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THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

King Henry of Xavarre

Queen Margaret of Xav

John Calvin

Admiral De Coligny

The French Blood
In America

By LUC I AN J. FOSDICK

ILLUSTRATED

NEW YORK

THE BAKER & TAYLOR CO.
1911

PRINTED • AND • BOUND • BY
THE -PLIMPTON-PRESS
NORWOOD -MASS-U-S'A

THIS VOLUME IS DEDICATED

TO ALL PATRIOTIC AMERICANS,

AND ESPECIALLY TO THE DESCENDANTS

OF THE HEROIC FRENCH PROTESTANTS,

EXILES FROM THEIR NATIVE LAND
ON ACCOUNT OF THEIR RELIGIOUS FAITH —

THE STORY OF WHOSE HEROISM,

AND THE PART THEY PLAYED IN THE

BUILDING OF OUR AMERICAN COMMONWEALTH

ON THE SOLID FOUNDATIONS OF

CIVIL AND RELIGIOUS LIBERTY,

IS TOLD IN THESE PAGES

336920

CONTENTS

FOREWORD . . . . . . .11

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . .15

BOOK ONE

THE RISE OF PROTESTANTISM IN
FRANCE

THE FRENCH SPIRIT ...... 25

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE . . . .38

THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUROPE .... 64

SUFFERING FOR THE FAITH ..... 74

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS . . 80

BOOK TWO

EARLY ATTEMPTS AT COLONIZATION

VILLEGAGNON'S FAILURE IN BRAZIL ... 93

DISASTROUS ATTEMPTS IN FLORIDA ... 98

III. THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA . . .112

BOOK THREE

THE FRENCH PROTESTANTS IN
AMERICA

PART ONE — NEW ENGLAND

THE FIRST COMERS I25

THE OXFORD SETTLEMENT . . . . .134

GABRIEL BERNON . . . . . .143

THE NARRAGANSETT SETTLEMENT . . . .151

THE FRENCH CHURCH IN BOSTON . . . .157

PAUL REVERE . . . . . . .168

THE FANEUIL FAMILY . . . . . .173

VIII. THE BOWDOINS, DANAS, AND OTHER FAMILIES . 183

IX. A DESCRIPTION OF EARLY BOSTON . . . .192
FRENCH SETTLEMENT IN MAINE . . . .196

XI. HUGUENOT INFLUENCE UPON PURITAN CHARACTER . 202

CONTENTS

PART Two — THE FRENCH IN NEW YORK

THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTERDAM

212

II.

THE FRENCH CHURCH IN NEW YORK

225

III.

NEW RoCHELLE, THE HUGUENOT SETTLEMENT

231

IV.

JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JURIST ....

244

ALEXANDER HAMILTON, STATESMAN AND FINANCIER .

252

VI.

SOME PROMINENT NAMES .....

258

VII.

JOHN AND STEPHEN GANG ....

279

VIII.

NEW PALTZ .

283

PART THREE — PENNSYLVANIA AND

THE SOUTHERN STATES

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE ....

290

II.

ELIAS BOUDINOT AND STEPHEN GIRARD .

301

III.

THE BAYARDS AND OTHER FAMILIES

308

IV.

SOUTH CAROLINA ......

322

FRANCIS MARION, ......

338

VI.

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIRGINIA ....

345

VII.

JOHN SEVIER AND His BRAVE WIFE

358

VIII.

THE THRILLING EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY .

363

PART FOUR — THE FRENCH IN VARIOUS

RELATIONS

AMERICA'S DEBT TO FRANCE DURING THE REVOLU

TION ........

377

II.

THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE .....

383

III.

THE FRENCH IN FREEMASONRY ....

386

IV.

THE ORDER OF THE CINCINNATI ....

397

FRENCH LEADERS IN REFORM AND INVENTION .

400

VI.

HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMERICA

407

VII.

AN EARLY FRENCH ESTIMATE OF AMERICAN CHAR

ACTER ........

416

VIII.

THE FRENCH AS A FACTOR IN AMERICAN CIVILIZATION

420

APPENDIX

429

INDEX ........

445

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Facing page

CALVIN, COLIGNY, HENRY AND MARGARET OF NAVARRE . . . Title

LA ROCHELLE: THE SQUARE 64

OLD HUGUENOT CHAIR AND BOSTON STATE HOUSE .... 148

PAUL REVERE, PORTRAIT BY GILBERT STUART 168

PETER FANEUIL, FROM PORTRAIT IN FANEUIL HALL .... 174

FANEUIL HALL AND THE OLD FEATHER STORE 176

THE FANEUIL MANSION ON TREMONT STREET, BOSTON . . . 180

OFFICERS OF THE HUGUENOT SOCIETY OF AMERICA .... 220

THE FRENCH CHURCH IN NEW YORK AT THE PRESENT TIME . 224

ORIGINAL BAYARD HOUSE AND RAPPELYEA ESTATE IN NEW

YORK FROM RARE OLD PRINTS 228

OLD HUGUENOT HOUSES AT NEW ROCHELLE 234

JOHN JAY, FIRST JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT .... 244

ALEXANDER HAMILTON 252

GENERAL RICHARD MONTGOMERY AND QUEBEC 268

FRENEAU, THOREAU, WHITTIER AND LONGFELLOW 272

OLD HUGUENOT HOUSES AT NEW PALTZ 284

ADMIRAL S. F. DuPoNT AND THE AMERICAN ARMADA AT PORT

ROYAL 314

GABRIEL MANIGAULT AND His MAROT PSALM BOOK .... 322

HENRY LAURENS AND FRANCIS MARION 326

LAFAYETTE AT MOUNT VERNON WITH WASHINGTON . . . .380

ELIZABETH HAMILTON, SARAH JAY, JOHN BAYARD, AND DR.

PROVOOST 410

10 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PROFESSOR HENRY M. BAIRD, HUGUENOT HISTORIAN, AND REV
EREND A. V. WHITTMEYER, FOUNDER OF THE HUGUENOT
SOCIETY OF AMERICA 418

PRESIDENT GARFIELD, VICE-PRESIDENT HANNIBAL HAMLIN,
GENERAL JOHN C. FREMONT, GENERAL ROBERT ANDERSON,
ADMIRAL GEORGE DEWEY, AND SENATOR ROBERT LAFOLLETTE 422

JOHANNIS DEPEYSTER AND THE FAMILY PLATE 426

FOREWORD

THE purpose of this work is to trace the pres
ence and influence of the French Protestant
blood in America, and to show how important a
part it has had in the making of our Eepublic. In re
cent times no little attention has been given to the sub
ject of the Huguenots in America and their descendants.
Credit for this is due chiefly to Dr. Henry M. Baird,
whose history of the Huguenots is an authority on both
sides of the Atlantic. His exhaustive work deals with
France for the most part ; and his brother, Dr. Charles
W. Baird, has undertaken to write in detail that part of
the history which belongs to America. His task has not
been completed, and his work is too elaborate and in
volved to secure general reading. Various local mono
graphs have been published, giving the history of some
settlement or famous family, and a number of romances
have dealt with the theme. But there is no single vol
ume which presents readably a comprehensive view of
the Huguenots in France and their descendants in this
country ; which reveals and estimates at its true value
the Huguenot influence as a factor in American religious,
social, and commercial life.

The story of the courageous men and women who, for
the sake of conscience and religious liberty, endured per
secution and exile, and found graves or made for them
selves homes in the New World, forms one of the most
pathetic and at the same time fascinating and inspiring
chapters of human experience. Inspiring, because in
these trying experiences there was exhibited a nobility of
character, a strength of soul, a superb quality of manhood
and womanhood, that lends new dignity to human nature.
Of this record every descendant of the Huguenots may

12 FOEEWOED

well be proud. With this history every American
should be familiar. It is time that America's indebted
ness to the French Protestants should be recognized.

To understand the French Protestants in America it is
necessary first to know them in France. The first part,
therefore, is devoted to the rise of religious reform in
France and the two centuries of war and persecution
which killed off or drove out of France her best class of
citizens, permanently weakened her as a nation, and
paved the way for the French Eevolution. The second
part gives account of the various disastrous attempts to
found Huguenot colonies in North America ; and the
third takes up the story with the beginnings at Plymouth,
New Amsterdam, and Virginia, and traces it to the pres
ent time. The fourth part groups various matters of in
terest germane to the subject.

This story has in it the elements of human interest that
appeal to all classes and ages. It is the author's con
viction that the French who of late years have been
pouring into New England and other sections of the
United States may be greatly stimulated by the example
of their fellow countrymen of an earlier day, and be led
to prize more highly the opportunities opened to them
and their children through American citizenship. It
was the distinction and one source of the wide spread in
fluence of the early French settlers that they assimilated
thoroughly and rapidly, as a rule, becoming American
instead of striving to perpetuate race prejudice and pe
culiarity. In this way they undoubtedly lost recognition,
but gained power as makers of the State. This lesson
should not be lost on the French Canadians of to-day,
who are sometimes wrongly advised to hold themselves
aloof as a distinctive class.

While this work is intended for popular reading, great
care has been taken to make it accurate and fair. Its
facts have been gathered from every available source,
and it would be impossible to give credit in detail. To

FOEEWOED 13

those who have extended courtesies in the obtaining of
material, and aid in other ways, the author expresses his
grateful appreciation. He acknowledges special obliga
tions to Professor Howard B. Grose, for services both in
research and in preparing the volume for the press.

