YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY l(i OCT* 4 »^li NilW-YOKK AS IT WAS, in iUN(i Trf&^J; ' '" Cattci- IPoH Ot" tijc Caot Cffeuiitfu. BY -M.^ ?/€'ALr(ANDKR-l)UEli,.U:D. __ par, ^ f 1 lie 'S*5*n ^'tw-^oik W^&TA^^()!M) AND .'^WOl?DS, l-'^', lUiOAD^VAi' NEW-YORK AS IT WAS, DURING THE LATTER PART OF THE LAST CENTURY. ANNIVERSAEY ADDRESS selivehed iiEFons OF TUS CITY OF NEW-YORK, DECEMBER 1st, 1848. BY WILLIAM ALEXANDER DUER, LL.D. Hcec olirn mcnuiiJESo juvabit. — Vmo. NEW- YORK: STANFORD AND SWORDS, 139, BROADWAY. 1849. At a meeting of the St. Nicholas SooiExr of the Citv of New-Youk, held on the Cth of December, 18d8, it was , Jicsohed, That the thanks of the Society bo presented to the Hon.Wit. A. Ddek, for his able and interesting Address, which, carrying us back to days gone by, and making us acquainted with facts and incidents before unnoticed, and with men prominent in the early days of our Ropubhc, afforded cause for increased reverence and attacliment to our Citj', then tho scene of those important events : ] Renokcd, That Mr. DuEa be respectfully requested to furnish a copy of the Address, to be preserved among tho records ofthe Society. To tlie Hon. William A. Dueb. New-Toek, February 12, 1849. Dear Sia, — A largo number of your friends, as well as tho members generally of the St. Kioholas Society, are very desirous of liaving your late interesting and instructive Addre'ss published for the good of our Sous of St. Nicholas. Will you, therefore, bo kind enough to send us tho manuscript for this purpose! "We remain, dear Sir, your friends and obedient servants, JOHN A. KING, President. JAMES D. P. OGDEN, Chairman of tlic Committee on Address, Ac. To John A. King, Esq., President of the St. Nicholas Society ofthe CityofNcm- York ; and James D. P. OGDEN,Esq., Chairman ofthe Committee on Address,&Q. Inqlewood, near Mohristown, (N. J.) i Februarys, lU^. Gentlemen, — I have had the honor of receiving your letter of the 12th instant, asking for the manuscript of my Address at tho late Anniversary Meeting of the St. NlciioLAa Society for publication. Flattered as I am by your request, and tho terms in which it is conveyed, I regret that it is not in my power directly to comply with it. In consequence of a resolution of the Society, requesting a copy of the Address to bo preserved among its records, I, some time since, transmitted the manuscript to the Secretaiy, and to him I must beg leave to refer you for a copy. I am, Gentlemen, with great respect and esteem. Your friend and humble servant, W. A. DUER. ADDRESS Mr. President, and Brethren of the Society of St. Nicholas': Withdrawn for some years past from "the busy haunts of men," and enjoying in the shades of a rural retirement the repose so grateful and becoming to my age, I am rarely tempted to emerge fi'om my retreat, except to attend your annual festival: for then it is that I meet thosg few surviving friends whose heads, like my own, are " silvered o'er with age" — men whom I have known from boys^ — with whom I sat on the same form at the madam's school ; cracked eggs with at Paas ; skated on the Kolch ; slid down Yerlentenberg Hill on the same sled — whom I slung stones with or against in tho battles between " Broadwai/" and " Smith'' s Vly ;* or, in later years, I fought side by side with, or on opposite sides, at elections. * In tho early youth of tho author, an old custom still prevailed among tho boj's of tho city of enlisting in different' local parties, which eucomitercd each other iii battle array in the environs, armed with tho primitive weapons of slings aud stones. There were originally but two parties : .that of the eastern and lower parts of the city, which took its name from ihe-Vlij, or marsh, extending northward from tho Vly Market i^t the foot of Maiden Lane ; and that of the wcstoni anil,uppcr por tion, known from the principal street within its bounds &s " Broadway." As tho city extended northward and eastward, a third party arose distinguished as tho " Bowery Boys." This tiers etat soon outnumbered the other two ; and was, besides, composed of such formidable materials from the slaughter-houses in the neighborhood, as to compel tho old ones to relinquish hostilities between themselves. Nor is it these alono that it delights mo to meet. Tho sons of my old friends, especially of those deceased, seem to have succeeded to their fathers in my affections. To many of them, and to others that I see before me, have I stood in the place of a parent ;* I have felt for them a parent's responsi bility and solicitude ; and I sometimes flatter myself that, in return, they feel for me almost the attachment of sons. Such being tho case, you may imagine with what feelings I received the invitation to address you; and you know how promptly I accepted it. But, then, the difficult question arose, "What shall I say to them?" My predecessors have well- nigh exhausted all appropriate topics ; tho cotemporary orators of tho Historical Society have sounded the depths of our modern antiquities ; and our own veracious historian, Dedrick Knickerbocker, has, in defiance of tho dogmas of Socialism, monopolized the national domain of wit and humour. I have nothing left but to relate my personal and local experiences ; plead the privilege of age in excuse for the egotism and gar rulity into which the narrative may betray me, and rely for furtfier justification on the Constitution of this Society, which declares one of its objects to be, " to collect and preserve information respecting the history, settlement, manners, and such other matters as may relate to the Cily of New-York." To begin, then, with my first recollections of this city, which relate to a time when i]t Was not much larger, or its population much greater, than tho additions now annually made to them. It was in the month of November, 1783, close upon the evacuation of the city by the British forces, and the entry of Grcneral Washington at the head of the American and form an alliance offensive and defensive against tho hardier hordes of the north. The conflicts between these belligerent powers often assumed so serious an aspect as to threaten the public peace, and call for the mediation of tho police. * During the author's connection of twelve years with Columbia Collegei if army, that our family caravan followed, in true patriarchal style, parents and children, (as yet there were but two of us,) man-servants and maid-servants, and a stranger that had been received within our gates. We had landed at the old Albany Pier, near the foot of Whitehall-street ; and, as wo pursued our course upwards, the first objects that arrested my atten tion were the dismounted cannon lying under the walls of the Old Fort, or " Upper Battery," over which they had appa rently been toppled by the British soldiery, in the wantonness or haste of their departure.* The first view of these pieces of ordnance produced some confusion in my infant mind. We had arrived from West Point, wliere Ihad been accustomed to the sight of artillery in various positions, and I sagely eoncluJed that we had put back, and relanded at that post. But I was soon undeceived. Passing the Bowling Green, with a some what triumphant glance at the pedestal in its centre, from which the leaden imaget of George the Third had been de throned, we found ourselves advancing into tho Burnt District, situate in very much the same part of Broadway as the more recent sceiie of a similar calamity. It extended in this quar ter — to which, however, it was by no means confined — up both sides' of Broadway to Rector-street,}: with the exception of * In the same spirit in which, after striking tho British flag at Fort George, or " Upper Bdttory," they unrovo the halliards and greased the slafT to prevent tho American flag from being immediately hoisted. t It was cast into bullets, and in that shape returned to his majesty's troops on their landuig. t T1)0 great fire of September 21, 177G, commenced at tho Whitehall Slip. Il bunied all the houses on tho east sido of the slip, and the west side of Croiid-Btrccl to Boaver-street, both sides of which were destroyed. It then crossed Croadway to Beaver Lano, (now Morris-street,) burnhig all the houses on both sides of Broadway to Rector-street on tho west, and some few houses iu Novv-strect on tho co.st. Besides Trinity Church, (the one before the last,) this fire destroyed a Lutlicraii church at tho lower corner of Rector-street, whore Grace Church was afterwards erected ; and thence extending in the rear of Trinity Church along Lumbor-slrcot, in which al) the houses wore burned, as well as every thing in the rear of Broad way to Partition (now Fulton) street, in which every house ou both sides, and as V 8 some half dozen houses left standing near tho " Lower," or present " Battery."* No visible attempts had been made since the fire to remove the ruins ; and as the edifices destroyed were chiefly of brick, the skeletons of the remaining walls oast their grim shadows upon the pavement, imparting an unearthly aspect to tho street. The semi-circular front of old Trinity still reared its ghastly head, and seemed to deepen while it hallowed the solitude of tho surrounding graves. But before reaching it, the gloom was cheered by another revival of my military im pressions, at the sight of some remaining pickets of a stockade in the lane opposite Yerlentenberg Hill, which once formed a portion of the old city wall, crossed Broadway diagonally, passed down the opposite street, and gave to it its name. Turning into this street we seemed, at last, to have entered a city of tho livmg. There stood tho old Presbyterian meeting ; not that which lately crossed the ferry to Jersey City, but its rough-hewn predecessor, in which Whitfiold had once poured forth the torrent of his eloquence, and whoso members had, in after years, been refreshed by milder and more fertilizing streams flowing from the lips of a Rodgcrs, or a Miller. There it stood in solitary gloom, to which the tur moil of the carrying trade now driving at the same spot, affords the liveliest imaginable reverse. Next, at the head of Broad-street, we descried the City Hall, in its primitive far as Mortlike (now Barclay) street, and down to the North River, were destroyed. The College Vard, and the vacant ground in its rear, put an end to this conflagra tion, in wliich about five hundred houses were consumed. — See Dunlap s Jlist. N. I', vol. ii., p. 78. On the 7th of August, 1778, another fire broke out in the night, in which about three hundred houses in Groat aud Little Dock, and the adjacent streets, were destroyed. — Ibid., p 164. * From the present Nos. 1 to 11, &c., comprising tho family residences of Captain Archibald Kennedy, 11. N., afterwards Earl of Cassilis ; John Watts, Sen. ; Robert