terminer, quarter sessions, orphans courts, and license courts. The court of common pleas is a court that deals with 54 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT what arc known as civil suits, such as suits for the recovery of land wrongfully occupied, or a suit to determine the exact amount of money one person owes another. A court of oyer and terminer (from two French words meaning "to hear and determine") tries cases involving the life of the criminal, such as cases of murder. Quarter sessions are the ordinary criminal courts which try offenders for stealing, or assault and battery. The orphans court has charge of the proving of wills of deceased persons and of seeing that their estates are distributed in accord- ance with the wishes of the deceased. In the smaller districts all these courts may be held by the same judge or judges. In the larger districts there may be five or six courts of common pleas alone, each consisting of three judges. Judges may naturalize citizens, authorize persons to change their names, remove certain minor officials, charter certain kinds of societies and corporations, and perform a great many other functions. The Municipal Court. In 1914, the municipal court of Philadelphia was organized. This court has jurisdiction over minor civil and criminal cases, particularly those cases known as misdemeanors. It has several departments of which the chief deal with social offences, domestic relations, and juvenile offenders, the latter being minors under sixteen years of age. Justices of the Peace. The justices of the peace are elected yearly in the townships and boroughs of the state. They hold office for five years, and are commissioned by the governor. The duty of the justice is that of settling petty disputes. The settlement of some cases is final with the justices. In others, the offender is held in bail by the justice to appear for trial in the district court. The Magistrates and Aldermen. Magistrates (sometimes adled aldermen) are the members of the lesser courts in cities. Their duties correspond to those of the justices of the peace in townships and boroughs. The Jury. An important part of the court is the jury. The jury is chosen by the sheriff" and the jury commissioners (see HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 55 page 57). Twenty-four names are chosen for what is known as the grand jury. One of these is excused so there will not be a tie vote. The remaining twenty-three examine the bills of indictment presented by the county attorney and listen to the accusing witnesses. If there is reasonable belief, in the opinion of a majority of the grand jury, that the accused is guilty as charged, he is held for trial. Twelve other names are drawn for what is called the petit jury. These men sit in court when the case is tried, listen to the evidence on both sides, and then decide whether the accused is or is not guilty. The decision of the petit jury must be unanimous. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. How many fundamental laws has Pennsylvania had since 1682? 2. Why is the governor given power to appoint the heads of some of the state departments, while the people elect others? 3. What is the reason the governor is given power to veto single items in appropriation bills? 4. What is "special legislation"? Why should it be forbidden? 5. Explain the difference between the grand jury and the petit jury. It has been proposed to permit the petit jury to decide cases by a two- thirds' or three-fourths' vote. Give some reason why this might be better than the present method of requiring a unanimous vote. 6. Compare the government of Pennsylvania with that of the United States with reference to (a) the veto power of the executive; (b) the length of term and qualifications of members of the legislative depart- ment. If you live in a city, compare the government of the city with that of the state and nation. REFERENCES FOR ADDITION.\L READING SmuU: Legislative Hand Book. School Code of Pennsylvania (Edition of 191 7). Pi'^rson: Civics of Pennsylvania. 56 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT MINOR GOVERNMENTAL UNITS The County The chief subordinate unit of government is the county, of which there are sixty-seven in Pennsylvania. Penn established three, Chester, Philadelphia, and Bucks, when he founded the colony. The others have been since organized as the result of the increasing population. Most of the county officers are elected for three years. The Sheriff. The chief officer of the county is the sheriff, whose duty is that of keeping the peace. Under his direction are the constables, who are elected locally in the smaller divi- sions of the county. He has to keep prisoners safely and is responsible for their custody when being taken to and from court. He executes all writs of the courts, and can seize and sell private property to pay judgments entered by the courts, or to pay delinquent taxes. He issues notices of elections and assists in the selection of juries. The Coroner. His duty is to inquire into sudden deaths, in order to find if there are any suspicious circumstances which indicate that murder has been committed. The inquiry is held through a court in which the coroner acts as judge. Witnesses are called to testify and a jury is summoned to decide upon the facts. County Commissioners. The business officers of a county are the three county commissioners. No person can vote for more than two commissioners. They have general charge of the property of the county, build bridges and roads, fix tax values, furnish supplies for the county ofticers, books and ballots for elections, and so on. In general, anything connected with the county as a business organization is under the direction of the commissioners. Recorder of Deeds. When land is sold, the deed is taken to the recorder of deeds, who has it copied in books which are carefully preserved. He also records other important papers. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 57 Other Officers. Other officers who aid in the administration of government in the county are: Register of Wills; three County Auditors, or in counties having a population of over 150,000, a County Controller; County Treasurer District At- torney; County Solicitor; Jury Commissioners; County Sur- veyor; Directors of the Poor; Mercantile Appraiser; and County Superintendent of Schools. There may be other county officers and special assistants employed from time to time by the county. In the smaller counties several of these offices, such as the clerk of the district court, clerk of the orphans court, register of wills, recorder of deeds, etc., are held by the same person. The counties of the state are divided into five classes according to population, and the number of officers, their duties, and pay are fixed by law for each group. The Township General Organization. The township is a division of the state organized to care for affairs v/hich are local, as distinguished from matters which concern the state as a whole. Townships have the following officers : The Township Commissioners have general charge of the business affairs of the township, maintain other than the main roads, employ police officers, arrange for water supply and the disposal of waste, and have a general supervision of matters concerning health. The commissioners can issue bonds and levy a tax for township purposes. The Treasurer collects and takes care of the taxes levied by the commissioners. The Town Clerk keeps the official records of the township. The Assessor makes a list of all taxable persons and a just estimate of the value of taxable property. He also makes a list of the qualified voters for the use of election officials. The Auditors adjust the accounts of the township officials and prevent the illegal expenditure of money. 58 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT In second class townships the commissioners are called Super- visors and there is a collector of taxes instead of a treasurer. Their duties are those of the corresponding officers in first class townships. The Constable is charged with keeping the peace of the town- ship. He arrests and brings to the sheriff persons for whom the sheriff has issued a writ of arrest, and can also make arrests on his own account and bring the offender before a justice of the peace. Municipalities. Whenev^ the population of a comparatively small section of the state becomes dense, it has been found wise to give such a group special privileges through incorporation into a municipal- ity. These are more highly organized than a township and in most matters of government are independent of the county. The municipalities of Pennsylvania are called boroughs and cities. The latter are divided into three classes in accordance with their population. TJic Borough. A borough may be incorporated by the county court of quarter sessions on a petition of a majority of the free holders residing within the limits of the proposed borough. The chief executive officer is called a burgess. He may be assisted by a council of five citizens. Other officers are the treasurer, auditor, chief constable, and assessor. A large borough may be divided into wards. The duties of these officers correspond to the duties of similar officers in townships, the burgess and council taking the place of the commissioners. The chief advantage of borough government is that the den- sity of population permits increased taxation for strictly local purposes, so that the people may have many more conven- iences supplied by the local government. HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 59 Cities The cities of the first class in Pennsylvania are those having a population of 1,000,000 or more; cities of the second class have a population of 100,000 to 1,000,000. Cities of the third class have a population under 100,000.. Cities are divided into wards for the purpose of representation in councils, and to make more convenient the apportionment of rep- resentatives in the state legislature. First Class Cities. Philadelphia is at pres- ent the only first class city in the state. In general the organiza- tion follows the plan of organization of the state government, with a chief executive, heads of departments, and a law making body of two houses. The chief executive is the mayor, who must be at least City Hall, Philadelphia twenty-five years of age and an inhabitant of the state and city for five years next preceding his election. He is elected at the November election, holds ofiice for four years, and cannot succeed himself. He en- forces the ordinances of councils and the state laws within the city limits. He sends messages to councils on the state of municipal affairs at least twice a year. He approves or vetoes all bills passed by councils, and can veto single items in appro- priation bills. 6o ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT There are ten departments of city government, six of them in charge of a director. The heads of departments form the mayor's cabinet, with whom he must consult at least once a month. The directors and some other officials are appointed by the mayor, with the consent of select council. The Receiver of Taxes, the City Treasurer, the City Controller, and the City Solicitor are elected for three years each. This situation arises from the fact that Philadelphia is not only a municipal corpora- tion, but it happens also to be a county. These four officials are chosen in the same way as other county officers, but have been named by the city charter as heads of city departments. The Departments in charge of the six directors are: Public Works; Public Safety; Health and Charities; Supplies; Wharves, Docks, and Ferries; City Transit. The departments are all subdivided into bureaus corresponding to their different activities. Besides, other boards and commissions have been appointed who have special work, such as the Commissioners of Fairmount Park, who have general charge of the park system of the city; the Sinking Fund Commissioners, who take care of the money appropriated for the redemption of the city debt; etc. The City Councils. The legislative department is composed of Select and Common Councils. The select council is composed of one representative from each ward. The common council is composed of a varying number of members from each ward, according to population. Councils pass town laws or ordinances, fix the tax rate, and appropriate the money to the various municipal purposes. The Judicial Department. The city judiciary consists of the magistrates, which correspond to the justices of the peace, whose powers and duties have been described above. The municipal court is a court of record, and is, therefore, from a governmental point of view, a department of the district court. Second and Third Class Cities. The executive in second and third class cities is the mayor. The general organization of the HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 6i city governmenl is much like that of the cities of the first class. There are fewer departments, and in some cases two offices are combined in one person, and the names of other administrative offices are slightly changed. Cities of the third class may be organized from towns or boroughs with a population over 10,000. Several boroughs may combine to form one third class city. The duties of the director of public safety are exercised by the mayor. Other officials consist of a treasurer, solicitor, controller, and a board of health. ELECTIONS Electors. In Pennsylvania a voter must possess the following qualifications: He must be a male citizen, and must have resided in the state one