The author's earnest desire is that this work may be a
means to promote patriotism, quicken appreciation of
civil and religious liberty, and heighten in the Americans
of to-day a sense of their responsibility to preserve those
rights and blessings which, as this record reveals, it cost
the Huguenots so dearly to claim and defend in France,
and which they helped the English Protestants to estab
lish firmly on our shores. As it was in the seventeenth
century the mission of Protestant Christianity to found,
so is it its mission in this twentieth century still further
to develop and perpetuate, a free Eepublic in America ;
and in this glorious mission the French Protestants have
their full share.

L. J. F.

Boston, January, 1906.

INTRODUCTION

ANY surprises are in store for the reader who surprises of

Later History

comes to these pages possessed merely of the

ordinary knowledge as to who the Huguenots
in America are and what they have done. More than
one Puritan and Pilgrim tradition has had to be given up
in the light of later historical research. But as the true
character of the people is disclosed, there will be no be
grudging of the full meed of praise belonging to those
French Protestants who, when driven from France, found
in our land a home and that religious liberty denied them
in their own, and in return gave of their best to their
adopted country.

The whole number of the Huguenot emigrants to
America was relatively small. Numerically, they occu
pied a position of comparative insignificance among the
founders of the Eepublic. But, as John Fiske says, "In
determining the character of a community one hundred
selected men and women are more potent than a thousand
men and women taken at random." And the Huguenot
refugees were " selected," if ever a body of men and
women had the right to be so called. For two hundred
years France had been like a vast furnace ; the fires of
persecution had been refining and testing until only the
pure gold was left. For two hundred years the persecu
tion which had sought to destroy, had been cultivating,
instead, those heroic virtues which enabled the small
band of Huguenot refugees to America to write their
names so large upon the honour roll of the Eepublic.

INTRODUCTION

Liberty and
Protestantism

Huguenots
in England

Truly, the Huguenot emigrants were a selected people —
selected for their love of liberty, their love of human
rights, their devotion to principle, their unswerving loy
alty to conscience. Free America, Protestant America,
owes a vast debt to these Protestants of France.

Before giving a brief resume' of the services which the
Huguenots rendered directly, let us consider for a mo
ment the services they rendered indirectly, to the Amer
ican Republic, through England. Guided by Divine
Providence, the persecuted Protestants of France proved
themselves a power in shaping the larger destinies of the
Eepublic. Heading history in the light of to-day we can
see that they helped to lay those foundations upon which
the people of the New World have reared their structure
of Protestant republicanism. The American Eepublic
had its beginnings under England ; the hardy adolescence
of the colonies was passed under the shadow of English
political and religious institutions. American liberties
grew out of Protestantism, and America was Protestant
because England was Protestant. Now the Huguenot
refugees helped to make England Protestant, and thus
indirectly they helped to make America free.

In the struggle between William of Orange and James
II, when the fate of English Protestantism hung trem
bling in the balance, it was the Huguenot refugees who
turned the scales. They formed the backbone of the
staunch little army that followed William into England.
" Amid the chilling delays on the part of the English
people, ' ' wrote Michelet, * ' the army of William remained
firm, and it was the Calvinistic element in it, the Calvin-
istic Huguenots, that made it firm." They formed the
unflinching nucleus around which the Protestant forces
of England finally rallied to drive James out of the king
dom, thus removing the royal power from the grasp of
Kome. uBut the struggle was not over," says Gregg.

INTRODUCTION 17

" Louis XIV of France was mortified to think that his
own refugees were the soul of this defeat. He determined
to retrieve it. He fitted up an army and put James at
the head of it. This army invaded Britain. It landed
in the north of Ireland. There another battle was
fought, the battle of the Boyne, and James was again
and finally defeated. Who won that battle, the famous
battle of the Boyne, which carried in it so much of the Battle of
future and gave to Protestantism the possession of the s^h?mbe?g
British throne? A Huguenot. It was the Huguenot
Schomberg who commanded the Protestant forces that
day, and although he fell in the battle, he left the king
dom in the hands of William III. Thus it pleased the
God of battles to use the persecuted and dispersed and
down-trodden French refugees to turn the helm of the
mightiest matters of destiny and to share in the glory of
His providence over nations and over the march of
truth."

Ill

England is now ready to bring its Protestantism with protestantism
its republican principles over to the New World. This Romanism
it does. And here it has another battle with Eomanism.
It has to meet the same foe that it met by the Eiver
Boyne, namely, the foe that persecuted the Huguenots.
Rome determined to have this New World, and so
through Spain took possession of South America, and
through France took possession of North America. As
far back as the landing of the Pilgrim fathers at Plym
outh Eock, Cardinal Eichelieu founded New France in
North America. He made this law: " Everybody set
tling in New France must be a Catholic." None of the
hated Huguenots was to be allowed to enter. This was
done to checkmate Protestant England. The English
and French met at Quebec and fought out the question,
To whom shall America belong ? In the great battle of
Quebec Montcalm led the French, General Wolfe led the

INTRODUCTION

The decisive
"If"

Intermarriage
and Assimila
tion

English. Montcalm fought for the old regime, Wolfe
for the House of Commons ; Montcalm fought for alle
giance to king and priest, Wolfe for the habeas corpus
and free inquiry ; Montealm fought for the past, Wolfe
for the future ; Montcalm fought for Louis XV, Wolfe
for George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Al
though both men were killed in that battle, Montcalm
lost and Wolfe won. With the triumph of Wolfe com
menced the history of the United States.

" France should have won that battle; she should
have held America for Eome. She had the advantage.
She had Quebec as her Gibraltar and she had a chain of
forts from Quebec through the heart of the country down
through the Mississippi valley to the very city of New
Orleans. She had also allies in many tribes of Indians
whom she converted to Catholicism. She might have
won that battle, IF — and the Huguenots were in that if—
if she had only used the forces against England which
she used in persecuting and driving out the Huguenots
from the home land. One historian says that l the per
secution of the Huguenots in France called from America,
the important centre of conflict, the forces that would in
evitably have torn from the American Protestants the
fair heritage they now have.' "

The exact value of the contribution of the French
Protestants to the building of the Eepublic no human
wisdom can estimate, so early, so continuous, so complete
was the assimilation of this people into the English
colonial life. Intermarriage began before the Pilgrim or
Puritan or Huguenot came to America, and it continued
all through colonial years. The French refugees entered
with earnestness and vigour into all the hopes and plans
of the new nation. They gave property and life in be
half of the principles they had so eagerly championed in
France. They faced danger and had their full share of

INTRODUCTION 19

suffering in the struggle for independence. A consider
able number of those of direct Huguenot descent were
men of large influence whose ability was widely and
cheerfully recognized, and whose names were enshrined
in the grateful affections of the people. Of these refugees
as a whole body Henry Cabot Lodge speaks as follows :
' 1 1 believe that, in proportion to their numbers, the
Huguenots produced and gave to the American Republic
more men of ability than any other race."

This statement may, at first, be met with incredulity,
but a little investigation of the facts will soon convince
one of its correctness. Faneuil Hall, " cradle of liberty/7
is an index to the part which Huguenots have played in
American life. Its four walls have heard the advocacy
of every great cause pertaining to the upbuilding of
America. Standing in Boston, the old city of the Amer
ican Revolution, it is a constant rebuke to all that is low
and degrading in national life, and a constant inspira
tion to every brilliant conception in the American mind
that makes for patriotism. The name of Faneuil
awakens many precious memories ; thoughts of Hugue
not patriots crowd thick and fast. There was Paul
Revere, a leader of the Boston Tea Party and the hero of
the famous " midnight ride7' ; Richard Dana, the peo
ple's champion in their fight against the Stamp Act ;
James Bowdoin, who proved himself a thorn in the flesh Eminent
of the royal governors; General Francis Marion, " Swamp £mer£a
Fox'7 ; Gabriel Manigault, whose generosity saved the
colonial government from bankruptcy; and a host of
others. A Huguenot was the first president of the
Colonial Congress, and out of the seven presidents of
that body no less than three were Huguenots — Henry
Laurens, John Jay, andElias Boudinot.

No name in American history has greater prominence
and honour than the name of John Jay, the first chief
justice of the nation, and president of the Continental
Congress, president of the American Bible Society, presi-

INTRODUCTION

dent of the earliest society for the emancipation of the
slaves, and signer of the treaty of peace which brought
the Revolutionary War to a successful close. Close be
side Jay stands Alexander Hamilton, a Huguenot on his
mother's side. With his genius for organization, his
ability as a financier, and his abundant patriotism, he
carved a niche for himself on a level with the greatest
statesmen of his day. In the history of the American
navy appears no more heroic spirit than that of Stephen
Decatur. In the Mexican and Civil Wars the Huguenot
blood was represented by Admiral Dupont, General
John C. Fremont, and General John F. Eeynolds, and in
the Spanish War by Admirals George Dewey and Win-
field Scott Schley.

Descendants of the Huguenots have been prominent in
other walks of life. Among statesmen may be mentioned
Presidents Tyler, Garfield and Eoosevelt ; John Sevier,
"the commonwealth builder'7 ; Thomas Francis Bayard,
and a host of others. In law and medicine their names
are of frequent occurrence. Stephen Girard, Christopher
Roberts, Matthew Vassar, James Bowdoin and Thomas
Hopkinson Gallaudet stand out as philanthropists and
promoters of education. The names of Maury, Dana
and Le Conte stand high in the list of American scien
tists. Such men as William Heathcote De Lancey, Hosea
Ballou and William Hague were leaders in the church.
While in literature are to be counted such names as
Philip Freneau, Henry D. Thoreau, Henry W. Long
fellow, and John G. Whittier.

Of the Huguenots it has been well said : " There have
been few people on earth so upright and single minded,
so faithful in the discharge of their duties towards God
and man, so elevated in aim, so dignified in character.
The enlightened, independent, firm, God-fearing spirit of
the French Protestants has blended its influence with
that of the Puritan to form our national character and to
establish those civil and religious institutions by which

INTRODUCTION 21

we are distinguished and blessed above all peoples." So
skilled were they in the arts, such a spirit of economy
and thrift characterized them, such loyalty had they to
the principles of our national life, such sane and tolerant
views in religious matters, such uprightness and excel
lence and nobility of character, such high and command
ing genius in statesmanship, that their presence, even
though they formed but a small body as to numbers and
were so assimilated as to sink their identity in the com
mon body, exerted a moulding and ennobling influence
upon the entire fabric of our national life. Deserving of
high honour are Puritan and Pilgrim. Let orator and
historian continue to sound their praises. But side by
side with them, sharers in their sufferings, partakers of
their perils, distinguished helpers in their great labours,
stimulating and inspiring, stood a smaller company
whose life and deeds and spirit were also important
factors in giving this land those institutions of civil and
religious liberty by means of which she is steadily ful
filling her high mission and successfully working out her
great destiny.

BOOK ONE

THE RISE OF PROTESTANTISM
IN FRANCE

CHAPTER I
THE FRENCH SPIRIT

JOAN OF ARC stands foremost among the renowned Joan of Are
and remarkable figures of history. Every French
man is proud of her name and fame. Wherever pa
triotism, valour, consecration and faith are honoured, the
Maid of Orleans finds veneration. It is fitting that she
should have first place in this work, which undertakes to
trace the French blood in America and tell of its achieve
ments as represented by the Protestant element that came
from the Old World to the New. To understand the na
ture of this element it is necessary to go back to the
mother country and learn what it was there ; to trace the
beginning and rise of the independent reform spirit in
religion which led to the Huguenot faith, persecutions
and exile.

In this study one is led back further than Luther and The Fore.
Calvin, the great Protestant Reformers whose names
overshadow all others. The forerunner of the Protes
tants is found in Joan of Arc. She was a martyr to her
faith, as dauntless as any that ever died rather than deny
and recant religious belief. She refused to consider her
self unchurched, in spite of ecclesiastical oppression and
cruelty, which relentlessly encompassed her death at the
stake ; so that she may fairly be called an unconscious
Protestant — a true leader upholding the right of the in
dividual conscience in matters of religion. The same
spirit was in Joan of Arc that moved Calvin and Coligny
and the tens of thousands of brave and noble French
who were willing to suffer, to leave homes and posses
sions, to endure exile, but would not surrender their
rights of conscience and their religious liberty.

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

A Turning
Point for
France
1429 A. D.

A Strange
Volunteer

Visions and
Voices

Early in the fifteenth century clouds and darkness had
settled over France. A critical point had been reached
in the nation's life. War was in progress with England,
and the fortunes of France were low. English conquest
seemed certain. An incompetent king, Charles VII,
was disliked by the nobility and distrusted by the peo
ple. Paris had fallen into the enemy's hands, and an
English army was besieging Orleans. It was "one of
the turning points in the history of nations."

At this junction there came to the French commander
a volunteer, declaring that she had a commission from
God to restore to the king of France his kingdom.
Never in the records of history was there a more singular
volunteer or declaration. For this new ally, this "war
rior" from Lorraine, intent on such mighty mission, was
a country girl, modest and retiring by nature, simple-
hearted and deeply religious, who had spun and knitted
with her mother at home, and helped her brothers tend
the peaceful herds among her native hills. Joan of Arc
was born in 1412 in the village of Domremy, in the
northeastern part of France, on the borders of Lorraine
and Champagne. From her early years she had displayed
an unusual Christian fervour, which led to her being re
garded as peculiar, though she was most exemplary in
conduct, pure and artless. She began to hear voices, as
she called them, by the time she was thirteen. In the
quiet home life, out in the fields or at her weaving, she
experienced moments of religious exaltation. At such
times she saw visions and dreamed dreams, and heard the
solemn voices bidding her "go forth to the help of the
King of France." She became so filled with the idea
that she was divinely called to deliver her country from
the English foe that she could not resist the impulse to
act. Simple girl that she was, in 1429, when she was but
seventeen, Joan was inspired with the belief that if she
could get command of the French army, God and sue-

THE FKENCH SPIBIT 27

cess would go with her, and the English be driven from
Orleans and France. Persevering and dauntless, urged
on by the voices sounding in her ears, she overcame
seemingly insurmountable obstacles, until at length she
reached audience with the French officer in command.
No wonder he thought her mad, the victim of religious
delusion. The real wonder is that he, commander of
men, soldier and not sentimentalist, was at last so stirred
by her spirit and story, and by something in her person
ality which he could not fathom, that he decided to send
her with armed escort to the King.

This was the direct result of Joan's visions. St. Mich
ael appeared to her in a flood of light and told her
to go to the help of the King, and restore to him his
realm. This she must do, since it was God's will. She Overcoming
had not only to persuade the commander but to meet Bitter

Opposition

opposition on all sides. Her father, when he heard of
her audacious purpose, threatened to drown her, but
without effect. Her appeals for aid to reach the King
were again and again refused with contempt. But she
persisted. "I must go to the King, even if I wear my
limbs to the very knees. I had far rather rest and spin
by my mother's side, for this is no work of my choosing ;
but I must go and do it."

They asked, thinking to confuse her, "Who is your
Lord ? " " He is God, ' ' was her reply. The theologians
proved to their own satisfaction from their books that
they ought not to believe her, but they could not move
her. u There is more in God's books than in yours," she
said. And by and by the French officer was sufficiently
impressed to give her at least her coveted chance to make
her strange story known to the King.

So at last she was ushered into the presence of the as Maid and
yet uncrowned monarch, and a strange scene it was. Monarch
This country girl, never before away from her simple
home surroundings, appeared not the least daunted by
the ordeal of a court presentation. She had a mission,

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A Bold
Declaration

Placed

Command

and was so intent upon that as to give little heed to aught
else. With the simplicity of a true greatness, she knelt
before her sovereign and said modestly, yet with utmost
assurance, 1 1 Gentle Dauphin, my name is Joan the Maid.
The heavenly King sends me to declare that you shall be
anointed and crowned in the town of Eheims, and you
shall be lieutenant of the heavenly King, who is the
King of France."

Imagine the scene and the sensation this created. The
impression was profound. The King did not readily
come to this conclusion, however. Her proposition to
have troops placed under her command, that she might
lead them to Orleans and raise the siege, was plainly
absurd. Her persistency in it, and her calm assurance
in her success, convinced him that she was possessed by
a devil. She admitted that she was only a pooi* shepherd
girl, not a soldier. "I am a poor maid," she said frankly.
u I know not how to ride to the wars, or to lead men to
arms. ' '

The King was moved. He was in too dire straits to
turn aside lightly any offer of help. This one seemed
childish, yet there was something in the character and
confidence of the Maid that gained friends for her, and
her case was turned over to the parliament and university
authorities at Poitiers.

Having made this point, Joan said : " I know well
that I shall have hard work to do at Poitiers, but my
Master will aid me. Let me go, then, in God's name."
The learned doctors were amazed at the simplicity and
force of her answers. Asked what signs she had, she
replied: "Give me some men at arms and lead me to
Orleans, and I will then show you signs. The sign I am
to give you is to raise the siege of Orleans." The doc
tors decided in her favour, and the King placed her in
command of the army.

Nothing was wanting to make the scene dramatic.
Arrayed in white armour on a black horse, with a small

THE FEENCH SPIEIT 29

axe in her hand, the maid of Orleans rode forth, attended
by two pages, two heralds, a chaplain, valets, and special
guards. An army of ten thousand followed her from
Chinon. They were rough men, but her influence over
them was remarkably restraining. Her common sense
was as strong as her imagination. She seemed super
natural to the soldiers, as she led them forward against
the English who held Orleans in siege. Her enthusiasm
and fearlessness were electrifying. She displayed skill in
the management of forces, including artillery, that as
tonished experienced generals. Under such leadership
the French were irresistible, and the maid's prediction
that she would deliver Orleans and restore to the King of
France his kingdom was fulfilled.

Ill

The coronation of the Dauphin at Eheims soon took
place. Then Joan considered her mission ended and Fulfilled
asked leave to go home, saying, "O gentle King, the
pleasure of God is done." But the archbishop urged
her to remain. " Would it were the King's pleasure,"
she said, "that I might go and keep sheep once more
with my sisters and brothers ; they would be so glad to
see me again." She was not permitted to leave, and
engaged afterwards in several battles and sieges, but her
conviction was that the chief mission was performed.
At the coronation she had occupied the highest place.
She was hailed as the saviour of her country. Briefly
she enjoyed the high honour rightly hers, and then began
the tragedy which was to be a lasting infamy to France.
She was betrayed into the hands of the English, who shameful
looked upon her as a sorcerer. She was brought to Eouen Betrayal
in chains, cast into a cell, and fastened by a large iron
chain to a beam. So afraid were her captors that she
would elude them by miracle that they caused this help
less girl to sleep with double chains round her limbs so

30 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

that she could not stir, while three armed men guarded
her by day and night.

A. Form At length she was brought to trial. The bishop of

Beauvais presided, and all the judges were ecclesiastics.
The trial lasted for about a year. Every effort was made
to entangle the maid, but she met her judges successfully
at every point. They asked : "Do you believe you are
in a state of peace ? ' ' She replied : " If I am not God
will put me in it." They argued that God had forsaken
her as her capture proved. She replied, "Since it has
pleased God that I should be taken, it is for the best."
They demanded : "Will you submit to the Church Mili
tant?" "I have come to the King of France," replied
Joan, "by commission from the Church Triumphant
above; to that church I submit." She closed with in
tense feeling ; "I had far rather die than renounce what
I have done by my Lord's commands." They deprived
her of mass. She said weeping : "The Lord can make
me hear it without your aid." The judges asked her:

Protest "Do your voices forbid you to submit to the church and

the pope?" When she saw the judges all against her
she said: "I hold to my Judge, the King of heaven
and earth. God has always been my Lord in what I
have done. The devil has never had any power over me."

Travesty Nothing was too base to attempt in order to secure a

justice conviction. A vile priest was engaged to secure Joan's

confidence in the hope that she might make admissions
that could be used against her as evidence. The King she
had placed upon the throne left her unaided. What were
the charges brought against her t Principally these :
That she had in a wicked manner, and contrary to the
divine law, dressed herself in men's clothes, and com
mitted murders with weapons of war ; that she had repre
sented herself to the simple people as a messenger of God,
initiated in the secrets of Providence ; and that she was
suspected of many other dangerous errors and culpable
acts against the divine majesty. Was there ever a greater

THE FBENCH SPIEIT 31

travesty on justice ! Of course her conviction was a fore
gone conclusion. On such flimsy charges the doctors of
the University of Paris declared gravely :

She has offended beyond measure the honour of God, abjured the Charges
faith in a manner not to be expressed, and extraordinarily defiled the slander"
church. By her idolatry, false doctrine and other innumerable crimes
have invaded the soil of France ; never, in the memory of man, would
so great hurt have been given to our holy religion, and such damage
to the kingdom, as if they were to let her escape without satisfying
the ends of justice. But were they to deliver up the maid, they would
obtain the grace and love of God, and at the same time augment
the glory of the faith and splendour of their noble and illustrious
names.

The venerable doctors of the University, with the
Bishop Beauvais, visited her from time to time to ex
amine her, and to torture her with their questions. On
one occasion they exhorted her to make her submission ;
they quoted Scripture, but without success.

As they were leaving the prison one hissed to Joan : Joan's
" If you refuse to submit to the church, the church will Position
abandon you as if you were a Saracen.'7 To this she
replied : "I am a good Christian — a Christian born and
baptized — and a Christian I shall die. ' ' Before the bishop
left his victim he made another attempt to make her sub
mit, presenting a bait that he thought would be sure to
catch her, namely, permission to receive the eucharist.
Said he: "As you desire the eucharist, will you, if
you are allowed to do so, submit yourself to the
church?" To this Joan replied: "As to that sub
mission I can give no other answer than I have already
given you. I love God. Him I serve as a good Chris
tian should. Were I able I would help the church with
all my strength."

Some of the judges requested that in a more public Public
place than in her prison, Joan should be again admonished
relating to the crimes of which she was^accused j and the

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Threat of
Torture

The

Heroic
Spirit

The
Sentence

bishop accordingly summoned a public meeting of the
judges to be held in the chamber near the Great Hall.
On that occasion sixty-two judges were present. A cele
brated doctor of theology, a man of great eloquence, pre
sented the case and sought to break down Joan's will.
The bishop admonished her that if she did not obey the
advice given she would jeopardize her body and soul.
He said all faithful Christians must conform to the church,
and after arguing at length closed by saying that by not
conforming to the holy church she placed herself in the
power of the church to condemn and burn her as a
heretic. She .boldly answered : "I will not say aught
else than I have already spoken, and were I even to see
the fire I should say the same."

Then threat of bodily torture was tried. Joan was
taken into the inquisitorial chamber, where ranged round
the circular walls were the instruments of torture. The
bishop of Cauchon, after an exhortation, said : i i Now,
Joan, if you refuse to speak the truth, you will be put to
the torture. You see before you the instruments pre
pared, and by them stand the executioners ready to do
their office at our command. You will be tortured in
order that you may be led into the way of truth, and for
the salvation of body and soul, which you by your lies
have exposed to so great a peril. ' ' Here was the severest
test she had been exposed to. But her course rose to the
moral sublimity of the Christian martyr. She said :
" Even if you tear me limb from limb, and even if you
kill me, I will not tell you anything further. And even
were I forced to do so, I should afterwards declare that
it was only because of the torture that I had spoken
differently."

An elaborate sentence by her judges was pronounced
against her. This is part of it :

Apostate after having cut her hair short, which was given her by
God to hide her head with, and also having abandoned the dress of a
woman for that of man ; vicious and a soothsayer, for saying without

THE FEENCH SPIEIT 33

showing miracles, that she is sent by God, as was Moses and John the
Baptist ; rebel to the holy faith by remaining under the anathema
framed by the canons of the church, and by not receiving the sacra
ments of the church at the season set apart by the church, in order not
to have to cease wearing the dress of a man ; blasphemous in saying
that she knows she will be received into paradise. Therefore, if after
having been charitably warned she refuses to re-enter the Catholic
faith, and thereby give satisfaction, she shall be given over to the sec
ular judges and meet with the punishment due to her crimes.

The sentence was pronounced that Joan of Arc be put
to death by fire, as a heretic. Her judges declared :

By our present sentence, which, seated in tribunal, we utter and Decree
pronounce in this writing, we denounce thee as a rotten member, and Death

thou mayest not vitiate others, as cast out from the unity of the
church, separate from the body, abandoned to the secular power as,
indeed, by these presents, we do cast thee off, separate and abandon
thee ; — praying this same secular power, so far as concerns death and
the mutilation of the limbs, to moderate its judgment towards thee,
and, if true signs of penitence should appear in thee, to permit that
Sacrament of penance be administered to thee.

When the maid heard the sentence from the bishop,
she exclaimed, " Alas, am I to be treated so horribly and D°^ier's
cruelly ? Must my body, pure as from birth, and never
contaminated, be this day consumed and reduced to ashes f
I would rather be beheaded seven times over than on this
wise. Oh ! I make my appeal to God, the great Judge of
the wrongs and grievances done to me. Bishop, I die
through you."

On the 24th of May, 1431, two lofty scaffolds were
erected, on which were to be seated cardinals, doctors,
inquisitors and bishops, to feast their eyes in seeing the
burning of Joan of Arc. On the other scaffold was to be
placed the victim, with the fuel somewhat below, so the
flames would rise and envelop her.

The execution was ordered to be carried into effect. The

Execution

She was covered with a long white garment such as crim
inals and victims of the Inquisition were generally arrayed

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Last
Words
of the
Martyr

in. On her head was placed a mitre-shaped paper cap,
on which were inscribed " apostate, idolatress." She
was placed in a cart on which two priests mounted with
her, accompanied by eight hundred troops marching
along the road. A discourse was delivered by a monk by
the name of Midi. After the sermon the preacher added :
"Joan, the church, wishing to prevent infliction, casts
you out of her. She no longer protects you, depart in
peace. " The bishop of Beauvais, the vile wretch who
presided at her trial, was present still to torment her, and
said : " We reject you, we cast you off, we abandon you
according to the usual formula of the Inquisition." She
ascended the platform and a chain was placed around her
to fasten her to the stake. She exclaimed : t i Oh, Rouen,
must I die here ? I have great fear lest you will suffer
for my death." The fire was kindled. She saw it and
shrieked. While the flames began to roll around her she
cried out for water, and cried on God, and then said :
"My voices have not deceived me." Her last words
were "Jesus — Jesus ! " Then her head fell on her breast
and her pure spirit went to paradise. Many were melted
to tears, and even the rude soldiers cried : l i We are lost ;
we have burned a saint. Would God, my soul were where
hers is now."

Estimates of
Historians

Green

DeQuincy

The eminent English historian, Richard Henry Green,
says : " The one pure figure which rises out of the greed
and lust, the selfishness and unbelief of the time, is the
figure of Joan of Arc."

In one of his most powerful essays DeQuincy deals with
this subject. This is his conclusion from the facts:
1 i Never from the foundation of the earth was there such
a trial as this, if it were laid open in all its beauty of de
fense, and all its hellishness of attack. Oh, child of
France ! shepherdess ! peasant girl trodden under foot by
all around thee j how I honour thy flashing intellect, as

THE FEENCH SPIRIT 35

God's lightning to its mark, that ran before France and
laggard Europe by many a century, confounding the mal
ice of the ensnarer, and making dumb the oracles of false
hood."

To these estimates we add that of Mark Twain, who has
made one of the most discriminating studies of the Maid
of Orleans, and given his mature conclusions in a recent
article entitled " Saint Joan of Arc." After a masterly
review of her military career — "the briefest epoch-mak
ing military career known to history," lasting only a year
and a month — he says :

"That this untrained young creature's genius for war A Genius
was wonderful, and her generalship worthy to rank with
the ripe products of a tried and trained military expe
rience, we have the sworn testimony of two of her veteran
subordinates — one, the Due d' Alen£on, the other the great
est of the French generals of the time, Dunois, Bastard
of Orleans ; that her genius was as great — possibly even
greater— in the subtle warfare of the forum, we have for
witness the records of the Eouen Trials, that protracted
exhibition of intellectual fence maintained with credit
against the master-minds of France ; that her moral great
ness was peer to her intellect we call the Eouen Trials
again to witness, with their testimony to a fortitude which
patiently and steadfastly endured during twelve weeks
the wasting forces of captivity, chains, loneliness, sick
ness, darkness, hunger, thirst, cold, shame, insult, abuse,
broken sleep, treachery, ingratitude, exhausting sieges of
cross-examination, the threat of torture, with the rack
before her and the executioner standing ready : yet never
surrendering, never asking quarter, the frail wreck of her
as unconquerable the last day as was her invincible spirit
the first,

"From the verdict (of Eehabilitation, twenty-five years The wondor
after she had been condemned and burned by the Church c Fthe Ages
as a witch and familiar of evil spirits) she rises stainlessly
pure in mind and heart, in speech and deed and spirit,

36 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

and will so endure to the end of time. She is the Won
der of the Ages. All the rules fail in this girl's case. In
the world's history she stands alone — quite alone. . . .
There is no one to compare her with, none to measure her
by. . . . There is no blemish in that rounded and
beautiful character. . . . Taking into account all the
circumstances — her origin, youth, sex, illiteracy, early
environment, and the obstructing conditions under which
she exploited her high gifts and made her conquests in
the field and before the courts that tried her for her life,
— she is easily and by far the most extraordinary person
the human race has ever produced. "

Reversing the Twenty years after the martyrdom it was concluded to
attempt to revise the process. The then reigning pope
pronounced the charges against Joan to be utterly false.
He appointed the Archbishop of Eheims and two prelates
to inquire into the trial, aided by an inquisitor to attend
to that work. The decision of the prelates was that her
visions came from God. They pronounced her trial at
Eouen to have been wicked, and that she was free from
any blame. The church had decided against the maid,
and now it concluded to turn around. Thus the investi
gation resulted in the declaration of her innocence, or re
habilitation. In 1431 she was pronounced to be in league
with the devil, a heretic, an idolatress, and was burned at
the stake. In 1456 the French clergy, with the sanction
of the pope, declared the memory of Joan of Arc free from
all taint of heresy and idolatry. And now, by that same
church, which would claim so illustrious a personage as
its own, Joan has been canonized as a saint.

It is in view of all the facts that Joan of Arc is called
a genuine Protestant martyr, although the term Protestant
had not then come into use. She embodied the Protestant
principle, as did Huss and Savonarola and Wycliff. As
an American writer says :

i°uathearnd " Joan of ^rc was thus in the s31116 position before this

tribunal that Luther was before the Diet of Worms. Her

THE FKENCH SPIKIT

language and his were identical, except that he spoke of
the Word of God in Scripture, where she spoke of the
Voice of God in her soul. Both wished to obey the
church. This was God, speaking to the soul or speaking
in the Scripture. The time came to Joan when the church
said : l Deny the Voices of God in your heart.' The time
came to Luther when the church said : ' Deny the Word
of God in the Bible.' Then both became virtually Prot
estants, and obeyed the higher law as against the lower
one. The girl of Domremy was a Protestant before the
Beformation." And her spirit was to live again in the
Huguenots.

5 !0j6flf Oceans

CHAPTER II

Huguenot

Muguen
Defined

Origin of the
Name

The
Confederates

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE

i HE term " Huguenot,'7 as it is applied in history,
and as it is to be understood throughout this
book, means a member of the Protestant evan
gelical party in France. It is therefore equivalent to the
expression used in the Edict of Nantes and other royal
edicts, " member of the Pretended Reformed Religion."
The Huguenot Church was the Reformed Church of
France.

The origin of the word has been lost in obscurity, but
many theories have been advanced as to its derivation ;
among which are the following :

1. Hugon's tower at Tours, a place where the early
Protestants secretly assembled for religious worship.

2. Heghenen, or huguenen, a Flemish word equivalent
to Puritans.

3. Says Yerdier, in his Prosopographic, ' l Les Hugue
nots ont etc ainsi appelez de Jean Hus, duquel Us out suivi
la doctrine ; comme qui dirait les Guenons de If us. ' ' (The
Huguenots were so called from John Huss, whose doctrine
they followed ; as one would say, the disciples of Huss.)

4. Rues quenauSj which signifies in the Swiss patois, a
seditious people.

5. Benoit observes that some supposed the term had
originated from an incorrect pronunciation of the word
gnostic.

6. The most generally received etymology is traced to
the word Eignot, derived from the German Eid-genossen —
federati, confederates or allied. There was a party thus
designated at Geneva.

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 39

7. The word Huguenot was not applied to the Re
formed Church of France as a distinctive epithet until
about 1560. Then the term was applied to the whole
political party which supported the claims of Henry of
Navarre to the crown. It was intended as a reproach,
and soon became synonymous with Reformer. Cardinal
Richelieu captured the city of Rochelle, the stronghold
of the Protestants, and by 1628 had broken up the
political organization of the Huguenots, leaving only the
religious organization as the bond of union for the Re
formed in religion. In 1660 the religious organization
was also practically wiped out of existence by the
Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. But the name and
the Reformed religion have both survived in France,
while the descendants of the Reformers have spread their
influence around the globe.

Early in the sixteenth century the corruptions and corruption in
abuses of the Roman Catholic Church in France be- theChurch
came so wide spread that thinking men could no longer
remain blind to them, but were forced to recognize that
ignorance, superstition and immorality prevailed through
out the whole organization.

The immorality of the clergy was notorious. So bad
were the lives of most of the ecclesiastics that the ex
pressions "Idle as a priest " and "Lewd and greedy as
a monk" became popular proverbs. From bishop to
friar the spiritual leaders of the people were debauched
and corrupt. The great dignitaries of the church gave immorality
themselves up to a life of pleasure on a magnificent
scale ; no courtier could outrival them in their luxurious
dissipation, their banquets, drinking bouts, games and
revels. The only care of the priests was to extort as
much money out of the people as they could possibly
squeeze, and they saw to it that none of their wealth was
wasted in helping the poor and distressed. Like their

40 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

superiors they were devoted body and soul to a ceaseless
round of sensual pleasures. The monastic orders were
no better, and filth and gluttony rioted among them.
In speaking of them, a contemporary Eomish writer
says: "Generally the monks elected the most jovial
companion, him who was the most fond of women, dogs,
and birds, the deepest drinker — in short, the most dis
sipated ; and this in order that, when they had made
him abbot or prior, they might be permitted to indulge
in similar debauch and pleasure. "

The ignorance of the clergy in spiritual matters was
equalled only by their debauchery. A few scraps of
Vulgate Latin with which to conduct the mass, a slender
stock of "Aves" and " Paters," sufficed for the rank
and file of the priesthood. Of the Bible they literally
knew nothing at all. But this cannot be wondered at
when even the professed teachers of theology showed a
marvellous ignorance of the Holy Scriptures. Eobert
Etienne, a famous scholar and printer who was born in
1503, wrote as follows concerning the Biblical knowledge
of the theologians of the Sorbonne : " In those times, as
I can affirm with truth, when I asked them in what part of
The New the £j"ew Testament some matter was written, they used

Testament

unknown to answer that they had read it in Saint Jerome or in the
Decretals, but that they did not know what the New
Testament was, not being aware that it was customary
to print it after the Old. What I am going to state will
appear almost a prodigy, and yet there is nothing more
true nor better proven : Not long since, a member of
their college used daily to say, I am amazed that these
young people keep bringing up the New Testament to
us. I was more than fifty years old before I knew any
thing about the New Testament ! "

If the theologians had such a slight acquaintance
with the teachings of Christ the people could well be for
given for not having any knowledge at all of Him.
There was no translation of the Bible into French, and

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 41

as the popular education of that day did not include
Greek or Hebrew, the Gospels remained safely hidden
from the French people.

Superstition flourished in the soil prepared by im- superstition
morality and ignorance. The worship of a living God Limit°u
was swallowed up in reverence for the relics of saints
and for pictures and statues of them. There seemed to
be no limit to the popular credulity, and the grossest de
ceptions aroused no suspicions among the faithful. In
one church the hair of the Virgin was to be seen, in an
other the people were accustomed to worship the sword
of the archangel Michael, in still another the veritable
stones with which St. Stephen was killed were carefully
preserved. Indeed there were enough of these stones in
the churches of France to furnish sufficient material for
a respectable wall, just as there were so many crowns of
thorns as to lead one to believe that a whole hedge must
have been used in the making of them. St. Dionysius'
body lay in state at Eatisbon as well as at Saint Denis,
but he was no more fortunate in this respect than the
other saints, most of whom could boast of having two or
three bodies; and much less so than the apostles, who
were all credited with having at least four bodies apiece,
besides numerous and seemingly unnecessary duplicate
finger and toe joints. The extreme to which this wor
ship of relics was carried may be seen from the following
partial list of the treasures of the Sainte Chapelle in
Paris : the crown of thorns, Aaron's rod that budded,
the great crown of St. Louis, the head of the holy lance,
one of the nails used in our Lord's crucifixion, the tables
of stone, some of the blood of Christ, the purple robe,
and the milk of the Holy Virgin.

But the superstitions fostered by the church were not
confined to a belief in marvellous relics. The people popular
were stimulated to fresh zeal and increased contributions
by means of miracles which caused great amazement
everywhere except in the minds of the ingenious priests

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

The First
Reformers

Briconnet

LeFevre

Farel

who got them up. A fair example of these l i miracles ' '
is that of the well-known ' < ghost of Orleans. ' ' A wealthy
lady, having died, was buried without the usual gifts for
the welfare of her soul being made to the church. The
Franciscans of that city accordingly hit upon a scheme
to make use of her for purpose of warning to others who
might also be tempted to forget the church in their wills.
A series of distinct tappings was heard to issue from her
tomb, and these were explained to the awe- struck people
as signs of her approaching doom and of her desire to
have her heresy -polluted body removed from consecrated
ground. Unfortunately for their plans, one of their
number was discovered hidden above the ceiling whence
the mysterious sounds had come. But for every one of
these impostures which was exposed there were a hun
dred which were widely credited as veritable miracles.