R. Livingston, Sen. ; John Stevens, Son. ; Augustus Van Cortlandt, Henry Wliite, &c. nakedness, forming a still stronger though not moro striking contrast to the Grecian Temple* which has succeeded it, Tiie old Hall, before its conversion to the use of the federal govern ment, stood upon open brick arches, under which you passed from street to street in one direction, and in another, along the same street in Avhioh we were travelling. Nearly opposite, was the modest dwelling of Alexander Hamilton, upon part of the present site of tho Mechanics' Bank. . Beyond, at tho intersection of Smith (now William) street, wo beheld tho effigies of a more widely celebrated, but not more illustrious man. There, erect upon its pedestal, was tlie statue of the elder Pitt, mutilated and defaced in resentment of his speech against the acknowledgement of our Independence, in a man ner more evincive of the patriotism, than good taste of the despoilers. Our family party now wheeled to tho left, and passing up Smith-street, till we came to tho corner of King, now Pino- street, we took up our abode for the winter at the family mansion of tho Philipses,t then kept as a lodging-house by a • * U. S. Custom House, in material and proportior.s, is, perhaps, tho best modem imitation of ancient architecture. It is indeed a veritable temple, dcdiuatod to Plutus, whose statue has not as yet been erected, though his altars and his priests have not been wanting since tho establishment there of tho sub-treasury, and tho 'appointment of my old friend Governor Bouck, to ofiiciato as Pontifex-Mnximui. I Removed within these few years, to make way for warehouses. Al the corner immediately opposite, was, tho residence of one branch of the Ludlows ; opposite to them, in Smith-street, was that of the Duyckincks. Proceeding north ward, at the corner of Little Queen, now Cedar-street, was a family of Beckmans; directly opposite John Alsop, a retired merchant, a delegate to tho first Continental Congress, and father-in-law of Rufus King, who afterwards occupied the house for several years. It was removed some years since, upon the extension of Cedar- etreet. .i\t the S. W. corner of Crown, now Liberty-street, was tho famous retail hardware aud fancy shop — as such establishments wore then properly called — of Francis Ogsbury, continued many years afterwards by his sons and sucecsscrs. , Returning to King-street, and proceeding southwardly, across Wall, and down Smilh-Ktiect, wo come to the entrance of Garden-street, in which stood tho " little Dutch Church,'' the oldest in the city, and tho lowest down town. At tho upper corner of Smith and Garden streets, was the fashionable haberdasher)' of Grove 10 respectable matron of the name of Mercer, but afterwards, be fore its fall, more renowned as the Bank Coffee House, kept by ¦ the inimitable host Niblo, so farnous as a caterer for tho pub- 'lic taste, in various departments. On the next May-day — that day devoted by our Dutch ancestors to uproar and removal, we resumed onr peregrinations ; nor stopt till we arrived at tho upper extremity of Broadway, at the utmost limit of the City pavement, where we toolt possession of the house opposite St. Paxil's Chapel, now occupied by the Cheini- cal Bank. There was so little choice in regard to situation, that we were fain to content ourselves with this remote resi dence, especially as the house itself was one of the best, as as well as one of the few to be rented in tho city. It was, to be sure, not very convenient, in point of situation, for a town- house ; but then it rejoiced in some of the advantages of a country retreat. The fields were open to the north, as far as a line ranging eastwardly from Warren-street, where the pros pect was bounded by those more useful than agreeable objects, the Bridewell, the Poorhouse, the Gaol and the Gallows. To wards the west, however, there was nothing to obstruct the view of the North River, but two low houses at the corner of Yesey-street, and the College building, as yet unfurnished with wings, and unadorned with stucco. The " fields," as the area comprised in the Park was then called, wfere green, but neither inclosed nor planted, and the only trees in. sight, be sides tho young, now old, ones in front of the College, were Bend ; nt tho lower comer, tho residence formerly of the Clarksons, and after wards of Colonel Sebastian Banman, the post-master. a revolutionary officer appointed to that station by General Washington ; there ho kept his oflice as did his successor General Bailey. Adjoining were the Kemblos, and opposite tho Costers. Below, opposite Princess-street, as that part of Beaver-street Was theu called, was a branch of tho Van Hohies, and in that and the small streets and lanes in tho vicinity, including that part of Store-street, then called Duke-street— MiU-street, in which was the Jews' Synagogue, the houses wero principally inhabited by that people. IL the stripling growth that peered above the tea, and mead and cake gardens along the west side of the fields. Although the streets leading from Broadway to the river, had been laid out as high as Warren-street, yet they were but partially built upon, and that, for the most part, with houses of an inferior description. None above Dey-street had been regulated and paved ; nor had the ridge, commencing near the Battery, and extending the length of the island, been dug through' as far even as Cortland-street. Great Dock-street, or that part of Pearl, between Whitehall and Coenties Slip, with the other streets in the immediate neighborhood of Fort George, within which the Colonial Government-house was situate, had long been considered the Court-end of the to^vn ;* but, even before the revolution, Wall-street was regarded as a rival seat of fashion ;+ to which it established an exclusive claim, and maintained it until superseded by Park Place,| or Robinson-street, as it had previously been called ; whose pretensions in that respect have, in their turn, become nearly ft * Here wero the residences ofthe Van Dams, De Lanceys, Livingstons, Bay ards, Morrises, Crugers, De Poysfers, and somo others of tho provincial notabilities. t III Wall-street wero tho Verplancks, Marstons, Janeways, Ludlov^s, Win- throps, and Whites ; who being tories, remained in the city during tho Revolution ; after which tho whig families of Lamb, Denning, Buchanan, Van Homo, &.c.| got in among them. Hero too Daniel McCormick kept his batcholor's hall, aud open house, and Mrs. Daubeney, her fashionable boarding house, for geutlcmen ' only, and was generally filled with members of Congress during its sessions in this city. Greenleaf, tho republican printer, planted his batteries so as to command tho strong hold of toryisin, at the corner of Pearl-street — under Rivington, of the Royal Gazette — in case the latter should over recommence his fire. But he took the oath of allegiance to the new government, and was permitted to remain in his book store, — afterwards the auction rooms ofthe Messrs. Hone — as did his fellow" laborer and neighbor, Hugh Gaine, of the Bible and Crown, who after the divorce of church and state on this sido of the Atlantic, removed the royal emblems from his sign. t in the meantime, Cortlandt-streot enjoyed an ephemeral reputation for fashion, from the presence of Sir John Temple, Colonels Ducr, and Walker, Major Fairlie, and subsequently the British Colonel Crawford, who had been Governor of the Bermudas, but on a visit to New-York, ho married tho widow of Robert Cambridge Livingston, and remained here till ho diod. 12 obsolete. Little Dock-street, now merged in Water-street, and that part of tho original Water-street which lay adjacent to the Albany Pier, wero occupied by tho river trade ; while the remainder of Water-street, and such parts of Front-street as had already been recovered from the river, formed the emporium of foreign commerce. This, indeed, was the case as. far up as the Coffee House Slip, and gradually extended to Maiden Lane, at the foot of which were the Vly Market, and tho Brooklyn Ferry ; whilst at the head of it stood the Oswego Market, fronting on Broadway. Above, on thcEast River, as far as Dover-street, tho wharves were chiefly iviproved by our eastern brethren with their cargoes of notions, or occupied by our neighbors from Long Island, with their more substantial freights of oysters, clams, and fine white sand. Beyond Dover- street, the ship-yards commenced, extending, at first, no farther than to the " New," or, as it is now called, " Pike" Slip.* Crossing from Dover to Great (^ueen, since Pearl-street, and pursuing the course of tho latter beyond its intersection with Chatham-street,! and along that part of Pearl then called • The Ship-yards were gradually removed towards Corlaer's Hook, and now extend beyond it. t Near the head of Dover-street, aud at the junction of Pearl and Cherry streets, stands tho old family mansion of Walter Franklin, a member of the society of Friends, and an eminent merchant, whoso wealth was indicated by the dimen sions of his dwelling. Tho late Governor De Witt Clinton, mamcd one of hia daughters, and afterwards occupied his house. But it had previously been ren dered more illustrious as the first residence of General Washington in this'city after his election aa President of the United States. It has since been altered, and tho lower part converted into shops. In tho rear of this, in Pearl-street, was the (Quaker Meeting House ; and this quarter of the city, as far as Chatham-street, was principally inhabited by members of that society. But the more wealthy ones had their establishments lower down, as far as iMaidcu Lane. Here were tho Pearsalls, the Pryors, tho Kmbrees, the Effinghams, the Hiekes, the Hawxhursts, the Ilalletls, the Ilavilands, the Cornells, tho Kenyons, the Townsends, tho Tituses, the VViUetts, the Wrights, &,c. &c. Interspersed, however, with others equally substantial, though not as plain, such as the Waltons and Roosevelts. The Bank of New York was first kept in tho larger Walton House, aud its first President, the elder Isaac Roosevelt, had hia dwelluig nearly opposite. 