The Cambridge of 1776.
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 O
 
 Theatrum Majorum. 
 
 The Cambridge of 1776: 
 
 Wherein is fet forth an Account of the Town, and of the 
 Events it Witneffed : 
 
 WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED 
 
 THE DIARY OF DOROTHY DUDLEY, 
 
 Now fir/I pub lift d ; 
 
 Together with an Hi/loricall Sketch ; Severall Appropriate 
 POEMS ; Numerous Anecdotes, patriotick, weighty, 
 indifferent, and diverting ; Many Refer- 
 ences to the RENOWNED UNIVERSITY; 
 and Defcriptions of the People 
 of the Olden Time. 
 
 All of which is adapted to the furtherance of Good Manners, 
 
 Virtue, Piety, Intelligence, Love of Country, and 
 
 ADMIRATION OF CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 Done by Divers Eminent Hands, and 
 Edited for the 
 
 Ladies Centennial Committee by A. G. 
 
 Hie manus, ob patriam pugtiando vulnera paj/i 
 Quiqite pii vales, et Piicebo digna locnti: 
 
 Inventas aut qui vitam excoluere per artes, 
 Quiqne fui memores alios fecere meretnfo. VIRG. . 
 
 Qua fugittnt, celeri carpite poma manit. OVID., 
 
 SHrornrtr totti) Cuts autr a 
 
 CAMBRIDGE : 
 
 Printed on the Site of Fort Number One : Over againft the 
 Town of Brighton, on the Rivers Side. To be fold in Bos- 
 ton by Lockwood, Brooks, and Company, on WaJJiington and 
 Brom field Streets. 
 
 M D CCC LXX VI.
 
 The Ladies find that the Latin title of this Volume contains an Intimation 
 that the Book is a Stage on which our Ancestors (those who have "gone over to the 
 Majority") are the Actors. 
 
 The Quotation from Virgil proves to have been taken from a Description of Ely- 
 sium, and is therefore eminently appropriate in its place. One learned in tongues 
 translates it thus : " Here is a Company of Heroes who were wounded fighting for 
 their Country; of pious Bards who sung in strains worthy of Apollo ; of those who 
 have improved human Life by the Arts they have invented ; and those who have 
 by their services made other men cherish their memory." 
 
 The Line from Ovid conveys the following admonition : " Pluck with quick Hand 
 the Fruit that is passing away." 
 
 Organization of the Ladies' Centennial Committee, of Cambridge, Mass. 
 
 MRS. THOMAS P. JAMES, Chairman. 
 
 MRS. J. GARDNER WHITE, Treasurer. 
 
 Miss ALICE M. LONGFELLOW, Secretary. 
 
 MRS. ANSON BURLINGAME. MRS. GEORGE LIVERMORE. 
 
 MRS. HENRY DEXTER. MRS. HENRY W. PAINE. 
 
 Miss MARY FELTON. Miss MARY L. PARMENTER. 
 
 MRS. JOHN M. FISKE. MRS. SAMUEL B. RINDGE. 
 
 MRS. C. L. HARDING. MRS. GEORGE P. SANGER. 
 
 MRS. HENRY O. HOUGHTON. MRS. EMORY WASHUURN. 
 
 Editor for the Committee, ARTHUR GILMAN, M. A. 
 
 Copyright, 1875, 
 By MARY WILLIAMS GREELY.
 
 College 
 Library 
 
 Advertisement to the Reader, 
 
 For the better Illustration and Understanding of this Book. 
 
 ^ENTLE READER: This little Book is the Fruit of a Labour 
 \^J of Love, for which the Writers receive no Reward but that filial 
 Satisfaction which must fill the virtuous Heart after having made an 
 earnest Effort to do Honour to the Memory of the Fathers, and to 
 depict the Nobility they displayed in the Struggle for Liberty. 
 
 The plan of commemorating our venerated Ancestors in this way 
 (and of drawing a few Dollars into the Treasury of the Ladies' Cen- 
 tennial Committee of Cambridge), first suggested itself to Mrs, George 
 Livermore. It was promptly adopted by the Committee, and the Work 
 was delegated to the present Editor. He was gratified to find a gen- 
 eral Interest in the Project, and the Papers comprising this Volume 
 were obtained within a few Weeks. 
 
 The wish of the Editor, and his Co-laborers, has been to present a 
 Picture of The Cambridge of 1776 ; putting the Reader in Possession 
 of such Facts as would enable him to realize the Feelings of our 
 Fathers ; to see the Streets they trod, the Churches in which they 
 worshipped, the Houses in which they dwelt ; and, in some Measure, 
 to appreciate the Trials they unflinchingly endured. 
 
 It is thought that this little Book will be found very pleasant for all 
 the People of Cambridge to read, and most necessary to remember. 
 What, indeed, would we not give for such a Volume written by our 
 Fathers of 1776, about their Fathers of 1676 ? What will tempt our 
 Children of 1976 to part with the Copies which (after committing their 
 Contents to Memory) we shall bestow in our Atticks to await the Morn 
 of their hundredth Year ? 
 
 But the Editor believes that this Memoir of the Olifen Time will 
 possess an Interest for many Thousands beyond the Limits of Cam- 
 
 1005301
 
 iv Advertisement to the Reader. 
 
 bridge, whose Ancestors fought in the Revolution, as well as for all 
 who rejoice in the Liberty then made sure. Can Words or Figures 
 express the Value of a true Record of a Town famed as the first Camp- 
 ground of the Revolution ; renowned for its ancient University ; and 
 known the world over for its Poets, Historians, Novelists, Men of 
 Science, and of State-craft, its Winthrops, Vassalls, Brattles, Bel- 
 chers ; its Kirkland, Sparks, Everett, Felton, Agassiz ; its Longfellow, 1 
 Lowell, Holmes, Howells ; its Peabody, Abbot, Child ; men who 
 will ever wear Laurels that cannot fade ? 
 
 It can be said of our beloved Home that its every natural Trait has 
 been celebrated in Prose or Verse. Not to enter into Detail, it may 
 be mentioned that Mr. Longfellow has immortalized its Village Smithy, 
 and its Head- quarters of Washington ; Dr. Holmes and Mr. Lowell 
 have celebrated its Graveyard, its Marshes, its River, its Sidewalks 
 and Trees, even the very Dust of its Streets, 2 and Mr. Howells sends 
 its Horse-cars down the Track of the Ages to the perpetual Delec- 
 tation of our Children's Children. 
 
 When Samuel Punkas, Master of Arts, set forth his Book entitled, 
 "A Theatre of Politicall Flying Insects, accompanied by Three Cent- 
 uries of Observations Theologicall and Morall, drawn from the Nature, 
 the Worth, the Work and the Wonder of the Bee'' he used Words which 
 the present Editor adopts as his own. " Embroiderers" said Purchas, 
 "of Threds of divers Colors make a costly and delightful Hanging: So 
 Writers out of a Thousand Parcels, an uniform and agreeing Body ; 
 whom I have labored to imitate. Where I have failed pardon my Weak- 
 ness, and accept my good will.' 1 '' 
 
 The Ladies and their Servant, the Editor, desire to express their 
 cordial Thanks 
 
 To President Eliot; Messrs. F. O. Vaille and H. A. Clarke, Editors 
 of the " Harvard Book ; " Mr. S. A. Drake ; Messrs. J. R. Osgood 
 & Co., and Messrs. H. O. Houghton & Co., for the free Use of the 
 Cuts with which the Volume is adorned ; 
 
 To Mr. Sibley, for Courtesies received at the College Library ; 
 
 1 " Long days be his, and each as lusty-sweet, 
 As gracious natures find his song to be ; 
 May Age steal on with softly-cadenced feet, 
 Fal'ing in music, as for time were meet. 
 
 Whose choicest verse is harsher-toned than he ! "Lowell. 
 * Sec p^se ' ! -
 
 Advertisement to the Reader. v 
 
 To the Librarian of the Essex Institute, at Salem, for similar kind 
 Attentions ; 
 
 To Mrs. M. C. Sparks, Miss C. L. Donnison, Miss Mary Howe, 
 and Others for the Use of valuable Letters ; 
 
 To the present Occupants of the ancient Houses, for Permission to 
 visit and describe them ; 
 
 To Mr. Longfellow, Mr. Lowell, and Dr. Holmes, for their kind 
 Permission to use the Extracts from their Poems, which are to be 
 found in the Volume ; 
 
 To Dr. Peabocly, Mr. Howells, Mr. John Holmes, ,Mr. Scudder, Mr. 
 Haskins, Mr. Lathrop, Mrs. Folsom, and Mrs. James, for their Con- 
 tributions ; 
 
 To Miss Mary Williams Greely, for the untiring Diligence, and sym- 
 pathetic Zeal with which she has laboured in consulting historical Au- 
 thorities and in verifying all the Details of the entertaining Diary 
 of Dorothy Dudley, and in preparing it for the Press ; 
 
 To Mr. Charles Deane, for his valuable Aid in the Verification of 
 important Facts and Dates, and in the Examination of a large Portion 
 of the Manuscript of this Book ; 
 
 To Mr. Justin A. Jacobs, the long-time City clerk, for valuable Aid ; 
 
 To the Reverend Lucius R. Paige, for Information and Sugges- 
 tions ;* 
 
 To Miss Mary Isabella James, for collating Authorities, and prepar- 
 ing the Map which illustrates the Volume ; and 
 
 To Messrs. Lockwoocl, Brooks, & Co., Booksellers in Boston, for 
 kindly offering to sell this Book without the usual Commissions. 
 
 It only remains to add that this Memoir is 
 
 DEDICATED 
 
 To THE PEOPLE OF CAMBRIDGE 
 OF 1976. 
 
 CAMBRIDGE, Thanksgiving Day, 1875. 
 
 1 The Editor understands that Mr. Paige has for Years had in Preparation a History of Oimbridge, 
 the Appearance of which is looked for with much Interest.
 
 The Table 
 
 Of the Contents of this Book. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I. Sonnet. Dorothy Diidley. By William D. Howe I Is .... i 
 II. Sketch of the History of Cambridge from its Settlement in 1631 
 
 to 1776. By David Greene Haskins, Jr. "3 
 
 III. The Influence of Cambridge in the Formation of the Nation. 
 
 By Andrew P. Peabody, D. D 12 
 
 IV. Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley, from April iS//i, 
 
 1775. to July lyth, 1776. 
 
 The Battle of Lexington, p. 18 The Army gathers on Cambridge 
 Common, p. 20 Citizens leave Boston, p. 21 Ticonderoga, p. 22 
 Gage offers Pardon to all but Adams and Hancock, p. 23 Battle of 
 Blinker Hill 24 
 
 Washington appointed Commander-in-chief, p. 25 His Appearance 
 
 in Cambridge, p. 26 Fast Day, p. 27 Aaron Burt Letter to Miss 
 
 Livingstone, p. 28 Cambridge described, p. 29 Dr. Appleton and his 
 poultry, p. 31 John Hancock and Dorothy Quincy, p. 32 The 
 Vassall Houses, p. 34 The Expedition to Quebec, p. 36 Dr. Frank- 
 lin in Cambridge, p. 37 The Traitor Church 38 
 
 Raising a new Army, p. 40 British Ships captured, p. 41 Mrs. 
 John Adams in Cambridge Society at Major Mifflin's, p. 42 Gen. 
 Lee and his Dog Crime in Camp Letter from Washington, p. 43 
 Mrs. Washington arrives in Cambridge Distress of the Army . . . 44 
 
 Sketch of Harvard College, pp. 44-48 The first Graduate, p. 44 
 Eaton, and his Misdeeds, p. 45 President Dunster, 'p. 45 Rules of 
 the College Library increased,^ The College visited in 1680, /. 
 47 Other Presidents Harvard Hall burned 48 
 
 Christ Church opened for Service, p. 49 The Congregation of former 
 Days described, 50 Union Flag raized on Prospect Hill, p. 5 1 The 
 Colonists more than ever united, p. 52 Faneuil Hall desecrated 
 Friendly Indians in Cambridge, p. 63 Fame's "Common Sense" 
 issued 54 
 
 The unsuccessful Expedition to Quebec, p. 55 A reception by Mrs. 
 Washington Original letter of Washington, p. 56 Games of Chance
 
 Table of Contents. 
 
 prohibited by Washington, p. 57 The Soldiers' 1 Rations Desire of 
 Washington to attack Boston, p. 58 Dorchester Heights occupied - 
 Fast Day appointed, p. 59 Boston evacuated by Gen. Howe Boston 
 open to All, p. 60 Washington congratulated by Congress, p. 61 He 
 
 attends the " Thursday Lecture " Leaves Cambridge 62 
 
 Miss Dudley visits Boston, p. 63 The Hancock House, p. 64 
 King's Chapel North Church, p. 65 Copfs HillGov. tiutchin- 
 soJi's Mansion, p. 66 People of Note in Cambridge in 1776, J>. 67- 
 
 A/airs in Boston, again, p. 70 Dr. Byles 7 1 
 
 A drive through Cambridge, p. 12 The Meeting-House^ Court- 
 House, p. 73 President's House, Wiggles-worth House, Butler's Hill, 
 Inman House, p. 74 Phipps House, Bradish Tavern, Brattle House, 
 p t 75 _ The five College Buildings, Hastings House, The Whiteficld 
 Elm, p. 76 Church or Tory Row, Belcher House, Vassall House, 
 p. Tj Sewall House, Lee House, p. 78 Ruggles or Fayerweather 
 
 House, Oliver House 79 
 
 Cambridge anticipates the Declaration of Independence, p. 80 Brit- 
 ish Fleet leaves Boston, p. 81 Students return from Concord, p. 82 
 July 3</, 1776, /. ^Letters of Edmund Quincy, p. 84 Independ- 
 ence declared 7 
 
 V. The Guests at Head-Quarters. By H. E. Scudder . . . 
 VI. The Batchelder House, and its Owners. By Mrs. Isabella James 93 
 VI L English Letter describing the Battle of Lexington. Contributed 
 
 by Mrs. M. C. Sparks I0 3 
 
 VIII. Letters of Edmund Quincy. Contributed by Miss Donnison . . IO6 
 IX. Verses on the Scenery of Cambridge. By Mr. Lowell and Dr. 
 
 Holmes no 
 
 X. The Old Court House. By John Holmes i 
 
 XI. Lament of the Weathercock 0/1776- By Mrs. Charles Folsom .115 
 XII. Praise of 'the Past. By George Parsons Lathrop n? 
 
 XIII. Partial List of A uthorities consulted in Preparing this Book . .119 
 
 XIV. Index I21
 
 List of Illustrations. 
 
 i. 
 ii. 
 in. 
 
 IV. 
 
 V. 
 
 VI. 
 
 VII. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 IX. 
 
 X. 
 
 XI. 
 
 XII. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 XV. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 The Harvard Square of 1776 Frontispiece. 
 
 Map of the Cambridge of 1776 2 
 
 The Congregational Church i ! 
 
 The Washington Elm 13 
 
 The Old Presidents House 16 
 
 Portrait of General Joseph Warren 10 
 
 The Old Parsonage, built in 1670 30 
 
 Portrait of Samuel Adams 33 
 
 Cannon used before Boston 41 
 
 Hessian Flag r-> 
 
 Second Hanmrd Hall, built in 1766 54 
 
 Hollis Hall, completed in 1763 , 61 
 
 The Wigglesworth House 7, 
 
 Holden Chapel , . , 76 
 
 The Sewall-Riedesel Mansion 78 
 
 Stoughton Hall. (Taken down in 1780) 81 
 
 The Brattle Arms OQ 
 
 The Belcher Arms .
 
 5D0rott)2 Stabler; 
 
 Jfair mataen, tofinm a Ijtm&rrtr Summers 6cep 
 ;jfnreber Sebenteen, antr toijaSe oarfc locfcs 
 <&vt toljttrnelr otilj? from tlje jpatoUEr--60j:, 
 
 tljo^c manjj iatnteriS : on tlje itccp 
 tyvfy'tytltti Sfyatg, ant Jntt^ ttjc Sttfecu 
 Of quaint SrocatJe, anil an arclj ^mtlc tfjat mocftrf 
 <t QZimt'S IroSptte, tijy lobrfg Ambiance 
 
 near, 0ur continent from Ofcp to 
 ^[t numlicrlc^ Centennial C 
 S2aitl) c^tr&en-^alalr, coffee, chocolate, 
 JFor retrotfpectifae gout^, toljo^e baamg s'inell 
 
 tljeg fieljoHr t^ee ano ttjj) jpleaitna fretQljt, 
 lobe of country, ana eac^ patriot rfeetf 
 cljarm in alf t^at tTjoti aoSt chronicle. 
 
 OE. 13. f^ofotlls.
 
 THE CAMBRIDGE OF 1776. 
 
 SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF CAMBRIDGE FROM ITS 
 SETTLEMENT IN 1631 TO 1776. 
 
 BY DAVID GREENE HASKINS, JR. 
 
 IN the year 1630, under the auspices of the Massachusetts Bay Company, 
 a large fleet of English ships spread its sails for the shores of New 
 England ; and about one thousand colonists, with John Winthrop, the Gov- 
 ernor, and Thomas Dudley, the Deputy-Governor of the Company, and 
 other gentlemen of respectability and of influence in its councils, settled 
 at Dorchester, Charlestown, Boston, Watertown, Roxbury, Medford, and 
 Lynn. 1 The hitherto struggling Colony was thus placed on a secure founda- 
 tion. After providing shelter for the winter, one of the earliest objects of 
 care was to select a site for a fortified capital city, where the settlers might 
 be safe from the attacks of their Indian neighbors and of possible foreign 
 invaders. After many consultations, a spot was at last chosen near the 
 Charles river, about a mile below Watertown, and on the 28th of Decem- 
 ber the Governor, Deputy-Governor, and all but two of the assistants, bound 
 themselves to build houses there in the spring and to remove thither their 
 "ordnance and munition." Under such favorable auspices, early in 1631 
 the "Newe Towne " was begun. Houses were erected and a canal was 
 made to connect the town with the river. But this prosperity was soon par- 
 tially blighted. Amicable relations having been established with the neigh- 
 boring Indians, the need of a fortified town was no longer strongly felt ; 
 most of the assistants failed to perform their agreement ; and before winter 
 the Governor, without consulting his associates, removed the frame of his 
 unfinished house from Newtown to Boston, whose commercial facilities were 
 greater, and whose people were anxious to retain him amongst them. Dud- 
 ley resented this conduct, and it was probably one of the reasons which, 
 
 1 Dudley's Letter to the Countess of Lincoln.
 
 4 Sketch of the Histoiy of Cambridge. 
 
 the next year, induced him to tender a resignation of his office ; but he was 
 finally reconciled to the Governor through the efforts of several of the min- 
 isters. 
 
 Boston became the capital, but Newtown was not abandoned, though 
 Dudley and Bradstreet alone of the magistrates adhered to their agreement 
 to settle there. The town was surrounded, in 1632, at the common expense, 
 with a palisade and fosse about a mile and a half in length, 1 running along 
 the north side of the present Cambridge Common, and enclosing over a 
 thousand acres. Traces of the fosse were visible at the beginning of this 
 century. 2 
 
 In August, a small band of colonists from the vicinity of Braintree, Essex 
 County, England, by order of the Court, removed to Newtown from Mount 
 Wollaston, where they had begun to settle. A church was built with a bell, 
 which afterwards gave place for a time to a drum as a means of summoning 
 the people ; but the town had no settled minister until the arrival of the 
 Rev. Thomas Hooker. This eminent divine, at the earnest solicitation of 
 the Braintree people, his friends and former hearers, had left his church in 
 Holland, whither he had fled from persecution for non-conformity in Eng- 
 land. Passing through the latter country at considerable personal risk, 
 he succeeded in eluding pursuit, and sailed for America, where he arrived 
 September 4, 1633, on the ship Griffin, together with his friend, the Rev. 
 Samuel Stone, and the wealthy John Haynes. Mr. Hooker had been a 
 preacher of great note at Chelmsford, near Braintree, in Essex, and fully 
 sustained his reputation in this country, being styled by Cotton Mather, 
 "the light of the Western churches." October 11, 1633, he and Mr. Stone 
 were solemnly ordained pastor and teacher of the Newtown church, the 
 eighth which was gathered in the Colony. It may be feared that his popu- 
 larity might have been less, had he lived in a later age, for we read that on a 
 Sunday afternoon, before Governor Winthrop and a very large congregation, 
 he preached over two hours " to very good purpose." 3 Though numbering 
 scarcely fifty families at this time, 4 it was not long before the Newtown peo- 
 ple wearied of their narrow limits and complained that they had not suffi- 
 cient meadow land for their cattle. After sending exploring parties to Aga- 
 wam, Merrimack, and the Connecticut river, they asked leave, at the General 
 Court sitting at Newtown, September, 1634, to remove to the last named 
 region. The debate lasted several days. The petitioners pleaded, beside 
 other arguments, "the strong bent of their spirits to remove." The oppo- 
 nents of the measure advanced considerations of expediency and religion 
 against this " removing of a candlestick." The vote was taken. The mag- 
 istrates and deputies, the two bodies composing the General Court, dis- 
 agreed. The latter strenuously contested the right of the former to a 
 
 l Wood's New England's Prospect, p. 43. 
 
 J Holmes's History of Cambridge, p. 9, note. 
 
 3 Winthrop's History of New England, vol. i. p. 304. 
 
 * Holmes's History of Cambridge, p. 10, note.
 
 The Reverend Thomas Shepard arrives. 5 
 
 negative voice. The Court adjourned, and a special day of humiliation, in 
 consequence of the difficulty, was kept throughout the Colony. The matter 
 was temporarily settled by the consent of Mr. Hooker's people to remain 
 and to receive grants of land on the south side of the Charles river. 
 
 They soon, however, became restless again, and, although at the General 
 Court held at Newtown, May 6, 1635, John Haynes, one of their chief men, 
 was elected governor, they resolved, apparently with the tacit consent of 
 the Court, to follow " the strong bent of their spirits," and remove to the 
 Connecticut, whither their neighbors of Dorchester and Watertown were 
 also on the point of emigrating. They accordingly sold their estates to the 
 Rev. Thomas Shepard and his company, who arrived at Boston in the ship 
 Defsnce, October 3, 1635. This " holy, heavenly, sweet-affecting, and soul- 
 ravishing minister," l who had not yet completed his thirtieth year, had been 
 a non-conformist clergyman in Essex County and elsewhere, and, after 
 numerous perils by land and water, had succeeded in escaping from Eng- 
 land, it is said in disguise and under an assumed name. He was accom- 
 panied by his stanch friend, the young and wealthy Roger Harlakenden, 
 George Cook, afterwards captain of the Cambridge company, and some 
 sixty others. This company settled at Newtown, and, February i, 1636, or- 
 ganized a church with much solemnity. The following June, Mr. Hooker 
 and his assistant, Mr. Stone, with their congregation of one hundred peo- 
 ple, set out on foot through the wilderness for the Connecticut, a distance 
 of one hundred miles, driving their cattle with them ; and, after nearly a 
 fortnight's journeying, reached their destination and founded a second 
 Newtown, the modern Hartford. 
 
 A writer, who left America previous to Mr. Hooker's arrival in the country, 
 describes the original Newtown as " one of the neatest and best compacted 
 townes in New England, having many faire structures with many handsome 
 contrived streets. The inhabitants most of them are very rich and well 
 stored with cattell of all sorts. On the other side of the river lieth all their 
 medow and marsh-ground for hay." 2 A later writer, in i686, 8 affirms that 
 "for handsomness and beauty" it "out-does Boston it self." The town 
 was wealthy, paying, in the spring of 1636, the largest tax in the Colony. 4 
 From 1634 to 1636, while Dudley and Haynes occupied the governor's chair, 
 the General Courts were held here, and in 1636 additional courts for the trial 
 of cases were established here as well as at several other places. The town 
 was laid out in squares. Its old market-place is the present Winthrop 
 Square, where stood the house of Governor Haynes. 5 Dudley had built, on 
 the west side of Water, now Dunster Street, a house which had incurred the 
 
 1 Johnson's Wonder-Working Providence in New England, p. 213. 
 
 7 Wood's Netv England's Prospect (1634), p. 43. 
 
 3 John Dunton's Letters from New England, p. 156. 
 * Records Massachusetts Bay Colony, vol. i. p. 166. 
 
 8 Holmes's History of Cambridge, p. 10, note.
 
 6 Sketch of the History of Cambridge. 
 
 censure of Winthrop as too elegant in its finish for a struggling colony. 1 
 Near it stood the church, while Bradstreet's house was in what was then 
 Cow Yard Row. An official statement shows that, in 1635, after Sheparcl's 
 arrival, there were eighty-five houses within the town limits. 2 
 
 These limits were at first very narrow, and the town, in the quaint lan- 
 guage of an ancient writer, resembled " a list cut off from the broad-cloath " 8 
 of Charlestown and Watertown. Very early, however, it is scarcely pos- 
 sible now to determine just when or how, it acquired a large territory on 
 the south side of the Charles river. The grant made by the General Court 
 on condition that Mr. Hooker's company should remain, consisted chiefly 
 of the land about Muddy river, the present Brookline, which, on breach of 
 the condition, reverted to Boston. At the General Court, in March, 1636, it 
 was agreed that the bounds of the town should extend eight miles into the 
 country from the meeting-house (on Dunster Street), thus including half of 
 the present town of Lexington.* In 1641, 1642, and 1644, the town received 
 very large additional grants, consisting mainly of the territory then called 
 Shawshin. At this period of its greatest size it seems to have extended 
 in a curious irregular line from what was afterwards West Roxbury on the 
 south to the Merrimack river on the north, and to have included the greater 
 part, if not the whole, of Brighton, Newton, Cambridge, Arlington, Lexing- 
 ton, Bedford, Billerica, and probably Tewksbury, and portions of Belmont 
 and Winchester. It should be remembered that the territory near Mount 
 Auburn at this time belonged to Watertown, and that East Cambridge and 
 Cambridgeport, now the most flourishing parts of the city, were then almost 
 uninhabited farms and marshes. The line between Cambridge and Water- 
 town was marked for some distance by a stone wall four feet high, with two 
 gates at the highways, built in accordance with a vote of the proprietors 
 of the town, May 29, 167 1. 5 
 
 May 29, 1655, with the consent of Cambridge, the great Shawshin grant 
 became the township of Billerica. August 27, 1679, Cambridge Village, 
 as it was called, was organized as a separate town which later received the 
 name of Newton. The next loss.of territory was March 20, 1713, when the 
 Cambridge Farms were set off and organized as Lexington. Little Cam- 
 bridge and Menotomy (Brighton and Arlington) remained a part of the town 
 until early in the present century. 
 
 The year of Mr. Hooker's departure, a theological controversy, originated 
 by Mrs. Anne Hutchinson of Boston, began to create great agitation in the 
 Colony. Mrs. Hutchinson's views were advocated by the Governor, Sir 
 Henry Vane, by John Cotton, and by nearly the whole Boston church. The 
 opposite party was headed by John Wilson, pastor of the church, and Win- 
 
 1 Winthrop's History of New England, vol. i. p. 73- 
 1 Town Records. 
 
 3 Wonder-Working Providence, p. 61. 
 
 4 Hudson's History of Lexington, pp. 34 and 35, and note. 
 
 5 Town Records.
 
 The College and Printing- Press. 7 
 
 throp. Party feeling ran high, and at a session of the Court, held at Boston, 
 March, 1637, it was voted, in spite of the Governor, who refused to put the 
 question, that the next General Court, which was to elect officers for the 
 year, should be held in Newtown. The Court met, May I7th, in the open 
 air on the Newtown Common amid great excitement. Mrs. Hutchinson's 
 adherents, we learn from an unfriendly pen, 1 were violent in their speeches, 
 and the two parties well-nigh came to blows. In the midst of the tumult 
 Wilson climbed a tree, and thence addressed the people with marked suc- 
 cess. 2 The elections were held. Mrs. Hutchinson's party were entirely 
 defeated, and Winthrop was elected governor. August 3Oth, a synod, sum- 
 moned by the ministers with the magistrates' consent for the settlement 
 of the controversy, met in Mr. Shepard's church at Newtown. It included 
 all the ministers, the messengers of the various churches, and the magis- 
 trates, and was presided over by Hooker and Bulkeley. This assembly sat 
 twenty-four days, during which the tact and exertions of Governor Win- 
 throp were generally successful in maintaining harmony and good feeling, 
 although some were "so obstreperous that the magistrates were constrained 
 to interpose with their authority," 3 which resulted in the withdrawal of some 
 of the Boston people. The synod finally agreed in condemning almost unan- 
 imously eighty-two opinions, " some blasphemous, others erroneous, and all 
 unsafe ; " 4 and also decided some other points of importance. The Gen- 
 eral Court, at its next session, November, 1637, also held at Newtown, sum- 
 moned Mrs. Hutchinson into its presence, and after a long examination 
 banished her almost unanimously. It also banished, disfranchised, or dis- 
 armed, many of her adherents, and removed the powder and ammunition 
 from Boston, the stronghold of her party, to Newtown and Roxbury. 
 
 During these exciting times, the first steps were taken toward the estab- 
 lishment of a college, and Newtown was selected for its site. Here, " at the 
 end of a spacious plain more like a bowling-green than a wilderness," 5 was 
 built the first college in British America, which, in 1639, took the name of its 
 first benefactor, John Harvard. In May, 1638, the Court gave its sanction 
 to a change of name already made by popular usage, 6 and Newtown became 
 Cambridge, in honor of the great University where its own ministers, Hooker, 
 Stone, and Shepard, and many other leading men in the Colonies, had re- 
 ceived their education. 
 
 About the beginning of the year 1639, under the auspices of the magis- 
 trates and elders, a printing-press, the first in the country north of Mexico, 
 was established at Cambridge. For some time it was under the superin- 
 tendence of the President, and its profits formed a part of the revenues of 
 
 1 Winthrop's History of New England, vol. i. p. 220. 
 
 2 Hutchinson's History of Massachusetts, vol. i. p. 62, note. 
 
 3 Hubbard's History of New England, p. 302. 
 
 4 Winthrop's History of Neiv England, vol. i. p. 238. 
 6 Bonder-forking Providence, p. 164. 
 
 6 Records Massachusetts Bay Colony, vol. i. p. 180.
 
 8 Sketch of the History of Cambridge. 
 
 the college. It was early employed in printing the Bay Psalm Book, and, 
 later, Eliot's Indian Bible. 
 
 In 1643, there was a meeting in the college, of all the ministers of the Col- 
 ony, numbering about fifty, for the purpose of opposing certain incipient 
 tendencies toward Presbyterianism. These distinguished men, during their 
 stay, were boarded at commons for the modest sum of sixpence a meal. 
 Again, in 1645, July ist, the ministers held a general meeting here for the pur- 
 pose of revising certain theological works prepared by Hooker and others, 
 and designed to be printed in England. 
 
 September i, 1646, at the instance of the General Court, a memorable 
 synod, called together from all the united colonies to establish a system of 
 church government and discipline, met in Cambridge. After three short 
 sessions, at very long intervals, it finally adjourned, in the summer of 
 1648, having unanimously adopted the Confession of Faith of the West- 
 minster Assembly, and having framed a " Platform of Church Discipline," 
 which, with little variation, formed the fundamental rule of the Congrega- 
 tional churches for more than a century. An interesting feature of this 
 synod was a sermon preached by John Eliot to the Indians, in their native 
 language, in presence of the whole assembly and the legislature, June 9, 
 1647. On the a8th of the previous October, at the Indian settlement of 
 Nonantum, then within the limits of Cambridge, on the south side of the 
 river, he had begun with good success his efforts to civilize and Christianize 
 the natives. The remains of the stone walls and ditches with which his 
 early converts surrounded their town, previous to their removal, in 1651, to 
 Natick, were long visible. A few of the Indian youth were educated, and 
 an Indian college was built at Cambridge, but was afterwards devoted to 
 other purposes. 
 
 Meanwhile, urged by pecuniary embarrassments, Mr. Shepard's company 
 had been twice on the verge of following the example of their predecessors. 
 In 1640 and 1641, they seriously meditated an emigration to Mattabesett, on 
 the Connecticut, 1 the modern Middletown, and a second scheme of migra- 
 tion, perhaps within the Plymouth limits, induced the General Court, March, 
 1644, to make them a grant of land on condition of their remaining.' 2 
 
 Cambridge seems at this time to have had some commerce with foreign 
 parts, and several of her ships are mentioned by early writers, notably one 
 carrying fourteen guns, which, on a voyage to the Canaries, about the close 
 of the year 1644, fought nearly all day at close quarters, and finally beat 
 off an Irish man-of-war of superior force. 8 
 
 About the year 1650, a woman is said to have suffered death here for the 
 crime of witchcraft, one of the earliest victims to that dreadful popular de- 
 lusion. 4 Ten years later, in 1660, Elizabeth Horton, a Quaker, went 
 
 1 .Albro's Life of Shepard, pp. 242-245. 
 
 2 Hudson's History of Lexington, p. 37. Records Massachusetts Bay Colony, vol. ii. p. 62. 
 
 3 Winthrop's History of New England, vol. ii. p. 219. 
 
 4 Hutchinson's History of Massachusetts, vol. ii. p. 22.
 
 Goffe, Whalley, and Whitefield. 9 
 
 through the. streets proclaiming that the Lord was coming with fire and 
 sword to plead with the people. 1 An amusing instance of the paternal sys- 
 tem of government adopted by the Puritans, is afforded by the action of the 
 selectmen of Cambridge, February 14, 1676, appointing four persons "to 
 have inspection into families that there be no bye drinking or any misde- 
 meanor whereby sin is committed, and persons from their houses unsea- 
 sonably." 2 
 
 July 27, 1660, immediately on their arrival in America, Colonels Goffe and 
 Whalley, the regicide judges, took up their abode in Cambridge, where they 
 received a cordial welcome, and remained till February 26th, when they fled 
 to Connecticut. Alarmed by the distant mutterings of the devastating 
 storm of Indian war, which, in 1675, burst on the Colony, the Cambridge 
 militia began the erection of a stockade, for the defence of the town ; 8 but 
 Philip's death prevented its completion. 
 
 Through the earlier part of the eighteenth century, the history of Cam- 
 bridge presents little worthy of note. The General Court was several times 
 held here, usually to escape the small-pox prevailing in Boston ; once, in 
 1729, in consequence of a dispute with Governor Burnett. On one of these 
 occasions, in 1764, Harvard Hall, where they sat, was consumed by fire, on 
 the night of January 24th, with the philosophical apparatus and the valuable 
 library of the college, including all but one of the books bequeathed by 
 John Harvard. 
 
 In 1740, George Whitefield preached here more than once, addressing 
 himself in the most direct and unsparing manner to the students and tutors. 
 In 1749, a female slave was burned at the usual place of execution in Cam- 
 bridge, for the crime of poisoning her master. 4 
 
 June 1 6, 1769, the General Court was adjourned to Cambridge by Governor 
 Bernard, in consequence of the unwillingness of the members to transact 
 business in Boston while the town was held and the very state-house men- 
 aced by English troops. The next year, Lieutenant-Governor Hutchinson, 
 in accordance with instructions from England, summoned the General Court 
 to meet at Cambridge, March i5th. A long struggle ensued between the 
 legislature and the executive. The former offered repeated and vigorous 
 but ineffectual remonstrances against the removal of the Court from Boston, 
 and in September, 1770, observed a day of solemn prayer and humiliation, 
 at which the two Cambridge ministers were requested to perform the re- 
 ligious exercises. It was not until June 13, 1772, that the Governor con- 
 sented that the Court should be adjourned to Boston. 
 
 In the year 1761, at the instance of several wealthy gentlemen, an Episco- 
 pal church was established in Cambridge, under the charge of the Rev. 
 
 1 Hutchinson's History of Massachusetts, vol. i. p. 187. 
 
 2 Town Records. 
 
 3 Records of Massachusetts Bay Colony, vol. vi. p. 89. 
 
 4 Drake's Historic Fields and Mansions of Middlesex, p. 170.
 
 io Sketch of the History of Cambridge. 
 
 East Apthorp. He was received in no friendly spirit by the Congregational 
 ministers, and in a few years sought a more agreeable field of labor in Eng- 
 land. The breaking out of the war drove his successor, the Rev. Winwood 
 Serjeant, and his congregation of wealthy loyalists, from the town, and the 
 church was closed. In the agitations preceding the Revolution, Cambridge, 
 in spite of these same numerous and influential loyalists, ardently espoused 
 the popular cause. The people "discovered a glorious spirit, like men de- 
 termined to be free." In 1765, October I4th, they adopted patriotic resolu- 
 tions against the Stamp Act. In 1770, they tolled their bells on the burial 
 day of the Boston rioters killed by the troops. November 26, 1773, they 
 passed energetic resolutions against the tax on tea, expressing their willing- 
 ness to join with Boston and other towns, on the shortest notice, to deliver 
 themselves and their posterity from slavery. 1 
 
 September i, 1774, a military detachment sent by General Gage, seized 
 and carried off a quantity of powder from Charlestown, and two small field- 
 pieces from Cambridge. The news spreading rapidly, roused the neighbor- 
 ing country, and the following day, an excited multitude from the surround- 
 ing towns poured into Cambridge, and took possession of the Common. 
 They compelled Judges Danforth and Lee, two of the mandamus coun- 
 cillors recently appointed in violation of the charter, to announce from the 
 court-house steps their resignation of their seats at the council-board, and 
 they exacted pledges of fidelity to the charter from the High Sheriff and 
 County Clerk. At the request of Lieutenant-Governor Oliver, who hastened 
 to Boston to assure General Gage of the respectable and orderly character 
 of the assemblage, no troops were sent out against them, otherwise the Rev- 
 olution might have had an earlier beginning. In the afternoon, re-enforced 
 by fresh arrivals, they surrounded Oliver's house, three to four thousand 
 strong, a quarter part in arms, and, by violent threats, compelled him to 
 sign a paper resigning his seat as president of the council. After which 
 they peaceably withdrew. 2 
 
 October I7th, the first Provincial Congress, presided over by John Han- 
 cock, met by adjournment from Concord, in the First Church, where it con- 
 tinued to hold its sessions till its dissolution, December loth. Here, too, 
 the Committee of Safety held, apparently, its first meeting, November 2d, 
 as well as many meetings the following year. 
 
 The annals of Cambridge for 1775, are a part of our national history, and 
 can here be only briefly referred to. February 1st, the second Provincial 
 Congress met in the church, but on the i6th adjourned to Concord. Cam- 
 bridge bore its part in the fighting, and the losses of the memorable ipth 
 April, and its selectmen made an ineffectual effort to check the advance of 
 Lord Percy's re-enforcements, by taking up the planks of the Brighton 
 bridge. After the battle, the town became one of the chief rendezvous for 
 
 1 Town Records. 
 
 2 A merican A rchives, 4th series, vol. i. pp. 762-769.
 
 The First American Fortifications. 
 
 ii 
 
 the rapidly-gathering patriot forces, and the deserted halls of the college, 
 and houses of the loyalists, and even Christ Church itself, were occupied for 
 military purposes. Here was probably the spot where, early in May, were 
 erected the first of the American fortifications. Here General Artemas 
 
 CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH. 
 
 Ward, commander-in-chief of the Massachusetts troops, fixed his head- 
 quarters. Here General Washington assumed command of the American 
 army, and here the head-quarters and centre of the army remained during 
 the siege. In the midst of such unwonted scenes of military activity, the 
 eventful year 1776 dawned on the hitherto peaceful town.
 
 THE INFLUENCE OF CAMBRIDGE IN THE FORMATION OF 
 
 THE^NATION. 
 
 BY ANDREW P. PEABODY, D. D. 
 