year and in the election district two months preceding the election. If he has previously been a resident of the state, and has removed and returned, he must have resided in the state six months before election. No citizen over twenty- two years of age may vote unless he has paid a state or county tax within two years, assessed at least two months and paid at least one month before the election. Every male citizen between the ages of twenty-one and twenty-two, and having all the other qualifications, may register as a voter without being assessed. Naturalized citizens may vote if they have the other qualifica- tions and if they have been naturalized at least one month before the election. The general election for United States and state officers is held on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in even numbered years. Elections for county, city, borough, and township officers are held on the corresponding day in odd numbered years. Townships are divided for election purposes into precincts or divisions, as are wards in cities and boroughs. There are about 62 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT 250 voters to each division who vote at designated places within the division. On certain days in each year voters must appear at the voting places and be registered, making affadavit as to certain facts about themselves, so that their right to vote may be determined before the election. Primary elections for the nomination of candidates by the different parties are all held at the same time, voters asking for a ballot on which to place the names of the candidates for whom they wish to vote at the regular election. The ones so nominated have their names printed on the ballot used at the general election in November. THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM The School Code. The school code passed in 191 1 unified the school system of the state and made radical changes in the school government, which had developed as the result of various acts of the legislature passed during the previous three quarters of a century. State Board of Education. The board consists of sLx members appointed by the governor. It has the duty of suggesting school legislation to the governor and the legislature, and of inspecting the work done in schools wholly or partly dependent on state support. School Districts. Four classes of school districts are estab- lished by the code. Each city, town, borough, or township constitutes a district. Districts of the first class are those having a population of 500,000 or more; of the second class, those having a population between 30,000 and 500,000; of the third class, those having a population between 5,000 and 30,000; and the fourth class those having a population below 5,000. First-class School Districts. These have a board of directors of fifteen members, appointed by the judges of the court of HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT OF PENNSYLVANIA 63 common pleas of the county in which the district is situated. Five members are appointed every two years to serve for six years. They may lay and" collect a school tax of not less than live nor more than sLx mills on the dollar, assessed upon the same property as that upon which other municipal taxes are assessed. They may appoint annually superintendents of schools, supplies, and buildings, a school receiver of taxes and a school treasurer, and such other officers as necessary. They have the power to issue certificates to teachers and to approve and transfer teachers on the recommendation of the superintendent of schools. There are also boards of school visitors, consisting of seven persons elected for four years by the electors in each ward of the district. They have the power to nominate janitors, subject to the approval by the board of directors of the district. Second Class School Districts. These have a board of directors composed of nine members, three of whom are elected every two years for terms of six years. They have in general the same powers as directors in first-class districts. They may collect a school tax of not more than twenty mills on the dollar. Male residents over twenty-one must pay an occupation tax to the school district of at least one dollar. Third and Fourth Class School Districts. The board of directors of third class school districts consists of seven members, chosen for terms of six years. They have power to collect a school tax of not more than twenty-five mills on the dollar, based on the assessment for county taxes. Every male resident over twenty-one years of age must pay to the school district an occupation tax of at least one dollar. The directors in third and fourth class districts have in general the same powers of supervision and control of the schools as have directors of the first and second class districts. County Superintendents. Every four years all the school directors of every county meet in the county court house and jointly elect a county superintendent, who has general super- vision over the schools of the county. 64 ELEMENTARY HISTORY AND GOVERNMENT The code provides for the estabHshment of high schools, evening schools, special schools, and, in general, for any fomi of educational organization that the boards of directors may see fit to establish. The school term in first and second class districts must be at least nine months; in third class districts, eight months; and in fourth class districts, seven months. By a recent act continuation schools were organized for the education of employed children between the ages of fourteen and sixteen. The issuing of employment certificates to children is in the hands of the educational authorities. QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 1. What is the particular local government under which you live? (city- borough, etc.) Find out who has charge of the heahh; of the spend- ing of pubKc money; of the care of the streets or roads. 2. If a man wishes to vote at the next election (a) what quahfications must he possess? (b) what must he do? 3. Make three lists, one containing the things the United States does for you in your neighborhood; the second, the things the state does; the third, the things your local government does. 4. As you look at these lists and think about them, can you decide whether it is more important for your neighborhood to have an efficient govern- ment at Washington than to have an efficient local government? 5. Give some reasons why school districts should be separate from other governmental units, and should be allowed to collect and spend their own taxes. REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL READING School Code of Pennsylvania. Child Labor Act of Pennsylvania. SmuU: Legislative Hand Book. City of Philadelphia: Manual of Councils. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS