fv ^wy>l^^>i»iii»*^»>i«iii^i'i) m *ii»«>i>Jvii»;»i^i(i!^>i)»\»i»»»iiii«iy%tii>i,«V>i^^i|^ ? X " 1^ X "-^ MilMMI xXXsyVX XXxXXX -^ XX Xii XXX$i^% ^XxXX x-\\ >> \ x^ \, ,\ xx\ x\. ^•^^ •X X\ - ^^x,^>.^,.C ^ Xx^^W X f' ' xV \^\ ¦ xV^ \ ^xx X "M X- 4 X ^^Vt» \xX* i5>-V C ^^< C'»1>^3X-^ X '^ * KX" ¦?SV«^^* : x^^x ,i4'x % c '¦^ ¦! X 4.5 » 1 ^«- i}iij^iijiMiiimjjMv*'i»(iW» 'M%&^'^:<^ ;.-\»r X Kx£n\14*^\-" Mpp ^\Pt#:f 'f^' ?iMlV »-( . MORGAN LEWIS BIOGRAPHIES FRANCIS LEWIS MORGAN LEWIS. BY THEIR GRANDDAUGHTER, JULIA DELA FIELD. VOLUME II NEW YORK : Anson D. F. Randolph & Company, 900 BROADWAY, COR. 20th STREET. 1877. COPYRIGHT, 1877, BY JULIA DELAFIELD. O MORGAN LEWIS It is time that my readers should be introduced to my mother. The only child of Gen. Lewis, she was as much like him as a woman can be like one of the other sex. The sympathy between them was perfect. She was his friend, his counsellor, as well as his darling. When the General made the country his principal home, she escaped, fortunately in her case, the confinement of the school and the restraint of the regular hours imposed by masters. She did not require the mental discipline. The freedom of the woods, the fields, the streams, confirmed the strong constitution that nature had given her. Health brought with it cheer fulness, courage, enterprise. Accompanied 4 BIOGRAPHY OF by her maid, a New England girl, she would go into the Beuke Bosch,* build a wigwam, furnish it with tables and seats of stone carpeted with moss ; between them they would cut down a sapling, tear the slender trunk into strips, weave them, as they had been taught to do by a squaw, into coarse baskets, and for a few hours lead the life of Robinson Crusoe. It was a knowing hen who could con ceal her nest from the little lady. Dame Partlett could not fly higher than she could climb. In one of her walks with her mother, they stopped at a farmer's house, with whose family Mrs. Lewis maintained a friendly intercourse — these were the days of domestic manufacture ; whilst Mrs. Lew is and the hausfrau talked of knitting, spin ning, weaving, the child amused herself in specting the premises ; presently she re turned in great glee. " See what I have * Dutch for Beech-wood, pronounced in the country, Buk-a-bush. MORGAN LEWIS. 5 found." She opened her apron and dis played a dozen eggs. " Where did you get them ? " " The hens were cackling in the barn ; one of them flew down from the loft. I knew that their nests were there, so I climbed up and got the eggs." " Bless the little heart," said the hausfrau, "we knew well enough that the hens were lay ing in the loft, but the ladder was out of the way, and we were afraid to climb up and get the eggs." Had the little Margaret been the heir instead of the heiress of the house, she could not have managed a horse more fear lessly, or had a firmer seat in the saddle. One manly accomplishment she had missed, probably for want of a companion : she was not a good shot. Her cousin, Margaret, with her cross bow, constantly accompanied her father. Chancellor Livingston, when he went out with his gun. He would shake his head, and say : "A fine boy spoiled." 6 BIOGRAPHY OF Generally speaking, although the excep tions are numerous, a precocious childhood precedes superior abilities in mature age. Had Dogberry known Margaret Lewis he would have been more than ever con vinced that reading and writing came by fortune, and, in her case, he might have added various other acquisitions usually the reward of patient toil. Those who have lived with children, and loved them enough to understand them, know that before they have words in which to express their thoughts, they are per plexed with the moral and metaphysical problems which can never be solved in this life. The Liliputian philosopher made fear less by ignorance, dives into the dark depths of theology and grapples with the mystery of mysteries, the existence of sin and sorrow in a world created by bound less wisdom and governed by infinite love. A young gentleman asked his mother, MORGAN LEWIS. 7 whilst she was tying his apron strings, why God did not kill the devil at once and be done with it ? These inquirers after knowledge under difliculties are easily silenced by our an swers, but we must not therefore suppose that they are convinced, A girl of five sum mers listened attentively to the story of the fall of man. When it was finished she asked, " Why did not God make Adam and Eve so that they would not be naughty ? " I know not what explanation she received ; -whatever it was, she decided, as her elders have often done since, that it did not meet the difficulty. The next thing she said was, "Adam was the first man that God ever made, so we must ex cuse him." Sensitive and talented children are often mortified and suffer unjustly from the dis pleasure of their guardians, because they can not maintain themselves at the intel lectual height to which they seem to have 8 BIOGRAPHY OF attained. The genius of Monday may on Tuesday, without any fault of his own, be what children of his age generally are, and what, perhaps, it is best that they should be. There is another peculiarity in our organ ization which for the comfort of the rising generation ought to be generally recog nized : it is, that the faculties do not develop simultaneously. A scholar in a round jacket may construe Homer with ease, and yet say with a sigh, " Multiplica tion is vexation." Put the arithmetic on the shelf and leave it there until the organ for calculation has gained strength, and multiplication will no longer be vexation. Occasionally a remark will fall from lips as unconscious of knowledge as of guile, which should make us careful not to im pose upon their innocence and their igno rance. God has given to young children, as He has to some of the inferior animals, a faculty, often lost as reason matures, by which they form an instinctive knowledge MORGAN LEWIS. 9 of character, and they are wonderfully quick at detecting inconsistency. An urchin, five years old, struck his brother with a stick. His mother said to him, " God saw you do that, and He is much displeased. Remember how angry He was with Cain when he struck Abel." After a moment's reflection the child re plied, " I believe that God saw me, but He did not see Cain. If He had seen him. He would not have said, ' Where is. thy brother Abel ? ' He would have known." A very little boy forgot himself so far as to say " Devil." His older brother told him that to say devil was to swear, and that God was angry with him. The culprit attempted no defense — his brother twice his age must know ; but after a short pause he said, " God is not angry with me, He knows that I am only a little boy ; but He is sorry, " Fenelon could not have answered more to the purpose. lO BIOGRAPHY OF Angels may whisper the secrets of heaven to the lambs of the fold. One result of the imperfect development of children is that they are not casuists — black with them is black, white is white ; , they ignore the intermediate shades of gray. Religion was interwoven wath the very being of Margaret Lewis ; it was part of her inheritance, but at the same time she was a thorough partisan. The Bible was her daily study, but she was also well acquainted with the " Pilgrim's Progress." The character of Mr. Morality she held in unmitigated contempt. She had accepted the doctrine of salvation through faith. Good works were not to be rejected, but they were suspicious. She told me that she remembered having said of a gentle man who had lost her good graces, that " he was nothing but a nasty moral man." It was not long before this part of her creed brought with it' some perplexity. How could she doubt the propriety of MORGAN LEWIS. II good works, when those she loved so dearly appeared to live only to perform them. She found, as older theologians have done, that to disentangle the skein was beyond her skill ; her part was to love and trust. Mrs. Lewis met with a Creole lady who had escaped penniless from St. Domingo ; it was desirable that her daughter should learn French ; it was certainly desirable that the refugee should have a home. She was therefore engaged to pass the summer at Staatsburgh, and give French lessons to the little Margaret. The gov erness had not precisely the qualities that we now demand in an instructress. Mrs. Lewis inquired what had become of the last pages of the folio French dictionary. Madame replied that she had torn them out for papillotes ; they were not of much use, few words began with x, y, z. Nevertheless, her pupil was fond of her, and did learn to read French. After 12 BIOGRAPHY OF she had translated a fable In prose, her father gave interest to the exercise by making a translation of the same fable in doggerel, which he wrote with facility. When the French books in the house had been read and re-read, Margaret asked for something else. The General knew little of the language. He gave an order to a bookseller to send him a collection of the best French class ics. The man sent him some that had probably been a long time on his shelves and required airing. Regnal's ponderous History of the East Indies, Rousseau's Emile, Crebillon's novels, etc. A more inappropriate choice for a young girl's library could scarcely have been made. Before Francis Depau had established a line of packets between New York and Havre, the difficulty of procuring foreign books was so great as to be an obstacle to the study of modern languages. In the present state of civilization, if you have MORGAN LEWIS. 