13 Magazine-street, we arrived at the "Kolch," or " Frcsh-wator- pond," M'hence, through the " Tea- water Pump," in Chatham- street, the city was supplied with water for domestic use, distributed to the inhabitants by means of carts surmounted by casks — similar to those now used for mortaring the streets. Nor was this tho only use madei of the " Collect," as it was called in English ; its southern and eastern banks were lined with furnaces, potteries, breweries, tanneries, rope-walks, and other manufactories ; all drawing their supplies of Avater from the pond. Besides, it was rendered ornamental as well as useful. It was the grand resort in winter of our youth for skating ; and no person who has not beheld it, can realize the scene it then exhibited in contrast to that part of tho city under which it now lies buried. The ground between tlie Collect and Broadway rose gradually from its margin to the , height of one hundred feet, and nothing can exceed in bril liancy and animation the prospect it presented on a fine winter day, when the icy surface was alive with skaters darting in every direction with the swiftness of the wind, or bearing down in a body in pursuit of the ball driven before them by their hurlies ; while the hill side was covered with spectators, rising as in an amphitheatre, tier above tier, com prising as many of the fair sex, as were sufficient to adorn, and necessary to refine the assemblage ; while their presence served to increase the emulation of the skaters. But the most remarkable spectacle ever exhibited on the Fresh -water-pond, is but little known or remembered. Upon its bosom were made some of the earliest experiments in steam navigation. Our worthy fellow-citizen, Anthony Lamb, recol lects seeing on the Collect, as early as the year 1795, a boat with a screw propeller at the stern, driven by a steam engine ;* * From morfi recent and authentic information, tliis appears to have been an eiperiracut of the Iato John Stevens, of Hoboken, who at an early day waj 14 and other experiments are said to have been made there in the summer of 1796, or 1797, by John Fitch, the undoubted inventor of the art, with a common ship's yawl, into which he had placed a rude steam engine of his own construction, with paddle wheels at the sides of his boat. A person of the name of John Hutchings, now, or late of Williamsburgh, L. I., then a lad, states that he assisted Fitch in his experiments, and that Chancellor Livingston, and another person, whom he supposed, no doubt erroneously, to have been Mr. Fulton, were present on one occasion — and he understood from their conversation, that Mr. Stevens, of Hoboken, and a Mr. Roose velt, of this city, had some luiowledge of the enterprise, and felt an interest in its success.* A map of the Collect, as it then was, showing its relative position to the streets now covering its site, with drawings and descriptions of the boats, was not long since published by Plutchings, accompanied by an account of Fitch's experiments, and testimonials to his own engaged in experiments in steam navigation, both separately, and in connection with his brother-in-law, Mr. Livingston. Justice has never been done to the mechanical genius of tho elder Mr. Stevens, which has fortunately descended to his family. Had ho possessed the practical talents of somo of his sons, he would probably have preceded all others in bringing steam navigation to perfection — as lio did in suggesting tho practicability of rail roads, locomotive steam engines, and tho use of gas in lighting streets and houses. Many years before the use of the latter in Europe, he sot np an apparatus in the rear of his house in Broadway, but not having as yet discovered a mode of purifying tho gas, it was so offensive that he was obliged to abandon the experiment, to avoid being indicted by his neighbors for tho nuisance. Tho eteam apparatus used in his boat, was not long since discovered at Hoboken, where it had long lain concealed from observation. It was put into a boat by his sons, and found capable of propelling her at the rate of more than five miles an hour, without any thing being done to the engine but cleaning it. i , ¦• • • Hutchings is certainly mistaken in supposing Mr. Fulton to have been present It was probably tho late Nicholas J. Roosevelt ; Mr. Fulton must have been a very young man, and docs not appear to have been acquainted with Mr. Livingston until they met in Franco ; where the Chancellor was engaged in experiments in steam navigation on tho Seine, and finding Mr. Fulton possessed of much mechan ical ingenuity, first directed Ids attention to the subject, and availed himself uf his aid. 16 character for truth. From all which it would seem, that in this case, as in many others, the original inventor failed of complete success, partly from being in advance of his age, — but chiefly, from want of means to defray the expenses inci dent to the prosecution of his experiments, and that the fruits of his genius and labor were reaped by his more fortunate and accomplished successor. Thus Fitch, like Columbus, deprived of support, and overborne by prejudice, sank into poverty and neglect ; while Fulton, like Americus Vespuoius, . was fostered by a wealthy patron, who enabled him to pursue his experiments, with the aid of lights derived from his predecessor,* and had the address to give his name to the. discovery. Tho destruction of the Collect is the. great opprobium of. our municipal legislation. It cut off the spring from which . the city was supplied with pure and wholesome water, from a perennial source, and in a volume sufficient for its permanent supply, at a cost not to be mentioned in comparison with that of the Croton Aqueduct : wMle in lieu of a clear and pictu resque street of living water, in the heart of tho city, whicli if preserved would have conduced to its, salubrity, and might have been rendered its greatest ornament, has been substituted , a damp and sunken district, which, if capable of any further improvement than that derived from the Arsenal, and Halls of Justice, is certainly not calculated, even with their attrac tions, to invite it. , • Fitch had proceeded to Europe in search of encouragement, and had died in, France some years before the arrival there of either Mn Fulton or Mr. Livingston. Hia papers fell into the possession of Mr. Vail, Consul of the United States, at , L'Orienti by whom thoy were delivered to Mr. Fulton, upon the written request of, tho Chancellor, then Minister of tho United States at Paris ; according to the statement of Mr, A. Vail, son of the Consul — late Charge d'affaires of the United, States in France, subsequently Chief Clerk in the department of State, and now residing in Now- York. IC About the year 1789, a project was conceived for convert ing the Frosh-water-pond, and the grounds adjacent, to tho embellishment of tho city. A company was formed with that view, and a plan drawn by Major L'Enfant, tho French Engineer, for laying out a park, embracing tho great and lesser Collect,* and extending from tho north side of Reid- street, to the present site of Grand-street, so as to include the eminence called " Bunker's Hill." The company depended upon the sale of building lots to be laid out round the park, not merely to indemnify them for the expense, but to yield a profit on their speculation. The plan, however, eventually fell through, partly from the unwillingness of the riparian proprietors to relinquish their establishments, or come, with their property, into the association ; but principally because the supposition of the city's ever extending so far out upon the island, was thought, by capitalists, too visionary to be acted on.t Another project of a more utilitarian character, was sub sequently entertained, and from similar causes abandoned. It was proposed to connect the Collect by its natural outlets, with both rivers ; thus converting it into a dock for the accommodation of shipping, with wharves and warehouses surrounding its margin ; and it was supposed that it would be • The "Little Collect" commenced at the foot of tho hill, on tho north side of Reid-street, and was divided from the principal pond by a mound or knoll, through which Pearl-street was carried. On this knoll stood the " Old Powder House," from which tho street leading to it from Broadway, now part of Pearl-street, derived its name of Magazine-street. Tho two ponds communicated with each other by a- stream nearly surrounding the mound. t This plan was so far executed as that purchases were made by General Lewis of Mount Pitt, near Corlaer's Hook, Brockholst, John R., and Edward Livingston, of the De Lanccy forfeited estate in the Bowery, &c. Alderman Nicholas Bayard, and some others in Broadway, and west of it, would have joined^ Besides the laying out of tho Park, and lots adjoining, the speculative part of the project contemplated anticipating the growth of the city in all possible directions by purchasing a bolt across tho Island. 17 found sufficient for the reception of vessels engaged in foreigii commerce, as well as those employed in the coasting and' river trades. But again tho proprietors of the adjacent establishments objected,* and the capitalists held back, not' from doubt of the adequacy of the pond to the objects con templated, but from the contrary opinion, that it would novei* be Wanted for any such purpose. Such were the limited' views generally prevalent at that day, in regard to the probable^ increase of the city in size, business, wealth, and population. ' :.: Between 1787 and 1790, the streets leading fl-oni Broad- way to Hudson's River, from Cortlandt-street upwards to the Hospital, were regulated, and some of them paved. Within a few years afterwards, the " fields" were enclosed and planted,; and began to bo distinguished by the present more ambitious appellation of the " Park." On tho west side, Broadway was paved as far out as. Warren-street, and large and fiubstantial brick houses were gradually making their appearance, one of which has since been absorbed in the American Hotel,!, and the". others removed to make room for the granite pile of the " As tor House/'t Greenwich-street, in which the most Conspicuous object Was the Bear Market, now superseded by the more fex-J tensive erections dignified with the name of Washington, wa^ prolonged by levelling the high grounds extending northward from the foot of Warren-street, where stood the Yauxhall' - * The principal of these were the pottery of Crolius, tho furnac6 of McQueen,' the tanneries of Brooks and Coulthard, the brewery of Jauoway, the starch and hair powder manufactory of N. Smith, nnd the rope-walk of the Schermerliorns. + This was originally a double throe story house, built by Abijah Hammond, purchased from him by tlio late John C Vanderhcuvcl, upon whoso death it fell (o iho share of his daughter, married to John C. Hamilton, Esq., the present pro prietor. ' ' ' } These wero built by Rufus King, Cornoliiis J. Roo.'fevelt, and Richard llarison.' Tho two low brick houses at tho corner of Vcsey-stroet, belonging to Walter Ruthorfurd and tho Stato, had been raised a story before, aud remained in that state for somo years after the purchase by Mr. 'Astor. 2 18 House and garden, once the seat of Sir Peter Warren."