<(lk t . >f r h /\ v PHI1.ADEI.PHIA OCTOBER 9P.' LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, COPYRIGHT OFFICE. No registration of title of this article as a preliminary to copyright protection has been found. f Catalog) (■Pfwte J 11, iii, 1906—5,000.) J>^?J) f Catalog) A , Forwarded to ^ M+tsic V Division^££,Y5^-'£tf The Book of the Pageant Philadelphia, October gth, 1908 ARRANGED BY ELLIS PAXSON OBERHOLTZER COVER DESIGN BY VIOLET OAKLEY PRINTED FOR THE COMMITTEE BY GEORGE W. JACOBS & COMPANY IU88ARY at cahassessJ t wo Oooies rtecwvett | OCT 1 W« jOLAS* XXc. Wv. I .C OPY a, * Copsrfgbt 1008 - b£ Bills p. ©berbolt3er Received frortl Copyright Office. 15 B'Ob "A gentle kaight was pricking en the plalne Ycladd In might le arntes and silver shlelde." —The Faerie Queene. Invitation to tbe lp>ageant n 'nto you, oh men, I call and my voice is to the sons of m en . ' ' Thus sings to-day the Spirit of the City and welcomes all to view her pageantry, and sends forth her heralds and her trumpeters. All who have loved and served Penn's City, live and love and serve her still. To-day thine eyes shall be opened to see them walk before thee through her streets. For thus in solitude the Founder wrote these "Fruits of Solitude" that all may share : "Death cannot kill what never dies." " Nor can spirits ever be divided that love and live in the same divine principle." " For they must needs be present, that love and live in that which is omnipresent." " In this divine glass they see face to face." Founders' Week Executive Committee Hon. JOHN E. REYBURN, Chairman GEORGE W. B. HICKS, Secretary General Committee of the Pageant MORRIS JASTROW, Jr., Chairman THOMAS L. MONTGOMERY CHARLES HEBER CLARK ALEXANDER K. McCLURE JOHN BACH McMASTER HENRY C. McCOOK WILLIAM PERRINE JOSEPH G. ROSENGARTEN A. G. HETHERINGTON JOHN F. LEWIS CHARLES E. DANA JOHN W. JORDAN JAMES MacALISTER SYDNEY GEORGE FISHER PETER BOYD HARRISON S. MORRIS MARION D. LEARNED ELLIS PAXSON OBERHOLTZER Councils' Committee of the Pageant HARRY C. RANSLEY, Chairman THOMAS T. NELSON JOHN W. WHITAKER GEORGE W. ZANE GEORGE W. KUCKER WILLIAM HENRY HOLMES Executive Committee of the Pageant A. G. HETHERINGTON, Chairman CHARLES HEBER CLARK HARRISON S. MORRIS PETER BOYD MARION D. LEARNED 4 Introduction In this historical pageant, the first to be organized and given in this country, a large field was afforded to the historians and artists who have so devotedly worked to make the representation a success. No city in the United States can supply so many episodes of picturesque importance. Founded by Penn under a form of government which was apostrophized by Voltaire and all the liberal philosophers of the eighteenth century as an example to the world in mercy, justice and liberty, Philadelphia and Penn- sylvania have a unique place in the history of the world. The good and interesting Quaker people have given a great deal to America and an attempt has been made to commemorate this service. The other national elements which had a part in the early development of the city and the commonwealth — the Dutch, Swedish, Welsh, German and Scotch — have not been neglected and Franklin's part in stamping his character upon the community later in the colonial period introduces to view one of the great figures of the world. During the Revolution Philadelphia was the meeting ground for all the colonies. Until the end of the century the city was the capital of the United States. Here Congress assembled. Here Washington, Franklin, Robert Morris, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, John Adams and the rest lived and wrought in the service of a nation which has grown great and populous beyond the expectations of them all. Here on this ground the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States were framed, debated and adopted. Hither came ambassadors of foreign powers and through our streets tramped the British, French and Continental armies during the war that established the freedom of the American states. Afterward much of great interest and value to the state, the nation and the world was enacted in Philadelphia. The achieve- ments of peace of the city have been at all times conspicuous. In literature and art, in science and medicine, in solving the problems of transportation and in other practical fields of civilization, Phila- delphia, among American cities, owns no superior, and all these things it has been a pleasure to attempt to illustrate in the form of a pageant in the streets. 5 Director of the Pageant ELLIS PAXSON OBERHOLTZER Designer and Art Director VIOLET OAKLEY Director of Costumes, Heraldry and Accessories GUERNSEY MOORE Assistant to the Director JOSEPH JACKSON * Director of Music HUGH A. CLARKE * Architect ALBERT KELSEY * General Contractors for the Pageant J. J. HABERMEHL'S SONS Director of Construction and Decoration HENRY KABIERSKE * Costumer JOSEPH C. FISCHER 6 Programme of the Pageant A— EXPLORATION AND EARLY SETTLE- MENT. "Thy God bringeth thee into a good land — of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills — a land whose stones are iron and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass." Scene 1. The first vessel of any nation to come up the Delaware was the yacht "Onrust" (Unrest), in 1616, which was commanded by Captain Cornelis Hendricksen. This was a boat of only sixteen tons. It was built on Manhattan Island, in the winter of 1613-14. Hendricksen landed at several places on both shores of the Delaware, took soundings and made charts. He sailed up to, if not beyond, the site whereon Penn later founded the city of Philadelphia. The "Onrust" has been chosen as the subject for the opening scene of the pageant because of the vessel's his- toric voyage up the river and because its name typifies the rest- lessness which led to the exploration, settlement and develop- ment of the New World. Scene 2. The Indians whom the first European settlers found on the banks of the Delaware were of the Lenni Lenape tribe and this picture of their early life has been carefully worked out by Charles S. Stephens. His long and useful studies of the Indian have made possible this faithful representation. The costumes, implements and decorations have been specially designed by him for this car and its accompanying people. The procession is led by the pipe-bearer, followed by men with coup sticks, rattles and drums. Then comes a medicine