1 3 patience, and make a judicious use of means, there are not many material things absolutely out of your reach. A few years ago, I gave a bookseller an order for a work which he was to import if it were not to be found in New York. After a reasonable time I went to inquire why my order had not bee'n attended to. The bookseller told me that there was a copy of the work in New York, but its owner would not part with it, and that it was out of print in Hamburg ; that he had directed his correspondent there to have it advertised for in the towns of the interior, and he was confident that the ad vertisement would be answered by some one, who would gladly exchange the use less volumes on his shelves for a few more thalers in his purse. Not many weeks afterward I had the satisfaction of finding the books on my library table. The General himself directed his daugh ter's EngHsh education, but he had not 14 BIOGRAPHY OF much experience in what he undertook, and occupied as he was by public business, his lessons were irregular, and not always conducted with a due regard to the age of his pupil. His horse at the door, his foot in the stirrup, he would say: "Margaret, what are you going' to do whilst I am gone ? " " I do not know, papa." " Then commit to memory Pope's ' Essay on Man.' " The " Lady of the Lake " would have been more appropriate to her time of life than this skeptical poem, but Scott had not written then. Perhaps there may be at this moment in New York some old families the walls of whose parlors are decorated by water- colored landscapes painted by their grand mothers, under the direction of Robinson, who eighty years ago was at the head of his branch of the art in New York. My mother was for a short time one of his MORGAN LEWIS. I 5 pupils. She profited so well, that late in life she could draw and color flowers from nature. This accompHshment was often a pleasant relief from the cares of the nursery and the school-room. Mrs. Lewis read well, particularly com edy. Gen. Armstrong possessed the same accomplishment. My mother had heard him read Shakespeare and had been much struck by the effect he produced. She was quite prepared to appreciate the talent of an actress who gave public read ings at this period in New York, and she determined that she would acquire this charming art. Nature had given her a correct ear, a full, clear voice, so that in her case to resolve was to succeed. Milton, the Bible, the prayer of the church she read with wonderful effect. One of our ablest orators said to me : "I wish I had the opportunity of reading the adjura tion in the Litany, I would draw tears." 1 6 BIOGR.'VPHY OF It is too often repeated as a school-boy repeats an imperfectly learned lesson of which he is heartily tired. He who knows how to adapt the in tonations of his voice to the spirit of his words is, for the time being, the master of his audience. It is surprising that a talent which is to the verse of the poet what Pygmalion was to the marble nymph, should scarcely be recognized as an art, and is certainly nowhere cultivated as it might and ought to be. I have mentioned all the advantages that Margaret Lewis ever derived from lessons and masters. What did they amount to ? Nothing that accounts for the character and abilities for which she was remarkable. She was trained, as Mrs. Barbauld has ex pressed it in her beautiful essay, by the education of circumstances, by the society in which she lived, by the spirit of the heroic age which had not passed away at her birth. MORGAN LEWIS. 1 7 Without brother or sister, the childhood of Margaret Lewis would have passed in solitude had it not been for her intimacy with her cousins, the two daughters of Chan cellor Livingston. A visit to them was the event of the season. I have heard her say that when she turned from the post road into the long avenue that led through the Clermont woods to the house, her im pulse always was to jump out and run, the horses did not go fast enough to satisfy her impatience. Staatsburgh was only twenty miles from Clermont, a distance now passed by rail in less than an hour, at that time a day's journey for ladies in their own equi page. The travelers took an early break fast, provided themselves with a lunch- basket, or stopped to dine on the road. The horses that dragged the family coach over, the long clay hills, that pulled the right wheel out of a gully on one side that the left might plunge into the depths of a 1 8 BIOGRAPHY OF hole on the other side, were allowed to rest at least twenty-four hours before they were considered able to renew their exer tions. The visit lasted from three days to a week. The first half of the time was un alloyed happiness; after that tears began to flow because the hour of parting was ap proaching. General Lewis, although he lived in the country, often passed some months of the year either in Albany or New York. When his daughter, from a little girl, became a young girl, he estab lished himself in winter in a large double house which he owned in Maiden Lane, then a fashionable quarter of the town. The property is still in his family, but the mansion long since disappeared to make way for three wholesale stores. After the war of the Revolution, Mar garet Beekman again took possession of her house in Queen now Pearl Street. Her sons, Chancellor Livingston, John R, MORGAN LEWIS. 1 9 Livingston, and Edward Livingston, also resided in New York in the winter. The latter had married Mary, one of the three daughters of Charles McEvers, whose name we constantly find on the list of the gentlemen who formed our committees of safety. Eliza, the youngest daughter, was the second wife of John R. Livingston — his first wife was Miss Sheafe, sister of the English General Sheafe. Nancy, the other sister, married Judge William P. Van Ness, well known as a politician and a man of talent to the students of the history of the State of Ne\v^ York, at the beginning of the nineteenth century. It was to these ladles that Edward Livingston addressed the following lines that he wrote on a fly leaf of Longinus on the sublime and beau tiful : " Longinus, give thy lessons o'er. We do not need thy rules, Let pedants o'er thy pages pore. Or give them to the schools. " The perfect beauty that you seek In Anna's verse I find. 20 BIOGRAPHY OF It glows on fair Eliza's cheek, And dwells in Mary's mind.' Mary was the mother of Julia and of Lewis, of whom I have already spoken. At her death the little girl was imme diately received into the family of her Aunt Eliza, where she was the acknowledged favorite. Just before Mrs. John R. Livingston breathed her last, she said to Edward, pointing to his daughter : " Edward, I am not afraid to meet that child's mother in Paradise." I relate this anecdote in the hope that some mother, whose heart is breaking with the certainty that her darlings will soon be left orphans, may cast her eyes over the page and take comfort. It was the habit of the children of Mar garet Beekman and their families, to pass with her every evening not otherwise en gaged. Her near relations often followed their example. The members of the bar MORGAN LEWIS. 21 at that day, rich in men of talent — gentle men on their promotion, foreigners of dis tinction—were not backward in seekinof admission to a salon where they were received with hospitality without ostenta tion, where they found society that could be enjoyed without the sacrifice of time, health, or duty. One evening when the company was more numerous than usual, a young Frenchman drew a paper from his pocket, and begged permission to read a eulogy, which he had composed upon George Washington, the father of his country. He began : " Most venerable Martha, sincere ly do we sympathize with you upon the loss of the one-half of you." He contin ued for some time in the same strain. Many of the audience drew their handker chiefs from their pockets and covered their faces, no doubt to conceal their tears. The author went away satisfied. Margaret Lewis (my mother) and Eliza McEvers 2 2 BIOGRAPHY OF (Mrs. John R. Livingston) were the beau ties of the drawing-room, but no one was more attractive than Margaret (afterward Mrs. Robert L. Livingston), the youngest daughter of Chancellor Livingston. She was handsome, but her fascinations con sisted far more in grace and expression than in symmetry of feature. Kotzbue, the German dramatic poet, saw her in Paris with her father, whom she had ac companied on his mission to France. He spoke of her in his memoirs, which he pub lished afterward, as the youngest sister of the modest Venus. Her manner united high polish with perfect simplicity. The zone of Venus can give its possessor no greater charm. The gifted and ill-fated Theodosia, the only child of Colonel Burr, must not be for gotten In my account of the young people who assembled In the salon of Margaret Beekman. Her father early discovered her talents, and educated her as he would MORGAN LEWIS. 23 have done had she been his son. She commenced her studies in the depths of winter, before the day dawned. She was, perhaps, the only girl in America who, at that time, was a classical scholar. My grandfather said that it was a pleasure to hear her read the Odyssey in Greek. Gentle and unassuming, her friends were much attached to her. I have seldom seen my mother more overcome than when she heard that Theodosia had lost her son, whom she was educating herself, and who seemed to be her only source of earthly happiness. Those who were acquainted with the circumstances attending her mar riage to Governor Allston, of South Caro lina, looked upon her as a modern Iphi- genia, a self-immolated victim to the un principled ambition of her father, to whom she was devoted. The ship, bound for New York, in which she sailed from Charleston, was never heard of again. The public would not accept the probable 24 BIOGRAPHY OF explanation that the vessel had foundered at sea. Years after the event, strange stories were from time to time circulated in relation to her fate. A sailor had stated that the packet had been taken by pirates ; that he had seen Mrs. Allston walk the plank. A gentleman had met and conversed with her in India. She had entreated him not to reveal to any one the secret that she still lived. Mrs. Stowe has made Colonel Burr the hero of one of her delightful stories — for years he has been the favorite and picturesque villain of the American romance of history. The world was not willing that any person or any event con nected with him should have a common place and prosaic termination. At nine o'clock, the present hour for a fashionable dinner, the guests of Mrs. Liv ingston were summoned to a substantial supper, prepared by colored cooks trained in the house. At ten, the hostess secured an hour of quiet reading, by taking leave MORGAN LEWIS. 