 CAMBRIDGE was the first capital of our infant Republic, the cradle 
 of our nascent liberty, the hearth of our kindling patriotism. Before 
 the 3d of July, 1775, there were tumults, conflicts, bold plans, rash enter- 
 prises ; but there was no co-ordinating and controlling will, purpose, or 
 authority. On and from that day the Colonies were virtually one people. 
 Before, they had nothing in common but their grievances. They were as 
 yet British provinces, though wrenching the cords that held them, still 
 undetached, and with no mode of action upon or with one another. By 
 adopting the army and choosing its head they performed their first act, not 
 of alliance, but of organic unity, and became a nation unawares, while they 
 thought themselves still wronged and suppliant dependencies of the British 
 crown. They thus decided the question between a worse than unsuccessful 
 rebellion and revolution. 
 
 That the rebellion, as such, would have been an utter failure, is only too 
 certain. The American party in England had on its side eloquence, 
 indeed, and wisdom, but neither numerical force in Parliament, nor the 
 power to mollify ministerial obstinacy, or to penetrate with a sense of right 
 the crass stupidity on the throne. Boston was held by disciplined, thor- 
 oughly armed, and well-fed troops, under officers of approved skill and 
 prowess, strongly entrenched and fortified at accessible points, and sustained 
 by a formidable naval force. Hardly one in fifty of the colonial army had 
 had any experience in war, and I doubt whether there was a single man 
 among them, officer or private, who was a soldier by profession. They had 
 come from the farm and the forge, with such arms and equipments as they 
 could bring ; they had no bureau of supply, no military chest, no organized 
 commissariat, and their stock of ammunition was so slender that it was 
 ordered by the Provincial Congress that no salute should be fired on the 
 reception of the Commander-in-chief. They were from four different prov- 
 inces, under as many generals, with sectional jealousies which the common 
 cause could hardly keep at bay ; and harmonious counsels could be main- 
 tained or expected only and scarcely at moments of imminent peril. At 
 Bunker Hill they had shown both their strength and their weakness, their
 
 Disintegrating Elements in the Colonial Army. 13 
 
 unsurpassed courage and their poverty of resource. Superior in the con- 
 flict, overwhelming the enemy with the shame and disaster of a signal 
 defeat, they had been compelled to yield the ground on which they had won 
 imperishable glory, and to see the heights they had so bravely defended 
 occupied by a hostile battery. They held Boston beleaguered by the 
 prestige of that day, too feeble to press the siege, yet, as they had well 
 proved, too strong to be dislodged and scattered, but by the disintegrating 
 elements in their own unorganized body. These elements were already at 
 work, and the secession of even a single regiment would have been the 
 signal for speedy dissolution and submission to the royal government. 
 
 WASHINGTON ELM. 
 
 This precarious condition of affairs was beyond the remedial authority of 
 the individual provinces. Massachusetts could choose a general for her 
 own troops, but could not place the forces of New Hampshire, Connecticut, 
 and Rhode Island under his control. Still less could any efficient system 
 of sustenance or armament have been arranged by separate legislatures. A 
 central authority alone could carry forward the resistance so nobly begun. 
 The Continental Congress would in vain have passed patriotic resolutions, 
 protests against tyranny, votes of sympathy ; in vain would they have 
 aroused popular indignation and multiplied centres of resistance through
 
 14 The Influence of Cambridge. 
 
 the land. The one decisive act in the struggle, the seal of what had been 
 achieved, the presage and pledge of all that should ensue in the coming 
 years, was the taking command of the American army at Cambridge, by 
 Washington. 
 
 Cambridge was for obvious geographical reasons the only place where the 
 provincial troops could have their head-quarters, lying near enough to the 
 enemy to watch and check his movements, yet protected from sudden or in- 
 sidious attack by the intervention of the then unbridged arm of the sea 
 which separates it from Boston. There was, at the same time, an intrinsic 
 fitness that the opening scenes of the great drama should be enacted here, 
 where so many of the leaders in counsel and arms had learned to loathe op- 
 pression and to hold the cause of liberty sacred. 
 
 From its earliest days our university had always been on the side of free- 
 dom. Its first two presidents were far in advance of their times in their 
 views of the right of the individual man to unrestricted liberty of thought, 
 opinion, speech, and action. Increase Mather, when president, took the lead 
 in the opposition to the tyrannical acts of Andros and Randolph, sailed for 
 England as the unofficial agent of the aggrieved colonists, was appointed to 
 an official agency on the news of the revolution of 1688, bore an important 
 part in the construction of the new provincial charter and in securing its ac- 
 ceptance, and nominated to the royal court the governor, council, and prin- 
 cipal officers under it. His successors were of a like spirit, and there is on 
 record no instance in which the college succumbed to usurpation, stooped to 
 sycophancy, or maintained other than an erect position before the emissaries 
 of the royal government. The culture of the students was in great part 
 classical, and in the last century the classics were the text-books of all 
 lovers of freedom. A sceptical criticism had not then cast doubt 'on any of 
 the stories of ancient heroism, nor had a minute analysis laid bare the ex- 
 cesses and defects of the early republics, whose statesmen and warriors were 
 deemed the peerless models of patriotic virtue, and whose orators thrilled 
 the hearts of their New England readers, as they had the Athenian demos, 
 the senate in the capitol, or the dense masses of Roman citizens in the 
 forum. 
 
 Almost all the Massachusetts clergy, perhaps the major part of those of 
 New England, had been educated here. The Tories among them were very 
 few, and nearly the whole of their number were ardent patriots. The pulpit 
 then sustained in affairs of public moment the part which is now borne by 
 the daily press; its utterances during the eventful years of our life-struggle 
 had no uncertain sound ; and the champions, deeds of prowess, and war- 
 lyrics of the Hebrew Scriptures gave the frequent key-note to sermon, 
 prayer, and s-acred song. 
 
 Among the pioneers and guiding spirits of the Revolution, who were 
 graduates of the college, when I have named the Adamses, Otises, Ouincys, 
 Warrens, Pickering, Hancock, Trumbull, Ward, Gushing, Bowdoin, Phillips,
 
 The Influence of Harvard College. 1 5 
 
 I have but given you specimens of the type and temper of those who for 
 many years had gone from Cambridge to fill the foremost places of trust and 
 influence throughout and beyond our Commonwealth. That they carried 
 with them hence their liberal views of government and of the rights of man, 
 we well know in the case of those of whose lives we have the record. Thus 
 we find John Adams, just after graduating here, more than twenty years 
 before the declaration of independence, writing to a friend his anticipations 
 for America, not only of her freedom from European sway, but of her be- 
 coming the chief seat of empire for the world. Year after year, on the 
 commencement platform in the old parish church, had successive ranks of 
 earnest young men rehearsed to greedy ears the dream of liberty which they 
 pledged faith and life to realize. 
 
 In the successive stages of the conflict of the Colonies with the mother 
 country, the college uniformly committed itself unequivocally on the patriotic 
 side. When the restrictions on the colonial trade called forth warm expres- 
 sions of resentment, the senior class unanimously resolved to take their 
 degrees in what must then have been exceedingly rude apparel, home- 
 spun and home-made cloth. When tea was proscribed by public sentiment, 
 and some few students persisted in bringing it into commons, the faculty 
 forbade its use, alleging that it was a source of grief and uneasiness to many 
 of the students, and that banishing it was essential to harmony and peace 
 within the college walls. After the day of Lexington and Concord, all four 
 of the then existing college buildings were given up for barracks, and the 
 president's house for officers' quarters. When the Commander-in-chief was 
 expected, this house was designated for his use, with the reservation of a 
 single room for President Langdon's own occupancy. Though the few re- 
 maining students were removed to Concord, the President, an ardent patriot, 
 seems to have still resided here, or at least to have spent a large portion of 
 his time near the troops ; for we find frequent traces of his presence among 
 them, and on the eve of the battle of Bunker Hill he officiated as their chap- 
 lain. In connection with the prevailing spirit of the university, it is worthy 
 of emphatic statement that the Commander-in-chief was the first person who 
 here received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. 
 
 To Harvard graduates the country was indebted for the choice of the il- 
 lustrious chieftain. The earliest mention that we can find of Washington's 
 name in this connection is in a letter of James Warren to John Adams bear- 
 ing date the 7th of May. Adams seems at once to have regarded him as 
 the only man fitted for this momentous service. Though the formal nomi- 
 nation was made by Mr. Johnson of Maryland, Mr. Adams on a previous 
 day first designated Washington as " a gentleman whose skill and expe- 
 rience as an officer, whose independent fortune, great talents, and excellent 
 universal character would command the approbation of all America, and 
 unite the cordial exertions of all the Colonies better than any other person 
 in the Union." There were, however, objections on sectional grounds and
 
 i6 
 
 The Influence of Cambridge. 
 
 personal ambitions that required the most delicate treatment, and it was 
 mainly in consequence of Mr. Adams's strong will, untiring effort, and skilful 
 handling of opposing wishes and claims, that the final ballot was unanimous. 
 On the 5th of June the election was made. It was formally announced to 
 Washington by Hancock, the President of Congress, and was accepted on 
 the spot. 
 
 The commander, impressed with the imminence of the crisis, denied him- 
 self the sad privilege of a farewell in person to his own household, took 
 leave of his wife in a letter equally brave and tender, and on the aist com- 
 menced his northward journey. Twenty miles from Philadelphia he met a 
 courier with tidings of the battle of Bunker Hill. Eagerly inquiring as to 
 the details of the transaction, and learning the promptness, skill, and cour- 
 
 OLD PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. 
 
 age that had made the day forever memorable, he exclaimed, " The liberties 
 of the country are safe ! " A deputation from the Provincial Congress met 
 him at Springfield, and volunteer cavalcades gave him honorable attendance 
 from town to town, till, on the 2d of July, he arrived at Watertown, received 
 and returned the congratulatory address of the Congress there assembled, 
 and was then escorted by a company of horse and a goodly body of mounted 
 civilians to the president's house, now known as Wadsworth House. The 
 rapid journey on horseback from Philadelphia to Cambridge, and that in 
 part over rough roads, an enterprise beyond the easy conception of our 
 time, must have rendered the brief repose of that midsummer night essen- 
 tial to the prestige of the morrow, when on the first impressions of the hour 
 may have been poised the destiny of the nation. 
 
 There were reasons why Washington not only might have been, but
 
 Washington assumes the Command of the Army. 17 
 
 would inevitably have been ill received, had he not been made to win men's 
 confidence and love. Several of the officers already on the ground had 
 shown their capacity for great things, and had their respective circles of 
 admirers, who were reluctant to see them superseded by a stranger ; and 
 had not the officers themselves manifested a magnanimity equal to their 
 courage, the camp would have been already distracted by hostile factions. 
 Then, too, the Virginian and New England character, manners, style of 
 speech, modes of living, tastes, aptitudes, had much less in common at that 
 time of infrequent intercourse than half a century later, when, as we well 
 know, apart from political divergence, mere social differences were sufficient 
 to create no little mutual repugnancy. Washington was also well known to 
 be an Episcopalian, and Episcopacy, from the first Offensive on Puritan soil, 
 was never more abhorred than now, when its Northern professors, with 
 hardly an exception, were openly hostile to the cause of the people, when 
 in Cambridge almost every conspicuous dwelling from Fresh Pond to the 
 Inman House in Cambridgeport had been the residence of a refugee royalist 
 member of the English Church. 
 
 The morning of the 3d of July witnessed on the Cambridge Common, 
 and at every point of view in and upon the few surrounding houses, such a 
 multitude of men, women, and children as had never been gathered here 
 before, and perhaps never afterwards assembled until its hundredth anni- 
 versary was celebrated. Never was the advent or presence of mortal man 
 a more complete and transcendent triumph. Majestic grace and sweet 
 benignity were blended in countenance and mien. He looked at once the 
 hero, patriot, sage. With equal dignity and modesty he received the thunders 
 of acclamation, in which every voice bore part. His first victory, the pres- 
 tige of which forsook him not for a moment during the weary years that 
 followed, was already gained when under the ancient elm he drew his 
 sword as commander-in-chief. He had conquered thousands of hearts, that 
 remained true to him to their last throb. The wife of John Adams writes 
 of his appearance at that moment, " Those lines of Dryden instantly oc- 
 curred to me, 
 
 Mark his majestic fabric ! He 's a temple 
 Sacred by birth, and built by hands divine ; 
 His soul 's the deity that lodges there ; 
 Nor is the pile unworthy of the God.' "
 
 EXTRACTS FROM THE DIARY OF DOROTHY DUDLEY. 
 From April \%tk, 1775, to July igtti, 1776. 
 
 " The Indian's shaft, the Briton's ball, 
 
 The sabre's thirsting edge, 
 The hot shell, shattering in its fall, 
 The bayonet's rending wedge, 
 Here scattered death ; yet, seek the spot, 
 
 No trace thine eye can see, 
 No altar, and they need it not 
 
 Who leave their children free ! " . 
 
 O. W. HOLMES. 
 
 CAMBRIDGE, April \Wi, 1775. To-day nine Redcoats stopped at 
 Bradish tavern for dinner and then gallopped on toward Lexington. 
 I wonder what mischief is in tha wind now ! Mr. Hancock, Mr. Samuel 
 Adams, are staying with Mr. Clark in Lexington, and these officers may be 
 spies in search of them*. We are on the alert, knowing that at any moment 
 the war cloud may burst. 1 
 
 April ivth. It has come. The long expected blow has been struck, 
 and by the British arm. How can I nerve myself to write of the horrors of 
 yesterday ; but I will do it. 
 
 At midnight of Tuesday we were awakened by the ringing of bells and 
 beating of drums and the hurried tread of men arming for battle. The 
 air was filled with cries .of frightened women and children. " The regulars 
 are out. To arms ! " was the shout which, with lightning speed, went 
 from mouth to mouth. Then we knew that the purposes of General 
 Gage had ripened into deeds, and war was fairly upon us. Our minute- 
 men were ready for action, and as the sun arose set off in the direction of 
 Lexington, where the British troops had gone. For us at home there 
 was the most terrible suspense to be endured. At noon came a body of 
 Redcoats, led by Lord Percy, over the bridge from Boston, to re-enforce 
 the troops which went through our town Tuesday night. It was not till 
 toward evening that our anxiety and suspense could be relieved by any 
 certain news. Then the King's troops were retreating in most ignominious 
 haste before the pursuing militia of Lexington, Concord, and Cambridge. 
 
 1 Though Miss Dudley carefully attributes her interest in public events to " patriotism," the exact- 
 ness and promptness of her information suggest that some gallant officer gave her intelligence of his 
 movements, and that we owe her details rather to the tender passion than to the love of country. ED.
 
 The Lexington Martyrs. ro 
 
 As they ran over the road they had so proudly marched over the night be- 
 fore, the slaughter among them was terrible. Several of our brave Cam- 
 bridge men are killed. Mrs. Hicks sent her eldest boy to look for his 
 
 GENERAL JOSEPH WARREN. 1 
 
 rfather as night came on. 2 He found him lying dead by the roadside, and 
 near him Mr. Moses Richardson and Mr. William Marcy. 8 These three 
 
 ! The face in this portrait is from an engraving after Copley. 
 
 2 John Hicks lived in a house that is still standing on the corner of Winthrop and Dunster streets. 
 It is supposed that he was engaged in the Boston " Tea Party." He was absent from home on that 
 night, and is said to have had tea in his clothing upon his return. ED. 
 
 3 A monument to these men stands now in the church-yard, near Christ Church. ED.
 
 2O Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 were brought home and hastily buried in one common grave in the church- 
 yard. Ah, the sorrows of that night ! How near it brought war to our 
 doors, this first burial of victims of British tyranny. 1 It was no time for 
 funeral ceremonies ; and as the terrified and sorrowing friends stood around 
 the rude grave in which was put all that was mortal of these brave men, 
 Dr. Warren tried to comfort them with hopeful words. " It will soon be 
 over," he said, " then rightful honors will be paid to these who fell in de- 
 fence of our country." I cannot forget it. The lurid glare of the torches, 
 the group in the graveyard, the tender but hurried burial without service or 
 even coffins, and Elias Richardson's act of filial love in carefully spread- 
 ing the cape of his father's overcoat upon the dead man's face, lest the cold 
 earth should fall directly upon it. Dr. Warren himself, they say, had a 
 very narrow escape in the affray. He ran recklessly into it when the Brit- 
 ish were -retreating, and a bullet whizzed past his head, taking off one of the 
 side curls. 
 
 April 2ist. Our little town is the seat of war. An army is gathering in 
 our midst in response to the call of the Committee of Safety. Yesterday 
 immediately after the affair at Lexington and Concord, a proclamation to 
 the Colonies was issued, urging them to do all in their power to raise an 
 army. " Our all is at stake. Death and devastation are the certain con- 
 sequences of delay. Every moment is infinitely precious. An hour lost 
 may deluge your country in blood and entail perpetual slavery upon the few 
 of our posterity that may survive the carnage." But the Colonies have not 
 waited for the call. One spirit animates all the determination to stand by 
 our country in its hour of need and the universal cry is Liberty or Death. 
 Volunteers come from all quarters, many with nothing but the clothes on 
 their backs, no money, no provisions. Our houses are thrown open to ac- 
 commodate as far as possible the great throng of men who have rushed to 
 the cause of liberty. General Ward has taken the chief command and is 
 doing his best to bring order out of this chaos. The Committee of Safety 
 have taken up their quarters at Mr. Hastings's house, 2 and General Ward is 
 also there. 
 
 Orders are issued that the college be removed to Concord, and the stu- 
 dents are going ; the library has already been partly carried to Andover. 
 The college buildings are to be used as barracks for the soldiers. The Com- 
 mon is the rendezvous for military; and a busy scene it is, with its groups 
 of excited minute-men and thousand signs of warlike preparations. A great 
 
 1 " Witli heart and hand they wrought 
 
 According to their village light ; 
 'T was for the Future that they fought, 
 
 Their rustic faith in what was right. 
 Upon earth's tragic stage they burst 
 
 Unsummoned in the humble sock ; 
 Theirs the fifth act ; the curtain first 
 
 Rose long ago on Charles's block." Lowell. 
 
 2 Known as the Holmes house. ED.
 
 Citizens exiled from Boston. 21 
 
 many of our townspeople have run away, as this influx of soldiers has come. 
 Tory Row is nearly deserted. The widow of Major Henry Yassall has left 
 her house and sought a place of safety. Colonel Stark has his property in 
 charge. All that cannot be made of use to our army is sent to Boston. 
 The barns will be used to store forage for our cavalry horses. Mr. 
 John Borland has abandoned his home 1 and it is taken by the Committee 
 of Safety. Major Phipps, too, 2 thinks discretion the better part of valor, 
 and has departed. We have but little of the Tory element among us now. 
 The Tories who remain are lukewarm in their principles. 
 
 April 2^th. Boston is in great distress, the very centre, as it is, of the 
 war; in the hands of a cruel and insolent soldiery, and deprived of its sup- 
 plies from the surrounding country. We cannot realize how hard a life its 
 poor besieged inhabitants must lead. 
 
 April 2$th. Good news for Boston sufferers ! General Gage has pro- 
 posed a treaty, as much for his own safety and that of his troops, as from 
 any kindlier motives, and agrees " that upon the inhabitants in general 
 lodging their arms in Faneuil Hall, or any other convenient place, under the 
 care of the selectmen, marked with the names of the respective owners, 
 that all such inhabitants as are inclined may depart from the town, with 
 their families and effects, and those who remain may depend on his protec- 
 tion, and that the arms aforesaid, at a suitable time, will be returned to the 
 owners." He promises that the poor shall be provided for, and asks " that 
 those persons in the country who might incline to move into Boston with 
 their effects, might have liberty to do so without molestation." This pro- 
 posal is gladly accepted, and the conditions agreed to as just and reason- 
 able. 
 
 April zgth. The road to Roxbury is a busy scene, covered, as it is, 
 with an ever lengthening procession of voluntary exiles from Boston, and 
 crowded with loyal subjects of the King, anxious to hide themselves under 
 the protecting care of his Majesty's troops. The Provincial Congress has 
 ordered that provision be made for the Boston exiles in the villages further 
 inland in our Colony, and as many as five thousand are distributed among 
 different hospitable towns. Our army is in a most pitiable condition. 
 There is great and terrible want of powder, muskets, and other necessaries. 
 Congress has offered a reward for the discovery of the best mode of mak- 
 ing saltpetre, and all possible efforts are being made to supply the need of 
 clothing, tents, and fire-arms. But I am sure we need have no fears that 
 these raw recruits, as they seem by the side of the disciplined army of his 
 Majesty, will not hold their own and do and dare even to death in defence of 
 our country's liberty. We have had proof of their bravery in our late 
 French war, and their training then and since is not to be despised, as the 
 Redcoats found out to their cost at Lexington and Concord. Our officers, 
 too are men of skill and experience. 
 
 1 The Apthorp House. En. 
 
 2 He occupied a large mansion on the present Arrow Street. ED
 
 22 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 Every one knows that " Putnam dares to lead where any dare to follow," 
 and the very name of " Old Put " is a synonym for bravery. Then there is 
 Prescott, who " will never be taken alive " by the enemy, the veteran Stark, 
 and Ward and Pomeroy. With these we have Dr. Warren, a host in 
 himself, the President of our Committee of Safety and also of Congress. 
 He is a wonder to us, so full of energy and enthusiasm, always awake to 
 the necessities of the country, and with such unbounded influence over the 
 soldiers. He it was who despatched the messengers to alarm the sleeping 
 country that memorable night when the British slipped away so secretly on 
 their errand of mischief. While the lanterns hung from the belfry of the 
 North Church in Boston, he said to a friend as he left the town, " Keep up a 
 brave heart ; they have begun it. That either party may do. We shall end 
 it ; that only one can do." And Warren's name is only one of a list to which 
 Hancock, Church, Devens, Orne, White, Palmer, and Watson belong. 
 
 May zoth. Congress has met in Philadelphia and appointed Mr. Hancock 
 president in place of Mr. Peyton Randolph resigned. Mr. Hancock is very 
 popular, and his vast wealth and influence are all used in the interests of our 
 country. It is said that when the question was discussed in the North End 
 Club of Mechanics, of which he was an active member, how best to drive tlie 
 British troops from Boston, he cried : " Burn Boston and make John Han- 
 cock a beggar if the public good requires it." So we have a patriot at the 
 head of our Congress. 
 
 News has come of the capture of Ticonderoga on the loth of this month 
 by Colonel Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys. It was accom- 
 plished without loss of life on either side, by the desperate daring of the 
 hardy mountaineers. They rushed into the fort in the early morning, 
 frightened the garrison by the Indian war-whoop, and were led by the as- 
 tounded sentry, who made but feeble resistance, to the apartment of the 
 commander. " Come forth instantly or I will sacrifice the whole garrison ! " 
 was the thundering command which brought him to the door. " Deliver 
 me the fort instantly," said Allen. " By what authority ? " asked the aston- 
 ished commander. " In the name of the great Jehovah and the Continental 
 Congress ! " was the reply. After a short hesitation, he surrendered the 
 fortress, ordering the garrison to parade without arms. This is a valuable 
 acquisition, the fort containing a large number of cannon, stores, and small 
 arms. 
 
 Dr. Franklin has arrived from England and is appointed Postmaster- 
 General, also a member of the Committee of Safety and of the Continental 
 Congress. Our councils will gain strength by the presence of this great 
 man. It is such a privilege to have his wisdom and experience employed 
 for the good of our Colonies. 
 
 May 2,T>d. So many of the Boston people have removed from the town 
 that General Gage has become alarmed, thinking that all the patriots will 
 go, and then there will be no restraint upon our troops, to assure the safety
 
 Martial Law proclaimed by Gage. 23 
 
 of the besieged town. He has broken his promise and forbidden "all mer- 
 chandise, provisions, and medicine" from passing into the country, and 
 guards are appointed " to examine all trunks, boxes, beds, and everything 
 else to be carried out." Passes, too, are refused now, and many who had 
 procured them are obliged to go without their property, and in several in- 
 stances families are cruelly divided, and unprotected women and children 
 left with no means of support. Their condition must be wretched indeed ! 
 
 May -2.6th. A re-enforcement from England for the Redcoats, making 
 their army count. up to as many as ten thousand men. They are jubilant 
 over this new force, which brings with it Generals Sir William Howe, Clinton, 
 and Burgoyne. 
 
 June i^th. General Gage has issued a proclamation beginning : 
 " Whereas the infatuated multitudes, who have long suffered themselves to 
 be conducted by certain well-known incendiaries and traitors, in a fatal pro- 
 gression of crimes against the constitutional authority of the state, have at 
 length proceeded to avowed rebellion, and the good effects which were ex- 
 pected to arise from the patience and lenity of the King's government have 
 been often frustrated, and are now rendered hopeless, by the influence of the 
 same evil counsels, it only remains for those who are entrusted with the su- 
 preme rule, as well for the punishment of the guilty, as the protection of 
 the well affected, to prove that they do not bear the sword in vain." He 
 then goes on to declare martial law and to pronounce those in arms " to be 
 rebels and traitors," and offers pardon to all who will return to loyalty with 
 exception of Samuel Adams and John Hancock, " whose offences are of too 
 flagitious a nature to admit of any other consideration than that of condign 
 punishment." This is an honor many a patriot would gladly risk his life to 
 receive, and only serves to strengthen the opposition and weaken the cord 
 which binds our Colonies to old England. 
 
 June \$th. I heard to-day that when the three British generals with the 
 re-enforcement were sailing into Boston harbor they met a packet coming 
 out, and General Burgoyne asked of the skipper, "What news is there ?" 
 The reply was that Boston was surrounded by ten thousand country people. 
 " How many regulars in Boston ? " was his next question. " Five thousand." 
 " What ! " said the British officer. " Ten thousand peasants keep five 
 thousand King's troops shut up ! Well, let us get in, and we '11 soon find 
 elbow-room." 
 
 June \6th. Colonel Prescott is ordered to be ready with a thousand men 
 this evening to parade on the Common before marching for Charlestown. 
 The men are all farmers, and have no uniform, and no arms except fowling- 
 pieces without bayonets, and carry in horns and pouches their small 
 supply of powder and bullets. Colonel Prescott was dressed in simple blue 
 with three-cornered hat, his tall, commanding figure erect with courage, his 
 eye beaming with enthusiasm. At a signal there was a profound silence, 
 while President Langdon, who is their chaplain pro. tern., offered an earnest
 
 24 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 and touching prayer for the safety of these brave men, as they go up to 
 battle with the enemy. 1 At nine o'clock they marched, two sergeants carry- 
 ing dark lanterns in front, and in the rear the tools for throwing up entrench- 
 ments. The soldiers are ignorant of the object of their march, and will not 
 be told till they reach its end. Now they have gone and we are left in sus- 
 pense. What will be the result ? We can only echo President Langdon's 
 prayer : " Go with them, O, Our Father, keep them in the hollow of Thy 
 hand, cover them with Thy protecting care, and bring them back to us vic- 
 torious." 
 
 Saturday, June 17 th? We were in great anxiety to know the result of 
 last night's march, when soon after dinner the bells began to ring, the drums 
 beat to arms, and there was great confusion and noise. Adjutants gallopped 
 here and there, crying, " Turn out, turn out ; the enemy 's all landed at 
 Charlestown." Captain Putnam brought orders from his father to all the 
 Connecticut troops to march immediately to Bunker Hill, to the relief of 
 Colonel Prescott. Captain Chester's company from Wethersfield, which is 
 quartered in Christ Church, and all of Old Put's soldiers in town, marched im- 
 mediately, and General Warren, who arrived this morning from Watertown, 
 has gone to the field of battle. We can hear the booming of the cannon 
 and see the smoke arising from Charlestown, which the British have set on 
 fire. It is a terrific battle. Our noble men defend their own works gallantly, 
 and will not yield, we know, till the last moment. It is feared that the want 
 of ammunition will force them to retreat before the greater numbers of the 
 enemy. 
 
 June i8M. How can I write of the great and terrible loss which has come 
 to us in the death of our beloved Dr. Warren. Yes, he is killed, pierced 
 through the brain by a British bullet, and left dead on the field. When he 
 was hurrying to the battle, and some one warned him to spare himself, he re- 
 plied : " Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori." At Bunker Hill, though 
 tendered the command by both Putnam and Prescott, he declined, and took 
 his place with the common soldiers, musket in hand, to do his part in de- 
 fending the hill. When they were driven to surrender, he was the last to 
 leave the ramparts, and fell bravely fighting. Many others of our brave men 
 are gone, but none so valuable to the country as General Warren. He was 
 appointed major-general only three days ago. Our enemies rejoice at our 
 loss (and well they may), but their victory is a dear one to them, and one 
 they will not care to buy again at the same price. Eleven hundred of their 
 choicest men, including a great many officers, is no small loss, when they re- 
 ceive in exchange only a little hill overlooking Boston. One hundred and 
 forty-five are killed, and three hundred and four wounded among our noble 
 soldiers. It really is wonderful how a small body of undisciplined farmers 
 could stand so long against an army of English regulars. It is owing to the 
 
 1 Authorities do not agree as to the precise position occupied by the President when offering this 
 prayer. ED.
 
 Washington appointed Commander. 25 
 
 personal courage and patriotism of every individual soldier, as well as their in- 
 trepid leadership ; and the great caution exercised in the use of powder, every 
 grain of which served its purpose. Old Put, just before the battle, said : 
 " Powder is scarce, my men, and must not be wasted. Don't fire at the en- 
 emy till you see the whites of their eyes then fire low, aim at their waist- 
 bands. You are all marksmen, and can kill a squirrel at a hundred yards. 
 Reserve your fire, and the enemy is destroyed. Aim at the handsome coats 
 pick out the commanders." Colonel Stark says that " the dead lay as 
 thick as sheep in a fold," on the new-mown hay which covered Bunker Hill. 
 Our brave men have freely given their lives for their country, and convinced 
 the world that we, as a people, are in earnest and ready to die for our cause. 
 Dr. Franklin says : " Americans will fight ; England has lost her Colonies 
 forever." 
 
 June \<)th. It is feared that the British will follow up their victory and 
 sally forth into the surrounding country, and perhaps attack our camps. 
 General Putnam is busy throwing up entrenchments on Prospect Hill, work- 
 ing day and night, that he maybe ready to oppose their progress, while forts 
 and earthworks are building almost by magic around our town. 
 
 June 22d. Our poor wounded men are coming in wagons to the hospitals 
 that are improvised in town. Colonel Phipps's, and Major Henry VassalPs 
 houses, and, further up Tory Row, Lieutenant-Governor Oliver's, and Mr. 
 George Ruggles's, are used for l their accommodation. We are doing our 
 best to provide lint and bandages for them. Congress has appointed a day 
 of fasting and prayer, that the battle of Bunker Hill, may, by God's bless- 
 ing, be followed by great success to our arms. Dr. Appleton preached last 
 Sabbath, a most stirring sermon. Many of the soldiers from camp were 
 at church. And from the hospitals they came too, here and there one whose 
 injuries are light enough to permit him to be out. 
 
 June 26th. Our army at last is to have a commander-in-chief. Our 
 Congress at Philadelphia has appointed Colonel George Washington of Vir- 
 ginia, " General and Commander-in-chief of the Army of the United Colo- 
 nies, and all the forces now raised or to be raised by them." He is to come 
 immediately to camp to take command, and is now on his way. The Pro- 
 vincial Congress at Watertown has resolved that the president's house, with 
 the exception of one room, reserved by the President for his own use, be 
 taken, cleared, prepared and furnished for the reception of General Wash- 
 ington and General Lee. The appointment of General Washington is very 
 popular. They say he is a man in every way fitted for this position, and his 
 election is unanimous. 
 
 July ^d. General Washington is here. Yesterday he arrived, by way of 
 Watertown, where he was received by Congress with a congratulatory ad- 
 dress, and escorted to Cambridge by a troop of light horse. He went imme- 
 diately to his quarters at the president's house. It was just as we were re- 
 
 1 The Lowell house and the Wells house. ED.
 
 26 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 turning from church, and our curiosity to see the man of whom we have 
 heard so much was satisfied. He is a large man, tall and well-proportioned ; 
 his face noble in its suggestion of strength, and dignity, and modesty. Our 
 expectations are more than realized. His appearance is one to inspire con- 
 fidence and love, and to make us grateful for the possession of such a chief. 
 To-day he formally took command, under one of the grand old elms on 
 the Common. It was a magnificent sight. The majestic figure of the Gen- 
 eral, mounted upon his horse beneath the wide-spreading branches of the 
 patriarch tree ; 1 the multitude thronging the plain around, and the houses 
 filled with interested spectators of the scene, while the air rung with shouts 
 of enthusiastic welcome, as he drew his sword, and thus declared himself 
 Commander-in-chief of the Continental army. He will find his task a hard 
 one, that of making an army out of the rude material gathered from all parts 
 of our Colonies. General Ward, who already commands the troops around 
 Boston, Colonel Charles Lee, who has resigned his commission in the King's 
 service, General Philip Schuyler of New York, and Israel Putnam, " Old 
 Put," are appointed major-generals. These all will surely find their hands 
 full of work, in putting this body of fifteen thousand men into readiness for 
 war, there is so much confusion in camp, so little discipline, and such terri- 
 ble want of supplies of every kind. And this want must be kept an utter 
 secret from the enemy in Boston. General Washington's staff consists of 
 Major Thomas Mifflin of Philadelphia, first aid-de-camp, Major John Trum- 
 bull, son of Governor Trumbull of Connecticut, second aid-de-camp, Colonel 
 Joseph Reed of Philadelphia, private secretary, and Horatio Gates, adjutant- 
 general. Major Trumbull is quite a clever artist, and gained the favor of 
 the Commander-in-chief by a very correct drawing of the enemy's works in 
 Boston. He is a young man of fine appearance and abilities. Major Mif- 
 flin is a universal favorite, full of activity and enthusiasm. Colonel Reed is 
 a gentleman of rich culture, and invaluable to Washington as his confiden- 
 tial clerk. General Gates is popular and useful. 
 
 July igth. General Washington is a most wonderful commander. His 
 personal influence is unbounded. There is something magnetic about him, 
 drawing from others their fullest confidence. He is most conscientious in 
 his discharge of every duty, and is accomplishing miracles among the sol- 
 diers. 
 
 The army is besieging Boston from all the surrounding country, being sta- 
 tioned in a semicircle from Charlestown to Dorchester, eight or nine miles. 
 Colonel Prescott is entrenched in the woods between Cambridge and Lech- 
 mere's Point, and " Old Put " is at Prospect Hill. He has raised the Con- 
 necticut flag on the ramparts. On one side the banner has the motto, " An 
 Appeal to Heaven," and on the other side the three vines, the armorial 
 
 1 " Under the brave old tree 
 Our fathers gathered in arms, and swore 
 They would follow the sign their banners bore, 
 And fight till the land was free." Dr. Holmes.
 
 Reasons for Rebellion. 27 
 
 bearings of that Colony, with the legend, " Oui Transtulit Sustinet." This 
 was thrown to the air immediately after the reading of the Declaration of 
 Congress, setting forth the reasons for taking up arms against England, and 
 the shouts of the soldiers were so loud as to frighten the enemy on Bunker 
 Hill, who rushed to arms, believing an immediate attack was to be made. 
 
 This manifesto declares that " Our cause is just. Our Union is perfect. 
 Our internal resources are great, and, if necessary, foreign assistance is 
 undoubtedly attainable. We gratefully acknowledge as signal instances of 
 divine favor toward us, that His providence would not permit us to be 
 called into this severe controversy, until we were grown up to our present 
 strength, had been previously exercised in warlike operations, and possessed 
 of the means of defending ourselves. With hearts fortified with these ani- 
 mating reflections, we most solemnly, before God and the world, declare, 
 that exerting the utmost energy of those powers which our beneficent Cre- 
 ator hath graciously bestowed upon us, the arms we have been compelled by 
 our enemies to assume, we will, in defiance of every hazard, with unabating 
 firmness and perseverance, employ for the preservation of our liberties, be- 
 ing with one mind resolved to die free men rather than to live slaves." 
 
 July 2oth. Fast Day. Services in church and camp. Soldiers are ordered 
 to attend public worship, but to take with them their arms and ammunition, 
 to be ready for battle at a moment's notice. I saw to-day part of a British 
 officer's letter to a friend in England, which failed of its destination. He 
 speaks eloquently of our beautiful Colony, which now is besprinkled with 
 forts and camps, and all the paraphernalia of war : " The country is most 
 beautifully tumbled about in hills and valleys, rocks and woods, interspersed 
 with straggling villages, with here and there a spire peeping over the trees, 
 and the country of the most charming green that delighted eye ever gazed 
 on.". Would that he and his countrymen were loath to disturb the quiet 
 beauty of this land by the terrible sights and sounds of war. Our need of 
 ammunition is so great that we are called upon to give up our window 
 weights, to be moulded into bullets ; and even the tombs in the old ceme- 
 tery are robbed of their leaden coats-of-arms, and Christ Church of its 
 metal organ-pipes for the same purpose. The very mention of powder sets 
 every one in a shiver. General Washington sat for a full half hour without 
 speaking, when, in the general council, upon his first arrival, he was told of 
 the great want of that death-dealing substance. But, in spite of its being 
 so ill-prepared for contest, General Washington acknowledges that there is 
 good material in the army, made up as it is " of a great number of men, 
 able-bodied, active, zealous in the cause, and of unquestionable courage." 
 General Washington himself has thrown up the first sod preparatory to 
 building a fort near the river; and the swamps and marshes are dotted with 
 laborers whose whole heart is in their work. The Soden Farm and the 
 pine banks and oyster banks are not to be without redoubts. This matter 
 of entrenchments absorbs the time and thoughts of every one.
 
 28 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 July 2$th. A company of riflemen, commanded by Captain Thompson, 
 has joined our army, a most singular body of men, dressed in Indian 
 costume, with brown linen hunting-jackets confined by wampum belt, leg- 
 gings and moccasins elaborately trimmed with beads, and a simple round hat. 
 Each carries a tomahawk or knife stuck in his belt, and his own unerring 
 rifle which he brought from his home in the backwoods. They have all 
 come a distance of four hundred, and some as many as seven hundred 
 miles. They are strong, muscular men, looking equal to any hardships ; 
 and, from what we hear of their characteristics, we may be sure they will 
 create havoc among the Redcoats. Since their early boyhood they have 
 been trained marksmen, having been punished every time they failed to hit 
 their game in the head. 
 
 August 1st. There is a young man in camp whom I have noticed again 
 and again as he passes the house. He is striking in appearance, though 
 quite small and boyish. His eyes are piercing in their brightness, and there 
 is something winning in his manner. His name is Aaron Burr, a son of 
 Rev. Aaron Burr, formerly President of Princeton College, N. J., and grand- 
 son of Rev. Jonathan Edwards. Things are very quiet now in both armies. 
 The enemy is closely hemmed in on all sides by the redoubts thrown up by 
 our troops. With so little ammunition it is impossible to make an attack, 
 or even to answer the volleys from their guns. The other day a shell from 
 Copp's Hill struck very near the president's house, though no harm was done, 
 through the heroism of a soldier who risked his life in stamping upon the 
 still burning fuse. General Washington has desired Colonel John Vassall's 
 house to be made ready for him, and will remove there as soon as possible. 
 Congress has adjourned for five weeks. 
 
 [LETTER FROM DOROTHY DUDLEY TO MISS ESTHER LIVINGSTONE OF 
 PHILADELPHIA. 1 ] 
 
 CAMBRIDGE, Aug. 30, 1775. 
 