* The modern march of improvement seems at this period to have commenced, checked at intervals by visits of yellow fever ; but even that evil was compensated by the rapid increase of Greenwich village, and its more speedy junction with the city, Bunk-er's hill, and the Powder-house knoll were thrown into the Collect, the western outlet of which coinciding nearly with the modern Canal-street, together with Lispenard's meadows, through which it ran, were filled up, raised and regulated. Two pair of hills in Broadway, between Chambers and Broome streets, were dug down to fill up the intervening val- lies, and the levelling system was adopted which has since reduced the superficial aspect of the city to an equality cor responding with the political condition of its inhabitants. In this process, not only that variety and undulation of surface; which conl^ributed both to its health and beauty were des troyed, but tho " scythe of equality moved over the" Island, levelling in its course the country seats^ in the neighborhood ; amongst others, Ranelaghf above tbe Hospital, the White Conduit Housef in its immediate vicinity, and Lispenard's, in its rear, the mansions of Alderman Bayard and Captain Raii- daliy at the head of Broadway, Richmond Hill,^ tbe residehce ' • An admiral in tho British service, who married into the Now-Yoik family of Watts, .',.,., t This place was situate a short distance N. W. of the Hospital, on an eminencet overlooking tho meadows extending in the roar to the Greenwich road ; the ap proach to it wae nearly coincident with the present Anthony-street. This avenuo was planted with Madeira nut trees, which had attained a large growth. Tho houso was shaded by similar ones, and was one of the most retired upon the island. The; author's father resided there after his removal from BroadwSy. He wished to pur chase it, with the view of bri giag it into the association mentioned in tho text. But the title, was in Nicholas and Ilarnsan Rutgers, then minors, and the legislature had not aa yet provided the means of divesting infants cf their estates, even for & valuable consideration. , . ' • t Then occupied by Samuel Griffin, a member ', »' U James Duane. § Richard Varick. 22 cipal citizens,' who repaured to the assistance of the civil authority. . Some of them were severely wounded by missiles from .the mob. . Mr. Jay* received a serious wound in the head. The Baron do Steuben was struck by a stone ' which knocked him down, inflicted a flesh wound upon his forehead, and wrought a sudden change in the compassionate feelings he had previously entertained towards tho mob. At the moment of receiving it, he was earnestly remonstrating with the Governor against ordering the militia to fire on the people ; but, as soon as he was struclc, the Baron's benevolence deserted him, and as he fell he lustily cried out, '¦'• fire ! Governor, Jire .'"t .: The next memorable exhibition I witnessed was of a more pacific character. It was the civic procession in honor of the adoption of the Federal Constitution, of which all similar celebrations since attempted have proved but feeble imita tions; because, perhaps, on no subsequent occasion has the same unanimity of sentiment prevailed : for) notwithstanding the warm contest between the advocates and opponents of the new scheme of national government previous to its adoption, yet, from the moment its ratification was asftertetined to be inevitable, the adverse party seemed to 'abandon their hostility, ¦ • . '-¦ .,.'¦:¦ * - -.;¦ . , ." r , * At that time minister of foreign affairs to Congress, and during its recess, the principal representative of the Continental Government ; the others, wero William Duor, as secretary to the treasury board, and General Knoz^ secretary at waf, tTho well-known Prussian General, sent out by t'rederick the Great, whosij iiid-de-camp he was, to Improve the organization and discijiline of our army, of which he was appointed by Congress, Inspector-general, with the rank of fllajor- general. He lived several years after the peace iu tho city of New- York, and then removed to Oriskany, in Oneida county, upon a tract of land given to him by tho State, aiid there he died. Upon the occasion mentioned in the text, he was brought bleeding into my father's house, accompanied by most of the Cortegn which had assembled at the gaol, and there being no surgeiyl to bd had, my mother staunched his wound, of which tbe old soldier made very hghf, and bound up his head. After his departure, Governor Clinton amused the company by relating the above anacdotc. 23 ^d forbore the attempts they had threatened to prevent its going into operation. Nor was the former animosity between the parties revived in any great degree until the violence and bloodshed of the first French revolution excited the indigna? tion of one of, them, without abating the hopes or sympathy of the^ other. , J Biit to proceed. The morning of tho 23d of July, 1788, was ushered in by a Federal salute of thirteen guns from the ship Hamilton, moored at the Bowling Green. This was the signal for the procession to form. Accordingly, tho several bodies Ihat were to compose it collected at their respective places of rendezvous, and proceeded to their stations in the line forrning in the " Fields." Having been arranged in proi per order, l^he whole assemblage was wheeled into column, and marched dovvn Broadway and Whitehall to Great Dock-street i thence through Hanover Square, Great Queen, and Chatharii streets, to tho Bowery ; and thence to " Bayard's Farm," where the procession halted, and was again wheeled into line. Tho different divisions of it wero then conducted to the tents, in which tables had been prepared for their refreshment, and par« took of a sumptuous repast, consisting, among other delicacies of the season, of an ox roasted whole. Here they were honored with the company of the president and members ofthe Contiv nental Congressi, then sitting in this city; the heads of depai't- ments in the Federal and State governments ; the ministers 6f friendly powers, and other foreigners of distinction, with the reverend the cleigy of the city, as guests. Colonel Richard Piatt officiated as grand-marshal of the day, assisted by Colonel Mof* gan Lewis, andHajors Nicholas Fish, William North, andAquila Gilei^, as his aids. Tho taste and genius of Major L'Enfant, so often (displayed on publio occasions, wero never more conspicu.. ous than in the drnamental parts of the ceremony. I cannot pre-' tend to give from recollection a detailed account of the proces- ' 24 sion, nor, Were I able to do so, would I venture to trespaS id tnuoh upon your time. Some features of it, however, whicK Iny memory retains, may prove suffioiently ' interesting ' to TeWard your patience.' '" "' j: . ¦' "^ ' 'First, then, appeared no less ironowned a personage than Christopher Columbus, represented on this occasion by a Cap tain Moore, who was selected for the part from the striking tesemblance he bore to tho portraits of the Great Navigator. He was followed by those eminent experimental I'armers, Nicholas Cruger and John Watts : the former very Skilfully 'conducting a plough upon wheels, drawn by several fiie yokes of oxen ; the latter guiding, with equal adroitness, a toothless harrow, drawn — (not the teeth, but the harrow) — ^byone yoke of oxen and a pair of horses. Next in my recollection, though hot, perhaps, in the order of march, was borne on horseback, by Colonel Anthony Walton White, a golden eagle, bearing a shield upon its breast, emblazoned with the arms of tho United States. This was the banner of the Society of tae Cincinnati, the members of which followed in their well-saved revolution ary regimentals. ¦'¦• ¦ '' ' ¦ ¦ - ¦' ^ Then came the members of the several professions and trades, with their appropriate ensigns and badges ;* the work men mounted upon lofty and capacious stagfe, erected upon wheel-carriages, each drawn by several pairs 6f horses. The iinen upon these elevated machines worked— or seemed to work —at their respective trades. The Coopers\ were setting up and hooping a huge cask; emblamatical of the Coiistitution. The Carpenters were in the act of erecting the eleventh column, 1^ . • The gentlemen of tho bar wero in their robes. In their centre, the Constitu tion of the United States, elegantly engrossed on vellum, was borne by John Law rence, supported by John Cosine and Robert Troup. Ten students at law foUowedi bearing the ratifications of the Constitution by the several StUee, in tho order in which they acceded to it. ' . ._ , - . ' t Their banner was carried by Peter Stoutenlurgh. Tho master workman on tho stage was Jotham Post. \ 26 * ilifcribed '" New- York," of a pediment, already supported hy ten, representing the States that had ratified the Constitution, and were' at work on two others lying ptostrato, eitiblematical'' of the States who hesitated to adopt it.* The Upholstererst Vore preparing the chair of state for thie first President. Tho Coach-makersX vf&ce building him a superb chariot. The Skip-carpenters' were finishing models of vessels foi* the United States Navy ^ the Bloclc-makers were boring pumps, and turn ing blocks and sheaves for them ; tho Rope-makers Were laying ' cables ; the Black-smiths forging anchors ; the Sail-makers^ and Rig-gersW were at work upon the sails and rigging ; tho Mathematical Instrument-makers^ upon quadrants and com passes — all for the " Federal Fleet." ' The Cutlers were bur- ' nishing swords, the Lace-makers were making epaulets, and the Tailors** uniforms, for both army and navy — so deeply, at that early day, was the public mind impressed with the neces sity of both for the defence of the country, the assertion of her • territorial and maritime rights, and the maintenance of the national honor. ' The Drum-manufacturers, and other Musical Instrument-makers, ft were also employed with a View to the * The prostrate columns were Rhode-Island and North-Carolina, t It was prepared by William Mooncy. Upon the back of the canopy were the arms of the State, with live supporters : Liberty being represented by John De Orushe, a " comely youth ;" but as Justice was properly blindfolded, her features could not be identified. . .