25 of the company, first requesting one of her daughters to preside in her place. After this, a rubber of whist was sometimes played — not that Mrs. Livingston objected to the game, but she never touched cards herself, and her daughters would not en courage in her presence an amusement in which she did not share. Receptions of this kind improve the manners, the character, and add to the happiness of those who frequent them. As far as I have the means of judging, those given by Margaret Beekman were some thing like les petits soupers that made Paris so delightful before the first French Revolution. Peter R. Livingston and his brother Maturin were among the most constant of the visitors In Queen Street ; the attrac tion for the latter was his cousin Margaret Lewis. She was just seventeen when he first made his proposals. The General decided that she was too young to bind 2 26 BIOGRAPHY OF herself for life— that she must be allowed at least a year for consideration before he would consent to an engagement. At the end of the year my father renewed his offer and was accepted. They were married at Staatsburgh, on the 29th of May, 1798. Genealogy is at present exciting some attention. The note below is for the bene fit of those who would like to know how the young coi^le were related, and yet can not submit to the bore of studying the family tree.* Perhaps some of my readers would like to know what was the costume of a bride at the close of the last century. The wed- * Maturin Livingston and Margaret Lewis were both descended from John Livingston, the Commissioner. My father, through James, one of his elder children, my mother, through Robert, the youngest child, and first pro prietor of the Manor. There were four generations be tween my father and John Livingston. James : the name of his wife I have not yet ascertained. Robert Living ston, the nephew, married Margaretta Schuyler; James Livingston married Maria Kiersted ; Robert James Liv ingston married Susan Smith. There were also four gen erations between my mother and John Livingston, the MORGAN LEWIS. 27 ding dress of Margaret Lewis Avas an em broidered India muslin; the waist made a r enfant, with short sleeves ; the skirt short in front, scant, but not tight, with a long train — the whole, including the train, trimmed with French lace ; the hair, wav ing and curled, was worn at full length. My mother's hair, a glossy brown on the top, shaded gradually into a bright au burn, as it fell in profusion far below her waist. She was not above the middle height ; perfectly well-made, with beau tiful feet. Her head, phrenologically, was fine. She had large, brown eyes, delicate features, teeth like two rows of pearls. In complexion she was a light brunette, Commissioner. Robert Livingston, first proprietor of the Manor, married Alida Van Rensselaer vorn Schuyler ; Rob ert Livingston, of Clermont, married Margaret Hower- don ; Judge Robert Livingston married Margaret Beek man ; General Lewis married Gertrude Livingston. They were also cousins through Margaret Beekman, grand daughter of Robert Livingston, the nephew, and of Mar garetta Schuyler, who were also the great-grandparents of my father. 28 BIOGRAPHY OF with a good deal of color. All her life she was the picture of health. She preserved her appearance to the last. Margaret Beekman was not able to at tend the wedding of my mother, her eld est grandchild ; she made her what amends she could by writing to her on the occasion. The letter, unfortunately, has been lost. A few months before her death, an at tack of giddiness warned her that the end might be approaching. One of her daughters, Joanna, ran to support her. She raised her eyes, saw her agitation, and said gently and calmly : " Joanna, it must come." The last day of her life she rose as usual, breakfasted, settled some accounts, walked round her garden, and went to din ner in her usual health and spirits. The meal was half over when she fell back in her chair, struck with apoplexy. She was lifted to, a sofa, and expired within a few MORGAN LEWIS. 29 hours — a merciful termination to a noble life. Whilst in full possession of her health, mental and physical, she divided her es tate into as many parts as she had chil dren. The heirs were then invited to meet and receive their portions by lot. Her household effects were sold to her children at auction — none but her own family being allowed to bid. A gentleman who professed to have great experience in life, asserted that there was no instance of a large estate divided without a quarrel. The estate of Marga ret Beekman was an instance to the con trary ; and I could produce, if called upon, one more exception to the rule. Margaret Beekman died in the house built by Robert of Clermont, which she had occupied with him in his life-time, and which she herself had rebuilt after it had been destroyed in the war. When her son, Chancellor Livingston, required an estab- 30 BIOGRAPHY OF lishment of his own he built in her immedi ate nelp-hborhood. After his mother's death her home was the residence of his daughter, Mrs. Edward P. Livingston, and it is now occupied by her grandson. Eight of Mrs. Livingston's ten children had established themselves during her life within twenty miles of Clermont. The fee of six of these old places is still held by her descendants, and her grand children and great-grandchildren have added ten more country places to their number. Chancellor Livingston had chosen the capital letter H for the form of his house. The projecting wings in front were united by an elevated terrace, on which opened the windows of the dining-room on one side and of the drawing-room on the other, and which was filled with orange, lemon, and myrtle trees, not so common then as at present. A green-house ran the whole length of the house on the south side. In MORGAN LEWIS. 3 1 this green-house the dinner and supper tables were set on great occasions. The tables were so constructed that the largest and most ornamental of the green-house plants rose from their center. Two head- gardeners took charge of the green-house -and flower garden. The men servants were negroes. The butler, old and gray- headed, with an enormous bunch of keys at his girdle, I have often met walking slowly through the halls as became his dignity. He looked and behaved as if the charge of the establishment rested upon his shoulders. On Chancellor Livingston's return from France he brought with him a great addi tion to his library, a service of plate. Gobe lin tapestry,* tables of marble and lava, a * The tapestry now hangs in the hall of the house which General Montgomery had ordered built on his estate at Rhinebeck, now known as Grasmere. He left it to his wife, who sold it to her sister, Mrs. Peter R. Livingston. It was inherited by my mother, and now belongs to Lewis H. Livingston, one of her sons. 32 BIOGRAPHY OF musical clock in the shape of a ruined col umn, some pictures, particularly a full- length likeness of Henry the Fourth, which was my admiration, and a good deal of ornamental furniture of a style which had not yet found its way to the United States. Notwithstanding all that I have written in relation to Margaret Beekman, I find that I have not done justice either to her char acter or the extent of her influence. Whilst the Revolutionary war was raging, as yet with doubtful result, she, in connection with her husband, determined that if the cause of the patriots was lost, they would sell their estates and remove to Switzerland. They would not live in a country where a man was deprived of the exercise of his natural rights. The whole income of Cler mont was one year paid into the public treasury. A portion of an estate, I think in the neighborhood of Saratoga, was yearly sold to satisfy the demands of the tax-gatherer. MORGAN LEWIS, ^^ Not long before the delegates who assembled at Kingston declared the State of New York independent, a number of the most influential Republicans met at Clermont. That the State should be Inde pendent was no longer a question, but there were other points to be considered ; for instance, who was to be the first Gov ernor. One gentleman well qualified for the office was all-important in the position he then occupied, and could not be spared. There was a valid objection to every per son named, until Mrs. Livingston, who was present at their deliberations, proposed George Clinton. Her suggestion was re ceived with acclamation ; " He is the man ! Why did not we think of him at once ? " Margaret Beekman had the honor of nom inating the first Governor of the State of New York, and now the statue of Gov ernor Clinton stands side by side with that of her son, Chancellor Livingston, in the capital of the United States. 34 BIOGRAPHY OF At a public dinner given by some be nevolent society, or to promote some charitable enterprise— I have forgotten the particulars^the first toast drank was the United States ; the second, George Wash ington; the third, Mrs. Margaret Living ston, the friend of the poor. I have heard this anecdote frequently from her children, and I think that nothing ever gave them more pleasure. The following incident I relate on the authority of General Lewis : A Jew, possessed of more than ordinary intelligence and some learning, I know not by what accident, had become acquainted with Mrs. Livingston. He conversed with her upon the extraordinary career of his nation, and upon the grounds of his faith. She explained to him the Christian's in terpretation of the prophecies which they both received, and the result was that he became a convert, and was baptized into the Christian Church. MORGAN LEWIS. 