 MY DEAREST ESTHER, I have an opportunity to send you a letter by 
 a messenger who goes to Philadelphia to-morrow, and hasten to improve it, 
 since I have written so little during the terrible months that have passed. 
 Let me give you a hasty sketch of our Cambridge life since the day when 
 American blood was shed -by British troops on Lexington Common. Of 
 course it is all familiar to you through the public prints, the hanging 
 of the lantern from the belfry tower ; the midnight cry which roused every 
 one from sleep ; the hurried preparations for the fight ; the defeat of the 
 haughty Redcoats with a loss of nearly three hundred from their ranks, 
 which cost our militia nearly one hundred brave men. But you can form 
 no idea of the horrors which fastened themselves upon the poor distressed 
 people of our town. Women, whose husbands had rushed to the affray, 
 
 1 The Editor inserts this lively letter at this point because it very pleasantly complements the narra- 
 tive of the Diary.
 
 The Battle of Bunker Hill. 29 
 
 beside themselves with fright, started off in search of a place of safety, 
 carrying with them their children and such household goods as they gath- 
 ered together in their haste. Mrs. Dr. Winthrop in the confusion made 
 her way with a number of others toward Fresh Pond, and passed through 
 the battle-ground at Menotomy, where lay the dead bodies of both British 
 and American soldiers. The fugitives were sent to Andover, as it was un- 
 safe for them to return to Cambridge. 
 
 The affair that day was the signal for war ; and it needed not the appeal 
 for volunteers to bring together hundreds and thousands of brave men on 
 fire with enthusiasm and eager for battle. Our town was deluged with sol- 
 diers for the time ; and General Heath, the superior officer, was at his wits' 
 end to keep order in the midst of so much coming and going. Many of the 
 men stayed but a few days, and returned to their homes to make prepara- 
 tions for joining the army permanently. General Artemas Ward, the vet- 
 eran soldier, was put at the head of affairs almost immediately, and the work 
 of levying an army went on rapidly. 
 
 You know about Bunker Hill, and the loss of our brave Dr. Warren, who 
 is deeply mourned by all. The memory of that day will live in American 
 hearts, so long as one spark of patriotism burns in our beloved land. Pres- 
 cott out-did himself, I have heard, in his efforts to spur the men on in de- 
 fence of their works. He walked back and forth in the redoubt, talking 
 cheerily all the time, and firing the men with his own flaming enthusiasm. 
 General Gage, watching our troops through his glass, inquired who this in- 
 trepid officer was. A brother-in-law of Colonel Prescott's told him. 
 
 " Will he fight ? " he asked. 
 
 " Yes, sir ; he is an old soldier, and will fight as long as a drop of blood 
 remains in his veins." 
 
 " The works must be carried," was the British general's reply. 
 
 And they were carried, as you know, though with terrible loss to the Brit- 
 ish army. Colonel Prescott said after the battle, that he had not done 
 enough to satisfy himself, but we think he has immortalized his name. 
 
 Come with me, and I will show you our army, with our matchless chief at 
 its head. Cambridge is a military town, the Common is the parade ground, 
 and Massachusetts, Stoughton, Hollis, and Harvard halls, and Holden 
 Chapel, so lately echoing the tread of students' feet, are occupied as 
 barracks. The beautiful college green is disfigured by earthworks, thrown 
 up in the spring, in anticipation of an attack from the enemy. Christ 
 Church x is occupied by soldiers, owing to scarcity of tents. Rev. Mr. Ser- 
 
 1 " Our ancient church ! its lowly tower, 
 
 Beneath the loftier spire, 
 Is shadowed when the sunset hour 
 
 Clothes the tall shaft in fire ; 
 It sinks beyond the distant eye, 
 
 Long ere the glittering vane 
 High wheeling in the western sky, 
 
 Has faded o'er the plain." O. IV. Holmes.
 
 The Tories vacate their Houses. 31 
 
 jeant, its rector, has been obliged to leave town, driven away on account of 
 his adherence to the King. Many houses on the Menotomy road, 1 have been 
 given to the army as quarters, and you see military in all corners. Boston 
 is encircled with our troops ; actually hemmed in, though we are weak by 
 reason of the sad want of powder and other necessary supplies. You re- 
 member Colonel Vassall's 2 magnificent house on the road to Watertown. It 
 is taken by our government, and is now General Washington's head-quar- 
 ters. Major Henry Vassall's, on the opposite side of the road, 8 is a hospital 
 for the wounded at Bunker Hill. 
 
 Judge Lee, being lukewarm in his Tory principles, and not interfering in 
 politics, is allowed to retain his fine old mansion, the frame of which was 
 brought from the old country, years before the present owner was born. 
 Mr. Jonathan Sewall, 4 you know, has fled, and Captain George Ruggles. 5 
 The latter's house is filled with wounded soldiers just now, as is also Colonel 
 Phipps's, 6 which you remember. Mr. Ralph Inman has left his estate, and 
 Old Put makes the house his head-quarters, his troops occupying barracks 
 on the grounds. On that terrible iQth of April, when the affray at Lexing- 
 ton had filled the very air with horror, many families, frightened from their 
 homes by the sounds of approaching battle, congregated at Mr. Dana's 
 house on Butler's Hill, 7 and there our good pastor, Dr. Appleton, met his 
 little flock, to comfort and cheer their timid hearts, and lead their thoughts 
 upward to Him whose arm is strong to help in time of need. While en- 
 gaged in fervent prayer, the cry was heard, " The Redcoats are running," 
 and with thankful haste the patriotic minister said " Amen," and the com- 
 pany dispersed. 
 
 You remember Dr. Appleton, with his kindly eyes and benevolent smile. 
 I must tell you an anecdote characteristic of him, in the days when Har- 
 vard College harbored roguish students within its walls, in place of its 
 present occupants. The Doctor had a number of hens. Some mischievous 
 boys, thinking to have a feast at his expense, one night made a visit to 
 
 1 Now North Avenue. ED. 
 
 2 Now the home of the poet, Longfellow, who says of it : 
 
 " Once, ah, once, within these walls, 
 One whom memory oft recalls, 
 The Father of his Country dwelt ; 
 And yonder meadows broad and damp, 
 The fires of the besieging camp, 
 Encircled with a burning belt. 
 Up and down these echoing stairs, 
 Heavy with the weight of cares, 
 Sounded his majestic tread ; 
 Yes, within this very room 
 Sat he in those hours of gloom, 
 Weary both in heart and head." ED. 
 
 3 The Batchelder house. ED. * Mr. John firewater's house. ED. 
 Wells house. ED. ' On Arrow Street. ED. 
 
 i Now Dana Hill. ED.
 
 32 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Diidlcy. 
 
 his hen-roost. The good Doctor had an inkling of their errand, and stationed 
 himself in the friendly shadow of a tree, to watch and listen. There were 
 two of them one remained below as sentinel, the other climbed the roost 
 to procure the game. One by one he wrung the necks of the astonished 
 and unresisting fowls, and tossed them to the ground. At last he came to 
 the old rooster, and called down in a whisper : " Say, Jack, here 's the old 
 rooster. Shall we take him ? " Jack, meanwhile, had been alarmed by a 
 rustling noise behind him, and, turning, discovered his pastor. Without 
 a word he precipitately departed, leaving his friend alone. He, too, had 
 heard the sound, though ignorant of its cause. Again he cautiously spoke : 
 " Quick, Jack, say shall we take him ? " A voice in the same tone replied, 
 " Yes, we '11 have him. He '11 make a nice stew. Hand him down." Down 
 he came, and with him the thief, who, in consternation, recognized, not the 
 partner of his guilt, but the good man whom they were robbing. Not a 
 word was spoken ; silently each went his way. In a day or two the whole 
 class, of which these were members, received a cordial invitation to dine 
 with the Rev. Doctor. Every one complied, and they sat down to a dinner fit 
 for a prince. There were roast fowls, and fricasseed fowls, and broiled fowls, 
 with all sorts of tempting dishes, to sharpen the appetite. The Doctor 
 was in his pleasantest mood, and chatted sociably with his guests during 
 the whole of the repast. When they had eaten to their satisfaction, he or- 
 dered another dish to be brought on, saying, " You must every one have 
 some of this nice stew, made from the old rooster. It is very good." No 
 one dared refuse, and in no other way was allusion made to the occasion, 
 which furnished this admirable dinner. The Doctor, you may be sure, was 
 not troubled afterwards by thieves. 
 
 So you have seen Mrs. Hancock. Is she not charming ! One cannot 
 wonder at Madame Lydia Hancock's fondness for her, and resolve to secure 
 the treasure for her nephew. You have heard how carefully she guarded 
 her against the approach of any invader upon Mr. John Hancock's rights. 
 
 I visited Lexington, the other day, and trod the ground so lately wet 
 with the blood of our noble minute-men ; went into Mr. Clarke's house, 
 where " King " Hancock, and " Citizen " .Adams, were lodged that mem- 
 orable night before the battle, and walked under the tree, which I am told 
 sheltered them during part of that time of terror. I saw the bullet in the 
 wall of the attic chamber where the family were hid at the time, and where 
 Madame Hancock very narrowly escaped death, a ball grazing her cheek as 
 it passed. After the battle Mr. Hancock, who had his coach and four at 
 hand, left the town, accompanied by his Aunt Lydia and Miss Dorothy 
 Quincy, 1 and rode to one of the neighboring villages, and from there by 
 slow stage to Fairfield, Connecticut. Madame Hancock is well acquainted 
 with Mr. Timothy Edwards, a son of Rev. Jonathan Edwards, and at his 
 house they stopped, and John Hancock and Dorothy Quincy were made 
 
 1 This was a niece of the " Dorothy Q.," immortalized in Dr. Holmes's happy poem. ED.
 
 John Hancock marries- 
 
 33 
 
 man and wife. Mr. Edwards has a nephew living with him, whom he has 
 adopted, and treats in all respects as his own son. Aaron Burr is his name. 
 He is a young man of fascinating manners, and many accomplishments. 
 He was much charmed with Miss Quincy, I have heard, and she in turn was 
 not insensible to his attractions, but Madame Hancock kept a jealous eye 
 
 SAMUEL ADAMS. 1 
 
 upon them both, and would not allow any advances upon the part of the 
 young man, toward the prize reserved for her nephew. When the knot was 
 tied that made them one, she felt at liberty to breathe. Immediately after 
 the wedding, they set out for Philadelphia, which has been their home ever 
 
 since. 
 
 1 This portrait is from the one by Copley, now in Faneuil Hall. ED.
 
 34 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 I wish you were with me this delightful summer weather. I sometimes 
 cannot believe that this busy, military camp, with its noise and confusion, 
 its drum-beating and parades, its variegated appearance, so in contrast 
 to the quiet look it was wont to wear, can be the same town of Cam- 
 bridge I remember a year ago. In my walks I frequently mee,t sad re- 
 minders of the reality of the war ; sometimes the slow, limping gait, and 
 the dull thud of a crutch, will call my attention ; again a tell-tale sling, will 
 speak of the strength gone from an arm once full of energy in the country's 
 service, or an empty sleeve, or weary haggard, face, will touch the deepest 
 depths -of gratitude and pity. 
 
 Old Mrs. Trowbridge, who is, you know, the soul of goodness, is inde- 
 fatigable in doing for the comfort of the soldiers in the hospitals. I have 
 been with her several times, to carry dainties for their flagging appetites, 
 and to do many little things to ease the pain and weariness that creep into 
 every hour. It is a pleasure to be able to break the monotony of the long 
 days, and sometimes I have taken a book perhaps Bunyan's good old 
 Allegory, which is ever fresh and full of life or better, the Bible, the one 
 book which never grows old, and which yields from its inexhaustible well of 
 treasure, something suited to the individual need of every one who seeks 
 to draw therefrom. The brightening look chasing away the cloud which 
 shadowed many a face, has been more than enough to reward me for my 
 little effort. Very glad I am, if I can make the brave men forget them- 
 selves in their eager stones of battle and camp-life, before the cruel bullet 
 brought death to their door. Bunker Hill, I have had rehearsed to me, in 
 all the different aspects it wore to those who were sharers in its glory and 
 its loss. And the French War, too, has furnished theme for many tales of 
 adventure and daring courage, from the lips of veterans in the service. 
 
 The Widow Vassall's house, which serves as a hospital, I have been 
 oftener to than to others, because of its nearness to my home. This house 
 has a history of its own dating back I don't dare to say how many years, but 
 somewhere in the last century, and was once the residence of good old Gov- 
 ernor Belcher. I have heard that Governor Belcher's wife was once on trial 
 for her life in England for the murder of her first husband, Mr. Steele. It 
 seems he had long contemplated suicide, and at last accomplished the deed, 
 shooting himself through the brain with a pistol. Mrs. Steele, seizing the 
 weapon from his hand, was found by a servant of the family standing, it was 
 averred, in a most suspicious attitude. Upon the testimony of this witness 
 she was tried for murder, but acquitted, having been proved entirely inno- 
 cent of the crime. 
 
 Major Henry Vassall, a brother of Colonel John Vassall, died about six 
 years ago and left the house in the hands of his widow. It is a very fine 
 old mansion, showing signs of wealth in its owners, and there are some pe- 
 culiarities in its style of building. Major Appleton called my attention one 
 day to a large panel in the wall near the fire-place, opening which he stepped
 
 The Brattle House and Grounds. 35 
 
 into the cavity and shut the door. I found it hard to believe my eyes as I 
 saw him disappear in the wall, but afterwards made assurance doubly sure 
 by peeping into the closet myself and discovered ample space for hiding 
 treasures of any description, and for secreting a fugitive could he find air to 
 keep him alive. The grounds of the Vassall house extend to those of the 
 Brattle estate, which Major Mifflin has just taken as his residence. These 
 grounds are exquisitely laid out, and are really the finest in New England. 
 Many of the convalescent soldiers, able to stroll about in the soft summer 
 air, have found welcome for them to the Brattle grounds in the nodding 
 leaves and grasses and the sweet odors of the flowers and the gentle call 
 of the fountain. The kind Major and his gentle lady, herself delicate in 
 health, both extend warm sympathy and hospitality to our brave soldiers. 
 So you see, my friend, that my life for a time runs in a different current 
 from its wont. Our hands are soldiers' property now ; jellies are to be made, 
 lint to be scraped, bandages to be prepared for waiting wounds. Embroidery 
 is laid aside and spinning takes its place. Oh, there is such urgent need for 
 economy ! No one, out of the secret, would believe how little ammunition 
 is in the possession of our army. If you will walk with me through the old 
 burying ground I will show you holes in the tombs of our revered ancestors, 
 made by the removal of the leaden coats-of-arms. This, you may be sure, 
 would not be allowed unless necessity required. You know the graves here 
 date back fully a century and a quarter, and count among them those of the 
 first presidents of our college, as well as many who were held in honor in 
 both public and private life. President Charles Chauncy, the second who 
 held the office, died in 1672, and a long Latin inscription testifies to his vir- 
 tues and his labors. His wife died four years previous, and I have found 
 her epitaph, which I will copy for you. 
 
 MR* 
 
 CATHARINE CHAUNCY 
 
 AGED. LXVI DYED JAN. XXIIII 
 
 ANO DOM MDCLXVII- 
 
 Upon ye death of ye pious Mother in God 
 Mrs Katharine Chauncy, deceased. 24. 1 1. 67. 
 
 Here lies enterr'd wth in this Shrine 
 
 A spirit meeke, a Soule divine, 
 
 Endew'd wth grace & piety, 
 
 Excelling in humility : 
 
 Preferring Gods commands above 
 
 All fine delights, & this Worlds love, 
 
 Whilest here she live'd, she tooke delight 
 
 In reading, praying day, & night ;
 
 36 Extracts from the Diary of DorotJiy Dudley. 
 
 In faith she was a Puritan 
 Daily from selfe to Christ she ran 
 For aid & help, whilest here she staid : 
 O This was ye sweet heavenly trade 
 Of this renowned matron ! which 
 Was to all saints a Pattern rich, 
 Most richly fraught wth grace sublime, 
 With meekenesse, & wth love divine : 
 By hope she live'd, in faith she stood 
 Washt from her sins wth Xts own blood : 
 Active, & constant she was here, 
 In heaven above ye palme she weares ; 
 Wth Xt she reignes, in heaven she sings 
 Hosannas to her Lord, & King. 
 ******** 
 Death was ye key, wch let her out 
 ********* 
 Pale gastly death hath sent his shaft 
 And hath by Chance nigh broke our heart 
 Deaths volleys sound, sad stormes appeare, 
 Mourning draws on : Poore Harverd feare, 
 Least this sad stroke should be a signe 
 Of suddeine future death to thine. 
 
 J. B. 24. ii. 67. 
 
 There is an element in our camp life not to be overlooked -I mean the 
 negroes, many of them slaves, who, heart and soul, enter into the interests 
 of our country and render valuable service both in tent and field. It was a 
 colored soldier, you know, who shot Major Pitcairn at Bunker Hill. Many 
 of them are scattered through the ranks of the army, and in the hospitals and 
 the camp faithfully fill offices of various kinds. Is it not a curious custom, 
 that of naming the black boys and girls for heathen gods and goddesses ? I 
 often laugh at the dusky Junos and Venuses which hold sway in the kitchen 
 and the Jupiters. and Neptunes and Mercuries who in the old days used to 
 guide the. rein and flourish the whip in proud consciousness of family dignity, 
 and now that their Tory masters have gone, enlist their powers for the com- 
 fort and care of the soldiers. 
 
 I shall expect a reply to my letter by your first opportunity for sending. 
 Be sure to write me as fully of your life as I have written of my own. With 
 love in abundance, dearest Esther, I am your very affectionate friend, 
 
 DOROTHY DUDLEY.* 
 
 September \oth. General Washington is preparing an expedition to march 
 into Canada by way of the Kennebec river, through the wilderness of nprth- 
 
 1 The Editor is never able to read letters of the heroic age of our country without a regret that the 
 art of epistolary correspondence has been suffered to fall into desuetude. The element of a comfortable 
 prolixity seems to be lost in our modern correspondence.
 
 The Expedition to Canada. 37 
 
 ern Massachusetts. It will include about eleven hundred men under the 
 command of Colonel Benedict Arnold, who they say is " daringly and des- 
 perately brave, sanguinely hopeful, of restless activity, and intelligent and 
 enterprising." His object is the conquest of Quebec. This enterprise 
 makes a break in the monotonous life of the soldiers who are panting for 
 active service, and many have gladly offered themselves for the undertaking, 
 calling, as it does for great powers of endurance and unflinching courage. 
 Young Aaron Burr, who has been languishing under the enforced idleness, 
 and really fretted himself into a fever, has jumped at this opening for ad- 
 venture and joined himself to the band, in spite of the remonstrances of his 
 friends, who think him ill fitted for the exposure. He has been appointed 
 major. 
 
 General Richard Montgomery, who distinguished himself in the French 
 war, and is one of the brigadier-generals appointed by Congress, is in com- 
 mand in Canada. He is a very valuable general, trusty, prompt, and brave, 
 and yet retiring, choosing the quiet and seclusion of home to the noise and 
 distractions of the army. His wife is a daughter of Robert R. Livingston 
 of New York, whose father, the aged Robert Livingston, died soon after the 
 battle of Bunker Hill. This venerable man had always been a stanch pa- 
 triot, and predicted the Revolution. Often he would say to his grandson, 
 " Robert, you will live to see this country independent." The last words of 
 this octogenarian patriot, as he lay calmly awaiting the death angel, were : 
 " What news from Boston ? " 
 
 Arnold's expedition will join Montgomery, and the united forces do their 
 utmost to conquer the city of Quebec. 
 
 October \oth. General Gage has sailed for England, and left his com- 
 mand with General Sir William Howe, who is very popular with the army. 
 The British are in great distress by reason of the scarcity of fresh meat 
 and vegetables. The country people cannot sell them any provisions, and 
 their naval supplies are nearly cut off by our armed vessels which defend 
 the coast. 
 
 October \$th. Dr. Franklin and others, a " Committee of Conference " 
 from Congress, have come to consult with General Washington about the 
 advisability of enlisting a new army, as the terms of the present one expire 
 in December. There he goes now, the venerable statesman, philosopher, 
 and sage, walking with our honored chief, whose tall, commanding figure 
 towers above that of his companion. The countenances of both beam with 
 benevolence and modesty and good sense, and show evidence of deep and 
 anxious thought. Dr. Franklin's gray eyes are spectacled, and his whole 
 appearance speaks of wisdom in life's affairs. 
 
 Great excitement is occasioned by the discovery of a secret correspond- 
 ence which Dr. Benjamin Church has been carrying on with the enemy. 
 Dr. Church has had the highest confidence of all, as a member of our vigi- 
 lance committee, and was specially recommended to General Washington on
 
 38 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 his arrival in camp as a trustworthy and valuable man and one deputed to 
 meet the Commander-in-chief and escort him from Springfield to Cam- 
 bridge. To think of his being at heart a Tory all the time ! I have a let- 
 ter of his which was intercepted and never reached its destination. No 
 date, but written apparently soon after the battle of Bunker Hill. 
 
 " I hope this will reach you. Three attempts have I made without success 
 in effecting. The last the man was discover'd in attempting his escape, but 
 fortunately my letter was sewed in the waist-band of his breeches. He was 
 confined a few days, during which time you may guess my feelings ; but a 
 little art and a little cash settled the matter. It is a month since my return 
 from Philadelphia. I went by way of Providence to visit mother. The 
 committee for warlike stores made me a formal tender of 12 pieces of 
 cannon, 1 8 and 24 pounders, they having took a previous resolution to 
 make the offer to Gen. Ward. To make a merit of my service I sent 
 them down, and when they received them they sent them to Stoughton to 
 be out of danger, even though they had formed the resolution as I before 
 hinted of fortifying Bunker's Hill, which with the cowardice of the clumsy 
 Col. Gerrish & Col. Seaman was the lucky occasion of their defeat. This 
 affair happened before my return from Philadelphia. We lost 165 killed, 
 and since dead of their wounds. 120 now lie wounded the chief will 
 recover. They boast you have 1400 killed and wounded in that action. 
 You say the Rebels lost 1500 I suppose with equal truth. The people of 
 Connecticut are raving in the cause of liberty. A number from that col- 
 ony, from the town of Stamford, robbed the King's stores at New York, 
 with some small assistance the New Yorkers lent them. These were grow- 
 ing very turbulent. I counted 200 cannon from 24 to 3 pds. at King's 
 bridge, which the committee had secured for the use of the Colonies. The 
 Jersies are not a whit behind them in Connecticut in zeal. The Phila- 
 delphians exceed them both. I saw 1200 men in review there by Genri 
 Lee, consisting of Quakers and other inhabitants in uniform, with 1000 
 riflemen and 40 horse, who together made a most warlike appearance. I 
 mingled frequently & freely with the members of the Continental Con- 
 gress. They were united and determined in opposition and appeared 
 assured of success. Now to come home, the opposition has become for- 
 midable. 1800 men, brave & determined, with Washington and Lee at their 
 'head, are no contemptible enemy. Adjutant General Gates is indefatigable 
 in arranging the army. Provisions are very plenty, clothes are manufact- 
 uring in almost every town for the soldiers, 20 tons of powder lately arrived 
 at Philadelphia, Connecticut, and Providence, upwards of 20 tons are now 
 in camp. Salt petre is made in every colony, powder mills are erected 
 and constantly employed in New York and Philadelphia. Volunteers of 
 the first fortunes are daily flocking to the camp, 1000 riflemen in 2 or 3 
 days. Recruits are now levying to augment the army to 22000 men. 10,000
 
 Letter of the Traitor Church. 39 
 
 militia are appointed in this Government to appear on the first summons. 
 The bills of all the colonies circulate freely and are readily exchanged for 
 cash. Add to this that unless some plan of accommodation takes place 
 immediately, their harbours will swarm with privateers. An army will 
 be raised in the middle colonies to take possession of Canada. For the 
 sake of the miserable convulsed empire solicit peace repeal the acts or 
 Britain is undone. This advice is the result of^. warm affection to my 
 King and to the realm. Remember I never deceived you. Every article 
 here sent you is sacredly true. The papers will announce to you that I am 
 again a member for Boston. You will there see our motly council. A gen- 
 eral arrangement of officers will take place, except the chief which will be 
 suspended but for a little while to see what part Great Britain takes in con- 
 sequence of the late Continental petition. A view to Independence grows 
 more and more general. Should Britain declare war against the Colonies 
 they are lost forever. Should Spain declare war against England, the colo- 
 nies will declare a neutrality which will doubtless produce an offensive and 
 defensive league between them ; for God's sake prevent it by a speedy ac- 
 commodation. 
 
 " Writing this employed a day. I have been to Salem to reconnoitre, but 
 could not escape the geese in the Capitol. Tomorrow I set out for New- 
 port on purpose to send you this. I write you fully, it being scarcely pos- 
 sible to prevent discovery. I am out of place here by choice, therefore out 
 of pay & am determined to be so unless something is offered in my way. 
 I wish you would contrive to write me largely in cyphers by way of New- 
 port, addressed to Tom Richards, merchant, enclosed in a cover to me, inti- 
 mating that I am a perfect stranger to you, but being recommended to you 
 as a gentleman of Honor you took the liberty to enclose that letter, entreat- 
 ing me to deliver it, as directed, the person, as you are informed, living at 
 Cambridge ! Sign some fictitious name. This you may send to some con- 
 fidential friend at Newport to be delivered to me at Watertown. Make use 
 of every precaution or I perish. B. CHURCH." 
 
 October ijf/i. The committee have taken this matter of Dr. Church's 
 treachery in hand but are undecided about the best course to pursue. The 
 traitor is under arrest and his papers seized. At present he is imprisoned 
 in Widow VassalPs house, which has been his residence since his appoint- 
 ment as director-general of the hospital. 1 I caught a glimpse of his face 
 at the second story window to-day as I passed. I wonder how he can look 
 out upon the exquisite beauty of the landscape, bustling with military life, 
 all quivering with intense patriotism as it is, and not feel a conscience 
 twinge at his own despicable conduct. 
 
 October -2.\th. Dr. Jeremy Belknap of Boston is in town, and preached 
 for us last Sunday. His sermon was earnest and full of patriotism, and his 
 
 1 This confirms the statement in the account of the Batchelder House on p. 101. ED.
 
 4O Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 prayers as well. He prayed for the King, I noticed, though it is becoming 
 common to omit that petition, for the thought of separation from England 
 grows more popular every day. The delegates from Congress have many 
 matters to discuss with the Commander-in-chief one is the expediency of 
 making an attack upon Boston. Several of the committee wish to see Bos- 
 ton burned to the ground, but General Lee says it will be impossible to 
 burn it unless men laden. with bundles of straw enter the town and proceed 
 to set fires in all corners. He thinks that a bombardment would not have the 
 desired effect. It is decided to form a new army with longer enlistments 
 than those of the present one, and the work will begin immediately. The 
 Committee of Conference held its session at the head-quarters of General 
 Washington, and General Greene, who was present the first evening of their 
 arrival, says, in allusion to that great man, Dr. Franklin, whom he viewed 
 with silent admiration during the whole evening : " Attention watched his 
 lips and conviction closed his periods." 
 
 November jth. Dr. Church has had his trial at last. Who could but 
 pity him while they condemned, as with military escort and the music of fife 
 and drum, he was taken from his improvised prison and carried to the 
 Watertown meeting-house, there to be expelled from his seat in Congress and 
 publicly branded as a traitor ? The General Court resolved that he be sent 
 to Norwich, Connecticut, and confined in jail, "without the use of pen, ink, 
 or paper, and that no person be allowed to converse with him, except in the 
 the presence and hearing of a magistrate of the town or the sheriff of the 
 county where he is confined, and in the English language." What with the 
 disgrace and the discomforts of his prison life, I wonder if he does not be- 
 lieve in his inmost heart that the way of transgressors is hard ! 
 
 November \zth. Recruiting orders are given out and it is hoped that an 
 army will be raised rapidly. Another element is added to the noise of camp 
 life the sound of carpenters' tools, the hammering and sawing and planing 
 preparatory to building winter barracks for the accommodation of the sol- 
 diers. There was a skirmish a few days ago at Lechmere's Point, which is 
 an island when the water is at high tide. The cattle which graze upon the 
 salt marshes there were a prize the Redcoats coveted, half-starved as they 
 are, and one worth the risk of a fight to procure. So about four hundred 
 men in a number of boats left Boston and landed at the Point, killed one 
 sentinel and took the other prisoner, and succeeded in carrying off ten cows. 
 The alarm was given and cannon from Prospect Hill were fired upon them, 
 sinking one of their boats and killing two men. A regiment of riflemen 
 under Colonel Thompson marched immediately, and to reach the Point were 
 obliged to ford the river, which was up to their necks, and fired upon the 
 marauders, who made theif escape as fast as possible. Two of our men 
 were dangerously wounded. Colonel Thompson behaved with much hero- 
 ism, and was publicly thanked by the Commander-in-chief for the part played 
 by himself and his brave men. Major Mifflin was there, and I have heard
 
 Works on Cobble Hill. 41 
 
 " flew about as if he would raise the whole army." General Washington 
 looks upon this affair as the beginning of a general attack upon our works. 
 
 November i^th. The new army is to be in uniform, and the following 
 order has gone forth : " October 28th. It is recommended to the non- 
 commissioned officers and soldiers, whose pay will be drawn in consequence 
 of last Thursday's orders (especially to those whose attachment to the glo- 
 rious cause in which they are engaged, and which will induce them to con- 
 tinue in the service another year), to lay out their money in shirts, shoes, 
 stockings, and a good pair of leather breeches, and not in coats and waist- 
 coats, as it is intended that the new army shall be clothed in uniform. To 
 effect which, the Congress will lay in goods upon the best terms they can be 
 bought anywhere for ready money, and will sell them to the soldiers with- 
 out any profit ; by which means, a uniform coat and waistcoat will come 
 
 CANNON USED BEFORE BOSTON. 
 
 cheaper to them than any other clothing of the like kind can be bought. A 
 number of tailors will be immediately set to work to make regimentals for 
 those brave men who are willing at all hazards to defend their invaluable 
 rights and privileges." 
 
 November 28///. Works have gone up on Cobble Hill, 1 under the direc- 
 tion of General Putnam, and General Heath without any annoyance from the 
 Redcoats. I see by the papers that this redoubt is called " the most perfect 
 piece of fortification that the American army has constructed during the 
 present campaign, and on the day of its completion was named Putnam's 
 impregnable fortress." Washington thinks that this inactivity on the part of 
 General Howe is not without a meaning, that he is planning some grand at- 
 tack upon our 'lines, and accordingly batteries are going up in various places 
 to. command the important points. 
 
 November y>th. Our vessels at sea have been carrying on war with 
 British ships, and one of ours, the Washington, has been captured by the 
 Fo-wey, man-of-war. But success has attended our navy more than once, and 
 to-day has come news of a grand capture that of the British ordnance 
 
 1 Now the site of the McLean Asylum, Somerville. ED.
 
 42 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dtidley. 
 
 brig Nancy, by Captain Manly, commander of the Lee. She is indeed a 
 prize, containing a complete assortment of military stores 2,000 mus- 
 kets, 100,000 flints, 30,000 round shot, for one, six, and twelve-pounders ; 
 over thirty tons of musket shot, eleven mortar beds, and a thirteen-inch 
 brass mortar weighing 2,700 pounds. So great a loss as this the Com- 
 mander-in-chief thinks will not be lightly allowed to come to the British 
 arms, and fearing an effort will be made to recover the ship, has immedi- 
 ately ordered four companies to Cape Ann to protect the stores, while all 
 possible haste is used to remove them to a place of safety. One of the 
 officers says that when news of the capture came to the soldiers, " such 
 universal joy ran through the whole camp as if each grasped victory in 
 his hand ; to crown the glorious scene, there intervened one truly ludicrous, 
 which was Old Put, mounted on a large mortar which was fixed in its bed 
 for the occasion, standing parson to christen, while god-father Mifflin gave 
 it the name of Congress. The huzzas on the occasion, I dare say, were 
 heard through all the territories of our most gracious sovereign in this 
 Province." 
 
 December \st. Winter is fairly upon us. Snow several inches deep. 
 Mrs. John Adams is in town. I met her at Mrs. Mifflin's last evening. Mrs. 
 Adams is a charming woman, combining ease and grace of manner, and 
 sweetness of temper, with great strength and decision of character. I have 
 the warmest admiration for her. Had a delightful evening. Major Mifflin 
 is very agreeable, and his lady accomplished and winning. The host 
 bustled about on hospitable thoughts intent, making every one at his ease. 
 It seems he was once a Quaker, but was expelled from that peaceable sect 
 when he asserted his determination to arm himself in his country's service. 
 He is an admirable soldier, they say, though so small in stature, and has 
 wonderful influence over his subordinates. General Lee was there. He 
 made a good deal of sport for the ladies by telling stories of Hobgoblin 
 Hall, as he delights to call his quarters at Mr. Isaac Royall's house in Med- 
 ford, which is truly a magnificent mansion. 1 Colonel Royall has run away, 
 having been terribly frightened at the prospect of war, and having no de- 
 cided principles, either rebel or loyal ; and is in danger of the one thing he 
 dreaded most of all confiscation. The house, built by his father in most 
 substantial style, is surrounded by fruit trees of many varieties, and a pro- 
 fusion of shrubbery, and is shut in from the road by a brick wall. General 
 Lee's imagination called up shadowy shapes to answer to his tread through 
 its halls and corridors ; hence the name. The General is a most singular 
 man, very unprepossessing in appearance, tall and thin, with large features, 
 eyes that are never at rest, and a certain air of carelessness, as if he gave 
 not a thought to his dress or manner of life. He has a great fondness for 
 dogs, and is rarely seen without one or more. Last night, " Mr. Spada," 
 a large, shaggy, bearish-looking animal, was with him, and was the source of 
 
 1 This house is still extant in Medford. ED.
 
 General Lees Appearance. 43 
 
 some annoyance as well as amusement to the guests. He insisted upon the 
 dog's presenting his paw to Mrs. Adams, who, as a stranger, was entitled to 
 every mark of attention. " Love me, love my dog," this whimsical man 
 might well say to his friends. He has lived among the Indians long enough 
 to acquire their confidence, and be honored by appointment as chief, and in 
 their expressive way they called him from his passionate nature, " Boiling 
 Water." He has travelled through Europe, and has lost two fingers in a 
 personal encounter in Italy. His courage is undoubted, and his military 
 abilities highly estimated by the Commander-in-chief and his fellow generals. 
 He speaks and writes several languages, fluently, and Mrs. Adams says 
 with truth, "the elegance of his pen far exceeds that of his person." Dr. 
 Morgan, successor to the traitor Church as director-general of the hospital, 
 lives with Major Mifflin in this fine old mansion, which surpasses all others 
 in Cambridge in the beauty of its grounds. Brattle's Mall is a place of 
 wonderful attraction, moonlight evenings in summer. The graceful play of 
 the shadows upon the velvety lawns and well-kept paths, the murmuring 
 hum of the river, the glad rush of the ice-cold water as it bursts from its 
 prison in the marble grotto all these are so many magnets, each drawing 
 to the Brattle grounds a goodly number of pleasure-seekers. Now, the 
 promenade is wrapt in a soft white dress, which clothes all nature and daz- 
 zling in its purity, hides beneath its veil of charity all the blemishes of our 
 mother earth. 
 
 December gtk. There has been trouble in camp, and some crimes perpe- 
 trated of so flagrant a nature as to call for severe punishment. Several of 
 the criminals have been sent to the famous Newgate prison, in Simsbury, 
 Connecticut, once worked as copper mines and now given up for the con- 
 finement of the most atrocious villains. I have a copy of the letter Wash- 
 ington sent with the prisoners to the Committee of Safety at Simsbury: 
 
 " CAMBRIDGE, Dec. ^th, 1775. 
 
 " GENTLEMEN : The prisoners which will be delivered you with this, hav- 
 ing been tried by a court martial, and deemed to be such flagrant and atro- 
 cious villains, that they cannot by any means be set at large, or confined in 
 any place near this camp, were sentenced to Simsbury, in Connecticut. You 
 will therefore be pleased to have them secured in your jail, or in such other 
 manner as to you shall seem necessary, so that they cannot possibly make 
 their escape. The charges of their imprisonment will be at the Continental 
 expense. I am. &c. 
 
 " GEORGE WASHINGTON." 
 
 I saw the prisoners, as under a strong guard they left the court-house 
 after their condemnation to that horrible place. The reports of that under- 
 ground dungeon are enough to make one shudder. Chained to the damp 
 ground, far below the upper world, out of reach of the sun's rays or a breath
 
 44 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 of pure air, how can it be possible for life to go on ? Surely^mly the most 
 hardened wretches are entitled to such a fate ! 
 
 December \\th. Mrs. Washington, our general's lady, has arrived, and 
 with her many ladies of the families of our officers. She has had a long, 
 tedious journey from Mount Vernon, with bad roads and trying weather, and 
 has come by short stages, stopping often to rest and change horses. She 
 has gone directly to her husband's head-quarters. Mr. Curtis, her son, 
 accompanied her, with his wife. 
 
 December \2th. Our army is in great distress for want of firewood and 
 hay, and a call from the Assembly has gone forth to all the towns within 
 twenty miles of Boston, to supply these articles, each according to its ability. 
 The work on the barracks is completed, and the soldiers are occupying them. 
 As far as possible, they are made comfortable and easy. Christ Church is 
 vacated. Our army daily looks for an attack from the Redcoats, and Wash- 
 ington says he is " unable, upon any principle whatever, to account for their 
 silence, unless it be to lull us into a fatal security." But instead, it has only 
 increased our vigilance, and every possible avenue by which they might ap- 
 proach our lines is guarded. Captain Manly, the brave commander of the 
 Lee, has drawn to himself well-earned praise by his skilful manoeuvres in 
 the seas. Several vessels with British cargoes have surrendered to his 
 arms. An officer writes that one contained a vast number of letters, and 
 " what is really extraordinary, not one that does not breathe enmity, death, 
 and destruction to this fair land." 
 
 December \$th. I have to-day taken a sad stroll with dear old Mr. Wads- 
 worth 1 about the college grounds. I say it was "sad," because so it 
 seemed, to see the buildings dedicated to education used as barracks, and 
 the once white snow on the ground about them covered with the unsightly 
 rubbish that always abounds where many soldiers remain long. My dear 
 old friend mourned too as we walked from one building to another, and 
 talked constantly about old times at Harvard, and of the traditions he received 
 years ago from Mrs. Wadsworth's father, Mr. Walter Mildmay. Though 
 the college is so old it is a hundred and thirty-nine years old the mem- 
 ory of these two men goes back to its beginning. Walter Mildmay knew 
 and often talked with the Rev. Benjamin Woodbridge, whom Cotton Mather 
 called " a star of the first magnitude," and the leader of the whole company 
 of the graduates of the college. He was graduated in the class of 1642, 
 with that George Downing who went to England, became a confidential 
 member of the staff of Oliver Cromwell, and as his minister to Holland 
 rendered such valuable aid to the cause of the Commonwealth. Downing 
 was described by the poet Milton as "a person of eminent Quality." This 
 walk has so much excited my aged friend that he can scarcely talk of any- 
 thing but the colleges and their history. It is all my gain, for I have learned 
 
 1 This "Mr. Wadsworth" cannot be identified. He was evidently not a graduate of Harvard, for 
 none of the three bearing the name were living in 1775. ED.
 