man, clad in green, and the braves arranged in the three Lenni Lenape clans, the Turkey, the Turtle and the Wolf. (Impersonated by students of the Government Indian school at Carlisle. Pa.) 7 The Book of the Pageant Scene 3. The Dutch discoveries and explorations were followed by the establishment here of Dutch colonies. Log forts and stock- ades were built. An active Dutch explorer and colonist on the Delaware at this period was David Pietersen de Vries. He had been a skipper and in 1630 became a patroon. He came out to America in 1632 to look after his commercial interests on the Delaware in person. He carried on trade with the Indians, with whom he is said to have made a treaty of peace. The Dutch were in more or less undisputed ascendency on the Delaware from 1623 until the Swedes arrived in 1638. The scene repre- sents a windmill which these colonists early erected here for the grinding of grain. (Impersonations in this and the other Dutch sections are made by native Hollanders, now resident in Philadelphia.) Scene 4. The Swedish interest in the Delaware and its adjoining lands is traced back to the great King Gustavus Adolphus and his famous Chancellor, Axel Oxenstierna. The first expedition was not organized, however, until 1638, six years after Gustavus's tragic death. The first comers gathered furs from the Indians for shipment to and sale in Europe. The settlement was effected without serious difficulty with the Dutch, who were few in number. The colony was called New Sweden and several ships loaded with people came out to take up lands on the shores of the river. In 1642, Oxenstierna named John Printz, a lieuten- ant-colonel of cavalry, as Governor, and he is shown riding at the head of this group in the pageant. The people were of marked industry and thrift. They early gave their attention to agriculture and strove to live in peace with the Indians. They were also a religious folk and soon had a block house, which was used interchangeably as a fort and a place of wor- ship. It stood in Wicaco and with its loopholes, through which guns might be pointed at an enemy, is shown upon a car. It occupied the site of the brick church, built about 1700, known as Gloria Dei, or Old Swedes, a model of which is carried in this group, one of the best-known and most admired of our archi- tectural monuments dating from the Colonial time. (Impersonated by members of the Swedish Society of Phila- delphia.) 8 William Penn on the Ship "Welcome" Scene 8 The Book of the Pageant Scene 5. The Dutch soldiers in this scene represent those who over- came the Swedes and captured the Delaware forts, thus regain- ing the ascendency for Holland in 1655. They continued in nominal control until 1664, when the English arrived in the Delaware, demanded the submission of the forts and, after an engagement in which several men were killed and wounded, took control of the river and the settlements on its banks. B— PENN AND THE QUAKERS. "Call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions * * * and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods." Scene 6. Penn is here pictured at the entrance to the Tower, Decem- ber 16, 1668, for having offended authority in publishing a pamphlet without the necessary license. It was not the first time the future proprietor of Pennsylvania had suffered persecution, but it was his first incarceration in the Tower. While he was in Ireland, the previous year, Penn had been imprisoned for attending a meeting of the Quakers, and it was largely in conse- quence of these experiences that when opportunity offered he asked the King for a grant of land in America to found a refuge for those who desired to exercise liberty of conscience. On the occasion here portrayed, Penn was taking the place of the printer of his pamphlet, "The Sandy Foundation Shaken." Lord Arlington had arrested John Derby, the printer, and when Penn heard of the man's predicament he insisted that the printer was innocent of wrong and that if any wrong had been com- mitted he was ready to serve in the other's stead. On a cold day in December, without warrant and also without law, Penn was taken to the Tower. During his incarceration other charges were trumped up against him and he was kept a close prisoner until July 28, 1669, when he was released and placed in the custody of his father. It was while he was confined in the Tower that Penn wrote the outline of his best known book, "No Cross, No Crown." George Fox and other Quakers suffering for conscience' sake in England are shown upon the street. (This scene is impersonated by members of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.) 9 The Book of the Pageant Scene 7. Having seen the success of the Quakers who settled in Fenwick's tract, in West Jersey, Penn, in 1680, made applica- tion for a grant of land on the west bank of the Delaware River. His father, while an admiral in the British Navy., under Cromwell, had taken part in the capture of Jamaica. Under the custom then acknowledged, Admiral Penn should have received a large grant of land in the territory he had conquered. Crom- well refused the grant, and this debt remained unpaid by the Crown when the elder Penn died. The founder of Pennsyl- vania placed the case before the King, and Charles, when he found that the debt could be cancelled for so slight a payment as a desert in a little-settled country in another part of the world, agreed to give the young man 40,000 square miles on the banks of the Delaware. Negotiations for the grant were car- ried on for more than a year, but on February 24, 1681, Charles II. attached his signature to the charter, naming the country Pennsylvania. History is silent as to all the persons present at the time when the King wrote his name on the parchment which made Pennsylvania a possibility, but it is known that his brother, the Duke of York, afterward James II., who stands at the monarch's side, was a member of the group. (Members of the Savoy Opera Company appear in this scene.) Scene 8. This scene represents the arrival of Penn, on the "Welcome." The founder is portrayed looking longingly, even dreamily over the bow of the little ship, as she sails up the Delaware, reflect- ing on his Holy Experiment, which he is coming to this new land to put into execution. The condition which Penn most of all desired to obtain for himself and his friends was that liberty of conscience which has been the foundation of the pros- perity of the city, the state and the United States. The "Wel- come," with Penn and his little band of colonists, set sail from Deal, on September 1, 1682, and nine weeks later, on October 27, dropped anchor in the Delaware, off New Castle. She started away with about one hundred passengers, but one-third died of disease upon the voyage. The number who reached this country safely, as nearly as may be, accompany the vessel. 