35 In the two letters addressed by Mrs. Livingston to her friend, Mr. Vanderkemp, she gives unconsciously a lively picture of the manners and even of the conventional morality of the day. They will, I think, be read with interest. *'T. A. Vanderkemp, Esq., " At His Seat near Kingston, " Sir, — It is not you who ought to Lament that you are not able to express your sentiments correctly, as your letter is intirely free from every thing which you stile Barbarism. I think you must have been a proficient in the English Language before your arrival in America. But what cant a scientific character accomplish. It is I who ought to blush at the egregious Blunder I made, when I led you into the Mistake which would naturally occur upon reading Jacob instead of John Rutsen as the husband of Cath'° Beekman. Such marriages as you had thought took place 36 BIOGRAPHY OF upon that representation are never thought to be eligible by people of Charector. Upon a very Baseless foundation do you Sir Build when you do me the honor to wish for a correspondence with one who has at the first outsetting convinced you how unequal I am to convey anything for which such an art can be of utility to a Gentleman who's charector stands so high for Literary accomplishments and I will add from Experience that your candour has led you in a most amiable manner to draw a Vail over the defects of my age and Im becility. I shall at the same time think myself honored and happy to receive any communications you will be pleased to favor me with as I am certain the advan tage will be all on my side, and your good ness will I am confident make every reason able allowance for me. You wish to know Sir if the Beekmans of N. York and Esopus are of the Same family ; they are — both are descendants of William Beek- MORGAN LEWIS. '^'J man who was Gov'' of South bay now called the State of Delaware, this he held under a commission as I have been in formed from Sweden — how long he re mained there before his removal to N. Nederland I cant say, by the accounts Lately received from M' James Beekman I have the family genealogy and find he has mistaken his Great Grandfather as being the Eldest Son. Henry my Grandfather had that place, their arms and name Is the same as my fathers ; perhaps the mistake may be, that their arms on their coaches are quartered. I do not certainly know that to be the case ; the Esopus head of the family I have heard was married to a woman who was by no means an Oeconemist and he was perfectly good natured and suffered his patrimony to be wasted and poverty came with great strides upon him, so much so, that some of his Blood maintained him till he died. — What usefull Lessons do such examples yield. I admire and ap- 38 BIOGRAPHY OF plaud your prudence Sir in the manage ment of your affairs for its a most certain truth that without CEconomy the revenue of a prince may be dissapated. I inclose what M' Beekman has sent ; you will ob serve some mistakes in my family Branch which is rectifyed in what I have had the honor to send for your perusal. Is the subject of Genealogy often the Source of pride and Ostentation alass why should it be so, when we are led to reflect on the instability of all human affairs we must adopt the words of M" pope in his fine lines on M*^ A. Stonehouse : " ' how lov'd, how value'd once avails thee not, to whom related or by whom begot ; a heap of Dust alone remains of thee, 'tis all thou art, and all the proud shall be.' " It is true, none who possess family dis- pise it, neither ought we to do it ; but to look upon as a particular favor to have de rived our being from men and women fearing God and respected in their day for MORGAN LEWIS. 39 virtue and Goodness — Many promises are in the Sacred Book for the children of be lievers — but then they must pray, that they may be followers of those who through faith and patience Inhirit the promisses. This S' will prove an antidote to the poison of y' pride of ancesstory, and keep those humble that they bring no blot upon their house by their conduct. " Mr. Cockburn has promised me to let you have 2 Bush Barly, but says he does not know how to get it to Kingston, he has also some young Negro Boys which he will sell, but not so old as your Letter mentions you wish to have — I have one about 27 years, a complete Coachman, a very fine Waiter, has attended 20 people with great ease and Quickness at table; Is sober, but has taken an insuperable dislike to the Country, has run away, and is now a Gentleman at large in N. Y., and does just as he pleases ; him I could not recommend, and I have none I can spare, 40 BIOGRAPHY OF as I have given them away as soon as they grow usefull to my children. I have not had it in my power to ingage a person who could be properly recommended for you, altho' I have sent Quite to Beekman- town but was informed that the season was past as everybody was ingaged for the summer. I shall give Brink the ferry man a pint of Siberian Barly, part of a very small Quantity I raised here last summer, and a few grains of very white Wheat which I received last Jan^ from Maryland. I planted some in pots in the house about the 20 of Jan^, and have now transplanted it into a bed in my Garden. I could only procure a Tea cup full of the wheat, of these S'^ you can make a trial ; please S' to make my best respects accept able to M'^ Vanderkemp, and give me leave to have the honor of assuring you both that I shall esteem it a very pleasing event to see you here in the course of this Spring or Summer ; — by the many inter- MORGAN LEWIS. 4 1 ruptions I have met with while writing, I fear you will find some difficulties. " I am with great Respect S"^ " Your most Ob' and Hum"^ Ser' " Margaret Livingston." " Clermont, 17 April, 1790. " I send to be divided I etween the Dom= and M"^ Vanderkemp some fine mellons presented by the Spanish Amb"" and from Carolina, the seed must be planted Imme diately. I shall be obliged by the return of the family writing any time after it has been coppyed as no haste is required. "T. A. Vanderkemp, Esq. " New York, i Febi., 1792. "Respected S'. — Soon after my arrival in this City I had the Honor of your kind remembrance inclosing M' Winter's Ge nealogy of our family in Holland for which I am thankful. I observe we are almost 42 BIOGRAPHY OF as numerous there as we are here- — agre- ably to your request I sent it to M"^ James Beekman who returned it after some time. I shall keep it for a safe opportunity to re turn It to your hands. I am grei^itly affected at your Misfortune in meeting with a Character of such open Duplicity as under the Mask and Sacred name of Friendship to do you so great an injury as you mention, who the person is I know not nor wish to know. I have been favored with a visit from M" and M'' Mapa and M"" Van Poleme with Miss Van Berkel ; we spent part of an agreeable Evening together. M" Vanden Huvel Is a lively agreable Lady who is one in all the polite parties in town. This place is all gaiety and festivity, parties every night in the week, fortunes Tumbling in ye Laps of very many people in so rapid a manner as never before has been the case (excepting in the Conquest of Mexico when Monte- zumas Treasures fell in the hands of a few MORGAN LEWIS. 43 Spaniards) and in the flow of great riches Dissipation takes place proportionably — is it not a Query whether riches acquired by frugality and industry which are nur- serys for Public Virtues as well as domes tic Happyness — or wealth acquired rapidly by speculators and Brokers to the amount of ^100,000 etc., etc., which in all proba- bllit}'^ will expand in Balls, Entertainments, Sumtious Buildings and superb furniture in which Gameing is carried on in large sums lost and won. " A Gent, from Philadelphia is sitting by me who relates that M"^ Knox took home 400 Dolls she won. Surely these are serious Evils, in a retrospective of 'all the Great Empires for ages past cannot we Date their rise and progress from pub lic Virtue and patriotism to riper days, when wealth and power flowed in. Luxury and Dissipation with Gigantic Strides overturned all that their Virtuous fathers had done and nothing but anarchy and 44 BIOGRAPHY OF ruin followed. These are examples which Americans ought never to lose sight of and to tremble for our Infant Empire ; but I forget to whom I am making Observa tions which cannot have Escaped y" notice of y' well informed mind, but as these reflections dwell upon my mind they will drop from my poor pen especially as I myself upon my family's account am obliged in some measure to conform to custom. I am very much obliged by your friendly Inquiries about M'^ Armstrong's health. I bless the Author of all my good that her health is much mended so as to be free from all complaints except those incident to her present situation and those but small — I hope by this y' Worthy Lady is quite recovered from her cold she had when I was favored with your last which I did not receive till long after M"^ Elmen- dorp had left this place. With respect to the Shingles, I have had my Timber so shame fully wasted to the great Detrement of my MORGAN LEWIS. 45 Saw Mills that I have for some time past laid it down for a rule not to suffer one Tennent to make any shinggles as they have so grosly abused my lenity. As I well know there are better shinggles and for the same price sold at Katsklll than my woods produce it cannot be any ma terial difference to my Esteemed Corre spondent. My Best Respects attend on M"^ Vanderkemp to whom with yourself my best wishes are tendered. I must re lease you from so long an Espistole which I fear has tried your patience by assuring " Raspected S'' ¦ "that I am with Resp''' " Your most Ob"* and hum"'= Serv' " Marg' Livingston." In 1804, Colonel Burr and General Lewis were rivals for the office of Governor — the latter was the favorite of the Federal 46 BIOGRAPHY OF party, who generally gave him their votes, and he was elected by a large majority. John Broome, Esq., was at the same time made Lieutenant Governor. The distinguishing act of the adminis tration of General Lewis was the establish ment of a permanent fund for the support of common schools. In his first address to the Legislature we find the following paragraph : " I can not conclude, gentle men, without calling your attention to a subject which my worthy and highly re spected predecessor in office had much at heart, and frequently, I believe, pre sented, though not perhaps in an official form, to your view, the encouragement of literature. In a government resting on pub lic opinion, and deriving its chief support from the affections of the people, religion and morality can not be too sedulously inculcated. To them science is a hand maid ; ignorance the worst of enemies. Literary information should be placed MORGAN LEWIS. 47 within the reach of every description of citizens ; and proverty should not be per mitted to obstruct the path to the fane of knowledge. Common schools, under the guidance of respectable teachers, should be established in every village, and the in digent educated at the public expense. The higher seminaries also should re ceive every support and patronage within the means of enlightened legislators ; learn ing would then flourish, and vice would be more effectually restrained than by vol umes of penal statutes." In a community such as ours the educa tion of the people would, no doubt, have become in time the settled policy of the State ; but we owe a debt of gratitude to General Lewis, that a measure of such vital importance was proposed and carried into effect as soon as the population of the State made it desirable, and its wealth was sufficient to meet the necessary expense. We had at that time great cause to com- ^8 BIOGRAPHY OF plain of France as well as of England, and General Lewis saw the necessity of im proving our militia system. He would have the Government act upon the well- known principle that the best way to pre vent war was to show that you are pre pared to meet It. The military experience he had gained in the Revolution peculiarly fitted him for this part of his duty. He personally reviewed and inspected all the militia of the State. He introduced the horse artillery into the service, which in the war of 1812-14 was found of in valuable importance. He also prevailed upon the Legislature to comply with the Fourteenth Article of the Constitution, which directs the establishment of war like stores in the different counties of the State. The public made him honorable amends for the ridicule with which some of his plans and reforms were received at the time by adopting and fully carrying them out in after years. MORGAN LEWIS. 49 In 1804, the first year of the administra tion of General Lewis, the duel was fought between Hamilton and Burr. The fatal result of their meeting produced an excite ment which to this day has not entirely subsided. It was nowhere more felt than in the family of the Clermont Livingstons, to whom Hamilton was related by his mar riage with Catherine Schuyler, daughter of Major-General Schuyler.* Burr, whose social attractions were remarkable, was a constant visitor in the house of General Lewis. He and Hamilton were opposed in politics ; this circumstance no doubt some what biased the judgment of the latter, nevertheless, events as they passed, proved that he was not mistaken when he pro nounced his fascinating rival to be utterly unprincipled. One day when Hamilton, in * Catherine Schuyler and Mrs. Lewis (the latter through her mother, Margaret Beekman) were both great-grand daughters of Robert Livingston, the nephew, and of Mar garetta Schuyler. 3 50 BIOGRAPHY OF the presence of General Lewis, was ex pressing in unmeasured terms his contempt of Burr, the General took him aside and begged him to be more cautious and more temperate lA his language. What he said would probably come to the ears of Burr, and the consequence might be fatal. Ham ilton's answer was, that he had nothing to fear^ — that Burr was a coward as well as a scoundrel. The General replied that he was much mistaken — that Burr was as brave a man as ever lived. According to the code of honor re ceived at the day, the duel was inevita ble. Hamilton was a sacrifice to the faulty morality of the age. Burr at first took refuge in Pennsylvania, but he foresaw that in the then state of the public mind the Governor of New York would be compelled to demand his sur render from the Governor of Pennsylvania, who would be under the necessity of order- MORGAN LEWIS. -5I ing his arrest. He therefore thought it most prudent to leave the country. Great interest was felt in a domestic tragedy that occurred about this time. A schoolmaster had adopted the little daugh ter of his sister. The child was to be his heiress, and he conducted her education upon his own principles. He ordered the child to spell a monosyllable in which there was a silent letter ; she obeyed, but in spelling the word left out the silent letter. He whipped her and told her to try again ; she made another attempt, with no better success. Such an obstinate temper ought to be broken ; whipping followed whipping until late in the day, and still the perverse will remained unsubdued. At night the mother undressed the child and told the uncle that he had been too severe, that the skin of the child's back was broken. He replied, " Wash the stripes with brandy, and they will be well in the morning." She 52 BIOGRAPHY OF followed the prescription ; the brandy pro duced inflammation ; the wounds mortified, and the little sufferer died. The wretched man, as soon as he found that the child's life was in danger, went for a physician and then attempted to escape. He was pursued, arrested, tried, and con demned to death. A petition, that the death penalty should be changed for that of imprisonment for life, was presented to the Governor. It was signed by persons of great respectability, and by the mother of the child. It was admitted that the crim inal not only meant no harm, but consci entiously believed that he was doing his duty. He was stupid, not wicked, and, like many stupid people, he was extremely set in his ways. It was so long since there had been an execution in the town in which the criminal was to suffer, that many people had never witnessed the spectacle. The shop-keepers had sold an unprece- MORGAN LEWIS. 53 dented quantity of gay prints to the fair sex who wished to appear to advantage on this festive occasion ; consequently the Governor's humanity in granting the peti tion was not generally approved of; it was said to have lost him a good many votes in the district. We who have lived through the admin istration of Gen. Grant, and have been told that the liberties of the Republic were threatened by the handful of United States troops that, scattered over the continent, kept the Indians in check, and guarded both our Atlantic and Pacific coasts, might suppose that human absurdity could go no further. We are mistaken — our predeces sors were no wiser than ourselves ; what is, has been, and will be again. When the term of office of Gen. Lewis drew to a close, the danger apprehended from his re election was not mihtary despotism — it was family influence, aristocratic combination. Mrs. Lewis was the sister of Chancellor 54 BIOGRAPHY OF Livingston. Gen. Armstrong, who suc ceeded him as Minister to France, had married another sister. Thomas Tillotson, Secretary of State, was the husband of a lady of the same family. Edward Living ston, their brother, was Mayor of New York; Maturin Livingston, son-in-law of the General, was Recorder ; Brockholst Liv ingston was Judge of the Supreme Court ; and Smith Thompson, who had allied him self by marriage to the Livingstons, had lately been raised to the same high posi tion. The gentlemen who held these ap pointments were admitted to possess both character and talent ; it was also admitted that it would be difficult to find men better qualified to fill the offices to which they were appointed, but was not the Livingston family more dangerous for this very reason ? It was taken for granted that there would be no rivalry, no clashing of interests to prevent these gentlemen from acting in MORGAN LEWIS. 55 concert. They would unite like a band of brothers in their efforts to appropriate to themselves the wealth, the patronage, and the power of the State. Daniel D. Tompkins, who had no family connections to excite jealousy, but who really was an amiable man and sincere lover of his country, was selected as the candidate of the opposition. The cam paign was ably conducted by his partisans. A report circulated at the right moment when there was no time to have it contra dicted, that General Lewis had gone over to the Federalists, lost him the election, and Tompkins was the successful candi date. In 1807 General Lewis was released for a few years from the cares of office. Per haps, at this period, he was as happy as it is often given for man to be in this life. His health was perfect — he had reached the noon of manhood without having lost one of the advantages of youth. In do- 56 BIOGRAPHY OF mestlc life every aspiration of his affection ate heart was gratified. He could amuse himself in his own way, and return to his early studies. The carpenter was again at work executing his plans. I once heard him say: "I thought that I had invented this machine, but I have just found it de scribed in the encyclopedia. I suppose that I was aided by my memory." Even his flute would occasionally be taken out of its case and occupy pleasantly an hour in the heat of the day. As to his political rivals, he more than forgave their enmity ; he for got it. His most deadly foe was sure of justice from him, and that given not grudgingly or of necessity, but with full measure, pressed down, overflowing. His temper was quick, his words sometimes hasty, but they had scarcely passed his lips when the excitement was over — like the spark struck from the flint, which, for want of fuel, expires as soon as it appears. No small feeling of jealousy or rancor MORGAN LEWIS. 