 Historical Sketch of Harvard College. 45 
 
 many things that I never knew before. Some of these I shall now write 
 down, lest I forget them. It seems that on the 28th of October, 1636, "the 
 General Court of Massachusetts Bay in New England " voted to appropri- 
 ate .400 to establish a " schoole or colledge," which was the beginning of 
 Harvard. 1 It did not have a local habitation, however, until after November 
 of the following year, at which time Mr. Dudley (I believe he was one of 
 my ancestors), Mr. Winthrop, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Shepard, and others, took 
 " order for a colledge at Newetowne," as the old records say. In May, 1638,2 
 the name of the town was changed to Cambridge, and in the following 
 March the present name was given to the college, in honor of the Rev. John 
 Harvard, a godly gentleman and lover of learning, who had been stirred up 
 to give one half of his estate and all of his library to it. At first it was little 
 less than a boarding-school, and was conducted by one Nathaniel Eaton, a 
 person of most disreputable memory. In September, 1639, Eaton was dis- 
 charged, and fined by the General Court for " cruell & barbaros beating of 
 Mr. Natha: Briscoe, & for other neglecting & misvseing of his schollers." 
 Eaton fled to " Pascataquack," and afterwards to Virginia, with a thousand 
 pounds of his creditors' money. Mr. Wadsworth could not conceal his 
 righteous indignation as he spoke of this man. Indeed, Eaton must have 
 been very brutal, for he beat his poor pupils with little mercy, and had a rule 
 that he would not give over correcting until he had subdued the party to his 
 will. Governor Winthrop tells us that on one of these occasions the master 
 used " a cudgel which was a walnut-tree plant big enough to have killed a 
 horse, and a yard in length." But this was not all ; for, though the pupils 
 paid him well for their "diet," it was ordinarily nothing but porridge and 
 pudding, and that very homely. They complained also that Mrs. Eaton de- 
 nied them butter and cheese and beer " betwixt meals," that she forced them 
 to make their own beds at times, and that she offended " Sam Hough," who 
 was, I presume, one of the "schollers," by letting a certain Moor lie in his 
 " sheet and pillow bier." 3 I am sure the " schollers " had hard times when 
 Mr. and Mrs. Eaton taught and dieted them ! 
 
 Towards the latter end of summer in the next year the learned, reverend, 
 and judicious Mr. Henry Dunster came over, and was pointed out by the 
 Lord, "with his unerring finger," as the one to take the direction of the 
 young institution, now pretty firmly established with funds, as well as in the 
 faith "of the people. More money was soon sent from across the sea, for the 
 enterprise was considered past the reach of a poor pilgrim people. Over 
 the college there were twelve overseers, six being magistrates and six minis- 
 ters ; and the students had the advantage of being " under the orthodox and 
 
 1 The Editor fails to find evidence that this money was ever actually paid. 
 
 2 It was May 2d. ED. 
 
 3 The curious reader will learn much more on this subject if he consult the doings of the General 
 Court, quoted by Mr. Sibley in his Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University, 
 vol. i. pp. 2-6. ED.
 
 46 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 soul-flourishing ministry of Mr. Thomas Shepard," 1 a fact that is said to 
 have had great influence in deciding the place at which the college was 
 established. In 1641, a class of nine bachelors, who had probably 2 been 
 under instruction for some time previous to the arrival of Mr. Dunster, was 
 graduated. People rejoiced greatly at the progress of these young men in 
 learning and godliness. Some of the rules of the college provided that no 
 one should be admitted that could not understand Tully, or such like classi- 
 cal author ex tempore, and make and speak true Latin in verse and prose. 
 They were to understand that the main end of this life is " to know God 
 and Jesus Christ ; and therefore to lay Christ in the bottom, as the only 
 foundation of all sound knowledge and learning." "And seeing the Lord 
 only giveth wisdom, let every one seriously set himself by prayer in secret 
 to seek it of Him.' " Further, they were to exercise themselves in reading 
 the Scriptures twice a day. They could not " go abroad to other towns " 
 without permission ; and were directed to eschew all profanity of God's 
 Name, Attributes, Word, Ordinances, and Times of Worship. These rules 
 were not ignored ; and it is said that on the first Commencement Day " two 
 young men of good quality, lately come out qf England," were complained 
 of " for foul misbehaviour, in swearing and ribaldry speeches," were cor- 
 rected in the college, and sequestered for a time. For the most part, how- 
 ever, the young men came with a purpose, and worked with a will. They 
 suffered privations, and their parents did also. Money was scarce in the 
 Colony then, and the steward's bills were paid with beef, veal, pork, mutton, 
 poultry, grain, malt, eggs, butter, cheese, apples, cider, fuel, candles, cloth, 
 leather, shoes, and sometimes with tobacco, and even the products of the 
 still. President Dunster labored against financial odds for fourteen years, 
 and was at last compelled to resign on account of certain views on baptism 
 that were considered by some to have, originated with the Evil One. Mr. 
 Wadsworth says he was never able to see exactly why a college president 
 should have been compelled to resign for such reasons. The Rev. Charles 
 Chauncy was next president ; and during his term of office the financial 
 difficulties increased so greatly that the General Court was appealed to for 
 aid for what was called then " the sinking college." Public grants and pri- 
 vate munificence, however, did not fail, and the work went on. Mr. Leonard 
 Hoar, of the class of 1650, became president in 1672, and the same year the 
 library was largely increased by a bequest of Theophilus Gale. President 
 Hoar was a sagacious man, and very creditable every way to his Alma 
 Mater* In 1685, the Rev. Increase Mather of Boston, of the class of 1656, 
 became president, and held the office sixteen years. Old Mr. Wadsworth 
 
 1 From this learned divine the name of the Shepard Memorial Church is derived. ED. 
 2 " And who was on the Catalogue 
 
 When college was begun ? 
 Two nephews of the president, 
 
 And the professor's son." Dr. Holmes. 
 3 See, on this point, The Harvard Book, vol. i. pp. 33, 34. ED.
 
 Historical Sketch of Harvard College. 47 
 
 tells me of a curious visit made to the college in July, 1680, by two Dutch- 
 men from Friesland. They were Jasper Dankers and Peter Sluyter, who 
 were making a tour in several American colonies, and made the following 
 records in their diary : * 
 
 "g//;, Tuesday. We started out to go to Cambridge, lying to the N. E. 
 of Boston, in order to see their college and printing-office. We left abt. 
 six o'k in the morning, and were set across the river at Charlestown. . . . 
 We reached Cambridge abt. 8 o'k. It is not a large village, and the houses 
 stand very much apart. The college building is the most conspicuous 
 among them. We went to it expecting to see something curious, as it is the 
 only college or would-be academy of the Protestants in all America ; but 
 we found ourselves mistaken. In approaching the house, we neither heard 
 nor saw anything mentionable ; but going to the other side of the building 
 we heard noise enough in an upper room to lead my comrade to suppose they 
 were engaged in disputation. We entered and went upstairs, where a per- 
 son met us and requested us to walk in, which we did. We found there 
 eight or ten young fellows sitting around smoking tobacco, with the smoke 
 of which the room was so full that you could hardly see ; and the whole 
 house smelt so strong of it, that when I was going upstairs I said, ' This 
 is certainly a tavern.' 2 We excused ourselves that we could speak Eng- 
 lish only a little, but understood Dutch or French, which they did not. 
 However, we spake as well as we could. We inquired how many professors 
 there were, and they replied not one, that there was no money to support 
 one. We asked how many students there were. They said at first thirty, 
 and then came down to twenty. I afterwards understood there are prob- 
 ably not ten. They could hardly speak a word of Latin, so that my comrade 
 could not converse with them. They took us to the library, where there 
 was nothing particular. We looked over it a little. They presented us 
 with a glass of wine. This is all we ascertained there. The minister of 
 the place goes there morning and evening to make prayer, and has charge 
 over them. The students have tutors or masters. Our visit was soon 
 over." 
 
 This account shows that the rules about the use of tobacco and the study 
 of Latin were not always observed, and also that the students in those days 
 were not above having a little fun at the expense of innocent strangers. 
 Increase Mather was an absentee from Cambridge, with the exception of 
 three months and a week, and appears to have considered his collegiate 
 duties of much less importance than those he was called to render the state, 
 and the people of the North Street Church, Boston. Meanwhile, the stu- 
 
 2 This record is to be found also in the Memoirs of the Long Island Historical Society, vol. i. 
 ED. 
 
 - " Dear haunts of lost or scattered friends, 
 Old Harvard's scholar-factories red, 
 Where song and smoke and laughter sped 
 The nights to proctor-haunted ends." Lowell.
 
 48 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 dents were well instructed by tutors Brattle and Leverett of the class of 
 1680. It was during the presidency of Mather, in 1700, that the book of 
 Robert Calef, on the " Wonders of the Invisible World," was burned in the 
 college yard. The next year Samuel Willard was appointed acting presi- 
 dent. He was followed by John Leverett, Benjamin Wadsworth, Edward 
 Holyoke, Samuel Locke, and, a year ago last October, by the Reverend 
 Samuel Langdon, our present earnest, learned, and patriotic president. 
 May he long hold the office ! Massachusetts Hall was built in 1720, when 
 Mr. Leverett was president. In 1725, the college faculty was organized. It 
 seems that discipline had grown loose, for, two years before, there were 
 reports that the students were some of them guilty of "stealing, lying, 
 swearing, idleness, picking of locks, and too frequent use of* strong drink." 
 These practices were found difficult to be entirely abolished. 
 
 In January, 1764, it seems as if the terrible event were but yesterday, 
 the college met with its great loss in the burning of Harvard Hall, in which 
 the General Court was sitting. The members were very active in their 
 efforts to save the building ; but it went, and with it the library of some six 
 thousand volumes, the gift of Mr. John Harvard, Dr. Lightfoot, Bishop 
 Berkeley, and others; the portraits and curiosities, the apparatus given by 
 Mr. Hollis, and many other articles that can never be restored. This dis- 
 aster was the occasion of a great display of good feeling, and many gifts of 
 books, apparatus, and furniture were promptly made to the college by friends 
 in America and England. Soon, however, the relations between the Colony 
 and the mother country changed ; and, as a token of their feelings, the 
 senior class voted to take their degrees in homespun clothes. Their patri- 
 otism was loudly applauded ; and they seem to have been led by this fact, 
 and by the atmosphere of rebellion about them, to disobey a rule of the 
 Faculty that was of small importance. I forget what Mr. Wadsworth says 
 it was. 1 
 
 In 1769, the General Court met in the college chapel, and before proceed- 
 ing to business listened to an impassioned address from Mr. James Otis, of 
 the class of 1743. In 1770, the General Court met again in Cambridge, 
 but I must stop. My interest in the whole subject of the relations of the 
 college to our present terrible struggle has carried me on and on, until I 
 am surprised at the number of pages I have devoted to it. I hope the 
 record may prove of value to me at some future time, when the matter is 
 less fresh in my memory. 
 
 December \%th. Mrs. Washington was at church yesterday with the Gen- 
 eral. She is a fine-looking lady, with regular features, dark chestnut hair 
 and hazel eyes, and a certain gravity in her carriage which becomes her po- 
 sition. She was a widow when General Washington married her, rich and 
 attractive, and he was taken captive at first sight. They say General and 
 
 1 The rule had reference to excuses for absence from the college exercises. See The Harvard 
 Soak, vol. i. p. 42. ED.
 
 Christ Church opened for Service. 49 
 
 Mrs. Gates came with them, and occupied a pew near. Dr. Appleton 
 prayed most earnestly for our country and its defenders, alluding pointedly 
 and affectionately to the chief officer of the army. For some time it has 
 not been customary to pray for the King. Independence is much thought 
 and talked of, and any sign of allegiance to the mother country is very offen- 
 sive. Mrs. Washington has expressed a wish that Christ Church may be 
 put in readiness for services, and orders have gone forth to that effect. 
 
 January i, 1776. Yesterday service was held in Christ Church. I was 
 invited to be present. Colonel William Palfrey, at request of Mrs. Wash- 
 ington, read the service and made a prayer of a form different from that com- 
 monly used for the King. " O Lord, our Heavenly Father, high and mighty, 
 King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who hast made of one blood all the na- 
 tions upon earth, and whose common bounty is liberally bestowed upon thy 
 unworthy creatures ; most heartily we beseech Thee to look down with 
 mercy upon his Majesty, George the Third. Open his eyes and enlighten 
 his understanding, that he may pursue the true interest of the people over 
 whom Thou in Thy Providence hast placed him. Remove far from him all 
 wicked, corrupt men, and evil counsellors, that his throne may be estab- 
 lished in justice and righteousness ; and so replenish him with the grace of 
 thy Holy Spirit, that he may incline to Thy will and walk in Thy way. Have 
 pity, O most merciful Father, upon the distresses of the inhabitants of this 
 Western world. To that end we humbly pray Thee to bless the Continental 
 Congress. Preside over their councils, and may they be led to such meas- 
 ures as may tend to Thy glory, to the advancement of true religion, and to 
 the happiness and prosperity of Thy people. We also pray Thee to bless our 
 provincial assemblies, magistrates, and all in subordinate places of power 
 and trust. Be with Thy servant, the Commander-in-chief of the American 
 forces. Afford him Thy presence in all his undertakings ; strengthen him 
 that he may vanquish and overcome all his enemies ; and grant that we 
 may in clue time be restored to the enjoyment of those inestimable bless- 
 ings we have been deprived of by the devices of cruel and bloodthirsty men, 
 for the sake of Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." 
 
 General and Mrs. Washington, Mrs. Gates, Mrs. Morgan, Mrs. Mifflin, 
 Mrs. Curtis, and many others, including officers, were present. The General 
 is loyal to his church as to his country, though he has identified himself 
 with our parish during his residence among us. There was something 
 grand and yet incongruous in the service in this church, which has so lately 
 sheltered the rollicking soldiers. Doors shattered and windows broken out, 
 organ destroyed, and the elegance and beauty of the building greatly marred. 
 It has been imperfectly repaired at the request of one whom its former aris- 
 tocratic worshippers hold in supreme contempt as a rebel against his Maj- 
 esty's most righteous rule. Ho\y very different was the scene from that in 
 the days before the war. The General's majestic figure, bent reverently in 
 prayer, as with devout earnestness he entered into the service ; the small- 
 4
 
 50 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 ness of the band of worshippers, and the strangeness of the circumstances 
 and the surroundings. There was nothing but the contrast to recall the 
 wealth and fashion which were wont to congregate there. I remember the 
 families as they used to sit in church. First, in front of the chancel were 
 the Temples, who every Sabbath drove from Ten Hills Farm ; * Mr. Robert 
 Temple and his accomplished wife and lovely daughters. Their estate, which 
 is a very fine one, is on the supposed site of Governor Winthrop's house 
 as early as 1631, and where, it is thought, the little bark, the Blessing of the 
 Bay, the first vessel built in American waters, was launched for its first voy- 
 age across the ocean. Mr. Temple is a stanch loyalist, and at the begin- 
 ning of war took passage for England, leaving his family at the Farm under 
 General Ward's protection. The vessel, however, was detained, and he 
 obliged to take up his residence in our camp. Behind the Temples sat the 
 Royalls, relatives of Mrs. Henry Vassall, the Inmans and the Borlands, who 
 owned and occupied the Bishop's Palace, as the magnificent mansion, built 
 by Rev. Mr. Apthorp, opposite the president's house, is called. The house 
 is grand in proportions and architecture, and is fitted in every respect to 
 bear the name which clings to it. It was thought that Mr. Apthorp had an 
 eye to the bishopric when he came to take charge of Christ Church, and 
 put up this house of stately elegance. But whatever his wishes may have 
 been, they were not realized, for he abruptly terminated his ministry in Cam- 
 bridge after a few years. Among his congregation were the Faneuils, the 
 Lechmeres, the Lees, the Olivers, the Ruggleses, the Phippses, and the Vas- 
 salls. Many of these families were connected by relationship. Mrs. Lee, 
 Mrs. Lechmere, and Mrs. Vassall the elder, are sisters of Colonel David 
 Phipps, and daughters of Lieutenant-Governor Spencer Phipps. The 
 " pretty little, dapper man, Colonel Oliver," as Reverend Mr. Serjeant used 
 to call in sport our sometime lieutenant-governor, married a sister of Colonel 
 John Vassall the younger, and Colonel Vassall married his. Mrs. Ruggles 
 and Mrs Borland are aunts of Colonel VassalPs. These families were on 
 intimate terms with one another, and scarcely a day passed that did not 
 bring them together for social pleasures. Judge Jonathan Sewall, who after- 
 wards occupied Judge Richard Lechmere's house, married a daughter of 
 Mr. Edmund Quincy, an elder sister of Mrs. John Hancock. I well remem- 
 ber the train of carriages that rolled up to the church door, bearing the wor- 
 shippers to the Sabbath service. The inevitable red cloak of Judge Joseph 
 Lee. his badge of office in the King's service, hung in graceful folds 
 around his stately form ; the beauty and elegance of the ladies were con- 
 spicuous, as silks and brocades rustled at every motion, and India shawls 
 told of wealth and luxury. The ties of blood and friendship were strength- 
 ened by those of a common faith, and the treasury of the church was filled 
 by cheerful givers from their abundance. Jow everything is changed all 
 who took such deep interest in the welfare of the church, all the original 
 
 1 Ten Hills Farm is within the present limits of Somerville. ED.
 
 The Union Flag on Prospect Hill. 51 
 
 subscribers for the building are gone, with exception of Judge Joseph Lee, 
 who is unmolested on account of his moderate principles, and Mr. John 
 Pigeon, who is a patriot. The very first article. of plate this church possessed 
 was a handsome silver christening basin, the gift of Madame Grizzel Ap- 
 thorp, Dr. East Apthorp's mother, the first year of its existence as a church 
 and of his duties as rector. It is inscribed : 
 
 ECCLESI>E CHRISTI 
 
 CANTABRIGI^E IN NOVA ANGLIA 
 
 ANATHEMA CONSECRAVIT 
 
 DNA APTHORP 
 
 MDCCLXI. 
 
 The communion service, a silver flagon and covered cup, was presented 
 by Governor Thomas Hutchinson through Dr. Caner, rector of King's 
 Chapel, who had received a new service of communion plate from King 
 George III. for the use of the chapel in Boston. This flagon and cup are 
 inscribed with the royal arms and these words : 
 
 THE GIFT OF 
 
 K. WILLIAM AND Q. MARY 
 TO YE REV'D SAMLL MYLES, 
 
 FOR YE USE OF 
 
 THEIR MAJESTIES CHAPELL IN N. ENGLAND, 
 MDCXCIV. 
 
 January 2.d. Yesterday a union flag was raised on Prospect Hill. It has 
 thirteen stripes of alternate red and white, emblematic of the thirteen 
 united colonies, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hamp- 
 shire, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, 
 North and South Carolina, and Georgia, and on a blue ground in the corner 
 are the united red and white crosses of St. George and St. Andrew. As 
 it was flung to the breeze and tossed and spread itself in graceful glee, 
 a volley of thirteen guns thundered forth a glad greeting to our national 
 banner. If 'one can trust the index of patriotism and determination and 
 bravery, unswerving in the face of dreadful discouragements, this our 
 national flag will ere long proudly wave over a free country. There it is 
 now, flaunting defiantly in the very eyes of his Majesty's troops, who are 
 bewildered by the loud huzzas which fill the air. Yesterday was the birthday 
 of our new Continental army. The first hastily organized one has been 
 disbanded ; within gunshot, too, of twenty or thirty British regiments. 
 The supply of fire-arms is so small that the guns of the retiring soldiers were 
 taken from them to do service a second time in the hands of those who 
 now step into their places. This of course occasions dissatisfaction, as 
 many of the men brought their own muskets when they enlisted. But, I am 
 sure, they will submit to the situation pleasantly when they see the neces-
 
 52 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 sities of the government. General Howe shows no disposition to leave 
 Boston, nor does General Washington feel secure enough in tne strength of 
 his army to attempt to drive him away just yet. One of our officers from 
 General Putnam's division, speaking of the January thaw, expresses the 
 universal want of the soldiers : " The bay is open ; everything thaws here 
 except Old Put. He is still as hard as ever, crying out for powder, powder, 
 ye gods, give us powder ! " Congress has resolved " That if General 
 Washington and his council of war should be of opinion that a successful 
 attack may be made on the troops in Boston, he do it in any manner he 
 may think expedient, notwithstanding the town and property in it may be 
 destroyed." President Hancock, in communicating this resolve, wrote : 
 "You will notice the resolution relative to an attack upon Boston. This 
 passed after a most serious debate in a committee of the whole house, and the 
 execution was referred to you. May God crown your attempt with success. 
 I most heartily wish it, though individually I may be the greatest sufferer." 
 January \th. His Majesty's " most gracious " speech has been received. 
 
 It breathes the tenderest compas- 
 sion for his deluded American sub- 
 jects. Yet there is an under-current 
 of revenge and threatening of de- 
 struction, if continued rebellion is 
 persisted in. It seems that the day 
 of the flag-raising on Prospect Hill, 
 the speech was sent to General 
 Washington from Boston, and the 
 British, hearing the noise of the 
 shouting soldiers, misinterpreted it 
 as a signal of submission to the 
 King, and are daily looking for a 
 formal surrender of our lines. How 
 very different is the case from that 
 of their anticipations ! The colo- 
 nists are more united than ever in 
 HESSIAN FLAG. their resistance. They have burnt 
 
 the speech, and in every way in their power sought to express their indig- 
 nation. General Greene says : " America must raise an empire of perma- 
 nent duration, supported upon the grand pillars of truth, freedom, and 
 religion, based upon justice, and defended by her own patriotic sons. From 
 the sincerity of my heart, ready at all times to bleed in my country's cause, 
 I recommend a declaration of independence, and call upon the world, and 
 the great God who governs it, to witness the necessity, propriety, and recti- 
 tude thereof." Great Britain is to hire Hessians to crush our rebellious 
 Colonies. All their efforts will but encounter the most spirited opposition, 
 and we firmly believe will result in nothing but disaster to themselves.
 
 Boston Buildings desecrated. 53 
 
 January \6th. How our Boston buildings are desecrated by the British 
 soldiers ! Faneuil Hall, which has rung with the eloquence of patriots, is 
 used as a theatre, where ridiculous plays are performed and our army and 
 its commanders turned into sport. Sometimes the playbills are sent to our 
 officers in camp. A few evenings ago, while they were amusing themselves 
 with a performance called " The Blockade of Boston," in which General 
 Washington was represented as an uncouth countryman, dressed shabbily, 
 with large wig and long rusty sword, suddenly a sergeant appeared and cried 
 out, " The Yankees are attacking our works on Bunker Hill." Immediately 
 General Howe gave the order, " Officers to your alarm posts ! " and there 
 was a hasty breaking up of the assembly. The alarm was caused by an at- 
 tempt of our soldiers to burn the remaining houses in Charlestown, those 
 that had escaped the general conflagration last June, and which are used for 
 fuel by the British. The flames aroused the enemy on Bunker Hill, and 
 there was some firing on both sides, though only one life was lost on the 
 enemy's side. None of our men were hurt. 
 
 January 22*/. A most curious delegation of Indians is in town, of the 
 Caghnawaga tribe ; come to visit our army and pay their respects to its 
 Commander-in-chief. General Washington treats them with great attention, 
 and will exert himself to make their stay one of enjoyment, that they may 
 go away feeling the greatness and strength of our government, and our 
 friendship toward their nation. 
 
 January i^th. Have been honored by an introduction to several sachems 
 and warriors of the Caghnawaga Indians. .Major Mifflin made a large din- 
 ner company, to-day, in their honor and I was invited. The Redmen are 
 very courteous in Indian fashion, and the profound bows and scrapes they 
 made to those favored with presentation are truly remarkable. One of the 
 sachems is of English birth, a native of Massachusetts, carried away in in- 
 fancy by the savages and brought up as one of their own children. Another 
 has French blood in his veins. They go to-morrow, I believe, to Roxbury, 
 to view the lines under General Thomas's command, and will be laden with 
 presents of clothing and trinkets of various kinds when they return to their 
 own people. Mr. John Adams, our member of Congress, was at Major Mif- 
 flin's to-day. He came from Roxbury this morning, and to-morrow continues 
 his journey to Philadelphia to join the Continental Congress. The Indians, 
 when told his relations to government, showed signs of curiosity and regarded 
 him with great attention. Mr. Adams is a fine looking man, with a broad, 
 capacious head, seemingly equal to a large amount of brainwork, pleasant 
 though serious expression, a figure a little below the medium in height, and 
 inclining to be stout. He stands among the foremost men in Congress, and 
 his ability to weigh the important matters of state is undoubted. He it is 
 who nominated General Washington for commander-in-chief, and the clear- 
 ness of his judgment in making that motion is acknowledged by every one. 
 
 January ~2&th. There is a pamphlet going the rounds which awakens
 
 54 
 
 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 universal interest, and the sentiments are much admired for their boldness 
 and patriotism. The writer is one Thomas Paine, an English Quaker who 
 has been in America a little over a year, but has made acquaintance with 
 Franklin, Samuel Adams, Rush, and other prominent public men. This 
 book was shown to them for criticism, and called by Rush by the title of 
 "Common Sense." It says : 
 
 "The sun never shone on a cause of greater worth. 'T is not the affair of 
 a city, a county, a province, or a kingdom, but of a continent, of at least one 
 eight part of the habitable globe. 'T is not the concern of a day, a year, or 
 an age; posterity are virtually involved in it even to the end of time. All 
 
 SECOND HARVARD, BUILT 1766. 
 
 men, whether in England or America, confess that a separation between the 
 countries will take place one time or other. To find out the very time, we 
 need not go far, for the time hath found us. The present, likewise, is that 
 peculiar time which never happens to a nation but once, the time of forming 
 itself into a government. Until we consent that the seat of government in 
 America be legally and authoritatively occupied, where will be our freedom ? 
 Where our property ? Nothing can settle our affairs so expeditiously as 
 an open and determined declaration of independence. The blood of the 
 slain, the weeping voice of nature cries, 't is time to part. A government of 
 our own is our natural right. Freedom hath been hunted round the globe ;
 
 The Attack on Quebec. 55 
 
 Europe regards her as a stranger ; and England hath given her warning to 
 depart. Oh ! receive the fugitive and prepare an asylum for mankind." 
 
 January 2<)th. The expedition which left Cambridge last autumn for 
 Canada under command of Benedict Arnold, encountered terrible trials, 
 and many, frightened at the hardships of the march, returned. Those 
 who remained endured almost incredible sufferings ; cold, hunger, exhaus- 
 tion, combined to render them wretched and incapable of service. Their 
 clothes were torn by the forest bushes, their bodies scratched by numberless 
 thorns, and their shoes worn by constant walking over the rough ground, so 
 that many were forced to go barefoot, their food so scarce that many a meal 
 was furnished by the faithful dogs of the party. Here and there a man was 
 left behind to die on the road, as it was impossible to be burdened with 
 helpless invalids. The middle of November the expedition that part which 
 survived the horrors of the march, reached Quebec, and the third day of last 
 month was joined by General Montgomery, who left the conquered city of 
 Montreal with a subordinate officer, and came to attempt the conquest of 
 the strongest fortified city in America. For several weeks the besieging 
 army surrounded the city, and on the last day of December an assault was 
 made, headed by the brave general. He compelled none to follow him in 
 the attack ; he wanted with him " no persons who went with reluctance." 
 To his own soldiers he said : " Men of New York, you will not fear to 
 follow where your general leads. Push on, brave boys ; Quebec is ours ! " 
 Pressing forward directly in front of the cannon, he was greeted with a vol- 
 ley of grapeshot which laid him dead, and with him his young aid-de-camp, 
 McPherson, and eleven others. Consternation seized the expedition at the 
 fall of its commander, and an immediate retreat was ordered. General 
 Montgomery was an experienced soldier and a valued officer. His loss is 
 mourned all over the country. .At news of his death " the whole city of 
 Philadelphia was in tears ; every person seemed to have lost his nearest rel- 
 ative or heart friend." Congress publicly expressed for him " their grateful 
 remembrance, profound respect, and high veneration ; and desiring to trans- 
 mit to future ages a truly worthy example of patriotism, conduct, boldness of 
 enterprise, insuperable perseverance, and contempt of danger and death, re- 
 solve to rear a marble monument to the glory of Richard Montgomery." 
 Not in public life alone was he beloved and honored ; in all the relations of 
 home he was faithful, kind, upright, modest, every one held him in high 
 esteem. He and his aid-de-camp were buried with military honors by the 
 governor and council of Quebec. 
 
 January 30^. Madame Washington has enlivened the monotony of her 
 winter among us by a reception, on the seventeenth anniversary of her wed- 
 ding day. The fine old Vassall mansion was in gala dress, and the coming 
 and going of guests brightened the sober aspect of the General's head-quar- 
 ters. The General and his wife stood in the drawing-room at the left of the 
 front entrance, and there received the company. General Washington's
 
 56 Extracts from the Diary . of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 study is the room opposite, and opening out of this, the one set apart for his 
 military family. These of course were all thrown open for the accommoda- 
 tion of the guests. There was much chatting and walking to and fro and 
 easy and social manners were the rule. The General does not talk much 
 but is gracious and courteous to all. His lady is very unceremonious and 
 easy like other Virginia ladies, though there is no lack of dignity in her 
 manner. Of course simplicity of dress was noticeable, no jewels or costly 
 ornaments, though tasteful gowns, daintly trimmed by their owner's fin- 
 gers, were numerous. The occasion was a most enjoyable one. 
 
 February 3^. How very exact General Washington is, in all the little de- 
 tails of his business ! I have a letter, that he wrote to General Sullivan 
 this week, giving directions about the pay of soldiers under his command 
 which illustrates this : 
 
 "CAMBRIDGE, z&tA Jan., 1776. 
 
 DR SIR I quite forgot to enquire last night (when you were shewing 
 me the Militia Pay Roll) at what rates the officers pay was charged I am 
 willing to allow them the same pay as the Troops have had and have that 
 is, to the first of Jany agreeable to the old establishment (more I cannot) 
 - & For the month of Jany according to the present pay. This is put- 
 ting of them in all respects up on a fodting with the continental army. You 
 will consider therefore how far this alteration will square with your mode of 
 making up the Pay Rolls, as the manner of charging & extending the 
 sums shd appear clear upon the face of the accts I must again desire 
 you to request the Captains to be very correct in making up their acc* 
 not only because they are to swear to them, but because I must for 
 my own Justification have all the extensions & additions tryed. Should 
 any of them therefore prove wrong, they will not only give themselves a 
 good deal of trouble & delay for nothing but me also, and I must again 
 desire that they may be cautioned against Including men that have Inlisted 
 into the Continental service, as I will take a good deal of pains to prevent, 
 and if not prevented, to detect an evil, which I am apprehensive will be 
 practiced. If I recollect the Roll you showed me last night men of the 
 same Company and as I suppose from the same Town are charged a differ- 
 ent number of days, whereas I think the Ingagement is, that they are to be 
 paid from the time of their marching from the Town however as I was 
 engaged in reading letters & news papers at the time, I might have mis- 
 taken the matter. As I understand the muster Rolls of these Companies 
 (from New Hampshire) are lodged with you I should be glad to receive 
 them with your acct. of the money expended. If the mileage is drawn for 
 in the manner propos'd by you, the Corny should be apprised of it, as he 
 told me some of the militia capt"* with out distinguishing of which Govern- 
 ment were applying to settle with him. I am Dr Sir 
 
 " Yr most obed 1 serv*- 
 " Ge WASHINGTON.
 
 Preparations for the Attack of Boston. 57 
 
 " P. S. If you are not Ingaged I should be glad of your company at din- 
 ner at 2 o'clock." 
 
 February 4th, Sunday. Dr. Langdon preached this morning from Micah 
 iv. 5 ; " For all people will walk every one in the name of his God, and we 
 will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever." 
 
 His sermon in the afternoon was from the text : " Lord, when thy hand 
 is lifted up, they will not see : but they shall see, and be ashamed for their 
 envy at the people ; yea, the fire of thine enemies shall devour them." 
 They were warm, earnest discourses, burning with patriotism and loyalty to 
 God. It is a pleasure to listen to the words of our good President, whenever 
 he visits the camp and occupies Dr. Appleton's pulpit. 
 
 February nth. To-day the pulpit was filled by Rev. Mr. Noble of New- 
 buryport, who preached a good sermon from Revelation xix. 5 : " And a 
 voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God all ye his servants, and 
 ye that fear Him, both small and great." The meeting-house was well 
 filled, in spite of the intense cold which crept through the doors and win- 
 dows, and did its best to turn us all into icicles. The wind whistled its 
 loudest, and blew its heaviest, so that the good minister's voice was often 
 lost in the tumult. Having no cellar under the building, cold feet are the 
 order of the day these wintry Sabbaths, for all who are not provided with 
 a foot-stove, to send its pleasant warmth through the whole body. I won- 
 der when the time will come that the meeting-house will be allowed the 
 comfort of a stove ! 
 
 February 2"jth. General Washington has issued orders, that " all offi- 
 cers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers, are positively forbid playing at 
 cards and other games of chance. At this time of public distress, men may 
 find enough to do in the service of their God and their country, without 
 abandoning themselves to vice and immorality. As the season is now fast 
 approaching when every man must expect to be drawn into the field of ac- 
 tion, it is highly important that he should prepare his mind as well as every- 
 thing necessary for it. It is a noble cause we are engaged in ; it is the 
 cause of virtue and mankind ; every temporal advantage and comfort to us 
 and our posterity, depends upon the vigor of our exertions ; in short, free- 
 dom or slavery must be the result of our conduct ; there can therefore be no 
 greater inducement to men to behave well. But it may not be amiss for 
 the troops to know that if any man in action shall presume to skulk, hide 
 himself, or retreat from the enemy without the orders of his commanding 
 officer, he will be instantly shot down as an example of cowardice ; cowards 
 having too frequently disconcerted the best formed troops by their das- 
 tardly behavior." There has been a good deal of card playing and gam- 
 bling of various kinds. The enforced quiet of the soldiers has been irksome, 
 and they enlivened the monotony in any way they could devise. Many 
 have had opportunity to work at their trades of shoemaking, tailoring, and
 
 58 Extracts front the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 the like, or to add to their income by selling such things as nuts, apples, 
 and cider, which make a little variety in the daily rations. They are well 
 fed, having a good supply of substantial food corned beef and pork four 
 days in a week, salt fish one day, and fresh beef two days. As milk is out 
 of the question in the winter, they are allowed one pound and a half of beef, 
 or eighteen ounces of pork every day. A half pint of rice, or a pint of 
 Indian meal, is given them for a week, a quart of spruce beer daily, or nine 
 gallons of molasses to one hundred men per week. Every man has one 
 pound of flour every day except one, in a week, when hard bread takes its 
 place. Butter is given out at the rate of six ounces a week, to each man. 
 Pease, beans, or other vegetables, such as potatoes, turnips, onions, are dealt 
 out in weekly portions. These short winter days, candles are quite a neces- 
 sary article, and are given every week to the soldiers, six pounds for one 
 hundred men. I have made this schedule of the soldiers' rations, because 
 everything that concerns their comfort has a special interest for me. We 
 seem to be quartered right in the midst of the army, and all the minutiae of 
 their daily life are an open book before us. 
 
 March -zd. General Washington has been as anxious as any one of the 
 soldiers to attack Boston and dislodge the British troops, but not till now 
 has he felt that he could safely undertake it. Under many difficulties, 
 owing to the hard, frozen ground, works have been thrown up on Lech- 
 mere's Point and heavy ordnance placed there. Strong guards are mounted 
 on the works, and everything ready for an attack. I saw some mortars car- 
 ried over to the Point to-day. The camp begins to look as if battle was 
 resolved upon. Militia from the neighboring towns is pouring in, in re- 
 sponse to General Washington's order. Large quantities of fagots and 
 screwed hay are collected for entrenching purposes, and what tells a plainer 
 story than all- other preparations, two thousand bandages are in readiness 
 for the wounds which it is expected will need them. About a fortnight ago 
 we had some very severe weather which made strong ice between Dorches- 
 ter and Boston Neck and also between Roxbury and the Common. Gen- 
 eral Washington wished to take that opportunity to make the long antici- 
 pated assault upon the troops in Boston, by marching our forces over the ice. 
 But the other generals of the council of war thought it hazardous, so the 
 attack has been waiting for a more favorable time. 
 
 March 4///, Monday. Saturday evening the house shook with the roar 
 of cannon which our troops were firing upon poor Boston from Lechmere's 
 Point x and Cobble Hill 2 and Roxbury. The British returned the fire, and a 
 shell from their batteries fell on Prospect Hill. Five of our mortars were 
 burst during the bombardment, a great misfortune to us. Yesterday it re- 
 mained quiet during the day, but the firing began again toward night. Three 
 regiments went from here to Roxbury yesterday and carried some field 
 pieces with them, and cannon also went to Lechmere's Point. 
 
 1 Lechmere's Point, now East Cambridge. ED. 
 8 Cobble Hill, now Somerville. ED.
 
 Dorchester Heights occupied. 59 
 
 March $th. Last night about seven o'clock firing began again, and im- 
 mediately a detachment of two thousand men under command of General 
 Thomas marched to Dorchester Heights and took possession. They moved 
 very quietly and worked so rapidly at the entrenchments, that before day- 
 break this morning they had raised them high enough to cover themselves 
 from the enemy's shot. These works command Boston, and it is expected 
 that General Howe will think it best to evacuate the town very soon, or else 
 come out to meet our soldiers in battle. To-day is the sixth anniversary 
 of the Boston Massacre, and Washington has inflamed the desire of our 
 men for a contest by saying : " Remember, it is the fifth of March, a day 
 never to be forgotten ; avenge the death of your brethren." The hills 
 around Boston are covered with eager and anxious spectators waiting for 
 the conflict. As many as four thousand men are under parade near Fort 
 Number Two, commanded by Old Put, and this afternoon they are to embark 
 in boats near the mouth of the river and attack Boston. 
 
 March 6th. A most furious gale of wind yesterday afternoon prevented 
 the anticipated engagement. To-day the rain pours in torrents, and the 
 wind is very rough. The situation of General Howe and his troops is not 
 enviable. Their fleet cannot ride safely in such a turbulent sea, exposed, 
 besides, to the fire of our batteries on Dorchester Heights. These batter- 
 ies are a source of wonder to the British, who say " they were raised with 
 an expedition equal to that of the genii belonging to Aladdin's Wonderful 
 Lamp." General Howe thinks "the rebels have done more in one night 
 than his whole army would have done in a month," and believes "it must 
 have been the employment of at least twelve thousand men." 
 
 March "jth. Fast Day. General Washington has issued this order : 
 
 HEAD-QUARTERS, CAMBRIDGE, March 6, 1776. 
 
 Countersign : Putnam. Parole : Lechmere. 
 
 Thursday, the 7th instant, being set apart by the honourable the Legisla- 
 ture of this Province, as a Day of fasting, prayer, and humiliation, " to im- 
 plore the Lord and Giver of all victory, to pardon our manifold sins and 
 wickednesses and that it would please him to bless the Continental arms 
 with his divine favour and protection," all officers and soldiers are strictly en- 
 joined to pay all due reverence and attention on that day to the sacred 
 duties to the Lord of hosts for his mercies already received and for those 
 blessings which our holiness and uprightness of life can alone encourage us 
 to hope through his mercy to obtain." Our meeting-house was well filled, 
 and Dr. Appleton preached a sermon full of earnestness and devotion, set- 
 ting before us our manifold causes for humiliation before God. 
 
 March i%th. Boston is free at last. Yesterday General Howe and his 
 entire force sailed away from the wharves in a great number of boats. Im- 
 mediately General Putnam with several regiments crossed the river arid 
 landed at SewalPs Point. Sentinels were apparently standing at their posts
 
 60 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dtidley. 
 
 on Bunker Hill, but on closer view were found to be wooden men left by 
 the retreating troops to mislead us. When the hoax was discovered a great 
 shout of joy arose, and the cry went out, " Boston is ours ! Boston is ours ! " 
 The evacuation was looked for several days ago, and was probably hastened 
 by the erection of a battery on Nook's Hill, the part of Dorchester nearest 
 Boston, specially dreaded by General Howe since it completely commands 
 the town. A terrible cannonade was kept up a great part of the time 
 from the first occupation of Dorchester Heights till the departure of the 
 King's troops. To-day General Washington entered the town, accompanied 
 by Mrs. Washington. He has ordered General Heath to assume the com- 
 mand of five regiments and a portion of artillery and march immediately to 
 New York, as it is thought that town will be the next object of British in- 
 vestment. The fleet is still in Nantasket Roads, much to our annoyance. 
 