^ ,;. .. .. . , X ileaieiihy John Manly waA Jamet Warner. ! § The Sail-makers were headed by Qeorge Warner: . :• ' ' " II Tho standard of the Riggers borne by Richard Clark. T Tho banner of tho Mathematical Instrument makers was home by Thomas Biggs, and was much admired. In an oval compartment, encircled with ten stars, were a quadrant, a telescope, an azymuth compass, and a time-glass, tastefully disposed. Motto — " Trade and Navigation." •* »* The Tailors were preceded by John Elliott, and their rear brought up by John Banks, both wearing blue and buff sashes, and cockades, by Way ol patterns for the army and navy. tt The Ivory-turners and Musical Instrument-makers wore headed by Ahasncru* Turk. 26 publio service ; while the Printers* %vere striking off and dis tributing patriotic songs, and a programme of the ceremony, ¦which has been of material use in refireshing my memory in regard to it. ¦ . ¦ , — . The most interesting, as well as the most conspicuous object in the procession was, undoubtedly, the " Federal Ship" ¦ — the miniature presentment of a two-and-thirty gun frigate, about thirty feet keel and ten beam, with every thing complete and in proportion in her hull, rigging, sails, and armament. She was manned by about forty seamen and marines, besides the usual complement of officers. The veteran Commodore James Nicholson, of revolutionary memory, was her comman der, and she bore the same broad pennant at the main which had floated victoriously over his head upon the ocean. But although once more on board ship, the old commodore was not exactly in his element, as his ship was navigated more ¦ by means of wheels and several pairs of stout horses than by wind and sails. He, nevertheless, displayed great, seamanship in her management. When she had reached the roadstead abreast of the encampment she took in sail, and anchored in close order with the rest of the procession ; the officers off duty going on shore to dine, while ample messes were sent to those on board, and for the rest of the crew. At 4 p. M., she again made the signal for unmooring by another salute of thirteen guns, and shortly after got under way with her convoy. The manner in which she made her passage through the straits of Bayafd's Lane was highly inter esting and satisfactory, being obliged to run under her foretop- sail in a squall, and afterwards to heave to, to reef -them all .^ » The Printers, Bookbinders, and Stationers were preceded on horseback by Sv^h Oaine and Samuel London. The songs, &c., were distributed by A. M'Lean and J. RusseL Their standard contained a medallion of Dr. FniLNKLiN. Motto — "An artium omnium conscTvatrix." • ,^4:.. s' " .^ . 27 •before she ventured to set her courses and bear up for tho Broadway channel. Her subsequent mancnuVres were not unattended With peril, but by the good conduct of her officers and men, and the skill of Mat. Daniels, the pilot, she arrived in safety at her former moorings amid the acclamations of thousands, who, by repeated cheers, testified their approbation of the gallant old commodore and his crew in Weathering the ¦stOrm, and bringing the " Federal Ship" safely into port. In the evening there was a general illumination ; with a display of fireworks in the Bowliijg Green, under the direction of Colonel Bauman, post-master of the city, and commandant of artillery, whose constitutional irascibility was exceedingly jjrovoked by the moon, which shone with pertinacious brilU- anoy, as if in mockery of his feebler lights. ,? ¦ The next impressive spectacle I witnessed, was far more interesting and important than any I had as yet seen, have since beheld, or ever expect to see. It was the inauguration of Washington, as the first President of the United States. This auspicious ceremony took place under the portico of the Federal Hall, upon the balcony in front of the Senate Chani» ber, in the • immediate presence of both houses of Congrei^s, ahd in full view of the crowds that thronged the adjacent streets. The oath was adminstered by Chancellor Livingston, and when the illustrious chief had kissed the book, the Chan cellor, with a loud voice, proclaimed, "LoNO live George WAsraNGTON, PaEsmENT OP THE United States." Nevet shall I forget the thrilling effect of the thundering cheers which burst forth, as from one voice, peal after peal from the assembled multitude. Nor was it the voices, alone, of the people that responded to the atinouncement, their Aearfs beat ja 'Umson 'with the echoes resounding througb the distant streets | and many a tear stole down the rugged cheeks of the hardiest of the Spectators, as well I noted from ray station in :!.v:: ¦¦' 28 'nn upper window of the neighborhing hotise of Colonel Ham ilton. Thus, before I had attained my tenth year, I witnessed the primary inauguration of Washington ; and, if my life be spared, I may, before the threescoro years be added to the ten, be present at the installation of a successor who resem bles him. '' ' ¦¦ '¦ ' '" ' ¦' '¦ •¦'' ¦ '¦ •'^¦ ¦| ' ' As the administration of the oath of office to tho first President, was the most imposing scene eveir witnessed in this city, it shall be the last I shall commemorate, especially as those since exhibited are too recent to need description. I proceed, therefore, to notice some of the most remarkable characters, public or private, I saw,' or knew in early life. Those first on the list were reduced officers of the disbanded army; — reduced indeed, in more senses than one. ' • ¦ As this city was the seat of the Continental Government, the veterans of the Revoluntionary Army formed a conspicuous feature in the face of society, as they walked the streets, generally arm-in-arm, in their razeed nniforms, in many bases nearly thread-bare. All, however, did not submit to this reduction of their regimentals. I remember a certain General Donald Campbell, who continued to parade the streets in full dress, cocked hat, bag- wig, sword, and solitaire, for several years after everybody else had doffed their military costume, except, indeed, a superanuated English General, of the name of Maunsell, residing in this city, who, in contrast, if not in opposition to our own postliminary hero, persevered in wearing his scarlet coat and epaulets, until both they and he were fairly worn out. • ¦ • .1 , ¦ ;' • ' ' Among the ci-devant military, with whose persons, from seeing them frequently at my father's, I became most familiar, were General Knox, the Baron de Steuben, arid his aids, Walker, North, ahd Fairlie, a General Howe, of North Caro lina, and Colonels Piatt, Lewis, Fish, and Webb, Captains • 29 Edward Dunscombe and Theodosius Fowler, with Doctors Craigie and Draper, who had been surgeons in, the armyc Among the civilians were John Jay, Gouverneur Morris, ; Egbert Benson, James Duane, John Lawrence, tho Chancellor,; and Brockholst Livingston. The most intimate friends of the family were Alexander Hamilton and Robert Troup. Besides these, the members of the Continental Congress, when in session, wero, in consequence, probably, of my father's official, situation, not unfrequently his guests. , I recollect particularly,; the last three Presidents of that body, Arthur Sinclair, Natli-. aniel Gorharn, and Cyrus Griffin; with James Madison and^ Arthur, Lee,, of Virginia, Robert Morris, of Pemisylvania, Ralph Izard and John ,Kean, of South Carolina, Philip Schuyler, of New-York, and Rufus King, then of Massachu setts. .': > • „ . , i ,,' I remember also, — rara avis in tcrris, — an unpretending Frenchman, to whom, to my great surprise, uncommon defer ence seemed to be paid by tho company invited to meet him. , He was then called Monsieur de War ville, but afterwards became more known and celebrated as Citizen Brissot, the^ leader of the : Girondists. It was some years before the French Revolution, that he visited this country, but he predicted that event with great accuracy, and on his return to France contributed materially to the fulfilment of his prophecy.* , ; , ¦r. Subsequently to the adoption of the New Constitution, my acquaintance with publio characters was much extended. From attending Graham and Johnson's academy, not far from tho Federal Hall, I contrived frequently to find my way, between schools, to the gallery of the House of Representa tives. , The Senate, at that time, sat always with closed doors, • On his return to rrixnce he published his travels iu this country, which were translated and republished here, 80 or I should have oooasionally looked in upon them also. ' I was old enough to listen with interest, if not intelligence, to the debates. Many ofthe speakers were already known fo me, and I soon learnt the names of the rest. ¦ Ames and Madison, were as much my admiration as they were of tho adult publio. The good humored Benson seemed as much a favorite of the House, as he was of my own, I was much amused by the eccentricities of Elbridge Gerry, the grimaces of Dr. Hugh Williamson, and the vehemence of Sedgwick, of Massachusetts, and Jackson, of Georgia, as won by the homely good sense of Roger Sherman, or charmed by the magic eloquence of Ames, and the manly and not less persuasive oratory of William Laughton Smith, of South Carolina. ¦ The most interesting debate I remember to have heard was on the question of removing the seat of the Federal Government from New- York. It arose on a bill from the Senate for carrying into effect the article of the Constitution, empowering Congress to accept a cession of territory, not exceeding ten miles square, from any- of the States for the purpose of establishing a permanent seat for the National Government. Mr. Robert Morris, the great Financier of the Revolution, then a Senator from Pennsylvania, proposed an amendment, which prevailed in the Senate, for the immediate removal of Congress to Philadelphia, there to remain for ten years previous to its final establishment upon the banks of the Potomac. He shrewdly concluded that if the seat of government were once fixed at Philadelphia, it would con tinue there ; and but for the silent influence of the name Of Washington, whose wishes were known, though hot expressed, Mr. Morris would have gained his point. '"¦When the subject came, in this shape before the House of Representatives, his proposition was manfully resisted by the New- York Delegates, by tho Eastern members generally, and by those from the' 8i South to whom tho access by water to New- York, was easier n{)on the whole, than to Philadelphia. But the policy of divide et impera, vfo.a as well understood by Mr. Morris, as by Napoleon himself, and he resorted to it with equal success. By supporting the assumption of the States' Debts by Con gress, he secured as many Southern votes as were sufficient to carry his favorite measure, much to the virtuous indignation of our genuine Knickerbockers, who vented their spleen, amOngst other less amiable modes, in a caricature piint, in which the sturdy Senator from Pennsylvania was seen march ing off with the Federal Hall upon his shoulders, its windows crowded with members of both Houses, encouraging or anathematizing this novel mode of deportation, whilst his Satanio Majesty, enthroned upon the roof of the Powles Hook Ferryhouse, beckoned to Mr. Morris, and exclaimed in the most patronizing manner, " this way Bobby." "'' But my ea«ly acquaintance was by no means confined to the Legislative branch of the government. In the Judicial department, besides Mr. Jay, now Chief Justice, I remember particularly the venerable Judge Cushing, of Massachusetts, arid the more vigorous Judge Paterson, of New Jersey ; whilst in the Executive branch, I not only knew a majority of the Cabinet,, but pride myself especially upon being personally known to its illustrious head. i' I was not only frequently admitted to the presence of this most august of men, in propria persona, but once had the honor of appearing before him as one of the dramatis persona in the tragedy of Julius Csesar, enacted by a young, "Ameri can Company,"* in the garret of the PresidentiaP mansion, (now. Bunker's) where, before the magnates of the land and the elite of the city, I performed the part of Brutus to the * The theatrical corps performing at that lime in New-York, was called " Tho bid Americon Company." 