Guillaume Bri£onnet, Bishop of Meaux, was among
the number who realized how urgent was the need of re
forming the church. Eesolving to commence the work
of reformation in his own diocese, he invited to Meaux a
small handful of able and earnest men whom he knew to
be advocates of a purer and more spiritual Christianity.
Among them was the famous scholar Jacques LeFevre,
of Staples, and his no less famous pupil, Guillaume
Farel, whose staunch heart put courage and good cheer
into his comrades. The teacher had prophetic insight.
Before the close of the fifteenth century, the amiable
Professor LeFevre said one day to Farel, l i My dear
William, God will renew the world ; and you will see
it." Dissatisfied with his own attainments in religion,
and with the standard of knowledge and piety around
him, this great scholar had begun to drink from the
pure fountain of the Gospel of Christ in the original
language, and was giving out liberal draughts to those at
tending upon his lectures.

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 43

The Bible was the cause of the Beformation in France,
as in all lands. In the fifteenth century an eager demand
had sprung up in France for the Scriptures, editions of
which had been printed in Antwerp, some versions in
French for the Walloons. The translation that super- Effect of the
seded all others in French was made by LeFevre, who
may on this account be ranked as the first of the Hugue
nots. The effects were the same wherever the Book
appeared. It was the accidental sight of a copy of one
of Gutenberg's Bibles in the library of the Erfurt con
vent that transformed local monk Luther into the Protes
tant World Eeformer. So in France, the reading of the
Bible by the people was followed by an immediate reac
tion against the superstition, indifferentism and impiety
which generally prevailed. There was a sudden awaken
ing to a new religious life. The sentiment of right was
created, and a new sense of manhood was born.

Under the protection of Margaret of Angouleme, wife
of the King of Navarre and only sister to Francis I, King
of France, the reformation at Meaux proceeded with great
rapidity. The gospel was preached from the pulpits, and
copies of the Bible were spread broadcast among the
people. In the pure light of God's Word the gross
superstitions of the Eomish church faded as mists before
the sun, and the inhabitants of Meaux soon came to value
spiritual truths above saintly relics and waxen images.

But all this did not escape the jealous eyes of the ££^recrhofthe
church which based its wealth and power on the igno
rance of the people. Strong pressure from Eome was
brought to bear on the King, and in spite of the efforts
of Margaret, who was distinguished by her humanity
towards the Protestants from first to last, the work of
stamping out the heresy was begun. Briconnet, in order
to save his life, was forced to aid in the work of blotting
out the reforms he had himself helped to institute. One
by one the reformers were compelled to leave Meaux and
take up their work more quietly in other places. But

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Leclerc the
First Martyr

Bitter
Persecution

the poor people of the town remained behind, and the
tenacity with which they clung to the "new doctrines"
showed how crying had been their need of a message of
salvation.

Jean Leclerc, a wool -carder, was the first upon whom
the church vented its fury. Accused of irreverence, he
was taken to Paris for trial and was condemned to be
whipped through the streets of that city for three suc
cessive days, then to go through a like punishment at
Meaux, after which he was to be branded on the forehead
with a hot iron and banished from the kingdom. As the
iron was being applied to his brow his aged mother cried
out in her anguish, " Vive J6su Christ et ses enseignes ! "
(Live Jesus Christ and His witnesses !) Leclerc then made
his way to Metz and there took up his trade again.
Undaunted by his terrible experience he continued to
communicate his knowledge of the Gospels to all with
whom he came in contact. He was seized a second time
and was condemned for heresy. His nose, arms and
breast were torn by pincers, and his right hand cut off at
the wrist. A hoop of red-hot iron was then pressed upon
his head. So far, no words had escaped his lips, but as
the metal slowly ate its way into his skull he began
calmly to repeat the words of the Psalmist, " Their idols
are silver and gold, the work of men's hands." At this,
dreading the effect of his words upon the people, his
persecutors quickly stifled his voice by throwing him into
the fire.

Other martyrs followed Leclerc into the flames in rapid
succession. The faithful citizens of Meaux who held the
reformed doctrines were liable at any time to the most
bitter persecutions. If one of their number gave the
priests the slightest pretext to act upon, he was pro
claimed a heretic and given to the proper authorities,
from whose hands he received punishment of the most in
human kind. To aid in the work of extermination, spies
were employed who were allowed to confiscate the prop-

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 45

erty of any one against whom they could bring evidence
of heresy. But these efforts of the church failed to achieve
any lasting results, and tended to spread the work of ref
ormation by driving the reformers into various parts of
France. Before a great while the faith which these early
martyrs had sealed with their blood was deeply rooted in
many sections of the country, making headway even in
Paris.

As the Huguenots increased in numbers the severity
of the authorities grew more merciless and frightful.
The most stringent laws were enacted and the sweet air
of France reeked with the smoke from hundreds of holo
causts. Not content with burning a heretic here and
there, those in power commenced the persecution of
entire communities. The expedition against the Vaudois
was one of the most dreadful of these wholesale butcheries.

The Vaudois lived in the valley of the Durance, a few
miles east of Avignon. They were known far and near
for peaceable folk who strove to be honest in their deal- 1540
ings with men and to lead just and upright lives. But in
the minds of their bigoted enemies these facts did not
outweigh their hatred, for the simple reason that the
Vaudois were accustomed to read their Bibles and to
worship God after the fashion of the earliest Christians.
For a long time they had been the butt of various perse
cutions and had still remained steadfast in their faith, so
it was finally decided to make them such a signal example
as would frighten the very stoutest Huguenot heart. In
1540 the Parliament of Provence decreed that fifteen men
from the village of Merindol who had failed to come to
court to answer to a charge of heresy were to be burned
alive. If not " apprehended in person, they will be
burned in effigy, their wives and children proscribed,
and their possessions confiscated." Further than this,
the decree ordered that all the houses in the village
should be burned and that every trace of human habita
tion should be removed.

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Brutality and
Massacre

Barbarous
Cruelties

Treachery

and Murder

Several months passed before the execution of the
order, and the Vaudois came to believe that the storm
had passed safely over their heads. But on the 16th of
April an army was hastily gathered together and the
carnage began. The villages of Cabrierett, Peypin,
La Motte and Saint- Martin were the first to be burned.
At the approach of the troops some of the inhabitants
fled to Merindol, while others sought escape in the
neighbouring woods. The women, children and old men
were hidden away in a forest retreat in the hope that if
discovered their evident weakness would prove their best
means of safety. But this hope was futile. The hiding-
place was discovered and a massacre ensued. Gray-
haired men were put to death by the sword and the
women were subjected to the brutal lust of the soldiery,
or if with child their breasts were mutilated and they
were left to die with their unborn offspring.

Two days later the army arrived at Merindol, but the
villagers had received warning of its approach and had
taken to flight. A young man was the only person found
within the limits of the town and upon him was vented
the rage of his captors. As he was dying he cried out,
* ' Lord God, these men are snatching from me a life full of
wretchedness and misery, but Thou wilt give me eternal
life through Jesus Thy Son." The soldiers then took up
the work of destroying the town. Two hundred houses
were burned and levelled to the ground, and the dwelling
place of thrift and simple happiness was turned into a
scene of utter desolation. Many of the fleeing Vaudois
were overtaken and put to death or sent in chains to the
galleys to serve with thieves and murderers. A party of
some twenty-five of the fugitives was found hiding in a
cavern, and with laughter and brutal jests a fire was
kindled at the mouth of the cave to stifle the helpless
victims like rats in a hole.

A large number of the Vaudois had taken refuge in the
town of Cabri^res, resolved to defend their wives and

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 47

children to their last drop of blood. The army halted
before their weak intreuchments, hesitating to attack the
desperate defenders. Word was sent to the Vaudois that
by voluntarily surrendering themselves they would avoid
needless bloodshed and their lives and property be spared.
Beguiled by these promises they laid down their arms.
They had no sooner done so than their persecutors fell
upon the defenseless town like a pack of wolves. The
greater part of the garrison was murdered in cold blood,
while upwards of eight hundred women and children who
had crowded into the sacred precincts of the church were
there put to the sword. Among the defenders of the
town was a band of forty heroic women, for whom the
crowning act of cruelty was reserved. They were locked
into a barn and a torch was then applied to the flimsy
structure. One soldier, moved to pity by the shrieks of
the frenzied victims, opened a way of escape, but his
comrades who were enjoying the spectacle barred the
exit with the sharp points of their spikes. Thus, in one
way or another, over a thousand innocent persons were
killed and three times that number driven forth as home
less and destitute wanderers. For weeks afterwards it
was no strange thing to come across the body of some
Vaudois lying by the roadside, overcome by hunger and
thirst, or to hear the wailing of a child that mourned
beside its mother who had fallen dead of exposure and
fatigue. No charity could be shown these helpless peo
ple, for whoever gave them food, drink or shelter did so
under penalty of hanging for it.

Such was the fate that befell a people whose only fault
was that they were Protestants ; a people concerning A High
whom Governor de Bellamy reported to the King, '
"They differ from our communion in many respects, but
they are a simple, irreproachable people, benevolent,
temperate, humane, and of unshaken loyalty. Agricul
ture is their sole occupation ; they have no legal con
tentions, no lawsuits, or party strife. Hospitality is one

48 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

of their principal virtues, and they have no beggars
amongst them. They have neither locks nor bolts upon
their doors. No one is tempted to steal, for his wants are
freely supplied by asking.'7

" They are heretics," said the King sternly.

"I acknowledge, sire," said de Bellamy, "that they
rarely enter our churches ; if they do, they pray with
eyes fixed on the ground. They pay no homage to saints
or images ; they do not use holy water, nor do they ac
knowledge the benefit to be derived from pilgrimages, or
say mass, either for the living or the dead."

" And it is for such men as these you ask clemency !
For your sake, they shall receive a pardon, if they re
nounce their heresies within three months, and seek a
reconciliation with the mother church. Think you that
I burn heretics in France, in order that they may be
nourished in the Alps ? ' ' That was the spirit bred in
the monarch by the Eoman ecclesiastics who surrounded
him and flattered him as the defender of the most holy
faith.