10 The Book of the Pageant Scene 9. With Penn and following him came colonists from Wales. From the arrival of Penn until about the year 1702 the Welsh were the most numerous among those who took advantage of the Proprietary's offer of lands. It was his wish that his grant should be called New Wales; but this name was changed to Pennsylvania to meet the desires of the King. Penn in ex- plaining the matter said that the Welsh word for head or head- land was Penn, and that his land was the high or woodlands, wherefore there was double propriety in the choice. While the proprietor was here on his second and last visit, in the year 1701, he preached to the Welsh Friends, at Haverford, and it is related that very few of them could understand him. The majority of the Welsh settlers took up holdings in what was termed the Welsh tract, on the west bank of the Schuylkill, in the present Montgomery and Chester counties. The odd hats of the women and the old songs lend unusual interest to this scene. (Impersonated by members of the Cambro-American League.) Scene 10. In this group are seen Francis Daniel Pastorius and the colonists who accompanied him to Germantown. Pastorius arrived on August 20, 1683, in the ship "America." He and his little party numbered eight or nine persons. On the 6th of October he was joined by thirteen families of Cref elders, thirty- three in all, who had come in on the ship "Concord." A society of Germans had been formed in Frankfort to take up a tract of land in the new province, and availing themselves of Penn's offer to colonists who desired to breathe the air of freedom the band established a settlement which was the basis of a now pop- ulous, historic and beautiful suburb of Philadelphia. Pastorius and his people were Mennonites, a sect whose principles were so similar to those of the Society of Friends that they were frequently called German Quakers. (Members of the stock company of the German Theatre appear in this and the next succeeding scenes.) II The Book of the Pageant Scene 11. Along with and following the Mennonites came hither from, Germany many of those learned and religious men called Piet- ists. As they were opposed to any of the rigid systems of theology, and passed their lives principally in the endeavor to attain to moral perfection they were also called Mystics. Some of the Pietists were recruited from the Lutherans in Germany, and others had been members of the Reformed Church. They were peculiar in their dress and habits, and like the other German sects, and like the Quakers, they refused to take oaths or to bear arms. The appearance of these Pietists and Mystics in Philadelphia, with their long pilgrim staves attracted much attention. Some of these deeply religious men settled along the Ridge in Roxborough, and in the vicinity of Germantown ; others established a community farther west at Ephrata in Lan- caster County. They were for the most part men of great eru- dition. Scene 12. The Scotch and North of Ireland men, commonly called the Scotch-Irish, were the last of the great elements which went into the composition of Pennsylvania to arrive upon these shores. The Welsh and the Germans made their appearance here almost synchronously with the advent of Penn, but it was not until about the year 1700 that any considerable body of Irish and Scotch came into the province. They passed into the west for the most part and settled behind the Quakers in Lancaster County, and on the banks of the Susquehanna, where they im- perilled their lives among the Indians, serving as useful buffers for the city. Twenty-five Scotch-Irish Rangers, irregular militia- men of the frontier, are shown in this scene. (The Rangers have been equipped by the Scotch-Irish Society of Philadelphia, under the direction of Dr. Henry C. McCook.) Scene 13. This scene represents Penn's treaty with the Indians under the elm made famous by Benjamin West's picture. Of it Vol- taire wrote: "This was the only treaty between these people 12 « 3 w o SB The Book of the Pageant and the Christians that was not ratified by oath and that was never broken." Some authorities relegate the whole subject to the realm of legend. It is certain, however, that Penn had an understanding with the chiefs of the Lenni Lenapes, residing in this vicinity, in the summer of the year 1683. It was a meet- ing intended to establish friendship, a pow-wow with the leaders, at which it was explained by Penn that they would be fairly and justly dealt with. Whether treaty or understanding, it followed that the settlers in this part of the country dwelt in peace and concord with the aborigines. Unfortunately it is recorded that the Indians were sometimes deprived of what was justly theirs, but it should be understood that these dishonest men were not Quakers. (On this car appear students of Haverford College.) Scene 14. In this group is pictured the Penn family on the occasion of the founder's second and last visit to his province, in the years 1699 to 1 70 1. With Penn, who is seen on his white horse, are his wife, Hannah Callowhill Penn, and his daughter, Letitia, whom he affectionately called "Tishe." Mrs. Penn rides in the calash, which tradition says she used at the time, and in the sedan chair Letitia is carried by stalwart men who sometimes bore her through the unpaved streets of the new city. Scene 15. William Penn had a barge of which he was very fond, and in it he and his family, as well as members of the Provincial Council, often rode between the city and his manor at Penns- bury. The boat had a sail and six oarsmen, and the 27 miles which separated his country place from the city could be com- fortably covered in all kinds of weather in this little vessel. In his absence from Pennsylvania he enjoined his agents to take good care of the barge, but after his departure from the prov- ince, in 1 701, he was destined not to see it again. 