 March igth. Boston is not much injured outwardly, I believe. Most of 
 of the houses remain as they were, a few old wooden buildings only having 
 been pulled down for fuel. General Washington will not allow any person 
 to enter the town without a pass, owing to the prevalence of small-pox, and 
 has issued order that "as soon as the selectmen report the town to be 
 cleansed from infection, liberty will be given to those who have business 
 there to go in. The inhabitants belonging to the town will be permitted to 
 return to their habitations, proper persons being appointed at the Neck and 
 at Charlestown Ferry, to grant them passes." 
 
 March 2o//z. The main body of the army entered Boston to-day. As 
 they marched through the streets so long closed against them, doors and 
 windows were crowded with the long imprisoned people, whose faces bright- 
 ened with welcome as they passed. After eleven months' siege, meaning, 
 as it did for them, cruelty and insult and want, how glad to their ears were 
 the sounds of soldiers' tread, keeping time to the music of Yankee Doodle, 
 and the shouts of American regiments, as cheer after cheer was borne upon 
 the air. With drums beating and colors flying, they traversed the town from 
 end to end. Universal joy prevails at the recovery of this town, which has 
 been contended for by both armies, and which Great Britain considers 
 of enough importance to spend millions of money for its possession. 
 
 March 2ist. General Washington has issued a proclamation to the people 
 of Boston, and the troops which are quartered there, assuring the former of 
 the good will of the army, and calling upon them to give information of any 
 provisions or military stores that may have been hidden by the retreating 
 army. It also charges the officers to do all in their power to bring peace 
 and good order out of the confusion that reigns at present. 
 
 March 2^d. The town is open for all who wish to go in, and yesterday an 
 immense concourse of people from all the surrounding country crowded the 
 streets. Many went from curiosity, others to see again the friends and rela- 
 tives they had so long been parted from. It was very touching to witness 
 the tearful meeting of mothers with their children, of sisters and brothers
 
 Boston occupied. 
 
 61 
 
 whom the terrors and sufferings of the past months have kept ignorant of 
 one another's condition. Washington was overwhelmed with expressions of 
 gratitude, and was addressed by the selectmen in the name of the people. 
 They said : " Next to the divine power, we ascribe to your wisdom that this 
 acquisition has been made with so little effusion of human blood." The 
 chief replied in graceful words, commending their wonderful and heroic 
 patriotism and endurance, and ascribing this victory more to the courage and 
 skill of the soldiers than to himself. There have been less than twenty men 
 killed in our army during all the months since Washington assumed the 
 command. This is remarkable : so large a victory at so small a price ! 
 
 March zjth. Most of the British fleet, which has been lying outside the 
 harbor for the last ten days, has at last spread its sails and moved away. 
 
 HOLLIS HALL, COMPLETED 1763. 
 
 This is what Washington has been waiting for, before ordering the army to 
 the south. To-day a brigade under General Sullivan has marched. Con- 
 gress, on the motion of Mr. John Adams, have " resolved that the thanks of 
 Congress in their own name, and in the name of the Thirteen United Colo- 
 nies whom they represent, be presented to his Excellency General Wash- 
 ington, and the officers and soldiers under his command, for their wise and 
 spirited conduct in the siege and acquisition of Boston, and that a medal of 
 gold be struck in commemoration of this great event, and presented to his 
 Excellency ; and that a committee of three be appointed to prepare a letter 
 of thanks and a proper device for the medal." Our noble Commander-in-chief 
 has disclaimed all merit of the victory, and transferred the praise to the men 
 under his command. He said : " They were, indeed, at first, a band of un-
 
 62 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley, 
 
 disciplined husbandmen ; but it^is, under God, to their bravery and atten- 
 tion to duty, that I am indebted for that success which has procured me the 
 only reward I wish to receive the affection and esteem of my country- 
 men." 
 
 March 2<)th. Another address of congratulation and commendation to 
 General Washington. This from the two branches of the legislature com- 
 bined. They say : " Go on, still go on, approved by Heaven, revered by 
 all good men, and dreaded by tyrants ; may future generations, in the peace- 
 ful enjoyment of that freedom which your sword shall have established, raise 
 the most lasting monuments to the name of Washington." Yesterday he at- 
 tended the long-established Thursday lecture, which Boston has kept up 
 since the days of Winthrop and Wilson, but which the troubles of the last 
 months have interrupted. It was a season of joyful gratitude to God, who 
 had delivered this New England Zion from the power of its oppressor, and 
 had brought peace and quietness once more into its homes. The good old 
 town they call " a tabernacle that should never be taken down, of which not 
 one of the stakes should ever be removed, nor one of the cords be broken." 
 April 4th. To-day General Washington has left Cambridge and gone to 
 New York. All the troops, with the exception of five regiments under the 
 command of General Ward, have left with him. It is feared that the British 
 fleet may return, after putting us off our guard, and works are building rap- 
 idly in defense of the harbor. General Ward has stationed two regiments 
 in Boston, one at Dorchester Heights, one at Charlestown, and one at Bev- 
 erly. 
 
 April *jth, Sunday. Dr. Appleton preached to-day from Proverbs xxii. 
 I : " A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor 
 rather than silver and gold." A beautiful sermon, alluding tenderly and 
 with reverence to our beloved Commander-in-chief, who has gloriously earned 
 all the affection which is lavished upon him, whose name will live in New 
 England hearts forever, as that of our deliverer from slavery. The good 
 Doctor applied the text to us individually and as a nation, urging us to see 
 to it that history, as she sends our record to the future, writes only of truth, 
 godliness, and courage, untainted by covetousness, or cowardice, or deceit. 
 
 Boston, April loth. Here I am in our much-suffering town, which is 
 cleared at last of its persecutors. Mrs. McHenry invited me to accompany 
 her husband and herself yesterday to spend a few days with her sister, and 
 I gladly embraced the opportunity. The eight miles' ride seemed longer 
 than ever in our impatience to stand once more in the streets consecrated 
 by the blood of martyrs. At the Neck we passed the British fortifications, 
 and looked upon the works on Dorchester Heights, which were so great a 
 source of terror to General Howe's troops, and which effectually drove them 
 away from our shores. We rode through Orange and Newbury streets 1 to 
 
 1 Orange, Newbury, Marlborough streets and Cornhill formed what is now Washington Street. 
 Eo.
 
 Boston after the Siege. 63 
 
 Hanover Square, 1 and there our eyes were saddened by the sight of not 
 the grand old Liberty Tree which has spread its limbs for more than a hun- 
 dred years but only its stump. Of all the magnificent trees in this elm 
 neighborhood, this was the finest of them all, but its name and the remem- 
 brance of the many treasonable acts it has sanctioned in Liberty Hall, 2 were 
 enough to enlist against it the detestation of British soldiers. Last August 
 it fell a victim to the ax, and provided for the comfort of its destroyers full 
 fourteen cords of wood. From Newbury Street we passed into Marlborough 
 Street, and stopped in front of the Old South Church. This has been dese- 
 crated by the soldiers, who used it as a riding school, covering the floors 
 with many hundred cart-loads of gravel, after removing the pulpit and pews, 
 which they used as fuel. Many of the valuable papers and books of Rev. 
 Thomas Prince, which were kept in the tower, were used to kindle fires for 
 the lawless soldiery, and the parsonage adjoining, with several noble syca- 
 more trees in front, were pulled down for firewood. 
 
 Turning toward our left hand, the Old Province House reared its stately 
 walls before us, every brick of which was made thousands of miles away in 
 Holland, and was brought across the rolling ocean nearly a hundred years 
 ago, by Mr. Peter Sargeant, whose initials, with the year of its erection, 
 stand forth prominently in the iron fence which surmounts the portico : 
 
 16 P. S. 79 
 
 How many governors, appointed by his Majesty to rule our new rebellious 
 Colony, have, during the last sixty years, ascended those massive steps ! 
 Often have they stood upon the balcony in front to address the throng of 
 loyal colonists in the street below, and in response to their loud huzzas, 
 bowed in courtly dignity. The old building remains the same as when they 
 held their grand levees within its fine apartments, and received homage as 
 viceroys of the King, but we fondly believe that the times have so far 
 changed that Sir William Howe will be the very last of his Majesty's repre- 
 sentatives whose authority will be respected in Massachusetts. Here he 
 held consultation with General Gage before the disastrous battle of Bunker 
 Hill, and from the cupola which crowns the summit, he watched the ap- 
 proach of our besieging army, before which, at last, he beat an ignominious 
 retreat. The gilded Indian which acts as weather-vane, was pointing his 
 arrow directly east as we passed, and over him and the mansion he faith- 
 fully guarded, floated our Union flag of thirteen stripes. Continuing our 
 journey through Marlborough Street to the State House, above which waved 
 the same glorious banner, we looked down King Street, where the memor- 
 able Massacre took place six years ago. Up Cornhill, past the shop of Paul 
 Revere, the intrepid patriot and skilful mechanic, into Queen Street, and 
 then we paused at the foot of Pemberton Hill. The hill is terraced, and 
 
 1 Hanover Square, where Essex, Washington, and Boylston streets meet. ED. 
 
 2 The ground around the tree was familiarly known as Liberty Hall. Eu.
 
 64 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 a long flight of steps leads to the magnificent mansion on its brow. 1 The 
 grounds are tastefully laid out, nature and art uniting to make this one of 
 the finest private residences in Boston. Lord Percy, I believe, lived here 
 during a part of his stay in town. Then we passed on to our destination on 
 Beacon Hill. Mrs. McHenry's sister, Mrs. Elwyn, received us most cor- 
 dially. Her home is not far from Mr. Hancock's house, and overlooks the 
 Common, which affords pasturage for numberless cows, which make con- 
 tinual music with the tinkling of their bells and their contented lowing from 
 morning till night. These fifty acres of hills and valleys reach from the 
 granary graveyard on the one side, to the ebb and flow of the busy Charles 
 river, which washes the lower end. Grand old trees shade its walks in the 
 summer months, and now are beginning to awake after a winter's sleep, and 
 put forth delicate buds in token of life. The great elm which has watched 
 the growth of the town from its earliest settlement, is still as strong and 
 full of vigor as ever. This morning we have been sauntering through the 
 grounds so lately covered with the camp of the British troops. Walked up 
 Frog Lane to Common Street, and turned into Blott's Lane, past the house 
 of Sam Adams ; thence back to the enclosure, crossing which we found our- 
 selves in front of Mr. Hancock's house, which was occupied by General 
 Clinton and Lord Percy at different times during the siege. The house and 
 stables were both used for the wounded after Bunker Hill battle. The 
 magnificent mansion, standing, as it does, on the brow of the hill, command- 
 ing an extensive view of the country around, is typical of the prominence 
 and exalted station of its owner, who has incurred the deadly displeasure of 
 the royal government, by reason of his determined patriotism. After the 
 Lexington affair the house was pillaged by the soldiers, who broke down the 
 fences and did some slight damage in other ways. It has been repaired, 
 however, and looks now as in the good old days before British tyranny 
 crushed our liberties to the ground. The same massive stone walls, sup- 
 porting a tiled roof, from which several dormer windows look forth upon the 
 town and its surroundings ; the same projecting balcony over the front door ; 
 the same broad stone steps and paved walk leading from the street, so often 
 trodden by old Thomas Hancock and pranced over by the boyish feet of 
 President Hancock, thirty years ago. We went over the house, into the 
 grand drawing-room at the right, where hang portraits of the Hancock 
 family, back to the days of the early Puritans ; into the immense dining- 
 hall opening out of this, designed for large companies ; into the family draw- 
 ing-room at the left of the entrance, and the smaller dining-room out of it, 
 and through the spacious halls and chambers elegantly furnished and hung 
 with pictures of various kinds. Things are not injured nearly as much as 
 was feared. The furniture and pictures are in good condition. This after- 
 noon Mrs. Elwyn took us to drive through the North End. We passed 
 
 1 Afterwards the residence of Gardner Greene. ED.
 
 Boston after the Siege. 65 
 
 through Common Street J to School Street, and stopped at King's Chapel. 
 Here we found ourselves on the oldest ground probably, built upon in Bos- 
 ton. The British officers worshipped in the chapel during the occupation 
 of Boston by their troops, and when they evacuated the town, Dr. Caner, 
 its rector, went with them to Halifax, taking with him all the church regis- 
 ters, plate, and vestments. His residence is just north of the chapel. We 
 alighted at the old burying ground, and walked reverently among the 
 graves, some of them a century old ; read the inscription upon the monu- 
 ment to Rev. John Cotton, the first minister of the church, as well as that 
 of old Governor Winthrop of beloved memory. On Long Acre we rode 
 over the same ground where, one year ago this month, Lord Percy's brigade 
 formed in line of march to hasten to the assistance of the royal troops in 
 Lexington. Looking down School Street the old Latin School rose before 
 us. Here Dr. Franklin went to school for a year, and John Hancock was 
 taught in childhood. The appearance of Percy's troops on that memorable 
 April morning, stretching their glittering length past School Street, was the 
 signal to dismiss the awe-struck scholars who, as a school, have never met 
 since. We rode through Tremont Street into Gay Alley, 2 and paused a mo- 
 ment at the handsome new church, built only four years ago. Dr. Cooper, 
 its pastor, a true-hearted patriot, left Boston after Lexington fight, and Gen- 
 eral Gage quartered a British regiment here for a while. But services 
 were sometimes held in Brattle Church during the siege. It did not escape 
 in the bombardment of the town, having been struck by a twenty-four 
 pound cannon ball from our batteries at Lechmere's Point. At our right 
 stood Faneuil Hall, the Cradle of Liberty, whose walls have echoed the 
 burning words of Otis, and Adams, and Warren.- Turning into Middle 
 Street, 3 we passed the residence of Dr. Warren, where, as a skilful physi- 
 cian,, no less than a warm and earnest patriot, he attracted to himself the 
 affection and esteem of his townsmen. In our ride we passed the Orange 
 Tree Tavern, 4 the houses of Paul Revere and James Otis, and the Green 
 Dragon Tavern, where " treasonable " meetings were held by Boston me- 
 chanics for the purpose of conferring as to the best methods of thwarting 
 the movements of the Tories and the British soldiers. These meetings were 
 very secret, the subject discussed being made known to only a few of the 
 leading patriots, like Hancock, Adams, Warren, Otis, Church. But unac- 
 countable as it seemed, General Gage was always informed of their move- 
 ments, and not till the arrest of Dr. Church did the mystery explain itself. 
 Then it was easy to trace the treachery. 
 
 The North Church was full of interest to us as the place where the lan- 
 terns hung and flashed forth their warning light to the eyes of the waiting 
 
 1 Common Street, Long Acre, and Tremont Street, are now Tremont Street ED. 
 z Gay Alley, an old name for Brattle Street. ED. 
 
 3 Now Hanover Street. ED. 
 
 4 The Orange Tree Tavern stood on what is now the corner of Court and Hanover Streets. ED.
 
 66 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 Paul Revere, on the evening of April 18, 1775. x On the opposite Charles- 
 town shore he paced impatiently back and forth, casting many a look toward 
 the spire which for fifty years had pointed upward with steady finger. At 
 last the signal flamed forth through the darkness, and the midnight rider 
 sprang to his horse and was off on his patriotic errand. Here on Copp's 
 Hill were British redoubts, behind which, June i;th, our soldiers on Bunker 
 Hill were fired upon, and on that day so full of disaster to the royal troops, 
 the hill and all houses near were covered with eager spectators of the battle. 
 General Gage witnessed the affair from the steeple of the North Church, 
 they say. I must not forget the graves in Copp's Hill Cemetery, through 
 which we walked. Here are buried Dr. Increase Mather and his son 
 Rev. Cotton Mather, and many others, who have filled places of honor 
 in church and state. Some of the graves are fully a hundred and fifty 
 years old. Major Pitcairn of Lexington fame, who was killed at Bunker 
 Hill by the bullet of a negro soldier, is interred under Christ Church. 
 They say the British major was a brave officer, just and impartial in his 
 treatment of his soldiers, and greatly beloved by them. He fell mortally 
 wounded into the arms of his son, who bore him in a boat across the 
 river, to a house near the ferry. General Gage, it is said, sent his own 
 physician to attend him, but he lived but a short time. We passed the 
 fine old mansion of Governor Hutchinson, which was so injured by the 
 mob ten years ago, during the Stamp Act troubles. Thomas Hutchinson 
 was held in high esteem before the tyrannical conduct of the mother country 
 aroused the spirit of liberty in our Colonies, and the part he played at the 
 beginning of the contest, made him as offensive as before he had been pop- 
 ular. He departed for England two years ago, leaving this grand old house 
 built by his father, the place of his birth and residence for nearly sixty-five 
 years. It is built of brick, with six Corinthian pilasters in front and the 
 crown of Great Britain surmounting each window. The interior is replete 
 with magnificence, and the grounds are extensive and tasteful. The Gov- 
 ernor's library, which was of great value, including many choice manuscripts, 
 
 1 "Impatient to mount and ride, 
 Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride 
 On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere. 
 Now he patted his horse's side, 
 Now gazed at the landscape far and near, 
 Then, impetuous, stamped the earth, 
 And turned and tightened his saddle-girth ; 
 But mostly he watched with eager search 
 The belfry-tower of the old North Church, 
 As it rose above the graves on the hill, 
 Lonely and spectral and sombre and still. 
 And lo ! as he looks, in the belfry's height 
 A glimmer, and then a gleam of light ! 
 He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns, 
 But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight 
 A second lamp in the belfry burns." Longfelicw.
 
 Affairs in Cambridge. 67 
 
 and the furniture which was rich and costly, were destroyed by the enraged 
 mob, August 26, 1765. 
 
 [LETTER FROM DOROTHY DUDLEY TO MISS ESTHER LIVINGSTONE.] 
 
 CAMBRIDGE, Afril ig/A, 1776. 
 
 MY DEAREST ESTHER, Your* long-promised visit to our little town not 
 made yet ! I am impatient to show you its beauties now that spring is 
 peeping at us with tearful eyes while all the time her face is rippling with 
 laughter. You know that this is the first anniversary of the never-to-be-for- 
 gotten day which began the dreadful war that is upon us. This year has 
 been one of severe trial for us all. Of course there has bee,n reason for 
 great economy both in household expenses and in dress. Tea is a comfort 
 put from us with resolution, though its absence from our tables is cuttingly 
 felt by many. As far as it is possible we patronize only home manufactures, 
 and ourselves use the spindle to diminish the necessity for foreign material. 
 The residence among us of so large a body of soldiers has made our life in 
 some sense a military one, our hands, our sympathies, and our time having 
 been devoted to their interests. I find, in looking over my diary, that the 
 entries are almost without exception relating to the doings of the army, 1 and, 
 indeed were you with us you would not wonder at this. There have been 
 no interests separate from the soldiers', or I ought to say from our country's. 
 Your letter received by Major Heath was very welcome. I am glad you 
 have so warm a friendship with Mrs. Hancock. Her sister, Miss Katy 
 Ouincy, is expecting to go to Philadelphia in a few weeks, and I hope you 
 will make her acquaintance. She is somewhat older than Mrs. Hancock, 
 who is, I think, the youngest of the family. Mrs. Judge Sewall, you know, 
 is another sister. They are a charming family, and Mr. Ouincy is a devoted 
 father, warmly beloved by them all. 
 
 You ask for descriptions of some of the persons of note that have favored 
 our town with their presence. First and foremost of all I place our Com- 
 mander-in-chief, but I am sure you already know from other . sources his 
 characteristics, mental and physical. I will only say he has a fine face, a 
 noble manner, and is the personification of truth and uprightness. General 
 Charles Lee you have seen, and need no words of mine to bring before you 
 his tall, lank figure and prominent features, marked by uniform carelessness 
 of the opinion of others. " Old Put " is a rough, fiery genius, ready for 
 hard work whenever and wherever it presents itself, spurring his men on to 
 great achievements, and beloved by them all, because of the good, honest 
 heart hidden behind the prickly burr. General Nathaniel Greene, who has 
 had command under General Lee at Prospect Hill, is the only general, they 
 say, that showed his pleasure at the appointment of Washington to the 
 chief command by addressing words of welcome to him for himself and sol- 
 diers upon his arrival at Cambridge. He was a Quaker before the war 
 
 1 The Editor has already expressed his suspicion that another reason may be suggested for this.
 
 68 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 called out his fighting genius and awoke his slumbering patriotism. He 
 took his first lessons in the military school by watching the British soldiers 
 exercise on Boston Common, and followed them up by vigorous study of 
 books and military life as he saw it around him. He learned so rapidly that 
 few generals stand higher in the confidence of his peers than General 
 Greene. He is rather a large man, with a face indicating fire and firmness, 
 tempered by the innate goodness which looks out of his clear, quiet eyes. 
 General Harry Knox is his most intimate and trusted friend. The two 
 were almost constantly together in days when both were studying the art of 
 war, and Mr. Knox kept a bookstore on Cornhill. He, like his friend, is the 
 soul of honor, gentle as well as brave, and possessed of a manly heart brim- 
 ming with benevolence. You know our veterans, Ward and Pomeroy, and 
 are well acquainted with that queer little man, our excellent quartermaster- 
 general, Thomas Mifflin, who is the right man in the right place, every one 
 agrees. General John Stark, who so distinguished himself in the French 
 war, has won commendation by the part he has played this year. At the 
 alarm of war he hastily formed a regiment in New Hampshire and marched 
 immediately for our camp ; figured bravely at Bunker Hill, and, with his im- 
 petuous nature boiling for action, he has been on tiptoe for battle ever since. 
 He looks much like an Indian with his high cheek-bones and prominent 
 nose, and tall, erect figure, and his soul is as full of courage and as impa- 
 tient of restraint as that of any wild son of the forest. His wife, Molly 
 Stark, as he familiarly calls her, followed her husband to camp, and when 
 our troops occupied Dorchester Heights, at his desire she mounted a horse 
 to watch the passage of his regiment over the river to West Boston, and 
 to be ready at a moment's notice to spread the alarm, if opposition arose. 
 Are they not a well-mated pair ? General Sullivan is a popular officer, a 
 good soldier, and a pleasant gentleman. His quarters were at Winter Hill. 
 I might go on and enumerate officers who hold honorable places in the ser- 
 vices, Preble, Heath, Patterson, Arnold, Gates, and others, not as well 
 known ; but I fear you will tire of the list. 
 
 I thank you for your pleasant pictures of Philadelphia life and sketches of 
 the prominent figures there. Some of your great men belong to us. The 
 venerable Franklin, the two Adamses, and your excellent President of Con- 
 gress, we claim by right of birth. The patriot Sam Adams, the " stirrer up 
 of the Revolution," with his nervous energy of tongue and pen, his wit and 
 sarcasm, his dignity and integrity and magnanimity, is second to no one in 
 the weight of his influence. His tall, graceful figure and courteous bearing 
 are very familiar to Boston people, as are also the features and character of 
 John Hancock. 
 
 Our winter has been a very quiet one, but little disturbed by the roar of 
 cannon and the terrors of bloodshed. But few dinner parties or receptions 
 have broken the monotony. I have been twice to Major Mifflin's ; once in 
 December to meet Mrs. John Adams ; again in January, when her husband
 
 Letter to Miss Livingstone. 69 
 
 was present. Mrs. Adams I cannot enough admire. There is evidence of 
 a mind of uncommon clearness, sharpened by reading and study, and a heart 
 warm and true, while her graceful accomplishments make her a lady of more 
 than common attractions. Her husband you know. They seem to be ad- 
 mirably suited to one another. Mrs. Washington held a levee in January 
 and I was honored with an invitation. Colonel Vassall's house is perhaps 
 the most elegant and spacious in New England, 1 and the reception was 
 everything one could wish. No display, no extravagance ; but simple taste 
 suited to the time of universal economy, characterized all the arrangements. 
 The magnificent rooms, elaborately carved and panelled, are becomingly fur- 
 nished, though I believe the whole house is not in common use. 
 
 Mrs. Morgan, wife of Dr. Morgan, who is in traitor Church's place as 
 director-general of the hospital, Mrs. Mifflin, Mrs. Remington, Mrs. Custis, 
 Mrs. Gates, Mrs. Trowbridge, Mrs. Appleton and her daughters, Mrs. Mc- 
 Henry, Mrs. Wigglesworth, Mrs. Hastings and Miss Rebecca Hastings, and 
 many others whom you do not know, were there. Several officers were also 
 present. It was much like the companies at Major Mifflin's, in numbers, and 
 many of the faces were the same. 
 
 The event of the spring, the joy which has crowned the patient waiting of 
 the winter, is the evacuation of Boston by General Sir William Howe and his 
 Majesty's troops. It was accomplished with so little bloodshed that we have 
 deep cause for gratitude. Among the throng who greeted Washington on 
 his triumphant entry to the town, March i8th, there were none in sorrow for 
 the loss of dear friends. There have been less than two hundred American 
 lives lost in battle during all the months that British and New England 
 armies have been confronting one another, and now our Colony, we hope and 
 believe, is freed from the incubus that has weighed upon her so long, and it 
 only remains to push from the harbor all remnants of the British navy, to 
 be once more at liberty to breathe. You cannot know what a relief it is to be 
 able to go and come, feeling sure that the Redcoats are at a distance, and not 
 likely to burden us again with their presence. Boston is not injured nearly 
 as much as was feared, owing to the orders of General Howe, who allowed 
 no plundering unless the necessities of the army called for it, and whose 
 orders were so strict as to punish with death any disobedience of this com- 
 mand. The soldiers were obliged to pay due attention to dress, and to 
 never appear at parade " without having the hair properly and smoothly 
 clubbed."- The officers must wear sashes on duty, and none were to ap- 
 pear under arms with tobacco in their mouths. This one of General Howe's 
 orders gives us a little glimpse of life in the British camp. " The com- 
 manding officer is surprised to find the necessity of repeating orders, that 
 long since ought to have been complied with, as the men on all duties ap- 
 pear in the following manner, viz : hair not smooth and badly powdered, 
 several without slings to their firelocks, hats not bound, pouches in a shame- 
 
 1 It is evident that Miss Dudley had not seen the Pepperell and Sparhawk houses at Kittery. ED.
 
 /o Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 ful and dirty condition, no frills to their shirts, and their linen very dirty, 
 leggings hanging in a slovenly manner about their knees, some men without 
 uniform stocks, and their arms and accoutrements by no means so clean as 
 they ought to be. These unsoldierlike neglects must be immediately rem- 
 edied." 
 
 I have been spending a few days in Boston with Mrs Elwyn, and drove 
 about the town to look at the changes which have gone on under the British 
 rule. The North End is very interesting to me as the place where many 
 plans for the furtherance of American liberty were hatched. Paul Revere 
 and Joseph Warren and James Otis lived in that quarter. At Copp's Hill 
 we drove up to the cemetery just as a funeral procession was winding its 
 way into the enclosure. It was that of a man in the prime of life, as we 
 learned afterwards, a Mr. John Williston, who died from the effects of 
 privations during the siege. Dr. Mather Byles, who has been pastor of 
 Hollis Street Church for more than forty years, made a prayer at the grave, 
 and Robert Newman, the sexton of Christ Church, was in attendance. Re- 
 membering your passion for epitaphs, I copied several from the grave-stones, 
 some of them black with age. Here is one : 
 
 "Time, what an empty vapor 'tis, 
 And days, how swift they fley ! 
 Our life is ever on the wing, 
 
 And death is ever nigh. 
 
 The moment when our lives begin, 
 
 We all begin to die." 
 
 Here is another from a stone more than half a century old : " Life's little 
 stage is a small eminence, inch high, the grave above that home of man 
 where dwells the multitude. We gaze around, we read their monuments, 
 we sigh ; and while we sigh, we sink, and are what we deplore." These 
 lines were on an old monument without name or date, and it was with dif- 
 ficulty I could decipher the words : 
 
 "What is't fond mortal yt thou would'st obtain 
 By spinning out a painful life of cares ; 
 Thou livest to act thy childhood o're again, 
 And naught intends but grief and seeing years. 
 Who leaves this world like me, just in my prime, 
 Speeds all my business in a * * * time." 
 
 I paused at a little grave, my eye caught by my own name, Dorothy, and 
 read on the sunken, aged stone, that 
 
 DORYTHY GREENOUGH 
 AGED 4 YEARS & 8 MONTHS 
 DYED YE 20 OCTOBER 1667. 
 
 You have heard of Dr. Byles, who is so distinguished for his wit and wis- 
 dom. He is a descendant of Richard Mather and John Cotton. His son, 
 Mather Byles, Jr., rector of Christ Church, was so determined a royalist that
 
 Dr. Byles and his Preaching. 71 
 
 he left his flock and sailed for Halifax with the King's troops. The old 
 Doctor was very non-committal in politics, rarely mentioning them, and 
 never introducing the subject in the pulpit. When asked why he so stead- 
 fastly avoided it, he said : " I have thrown up four breastworks, behind 
 which I have entrenched myself, neither of which can be enforced. In the 
 first place, I do not understand politics ; in the second place, you all do, 
 every man and mother's son of you ; in the third place, you have politics all 
 the week, pray let one day in seven be devoted to religion ; in the fourth 
 place, I am engaged in work of infinitely greater importance ; give me any 
 subject to preach on of more consequence than the truth I bring to you, 
 and I will preach on it, the next Sabbath." 
 
 His preaching is very effective, savoring of earnestness and sincerity, and 
 filled with the truth of the Gospel. His manner, too, is attractive, and his 
 voice powerful and melodious. Out of the pulpit he is brimming over with 
 fun, never at a loss for a repartee, and quick to see the ludicrous. It is 
 said that in his young days he made advances to a lady who refused to favor 
 his suit. Afterwards she married a Mr. Quincy, and Dr. Byles, the next 
 time he saw her, remarked : " So, madam, it appears that you prefer a 
 Quincy to Byles." " Yes," she replied, " for if there had been anything 
 worse than biles, God would have afflicted Job with them." At one time, 
 the road in front of his house was in a very bad condition, so that in wet 
 weather the mud was much like the slough we read about in Bunyan's 
 " Pilgrim's Progress." All his efforts to arouse the town government to 
 remedy the trouble were without success. One day, two of the selectmen, 
 the very ones who had charge of the streets, in riding past the house, found 
 themselves stuck in the mud, and were obliged to alight from the carriage to 
 extricate it from the slough. As they did so, the tall, commanding figure of 
 Dr. Byles appeared before them, and bowing gracefully and respectfully, he 
 said : " Gentlemen, I have often complained to you of this nuisance, without 
 any attention being paid to it, and I am very glad to see you stirring in this 
 matter now." The good old Doctor has made many an enemy by his un- 
 sparing sarcasm, which he cannot forbear using, even if it cuts its victim 
 to the quick. His family are determined loyalists, every one ; and public 
 opinion says, if Dr. Mather Byles did not close his mouth so tight, in 
 political matters, Tory principles would be sure to find utterance. 
 
 Dr. Byles is a poet of no mean fame, having written many verses of both 
 a serious and trifling nature. On one occasion Governor Belcher, who was 
 a warm friend and admirer of the Doctor's, invited him to visit the Province 
 of Maine in his company. Doctor Byles declined, but the Governor, noth- 
 ing daunted by the refusal, set himself to work to devise some way of secur- 
 ing the wished-for pleasure. He persuaded the punning parson x to take 
 
 1 Dr.Byles's humor is celebrated in a poetical account of the clergy of Boston, quoted by Mr. Samuel 
 Kettell, in his Specimens of A merican Poetry : 
 
 " There's punning Byles, provokes our smiles, 
 A man of stately parts ;
 
 72 Extracts front the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 tea, one Sabbath afternoon, on board the Scarborough ship-of-war, and as 
 the friends were cosily seated at table, engaged in conversation and quaffing 
 fragrant draughts of steaming hyson, slowly but surely the ship was carry- 
 ing them out to sea. When the Doctor discovered the stratagem, he resigned 
 himself to the voyage with a very good grace. The next Sabbath, in lack of 
 a suitable hymn for service at sea, he composed a very excellent one, the 
 first stanza of which I remember : 
 
 " Great God, thy works our wonder raise ; 
 
 To thee our swelling notes belong ; 
 While skies, and winds, and rocks, and seas, 
 Around shall echo to our song." 
 
 Almost every Tory has taken his departure from Boston with the British 
 soldiers. There are none to be seen in the streets in this time of general 
 thanksgiving, and except for the manifest signs of suffering consequent upon 
 the reign of war, the town looks as in the far away days of peace. 
 
 April 2O/A. If you were with me this lovely spring day we would per- 
 suade Tony Vassall, the quondam coachman of Mrs. Penelope Vassall, to 
 drive us about the town. It seems very lonely since the tents have disap- 
 peared,, and with them the soldiers whose busy life was incorporated with 
 our own for nearly a twelve-month. Since you cannot see Cambridge as 
 it looks to-day, let my eyes do service instead, and, if you enlist your imag- 
 ination, perhaps you will be able to discern the picture, First, you must 
 look at our college halls, now vacant. They rear their walls of brick as 
 proudly as if conscious of their importance to the world of letters. You 
 know they did good service during the last year, sheltering nearly two 
 thousand soldiers from the snows and blows of winter. We will let Tony 
 drive us slowly past the meeting-house, where Dr. Nathaniel Appleton 
 has preached for twenty years, and for nearly forty years previous in the 
 old meeting-house, of which this takes the place. Dr. Increase Mather 
 preached his installation sermon, and Dr. Cotton Mather extended the right 
 hand of fellowship. The good Doctor has lived for more than fourscore 
 years, and we fear he must leave us before long. Here the first Pro- 
 vincial Congress of Massachusetts was held, until adjourned to Watertown, 
 and here for many years the College Commencements were celebrated in 
 midsummer. Look across the road to the court-house, which lifts its 
 tower high in the air as a warning, perhaps, to miscreants. We turn the 
 corner, past the stately tree which for years has outstretched its sheltering 
 arms over the heads of passing man and beasts, and come abruptly upon 
 
 He visits folks to crack his jokes, 
 Which never mend their hearts. 
 
 " With strutting gait, and wig so great, 
 
 He walks along the streets, 
 And throws out wit, or what 's like it, 
 To every one he meets." ED.
 
 74 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dtidley. 
 
 the president's house, which has harbored all the revered men who stood 
 at the head of the College Faculty since President Wadsworth. Riding 
 slowly toward the south we come next to Professor Wigglesworth's house, 
 which is very old, having been built, I have heard, by old President Lev- 
 erett, before this century came in. The worthy professor is a great student, 
 as was his father, the first Hollis Professor of Divinity in the college, and, in 
 proof of this, there is a hole worn through the floor by their feet under the 
 desk of the room used, by father and son, as a study. Next to this interest- 
 ing house is the old parsonage, which has stood for a hundred years ; the 
 residence of Dr. Urian Oakes, who was not only pastor of the church, but 
 college president as well ; of Rev. Nathaniel Gookin and Rev. William 
 Brattle, as well as our present beloved and aged pastor, Dr. Appleton. 
 This venerable house has undergone some repairs which have materially 
 altered its appearance and freshened its life. Long may it stand as a re- 
 minder of the lives of the holy men who have done so much for Cambridge 
 by their influence and their labors. 
 
 Now Tony will turn the horse's head toward the right and we will ride 
 down to Butler's Hill, past Mr. Dana's house, which is a noble mansion set 
 in the midst of orchards and grounds which are finely cultivated. Further 
 down we come to Mr. Inman's estate, which, since the departure of the 
 soldiers, has been occupied by two ladies, one of them Miss Betsey Murray, 
 a niece of Mrs. Inman's, though the fact of her being there is a secret, 
 known only to a few. Mr. Ralph Inman you have often heard of as one of 
 the aristocrats of our town, and members of Christ Church. Mrs. Inman 
 is really a remarkable woman. She belongs to the Murray family, which 
 proudly dates back to the Norman conquest in England, and claims kindred 
 blood with the Philiphaugh family of Murrays in Selkirkshire. She is a 
 stanch Scotch woman, and has the energy of character and charming 
 frankness and honesty so common to that people. She has crossed the 
 ocean many times in company with her brother, Mr. James Murray, a gen- 
 tleman of upright character and great success as a merchant. She has 
 been three times married ; to Mr. Inman about five years since. When she 
 was Elizabeth Murray, I have been told that she carried on business in a 
 shop, corner of Queen Street and Cornhill in Boston, and made for herself 
 a very comfortable income, and during her first two marriages she contin- 
 ued the business, and still owns the building. Her property, acquired by 
 her own exertions, is considerable, and her husband, Mr. Smith, left her his 
 whole estate, so that she has had all the comforts and luxuries of wealth. 
 She is classed among the Tories because of her associations with the Brit- 
 ish officers of government, her husband, Mr. Inman, having been an ad- 
 dresser to General Gage last year. Her education and social advantages 
 have united to make her a most delightful companion, and one whose pres- 
 ence was eagerly sought. She has remained in this vicinity during all the 
 troubles, though Mr. Inman fled into Boston, and owing to her acquaintance
 
 The Inman House. 7.5 
 
 with General Putnam, Major Mifflin, and others among our officers, has been 
 secured from molestation by our soldiers. I heard to-day that General Put- 
 nam deputed his son to remain in Cambridge on the day of Bunker Hill 
 battle, to guard Mrs. Inman a proof certainly of the high regard he en- 
 tertained for her. 
 
 The house is large and elegant in its appointments, but now the air of 
 carelessness which is visible around the place is very sad. Barracks dis- 
 figure the eastern border of the grounds, and here and there we come upon 
 traces of soldiers' life. Everywhere in our ride we see the evidences of 
 war. Cambridge lines stretch themselves from Butler's Hill to the river, and 
 forts are plentifully sprinkled over the town for our protection. Turning 
 our house around (for at Mr. Inman's farm we find ourselves at the limit of 
 civilization in Cambridge), we drive back to Butler's Hill. On this eminence 
 you can have a good view of our fortified town. Do you see that redoubt at 
 our left, just at the bend of the river ? That is Fort Number One. 1 We 
 would drive around by it and follow the course of the river to the causeway 
 from Boston, if the road was sufficiently travelled to render it pleasant rid- 
 ing. But only heavy country wagons laden with produce ever come into 
 this part of our village. So Tony gives the pony a smart touch with the 
 whip, and soon we are in front of Colonel Phipps's handsome house whose 
 grounds extend down to the river. Colonel David Phipps is a brother, you 
 know, of Mrs. Vassall, Mrs. Lee, Mrs. Lechmere, and Mrs. Boardman. His 
 house was taken last spring when he left the town for Boston, and was used 
 as a hospital during the summer. Look at those wooden Indians standing 
 guard upon the gate posts, barbarous in dress and expression, deliberately 
 taking aim with unerring arrow at the heads of unwelcome guests. They 
 are a source of terror to many childish minds, believing, as they do, that 
 these savage sentinels are specially devoted to the destruction of naughty 
 children ; and the road past their domain is traversed by flying feet when 
 necessity makes it a road to duty. 
 