57 ever harbored in his breast. Truth, cour age, and disinterestedness formed the foundation of his character. The General's first wish, when he re turned to his Staatsburgh home, was to be of use to the tenants who Hved in his neighborhood belonging to the estate of Mrs. Lewis. The German and Dutch set tlers were, as it is well-known, singularly consecutive, slow in changing their opinion, slow in adopting novelties; their creed was, that what was good enough for their fathers was good enough for them. Even at that date they were not sure that Burgoyne had surrendered — they said of themselves that they required proof — they were not easily taken in. General Lewis had a garden-bed care fully prepared for cultivation and invited some of his principal Dutch tenants to pay him a visit and see him try an experiment. After having sown in their presence the bed with grass-seed, he traced in capital 3* 58 BIOGRAPHY OF letters, in the middle of the patch, the initials of his own name, and sprinkled the slender furrow with plaster of Paris, before he covered it with the pulverized earth. He then invited the men to return on a given day and see the result. The men smiled and talked to each other in their native patois. The General asked one of his own laborers, who had been brought up among them, what they said. The man replied, "Well, if you must know, they said : Can the General be such a damned fool as to suppose he can make the grass grow with that white dust ? " Nevertheless they returned at the time appointed, and when they read the letters M. L. formed distinctly, the tall grass wav ing over the short herbage below, they be gan to fear that the General knew a little too much — it seemed to be uncanny. A New Englander — I have forgotten by what accident, perhaps he had married a Dutch heiress — had found his way into one MORGAN LEWIS. 59 of these German or Dutch settlements. His neighbors came in force and requested the General to purchase his lease, they did not like his new-fashioned ways. They were industrious, respectable men, and the land lord granted their request. The very pertinacity with which they clung to their prejudices was to some extent the result of the character that made them valuable settlers. The mania for merino sheep belongs to this period. The exportation of the ani mal was forbidden by the laws of Spain. The adventurer who succeeded in landing some of them on the shores of America disposed of them at fabulous prices. A lamb just weaned would bring $ i ,000. . As the climate was cold for its tropical nat ure, it was often dressed in a flannel jacket, and was the pet of the family. If it seemed to droop, it was removed from the sheep-house to a comfortable apart ment, placed in a basket lined with wool 60 BIOGRAPHY OF in the chimney-corner, and a careful nurse watched and fed it through the night. The General had soon what was consid ered a fine flock of sheep. When he re quired mutton for his table Ife was always glad to exchange one of his half-breeds for a lamb from the plebeian flock of a neighbor who wished to improve his stock. John R. Livingston was one of the few gentlemen who escaped the contagion. He asserted that if sheep could be sold for $i,ooo apiece, his countrymen would import them from the very jaws of the in fernal regions. The attempt to make the merino sheep a staple of the country was premature. The English, at that time, did not allow their woolen manufacturers to emigrate, and our mechanics were not skillful enough to make the fine cloth for which the wool of the merino sheep was required. Be sides, it was soon discovered that the large common sheep was more profitable for the MORGAN LEWIS. 6 1 market than the small, delicately-made merino. The greatest object of interest in the early part of this century was the steamboat. The wheels at first were not boxed up, the sides were open, and the monster belching out smoke, its body in flames, defying the wind, defying the tide, seemed to bear down upon you with irresistible power. No one knew better than General Lewis the advantage that the application of steam to navigation would be to the country ; be sides, he was much attached to his brother- in-law, Chancellor Livingston, and he en joyed his triumph In the success of an en terprise to which he had for years devoted so much of his time, his talents, and his wealth. General Lewis loved my father as if he had been his son ; not a cloud ever ob scured their friendship. It was very hard for him and Mrs. Lewis to be separated from their only child, and he thought it but 62 BIOGRAPHY OF right that she should pass the summer months at Staatsburgh. According to him, the summer commenced with the fine weather and lasted until November. In those days the removal of a family from New York to the country seats of the Livingstons, above the Highlands, was no trifling undertaking. The cabin of a sloop was engaged. The berths were furnished with bedding, provisions were cooked to last for several days, crockery, knives, forks, and such utensils as are required by peo ple unaccustomed to eat with their fingers were provided. It was almost as much trouble as furnishing a small house. This summer arrangement was excellent for the health of the children, and indeed for the immediate happiness of all parties, bqt it was incompatible with my father's busi ness as a lawyer. After trying it for some years, he found that he could not live in two places and be successful as a profes sional man. He sold his New York house MORGAN LEWIS. 63 in Liberty Street, which he had built for himself, and purchased Ellerslie, an estate on the Hudson, near Rhinebeck. When my mother found that the coun try was to be her permanent home, she prepared herself for her new duties — or, rather, for her increase of duties. She engaged a French woman to read French with her to improve her pronunciation. She returned to her youthful studies. Sixty years ago the country boasted of few academies for boys, and they were bad copies of the English classical school. Boarding-schools for girls were perhaps even more objectionable. West Point now deserves its reputation ; but there was a time when the cadets, as one of them was frank enough to admit, gradu ated in the rule of three. My mother determined that her daugh ters, and, as far as practicable, her sons, should be educated at home. In the nur sery there was always one baby in the 64 BIOGRAPHY OF arms, and another toddling about by the aid of a chair. It is difficult to understand how she contrived to be there whenever she was wanted ; to take care of the baby at night ; and at the same time pass from six to eight hours a day in the school room. She was always with us when we studied; and when, as sometimes hap pened, a governess or a tutor left us be fore another was provided, she taught us entirely herself Skilled labor in those days was not, as a matter of course, to be had— never out of the great cities ; then my mother's ac curate eye and steady hand were of incal culable value to her family. There was scarce an article in the ward robe of man or woman that she could not make herself or direct another how to make. A girl who had worked under her directions never afterward found it difficult to get employment. Two of her eleves were, in time, at the head of fashionable MORGAN LEWIS. 65 establishments of their own. Every detail of the management of the estate, as well as of the household, passed through her hands — not from any love of control on her part, or because the heads of the fam ily were unwilling to take their share of the burden, but because she was the cen ter round which everything revolved, and no member of her family was content until her approbation and co-operation had been secured. The mansion that my father erected upon the Rhinebeck estate was planned by my mother, and commands a beautiful and extensive southern view of the Hud son. The Hon. William Kelly, who after ward owned the place, and whose family reside there at present, did full justice to its advantages and greatly added to its ex tent. I saw nothing in Europe kept in finer order ; and it would be difficult to surpass it in scenery. We were preparing to leave Staatsburgh 66 BIOGRAPHY OF for our new home when General Lewis was taken iU. The attack was short, but severe. Mrs. Lewis then asked : " Where is the use of two establishments ? How can we do without you ? " Ellerslie was sold, wings were added to the Staatsburgh house, and the General passed the rest of his life with his daughter and her family. My father was the youngest child of Robert James Livingston, who died at the age of forty-seven, leaving his widow but slenderly provided for. Her father, the Hon. WiUiam Smith, Judge of the Su preme Court and Member of the Privy Council, was, before the Revolution, one of the richest subjects of the Crown in New York; but his estate had been so managed by the executors that the heirs never derived any advantage from it. Mrs. Livingston would not listen to the entreaties of her friends that she would re main with them in New York. She re-' moved to Princeton, where Chancellor MORGAN LEWIS. (i"] Livingston, General Lewis, and several other members of the family had gradu ated. There she could live within her in come, and give her sons a college educa tion without depriving them of their mother's care and the comforts of their mother's home. The result proved that she was right. The Alumni of Princeton College, with whom I have been acquainted^ have generally written and spoken the English language with great purity, and have been remarkably free from disagreeable peculi arities of accent. The sons of Mrs. Robert Livingston were not exceptions to the rule. Peter was too nervous to write, but he was one of the most impressive speak ers in the country. Maturin wrote remark ably well. He studied law, and at the time of his marriage was rising rapidly in his profession. For three years, whilst General Lewis was Governor, he had been Re corder ; but when Tompkins was elected 68 BIOGRAPHY OF it was not to be expected that the son-in- law of the unsuccessful candidate would be allowed to retain so important an office, and as a matter of cou se he lost his place. It has always been a source of regret to me that my father gave up the law. It would have been more for his advantage had he allowed his family to pass the spring and summer at Staatsburgh, and been satisfied himself with visiting them in the August vacation. The truth is, that he was easily made happy, his children were provided for, he wanted nothing for himself, and he stopped short in his career when the highest honors of his profession were within his. grasp. That he might not be altogether without occupation, he established a cloth factory upon a stream that flowed through part of the General's estate. It gave him for several years an object of interest, and added considerably to his income. The failure of a mercantile house to which the MORGAN LEWIS. 