13 The Book of the Pageant C— COLONIAL PHILADELPHIA "And thou, Philadelphia, the virgin settlement of this province, named before thou wert born, what care, what service and what travail has there been to bring thee forth, and preserve thee from such as would abuse and defile thee. Oh, that thou mayest be kept from the evil that would overwhelm thee; that faithful to the God of thy Mercies, in the life of righteousness, thou mayest be preserved to the end." — William Perm's Farewell to the City. Scene 16. In accordance with an order of the Common Council of the city of Philadelphia, dated October 25, 1714, "the Mayor, Recorder, Aldermen and Common Council" were to "wait upon the Governor on Wednesday next, at ye hour of twelve in the forenoon, in order to proclaim the King, and afterward present the Mayor-elect to ye Governor to be qualified." In this scene the Mayor and corporation are shown in company with the Governor, on the occasion when the first of the Hanoverian line, George I, was proclaimed King of England. Charles Goo- kin was the Governor at the time, George Roch, Mayor of Philadelphia, and Richard Hill, Mayor-elect. The proclama- tion was read from the gallery of the old court house, which stood in the middle of Market street, at Second street. The Governor's Council at this time was made up of eighteen mem- bers, three from each of the Pennsylvania counties — Philadel- phia, Chester and Bucks — and three from each of the "Lower Counties," which later came to compose the state of Delaware. The Mayor and Corporation form a group of twenty-four per- sons. The Mayor is accompanied by the Recorder with his book, the Sheriff with his staff, the Beadle, who was a kind of town crier, with his bell, eight Aldermen and twelve Common Councilmen. (Impersonated by students of Temple University.) Scene 17. In this scene is given a glimpse of the primitive police of the city — a constable and the night watch. This watch was introduced in 1705. The men served without reward and were 14 The Book of the Pageant expected to report to the constable, ready for duty, at candle light. If they failed in this they must furnish a substitute or pay the constable six shillings a year to be excused. They carried lanterns. Later, of course, they were paid officers of the city, and had little watch houses at the corner of the streets, to which they might go for protection against the weather. Occasionally they would start the "hue and cry" after a criminal, a kind of "halloo," or they would announce a fire. Their calls during the night, giving the hour and the state of the weather, and some- times important items of news, such as "Eleven o'clock and all's well," "Past twelve o'clock and a starry night," "Three o'clock and a glorious starlight morning," were familiar until well on in the nineteenth century. (Impersonated by students of Temple University.) Scene 18. In the early part of the eighteenth century pirates were fre- quently encountered at the Capes of the Delaware. Every now and then a pirate ship would be captured and the picturesque scoundrels were brought to Philadelphia for trial. It happened for some reason that they seldom were punished, although there is a tradition that at times they were hanged for their crimes on the high seas on Windmill, later Smith's Island, formerly in the Delaware opposite Philadelphia. The last pirates to be hanged there were brought to the gallows in 1800. Those pictured in this scene belonged to a band captured in 1718 and carried to the city under guard. Like many others of the same sort they escaped conviction, and were freed only to return to their depredations. Scene 19. To the readers of Franklin's "Autobiography" this scene will require no introduction. Here is pictured the youthful printer on his arrival in Philadelphia, on a certain October Sunday morning, 1723. Franklin was seventeen at the time, and as he himself notes, was attired in his working clothes, having rowed the boat down the river from Burlington. He stopped in at a bakery and purchased three pence worth of bread, "great puffy rolls," he calls them, and while munching on one of these 15 The Book of the Pageant in his desultory walk about the town he was seen by Miss Read, who could not repress a smile at the add sight. Later the young woman became Mrs. Franklin. Scene 20. Almost from the earliest times the corporation of Phila- delphia was empowered to hold two fairs annually. The form of proclamation was as follows: "O Yes and Silence is commanded while the Fair proclaiming upon Pain of Imprisonment. "A. B., Esq.. Mayor of the City of Philadelphia, doth hereby, in the King's Name strictly charge and command all persons trading and negotiating within this Fair to keep the King's peace. "And that no person or persons whatsoever presume to set up any Booth or Stall for the vending of strong Liquors within this Fair. "And that no Person or Persons presume to bear or carry any unlawful Weapons to the Terrour or Annoy- ance of his Majesty's Subjects, or to gallop or strain Horses within the Built Parts of this City. "And if any person shall receive any Hurt or Injury from Another let him repair to the Mayor, here present, and his wrongs shall be redressed. This Fair to con- tinue Three Days and no longer. God save the King." The fair times were in May and November and continued for three days. In them all kinds of dry goods, millinery, cakes, toys, confectionery, etc., could be purchased by the people and there were many interesting side shows and entertainments. After the Revolution they fell into discredit and they were no longer seen. In the group are a number of interesting "fair time" characters, such as the hot gingerbread man, pie man, bell ringer, woman ballad singer and hot sausage man. Some In- dians are seen with their packs of skins and a lottery wheel where the people are asked to try their fortunes. On the edge of the crowd are a number of chimney sweeps who were every- where a feature of the life of the city at this time ; also porters with packs upon their backs and a number of street criers, long an institution in the city, offering to the people brick dust, sand, hot corn, hominy, etc. Here and there may be detected some paupers and people who have been branded for crime. The paupers, according to the manner of the time, are marked with 16 • ( — • smbm ' >\^1^ j 1 '-■-''",2 <£95k*0** ■ . • ,. ■ -} .'"' :','■. o a z o O (* W o H w H 2 O 2 Ol, O H O 2 3 o Z z w Oh