32 Cassius of my old school-follow Washington Cust'S, who still survives in the enjoyment of health, wealth, and. the fame of his family alliance, with anything but tho 'f loan and hungry, look" attributed to his fictitious character. : At a subsequent period, it was again my good fortune frequently to see this great and good man. It was at Phila-. delphia, during the winter preceding the expiration of his last official term. On the day of the inauguration of his succes sor, I was present in the gallery of tho House of Represen tatives. Washington , was an attentive spectator upon the floor, — " the observed of all , observers ;" nor is it any dispar agement to the elder. Adams, to say that if. the presence of such a listener diverted tho attention of others from his dis course, it was amply compensated by the attention paid to it by Washington. At the close of the ceremony, as the vener able hero moved towards the door, there was a rush from tho gallery that threatened the lives of those who w,ore most eager to catch a last look at him who, among mortals was the first object of their veneration. Some of us effected an escape by slipping down the pillars supporting the gallery. . I succeeded, in making good my retreat through the outer door in time to see the retiring veteran, as he waved his hat in return to tho cheers of the multitude, while his gray locks " streamed like a meteor to the wind." Seldom as he was known to smile, his face now beamed with radiance and benignity. I followed him in the crowd to his own door, where, as he turned to ad dress the multitude, his countenance assumed a serious and almost melancholy expression — his voice failed him- — his eyes suffused with tears, and only by his gestures, could he indi cate his thanks, and convey a farewell blessing. to the people. This was the last I saw of, the most, illustrious of mankind, and should I live a thousand years, I " ne'er shall look upon his like again." jj.,v... Tho reserve and taciturnity of Washington were provor- rfbial; but, as the one was the result of diffidenoo and not of ,i^, austerity or pride, so the other proceeded from his habitual I prudence rather than coldness, or want of the sensibility that ^inspu:es. eloquence. In proof of this, it is related of hira that ..when the, famous meeting of officers was held at NcAvburgh, ^to consult upon measures to be taken in consequence of the _ disbahdment of the army by Congress, without securing tho reward due to its services, Washington, who was known to ^ disapprove, of the proceedings, though ho sympathized with J. the feelings which gave rise to it, resolved, nevertheless, to be , present. Unwilling to trust to his powers of extempore spoak- ^ ing, he reduced .what he meant to say to writing, and com- ,, menced reading it, without his spectacles, which, at that period, he used only occasionally. Ho found however, that ho could not proceed without them. He stopt, and toolc them out, aud, as he prepared to place them, he exclaimed, "I have grown blind, ViS well as gray, in the service of my country." , This sudden burst of natural eloquence produced, it may be ^supposed, more effect than anything in his premeditated .address., ii: ,.,;¦,'', - .1 . ': . • j ,,,, To resume once more the regular chain of reminiscence at ;¦ the point whence I was tempted to diverge. We are now to pass in review-sorae ofthe most remarkable among the "oldest in- ,, habitants" ofthe city; especially those who aoquired publio .notoriety, whether in official or private stations. At tho ,, period , to which we are to refer, my personal knowledge of ; members of the learned professions was limited to those indivi duals, who were either acquaintances of my father's, or whoso .professional duties wore exercised in public, — suoh, for in- ,^ stance, as the reverend tho clergy. The easy, good-tempered, ." gentlemanly, and scholarly Bishop Provoost, and the dignified and impressive Dr. Livingston, ofthe Dutch Reformed Cliurch, 3 34 ' were relatives of my mother's, and between their families and ' ours a friendly and frequent intercourse was maintained, • The venerable and courtly Dr. Rodgcrs, of tlie Presbyterian ¦ communion. Doctors Beach and Moore, of the Episcopal, and ' Dr. Linn, of the Dutch Church, wero our occasional visitors. Of tho rest of the clergy, I remember the elder Dr. Mason, of ' tho Scotch Seceders, Doctors Kuntzie and McKnight, and ¦ Domine Gros, professors in Columbia College, and the fespec- ¦ table Jewish Rabbi, Gershom Seixas. As I had neither the same curiosity nor facility for fre quenting the courts of justice, as I had to attend the debates , in Con city boasted tho ample dimensions of " Simmons, the -tavern-keeper." He kept the house at tho corner of Wall and 'Nassau streets, adjoining tho old City Hall, much frequented iby the lower retainers ofthe law. I do not remember the weight •of this great man ; but he exceeded Falstaff in size, though, J never heard that he equalled him in humour. In one respect V certainly, he had more wit, for he sold his liquor instead of drinking it, and ran up scores against others instead of him- jself. ¦ In locomotion, however, the fat knight excelled our .cumbrous host, who seldom travelled farther than from his seat • ;,at the, window to that on his front siocp ; and never ventured , ato ascend, a staircase. In summer, he filled the whole bench /on the stoep, and in winter the whole of one front window;^ /at his death the pier between the two was brokeil away to f"let the coffin pass;"' and if a huger mass of mortality was ¦ rarely returned to its mother earth, the grave, is said, as sel- fdom to have closed upon the remains of a moro honest inoffen- ,i:;sive man.;. ;.: ^ ' :. ¦¦ ; The last, not least, on the list of eccentricities, was .'Gardiner Baker, keeper of the Museum. Little he was, "36 and "little" was he called. Ho kept his ouiriosity shop in ¦the upper story of the old Exchange, a briok building stand- in"' upon arohes in tho centre of Broad, belo-w Great Dock* 'street. Here our merchants once used to congregate ; but, at the period in question, the space under the arcade had beOn converted into a market of a different description, where, in stead of uncurrent'Hotes or fancy stocks, the more substantial articles of beef and niutton were bought and sold. The upper part of the edifice had formerly been appropriated to the 'sittings of the Legislature ; but now, it was the depository, of greater natural curiosities than any before assembled there. Who among my cotemporaries can have forgotten the pro prietor ? and which of us in his youth, has not been won by his good nature and enthusiasm in explaining the wonders of ' 'nature and art brought together by his indefatigable and un- 'aided industry. If my friend John Targee, or any other ancient Sachem of St. Tammany, happens to be present, he must remember him well, for little Gardiner ' was the Win- skinsky of the order, and bore its great standard in its early and palmy days, when its members paraded the streets in aboriginal costume. • • . • , '¦'¦¦- The good little fellow was not only a collector of curiosity, but himself a greater curiosity than any in his collection. 'Not only were his person and manners singular, but so were *his address and conversation; and the experiments he made ^npon the vernacular tongue were not less cruel than ludicrous. p He had been bitten, too, by a mad antiquary, and the unction •with which he would descant upon some dilapidated vestige of local interest, exceeded that of a monk in exhibiting an un doubted relic, or recounting some miraculous, but well-attested legend. How he would luxuriate in describing from one of 'the windows of his repository, the former course of the creek down Broad-street, under which it still ran, and pointing out 37; the old ferry -house at the corner of Garden-street, with the, pettiauger-shaped vane on its gable!,. Then as fen object of: Special interest to myself, he would direct my attention to,. the house in which," old Madam Alexander kept her crockery^ shop on one side of the hall, and her husband the lawyer, hia, office on the other."* * In the year 1791, my early recollections of the city were. interrupted by my removal to a public school in England., On my return I found great changes to have taken place. Some to deplore, but more to excite admiration. Some of myi former companions had been cut off in the bloom of youth; Others, had fallen into obscurity, or been visited by adversity;; some few seemed spoiled and estranged by prosperity ; but, ¦ by the greater number, I was welcomed with cordiality, and renewed with thern those ties of intimacy and friendship which have continued unbroken with the survivors, to the present day." '¦'•['. ' ; During the interval of m-y absence, many who had been ottiinent as public men, or conspicuous in private stations, had departed, and others had appeared to^fiU their places. Tho. venerable ; Dr. Rodgers had been translated to tho Church. triumphant. , Bishop Provoost and Dr. Livingston had with drawn from the Church militant, but both survived for several years after their retirement, in the enjoyment of the blessings attendant upon a green old age, and lives well spent. Tha former was succeeded in his bishopriolc, and the rectorate ofi-j^. Trinity parish, by the late Dr. Benjamin Moore, who, in tem- "'[ per, manners, learning, piety and humanity, was the very exemplar . of a Christian prelate. In the Dutch Church, tho mild and pious Dr. John N. Aboel, had succeeded to Doctor.; Livingston ; . arid Dr. Rodgers had been replaced in tho Presj • This notable couple were tho great-grand parents of the author. 