69 cloth was assigned discouraged him at last, and Induced him to give up the under taking. In 18 ID General Lewis re-entered public life. He was elected to the Senate from the Middle District by the largest majority ever given to any candidate in this section. The surrender of Burgoyne, and after ward of Cornwallls, had left Great Britain essentially without an army in America. They could not recruit their ranks on this continent and at the same time carry on the conflict with republican France. In 1783 the treaty was signed by which our independence was acknowledged. Whether Great Britain ever Intended to observe Its stipulations is questionable. She re ained possession of military posts avowedly with in our boundaries. The Indian tribes were supplied with arms and instigated to make their savage inroads upon our frontier set tlements. Our rights as neutrals were disregarded, and finally, in reply to our 70 BIOGRAPHY OF remonstrances, we were told that further negotiations were inadmissible. The patriots had gained their object. The freedom of the United States was secured. The great struggle was over, but it had left the country exhausted. The General Government scarcely deserved the name, and would have been utterly powerless in any other community but ours. The treasury was empty ; there was neither public nor private credit. The thirty years of peace with which we had been favored had been well employed. We had adopted the federal Constitution by which we are still essentially governed. We had refused to pay the disgraceful tribute to Algiers to which the great powers of Europe had so long submitted. We had sent a fleet to the Mediterranean and compelled the Algerines to give up their piracy. ,We had been surely and steadily subduing the wilderness and ad vancing in power and civilization. Positive MORGAN LEWIS. 7 1 want was almost unknown, and no country could boast of more domestic happiness or more domestic virtue. Notwithstanding all that we had accom plished, we knew well that we had neither fleets nor armies to contend with the power of England. Had we had a ray of hope that she would in time have done us justice, we would have waited in patience ; but the insults offered to our flag on the ocean, the invasion of the personal rights of our seamen decided the question. We trusted to a righteous cause — to the God who had never forsaken us, and in June, 1 812, we declared war against Great Britain. General Lewis was again summoned to the service of his country by a request from Mr. Madison that he would accept the place of Secretary of War in his Cabi net. After some deliberation the General declined the honor. No one out of his own family ever knew from him that the com- 72 BIOGRAPHY OF pliment had been paid him. He said that he wished It to be kept a secret because it lessened the dignity of an office if it was made known that it had been refused. Madison then nominated him Quarter master-General of the Armies of the United States, and the appointment was confirm ed by the Senate, before the General him self had been consulted on. the subject. He went to Washington immediately, de termined to decline the position in con sequence of the law then In force, which made the head of the department respon sible for the conduct of his subordinates without giving him the liberty of selecting them. His objections were considered reason able ; a new law was made to meet the occasion, and he consented to serve. I now copy some of the General's let ters. They will give a clearer insight into his sentiments and character than can be done by any words of mine : MORGAN LEWIS. ']T, "Albany, Thursday, July, 1812. .... "I have just returned from hear ing Mr. Clews preach a sermon on the war, which, for elegance of composition, has seldom been surpassed; for piety and patriotism, never. His text was from Job : ' Be afraid of the sword.' He considered war as the scourge of Heaven for a nation's sins ; that it was often the only means of protecting national right, and securing firm and lasting peace ; that when every effort to avert it by negotiation had failed, an ap peal to arms for redressing national wrongs becomes a duty ; that such a war render ed the character of the soldier honorable ; that the constitutional authorities having decided upon it, it became the duty of every man, be his sentiments or politics what they may, to give it a vigorous and manly support, and that those who would not defend the country that gave them birth, and which nurtured them in her 4 74 BIOGRAPHY OF bosom, be her enemies whom they may, could expect to be accepted neither by God or man. " My pleasure, you may suppose, was heightened by unexpectedly hearing such sentiments from such a quarter." "Albany, ist September, 1812. ' " My DEAR Love : — I thank you for your affectionate letter, and hope that, although you are not fond of scribbling, you will not forget that, immersed as I am in business, the only pleasure I have is to hear that those whom most I love are at ease and happy. A single line, therefore, inform ing me of the welfare of those I love will always be to me the most grateful and acceptable gift. We do not yet know the true cause of Hull's disaster. Much, we have reason to believe, is to be ascribed to disease, as we are informed that as far back as the 29th of last month we had but morgan lewis. 75 200 men fit for duty. I fear, however, that the head of the department will not escape censure. "Many of the federalists cannot disguise their exultation, though they pre tend to be much mortified. I am happy to find that it has produced no dismay either in the army or the country at large ; on the contrary, it has evidently had the effect of exciting a spirit of vengeance and a desire to efface the stain. " Kiss all our dear children for me, and give them my blessing. I cannot say when I will be with you, it will be some time hence. "Your affectionate "M, L," " Albany, \ith October, 18 12. "My DEAR Love: — I gave your invitation to the General and suite, which they accept provided nothing unforeseen prevents, so that you can look out for us on Saturday, ']6 BIOGRAPHY OF the 17th, the day of Burgoyne's surrender and the succeeding one to my birthday. Have a light on the wharf I hope we shall be in time for a dance. Enclosed is a note of thanks from the General for his present. The cover I tore off to render it more susceptible of enclosure. I sent some sermons by Mr. Schell and the other articles by the Paragon. " God bless you all, prays " Your affectionate " Morgan Lewis." "Albany, 22^ 0/ October, 181 2. " My dear love :^The enclosed will give you the particulars as far as we pos sess them of the imprudent, but gallant affair at Lewiston. Your friend Solomon received a wound, immediately upon land ing, through the thigh. He advanced, how ever, with the troops, received a second through the leg, but still advanced, received morgan lewis. ']'] a third through the calf of the opposite leg, went on notwithstanding, till he received a violent contusion on the head, supposed from a cannon shot, which brought him to the ground and disabled him. He was carried off" and thus saved from being a prisoner. He is, however, doing well, which you will believe when I tell you that he has sent for a new pair of boots. " Henry Armstrong, Colonels Christie and Fenwick are slightly wounded and prisoners. Colonels Strangham and Bloom of the militia are also wounded, the former severely, and are prisoners. Capt. Gib son of the light artillery, Neilson of the 6th infantry, and Lieut. Morris of the light artillery (brother of the ist Lieutenant who was wounded on board the Constitu tion) were killed. Our loss is not ascer tained, but is believed to be about four hundred. "The works on the heights of Queens- ton were taken by assault, retaken by the 78 BIOGRAPHY OF British, again assaulted, and carried by our troops, and the possession maintained for nearly three hours, when they marched out, gave battle to Brock on the plain at the head of five times their number. "Thus you see we have gained glory, but at a dear rate. The English have asked for a three days' suspension of hostilities, which has been granted. Gen. Van Rens selaer in consequence of the height of party spirit in his camp has asked leave to re tire. " Your affectionate " Morgan Lewis. "Mrs. Morgan Lewis, " Staatsburgh, Dutchess Co." " Burlington, 20 November, 1812. " My dearest love : — Our army crossed the British lines on Monday, at least a con siderable detachment of them, the re mainder lying on their arms, ready to act according to circumstances. They drove in the enemy's advanced pickets and burned their guard-house. Few lives morgan lewis. 