The Book of the Pageant a large Roman "P" on the shoulder of the sleeve, while a small "p" beside it indicates that they are charges of the City of Philadelphia. The letters upon the criminals, "R" and "T," stand respectively for Rogue and Thief. Some were condemned to work upon the streets. These were called "wheelbarrow men." (Impersonated by students of Temple University.) Scene 21. This scene shows a body of Palatines, German Redemp- tioners, on their way to the Mayor's office to take the oath of allegiance to the King of England. When they left the ship the court house bell was rung. These unfortunate people were often lured from their homes on the Rhine by unprincipled shipmasters and upon their arrival here were sold out to years of service for their passage money. Immigrants of other na- tionalities were also sold for the price of their coming to America, but most of the redemptioners in Pennsylvania were Germans. There was a particularly large movement between the years 1730 and 1750. No less than 12,000 were landed in 1749. From some of them have descended many substantial Pennsylvania families. (Impersonated by students of Temple University.) Scene 22. Early methods of fighting fire in Philadelphia are pictured in this scene. The system, though it now appears very primi- tive, was the result of much thought. The little engine is the old "Shagrag," which dates from the year 1764, and has been preserved ever since in Germantown. Upon the announcement of fire by the Town Watch each householder was expected to throw his leather buckets and bags into the street for general use. They were marked with the names of the owners, so that they might be returned, and were taken rapidly to the fire. The bags were used for carrying away from the scene of danger such material in the burning house as could be easily removed. The buckets, filled with water at the town pump, were passed up one line, composed of the stronger and abler bodied. The contents were dumped into the tank of the engine and returned 17 The Book of the Pageant empty to the pump by another line. Women and children were often seen in this second line, and everyone who passed was pressed into the service. There were hooks, fitted to long poles, to be used for pulling down houses when the fire could not be extinguished. There were also swabs on long poles, made of cloth and soaked in water, for treating points that could not be reached by the stream from the hose. (Impersonated by students of Temple University.) Scene 23. In this scene is presented an idea of the busy life surround- ing the old London Coffee House, which long stood at Front and Market streets. The portrayal pictures it near the middle of the eighteenth century. The stage coach which set out from this neighborhood ; a post-boy with his bags of mail and newspapers ; a pack train, by which freight was carried inland ; the Conestoga wagon, which for a century or more was another means of transportation for goods and passengers in certain sections of the state, and a group of frontiersmen and Indians are features of the representation. There may also be noted a couple starting out on a horse fitted with a pillion, a device frequently resorted to in the days when wagons were few and dear and the roads none too good. Scene 24. The car in this section indicates the very prominent part which Philadelphia played from the earliest days in the develop- ment of the printing industry. The first printing press in the middle colonies was that set up here by William Bradford, in 1685. It was probably the second press in the British posses- sions in America. Very early William Rittenhouse began to manufacture paper at his mill on the Wissahickon, within the present limits of Germantown. The watermark in his paper is shown upon the side of the car. The first Bible to be printed in a European tongue in America was that of Christopher Sower, in Germantown, in 1743. This book reached a second edition in 1763 and a third in 1776. The first English Bible in America was that printed by Robert Aitken in Philadelphia, in 1782. The first daily newspaper in the American colonies was the "Pennsylvania Packet," in 1784. Another large book associated 18 Charles II Signing the Charter of Pennsylvania Scene 7 The Book of the Pageant with the early history of Pennsylvania was the so-called "Martyr Book," — "Der Bluetige Schauplatz oder Martyrer Spiegel," printed by the press at Ephrata. Following the car come repre- sentatives of the other prominent industries and trades practiced with some celebrity in Philadelphia in the early days, such as coopers, cordwainers, rope makers, tailors and ship carpenters. Scene 25. There are few better remembered incidents connected with the life of Benjamin Franklin than his epoch-making experiment with a kite by which, for the first time, he identified lightning with electricity. The experiment is said to have been con- ducted on the commons on the outskirts of the city, in 1752, and the generally accepted location of this incident is Ninth and Chestnut streets, where the Boyle statue of the great and many-sided Franklin stands. His companion on this occasion was his son William, afterward for many years the royal gov- ernor of New Jersey. Scene 26. Another view of Franklin is given in this scene. Out of the old Academy and Charity School which he advocated with so much success in 1749, when he took up the cause of education in his "Proposals Relating to the Education of Youth in Penn- sylvania," came the University of Pennsylvania. The institution was first established in the so-called "New Building" erected for the English evangelist, George Whitefield, on Fourth street below Arch. The Academy was opened in 1750, and in 1755 the association was chartered as "The College, Academy and Charitable School of Philadelphia." The Rev. William Smith was the first Provost and remained with the institution in that office for 24 years. Provost Smith, Franklin and the trustees are shown on their visit to the Governor, in 1755, to ask that the Academy shall receive a charter as a college. In the street are a number of students in the costume of the period. Four of them bear a model of the old building on Fourth street. (Students and alumni of the University of Pennsylvania appear in this scene.) 