 Pursuing our journey, we pass the house some people say President Dun- 
 ster occupied at one time, though he lived, I believe, in the old college 
 house in the college yard during most of his presidency ; through the 
 square to Judge Remington's house, past the jail and the jailer's house to 
 the road which is the thoroughfare from Boston. Looking down toward the 
 river you see the tavern kept by Ebenezer Bradish, so popular an inn par- 
 ticularly at Commencement seasons, and which the students were wont to 
 patronize so freely. Here we are at the borders of the Brattle grounds, 
 which are unique in their elegance, and which by the departure of both father 
 and son are left to be used by our government. They extend down to the 
 river, and toward the west to the estate of the Widow Vassall. A private 
 driveway leads up to the substantial house which stands as sentinel in the 
 centre of the grounds. We will turn to the right and pass again the court- 
 
 1 Present site of The Riverside Press. ED.
 
 7 6 
 
 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 house, and meeting-house, old Massachusetts, Stoughton, and Harvard, little 
 Holden Chapel, and Hollis halls, till we reach the gambrel-roofed house, 1 
 which shields itself behind a row of Lombardy poplars, at the further limits 
 of the college green, beyond the road to Charlestown. This is Mr. Has- 
 tings's house, famous as the head-quarters of the Committee of Safety, and 
 honored often by the presence of Washington during his residence in Cam- 
 bridge. On the opposite side pf the Common we see the magnificent wide- 
 spreading elm immortalized by our Commander-in-chief, when, standing be- 
 neath its shade the third day of last July, he formally assumed the command 
 of all the troops of the Colonies. In a line with this giant tree stand two 
 others which for a century and more have been silent witnesses of the life of 
 the village. These three venerable elms saw the uprising of the old wooden 
 
 HOLDEN CHAPEL. 
 
 building where gathered the nucleus of Harvard College ; they heard the 
 ringing of the desecrating axe as it laid low many of their companions of the 
 forest, and looked on, as the seminary, growing in proportions as in years, 
 added, one by one, the more imposing structures which now stand within the 
 college yard. How many stories they could tell us, were their long silence 
 to be broken, of the men of the past who have walked beneath their shade, 
 and how many secrets would be unlocked to us which will never be recorded 
 on history's page ! Beneath one of them, the next neighbor to the Wash- 
 ington elm, stood Rev. George Whitefield, 2 I am told, when, thirty years 
 
 1 The Holmes house. ED. 
 
 2 This tree, afterwards known as the Whitefield elm, was destroyed a few years ago by the city au. 
 thorities because it was considered an interruption to the travel on Garden Street. A respite of a few 
 years had been granted it at the earnest solicitation of some to whom the monarchs of the " forest
 
 The Whitefield Elm. 77 
 
 ago, he visited Cambridge and preached to the students of Harvard. 
 How the venerable tree must have echoed with the eloquence of the 
 gifted preacher, as with burning words he pleaded with his hearers who 
 thronged the Common, beseeching them for Christ's sake to be reconciled 
 to God. North of the Hastings house lived Mr. Moses Richardson, one 
 of the three brave men who were killed one year ago to-day and were so 
 hastily buried in the rude grave within the old cemetery. Dr. Warren lit- 
 tle thought, when with sympathizing words he promised a better burial to 
 them, to soothe the grief-stricken 'friends, that he himself would so soon lie 
 low, away from the terrors and trials of earth. Some time we hope to raise 
 a stone to commemorate their patriotism and heroic death. Further up 
 the road to Menotomy lives Captain Walton of the militia, whose com- 
 pany was out, of course, on that day of terror. Tony himself has a snug 
 little home on this road, where with his wife, Lucy, and Darby his wide- 
 awake seven-year-old, he has lived since the flight of his mistress. But 
 few houses are scattered along this road. Mr. Frost's house, a good way 
 beyond, sheltered a number of soldiers while the army was stationed in 
 Cambridge. He, I believe, built the house which Rev. Mr. Serjeant, rector 
 of Christ Church, occupied for a time, and which we are passing now in 
 going from Menotomy Road to Christ Church. Let us ride further, for I 
 would like you to see Church Row, or Tory Row, as latterly it has been 
 called. The Brattle estate we touch, on its western border, as we ride past, 
 Widow Vassall's on our left and Colonel John Vassall's on our right. I 
 mention these houses by the names of their Tory owners, but in reality they 
 have passed from their hands and are now used by our government. Gen- 
 eral Washington has a glorious view from his windows in the magnificent 
 house of his choice. The blue hills stretch their hazy length for several 
 miles along the opposite shore of the river. To-day the sun lights up the 
 dimpling stream with numberless diamond flashes, and over the whole land- 
 scape he has thrown a bright halo of glory. Next above our General's head- 
 primeval " are dear, and the feeling of regret and almost of indignation at its final sacrifice was exten- 
 sive. This sentiment found expression in some lines attributed to the Rev. Nicholas Hoppin, D. D., 
 for many years rector of Christ Church, two of which are appended. ED. 
 " Thy room was wanted, huge old Elm, 
 Magnate of Nature's realm ! 
 
 Thou hast stood forth too long, 
 Putting thy pillared strength 
 
 Our rattling courts among; 
 And thou hast met thy doom at length, 
 
 Deserving a lament in nobler song ! 
 
 " Down, then, with thy enormous bulk, 
 
 Thy crazed unwieldly hulk ! 
 This time of rushing haste 
 
 Will not abide the old ; 
 Has not a thought to waste 
 
 On bygone memories idly told, 
 Nor brooks one obstacle from age misplaced."
 
 78 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 quarters we come to the sometime residence of Judge Richard Lechmere,* 
 and later of Judge Jonathan Sewall, both aristocrats and Tories, who left 
 town some time ago. The Phipps farm, which comprises the eastern part of 
 Cambridge, passed into the hands of Judge Lechmere on his marriage with 
 Miss Phipps, and it is known often as Lechmere's Point, celebrated as the 
 place of landing of the Redcoats under Pitcairn and Smith, as intent on an 
 errand of destruction they left Boston one year ago last night. Judge Sewall 
 is a genial, upright gentleman an intimate friend of our own John Adams, 
 though Jonathan and John have politically walked far apart of late. Judge 
 Sewall is now in England. The house is one of the best on this highway, 
 which has none but elegant mansions to grace its borders. The limits of the 
 
 THE SEWALL-RIEDESEL MANSION, BEFORE ITS ALTERATION. 
 
 Sewall estate bring us to Judge Joseph Lee's, where the courteous and affa- 
 ble gentleman still lives. Though forced to resign his position as councillor 
 in the troubles of September, 1774, he was allowed to remain in his home, 
 provided he would not interfere in politics. This he readily promised, and 
 thus retains the noble house which he has owned for nearly twenty years. 
 It is very old, but substantial in its building, looking as if it would outlive 
 many of the younger houses which are hastily erected in this generation. 
 He bought it, I have heard, of the widow of Cornelius Waldo and on a win- 
 dow pane is found, scratched with a diamond, the name of Daniel Waldo 
 (Rev.). The frame of this mansion was brought from England, not be- 
 cause Massachusetts had no trees, but because it was feared that capable 
 workmen could not be found to put it together to suit the fastidious taste of 
 its owner. The walls are of double thickness, every room being shut off 
 from the one adjoining, by a space of perhaps a foot, enclosed by two solid 
 walls, so that voices can never be heard in the next room unless a door is 
 open. Judge Lee is highly respected as an honorable man, true to his prin- 
 ciples, warm in his friendships, and genial and kindly in manner. In my 
 
 1 This house was occupied subsequently, also, by Madame Riedesel, and is now the property of Mr. 
 John Brewster. ED.
 
 Mr. Lowell's House. 79 
 
 childish days I used occasionally to visit at his house, and my eyes always 
 found a world of pleasure to explore in the pleasant rooms hung with land- 
 scape paper and well stocked with pictures and ornaments, while the wide 
 window seats afforded a resting-place for me to view the surrounding land- 
 scape. I remember with especial pleasure a complete set of linen cover- 
 ings on the furniture and bed in an upper chamber. The gay figures of 
 birds perched upon trees scarcely larger than themselves, the tempting 
 strawberries corresponding in size to the plants by their side, the dogs and 
 deer, and animals I could find no names for, all worked in gorgeous colored 
 worsteds by the aristocratic fingers of Mrs. Lee, these had a peculiar fasci- 
 nation for me. 
 
 Next in our ride we come to a large square mansion, formerly the resi- 
 dence of Mr. George Ruggles, which he left in affright after the war began, 
 and on the opposite side of the road stands the house of Lieutenant-Gov- 
 ernor Oliver. 1 We will drive up the broad carriage road and alight at the 
 door. This lordly house is surrounded by a grove of noble elms and pines, 
 and by wide lawns which are growing green with the touch of spring. The 
 interior is in keeping with its outward appearance, grand in proportions, re- 
 minding one of the generous and kindly nature of its proprietor. Of course 
 we do not find it as in the days of his ownership, for soldiers' feet have trod 
 its halls and sick men's moans have been heard in its chambers since the 
 departure of our last royal lieutenant-governor. Its hospital uses interfered 
 in some measure, of course, with the elegance of its former state. Governor 
 Oliver was appointed successor to Andrew Oliver the unpopular lieutenant- 
 governor who died in March, 1774, and was also president of the council of 
 Massachusetts, but owing to the troublous times and the manner of his ap- 
 pointment as councillor, became so obnoxious to the people that he was 
 forced to resign September 2d, only a few months after entering upon his 
 duties. A mob surrounded his house and presented him with a written docu- 
 ment to which they demanded his signature. Persistently he refused, until 
 their fury became such as to endanger his life and the safety of his family. 
 Then he took the paper, and hastily casting his eyes over its contents, which 
 was a formal resignation of his office, he wrote these words : " My house at 
 Cambridge being surrounded by four thousand people, in compliance with 
 their commands, I sign my name, Thomas Oliver." Immediately after this 
 he left his Cambridge home and never returned. The field opposite Colonel 
 Oliver's and Captain Ruggles's estates is used as a burying-ground for the 
 brave men who had been wounded at Bunker Hill and died in the two 
 neighboring houses. We are now in Watertown. Shall we ride still further 
 or shall Tony turn the horse and drive us home again ? You have seen a 
 good deal of our beautiful town by proxy, and I hope it will not be long be- 
 
 1 This estate is now the property of Mr. James Russell Lowell. The house was built by Thomas 
 Oliver, between 1763 and 1767. ED.
 
 8o Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 fore you see it with your own eyes. Till then, dearest Esther, believe me, 
 with tenderest affection, your very sincere friend, 
 
 DOROTHY DUDLEY. 
 
 May gth. Dr. Church and his friends have sent a petition to Congress 
 for his release from prison, as his health is suffering. The plea is granted, 
 only on condition that he give his word of honor, with sureties of one thou- 
 sand pounds, that he will not hold any correspondence with the enemy, and 
 that he be brought to Massachusetts to be in charge of the council of this 
 Colony, and not privileged to go out of its limits without a license. 
 
 May ijth. Fast day, by resolution of Congress. Dr. Appleton preached 
 to us this morning a faithful and patriotic, sermon. This evening news 
 comes to us of the capture of one of the British transport ships, Hope, 
 (isn't it a misnomer?) by the schooner Franklin, commanded by Captain 
 James Mugford of Marblehead. It is a prize worth capturing, containing, 
 as it does, fifteen hundred barrels of powder and other valuable loading, 
 and one thousand carbines. 
 
 May 2oth. Yesterday there was a sharp battle in the harbor. The 
 British navy, it seems, will not let Hope go without a struggle, and last night 
 about thirteen boats from the men-of-war at Nantasket attacked the Frank- 
 lin, and a small privateer, the Lady Washington, anchored near, and there 
 was determined fighting on both sides. Two of the enemy's boats were 
 sunk. Brave Captain Mugford was mortally wounded, but still kept up the 
 courage of his men, crying : " Do not give up the ship, you will beat 
 them off ! " They did beat them off, but the noble captain did not live to 
 see the victory. He was the only man killed on our side. To-day they 
 have carried him to his home in Marblehead, to bury him. 
 
 May 28t/i. Massachusetts has taken the lead in the movement for inde- 
 pendence. There is scarcely anything else spoken of. The Provincial 
 Congress, May loth, acted in reference to it, and our town held a meeting 
 the other day, the record of which my friend, the town clerk, has copied for 
 me. 
 
 " CAMBRIDGE, May 2jlh 1776. 
 
 "At a meeting of the Freeholders & other Inhabitants of the Town 
 Legally warned to Instruct & advise their Representatives, whether, that if 
 the Honbi Congress should for the Safety of the Colonies declare them 
 Independent of the Kingdom of Great Britain, they the said Inhabitants will 
 solemnly engage with their Lives & Fortunes to Support them in the 
 Measure. 
 
 " Cap 1 Ebenezer Stedman chosen Moderator. 
 
 " Unanimously voted, Whereas in the late House of Representatives of 
 this Colony May io'h 1776, it was Resolved as the Opinion of that House, 
 that the Inhabitants of each Town in this Colony ought in full Town Meet- 
 ing warned for that purpose, to advise the Person or Persons who shall be
 
 Last of the British Fleet. 
 
 81 
 
 chosen to Represent them in the next General Court, whether that if the 
 Honorable Congress should for the Safety of the said Colonies declare them 
 Independant of the Kingdom of great Britain, they the said Inhabitants will 
 solemnly engage with their Lives & Fortunes to support them in the meas- 
 ure. 
 
 " We the Inhabitants of the Town of Cambridge in full Town meeting as- 
 sembled, & warned for the Purpose aforesaid, do solemnly engage with our 
 Lives & Fortunes to support them in the Measure." 
 
 June 13/7*. When are we to be rid of the British fleet ? Our harbor has 
 given space to them surely long enough. They say there are several hun- 
 dred Highlanders, on board the eight ships, two brigs, and one schooner, 
 which compose it. General Benjamin Lincoln has a plan for driving them 
 
 FIRST STOUGHTON HALL. (TAKEN DOWN 1780.) 
 
 off to sea, and to-day orders were given to the people of Boston, to build 
 fortifications in the lower harbor, in anticipation of any trouble. Troops 
 have embarked for Pettick's Island and Hull, about six hundred men at 
 each place, and bodies of militia and artillery are stationed on Moon Island, 
 at Hoff's Neck, and at Point Alderton. On Long Island, also, a detach- 
 ment is posted, with two eighteen pound guns, and a thirteen inch mortar. 
 Colonel Whitcomb commands the whole. 
 
 June I4//J. This morning the fleet was fired upon from Long Island, 
 and returned the fire with vigor. At last one of the ships was pierced with 
 a shot, and the Commodore gave orders to put to sea, which was done im- 
 mediately, after first blowing up the light-house. Just two years to-day- 
 since Boston harbor was closed by British tyranny to American vessels ! 
 The anniversary is celebrated by the expulsion of his Majesty's ships from 
 6
 
 82 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 the same bay, which will not hold them again we hope, unless as prisoners 
 of war. 
 
 June ijt/i. At last the students have come back, after a banishment of 
 fourteen months from their college halls. It seems like old times to see the 
 college yard dotted with familiar forms, wending their way, books in hand, 
 from Massachusetts to Harvard, from Hollis to Stoughton and Holden, 
 and promenading through the grounds which our brave Bluecoats so lately 
 trod with martial step and soldiers' bearing. Their home in Concord was 
 without many of the comforts and conveniences they had come to consider 
 necessary to successful study. No halls ; but few books, or maps, or appa- 
 ratus, to aid them up the hill of learning ; no wonder that the privilege of 
 return to the college is hailed with joy. It is a time of general thanksgiving, 
 and yesterday our honored President preached a sermon full of gratitude to 
 our Heavenly Father, who has so kindly cared for the interests of Harvard, 
 and brought it back again to its ancient home. Good old Dr. Watts's hymn 
 on God's condescension to human affairs, never seemed more appropriate 
 than when it rung out to the music of manly voices, through the Sabbath 
 stillness, waking an answering song of praise from the birds, the winged 
 worshippers in God's outer temple of nature : 
 
 " i Up to the Lord that reigns on high, 
 And views the nations from afar, 
 Let everlasting praises fly, 
 And tell how large His bounties are. 
 
 2 [He that can shake the worlds He made, 
 
 Or with His wo.rd or with His rod, 
 His goodness, how amazing great! 
 And what a condescending God ! ] 
 
 3 [God that must stoop to view the skies, 
 
 And bow to see what angels do, 
 Down to the earth He casts His eyes, 
 And bends His footsteps downwards too.] 
 
 4 He overrules all mortal things, 
 
 And manages our mean affairs ; 
 On humble souls the King of Kings 
 Bestows His counsels and His cares. 
 
 5 Our sorrows and our tears we pour, 
 
 I nto the bosom of our God ; 
 He hears us in the mournful hour, 
 And helps to bear the heavy load. 
 
 6 In vain might lofty princes try 
 
 Such condescension to perform ! 
 
 For worms were never raised so high 
 
 Above their meanest fellow-worm. 
 
 7 Oh ! cSuld our thankful hearts devise 
 
 A tribute equal to Thy grace, 
 To the third heav'n our songs should rise, 
 And teach the golden harps Thy praise."
 
 An Anniversary. 83 
 
 Most of the students were present, and the meeting-house was full. To- 
 day is the first anniversary of the battle which cost us the loss of General 
 Joseph Warren, of fragrant memory, ano> with him many soldiers brave and 
 loyal to their country. These anniversaries are sad, and yet there is an ele- 
 ment of thankfulness in our feelings, as we remember the honors- so glo- 
 riously earned by our noble men, and the proofs given to all the world, of 
 their patriotism and unflinching courage. 
 
 July T>d. Another anniversary, not of a contest of arms, but of an occa- 
 sion of very great importance to the country. Just one year to-day since 
 General Washington, under the superb elm which we love to call by his 
 name, formally assumed the command of our immense body of armed men. 
 An army it could scarcely be called, it was so sadly in need of all the requi- 
 site implements of war, and the discipline which his firm hand and wise 
 head brought to the disorderly mass. At this distance of time we can 
 more easily understand the dreadful difficulties he had to surmount to pre- 
 serve the appearance of a well-equipped army in the eyes of the Redcoats 
 under Sir William Howe. For eleven months they stood in awe of our 
 guns, and would not venture forth from beleaguered Boston to attack the 
 surrounding strongholds. Their final evacuation on St. Patrick's Day was 
 regarded with astonishment in England, where the indomitable perseverance 
 and unequalled skill of our great general are not understood. Mr. Han- 
 cock's letter to General Washington, on that occasion, expressed the univer- 
 sal feeling of gratitude and admiration extended to him : 
 
 " PHILADELPHIA, id April, 1776. 
 
 " SIR, It gives me the most sensible pleasure to convey to you, by order 
 of Congress, the only tribute which a free people will ever consent to pay, 
 the tribute of thanks and gratitude to their friends and benefactors. The 
 disinterested and patriotic principles, which led you to the field, have also 
 led you to glory ; and it affords no little consolation to your countrymen to 
 reflect, that, as a peculiar greatness of mind induced you to decline any 
 compensation for serving them, except the pleasure of promoting their hap- 
 piness, they may without your permission, bestow upon you the largest share 
 of their affections and esteem. 
 
 " Those pages in the annals of America will record your title to a con- 
 spicuous place in the temple of fame, which shall inform posterity, that, 
 under your direction, an undisciplined band of husbandmen in the course of 
 a few months became soldiers ; and that the desolation meditated against 
 the country by a brave army of veterans, commanded by the most experi- 
 enced generals, but employed by bad men in the worst of causes, was, by 
 the fortitude of your troops, and the address of their officers, next to the 
 kind interposition of Providence, confined for near a year within such nar- 
 row limits, as scarcely to admit more room than was necessary for the en- 
 campments and fortifications they lately abandoned. Accept, therefore,
 
 84 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 Sir, the thanks of the United Colonies, unanimously declared by their dele- 
 gates to be due to you, and the brave officers and troops under your com- 
 mand ; and be pleased to communfcate to them this distinguished mark of 
 the approbation of their country. The Congress have ordered a golden 
 medal, adapted to the occasion, to be struck, and when finished, to be pre- 
 sented to you. 
 
 " I have the honor to be, with every sentiment of esteem, Sir, your most 
 obedient and very humble servant, 
 
 "JOHN HANCOCK, President:' 1 
 
 July 5///. My friend Esther Livingstone has sent me copies of two 
 letters from Mr. Edmund Quincy, 1 to his daughter Katy. Esther has become 
 well acquainted with Miss Quincy, and knowing the interest they would 
 possess for me, begged to be allowed to copy the letters for my pleasure. 
 
 " LANCASTER, May ijtfi, 1776. 
 
 " To Miss KATY QUINCY. 
 
 "Dear Child. As you are called in the Providence of God, to take so 
 long a journey as from hence to Philad* at ye request of Mr. Hancock & 
 y r Sister, to accompy & be a comfort to her who by y e same providence has 
 been conducted thither & there it's probable she may have her residence, yet 
 for some considerable time, if ye present civil war should by Him be per- 
 mitted to continue to another year. I am to wish you a safe & comfortable 
 journey, & that it may prove advantageous to yr health, & that ye may 
 meet yr Br & Sr in an equal enjoyment of theirs. 
 
 " The parent country and these united provinces are doubtless for very 
 wise reasons & ends suffered to be involved in one common calamity, that of 
 a civil & bloody war. Yet we have great cause of thankfulness in this prov- 
 ince especially in wh ye war began: (1775 Apr. 19) having on ye 17^1 of 
 March last been kindly delivered (nearly without bloodshed) from so large a 
 no of troops collected in our Capital wh, as you know, I have always viewed 
 as a merciful token of a General hopeless Evacuation of ye most atrocious & 
 savage as well as impolitic undertaking to subjugate 3 mills of people, distant 
 3200 geographic miles, united in 13 colonies ; nor is anything similar to be 
 found in either antient or modern History. Those who may live to see ye close 
 of ye present century * * * * will doubtless discern that in infinite wisdom 
 & goodness God has permitted y e - present evil day to overtake us. * * * * 
 Much division is unhappily occasioned among Friends, & some large soci- 
 
 1 Edmund Quincy was graduated at Harvard in 1732. He then went into business with his brother 
 Josiah, and his brother-in-law Edmund Jackson (the husband of "Dorothy Q."). They were very 
 prosperous, having extensive European business relations, and, in 1750, when they dissolved partner- 
 ship, divided upwards of $300,000, a large fortune in those days. Josiah Quincy retired to Braintree, 
 and retained his property and his portion of the paternal estate ; but Edmund entered business again, 
 with his sons Edmund and Henry. The new firm was unfortunate, and, after 1759, the writer of the 
 letter in the text lived in Boston in comparatively restricted circumstances until his death. During the 
 siege he retired to Lancaster. His daughters were remarkable for their beauty. ED.
 
 L etter of Edmund Qu incy. 8 5 
 
 eties very much thro' the lust of pride & thirst of power over their Brethren 
 wh. will appear on both sides of the water, to have y e original of y e present 
 strange event. Probably as many of this class of aspiring men may have 
 sprung from this province as any other & perhaps more as it is certain One 
 among those who have tho't it best to exile themselves from their native land, 
 has been ever charg'd with acting such a part, thro' the whole of his 
 pub 1 adm n & upon every private occasion as finally to fix ye foregoing char- 
 acter upon him, especially among those who have been cotemporary in 
 govern 1 (who have been numerous he beginning very young) W l the fatal 
 issue may prove to those who have listed under his Banners, none can tell 
 this is certain and awful that their Salvation, if obtained, must arise from 
 y e destruction of y e Liberty of America & probably of mankind. We may 
 discern some things in y e present scene of things, but we are doomed to 
 blindness as to the future we have nevertheless our several parts to act 
 & those especially in Government, in these days of trial are indisputably 
 called in their several departments to provide such means of resistance as 
 may be judged adequate to that defence we are under the necessity of 
 making. Still may our confidence be placed on him whose arm alone can 
 and will save us, as he has often done our fathers in this land, wm little 
 better than a howling desert. They were never indeed called to a similar 
 trial but they were more than once in danger of total excision from ye savage 
 nations of the wilderness ; yet y e wisest of our predecessors, never surely 
 formed an Idea of y e possibility of any B. Europeans making assault upon 
 their best friends in so savage a manner, no way very dissimilar (except in 
 y e Naval armament) to the victories of Fire & Sword, w ch our fathers suf- 
 ferd from their Indian enemies, more cruel than y e beasts of prey. I have 
 often pictured to you what I thought of y e original of y e remarkable change 
 in y e Governors of ye B. Nation touching ye subordinates rule among 
 y e cols. I suspect they will very soon have reason to tremble at y e ap- 
 proaching breach w th France & Spain. It must prove ye dangerous war G. 
 B. has been for more than a century past involved in. The patriotic D. of 
 Richmond & good B. of St. Asaph have wrote en<> to confirm every sensible 
 man in the same sentiments wh they have very freely pubH in ye 1774. 
 
 " My devout wish is that y e Brit, people may soon see y e Errs of their 
 present Rulers, & that God may have mercy upon them and early prevent 
 their final ruin wh certainly awaits them unless saved by repentance & 
 reforma 
 
 " I w'd have yu give me (undr Mr. H & Frank) ye earliest notice of yr safe 
 arrival at P. and of his & yr sister's state of health : also chrg Dr. Y. home 
 w th his neglect of corresp" if ye effect of an extensive practise it will be 
 some excuse. Dont forget ye pamphlet called y e 2d appeal to Justce of 
 Jany 10, last of wh. we had some clauses in y e Boston paper. if at 
 Pha upon return of Mr. Bant send me anything wh is worth sending, & De- 
 sire Dr. Young to comply with his promise of a copy ye City new govern-
 
 86 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 ment My best wishes attend you in y present long journey & hope under 
 Mr. Bants convoy you'll arrive in at least a comfortable manner. If yu should 
 consent to be inoculated I hope you'll be attended by a skilful Physitian : 
 at ye same time you'll remember to fix yr chief trust in ye Gt Physitian of 
 soul & body. To whose kind providence I commend you & remn Dr Child 
 yr very afft Fa & Friend." 
 
 " LANCASTER June \oth 1776. 
 
 " Dear D* Katy. Since y departure we've no certain advices from our 
 army in Canada, only that there has been a very important battle between 
 them and Carlton's troops & that in gen 1 our army obtains a victory pos- 
 sibly the particulars have reached P. ere this will come to hand. We are 
 not a little concerned least Burgoine may have arrived with his troops, time 
 eno. to prevent our gaining ye fortress of Q. however we must submit to y e 
 determina of a wise provid", not doubting the issue will be in our favor. 
 We hear from Halifax that sickness prevails among the troops there. By 
 a ship there fr G. B. there comes advice that ye Fleet, sail'd for America 
 had met with such bad weather, as to disperse almost ye whole, some of 
 wh. had put into Lisbon, others into France & some ret d - By w ch disaster 
 possibly a much less formidable force will arrive safe than has been feared 
 by some & wished for by others it is certain, we have as yet no cer- 
 tain ace 1 of ye arrival of any large force at H x nevertheless the fortifica- 
 tions are going forward at Boston w th vigour, & its expected their strength 
 will be very sufficient to oppose an entrance into y e upper harbour, shd an 
 attempt be made by Admi Howe ; but I rather think that his grand effort 
 will be agnst N. Yr not by nature so capable of defense as Boston, wh his 
 Br abt 3 mo. ago so unexpectedly and shamelessly evacuated, ye advise of 
 wh., we may expect to hear, has been more surprising to y e admi (if arrived) 
 than anything he had before met with : as it must have in a great measure 
 disconcerted ye ministerial plan of operation ; & should some more of the 
 most important store-ships of Parker's Fleet be lost, or delayed by their re- 
 pairs in any port wh. they might have made after ye Storm, the summer may 
 prove too short for y e Execution of their infernal design, for it appears to 
 me it will deserve no softer Epithet : and I think I know the source, & am 
 very little at a loss, as to ye general issue of the present nonpareil contro- 
 versy The Britons tell us, tho' w th singular impropriety & very little 
 truth, that they have with great care & expenses, settled, nourished & de- 
 fended these NO American Col s from their infancy & therefore that they 
 are chargeable w th y e blackest ingratitude as well as y e greatest injustice in 
 y e resistance wh. they have dared to make agt y e sovereign authority of ye 
 B. empire. Administration have, from the first forming of their plan of 
 subjugn, flatter^ thems. that ye Col s would not unite in an opposition, be- 
 ing, as I apprehend, judicially blinded fro. ye beginning, even so far as to 
 assure thems. that 13 considerable provinces under a free Gov f w d be 
 frighted into an immediate compliance w* h their demand upon ye sight of
 
 Independence at Last. 87 
 
 a Comparatively Small no. of troops parading in y e Streets of Boston, & a 
 few large ships in its harbour, ready to cooperate wtl> the same upon opposi- 
 tion. To this egregious blunder of ye B. Gov 1 y e present safety of these A. 
 Col s , has been, & is, greatly owing, inasmuch as it has, for several years, 
 prevented y e ministry fr. applyg to P l for such a formidable force as they 
 threaten this year to bring against us. We hear of sundry prize ships, sent 
 into several parts since you left us 2 sugar ships from Jamaica, one 450 
 tons 30 Gent n & ladies passengers w th 20000 dollars on brd besides a 
 valuable Cargo y e passengers by agreem' were landed at Providence this 
 morning advise of a Scotch ship w th a no of highlanders & others near about 
 140 wth Cargo bro' into Salem as soldiers they 'are best under our com- 
 mand. Let me know if any good manufac re are hopefully rising in or near 
 P. The present Scarcity of B. Commod 5 is & will prove of vast advant 6 to 
 ye whole Am Community tho' a fatal stab to y e B. commerce. To pre- 
 vent y e latter, I presume, adm tio " has made an argumt of ye apparent danger 
 to persuade B. merchants & manu facrs to lend them aid to ye present grand 
 preparations, with many promises of compens a for all their losses out of ye 
 AmMn forfeited estates. One wd almost think that Reason as well as vir- 
 tue had taken its flight f r the most important ranks of B. Subjects." 
 
 July igth. Independence is declared at last ! The glorious document 
 which proclaims our Colonies to be free and independent States, has been 
 read from the balcony of the State House and in Faneuil Hall, and greeted 
 with cheers of welcome from thousands of patriotic throats. The thought of 
 independence has been a familiar one for many months, and the fiery enthu- 
 siasm which now flames forth from all quarters tells of the universal joy of 
 the nation. The seventh day of June Mr. Richard Henry Lee of Virginia 
 made a motion in Congress, that "these United Colonies are and of right 
 ought to be free and independent States," and proposed that they dissolve 
 all connection with the mother country. The question was debated vigor- 
 ously and eloquently, and on the eleventh of June a committee, consisting of 
 Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of our own Colony, Benjamin 
 Franklin of Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, and Robert R. 
 Livingston of New York, was appointed to draft a Declaration of Independ- 
 ence. Each member of the committee drew up such a paper as expressed 
 his own views and feelings, and then the five met for consultation. Mr. Jef- 
 ferson's paper was read first, and so entirely met the approval of the others, 
 that it was unanimously adopted as being in every way superior to their own. 
 This was reported to Congress, and after being discussed several days and 
 slightly altered, was agreed to on the fourth day of July. The streets of 
 Philadelphia, on that day, were filled with eager crowds, waiting to know the 
 decision of Congress. The bell-ringer of the State House stood at his post 
 in the steeple, from the early morning, that he might be prompt to announce 
 to the people that their independence was formally declared. His little boy
 
 88 Extracts from the Diary of Dorothy Dudley. 
 
 was stationed where he could get the earliest news of the event and at last, 
 as the old man grew impatient at the long delay, the boyish voice rung 
 through the air : " Ring ! Ring, Father ! Ring ! " And then the bells sent 
 forth a triumphant peal which was answered by shouts of joy from the ex- 
 cited multitude. The declaration thus concludes : " We, therefore, the 
 representatives of the United States of America in General Congress assem- 
 bled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the World for the rectitude of our 
 intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these 
 Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and 
 of right ought to be, Free and Independent States ; that they are absolved 
 from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection be- 
 tween them and the state of Great Britian, is, and ought to be, totally dis- 
 solved ; and that, as Free and Independent States, they have full power to 
 levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do 
 all other acts and things which Independent States may of right do. And 
 for the support of this declaration, with a. firm reliance on the protection of 
 Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, 
 and our sacred honor." 
 
 Though this declaration was agreed to on the fourth, the resolution adopt- 
 ing it was passed on the second day of July, and Mr. John Adams, writ- 
 ing on the day after that memorable event, says : " The second day of July, 
 1776, will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America ; to be 
 celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival, com- 
 memorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God 
 Almighty, from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward 
 forevermore. I am well aware of the toil, and blood, and treasure that it 
 will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these 
 States ; yet through all the gloom, I can see the rays of light and glory ; that 
 the end is worth all the means ; that posterity will triumph in that day's 
 transaction, even though we should rue it, which I trust in God we shall 
 not." 
 
 [The Editor reluctantly closes his extracts from Miss Dudley's Diary at 
 this point. It would be interesting to read her animadversions upon the 
 succeeding events, but they Would frequently take us away from Cambridge, 
 which, as she has remarked, was very quiet after the evacuation of Boston. 
 
 The extracts already given subserve the purposes of this volume, and are 
 also unconscious witnesses to the firm and enthusiastic patriotism of- the 
 writer, as well as to her remarkable ability as a gatherer and recorder of cur- 
 rent news at a period when the public press was not the all-pervading power 
 that it now is.]
 
 THE GUESTS AT HEAD-QUARTERS. 
 
 BY H. E. SCUDDER. 
 
 THE great square house which was provided for Washington's head- 
 quarters in Cambridge, had seen a generous hospitality displayed, no 
 doubt, when Mr. John Vassall occupied it and looked out over the broad 
 acres attached to it, and noted the half dozen similar mansions scattered 
 along the Watertown Road, that held his Tory neighbors. But the Virginian 
 who took possession brought with him traditions of ample living and social 
 habits which were re-enforced by the demands made upon the Commander- 
 in-chief of the Continental army. Washington was a soldier, and a man, be- 
 sides, of self-restraint. His moderation was seen in his diet, which was ex- 
 tremely simple, sometimes nothing, we are told, but baked apples or berries 
 with cream and milk ; and in his early and regular hours. As the central 
 figure, however, in the American army, and representative of the cause 
 which brought soldiers and civilians to Cambridge, he gathered about him, 
 at his head-quarters, the officers of the army and the prominent visitors who 
 for public or personal reasons made their way to the camp. The Provincial 
 Congress enabled, him to maintain a style of living which comported with 
 his position, and his table was the social centre of the camp. Some of his 
 officers dined with him every day. Let us see who they were that became 
 familiar with the halls of this historic house. 
 
 Major-General Charles Lee was the most conspicuous of the military 
 men toward whom the young country, anxious for heroes, looked with ad- 
 miration. His romantic career as a soldier of fortune, his ready defence of 
 the American cause, when other men of patriotic principle were more cau- 
 tious, and his reputation for personal courage, gave him at once a strong 
 hold upon the popular mind. Indeed, he cut a dashing figure beside the 
 dignified, reserved Washington. He has been well described in his personal 
 appearance as " a tall man, lank and thin, with a huge nose, a satirical 
 mouth, and restless eyes, who sat his horse as if he had often ridden at fox- 
 hunts in England, and wore his uniform with a cynical disregard of common 
 opinion." 1 Seen near at hand, this restless, ambitious man piqued his com- 
 rades and friends by his apparently indifferent, contemptuous ways. He 
 was always attended by a great dog, Spada by name, perhaps brought 
 
 1 Greene's Life of Nnthatuiel Greene, vol. i. p. 100.
 
 90 The Guests at Head-Quarters. 
 
 with him from Portugal, that shared his quarters in Hobgoblin Hall, went 
 with him to dinner parties, and was formally presented to his guests and 
 friends. Two years later, when General Lee was a prisoner, his dog was 
 sent down the lines by General Greene under passport, and passes out of 
 history just as Lee himself enters the shadow of a terrible reproach. 
 
 Of all the officers who then sat at Washington's table, Nathanael Greene 
 was the one whose laurels have remained the most unfaded. This sturdy 
 Quaker bred anchor-smith, who by slow but sure degrees had been welding 
 his Quaker integrity and business faculty into sinewy completeness, now 
 at the time of need was found with a steady brain and ready hand, slip- 
 ping off easily the civilian and letting the soldier and sagacious general 
 come forth. Washington's right hand man in the hard struggle to come, 
 that was to witness cabals and intrigues as well as open enmities, it is im- 
 possible but that the great general should have looked upon this New Eng- 
 land man as one of the most welcome at his table. 
 
 The soldiers' favorite, General Israel Putnam, was also one of Washing- 
 ton's guests. No doubt this hot-headed, blustering, but brave officer brought 
 other than the politest manners to the table of the Virginian gentleman, but 
 Washington, with his cool, clear judgment of men, was not one to be gov- 
 erned in his tastes by the presence or lack of elegant manners. General 
 Putnam brought to the military society an intrepid courage, a readiness of 
 invention, and a bonhomie which must have rendered him an important ele- 
 ment. One scene laid at the head-quarters is given, when Old Put dashes up 
 to the gateway, bearing behind his saddle the woman to whom Church had 
 intrusted his treacherous letter, and drags her, terrified, up the broad path- 
 way to the door. 
 
 Major Thomas Mifflin, afterwards general, now upon Washington's staff, 
 and residing in the old Brattle House facing the lane that led to Harvard 
 Square, must have been a constant visitor. Brave and eloquent, he had a 
 presence and manner which charmed all about him. His 
 wife, in delicate health, was with him, but this did not 
 prevent him. from being eagerly sought by all the ladies in 
 society, who sang his praise with hearty unanimity. It 
 was he who, raised to the rank of colonel and quarter- 
 master-general, was called to the council for determining 
 the day when Dorchester Heights should be taken pos- 
 session of, and made the suggestion, so quickly taken 
 up, that the night of the 4th of March should be chosen, 
 since then, if a battle were fought on the 5th, the memory 
 of the " Massacre " would give a rallying cry to the sol- 
 
 THE BRATTLE ARMS. 
 
 Closer to Washington's person was the accomplished Joseph Reed, his 
 secretary and dear friend, who wrote so freely and easily, and between 
 whom and Washington there subsisted so charming a relation, leading the
 
 Mrs. Washington in Cambridge. 91 
 
 reserved general to write almost boyishly to the junior soldier. His an- 
 swer to Governor Johnstone's temptation "I am not worth purchasing ; 
 but such as I am the King of Great Britain is not rich enough to do it," was 
 the instantaneous and scornful message of a man of the highest honor. 
 
 It was in July when Washington took possession of the Vassall house, 
 and in November he was joined by Mrs. Washington, who made the sol- 
 diers' quarters a home, and received there the officers' wives, who had 
 joined their husbands when it was evident that the siege was to be a win- 
 ter one. Mrs. Greene was one of these, and out of the friendship that 
 there sprang up came the names of George and Martha Washington given 
 to the two children of General Greene and his wife. Mrs. John Adams also 
 was a visitor, and records in her lively letters the social stir that was known 
 in the Cambridge camp at this period. 
 
 But it was not only these who walked the broad pathway to the Vassall 
 house, officers and officers' wives and neighboring civilians, but hospi- 
 tality was extended to the public men of the Colony, to the members of the 
 Committee of Safety who visited the General, and of the Provincial Con- 
 gress, sitting hard by in Watertown. The most noted company, however, 
 that sat at Washington's table, was when in October a committee of Con- 
 gress, consisting of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Lynch of Carolina, and 
 Colonel Harrison of Virginia, arrived to confer with the generals. With 
 these commissioners were present Deputy-Governor Griswold and Judge 
 Nathaniel Wales from Connecticut, Deputy-Governor Cooke from Rhode 
 Island, James Bowdoin, Colonel Otis, William Sever and Walter Spooner 
 of the Massachusetts Council. The records of this conference have been 
 preserved, and are a matter of history. We have a glimpse of a dinner 
 party given to them, afforded by Dr. Belknap, who was a guest, and who 
 writes : " Lynch, Harrison, and Wales wished to see Boston in flames. Lee 
 told them it was impossible to burn it unless they sent men in with bundles 
 of straw on their backs to do it. He said it could not be done with carcass 
 and hot shot ; and instanced the Isle Royal, in St. Lawrence River, which 
 was fired at in 1760 a long time, with a fine train of artillery, hot shot, and 
 carcasses, without effect." l 
 
 In this extract Dr. Franklin's voice is not heard. We can imagine that 
 no visitor would attract more attention than this renowned man, who sat and 
 listened to a discussion whether his native town should be destroyed. He 
 was sixty-nine years old at this time, twenty-six years older than the com- 
 manding general. He represented the mind which had foreseen the im- 
 pending conflict years before, and was able now to write to his philosophic 
 friend Priestley : " Enough has happened, one would think, to convince 
 your ministers that the Americans will fight, and that this is a harder nut 
 to crack than they imagine." His buoyant, hopeful nature, and shrewd, 
 worldly wisdom, must have given to General Washington at this time a sense 
 
 1 Life of Dr. Belknap, p. 96, quoted in Frothingham's Siege of Boston, p. 257.
 
 Q 2 The Guests at Head- Quarters. 
 
 of strength in the council at Philadelphia, and it is not hard to imagine 
 that between the great general and the sagacious statesman there should 
 have passed much deliberation, weighing of men and measures, gauging o 
 the forces in conflict. 
 