79 were lost ; on our part six wounded, one of whom died. The enemy had almost an equal number killed. Their whole body immediately retreated — laying waste the country as they went — killing the horses, destroying forage, burning the mills of every description, and, in some instances, the dwellings of those of their subjects whom they suspected of disaffection. Finding they were not disposed to fight us, and knowing that we could not follow them to their side of the St. Lawrence, our troops retired and are now going Into win ter-quarters. General Dearborn is ex pected here to-morrow; I shall then be able to determine whether it will be neces sary for me to remain longer in this quar ter or not. I rather think I shall return with him. I have been perfectly well. " God bless you. " Your affectionate " Morgan Lewis. " Mrs. Morgan Lewis, "Staatsburgh, Dutchess Co." 8o BIOGRAPHY OF "Albany, \oth December, 1812. " I arrived here, my dearest friend, yes terday to dinner, in company with General Dearborn and suite. I need not say how much I was disappointed on entering Mrs. Ludlow's house, to find that you had de parted. The cause was an afflicting one, and produced sensations which the exer tion of all my philosophy could not bear me up against. I was completely un manned, and do not believe I could at that moment have looked an English army in the face.* " What changes ! Who, who could command his fate, would not prefer a glo rious death in his country's cause ? " My absence from this place has pro duced an accumulation of business, which will require some days to get through with. As soon as I can dispose of it, I shall en- * Mrs. Lewis had been summoned to Clermont to see her brother. Chancellor Livingston, who had had a stroke of apoplexy. morgan lewis. 8 1 deavor to obtain leave to join you for a lit tle time at Staatsburgh. " That God may ever bless you and our house, most fervently prays " Your ever affectionate husband, " Morgan Lewis. " Mrs. Morgan Lewis, " Staatsburgh, Dutchess Co." In March, 1813, General Lewis resigned his place as Quartermaster-General and was promoted to the rank of Major-Gen eral. In April he repaired to the Niagara frontier. Scott, Chandler, and Macomb, with their commands, were encamped at the same place, preparatory to a descent upon Fort George. The conduct of the expedition was entrusted to General Lewis. In concert with Commodore Chauncey, he 4* 82 BIOGRAPHY OF made every preparation to land the army in safety on the opposite shore. General Dearborn, whose health had been very bad, remained on board a vessel in the stream. Immediately after the advanced guard had attacked the enemy, General Lewis landed at the head of his division near Fort George. The conflict was severe. The British troops were compelled to re tire toward the town of Newark and the fort, where they set fire to their stores and magazines. They then continued their re treat — one body by the river, another by the black swamp road. As the stores were valuable great exertions were made to save them, and the flames were finally arrested by pulling down the neighboring buildings. After a short rest in the village, the Amer icans went in pursuit of the retreating ene my. They were all but within our grasp, when an order from Dearborn, dated from on board the Madison, was received by morgan lewis. 83 General Lewis directing him to halt the troops and take up a defensible position for the night. Immediately after. General Dearborn on horseback appeared on the ground and assumed the command. The battle had been fought and won. The untimely prudence of the commander-in-chief de prived the country of the fruits of the vic tory. The capture of Fort George, which we owe to General Lewis, was the only terri tory taken from the English during the war.* In the summer of 1813 General Lewis was appointed to the command of Sackett's Harbor. The morning that he entered the town he observed that preparations were *Mrs. Lewis, to be nearer the seat of war, passed part of the summer of 1813 in Utica. The letters ad dressed to her by General Lewis at that place have not been preserved. I am much indebted to the able sketch of the life of General Lewis, prepared by Mr. James Her- rick, for the particulars of the campaign. 84 BIOGRAPHY OF being made for an execution. He inquired of the officer In attendance if there was any reason why the man about to suffer should not have the benefit of the custom which grants a pardon to those under sen tence of death when a port changed its commander. The officer replied that he knew of no reason for which the criminal should be denied the privilege. A messenger was immediately dispatched with the pardon. He arrived a moment too late — the man was already suspended from the gallows; he was cut down, not dead, but insensible, and he was restored to consciousness. As soon as he was able to speak, he poured forth a volley of execrations against those who had brought him back to life ; the suf fering was passed — why was he doomed to endure a second time the agonies of death ? What was the character of this man ? What was his history ? He had conquered the first instinct of human nat- morgan lewis, 85 ure, the love of life — was he above or below human nature ? Was he a hero or a brute ? Whenever I can, I will allow the General to tell his own story : "Sackett's Harbour, the 35 Committees, 3^, 37) 39 Constitutional Convention of 1777, 44 Cabal against Washington, 45~48 Carlton, Governor, 83 Convention of Saratoga, 89 Clermont 123-128, 148-152 Combury, Lord and Lady 124, 138 Church, Mrs., 131 Cortland, Van, Gertrude, 136, 138 Clinton, George, 149 Camp, The, 160, 161 Declaration of Independence, 37 Duer, William 44, 46, 48 Daughters of Mrs. Robertson, Si. 52 Dominie Doll 153 Domestic Life, 1 59-177 Duponceau, Stephen, 174 Essay on Northmen, 59-68 Frencii War of 1752, 19-21 Genealogy, Livingstons', 105-121 Garretson, Rev. and Mrs., 197 Hardwicke, Mr., 170-172 Hamilton, General, 186, 187 Jay, John, 32 Jones, Wm., Hon., 218-220 INDEX. 241 Lewis, Francis, Birth, Parentage, Education, 9, 10 ; Westminster, Counting-house, of age, 11 ; Emi gration, 12 ; Commercial Enterprises, 13 ; Mar riage, 14; Voyages, Ventures, 19; Oswego, 19; Capture, 20 ; Exchanged, Returned to America, 23 ; Patriotic Services, 25-48 ; Whitestone, 26, 33 ; Retires from Business, 26, 29 ; Signs Declara tion of Independence, 37 ; Commissioner of Board of Admiralty, 52 ; Vestryman of Trinity Church, 52 ; Old Age, Literary Taste, 53-55 ; Death, 56. Lewis, Francis, Mrs., Marriage, 14; Character, 15; Sufferings and Death, 41-44. Lewis, Francis, Junior, Partnership, 29 ; Marriage, 38. Lewis, Ann, Marriage, Character, 50-52 Lewis, Morgan, Birth, Boyhood, 71-76; Education, 76-78 ; Military Drill, 79 ; Major, 82 ; Colonel and Quartermaster-General, 83; Campaigns, 84, 86, 88, 89, 91, 92 ; Philadelphia, 98, 99 ; Mar riage, 181 ; Resigns from the Army, 185 ; Studies Law, 189; Member of N. Y. Assembly, 190, 191 ; Judge, Attorney-General, Chief-Justice, Governor, 191 ; Country Life, 193. Lewis, Morgan, Mrs., . . .99, 161, 177-182, 185, 186 Lewis, Margaret, . . 185, 186 Livingston, Robert, last Lord of Manor, . . -87 Lauzun, Marquis de, ... -95 Leisler ... 114 Livingston, John, Commissioner, .... 100-105, 108 Livingston, Robert, Judge, . . 99, 117, 128, 129, 144, 145 Livingston, Robert, first Lord of Manor, 109-115, 121 Livingston, John H., Rev. . . 108 Livingston, Alida,. ... . . . . 109, 112 Livingston, Robert, the nephew, . . . . 11 5-1 17 Livingston, James, .... . 118, 119 II 242 INDEX. Livingston, Robert James ; Livingston, William ; Liv ingston, Robt. J., Jr. ; Livingston, Peter R. ; Liv ingston, Maturin ; Livingston, Joanna, . . . . 120 Livingston, Philip ; Livingston, Robert of Clermont ; Livingston, Gilbert 121 Livingston, Robert, Chancellor, . . . 129, 148, 188 Livingston, Henry B., Col., . . 149 Livingston, Edward, . . . . 148, 152 Lafayette, 177, 179 Livingston, Lewis and Julia .221, 222 Morris, Gouverneur . 44, 47, 48, 75 Montgomery, Mrs., Diary of, etc., 203-224 Montgomery, Gen., ... . . . 206-22 1 Sons of Liberty, . 27,31 Tillotson, Mrs., 173, 196 Van Rensselaer, Nicolaus, . .. 109, 112 Washington, Gen. . . . . 43, 87, 188 Yellow Fever, . . • 55 SECOND VOLUME. Anecdotes of Children, .... .... 7-10 Assemblies, ..... . . _ 14c Asiatic Cholera, . . . . ... 171 Armstrong, James Francis, Rev. and Mrs., . . 221-223 Burr, Theodosia, .... 2-? 24. Broome, Lieut.-Gov. . ... Il2-iiq INDEX. 243 Bonaparte, Joseph, 125-134 Bonaparte, Louis Napoleon, ... . . . . 164 Century Plant . . 226, 227 Depau, Francis, Mr. and Mrs., . . 12, 161-163 Delafield, John, and Genealogy, . . . . 1 55-161 Ellerslie, . 63, 65 Fort George 82, 83 Gruchy, Marshal, . . . 187 Hosack, David, Dr., and Family, . 146 Hardenberg Patent, ... ... 122-124 Jackson, Robert, . . . 143, 144 Lewis, Morgan, as Governor, 46-55 ; State Senator, 69 ; Quartermaster-General, 72 ; Major-General, 81 ; Letters, 73-81, 85-113 ; Life at Staatsburgh, 57- 62 ; Liberahty to Prisoners and to Tenants, 113- 122 ; House in the City, 145 ; Quebec, Trip to, 166-169; Grand Master of Masons, 180; Pres ident ofthe Cincinnati, 185 ; Death, 183 ; Funeral Honors, 184. Lewis, Gertrude, Mrs., Illness, Death, . . . . 180, 181 Lewis, Margaret, Childhood, 3-7 ; Education, io-i6 ; Country Life, 17 ; Marriage, 26, 27 ; Old Age, 185- 189; Tour in Europe, 188; Death, 190. Lafayette, Visit and Letters, .... 147-149,150,154 Lafayette, George Washington I49 Livingston, Margaret Beekman, Mrs., Letters of, . 20-45 244 INDEX. Livingston, Maturin, Parentage, 66 ; Princeton, 67 ; Recorder, 67 ; Country Life, 62-66. Livingston, Robert, Judge, Letter 224, 225 Livingston, Margaret, .... ... 5 Livingston, Henry B., Col., 148 Livingston, James, Letter of, .... . . 217-220 McEvers, Mary, Eliza, Nancy, . . . 19, 20 Moreau, Gen. and Madame, . . .... 140 Oration of Gen. Lewis, . 193-216 Staatsburgh 66, 68, 170, 171 Tourette, de la, Marie . 174, 175 Wildercliff, ... . .... ... 223 YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 3 9002 01367 1780 "¦,' 1 .xS^ ,' .?^ v'V,, - '' '•'v 'V*^.i '4^^ ¦ h v>^*^^;^i»'