For thirty years the Protestant party had been grow-
Growth under ing stronger in spite of the terrible persecutions it re
ceived, until in 1555 a Huguenot church was established
in Paris, the very centre of French Eoman Catholicism.
The example of Paris was followed rapidly by other
cities j so rapidly, indeed, that six years later there were
two thousand one hundred and fifty churches in France
from whose pulpits the Word of God was preached. The
growth of the Huguenot movement was phenomenal dur
ing these same six years, and its doctrines were embraced
by all classes of the population alike.

Lower The lower nobility, the provincial gentry, were chiefly

Pr°obteitant Protestant. Benoit says, "The country churches were

almost entirely composed of noblesse," and that "in

some, one could count from eighty to a hundred families

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 49

of gentlemen." On the dissolution of a church their
houses often formed a centre for the scattered congre
gation. To " seize the nobility" was the King's first
order to the dragoons, showing his estimate of their in
fluence and power.
Powerful nobles, like the great Prince of Conde" and the £onde and

Cohgny

illustrious Admiral Coliguy, espoused the cause of the
Eeformed Church and demanded liberty of worship for its
adherents. Finally, in 1561, it became evident that the
old state of affairs could not go on ; the Huguenot leaders
brought great pressure to bear on the throne, and after
many vexing delays the famous " Edict of January" was
issued, giving to the Huguenots the right to worship un
molested by rabble or clergy. The schools and hospitals
were thrown open to all, and the Huguenots were per
mitted to hold all offices of dignity and responsibility.
It was a great victory for freedom of conscience, and had
it been faithfully lived up to, France would have been
spared a series of devastating civil wars and the loss of
so many of her bravest and most industrious sons.

But it was not the intention of the Catholic party to
admit their fellow-countrymen to anything like an equal- Massacre of
ity of worship with themselves, and so they proceeded at
once to break faith with the Huguenots. In vain were
all appeals to the law, so that out of self-defense the
Huguenots were compelled to take up arms. They did
so, however, only after the greatest provocations : as for
example, when no punishment was meted out to the mur
derers of over a hundred Huguenots who were peacefully
worshipping in their tabernacle at Vassy. This massacre
of Vassy was a needless and cold-blooded atrocity, and its
perpetrators were known ; but in spite of these facts and
in defiance of the u Edict of January," the murderers
were allowed to go unscathed. Such outrages and such source of civil
breaches of faith made a resort to arms imperative and War
gave rise to a series of civil wars that turned France into
a bloody battle-ground for over thirty years, and inau-

50 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

gurated a long train of persecutions, broken promises,
and repressive acts of legislation, which culminated in
the revocation of the " Edict of Nantes," in 1685. It
would be out of place in this brief sketch to go into the
history of these wars and the troubles which followed
them. A short account of the massacre of St. Barthol
omew's Day will be sufficient to show the treachery and
ferocity with which the Huguenots were treated.

jn ^he month of August, 1572, Henry of Navarre, the
August 24, 1572 uominal head of the Huguenot party, together with Ad
miral Coligny and the Prince of Conde with eight hundred
gentlemen, entered Paris to celebrate the nuptials of
Henry and Margaret of Yalois, sister of Charles IX.
They came as the king's guests and were under the pro
tection of the " Edict of Saint Germain," in which the
throne reiterated the promises of religious toleration made
in the previous " Edict of January." The wedding was
celebrated on the seventeenth with great magnificence, and
the remainder of the week was devoted to various holiday
sports and games. These festivities were, however, but
a mask to cover the real intentions of the Eoman Cath
olics and to throw the Huguenot gentlemen off their
guard. On the eve of St. Bartholomew's Day the plans
for an appalling massacre had been perfected, and the
unsuspecting victims were already marked out for
slaughter. The gates of Paris were locked so that none
might escape, every house in which a Protestant lodged
was marked with a piece of chalk, and soldiers were in
readiness to begin their bloody work as soon as the great
bell in the tower of the "Palais de Justice" should ring
forth the appointed signal.

Murder of The massacre was begun by the murder of Coligny, who

was confined to his house by a wound he had received a
few days before. Early in the morning he was awakened
by an uproar in the street, followed by a loud demand for

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 51

admittance in the name of the king. His servant, La
Bonne, opened the door and was immediately struck
down with a dagger by Cosseins, a captain of the guard.
A motley band of troopers then pressed into the house
over the fallen body, and easily overcame the resistance
which Coligny 's five Swiss guards were able to offer,
though they contested bravely every inch of the passage
to the Admiral's room. Meanwhile, Coligny, under
standing what the clashing of arms signified, rose from
his bed despite his wound, and prepared to meet his as
sassins like the honourable soldier that he was. To the
little group of faithful friends and followers who were
gathered about him he said, in a voice unmoved by fear,
' i For a long time I have kept myself in readiness for
death. As for you, save yourselves, if you can. It were A Noble
in vain for you to attempt to save my life. I commend daunted n
my soul to the mercy of God. ' ' Obedient to his request,
all his followers excepting Nicholas Muss fled to the roof
and made their escape in the darkness. When the sol
diers broke into the room they found Coligny awaiting
them with the greatest composure, quite undaunted in the
face of certain death. < l Aren' t you the Admiral t ' 7 cried
one of the troopers. "Yes," replied Coligny. "I am Ruffian
he. But you are too young a soldier to speak thus to so *
old a captain, if for no other reason than respect for my
age." With a curse the soldier struck him with his
sword, and the old warrior was quickly put to death.
His body was then thrown out of the window into the
court below, where the Duke of Guise was waiting the
news of his death. Taking out his handkerchief the Duke
wiped the blood from Coligny's face and cried, "I recog
nize him, 'tis the Admiral ! " After grinding his heel
into the face of the fallen leader he shouted, " Come, sol
diers, we have begun well ; let us go on to the others ! "

The head was then cut off and carried to the Louvre for A Martyr
Charles and his mother to feast their eyes upon. After Statesman
they had satisfied their hatred they ordered it embalmed

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

and sent to Pope Gregory at Rome as a token of the zeal
with which religious freedom was being thwarted in
France. The headless corpse was shamefully mutilated
and with every show of ribald scorn it was dragged
through the streets of Paris for the space of three days by
a crowd of gamins. And so, in the fifty-sixth year of his
life, passed away one of the greatest characters which
France has ever produced. None of the ignominy which
was heaped upon him could serve to cast the slightest
stain on his loyalty, purity, and uprightness of life. As
a soldier he showed indomitable pluck in the face of de
feats which would have disheartened many a courageous
man ; he was a master of strategy without a superior in
that age of generals, a leader who never failed to inspire
the confidence of his troops ; with only the slenderest re
sources behind him his qualities of generalship enabled
him to wage war for many years against a powerful enemy
who vastly outnumbered him. As a statesman he sought
to save France from the ruin into which her dissolute
sovereign was leading her, and was justly regarded as
wise and far-sighted. But it is as a Christian gentleman
that Gaspard de Coliguy deserves most to be remembered.
In that dissolute age he set a shining example to the other
great nobles of his rank. Every act of his life felt the
influence of his manly and straightforward piety.
"Whether at home, in his castle of Chatillon-sur-Loing, or
in the rude camps of the field, he sought to emulate the
example of his Master. It was his constant glory and de
light to be a Christian.

Following the death of Coligny came the wholesale
massacre of the Protestants. For three days and nights
the carnage went on. Nothing availed to save the
wretched victims : neither youth, age, nor sex prevented
the swords of the Roman Catholic bigots from striking
home. Venerable men were struck down in their feeble-

THE HUGUENOTS IN FRANCE 53

ness, babes were torn from their mother's breasts and
spitted on the ends of pikes, women were treated to
every bestial indignity, so that the blow which ended
their suffering seemed like an act of mercy. So sudden
was the attack and so scattered were the Huguenots that
resistance was out of the question except in a rare in
stance or two where some doughty gentleman found time
to buckle on his breastplate and grasp his sword. The
Lieutenant de la Mareschausse*e was one of these. With
the aid of a solitary companion he defended his house
against the onslaughts of the butchers for the whole of
that day. Spurred on by the thought of the fate await
ing his wife and invalid daughter he fought like a mad
man until sheer exhaustion enabled his enemies to
despatch him. To vent their spite the soldiers dragged
his sick daughter naked through the streets until she
died of their maltreatment.

Altogether, probably between five and six thousand
persons were slain within the walls of Paris, though
some authorities place the number as high as eight or ten
thousand. Most of these bodies were dumped into the
Seine, so that the river fairly flowed with blood for days
afterwards. So numerous were the corpses floating in
the stream that the lagging current was unable to carry
them all away, and for miles below the city the shores
were covered with putrefying remains. It is only fair to
France to say that the blame for these atrocities of
St. Bartholomew's Day falls heaviest on the Church of
Borne, which for years had taught the doctrine that it
was no sin to kill those who held other forms of belief ;
which had gone even further and stated that to do so was
an act of signal piety. Indeed, when the news of the *°™*'s Re"
massacre reached Eome it was received with the greatest
rejoicing, a jubilee was celebrated, and for three nights
the city was brilliantly illuminated. King Charles who,
under his mother's instigation, ordered the massacre that

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Henry of
Navarre

Edict of
Nantes

Louis XIV

Revocation of
the Edict

shocked the world, died at twenty -five, the prey of terror
and mental agony.