38'- by terian Church, by the learned ahd estimable Dr. Samuel' Miller, who after the long period of his successful ministry,' > removed to another sphere of professional usefulness, as Prin*- cipal of the' [theological Seminary' of his Communion, at' Princeton, where he" still lives in the full enjoynient and ex ercise of his faculties, at an age exceeding the longest period' usually allotted to our race. Dr. Mason had died at an ad vanced age, and had been succeeded by his more celebrated- son, whose vigorous intellect and strength of constitution so-' long exercised in the ministry, and for a portion of the time, as Provost of Columbia College, were at length overcome by ¦ the intensity of their exertion, leaving him a wreck and ai'^ beacon to guard others from dangers which had proved fatal to a mind so untiring in its efforts, ahd lofty in its aspirations. In the medical profession there had also occurred revolu tions. Tiie venerable Dr. John Bard had relinquished practice, and retired to his beautiful seat at Hyde Park. Dr. Cochran, after retiring to his estate on the MohaWk, had died there. Doctors Nicoll and Treat, the two Smiths, and Bailey, had all fallen victims to the yellow fever : the latter, from his peculiar exposure to the disease, as Health officer of the port ; the others" from their benevolent and fearless devotion to the sick. Three younger— if not abler — men appeared to take th'eir places, in the persons of Doctors David Hosaok, Wright Post, arid Richard Kissam : the first, long unrivaled aS a physician j the last, as a- surgeon ; the other, eminent as both. Dr. Bailey was suc ceeded in his practiee— though not in his office— by tb6 late Dr, Samuel J. Borrowe, a highly respectable man, and a phyi' slcian of as much usefulness— though of as little pretension-—' &h any in the profession. The same riiay be said of 'the late- Dr. Edward Miller, tho brother of the divine, though his time was as much devoted to general literature and science as to the learning and practice of his profession. 39. There, was another celebrity among tha faculty, not as yet in practice, but more distinguished as a natural philosopher and scavant than as a physician, and affecting rather, the man of the world than of the profession, I shall be, understood to allude to the late Samuel Latham Mitchell, M. D., LL. D., M. C, and mernber of various literary and scientific societies, foreign; and domestic, too. numerous to mention; besides, exhibiting occasionally in the State Legislature, as well as figuring upon. the floor of both Houses of Congress. He had lately returned from Europe, and was the lion of the day, not only in tho medical and literary^ but in the fashionable circles; and, truly, never man nor woman lionized more complacently. Amiable, and eccentric;, a useful professor. in his proper departments of. chemistry and botany, had he been content to confine himself to them; he aimed at the reputation of an omnis homo; and although more ambitioup of notoriety than excellence ,jie was in a- measure successful. His greatest talent, however, was an Herculean memory, surcharged as it was with a multitudo of facts collected without much discrimination, but which would. have been more available had they been well sifted and syste- rnatically, arranged, and turned to greater account, had his digestion been equal to his appetite for knowledge. As it was, his various learnmg was more valuable to others than to him self: for he was used by the younger members of the profession as a living encyclopedia, to which they could resort for informa tion without regard to any less arbitrary arrangement than was suggested by tlie necessity of the occasion ; and such was his good nature and liberality, that he was ever ready not only to answer their inquiries and assist them with his advice, but tQ. afford them more substantial aid in forwarding them in their professional career. Upon the whole, he was more valuable as a professor than a practitioner ; shone more as an Epicurean or a.Peripatetio than as an experimental or moral philosopher ; and 40 IS remembered more for the goodness of his heart than the strength of his head, . ' ' , . ' , ' The revolutions in the commercial world were too frequent and extensive for me to undertake to enumerate them ; and weire I even competent to the task, its execution would be super- ' fluous, after the full, satisfactory, and authentic account of the principal mercantile men of that day, given by our intelli gent associate, Mr. Charles Kmg, in his late valuable Memoir^, of the Chamber of Commerce. I remembered, however, the old firms of Gouverneur and Kemble, Le Roy, and Bayard, Low and Wallace, Rowlett and Corp, William Laight, The- ophilact Bache, and Joshua Waddington. These Were still flourishing. Murray and Sansom had been succeeded by John Murray and Sons; Constable, Rueker, and Co., reduced to William and James Constable ; Edgar and Macomb, had dissolved by mutual consent, and the firm of William Seton' and Sons, was continued by the latter, after the decease of their respected parent. New mercantile houses , had sprung up almost as numerous as new dwelling-houses, — far moro , numerous than new Churches, or even new Banks. The' Bank of New York, and tho Branch of the first Bank of the United States, were all that existed at my departure ; and it was some years after my return before the Manhattan Com pany was incorporated for the purpose of supplying the city with pure and wholesome water, which, until the construction of the Croton aqueduct, was thought impracticable without banking privileges. Tho march of local improvement had been accelerated. New streets were opened, old ones extended, and new and better houses built in them. The population of the city had^ visibly increased, and had improved in manners and appearance; and a greater air of comfort, wealth, and general prosperity seemed to pervade and animate all classes of the community. Tho motives and materials of the industry 41- and enterprise which had manifestly been at work are chiefl jr " to be ascribed to the natural advantages which a beneficent' Providence has vouchsafed to this city. May we never forget the source from which these blessings spring, or prove un grateful for those since bestowed, enjoyed at present, or promised for the future. Having spent some time after my return from England at Erasmus Hall Academy, Flatbush, under that learhed pundit, ' Dr. Peter Wilson,* I was put to the study of the laW, and was ' thus enabled to extend my acquaintance among the members of that honorable, but much calumniated profession. In my ' attendance upon the Courts I witnessed some of the best efforts of some of the greatest men that ever adorned the bar. I have listened in blind admiration to the black letter learning ofthe elder Samuel Jones, and with breathless emotion to the lucid and impassioned eloquence of Hamilton.f I have some times felt in danger of fascination by the imposing self-posses sion, and sententious brevity of Burr, and actually captivated by the graceful rhetorick of the classic but sarcastic Harison, ' the candid ingenuity of Brockholst Livingston, and the legal aOumeuj ' and iVtsi Prius tact of the elder Ogden Hoffman. Nor did I the less appreciate the more homely, but not less forcible logic, of Cosine and Troup, the special dry pleading :' » I was about entering Columbia College with a largo class of Freshmen, when ' owing to a difficulty between the Trustees and Dr. AVilson, the latter resigned his , Professorship of ancient languages in that institution, and was appointed Principal , of Erasmus Hall ; whither most of us followed him. If I learnt anything elso there than what I brought of the classics from Winchester, it was the derivation of tho English noun " jStrong-er," from the Latin preposition " E.'*. " Thus young gentlemen," tho Doctor would say, " E, — ex, — extra, — extraniua — gallice, ttrangn, anglice, Stranger." - f I often heard General Hamilton address political meetings, and of the eloquenco of no orator I ever hoard ero the words of the poet Donne so truly descriptive :— - , 4 «i "phough deep, yet clear, though gentle, yet not dull ; ' Strong, without rago, without o'er flowing, full. 42 i, of Caleb S. Riggs, or the elaborate arguments of the; indoT- fatigable Pendleton — my old master, to whom. I was indebted.) not merely for my professional education, but for a friendship ; extended to me when most needed, and ending only with his life.; , About the time at which wo have arrived, party-spirit, raged to a greater degree than I remember at any other period. " It was in the early part of the administration of tho elder Adams, and during his quasi, war with the; French. Re-. pubho. The political animosity of individuals rose to the \ highest pitch of excitement, disturbed the peace and harmony , of society, not only exhibiting its rancour at public meetings . and elections, but embittering the intercourse of private life, , and poisoning the cup of domestic enjoyment. A new theatre for its display was afforded in a society for free debate, open ; to the pubhc at so much a head, where questions in morals, literature, and politics were proposed and discussed.* To this ; forum, my fellow-students and companions, with the younger , members of all professions and trades, continually resorted, . and frequently took part in the debates. The most distin- guished orator on the federal side, was a young lawyer named James Alexander, a youth of superior genius and acquire ments. From congeniality of opinion and temperament, and- not in the spirit of a servile imitation, he had instinctively, adopted Edmund Burke for his model — and, truly, the dis ciple was not unworthy of his master. He resembled him in the splendor of his conceptions, and the copiousness of his . language, in hi^ gorgeous imagery,' in the vividness of his fancy, and brilliancy of his metaphors, in- his discursive rea- soning, and inthe fervor of his eloquence. After languishing •The principal founders and managers ofthe society were Commodore James Kioholson, Molanothon Smith, John Swartwout, Thomas Bloodgood, Mathew L. Davis, all good democrats. The former generally presided ; but ho did not ' command the same respect, or preserve the same disoiplme as when he aaUed the " Federal Ship." 43- i for some years at the bar in this city, and meeting with a repulse of his affections, he removed to New Orleans; Where" h^ attained great success and eminence iir his profession, — ho ' eventually fell a victim to the intensity of his application, or ' of his sensibifity; — ^the thin partition which fences the reason" of genius gave way, and he perished by his own hands j — > -¦'¦'•" ,-. , ' , ' 1 ,' " While foreign hands his lonoly grave adorned. By strangers honoured, and by strangers mourned.' ' There was another frequent speaker, remarkable for the re*-" verse of all the qualities in which tho former excelled. At rich English West Indian of the name of Coates, Neutral as" it became him, in politics, his discretion was confined to that point, while his absurd vanity prompted him continually tocx-l pose himself upon literary, and especially, dramatic ques tions. He had once prevailed