19 The Book of the Pageant Scene 27. Here is given a glimpse of the first tragedy to be written and produced in America. This was "The Prince of Parthia," by Thomas Godfrey, the son of that Thomas Godfrey, the in- ventor of the mariner's quadrant, who was a friend of Franklin and a member of the Junto. In this representation is shown the scene in the first act of the play which depicts the return of the victorious Prince of Parthia. The tragedy was played by Hallam's company at the South wark Theatre on April 24, 1767. The piece was written in 1759, and the young author did not live to see his production presented on the stage. The South- wark Theatre, remains of which may still be seen on South street above Fourth, was the third building especially erected in this country for a playhouse, and the second built for that pur- pose in this city. In the scene are shown the victorious Prince, the King, the Queen, the brothers of the Prince, Arabian captives, soldiers and priests. (Impersonated by members of the Enterprise Dramatic Club of Germantown.) D— THE REVOLUTION. . "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among them are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happi- ness * * * and in support of this declaration * * * we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor." Scene 28. The feeling in the colonies against the mother country, which amounted to passive resistance, became active opposition when news arrived that Parliament had passed the Stamp Act in the spring of the year 1765. In Philadelphia, under the guidance of Franklin, every effort was made to nullify the measure by resorting to all possible economies. Bells and drums were muffled, and the newspapers appeared in all the livery of mourning. It was at this time that the cry "No Taxation with- out Representation" was taken up and reechoed by the people. The offensive measure was to have gone into effect on November 1, 1765, but the stamps were not sold in Philadelphia. 20 The Book of the Pageant Following this scheme came the resolutions of merchants and other citizens to import no merchandise from England. Home industries were developed, women spun and wove, and the people began to clad themselves in linsey woolsey. In 1773 the attempt to levy a tea tax on the Americans also received its first setback in Philadelphia. The captain of the "Polly," the ship which brought in the tea, was intercepted at Gloucester and taken up to the city. What he saw caused him promptly to return to England with his objectionable cargo. (The ladies in this section are members of the Patriotic Order of Americans.) Scene 29. This scene pictures the arrival of some of the Virginia dele- gates to the second Continental Congress, most of whom reached Philadelphia on May 9, 1775. The news of the battle of Lexing- ton had just been received by express from Trenton. The coun- try was aflame, and as each contingent of delegates from the various Colonies came to the city they were met in the suburbs by citizens and cavalcades of militiamen, and escorted into town. Among the Virginians in the Congress were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee and Benjamin Harrison. Drums and fifes met the procession on Gray's Ferry road and conducted it through the city. The Virginians are escorted by the "Quaker Greens," a Philadelphia company of "Associators" or "Minute Men," which had been hastily gathered together for defence. (The troops in this and the next succeeding scenes are members of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics.) Scene 30. Here is shown the arrival of some of the Eastern Delegates on May 10, 1775. The party included such patriots as John Adams, John Hancock, Samuel Adams and Robert Treat Paine, from Massachusetts Bay. They were met on the Northern limits of the city, as they came in from Trenton. Their escort includes a company of the "Quaker Blues," a famous body of Philadelphia militiamen, rivals of the "Greens." 21 The Book of the Pageant Scene 31. John Paul Jones, the most romantic figure in the naval chapters of the Revolutionary War, is pictured in this scene as going to join the "Alfred," the flagship of Admiral Hopkins, of which he was lieutenant, to hoist the first flag flung out on a naval vessel of the United States. The date of this event is December, 1775, while the "Alfred," a 24-gun ship, lay in the Delaware River, opposite Walnut street, awaiting orders to put to sea. The flag hoisted on that occasion is said to have borne a pine tree and a rattlesnake on a yellow field with the words "Don't Tread on Me." Scene 32. The Fourth of July is so intimately connected in popular estimation with the birth of the United States that we overlook the importance of July 2, 1776, when the resolution of Richard Henry Lee, which had been presented to Congress on June 7, that "these United Colonies are* and of right ought to be, free and independent States," was adopted, although John Adams, writing to his wife the next day, predicted that it would be "the most memorable epoch in the history of America." A section of the Independence chamber in the old State House is pictured in this scene. At the table is John Hancock, President of Con- gress, and at his side sits the Secretary, Charles Thomson. The members are in the act of voting upon the resolution, nine States being for and four against it. The members of the committee which drew up the famous document were Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Robert Livingston and Roger Sherman, who are in the foreground. Scene 33. On May 15, 1776, the Continental Congress, by resolution, recommended the Colonies to establish new governments "suffi- cient to the exigencies of their affairs." A Provincial Confer- ence was called to meet in Carpenters' Hall, on June 18, and was followed by a convention in the State House on July 15- Delegates from the city and the counties attended, and in September the first constitution of the state was adopted. A government was organized more democratic in form than that 22 The Book of the Pageant of any other of the thirteen states. Instead of a Governor the state was provided with twelve Councillors, one of whom was elected President. The first President of Pennsylvania was Thomas Wharton, Jr. The Councillors, some early seals of the state and a Pennsylvania naval flag are shown to indicate the birth of the new State. This constitution survived amid great contention until 1790. Scene 34. Congress on June 14, 1777, adopted a