 The walls of the Vassall House resounded to talk of war and spor 
 frolic. Often Washington left the table in charge of one of his aids, and 
 retired in accordance with his methodical habits. No one has preserved 
 the record of the jest and story that were tossed back and forth by the eager 
 young officers who were entering upon a war which, in its seven years' de- 
 tail, was to sober some, and lay some in the grave. The victories of peace, 
 of scholarship, and of letters, have been won because of the conferences 
 there held in the early days of the Revolution. The clank of spur and sword 
 have ceased, but the voices of wisdom and of mirth have never yet died 
 out within those historic walls.
 
 THE BATCHELDER HOUSE, AND ITS OWNERS. 
 
 BY MRS. ISABELLA JAMES. 
 
 " We have no title-deeds to house or lands ; 
 
 Owners and occupants of earlier dates 
 From graves forgotten stretch their dusty hands, 
 And hold in mortmain still their old estates." 
 
 LONGFELLOW. 
 
 THE story of a house where many generations have lived and died, can 
 hardly be contained within the brief space allowed in this volume, 
 yet these pages will give in as condensed form as possible some interesting 
 facts connected with one of the most ancient houses of this historic town, if 
 not the very oldest now standing in Cambridge. The dates here given, 
 which will correct some accounts previously printed, have been drawn from 
 deeds and other legal papers by the present owner of the estate, aged nine- 
 ty-one and a half, who has held and occupied it for thirty-four years. 
 
 This ancient house stands on the southwesterly side of the old Watertown 
 Road nearly opposite Mason Street. The first recognition of any highway 
 in the town records of Cambridge is December 2, 1633 : " Ordered that no 
 person shall fell any trees within the path that goeth from Watertown to 
 Charlestown." This path x is what was afterwards called the King's high- 
 way, and until after the Revolution was the only route from Market Square 
 and the colleges to Watertown and the country beyond. 
 
 From the early records it appears that this part of Cambridge was called 
 West End, for in the account of the houses and lands of the inhabitants of 
 the town given in at a General Court holden at Boston 6th o f ;th mo . A. D. 
 1642. " Cary Latham. 2 Imprimis, in West End, one dwelling house with 
 outhouses and seven acres of land more or less ; " then follow the boundaries 
 on the southeast by Ash Street at that time called the Highway to Windmill 
 Hill, 3 and northeast the highway to Watertown. 20^ 5th mo., 1645, Latham 
 conveyed the estate with the same boundaries to Thomas Crosby. At the 
 first settlement of Cambridge, it appears that part of this land facing the 
 Watertown Road was laid off in half-acre lots, one of which was owned and 
 
 1 Now Kirkland, Garden, Mason, and Brattle streets. 
 
 2 He removed early to New London, where he was representative in 1664 and 1670. Sav. Gen. 
 
 3 In a grant of land March 2d, to John Benjamin, there is this reservation, " Provided that the 
 Windmill Hill shall be reserved for the town's use and a cartway of two rods wide unto the same."
 
 94 The Batchelder House, and its Owners. 
 
 occupied by Roger Bancroft before 1645, for in that year he bought another 
 adjoining from Robert Parker, a butcher, whose son John graduated at Har- 
 vard University, 1661. Evidence of this occupation of the premises two 
 hundred and thirty years ago appeared when Brattle Street was widened in 
 1871. The excavations made to rebuild the wall revealed heaps of animal 
 bones which for a few hours created quite a sensation in the neighborhood. 
 No record of a deed from Crosby can be found ; but Thomas Marrit, one 
 of the early settlers of Cambridge, was in possession of the property in 
 1663. From his will and inventory it appears that he held a good deal of 
 land in this part of the town, the West End and West fields, and it was 
 probably from his great-grandson Amos J that Colonel Vassall, nearly a cent- 
 ury later, bought the land that so long bore the name of Vassall. The last 
 clause of Thomas Marrit's will, dated October 15, 1663, is as follows : 
 
 " To the children of my sonne George Bastow I do give and bequeath in 
 full of what I stand engaged to them fifty-two pounds, on payment whereof 
 they shall give my executor a full and final discharge, and for the payment 
 thereof this house and land wherein my sonne John Marrit lives to my friend 
 Roger Bancroft to stand engaged on payment of the debt and legacy. He 
 may sell or dispose of the said House and land as he shall please ; finally I 
 do nominate and appoint my sonne John Marrit sole executor to this my last 
 will and Testament." In the inventory that follows the first entry is "The 
 dwelling house and outhouses orchard and upland and meadow and marsh 
 and the Wold adjoining ^90 oo oo." The seventh " The dwelling house 
 and outhouses that was Roger Bancroft's and eight acres of land ^50 oo oo." 
 Thomas Marrit died in 1664; and September 21, 1665, John Marrit con- 
 veyed to Jonathan Remington "one messuage or tenement in Cambridge 
 containing one dwelling house, outhouses and barns and five acres of land 
 adjoining thereto." From the boundaries given in this deed the lot front- 
 ing on the Watertown Road extended from the western line of the present 
 row of old hawthorns and lindens to what is now Ash Street, excepting a 
 half -acre house lot 2 at that corner, and southerly nearly to the marsh. 
 
 Ash Street, once called Bath Lane, but previously known as the highway 
 to Windmill Hill, was the northwestern boundary of the palisado which the 
 Court voted in 1632 to erect about "the New-Towne." This protection 
 against the wild inhabitants of the land commenced at Brick Wharf, says 
 Holmes, then called Windmill Hill. About thirty years ago a mound was 
 plainly visible at the corner of Bath Lane, and the back road to Mount Au- 
 burn, which was known to the young people of the writer's generation as 
 the Old Fort. When the street was straightened in 1844, and the present 
 proprietor bought a corner of the land and removed his fence, the founda- 
 tion of this* fortification was uncovered revealing a built up wall of stones. 
 The house erected by Abel Stevens in 1874 now occupies the spot. 
 
 1 A grandson, Amos Marrit, is mentioned in his will. 
 
 2 Then the premises of Nathaniel Greene and Richard Eccles.
 
 Governor Belcher. 
 
 95 
 
 A year before Jonathan Remington purchased this estate, he had married 
 Martha, daughter of the first Andrew Belcher ; in this house it is probable 
 that most of their married life was passed ; he was town clerk and treasurer 
 of Cambridge for many years ; his son, Judge Remington of the Supreme 
 Court, was eminent in his generation, and the daughter of the latter married 
 Lieutenant-Governor William Ellery of Newport, and became the mother 
 of the signer of the Declaration of Independence bearing that name. 
 
 September 22, 1682, Jonathan Remington conveyed to his wife's brother, 
 Andrew Belcher, the same estate for ^120. He was the son of the first 
 Andrew who came to Cambridge, and was a shipmaster and merchant of 
 Boston. He was called " an ornament and blessing to his country," for 
 after the swamp fight in King Philip's war, December, 1675, Captain Belcher 
 arrived in Narragansett Bay with provisions, and thus saved the troops from 
 perishing. He held many important offices, and was a councillor from 1702 
 until his death in 1717. In 1700, he gave a bell to the Cambridge meeting- 
 house, and the town gave the " old bell to the Farmers." 1 
 
 At the death of Captain Belcher, this estate was inherited by his only 
 son, Jonathan, 2 who was royal governor of Mas- 
 sachusetts and New Jersey for twenty-seven 
 years. When, in 1730, he received his first ap- 
 pointment in England, Dr. Isaac Watts ad- 
 dressed to him an adulatory poem, some lines 
 of which are said to be so extravagant as to 
 border on impiety. His arrival at Boston with 
 his commission, was hailed with the greatest 
 joy. All the dignitaries of the town went to 
 escort him from the ship ; the military were out 
 in full force, cannons were discharged, the tur- 
 rets and balconies of the houses were covered 
 with flags and carpets, while the shipping in the 
 harbor displayed all their colors. Twenty-five 
 years before this triumphant entry of Governor 
 Belcher into Boston, the newspaper of the day described his marriage to 
 Mary, daughter of Lieutenant-Governor William Partridge of New Hamp- 
 shire. January 4, 1705-06, he was met at Hampton by several gentlemen from 
 Portsmouth, and was accompanied by them and others who attended him, 
 and arrived the same night in order to celebrate his marriage on the 8th, " but 
 at the motion of the gentlemen that accompanied him," the marriage took 
 place " the same night as he came off the journey in liis boots. The wedding 
 was celebrated on the Tuesday following (January 8th), when there was a no- 
 ble and splendid entertainment for the guests." Why this unseemly haste, 
 
 1 Cambridge Farms, now Lexington. 
 
 1 For much of the following account of Governor Belcher, I am indebted to the MSS. of Rev. J. 
 L. Sibley, librarian of Harvard University. 
 
 THE BELCHER ARMS.
 
 96 The Batchelder House, and its Owners. 
 
 the reporter of that day does not inform us; or why the ceremony should 
 have taken place on Friday evening, after a long day's journey from Hamp- 
 ton on horseback, 1 in snowy if not muddy boots. We see how our modern 
 telegram might have been useful here in notifying expectant Boston friends 
 that the marriage had taken place four days earlier than had been antici- 
 pated. The occasion was " honored with the discharge of the great guns 
 of the fort ; " and the same day, it being the one which had been " designed 
 for the marriage, several great guns were discharged at his father, Captain 
 Andrew Belcher, Esq.'s Wharffe, and. aboard several ships " at Boston. 
 Under January 23, 1704-05, Sewall writes, "Mr. Jonathan Belcher and his 
 bride dine at Lieutenant-Governor Usher's. Came to town at six o'clock 
 about twenty horsemen, three coaches and many slays." 2 The grandeur 
 of the bridal occasion was only equalled by Mrs. Belcher's funeral, in 1736, 
 at which it is related one thousand pairs of gloves were given away. 
 
 Governor Belcher took a deep interest in the colleges, first of Massa- 
 chusetts and afterwards of New Jersey. His reply to the clergy on his 
 Sunday at Boston in 1730, bore testimony to his attachment to his Alma 
 Mater. He first met its officers 9th September, 1730, the day of the assem- 
 bly at Cambridge of a prorogued legislature. He was " guarded into town 
 by a military troop, then waited on by two foot companies." In his speech 
 to the General Court he puts them " in mind of the happiness peculiar to this 
 Province, in the early care our Fathers took for a liberal and pious Educa- 
 tion of their Posterity by founding of a College," and assures them he 
 " shall gladly embrace every opportunity they'l put in " his " power of 
 nourishing that seminary of Rilegion and Learning." When he " had done 
 with ye Court for ye forenoon and been a while at Mr. [tutor] Flynt's cham- 
 ber ye Bell tolled, ye scholars assembled in ye Hall, his Excellency & ye 
 Corporation went in, Mr. Holly made a Latin oration, his Excellency made 
 a very handsome Answer in Latin. This done his Excellency, his Majes- 
 tie's Council, ye Corporation, Tutors, Professors, with sundry Gentlemen 
 dined in the Library ; ye Masters at College were not invited 'twas feared 
 there would not be room for them." 
 
 In a speech to the legislature, i6th December, 1730, he says, "When you 
 consider what a diffusive Blessing the College has been to this Country, in 
 its Learning and Religion, and how much all the Estates among you have 
 been rais'd in their Value, and that while other Plantations are oblig'd to 
 send their sons abroad for Education at a great expence, and often to ruin 
 of their Morals, we reap that advantage at home ; I say I hope these things 
 
 1 It may be possible, but hardly probable, that this journey was performed in sleighs. 
 
 2 " The arms of the United States, viz., ' Pales of thirteen argent and gules, a chief azure,' bear a 
 stronger resemblance to the arms of Belcher than they do to those of Washington. The colors in- 
 deed are different, and the number of pales is doubled, yet the principle of the two coats is identical. 
 The Washington arms are as different as possible, having bars instead of pales, and, although our na- 
 tional flag may be founded on the Washington arms, our national seal is not." Hist, and Gen. 
 Reg. vol. xxvii. p. 244.
 
 John Vassall buys the House. 97 
 
 will make you ready on all occasions to nourish and cherish that society. 
 And what I would particularly point at is the Complaint of the sons of the 
 prophets that they are straitned for room I am told that S tough ton College 
 is gone much to decay, and not without danger of falling I should be there- 
 fore glad that a committee of this Court might be chosen to view it and 
 report what may be proper to be done for the better accommodation of the 
 students there." 
 
 Governor Belcher desired that his remains should be taken from New 
 Jersey, where he died, to Cambridge, and interred by the side of his dear 
 friend and cousin, Judge Remington. A tomb near the gatevyay of the 
 graveyard holds the ashes of these eminent men, but the monument or- 
 dered to be erected over them was never put up. The estate, held by Rem- 
 ington for seventeen years, and by the Belchers for thirty-seven years, 
 united as they were by the closest ties of blood and friendship, may well be 
 said to have remained in one family for over half a century. 
 
 December i, 1719, Jonathan Belcher conveyed six acres of land with the 
 '" dwelling house, barns, outhouses, edifices, fences &c.," to John Frizzle, 
 for 220. He was an eminent merchant of Boston, living at the North End, 
 where Frizzle's Corner, in Garden Street between North and Fleet streets, 
 long commemorated his name. In 1719, he gave to the new North Church 
 a bell, which, though of small size and disagreeable sound, was used until 
 1802, when the old meeting-house was taken down, and the bell'sold to the 
 town of Charlton, Worcester County. Mr. Frizzle died 1723, and Dr. Cot- 
 ton Mather preached his funeral sermon ; nothing is to be learned from it, 
 says Drake, except that he was an honorable merchant. His widow, Doro- 
 thy Frizzle, married Mr. Saltonstall, and died in 1733, leaving ^200 to the 
 poor of Boston, and ,20 to be laid out in Bibles and Testaments, to be dis- 
 tributed among poor children. The estate was inherited by John Frizzle, 
 Jr., who did not long survive his mother, as his widow Mercy conveyed, 
 July 26, 1736, to John Vassall, "a certain messaugeor tenement containing by 
 estimation six acres of land with a dwelling house, barn, and outhouses, 
 thereon standing," for ^1,000. When the elder Frizzle purchased the prop- 
 erty in 1719, an ounce of silver was worth I2s. in I736it was worth 27^. 
 Some antiquarians think that the Frizzles built an entirely new house upon 
 the land, but there is no evidence that the original house was destroyed, 
 though if part of it was left standing, it was much enlarged, altered, and 
 modernized ! It is evident to the present occupants that the eastern part 
 of the house was added about this period ; the original foundation can be 
 seen in the cellar, excluding that portion. The rooms are higher studded in 
 the new part, and the woodwork more elaborate, but the chimneys are laid 
 in clay, which is said to denote the period before the introduction of lime. 
 It will be observed that in each deed nearly the same words are used to 
 describe the estate as in that of 1665, " dwelling-house, out-houses, and 
 barns," which prove that it was then a building of some pretensions. From 
 7
 
 gS The BatcJielder House, and its Owners. 
 
 careful data gathered by the present occupants, the oldest part of the house 
 is the western end, which once consisted of the entry and three rooms on 
 the lower floor ; the one on the left of the entrance was a small sitting-room, 
 with two windows looking on the King's highway, while the window on the 
 left of the door facing the paved court, lighted a pantry with oaken dressers, 
 and a broad oak shelf stretched across the window-sill for a punch-bowl, 
 from whence many a stirrup-cup was doubtless drunk. 
 
 Over the fire-place in this sitting-room was a panel, which opened out- 
 wards, the depth of the chimney being sufficient, to conceal a man, as well 
 as papers and treasure. Within the remembrance of the writer, this fire- 
 place and panel were taken out, when pantry and sitting-room were thrown 
 into one. In the early times the kitchen was on the right of the entrance 
 hall, and only of one story. In 1842, when the plastering of the chamber over 
 it had to be renewed, the old weather boarding was exposed, showing that 
 for a long series of years it had been acted upon by the stern winters and 
 hot summers of a New England climate, unprotected by shingles, clapboard, 
 or paint. The size of the kitchen chimney now encased in the wall, recalls 
 the times when ox-teams were necessary to draw the logs for the fire ; it is 
 eight feet long and eight deep. The house, though of wood, is filled in with 
 brick, and last year, in cutting a door between two rooms, a well laid brick 
 partition wall had to be penetrated, where the carpenter expected to find 
 only a thin layer of lath and plaster. At what date the third room on the 
 floor, the parlor, was enlarged, we have no means of knowing. Nearly fifty 
 years ago, the house presented a more venerable appearance than now : it 
 was rough cast, and from age had sunk almost below the level of the road ; 
 it was raised up, and a new layer of dressed stone put under it ; over a foot 
 of earth now covers a handsome pavement of beach pebbles, on the east 
 and south sides of the house ; and the southwestern wing containing the 
 kitchen and offices, which were not raised with the main building, remains to 
 prove the level of the old house. 
 
 We now return to 1736, when the estate passed into the possession of 
 Colonel John Vassall, to whom the house has often been said to owe its 
 origin. So much has been written and printed about the Vassalls, that it 
 need only be stated here, that they were an important family in Old Eng- 
 land, and early connected with the settlement of New England. They 
 owned large plantations in the British West Indies, and several fine estates 
 in Boston and its vicinity. It may be well to correct here a false impres- 
 sion that has prevailed, that some of the Vassall family had held the lands 
 known by their name, from the early settlement of Cambridge ; but the 
 first of their property here was this purchased of Mrs. Frizzle in 1736, and 
 it was not until some years after John Vassall had soldlt to his brother, that 
 he bought the land * afterwards known as the Cragie estate. The entire 
 period when the various members of the family resided in this town, was 
 
 1 A part of it, from Amos Marrit.
 
 Henry Vassall buys tJie House. 99 
 
 less than forty years, but the impression they made upon the age yet sur- 
 vives. 
 
 Colonel John Vassall, one of seventeen children, married Elizabeth, daugh- 
 ter of Lieutenant-Governor Phipps ; her three sisters 1 married gentlemen of 
 distinction, who also lived in Cambridge, and her only brother resided in 
 the old house, still standing in Bow and Arrow streets, sometimes called the 
 Winthrop House. It was no doubt the family interest of the Phippses in this 
 town that induced Colonel Vassall to settle here. Mrs. Vassall died in 
 1739, a "d it was tn i s breaking up of his family that caused him to sell the 
 property to his brother, then just about marrying a rich lady, also from the 
 West Indies. 
 
 In 1741, Colonel Vassall sold* to his "brother Henry, now residing in 
 Boston, late of the Island of Jamaica, planter, seven acres of land, be it 
 more or less, with a dwelling-house, barn, and out-houses thereon stand- 
 ing ; " then follow the boundaries, which include the acre and a half now the 
 western end of the estate on Brattle Street, for which Colonel Vassall had 
 obtained, in 1737, a quitclaim deed from the heirs of Luxford Patten, for 
 ;ioo. The planting of the row of hawthorns and lindens must be due to 
 an older owner than the Vassalls, as it marks the line between their estate 
 and the Luxfords, and was doubtless to shield the Frizzles from neighbor- 
 ing eyes, for a house once stood on that lot. When one of the lindens 
 died, twenty-four years ago, more than one hundred rings were counted in 
 its trunk. With the house and land, Colonel Vassal sold " the furniture, 
 chariot, four-wheeled chaise, two bay stone horses, and two black geldings," 
 for ,8,050. At this period an ounce of silver was worth 255-., and it was a 
 season of great commercial prosperity. It is stated that the accounts of the 
 wealth of Boston and the vicinity carried home by the English officers after 
 the taking of Louisburg in 1745, was the cause of the taxation of the Colo- 
 nies which resulted in their loss to the British crown. 
 
 In 1742, soon after the purchase of the house and furniture, Major Henry 
 Vassall married Penelope, daughter of Isaac Royall, who removed, in 1737, 
 from Antigua to Medford, and built 8 a fine mansion, which is still standing 
 there. To this Cambridge home Penelope Vassall came as a bride, and lived 
 here thirty-four years. Major Vassall bought of his brother John, who had 
 made the purchase in 1747, the half-acre corner on Windmill Lane, and prob- 
 ably at that time built the brick wall, which has so long been a landmark to 
 the traveller on Brattle and Ash streets. Here he died in 1769 and was 
 buried in his tomb under Christ Church, of which he was one of the original 
 founders. 
 
 His granddaughter, Miss Catherine G. Russell, whom the writer well re- 
 
 1 Mary married Judge Richard Lechmere ; Rebecca, Judge Joseph Lee ; and Sarah, Andrew 
 Boardman. 
 
 1 It has often been said and printed, that he gave it. 
 * See Drake's Hittoric Fields and Mansions, p. 1 19.
 
 ioo The Batchelder House, and its Owners. 
 
 members, said that Major Henry Vassall lived in the house twenty-seven 
 years, dying here in 1769, and that his widow continued to reside here until 
 the Revolution. Cambridge, becoming a military camp, was neither a pleas- 
 ant nor safe residence for those who still adhered to King George, so that 
 Madame Vassall departed in haste for Antigua with her only daughter, the 
 wife of Dr. Charles Russell of Lincoln. They left so hurriedly as to carry 
 off a young girl by the name of Moody, a relative of Sir William Pepperell, 
 who was visiting here, and whom, on account of the state of the country, they 
 were unable to return to her friends. She married in the West Indies, and 
 only returned to New England on a visit many years afterwards. A strong 
 belief prevails in Cambridge that a subterranean passage connects this house 
 with Mr. H. W. Longfellow's, and that it was constructed to enable the two 
 Vassall families to visit each other without exposure to the outside world. 
 Many years ago the writer with her brothers and a brother of the Poet made 
 a progress through the cellars in a vain search after this mysterious and 
 mythical passage-way, one of the party only retaining a conviction that if 
 a walled-up arch of solid masonry could be opened the entrance might be 
 found. The story that this house is haunted has been current for several 
 generations. 
 
 " All houses wherein men have lived and died 
 Are haunted houses." 
 
 Popular tradition asserts that the slaves of the Vassalls were inhumanly 
 treated. There seems to be no foundation for this report, and there is 
 documentary evidence proving Madame Vassall's kindness in paying twenty 
 pounds, in 1722, to free the child of her servant Tony from slavery. 
 
 Tony Vassall, as he was called, had been brought from Jamaica when a 
 boy by one of the family, and was a character well known in Cambridge, for 
 after the departure of his mistress he and his wife .Lucy lived many years on 
 North Avenue, on the western side near Wright Street. The site of their 
 house is still marked by a large horse-chestnut tree. In our grandmother's 
 days he kept green the name of Vassall by his tales of their grandeur, and his 
 own by relating the Apollo-like style in which he drove their chariot into 
 Boston on week-days and to Christ Church, Cambridge, on Sundays. His 
 mantle fell upon his son Darby, who of late years occasionally came out to 
 Cambridge with his pass from Miss Russell to entitle him to honorable 
 burial in the tomb of his old mistress ; at last he died at the advanced age 
 of ninety-two, and by a singular coincidence his body was brought out for 
 interment on the centennial anniversary of the opening of the church, Oc- 
 tober 15, 1861. After his burial the tomb was to be forever closed. 
 
 " At her head 
 Lies a slave to attend the dead." 
 
 This estate, contrary to the generally received opinion, was never confis- 
 cated. At the breaking out of hostilities Mrs. Vassall had been for many 
 years a widow, and her only child was a daughter, so that they could have
 
 Sonnet to the Old House. 101 
 
 taken no active part for the King. After her departure this large house 
 with its numerous rooms became the head-quarters of the medical depart- 
 ment of the army, under the care of the director-general, Dr. Benjamin 
 Church. Here his corps of surgeons lived, and here, probably, many a 
 brave man wounded at Bunker Hill breathed his last. Here in this very 
 room may he have penned the letter the discovery of which caused his ar- 
 rest. Here in this house, we are told by a contemporary letter, was he con- 
 fined, and corroborating evidence is found on the door of this room where 
 I write : " B. Church, Jr.," is still visible deeply cut in the wood, though for a 
 century successive coats of paint have vainly tried to conceal or to obliterate 
 the name of a traitor/ From this house, one hundred years ago, was he taken 
 in a chaise (perhaps one of Madame Vassall's), and to the music of a fife 
 and drum, escorted by General Gates and a guard of twenty men to the 
 place of his trial in Watertown meeting-house, where he was sentenced to 
 imprisonment in a distant town, which was afterwards commuted to trans- 
 portation for life. The ship in which he sailed for the West Indies was 
 supposed to have gone down with all on board. 
 
 After the Revolution, the rights of Mrs. Vassall, and the mortgages with 
 which the property was burdened, were purchased by Nathaniel Tracy of 
 Newburyport, who also owned and occupied the estate of John Vassall on 
 the opposite side of the road, where he resided in great state for a few 
 years. This house was then occupied by Fred. Geyer, whose daughter, 
 Marianne, married Andrew, the grandson of Governor Belcher, and his 
 only representative in the male line. 
 
 In 1792, Andrew Cragie bought the whole property, and soon after Bos- 
 senger Foster, his brother-in-law, removed from Boston and occupied this 
 house. The children of Mr. Foster were Andrew Cragie's heirs, and after 
 his death, in 1821, on the division of his estate that was not subject to dower, 
 lot No. i, the seven acres of Major Henry Vassall, and the house, fell 
 to Elizabeth Foster, then the wife of Judge Samuel B. Haven, of whom the 
 present owner purchased it in 1841. 
 
 I cannot more appropriately close this article than with the following son- 
 net, recently written in the album of one of the young people of the 
 family : 
 
 " Old house, left standing in the garden bed, 
 
 Whispering memories of heroic days ; 
 
 Idly I stand, and from thy window gaze 
 On trains that creep to city of the dead. 
 Idly stood Church and leaned his heavy head 
 
 On window panes, that shut him from the sight 
 
 Of rolls of honor, where men's names were bright, 
 He scratched his name on prison-door instead. 
 The dead are dead, of body or of name
 
 102 
 
 The Batchelder House, and its Owners. 
 
 The grave holds dust, and on the record lies 
 The deadly story of the name that di.es. 
 The living live, on earth, aspiring flame, 
 
 In heaven, as stars that light us from the skies. 
 Old house ! through thee their image fills our eyes.
 
 ENGLISH LETTER. APRIL, 1775. 
 
 From the Sparks Cabinet, at Gore Hall, belonging to William Eliot Sparks. 
 
 A Circumstantial Account of an Attack that happened on the igth of April 
 1775, on his Majesty's Troops, by a Number of the People, of the Province 
 L of Massachusetts Bay. 
 
 ON Tuesday, the 18 of April, about half past ro th at night Lieutenant 
 Colonel Smith of the loth Regiment, embarked from the Common at 
 Boston, with the Grenadiers and Light-Infantry, of the Troops there, and 
 landed on the Opposite side, from whence he began his march towards Con- 
 cord, where he was ordered to destroy the Magazine of Military Stores 
 deposited there for the use of an Army to be Assembled in Order to act 
 against his Majesty and his Gouernment, the Colonel called his Officers 
 together and gave orders that the troops should not fire, unless fired upon, 
 and after Marching a few Miles. Detached six Companies of light In- 
 fantry under the Command of Major Pitcairn to take possession of two 
 Bridges on the other side of Concord, Soon after they heard many signal 
 Guns, and the ringing of Alarm Bells repeatedly, which convinced them that 
 the Country was rising to oppose them, and that it was a preconcerted 
 Scheme to oppose the King's Troops, wheneuer there should be a favorable 
 opportunity for it. About three O'Clock the next Morning, the Troops 
 being advanced within two Miles of Lexington, intelligence was received 
 that about 500 Men in Arms were Assembled and determined to oppose the 
 King's Troops, and, on Major Pitcairn Galloping up to the Head, of the 
 advanced Companies, two Officers informed him, that a Man (advanced from 
 those that were Assembled) had presented his Musquet and attempted to 
 shoot them, but the Piece flashed in the pan. On this the Major gave 
 directions to the Troops to move forward, but on no Account to fire, nor 
 even to attempt it without orders. When they Arrived at the end of the 
 Village they observed about 200 armed Men drawn up on a Green, and when 
 the Troops came within 100 yards of them, they began to file off towards 
 some stone walls on their right Flank : The light Infantry observing this, 
 ran after them, the Major instantly called to the Soldiers not to fire, but to 
 Surround and disarm them, some of whom had jumped over a Wall, then 
 fired 4 or 5 shot at the Troops. Wounded a Man of the lo'h Regiment,
 
 104 English Letter. 
 
 and the Major Howe in two places, and at the same time Several Shots 
 were fired from a Meeting-House on the left, Upon this, without any order 
 or regularity the Light Infantry began a Scattered Fire, and Killed seu- 
 eral of the Country People, but were Silenced, as soon as the Authority of 
 the Officers could make them. 
 
 After this Colonel Smith Marched up with the remainder of the detach- 
 ment, and the whole Body proceeded to Concord, where they Arrived about 
 Nine O'Clock, without any thing further happening ; but vast Numbers of 
 . Armed People were seen Assembling on all the heights, While Colonel 
 Smith with the Grenadiers and part of the Light Infantry, remained at Con- 
 cord to search for Cannon &c there, he detached Captain Parsons, with six 
 light Companies to secure a Bridge at some Distance from Concord, and to 
 proceed from thence to certain houses where it was supposed there was 
 Cannon & Ammunition, Capt. Parsons, in pursuance of these Orders, posted 
 three Companies at the Bridge, and on some heights near it, under the 
 Command of Captain Laurie of the 43d Regiment, and with the remainder 
 went and destroyed some Cannon Wheels, Powder and Ball. 
 
 The People still continued encreasing on the Heights, and in about an 
 Hour after, a Large Body of them began to Move towards the Bridge, the 
 light Companies of the 4th- & Io th then descended and joined Captain Lau- 
 rie, the People continued to Advance in great Numbers, and fired upon the 
 King's Troops, Killed three men, Wounded four Officers, one Sergeant, 
 and four Privates, upon which (after returning the fire) Captain Laurie and 
 his Officers, thought it prudent to retreat towards the main Body at Con- 
 cord, and were soon joined by two Companies of Grenadiers ; when Cap- 
 tain Parsons returned with the three Companies over the Bridge, they ob- 
 served three Soldiers on the Ground, one of them Scalped, his head much 
 Mangled, and his ears cut off, tho' not quite Dead : a sight which struck 
 the Soldiers with horror : Captain Parsons Marched on and Joined the Main 
 Body, who were only waiting for his coming up to March back to Boston. 
 Colonel Smith had executed his Orders, without opposition, by destroying 
 all the Military Stores he could find ; both the Colonel, and Major Pitcairn 
 having taken all possible pains to convince the Inhabitants that no Injury 
 was intended them, and that if they Opened their doors when required to 
 search for said Stores, not the Slightest mischief should be done, neither 
 had any of the People the least occasion to Complain ; but they were 
 Sulky, and one of them euen struck Major Pitcairn. Except upon Captain 
 Laurie at ye Bridge no Hostilities happened, from the Affair at Lexington, 
 until the Troops began their March back. As soon as the Troops had got 
 out of the Town of Concord they received a heavy fire on them from all 
 sides, from Walls. Fences. Houses. Trees. Barns. c. which continued 
 without intermission, till they Met the first Brigade, with two field Pieces, 
 near Lexington, Ordered out, under the Command of Lord Percy, to sup- 
 port them ; advice having been receiued about seuen O'Clock next Morn-
 
 English Letter. 105 
 
 ing, that Signals had been made, and expresses gone out to alarm the 
 Country, and that the People were rising to attack the Troops under Colonel 
 Smith : Upon the Firing of the Field Pieces, the People's Fire was for 
 a while silenced, but as they still continued to increase greatly in Num- 
 bers they fired again as before from all Places where they could find cover, 
 upon the whole Body, and continued so doing for the space of 15 miles. 
 Notwithstanding their numbers, they did not attack openly during the whole 
 Day, but kept under couer on all occasions. The Troops were uery much 
 fatigued, the greater part of them having been under Arms all Night and 
 made a March of upwards of 40 Miles before they arrived at Charlestown, 
 from whence they were ferryed over to Boston. 
 
 The Troops had above Fifty Killed, and many more wounded. Reports 
 are various about the loss sustained by the Country People Some make 
 it uery considerable, others not so much. 
 
 Thus this unfortunate Affair has happened thro' the rashness and impu- 
 dence of a few People who began firing on the Troops at Lexington. Con' 
 tributedby MRS. M. C. SPARKS.
 
 LETTERS OF EDMUND QUINCY. 
 
 Furnished by Miss Donnison. f 
 
 LAN* June 18, 1776 
 To YE REVD MR. JACOB BIGELOW. 
 
 Dr. Sir. I reed y favor of ye 5th a few days since & am pleased 
 with hearing Mrs. B. is satisfied with Eunice l her conduct : & hope may 
 continue, & that Mrs. B. will testify her regards in suitable instruction of 
 a spiritual as well as temporal nature, & thereby increase her expected 
 serviceableness I'm disappointed in ye girl's failing in ye faculty of milk- 
 ing w h she was used to at Mr. B's : possibly instruction and practise may 
 conquer the difficulty. Labor improbus ornnia vincit you'll suppose, as I 
 do, y e Girl will want some supply of money, I ask ye favor of Mrs. B to see 
 that the most prudent application be made. We are now publicly alarmed 
 with the B. naval & land force expected ag' ye city & county of N. Y : 
 perhaps it may be begun ; it will, I hope, under ye irresistible decrees of 
 D : P : prove y e means of opening y e eyes of ye B. Court & nation, & 
 even of flashing conviction before them, that there is an impregnable Bar- 
 rier now raised & fix* between their cruel as well as hostile designs, and 
 the late feeble & unprepared Col of America wh. I think by the will of 
 Heaven are fast rising into States, wh. under ye protection of y e God of Ar- 
 mies, may become objects of y e closest European attention & commercial 
 attraction : and these things seem not to be very distant. 
 
 The probability of a full native supply of every needed warlike article of 
 defence by sea & land is a distinguishing circumstance, wh. y e nations will 
 early mark out. As a fundamental cause of ye future growth of ye No. A. 
 States : & y e strife will be, wh. European powers will avail themselves most 
 of their future commerce, should y e Fla. of war be confined to Europe, 
 each will be fond of furnishing their manufrs to these, as they suppose, 
 unprovided & incapable Americans : but on ye other hand, ye latter, if 
 not blinded, will choose & labor to provide themselves with materials & 
 manufactures as fast as they need them : for every needed community, & 
 as to ye superfluous, it is to be supposed, that each state, will by law, discour- 
 age ye importation by heavy duties Altho. we have a country, (I mean the 
 
 1 A colored woman owned by E. Q.
 
 Letter to John Hancock. 107 
 
 United Provinces) capable of almost every European production & 
 abounding in more extensive native productions than any K. dom & per- 
 haps all in Europe, we must, nevertheless, endeavor to imitate the wise ex- 
 ample of y e 7 United prov s of Holl d after ye revolt from Spain & during 
 their 30 years war with that then powerful Kingdom. 
 
 We must promote agriculture, manufactures, industry & economy & 
 above all cultivate Religion & Virtue May the Giver of peace grant these 
 U. States a series of peaceful years & that by means thereof y e American 
 heathen may be bro't ye saving Knowledge of ye True God. 
 
 These will even be ye subject of y e earnest supplications of ye faithful 
 thro' y s gospelized regions of No. America. 
 
 I am with my best wishes to you and y r household Sir, &c. 
 
 P. S. By last advice we have now in our hands abt, 700 of those Highland- 
 ers w h y e Brit Adm at an immense expense deceived last year with a promise 
 of their being sent to A. to take possession of y e evacuated estates of those 
 who they were told had fled back 100 miles & more into y e wilderness, 
 through y e terror of y e Brit, arms &c. wh ye Captives now acquaint us 
 with, standing astonished at y 6 falsity of y e facts wh they were made to be- 
 lieve some appearing very morose under ye disapt & others well en satis- 
 fied you'll have read of y e absolute refusal of ye Ld Howe to take command 
 of ye ministerial naval force to y e sing 1 " mortification of the ministry & doubt- 
 less of their Head. It is improbable his lordship was of opinion, that one 
 Bro r was enough to share y e Infamy wh. he had become sensible would 
 prove y e result of y e ministerial proceedings Pray God ye final issue may 
 graduate with his L d ships just apprehension ! However it's probable he 
 may soon have work nearer home as they are doubtless on the verge of a 
 European Breach A farmer would be very remarkable who would set his 
 dogs to worry his sheep, while his neighbors cattle were breaking into his 
 fields, ye fences having become indefensible. 
 
 LANR June 24, 1776 
 
 TO THE HBLE J. HANCOCK ESQ. 
 
 Dr Sir. I hope ere this Mr Bant with my Dr,K. has had ye pleasure 
 of seeing you & Dr H. well at P. By ye Contis Lr of advice to ye con- 
 vent at N. Y. we are daily expecting adv. of a Mini Fleet & army being 
 before that city & a siege begun. Letters from H* of 5th currt inform 
 us that no Fleet had arrived there to that day, but that it was very sickly in 
 ye F army & navy, that many refugees of Yr<> BO had died, among wh ra 
 were named F Lillie & wife & Mr. J. Fitch his eldest dr & that F : lay 
 at y e point of death. It is doubtless a very mel'y time in that Asylum of 
 of y e B. troops & th' Frds Y r may have reed o drs fro Europe wh may give you 
 insight into the causes by wh ye min' proceedings have been embap-d & 
 their grand Armament delayed here we are left to our own conjectures.
 
 !O8 Letters of- Edmund Quincy. 
 
 you'll be advd probably ere this reaches you, that by batteries at length 
 erected, near ye entr of BO Harbor Como Bank's ship & his convoy had 
 been obliged to make a precipitate flight abt 10 days ago, & that several 
 ships with Highlanders have been drove and carried in by our privateers, 
 not fewer in no. than 4 or 500 great part of whom have been bro't 
 into ye several towns & more expected, in order to ease ye Cha. of their 
 support & to prevent mischief. It is expected we may hear of more arrivals 
 of troops at Bo as to an attack upon it, I'm not much concerned, if, as I'm 
 told their fortifications are compleated in a defensible manner. 
 