upon the manager of a theatre- in Jamaica, to permit him to undertake the part of Romeo, in which he accordingly appeared as an amateur. His suc cess was such as usually attends performers of that class, andt fastened upon him the euphonous appellation of the love-lorn' youth of Verona. His fame and his name followed him to- this city, and often was Romeo called for at the Debating So ciety, and as often did he come. I saw him some twelve yearsi afterwards upon the stage in England, where he had per-- suaded the managers of one of the London theatres to suffers Kim to appear in his favourite character. His pctforriiance was greeted with a storm of ridicule, which, adding tha^ metropolitan stamp to his reputation, perpetuated his old soubriquet and Romeo Coates lies buried in the tomb of the Capulets, leaving behind him a name held up in tcrrorem td' every succeeding generation of silly, stage-stricken youth. ; To return for a moment to the stage on which he made his first appearance in this city, for the purpose of noticing 44; some of the rest of the performers. As a tribune of the people, Melanothon Smith was a star of the first magnitude. He had . long been distinguished in tho politics of the State, as a warm but honest politician of tho anti-federal school, and it was a lamentable falling off that he now exhibited from his position , iu the convention which ratified the federal constitution. A , more viirulent deolaimer on the same side was an ancient doc tor of the same name, no relative however of Melanothon's, but a decayed and withered limb of the branch of that numer ous family, who were tories during the revolution, and patented as republicans after it.* A physician without prac- ¦ tioe, and a demagogue without influence — a frothy deolaimer, '; whose fluency might have been formidable had not its staple: been fustian, and his manner impressive had it been free from ¦ rant. But the vein of popular eloquence which he certainly possessed, was riot only alloyed by his manner, but debased' by mahgnity, pertinacity, and assurance. ¦ : ' • . "' •¦: Another ardent, but more efficient , politician of the sama school, was that genuine son of St. Nicholas, John Q,uaoken- • bos, more renowned for acts than for speeches. Seldom,: indeed, he spoke, and never in publio, unless to offer a bet- upon an election, in which, he was eminently successful.t : He was famous, moreover, for that native firmness of purpose ¦ and opinion, which marks the Dutch character, and is called by- others, by a somewhat harder name ; for he it was that when' asked how it happened that he never served on a jury without' keeping them out all night, attributed^, it to his ill luck in ' A brother of the doctor's, Joshua Belt Smith, was implicated in the affair of Andre, and it was by following his advice in crossing tho ferry from Havorstraw, Instead of returning to the Vulture, that tho capture and death of tho latter wero mainly owing. Both brothers thought it prudent to take refuge in England after' the war, and Joshua was wise enough never lo return. ' t He was said to have won a small fortune upon the election of Jefferson and. Burr, and contributed by his exertions, m-aterially to that event. ' ¦¦ ' - 45 being always drawn on the same panel with eleven obstinate ''Yankees. ' :.y"-'' ' * ':¦•"" "'''' "' "' '""¦ ' ' ''' ^'; The last of these private characters of publio notoriety, that I shall mention, was one who, in person, manners, and " social position, afforded a lively contrast to our sturdy juror. 'An accomplished gentleman, and most agreeable ' corripanion, equal in jests, jibes, and excellent fancies, to Yoriok himself, ¦'and superior to him in refinement. But unfortunately he resembled the lover of the Paphian Q,ueen, as much as the favourite of tho Danish prince.' A beau, as well as a wit, • he was "not only a regular diner out among men, but a con stant attendant upon the women, even in their shopping excursions; nor, among their admh-ers was there a greater favourite, than Adrian, or, as he was familiarly called, " Addy 'Kissam." He was not only the handsomest and most gallant, but one of the best tempered, and cleverest of men ; ho was pos sessed of abilities, that instead of " setting the table in a roar," might have adorned the profession ofthe law, of which he was nominally a member, and gained for him an honorable distinction and independence. His career, howevei", afforded another melancholy example of the dangers attending those social accomplishments and personal advantages, which so often tempt the possessor to indulge a natural propensity to' • indolence, or lead him to an over-eager pursuit of enervating 'pleasures. Upon his admission to the bar, he opened an - office ; but it was probably never entered by a client, because ¦ rarely by himself. ' When asked by his old master, Mr; Varick, how many suits he had, he began to enumerate them, begin ning with his militia uniform, and ending with his full suit of black, his only professional one. Alas ! poor Addy ! I remember . him well. I saw him- in his first rise into the hemisphere of fashion. I knew him in the zenith of his social popularity, in his decline, and in his fall — his fall into poverty, r-46 .dependence, and, morbid melancholy. His, latter days were spent under the roof of one of his nephews, a reverend,, though young clergyman in thencighbourhood of Albany, who watched ?over his waning health with the pious devotedness of. a son, and administered, to him, in.his last.moments, the blessed con solations of religion, with, an efficacy, it^is to be hoped, equal to his zeal. f ... J I have now brought down my reminiscences tea period so , near the present as to verge upon events too recent, and sub jects too familiar, to be treated of by the prudent historian ; ,but, long as I have already trespassed, upon your time and .patience, I cannot reconcile it to my sense of duty to conclude, i without paying my feeble tribute to the memory of suoh of our associates as have ceased from among us since the last anni versary meeting of the Society at which I was present, arid whom it was my good fortune to know while living, and, ..knowing, to esteem. Of these, the one of earliest acquaint- ,ance was William Johnson, for many years the able and assiduous reporter of the decisions of the higher courts of this ; State, whose learning and accuracy rendered his reports mo- ,dcls for- the imitation of; his successors. After his removal (from that office, to ^make way for; a partisan of the xuling powers, he became equally, though, not so conspicuously, •^useful as comptroller ofthe finances of Trinity Church, and a ftrustee of Columbia College. ; In tho latter connection I be-- came better^ acquainted with him, and learned better to appre ciate his worth. Throusrhout a long and laborious life devoted to business, he preserved his taste for; that elegant literature, jju the cultivation of which he had early beendistinguished;* jand, before he had attained the. meridian of life;, he : added to • Ho was a contributor, together with tho late John Wells, Anthony Blecclter, William Dunlap, Dr.E. H. Smith, Dr. Edw4rd Mdlcr, and others, to a httrury magazine, edited by Noah. Webster. .';•-.' - ~ '- * , ¦47 ^the accomplishments of the gentleman and scholar, the graces ,^bf the Christian character, "' "¦' Two others of our associates, with whom I had been •similarly connected, and had known from boyhood, have also 'since departed, leaving sweet memories behind them — James -Campbell and David S.Jones ; the former, a scholar, and a ^ripe and good one, once honoring the choice of his fellow-citi- "zons, and winning their golden opinions, as Surrogate of this ^ J city and county ; the other, a chivalrous and polished gcntle- ¦'tnan, a kind-hearted and devoted friend, and a skilful practi- ''tioner in the more private and confidential — though not less •arduous and responsible — branches of the law* Another ""equally accomplished gentleman and polite scholar have we lost, ¦ too, in Heriry Brcvoort, who, by his sagacity and enterprise as a ¦ merchant, was early eiiabled to I'etire from business, and devote his leisure to the more genial pursuits of literature ; having before contributed to a work practically answering the con temptuous question of the Edinburgh Reviewer, "Who reads an American Book ?" "''¦'"¦''' The last removed from us wa^ William Paxton Hallet, the 'amiable find courteous clerk of tho Supreme Court. Previously ' to' these, however, occurred the death of Dr. Hugh M'Lean, one - bf the Consulting physicians of this Society, not less Valued for 'his social "^arid benevolent qualities than for his professional skill arid exjierience. About the same time the community at lai-go, as well as ourselves, sustained a bereavement in tho decease oi Peter Gerard Sttiyvesant, the first President of this Society. Death came upon him suddenly, but did not surprise \ him ; for, as a Christian, he was prepared to meet it. He /pearly inherited a large landed estate in the environs of this city, which, was at first an incumbrance to him. It was bur- : dened for. • many years with taxes and asse.'5smcnts far beyond '; any income he derived from it ; but, by a wise economy, steady >;48 ¦ ¦ , - perseverance, and resolute self-denial, he overcame difficulties and embarrassments under which almost any other man would have despaired and sunk ; suoh, indeed, as, in many other, in- 1 stances, actually overwhelmed others similarly circumstanoed. ; Having rescued his property ho commenced a system for its im- , provement, by which he eventually realized a large fortune, to compensate for the struggles and anxiety it had cost him to ' preserve it ; and, by the liberal and benevolent use he made . of his wealth, vindieated his character from suspicions dero- - gatory to its generosity, arising from habits aoquired in tho season of his privation and trial. Leaving no children, he .distributed his estate in due proportions among his widow and ^ numerous collateral kindred, bequeathing a large portion of it to our worthy associate, the governor elect, than whom, with out offence to any party, be it said, one more deserving could hardly have been found either for the fortune or the office. . Brethren: , ' . In now taking leave of you, permit me to remind you, that, ; as true Sons of St. Nicholas, we celebrated the 13th of April, 1835 — tho day of the inauguration of our Society — as the re- ; capture of New- York by the Dutch ; so let the 1st of January, 1849, be equally renowned in our annals, for the restoration of the ancient Dutch dynasty in the person pf a legitimate . descendant of that shrewd politician, sagacious statesman, and stalwart old soldier, " Haert-koppio Pete." - Oranj^-boven. ' YALE UNIVERSITY a39002 001919019b I