design for a flag. It was the first flag of the United Colonies, and with some altera- tions in the starry field, is identical with the present ensign of the United States. There is a well-known tradition that Betsy Ross, who made the flags for the Pennsylvania navy, manufac- tured this emblem of the United States. Mrs. Ross, then a young widow, is shown in this scene. She is putting the finishing touches upon an early flag. Scene 35. When it became certain that the British troops were, in the course of their campaign, about to take possession of Philadel- phia, as the capital city of the continent, or the place where the Congress met, that body ordered all the great bells to be taken down and removed so that they should not fall into hostile hands. The Liberty Bell, at that time known only as the State House bell, was included in the number and, together with the chimes of Christ Church, and St. Peter's, was carried in September, 1777, to Allentown for safe keeping. At the same time there was a general exodus of the frightened inhabitants, although some of the more courageous ones, and the Tories, of course, remained. The bells removed in 1777 were brought back after the British left the city and were rehung. Scene 36. This scene represents the meeting of the three most popular officers of the Revolution, George Washington, Anthony Wayne and the Marquis de Lafayette. The time of the meeting was after the disastrous battle of the Brandywine, when the Ameri- can forces fell back upon Philadelphia. 23 The Book of the Pageant Scene 37. The entrance of the British under Sir William Howe and Lord Cornwallis is shown in this scene. The first detachment of troops reached the city on the morning of October 26, 1777, under Colonel Harcourt. As they marched through the streets the band played "God Save the King," and they were warmly welcomed by the loyalists or Tories, of whom the city had many. Howe's army had disembarked at Head of Elk a month before, and in the interval had marched on toward Phila- delphia, worsting the Americans at the Brandywine and. at Paoli. and then entering the city by way of the Ridge Road.. Among the troops represented are some Grenadiers, the 426 Highland- ers (the famous "Black Watch"), and a regiment of Hessian "yellowlegs." (Members of the Boys' Brigade under Colonel L. D. Mitchell appear in this scene.) Scene 38. One of the romantic traditions connected with the British occupation of the city is the feat of Lydia Darrach. According to tradition Mrs. Darrach, who lived in the famous Loxley House on Second street, below Spruce, one night overheard a conference of British officers quartered in her house. Thus she learned that a plan had been formed to capture Washington by surprise while he and his army lay at White Marsh. In the dead of night, as though in need of flour, she set off with a bag, and successfully passed the British lines. She left her bag at a mill in Frankford and then coming up to one of the American outposts delivered her warning, which was carried to the Ameri- can Commander-in-Chief. The attempted surprise failed com- pletely. The British found the Americans prepared and the King's men, after a disastrous experience, were obliged to return to the city. Scene 39. The most pleasing impression left by the King's troops on Philadelphia during their occupation of the city was that made by the gorgeous pageant known to history, as at that time, as the Meschianza. The word was used, says Major Andre, in his 24 w u 2 to Q 2 to PL, to Q 2 O 2 O H •«! Pi «! J U td G The Book of the Pageant account of the event, because it was composed of a variety of entertainments. The historic fete champetre was held at the Wharton mansion, then in the southern suburbs of the city, on May 18, 1778. The entertainment, which was on a scale of magnificence never before approached in this country, was in honor of Sir William Howe, who, although he had failed to effect the submission of the Americans, was highly esteemed by the officers of his army. He had received his recall, and his successor, Sir Henry Clinton, had arrived. The fete was arranged by Major Andre and Captain Oliver Delancey. It lasted from four o'clock on the afternoon of the 18th until four o'clock on the morning of the 19th. It included a regatta, a tournament, a ball, a supper and fireworks. The first two cars represent the tournament. In one car are the seven ladies of the Blended Rose, who are preceded by knights, heralds and squires. The second shows the seven ladies of the Burning Mountain, preceded by the knights who, in mediaeval fashion, championed their cause. The ladies were the principal Tory belles of the city. Among them were representa- tives of the Shippen, Chew, Bond and Redman families. Miss Peggy Shippen, afterward Mrs. Benedict Arnold, was a lady of the Blended Rose. The Knights of the Blended Rose were led by Lord Cathcart, and Captain Andre was in his band. The leader of the Knights of the Burning Mountain was Captain Watson of the Guards. The last scene pictures the heralds of the Blended Rose pro- claiming the health of King George III and the Royal family at the end of the supper in a sumptuous room in the Wharton House. (Impersonated by students and friends of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts under the direction of John E. D. Trask.) Scene 40. At no time in his long and picturesque career did Franklin achieve so proud a position as during his stay at the Court of France as the representative of the new American nation. Late in the year 1776 he set out for France, as one of the three Com- misioners appointed to use their powers of persuasion to gain the assistance of Louis XVI, who, as Congress had been mysteriously informed, was willing to aid the cause. After the surrender of Burgoyne, the French King was able to acknowledge 25 The Book of the Pageant the independence of the new states, and soon afterward signed the treaty of alliance. During his stay in France, Franklin lived at Passy. The French people were charmed with the American. He was so delightfully informal, always agreeable, and always approachable. The other Commissioners were scarcely noticed. Franklin alone was the representative to whom the people and the ministers listened. Notwithstanding a lack of businesslike methods, of which John Adams accused him, Franklin achieved what perhaps no other man in America at that time could