 When Commo Banks lay in the harbour, a Contl Privateer having been 
 taken & bro't under his care, it gave occasion for a Flag of truce to* go on 
 bord for exchange of prisoners ye business being ended, ye afflicted 
 Commo mentd to ye Co. ye disastrous att* of his boats on Capt. Muckford 
 of Mbh. & another p. of only 7 men on board He told them he had lost 
 63 of his best offers & m en : supposing that a part of them were in our 
 hands, & said he hoped they treated Lt Banks well. They replying that 
 they had heard of no such person being bro't among them, B. appeared 
 vastly concerned saying that he had then lost his brother & ist Lt. & one 
 of his best off in ye navy however we hear a corps was found upon the 
 beach some days since & supposed to be that of ye person mentioned by 
 B. it being clad well with a pr. of pistols, a hanger, some money in ye 
 pockets & a gold watch. It is said that not more than 30 men were on 
 board the 2 privateers wh. if fact, & also that they were unexpectedly at- 
 tackt it would argue much courage in the defenders, one of wh Capt. B. 
 told them he wanted to know the name of as having proved himself a bold 
 & stout man, in beheading one of his boat's crew looking over the gun- 
 wale of the privateer with one stroke of his broad sword saying to y~ even 
 in ye fisherman's dialect, " I've taken off his head, you may gut him." By 
 such men ye character of American prowess is fast advancing. I hear by 
 a friend from B that ye Highlanders, especially ye officers may have ap- 
 peared morose & ill tempered imagining they had got among unpolished 
 people till ye f un i rites were prepared of their Major killed by one of the 
 privateers, who was decently interred by milty honor, attended by a no. of 
 our offers & ye inhabitants after which these strangers seemed to think 
 they had go into a good country * * * * Io guineas a head were paid them 
 at listing, after 6 mos. imprisonment they were embarqued several hun- 
 dred deserted after enlistment on hearing that no evacuation of Estates had 
 been heard of in it, so that their expectations would be frustrated. We are 
 still without any certain advice how things stand in Canada, but we are too 
 well assured of some of ye Mini Cash having lately operated on Sev' of ye 
 Contl officers I presume ere this come to hand ye Congs may have reed 
 from ye sevrai Colo their assent to a speedy Declaration of Independence 
 upon & a total disconnection, with the Gov. of G. B.
 
 Letter to John Hancock. 109 
 
 I hope this may meet you in y e enjoyment of such a degree of health as 
 may enable you to sustain ye wg l of y e present public incumbrance 
 With my kind regards to my Daughters 
 
 I re m very sincerely D. Sir, your 
 
 Aff. & obliged Fd & Fathr 
 
 P. S. 29 This going open for want of conv'y'nce we have adv from N. Y. 
 of more than loo conspirators there in Gaol for a design on y e Genl s life & 
 also for blowing up 30 tuns of powder a plot similar to that of 1588 & I 
 think a similar fate ought to be the portion of y e present conspirators.
 
 THE RIVER CHARLES IN JUNE. 
 
 BY JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL. 
 
 The sliding Charles, 
 
 Blue toward the West, and bluer and more blue, 
 Living and lustrous as a woman's eyes. 
 Look once and look no more, with southward curve 
 Ran crinkling sunniness, like Helen's hair. 
 Glimpsed in Elysium, insubstantial gold ; 
 From blossom-clouded orchards, far away 
 The bobolink tinkled ; the deep meadpws flowed 
 With multitudinous pulse of light and shade 
 Against the bases of the southern hills, 
 While here and there a drowsy island rick 
 Slept and its shadow slept ; the wooden bridge 
 Thundered, and then was silent ; on the roofs 
 The sun-warped shingles rippled with the heat ; 
 Summer on field and hill, in heart and brain, 
 All life washed clean in this high tide of June. 
 
 From " Under the Willows." 
 
 OLD CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 Know old Cambridge ? Hope you do. 
 Born there ? Don't say so ! I was, too .... 
 Nicest place that ever was seen, 
 Colleges red, and Common green, 
 Sidewalks brownish with trees between. 
 Sweetest spot beneath the skies 
 When the canker-worms don't rise, 
 When the dust, that sometimes flies 
 Into your mouth and ears and eyes, 
 In a quiet slumber lies, 
 Not in the shape of unbaked pies 
 Such as barefoot children prize. 
 
 DR. O. W. HOLMES. 
 
 Dear native town ! whose choking elms each year 
 With eddying dust before their time turn gray, 
 
 Pining for rain, to me thy dust is dear ; 
 It glorifies the eve of summer day, 
 
 And when the westering sun half-sunken burns, 
 
 The mote-thick air to deepest orange turns, 
 The westward horseman rides through clouds of gold away. 
 
 JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
 
 THE OLD COURT HOUSE. 
 
 BY JOHN HOLMES. 
 
 THE old Court House, which stood on the site of the present Lyceum, 
 was built from the timbers of the meeting-house which was replaced 
 in 1756 by that which was demolished in 1833. 1 
 
 The beams, joists, and rafters which had so often heard the Law and its 
 works depreciated from a theological point of view, were now to recognize 
 the Law in another sense, as the stern presiding spirit of the place. They 
 were now to see whether the people would in this transformed building, at- 
 tend as strictly to their temporal interests as they had before done to their 
 spiritual. 
 
 While the colonial dependence lasted, it would seem that the judges of 
 the Superior Court, coming to hold their sessions here, were received at the 
 county or town line by the sheriff and attendant gentlemen, and' escorted in 
 state to their lodgings, 2 which, in this case, being interpreted, probably 
 means Bradish's Tavern, on the present Brighton Street. If we listen, we 
 hear break on the quiet of the past, the rumble of wheels and the thump of 
 hoofs making mild thunder on Brighton Bridge. While Cambridge was yet 
 a village, this was the sound that late in the night warned the wakeful of a 
 new arrival, and by its cadence, allowed him to guess whether it were the 
 village doctor returning from a call extraordinary, or a courier panting to tell 
 of success or disaster at Lake George. 
 
 We behold the commotion as of to-day. The villagers quit their gray, 
 unpainted houses, as if they were in flames. Children get the start. Women 
 peer from the windows, or group on door-steps, and snatch a breath of 
 respite from their unending cares. Austere men who combat the world and 
 its pleasures, move slowly forth, go circuitously and drop (as it were), casu- 
 ally and unconsciously into the throng. Suitors and sued, witnesses sum- 
 moned for the term, amateurs of litigation who have had their losses, the 
 many who love the mysteries of the civil, and doat on the dread forms of 
 the criminal process, poor debtors, who " swear out" from time to time, 
 
 1 Our authority is the Rev. Lucius R. Paige, who, beside other motives, has now that of selfc- 
 defence, to finish his History of Cambridge, so numerous are the local questions put to him which he 
 kindly answers. 
 
 z Wash burn's Judicial History of Massachntettf.
 
 112 The Old Court House. 
 
 and who know every spider in the Old Jail (near Winthrop Square), and 
 every mullein and thistle in its yard, and who, from long habit, scrutinize the 
 world in small portions as through grated windows, all these contribute 
 to the variety of the crowd. 
 
 .The " Scholars " (to use the popular term some fifty years since) are hur- 
 rying to the scene of action, the banyan (such as Prescott wore at Bunker 
 Hill) floating wide behind them as they run. This garment, a long calico 
 dressing-gown, was still popular in summer so late as 1820. 
 
 Bradish stands at his door, grave and portly. His cue, newly bound with 
 black ribbon, hangs perpendicular, like a pendulum stopped by earthquake. 
 
 What ceremonies attended the opening of the court we cannot say, but 
 the judges doubtless wore their "robes of scarlet English cloth, their broad 
 bands, and their immense judicial wigs," 1 and probably the barristers ap- 
 peared " in their bands, gowns, and tyewigs." 2 
 
 We think we may have beheld the " last attenuation " of judicial pomp, 
 in seeing the late Chief Justice Shaw going from the court to his dinner, 
 accompanied (not preceded) by the sheriff alone. The latter carried in an 
 easy way a long, light wand (using it, we think, somewhat like a cane), in 
 which lay, we suppose, like latent caloric, the protective, vindictive, and 
 remedial power of the Commonwealth. 
 
 Here Sevvall, Hutchinson, and Lynde presided, and here attended the great 
 colonial lawyers, Pratt, Gridley, Trowbridge, and the rest. Special plead- 
 ing was in its full vigor. It was a stern, compulsory system of statement 
 and argument, designed to lead by the shortest way, to an issue of law or 
 fact, to be decided by the Court or the jury. No such theory, submitted to 
 the working of strong hands, fails to be more or less warped out of shape, 
 and this had undoubtedly its share of subtlety and finesse. If one of those 
 old law practitioners were compelled to revisit earth for a term, he would find 
 no better reading than the " quiddits and quillets," filed in our Court House 
 at that day. 
 
 The lawyers were then, as they are now, the gladiators of a better civil- 
 ization. 
 
 After the Revolution, Chief Justices Dana and Parsons presided here at 
 the sessions of the Supreme Court. The latter lodged during the session 
 at a house, which, if it were standing, would be the third building on the 
 left-hand side of Brighton Street, north from Mount Auburn Street. Here 
 the great lawyer diverted himself in the evening, with what other men 
 might deem labor. An old member of the bar who lodged here has often 
 told us.with complacency of his evening colloquies with the Chief Justice. 
 Dexter, H. G. Otis, and other well known lawyers represented the new 
 republican bar. 
 
 In or about 1815, the courts were removed to East Cambridge, and the 
 Court House ceased from its former functions. 
 
 1 John Adams, from Wasliburn's Judicial History of Massachusetts. 2 Same.
 
 The Citizens' Patrol. 1 1 3 
 
 The Court of Probate was still occasionally held here by the late Judge 
 Fay. 
 
 Town meetings, which had been held here for an indefinite time, were, in 
 1831., transferred to the then new City Hall, on Main Street, in Cambridge- 
 port. 
 
 When the division took place in the First Parish, the Court House was 
 occupied for Sunday worship until the Orthodox Church on Mount Auburn 
 Street was completed. 
 
 Lyceum lectures and debates were begun here about 1830, and held their 
 ground with very considerable tenacity. The public finally became satiated 
 and dropped off in something like a comatose state. The great variety of 
 subjects, and the distractions of a social surrounding, left, it is to be feared, 
 a rather nebulous result on the general mind. 
 
 Cambridge had been for many years remarkably exempt from fires. From 
 near 1812, we recall from hearsay or observation, no serious fire. The 
 town therefore was obliged to borrow its excitement on this score from 
 neighboring calamities. And to judge by the demonstrations, the sufferers 
 themselves could hardly have felt the situation more intensely than our 
 citizens. The parish bell was immediately set going, nor ceased while any 
 faint gleam of light appeared on the horizon. Nearly all the male inhab- 
 itants cried fire incessantly for some half hour. The "scholars " lent their 
 lungs to assist the town. The engine rushed madly though heavily out 
 into space, and returned. One got to feel as if this were a beneficial oper- 
 ation. The alarm bell actually suggested security. When it rung out with 
 the greatest vigor, and for the longest time, the householder knew that the 
 fire was very distant, and that our conscientious citizens could not relax 
 their efforts while the flames appeared, or were reflected on the sky. 
 
 But in October, 1839, a fire actually occurred within our own precincts, 
 which consumed three houses and a barn, and, as usual, threatened much 
 more destruction. At the beginning of the following winter, a suspicion 
 arose that incendiaries were preparing to repeat, on a comprehensive scale, 
 the calamity of October. 
 
 We can recollect no cause assigned for the new alarm, and possibly the 
 imagination worked with more effect, uncontrolled by specific evidence. It 
 was soon found that a citizens' patrol was necessary to protect the town. It 
 was arranged, and fixed its head-quarters in the old Court House. We rec- 
 ollect only a tendency to hilarity that pervaded the organization, at variance 
 with the imminent hazard which they labored to avert. Walking, watch- 
 ing, and friendly converse occupied the midnight hours. Consciousness of 
 merit, was the pure and honorable reward of our exertions. No refresh- 
 ments were furnished to dilute or vitiate this noble sensation. 
 
 We infer the greatness of^the impending danger, from the great and gen- 
 eral effort made to avert it. And it is a memorable fact, that so extensive 
 and desperate a confederation of incendiaries should have been entirely 
 8 

 
 H4 The Old Court House. 
 
 crushed by our demonstration. Perfect incombustibility seemed to prevail 
 during this period, and in a community, too, where one man in twenty was a 
 probable Guy Faux. 
 
 There is always one drawback on precaution, that it cuts off the very 
 evidence that should justify it. The patrol of 1840 were subject to this in- 
 convenience. 
 
 Only one arrest was made. It was of a man who at a very early hour of 
 the morning was detected carrying incendiary material toward the college. 
 He was seized with his lantern and his various pyrotechnics, carried to 
 the Court House, and subjected to severe examination. He proved to be a 
 professional incendiary, /. ., a fire maker in the college. His trial, though 
 in a measure pro forma, gave an aspect of efficiency to the patrol, and added 
 to its moral strength. The dullest intellect perceived what might have oc- 
 curred, had the prisoner been one of the real confederates, and had no patrol 
 existed to arrest his deadly career. 
 
 No monument or inscription commemorates the services of that time, not 
 even a bronze extinguisher of minute size. 
 
 Among the members of the patrol, rheumatism, cough, and catarrh may 
 have done their work, but no voice has proclaimed the fact. Wide awake 
 beneficence disdains to stir sleeping gratitude, but any member of the patrol 
 may proudly say, pointing to the unconsumed town, Circumspice. 
 
 In 1841, the old Court House was sold, and was removed back to the 
 west side of the present Palmer Street. Here it was at first used for a 
 billiard room and bowling alley ; next for a gymnasium and fencing school, 
 then (on the lower floor, having been changed to a two-story building) for 
 furniture then on the same floor for hardware. It was removed within a 
 year or two to the west side of Palmer Street, and made to adjoin Whitney's 
 Block, with which it communicates. The lower floor is at present occu- 
 pied by a "Holly Tree Coffee Shop," the upper by the Social Union, kindly 
 and wisely conducted by those to whose modest merit we pay the unusual 
 compliment of omitting their names.
 
 THE LAMENT OF THE WEATHERCOCK OF 1776. 
 
 " Carmina jam moriens canit exequialia [g-alhis]." OVID, Met. XIV. 430. 
 
 " He makes a swan-like end, 
 Fading in music." SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 AT midnight's solemn hour I woke ; 
 
 The moon all brightly shone ; 
 I rose, and donned my old plaid cloak, 
 
 And wandered forth alone. 
 
 The air was still, no sound nor noise, 
 
 The air all silent, too ; 
 When an unearthly, piercing voice 
 
 Cried, " Cock-a-doodle-doo ! " 
 
 I started, and my knees did knock 
 
 Together, in my fear, 
 For 't was the ancient weathercock 
 
 That startled thus my ear. 
 
 Thrice did he flap his wings, and crow, 
 
 Ere he the words could bring ; 
 Then, as I trembling stood below, 
 
 'T was thus I heard him sing : 
 
 " Farewell to thee, old Cambridge ! Farewell to each and all ! 
 I 'm doomed to an ignoble fate, and an untimely fall. 
 Farewell, my pleasant- airy home ! my heart is big with sorrow, 
 To think, thou dear old steeple ! that we must part to-morrow. 
 And the people that once loved us must also from us part ; 
 They 've built a grand new church and spire, surmounted by a dart 
 That gaudy, glittering arrow, that I can plainly see, 
 Is ever striving with the wind, to aim itself at me. 
 
 " Farewell to thee, old Harvard ! Peace be within thy walls ! 
 Sound learning and true wisdom aye flourish in thy halls ! 
 No more may I behold thy courts and corners all alive 
 With little black-coats, buzzing round, like bees about a hive ;
 
 n6 The Lament of the Weathercock of 1776. 
 
 No. more may I behold their troops in mock militia muster, 
 Nor see them on the parting day around the old elm cluster. 
 The last Commencement Day, it was a bitter day to me, 
 For I felt that it must be the last I evermore should see ; 
 And my old friend, the Phi Beta ! I can scarce restrain my tears, 
 For the music of thy last sweet song is ringing in my ears. 
 
 " Alas ! the meeting-house and I have doubtless had our day ; 
 And the spoiler comes to-morrow to take us both away. 
 But we '11 not depart in anger, nor will I much repine 
 That this exalted station can be no longer mine. 
 My conscience bears me witness, that ever, from my youth, 
 I 've lived an upright weathercock, and always told the truth. 
 My life has been a long, and I hope a useful one ; 
 And now I droop my crest, and am ready to be gone." 
 
 Thrice did he flap his wings, and crow, 
 
 When he his song had done ; 
 Then, wondering, homewards did I go, 
 
 Just as the clock struck one. 
 December 22, 1833. 
 
 These lines were written by Mrs. Charles Folsom, when the old meeting-house was taken down. 
 The " last sweet song," mentioned in the sixth stanza, was Mr. Longfellow's Phi Beta Kappa poem. 
 ED.
 
 PRAISE OF THE PAST. 
 
 BY GEORGE PARSONS LATHROP. 
 
 OF ancient days how manifold 
 The harvests here around us grown ! 
 What fruits we hold, by valiant-souled 
 And simple farmer-heroes sown ! 
 
 They, while they learned the bullet's creed 
 No less in solemn worship kneeled ; 
 
 By faith and deed they spread the seed 
 Of peace and strength in every field ; 
 
 And ours the rich maturity, 
 
 While over us, afar and near, 
 That broad-arched tree, the century, 
 
 Spreads wide its branches, each a year ! 
 
 Ah well, how swiftly things disperse :' 
 In how much changed are place and time ! 
 
 For poets rehearse their dulcet verse 
 
 Where patriot-spurs once clinked in rhyme ; 
 
 The city spreads its ravages ; 
 
 The grace of older growth is fled : 
 Hills bow their knees, prone lie the trees, 
 
 Faith, too, they say, is long since dead. 
 
 Yet with our fathers we are one 
 At heart, whatever change betide, 
 
 Still shines for us their tireless sun : 
 Their truth still waits us for our guide. 
 
 And we, though larger grows the scope 
 Of vision, now, toward God and man, 
 
 From broader hope gaze back Time's slope 
 To praise their virtue's narrower plan.
 
 Praise of the Past. 
 
 Oh, when our crumbling lives have gone, 
 
 Shall others unto us look back 
 O'er deeps that yawn, and see our dawn 
 
 Glow pure behind their devious track ? 
 
 Who knows ? We live in veering days. 
 
 Yet o'er all fame our deeds may hold, 
 Fair shines this praise, this record stays : 
 
 WE DID NOT LET THE PAST GROW OLD !
 
 A PARTIAL LIST OF AUTHORITIES CONSULTED IN PRE- 
 PARING THIS BOOK. 
 
 Colburn. Bibliography of the Local History of Massachusetts. 
 
 Palfrey. History of New England. 
 
 Ihd'bard. History of New England. 
 
 Holmes. History of Cambridge. 
 
 Wood. New England's Prospect. 
 
 Dudley. Letter to the Countess of Lincoln. 
 
 Mather. Magnalia. 
 
 Johnson. Wonder- Working Providence in New England. 
 
 Prince. New England Chronology. 
 
 Winlhrop. History of New England. 
 
 Newell. Discourse on the Cambridge Church Gathering in 1636. 
 
 Lives of the Chief Fathers of New England, vol. vi. The Life of Thos. Hooker, 
 
 by Edw. W. Hooker, vol. iv. 
 The Life of Thos. Shepard, by John A. Albro. 
 Hudson. History of Lexington. 
 Jackson. History of Newton. 
 Bond. Genealogies and History of Watertown. 
 Nason. Gazetteer of Massachusetts. 
 John Dunton. Letters from New England. 
 Ihitchimon. History of Massachusetts. 
 Barry. History of Massachusetts. 
 Drake. Historic Fields and Mansions of Middlesex. 
 Drake. Old Landmarks and Historical Personages of Boston. 
 Hoppin. Historical Notice of Christ Church. 
 Clarke and Force. American Archives. 
 Journals of each Provincial Congress of Massachusetts in 1774 and 1775, and of 
 
 the Committee of Safety. 
 Frothingham. Siege of Boston. 
 Records of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 
 Town Records of Cambridge. 
 Bancroft. History of United States. 
 Frost. Pictorial History of United States. 
 Willard. Republic of America. 
 Marshall. Life of Washington. 
 Sparks. Writings of Washington.
 
 I2 o Partial List of Authorities. 
 
 Quincy. History of Harvard College. 
 
 S. A, Eliot. History of Harvard College. 
 
 Griswold. The Republican Court. 
 
 Sabine. Loyalists of the American Revolution. 
 
 Amory. Old Cambridge and New. 
 
 Simpson. Two Hundred Years Ago. 
 
 Letters of John Adams. 
 
 Letters of Mrs. Adams. 
 
 Homes of American Authors. 
 
 Madame Riedesel's Memoir and Letters. 
 
 McKenzie. History of the First Church of Cambridge. 
 
 McKenzie. Washington in Cambridge, " Atlantic Monthly," July, 1875 
 
 McKenzie. Memorial Address on Cambridge Men who fell at Lexington. 
 
 Tracy. Great Awakening. 
 
 Wells. Life and Public Services of Samuel Adams. 
 Duyckinck. National Portrait Gallery of Eminent Americans. 
 Dawson. Correspondence on the Character of General Israel Putnam. 
 
 Dawson. Diary of David Howe. 
 
 Pkelps. History of Newgate of Connecticut. 
 
 Citrwen. Journal and Letters. 
 
 Parton. Life of Aaron Burr. 
 
 Trumbull. Reminiscences of His Own Times. 
 
 Bridgman. Epitaphs from Copp's Hill Burying Ground, Boston. 
 
 Harris. Epitaphs from the Old Burying Ground, Cambridge. 
 
 Peabody. Centennial Address at Cambridge, July 3, 1875. 
 
 Hawthorne. Twice-told Tales. 
 
 Hale. One Hundred Years Ago, 
 
 Clarke and Vaille. Tiie Harvard Book. 
 
 Washbnrn. Judicial History of Massachusetts. 
 
 Greene. Life of Nathanael Greene. 
 
 Sibley. Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University. 
 
 Sibley. Manuscript Collections.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 ADAMS, John, 32, 61, 88. 
 Adams, John, his hopes, 15. 
 Adams, John, in Cambridge, 53. 
 Adams, Mrs. John, in Cambridge, 42. 
 Adams, Samuel, 23, 33, 54. 
 Amen, Dr. Appleton's, 31. 
 Ammunition, The lack of, 12, 26, 27. 
 Appleton, Rev. Dr., 3 1, 49, 59, 62, 72, 80. 
 Apthorp, The Rev. East, 10, 50, 51. 
 Apthorp house, 21, 50. 
 Apthorp, Mad. Grizzel, 51. 
 Army, The New Continental, 51. 
 Arnold, Benedict, 37, 55. 
 Authorities, List of, 119. 
 
 I'atclielder house, see (Henry) Vassall house. 
 
 Belcher, Jonathan, 95, 97 ; Arms, 95. 
 
 Belknap, Dr. Jeremy, 39, 91. 
 
 Bigelow, Rev. Jacob, 106. 
 
 Borland house, see Apthorp house. 
 
 Boston, becomes the Capital, 24; besieged, 26. 
 
 distress in, 21 ; evacuated, 59. 
 Bradish Tavern, 18, 75, in. 
 Brattle Arms, The, 90. 
 Brattle grounds, 75. 
 Brattle house, 35. 
 Brattle's Mall, 43. 
 Brewster house, see Sewa.ll House. 
 British fleet leaves Boston, 81. 
 Bunker Hill, "13, 24, 29. 
 Burgoyne, Gen., 23. 
 Burr, Aaron, 28, 33, 37. 
 Butler's (Dana) Hill, 31, 74. 
 Byles, Mather, 70. 
 
 Caghnawaga Indians in Cambridge, 53. 
 Ca'.ef, Robert, his book burned, 48. 
 Cambridge commerce, 28. 
 
 Cambridge, its influence in 1776, 12 ; its terri- 
 tory, 5 ; sketch of, 3. 
 Camp diet in Cambridge, 58. 
 
 Canada, expedition to, 36, 55. 
 
 Caner, Dr., 51, 65. 
 
 Charles river in June, 1 10. 
 
 Chauncy, President Charles, 35, 46. 
 
 Christ Church, n, 29, 49. 
 
 Church, Benj., 37, 80, 101 ; condemned, 40 ; his 
 
 traitorous correspondence, 37. 
 Church Row, 77. 
 Clergy, The, 14. 
 Clinton, Gen., 23. 
 Cobble Hill, now Somerville, 41. 
 Cold, in the church, 57. 
 Colonies, The thirteen, 51. 
 " Common Sense," 54. 
 
 Congratulations addressed to Washington, 61, 62. 
 Congress, The first provincial, 10. 
 Copp's Hill, 66, 70. 
 
 Correspondence, Epistolary, decaying, 36. 
 Court House, The, 72, m. 
 Cragie, Andrew, 101. 
 Cragie house, see(jfoAn) Vassall house. 
 Crime in camp, 43. 
 
 Dana Hill (Butler's Hill), 31. 
 Dana house, 74. 
 
 Dankers and Sleyter visit Harvard, 47. 
 Declaration of Independence anticipated in Cam- 
 bridge, 80. 
 
 Donnison, Miss, 106. 
 Dorchester Heights occupied, 59. 
 "Dorothy Q," 32, 84. 
 Downing, George, 44. 
 Dudley, Dorothy, her diary, 18. 
 Dudley, Thomas, 13. 
 
 Dunster house, 75. 
 
 Dunster, Rev. Henry, 45. 
 
 Eaton, Nathaniel, 45. 
 Edwards, Timothy, 32. 
 Eliot, John, 8. 
 Elm, The Washington, 16, 26.
 
 Index. 
 
 122 
 
 Episcopacy in Cambridge, 9. 
 Evacuation of Boston, 69, 83. 
 
 Faculty of Harvard organized, 48. 
 
 Fast Day, 27, 59. 
 
 Fayerweather house, see Ruggles house. 
 
 Faneuil Hall, 65 ; used as a theatre, 53- 
 
 Fires in Cambridge, 113- 
 
 Flag, The Union, 51. 
 
 Fleet, The British, sails from Boston, 'n 
 
 Fort Number One, 75. 
 
 Franklin, Benjamin, 23, 37, 4) 54) 9 1 - 
 
 Frizzle, John, 97. 
 
 Frost, Mr., 77. 
 
 Gage, Gen., w, 21, 22, 37. 
 Gale, Theophilus, 46. 
 Gates, Gen. Horatio, 26. 
 Gates, Mr., 49. 
 
 General Court in Cambridge, 9. 
 Green Dragon Tavern, 65. 
 Greene, Gardner, 64. 
 Greene, Gen., 40, 52, 67, 90. 
 Guests at Head-Quarters, The, 89. 
 
 Hancock house, Boston, 64. 
 Hancock, John, 23, 32, 50, 52, 84, 107. 
 Hancock, Mrs. Dorothy, 32. 
 Hancock, Mrs. Lydia, 32. 
 Harvard College, 7, 14, 15, 29 5 removed to Con- 
 cord, 20 ; sketch of, 44, 48- 
 Harvard College, its buildings, 72, 76. 
 Harvard Hall, burned, 48. 
 Haskins, D. G-, Jr., 3- 
 Hastings house, 20. 
 Haynes, John, 4. 
 
 Head-quarters, see (John) V assail house, 7. 
 Heath, Gen., 60. 
 Hessians, to be hired, 52. 
 
 Hicks, John, 19. 
 
 Hoar, Leonard, President, 46. 
 
 Hobgoblin Hall, Medford, 42. 
 
 Holly Tree Coffee Shop, 114- 
 
 Holmes house, see Hastings house. 
 
 Holmes, John, in. 
 
 Holmes, O. W., no. 
 
 Holyoke, Edward, 48. 
 
 Hooker, Rev. Thomas, 4. 
 
 Howe, Gen., 23, 37, 41, 52, 59, 60, 83. 
 
 Hutchinson, Mrs. Anne, 5. 
 
 Hutchinson, Thomas, 66. 
 
 Independence declared, 87. 
 Inman house, 31, 74, 75. 
 In man, Ralph, 74. 
 
 Jackson, Edmund, 84. 
 
 ail, The, 75. 
 efferson, Thomas, 87. 
 
 Cing's Chapel, 65. 
 Cnox, Gen. H., 68. 
 
 angdon, Samuel, 15, 23, 48, 57. 82. 
 .echmere's Point, 40, 58. 
 ..echmere, Richard, 50, 78. 
 .ee, Charles, 26, 421 89. 
 
 ee house, 78. 
 Lee, Judge Joseph, 3 1, 50. 
 
 ,ee, Richard Henry, 87. 
 ^everett, John, 48. 
 _exington, 28. 
 
 exington, The Battle of, from a British point of 
 
 view, 103. 
 
 iberty Tree, Boston, 63. 
 
 .incoln, Benjamin, 81. 
 Livingston, Robert, 37. 
 
 ,ocke, Samuel, 48. 
 
 Longfellow house, see (John) Vassall house. 
 Longfellow, H. W., 31, 66, 100. 
 Lowell house, see Oliver house. 
 Lowell, J. R., no. 
 
 Manifesto of Congress, 17, 27. 
 
 Manly, Capt., captures the Nancy, 42. 
 
 Marcy, William, 19. 
 
 Mather, Cotton, 44, 66. 
 
 Mather, Rev. Increase, 461 66. 
 
 Menotomy Road, 3, 77- 
 
 Mifflin, Major Thomas, 26, 35, 4, 42, 53, 9. 
 
 Montgomery, Gen. Richard, 37, 55- 
 
 Mugford, Capt., 80. 
 
 Murray, Elizabeth, 74. 
 
 Murray, James, 74. 
 
 Newe Towne, the first name of Cambridge, 3, 94- 
 Nichols house, see Lee house. 
 Noble, Rev. Mr., of Newburyport, preaches, 57. 
 North Church, Boston, 47, 65. 
 
 Old President's house, see Wadsworth house. 
 
 Old South Church, 63. 
 
 Oliver house, 25, 79. 
 
 Oliver, Thomas (Lt. Gov.),4, 5- 
 
 Otis, James, 48. 
 
 Paige, Rev. Lucius R., in. 
 
 Paine, Thomas, 54- 
 
 Patriotic resolution passed in Cambridge, So. 
 
 Patrol of citizens, 1 13- 
 
 Peabody, The Rev. A. P., 12. 
 
 Pemberton Hill, Boston, 63. 
 
 Percy, Lord, 18. 
 
 Phipps house, 21, 25, 3 ') 75-
 
 Index. 
 
 123 
 
 Phipps, Lt. Gov., 99. 
 
 Pitcairn, Maj., 36, 103. 
 
 Powder, Want of, 31. 
 
 Praise of the Past, 115. 
 
 Prescott, Col., 23, 29, 112, 
 
 Printing-press, The first, 7. 
 
 Province House, The, 63. 
 
 Putnam, Gen. Israel, 22, 26, 41, 42, 52, 69, 90. 
 
 Quebec attacked, 55. 
 
 Quincy, Dorothy, 32. 
 
 Quincy, Edmund, 50, 84 ; Letters of, 106, 107. 
 
 Quincy, Katy, 67, 84, 86, 107. 
 
 Richardson, Moses, 29, 77. 
 Riedesel house, see Setoa.ll house. 
 Riverside Press, 75.- 
 Recruiting in Cambridge, 41. 
 Regicides, The, in Cambridge, 9. 
 Reed, Col. Joseph, 26, 46, 90. 
 Remington, Judge, 97. 
 Revere, Paul, 63, 65, 66. 
 Koyall, Isaac, 42, 99. 
 Ruggles, George, 31. 
 Ruggles house, 25, 31, 79. 
 Rules of Harvard, 46. 
 Rush, Benjamin, 54. 
 Russell, Catherine G. 99. 
 
 Sibley, Rev. John Langdon, his Sketches of Har- 
 vard Graduates, 45, 95. 
 Simsbury, Conn., 43. 
 
 Serjeant, The Rev. Winwood, 20, 31, 50, 77. 
 Sewall house, 31, 50, 78. 
 Sewall, Jonathan, 31, 50, 72. 
 Shaw, Chief Justice, 112. 
 Shepard Memorial Church, 46. 
 Shepard, Rev. Thomas, 5, 46. 
 Small-pox in Boston, 60. 
 Social Union, The, 114. 
 Soden Farm, 27. 
 " Spada," Gen. Lee's dog, 42. 
 Sparks, William Eliot, 103. 
 Sparks, Mrs. M. C., 105. 
 Stark, Gen., 21, 68. 
 St. Patrick's Day, 83. 
 Stone, Rev. Samuel, 4. 
 Students return from Concord, 8. 
 
 Sullivan, Gen., 56, 61, 68. 
 Synod of 1646, at Cambridge, 8. 
 
 Tea, not used, 67. 
 
 Temple, Robert, 50. 
 
 Ten Hills Farm, Somerville, 50. 
 
 Thomas, Gen., 53. 
 
 Thompson, Capt, 18. 
 
 Thompson, Col., 40. 
 
 Ticonderoga, 22. 
 
 Tobacco smoking at Harvard, 47. 
 
 Tories in Cambridge, 17, 21. 
 
 Tory families, and their rela.ionships, 50. 
 
 Tory Row, 77. 
 
 Tnimbull, Major John, 26. 
 
 Vassall, Henry, 99. 
 
 Vassall house (Henry), 21, 25, 31, 34, 39, 75, 
 
 77, 93- 
 
 Vassall house (John), 31, 55, 77, 89. 
 Vassall, Col. John, 89, 98. 
 Vassal!, Tony, 77, 100. 
 Visit, a, to Boston, 62. 
 
 Wadsworth, Benjamin, 48. 
 
 Wadsworth house, 16, 74. 
 
 Waldo, Cornelius, 78. 
 
 Waldo, Daniel, 78. 
 
 Watertown Road, 93. 
 
 Walton, Capt., 77. 
 
 Ward, Gen. Artemas, 26, 50, 62. 
 
 Warren, Gen. Joseph, 19, 22, 24. 
 
 Washington, Gen. George, u, 15, 25, 53, 61, 62; 
 forbids games of chance, 57 ; his habits, 92 ; his 
 exactness in accounts, 56; original letter of, 56; 
 in Christ Church, 49; thanked by Congress, 83. 
 
 Washington, Mrs. Martha, 55 ; her levee, 69. 
 
 Wells house, see Ruggles house. 
 
 West End, The, of Cambridge, 93. 
 
 Whitefield Elm, 76. 
 
 Whitefield, The Rev. George, in Cambridge, 79. 
 
 Wigg'esworth bouse, 73, 74 
 
 Windmill Hill, 94. 
 
 Winthrop. Gov., 3, 45. 
 
 Winthrop house, see Phipps Jtoust. 
 
 Winthrop, Mrs. Dr., 29. 
 
 Woodbridge, Rev. B., 44.
 
 HISTORICAL WORKS. 
 
 FAMILIAR LETTERS OF JOHN ADAMS AND HIS WIPE, ABIGAIL 
 ADAMS, DURING THK REVOLUTION ; with a memoir of Mrs. Adams by CHARLES 
 FRANCIS ADAMS. In one volume, crown 8vo, $2.00. 
 
 Mrs Adams's Letters have long been recognized as important contributions to the history of the 
 neriod in which they were written. Several editions have appeared at intervals, and the demand lor 
 a new edition has suggested to the editor that the corresponding letters to her husband should be 
 added. Many new and interesting letters appear now for the first time. 
 
 THE GERMAN ELEMENT IN THE WAR OF AMERICAN INDE- 
 PENDENCE. BY GEORGE WASHINGTON GREENE. In one volume, cr. 8vo, $1.50. 
 
 The brilliant and romantic story of Steuben and De Kalb, and the dark disclosures respecting the 
 German Mercenaries, are presented pointedly and with nervous force in this monograph by an emi- 
 nent historic scholar. 
 
 A HISTORICAL VIEW OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. BY 
 GEORGE WASHINGTON GREENE. In one volume, crown 8vo, cloth, $1.50. 
 
 In a small space of 450 octo-duodecimo pages, the accomplished author gives a complete view of 
 the prindplesjaws, ani development of the contest, with enough of the details .to illustrate their 
 concrete action, so that the reader who desires to pursue any one of the hnes of myestiga ion in 
 cated can do it under the direction of definite ideas. The volume thus fills a place ;m our literature 
 which is occupied by no other work. It is at once a generalized history of the Revolution, and a 
 stimulating guide to the study of its details. Boston 'I ranscnpt. 
 
 THE LIFE OF NATHANAEL GREENE, MAJOR-GENERAL IN THE 
 ARMY OF THE REVOLUTION. By GEORGE WASHINGTON GREENE. In three 
 volumes, 8vo. Portrait and Maps. Cloth, $12 ; half calf, $19.50. 
 The book combines solid investigation and completeness of materials with cool reasoning and 
 
 earnest truth The author's charming simplicity of style is in keeping with the character of 
 
 the hero. In our days of steam, telegraphs, and railroads, the Life of Greene produces the effect of 
 a classic Plutarchian biography. Let every father give this book to his son . New York Evening- 
 Post. 
 
 FIRST STEPS IN GENERAL HISTORY. A Suggestive Outline. By 
 ARTHUR OILMAN, M. A. With Maps and Charts. In one volume, i6mo, cloth, 
 $1.25. 
 
 The object of this Suggestive Outline of General History is to stimulate the stu- 
 dent to make thorough investigations, and at the same time to furnish a guic 
 which shall indicate the general path to be pursued. 
 
 It is not dry reading, - chronological bones, denuded of flesh and nerve, -but general, compre- 
 hensive, yet concrete views of events grasped according to their degree of relationship. - Professor 
 Henry N. Day, of Yale College, in the College Courant. 
 
 THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY. 
 
 A superb life-size portrait of the poet LONGFELLOW will be sent -with the 
 ATLANTIC MONTHLY for 1876 to any person remitting $$.oo direct to the pub- 
 
 "The programme of the ATLANTIC for 1876 includes contributions from the ablest 
 and best writers in the country. LONGFELLOW, LOWELL, HOLMES, and WHITTIER 
 will furnish, as hitherto, their latest and best productions to the public through the 
 ATLANTIC. WARNER and ALDRICH will write on Eastern and Continental Travel ; 
 GEN. HOWARD will give his recollections of Gettysburg and other famous battles , < 
 the War- and MARK TWAIN will contribute some of his inimitable papers. MR. 
 HOWELLS'S story, " Private Theatricals," MRS. KEMRLE'S "Old Woman's Gossip 
 and MR. ADAMS'S papers on " Railroads" will be among the special leatures ol 
 year, and new attractions will be constantly added. 
 
 ' Terms: Single or specimen numbers, 35 cents. Yearly subscription, $4.00, postage 
 free ; with life-size portrait of Longfellow, $5.00. 
 
 Remittances by mail should be sent by a money-order, draft on .New York or 
 Boston, or registered letter, to H. O. HOUGHTON & Co., Riverside Press, Cambridge, 
 Mass. 
 
 H. O. HOUGHTON AND COMPANY, Boston. 
 HUBD AND HOUGHTON, New York.
 
 What the Great Writers say of 
 
 WORCESTER'S DICTIONARY. 
 
 and authentic etymologies, the conciseness and completeness of the defi- 
 
 f meani "g in s y"">' mes di- 
 
 s d, . "g n s y"">' mes - 
 
 ed and the consc.entious accuracy of the work in all its departments, give 
 it, m my judgment, the highest claims to public favor. - William Cullcn BrvanL 
 I concur with the opinion of Mr. Bryant. - Washington Irving. 
 Worcester's orthography and pronunciation represent, so far as I am aware the 
 most approved usages of our language. - Edward Everett. 
 
 On questions of orthography, I shall make it [Worcester's Dictionary] my stand- 
 am. George Bancroft. 
 
 Worcester's Dictionary has constantly lain on my table for daily use, and Web- 
 id on my shelves for occasional consultation. Oliver Wendell Holmes. 
 
 The Senate need only go to a simple dictionary; I will not go to a law book or 
 to any work on the law of nations, but I take what I think is THE BEST AUTHORITY 
 WORCESTER'S LARGE DICTIONARY. ^,,. Charles Sumtur t m. the U. S Senate' 
 Feb. 21, 1872. 
 
 More complete and exact than any of its predecessors. R<?v. W. Whewell, D. D. 
 Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, England. 
 
 That the public may appreciate your labors for the good cause of " English unde- 
 filed," and your work be received with the applause it so justly merits, is my sincere 
 wish. Henry W. Longfellow. 
 
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