have accomplished. His triumph was complete when as Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States he paid his first visit to the Court at Versailles. Surrounded by gaily-dressed courtiers and ladies, the American representative appeared before the King and Queen without a wig, without buckles upon his shoes, and without a sword at his side. His attire was the plainest in the salon, but he was pointed out, he was discussed, and it almost seemed as if it were his levee instead of that of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. From that day, Franklin's position in France was assured. He could obtain from court or people anything in reason, and it was because of this popularity, which Adams never could understand, that he was so serviceable to his country. Scene 41. A French frigate, "La Resolue," brought 2,500,000 livres from France in the autumn of 1781. This specie was landed in Boston at a very critical time, and Robert Morris undertook to transport it to Philadelphia. He had just been appointed Super- intendent of Finance of the United States, and the money was sorely needed to aid him in carrying out his cherished plan of establishing a national bank, which he called the Bank of North America. The money was packed in small square boxes, made of strong oak boards. These boxes, to the number of twenty, were placed together in a large chest, constructed of thick oak planks. Each chest weighed about a ton, and to it were attached four oxen led by one horse. The roads were extremely rough and penetrated a country in control of the British Army, so that the carts must be closely guarded all the way. Tench Francis led the expedition successfully for Robert Morris, and upon his return became the cashier of the bank. (The officers of the Bank of North America have interested them- selves in this scene, and the men appearing in it are members of the Robert Morris Club of this city.) 26 The Book of the Pageant Scenes 42 and 43. The beginning of the end of the long Revolution is por- trayed in these scenes. The assistance of the French in men, arms and money, augmented by the efforts of Robert Morris, had in 1781 turned the critical and, in some respects, the dark- est hour of the struggle into one of hopefulness. The British were at Yorktown, the French fleet would soon arrive in the Chesapeake, and the American Army, with the French allies who had come over together from New York and New England, are here shown on their way to hem in the King's troops, cause the surrender of Cornwallis and practically end the conflict, which had continued for more than six weary years. The entry of the American troops, with General Washington at their head, was begun on the morning of September 3, 1781. That day the First Division of the American forces reached the city; the next day the Second Division, including the French regiments, with Count Rochambeau at their head, made their entry. The beautiful uniforms of the De Soissonois regiment, which may be recognized by the rose colored facings, charmed the Philadelphians ; but at that time even the American Army made a presentable front, and their soldierly appearance as they marched into the city was the cause of much admiring remark. (Members of the Patriotic Order Sons of America represent the American Army. The Cooper Battalion, accompanied by its Bugle Corps, represents the French Army.) Scene 44. News of the surrender of Cornwallis's army reached Phila- delphia by an express rider about three o'clock on the morning of October 22, 1781. A German watchman first took up the cry and announced the event to those who were so early awake — "Pasht tree o'clock and Gornwallis ish daken." The news soon spread over the city. It, however, was unofficial, and there was no celebration until the happy tidings had been verified. Colonel Tench Tilghman, aide to General Washington, arrived here on the 24th, confirming the report. On Saturday after- noon, November 3d, twenty-four stands of colors, eight British and sixteen Hessian, which had been surrendered by the King's troops at Yorktown, arrived and were escorted into the city. The trophies were laid at the feet of Congress, then sitting in the State House. The procession was preceded by the American and French standards. 27 The Book of the Pageant E— UNDER THE CONSTITUTION. "Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair. The event is in the hand of God." — Washington in the Constitutional Convention. Scene 45. The car in this scene symbolically represents the idea of the birth of the new nation, which was accomplished when the Constitution was adopted in the State House in September, 1787. The sessions had lasted since the May of that year. The thirteen young women represent the separate thirteen States which united to form the Union. Alexander Hamilton, as one of the chief influences which made the change in government possible at a time when the advisability of forming so strong a federation was a matter of doubt in many minds, is seen driving the car, while Washington, whose pacific and commanding influ- ence did so much to make the Union possible, sits above. The first State to ratify the Constitution was Delaware, on December 7, 1787; the second Pennsylvania, on December 12, 1787, and the last of the thirteen was Rhode Island, on May 29, 1790. (Ladies from the Patriotic Order of Americans.) Scene 46. Although General Washington in some respects was a democratic man, his birth, training and position made him a good deal of a patrician. This character, however, attached to him naturally, and consequently was in no sense offensive. He was not in favor of great ceremony, but he gave evidence that no matter how much his own feelings might be against form and parade, his public position demanded that he bow to the popular will. Washington was first inaugurated in New York, in 1789. The national capital having been removed to Philadelphia the next year, it followed that his second inauguration should take place here. Although his residence was in Market between Fifth and Sixth streets, and Congress Hall was at the corner of Sixth and Chestnut streets, only a block distant, it was deemed necessary to have a formal procession. Washington, attired in a courtly suit of black velvet, powdered wig, and sword at his side, was driven in his coach to Congress Hall, where he was met 28 85 < X O w 14 85 £ I* si ^* o g en