VII

When Henry of Navarre was made king of France he
found it politically necessary to abjure his Huguenot faith
and turn Catholic. But he never forgot his old allegiance
to the Eeformed religion, and strove in every way to
give his former comrades their just rights as citizens of
France. On the thirteenth of April, 1598, he set his
name to " a perpetual and irrevocable edict," known as
the Edict of Nantes, which granted liberty of conscience
to all Frenchmen. It restored to the Huguenots their
full civil rights and gave them the freedom to worship
God unmolested by priests or bigots. It was one of the
most glorious steps towards human liberty that has ever
been taken, and had its solemn promises been adhered to
l>y Henry's royal successors, France would have been
spared some of the blackest and most unfortunate pas
sages in her history.

But after the death of Henry IV, the beneficent
provisions of the edict were one by one rendered in
operative, and the old round of petty and cruel persecu
tions was resumed. We must pass over these unhappy
years until we come to the crowning act of despotism
which marked the career of Eoman Catholic intolerance,
the Eevocation of the Edict of Nantes. In 1685 Louis
XIV utterly destroyed the few remaining liberties of his
Protestant subjects by breaking the solemn promises
made to them by Henry IV. According to the terms of
the Eevocation all Huguenot churches were to be torn
down, the gathering of Protestants for the purposes of
worship was forbidden, even religious services in the
home were made punishable offenses. Protestant schools
were abolished, all children were to be brought up in
the Eoman Catholic faith and were to be baptized by the
parish priest, etc. Most tyrannical of all the provisions,
however, was that which forbade any Huguenot from

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 55

leaving the kingdom under penalty of serving a life sen
tence in the galleys. Thus by a single stroke of the pen,
Louis made life for the Protestants unbearable in France,
and at the same time made it a crime for them to seek an
asylum in other lauds.

The condition of the Huguenots now became truly Dragooning
pitiable, for not content with robbing them of all their
liberties the king desired their wholesale conversion.
In the endeavour to accomplish this the most heartless
methods were resorted to, chief among them being the
fiendish process called " dragooning." A day was ap
pointed for the conversion of a certain district, and the
dragoons, who were carefully selected from among the
most ruffianly swash bucklers in the French army, made
their appearance accordingly and took possession of
the Protestants' houses. Their orders were to make as
much trouble as possible, and they obeyed them with
barbarous exactness ; converting a quiet home into a
bedlam and subjecting the family to the grossest insults
and most outrageous tortures. Woe to the unhappy
wretch upon whom the troopers were quartered. They
stabled their horses in his parlour, smashed his furniture
at will, destroyed whatever they could not eat or drink,
kept his family awake at night by their drunken uproar
or by prodding them with their swords, exposed his wife
and daughters to foul language and abuse, and taught his
sons the vices of the soldiery.

Bather than subject his loved ones to such treatment Recanting to
many a brave man, who would cheerfully have suffered Family
the rack or the wheel for the sake of his faith, forced
himself to become an unwilling convert to the "true
religion." Those who refused to submit after the dra
goons had been in their homes a few days were beaten
without mercy, or starved, or half- roasted over a fire ;
mothers were bound securely and forced to see their
young babes perish at their feet ; some were hung in the
chimneys and piles of wet straw burned under them until

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Fleeing Into
Exile

France Lost
her Skilled
Artisans and
Best Blood

they were nearly suffocated ; others were held under water
till life was almost extinct. These, and other crimes too
horrible for mention here, were all committed under the
mask of a religion which, professing to teach the love of
God, inspired the hearts of its followers with a hatred of
their fellow man.

VIII

From this condition of affairs large numbers of the
Huguenots sought relief by fleeing over the borders of
France into Switzerland, Germany, Holland and England,
where they were warmly welcomed, both on account of
the pity felt for their sufferings, and because they repre
sented the most sober, industrious and intelligent class
of the French people. It is probable that at least four
hundred thousand persons emigrated within a short time
after the Revocation, and some historians put the figures
as high as eight hundred thousand. Their going struck
a sore blow to France, and was the most potent cause of
her loss of commercial supremacy. For the majority
of those who escaped were noblemen and gentry, wealthy
merchants and manufacturers, bankers, or skilled arti
sans ; and while most of them were forced to leave their
wealth behind them they carried away what was of
far more importance — the knowledge of trades such as
weaving fine cloths, making silks and laces, hats, etc.,
which had up to that time been confined to France. The
growth of England as a great manufacturing nation was
due in no mean degree to the efforts and the skill of the
refugees whom she received so hospitably. But this emi
gration was not accomplished without the greatest hard
ships. The guards along the frontiers were increased and
every effort made by the government to prevent the out
flow. Those who were apprehended were certain to be
consigned to the galleys, but this did not prevent the
bolder spirits from making an endeavour to reach free
dom. The greatest variety of strategies was resorted to :

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 57

some shipped themselves to England inside empty wine
casks ; noble ladies disguised themselves as peasants and
drove herds of cattle across the Dutch frontiers ; others
ventured out to sea in open boats to board some friendly
ship.

One aristocratic lady secured a passport from a Swiss
servant and for weeks rubbed her face with nettles to pro
duce the blotched appearance called for in the description.

Roman Catholics in later times have tried in every way Efforts to
possible to minimize the Massacre of St. Bartholomew, stal"
to deny that it was a Church measure, and to charge it
upon the Protestants themselves as breakers of the peace.
Roman Catholic historians have played fast and loose
with the facts of history regarding the entire period of
persecution. But the facts remain and cannot be wiped
out or evaded.

There is no question that when the Massacre of St. Bar
tholomew's day was announced to the world, the Eomish
clergy of France rejoiced ; the King was hailed as the
destroyer of heresy ; and the Pope at Eome, as head of
the Eoman Catholic Church throughout the world, ap
proved the infamous deed ; going so far as by a special
medal, representing the slaughter of the Huguenots, to
make it a notable event in the history of the church.
The Parliament of Paris followed his example, and on
their medal engraved the words, " Piety aroused Jus
tice." But within a hundred and fifty years, the great
Eoman Catholic preacher, Massillon, when pronouncing
the eulogy of Louis XIV, and praising him for the Eevo-
cation of the Edict of Nantes — an act not less infamous
than the massacre, thus speaks of the latter event :
"Even by the recollection and injustice of that bloody
day, which ought to be effaced from our annals, which Bioodof
piety and humanity will always disown, which in the seSof'the6
effort to crush heresy, under one of our late kings, gave True Church
to it new fire and fury, and fumed, if I may venture to
say it, from its blood the seed of new disciples.'7 Thus

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Palissy the
Potter a
Protestant

Born 1510

Self-educated

Persistence in
face of
Obstacles

this French Eoman Catholic turned away in horror from
the inhumanity of that earlier day, which he would have
the world forget if he could.

One of the greatest craftsmen France ever produced was
Bernard Palissy the potter. It was his, too, to suffer for
his Protestant faith and at last to give his life for it. He
was as noble in character as he was skilled in his art.
There was much of pathos and disappointment in his life,
yet he lived it grandly, and sets an inspiring example of
persistence and piety. Think of pursuing an ideal of
beauty for a quarter of a century — working under every
conceivable hardship and difficulty, yet never losing faith
in ultimate success. That was the man who discovered a
secret of enamelling that is the admiration of the world.
Born in 1510, in the south of France, where the reforma
tion most developed, he was brought up to his father's
trade — a worker in glass. His parents were too poor to
give him any schooling. "I had no other books," said
he in after years, "than heaven and earth, which are
open to all." He learned glass-painting, drawing, and
to read and write, by his own exertions. He was over
thirty, married and with a family to support, when the
sight of an elegant cup, of Italian manufacture, first set
him to thinking about the new art of enamelling. The
sight of a cup changed his whole existence. He
resolved to discover the enamel of which it was glazed,
and persisted for months and years, spoiling furnaces and
pots and drugs and his wife's temper, as she could not be
expected to sympathize with his enthusiasm and extrava
gance when the children had to go hungry. On he
worked, often in direst poverty, only to meet disappoint
ment. Once, in a critical experiment, he burned up all
the furniture to feed his furnace — and still failed. His
wife and neighbours said he was mad, but he kept on.
"Hope continued to inspire me," he says, "and I held

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 59

on manfully. Worst of all the sufferings I had to endure
were the mockeries of my own household. For years my
furnaces were without covering, and I have been for nights
at the mercy of the wind and rain. My house proved no
refuge for me, I found in my chamber a second persecu
tion worse than the first." Still he went on. and it was success at

Last

sixteen years before he reached success and would call
himself potter. Ever after till death he proceeded
from one improvement to another, aiming at perfec
tion.

Fame and means were now his, but another suffering
he had to endure. He was bitterly persecuted because he
was a Protestant. As he was fearless of speech, Palissy
was pronounced a dangerous heretic by the priests ; his Persecuted as

.. . Protestant

workshop was smashed by the rabble, and he was even

condemned to be burned. From this fate he was saved

by a powerful noble — not because the nobleman cared for

the potter or his religion, but because no other artist

living was able to execute the enamelled pavement which

the nobleman had ordered for his magnificent chateau

then in course of erection near Paris. Thus Palissy' s

art, which cost him so much, saved his life literally. The saved by his

King also was greatly interested in his work.

The persecutors could not let him alone. When an old
man of seventy-eight, owing to his open warfare against
astrology, witchcraft and other impostures, he was again
arrested as a heretic, and imprisoned in the Bastille. He
was threatened with death unless he recanted, but proved
as persistent in holding to his religion as he was in hunt- The King's
ing out the secret of the enamel. King Henry IV went
to see him in prison, to use his personal influence to
induce the old artist to recant.

" My good man," said the King, " you have now served
my mother and myself for forty-five years. We have put
up with your adhering to your religion amidst fires and
massacres : now I am so pressed by the Guise party that I
am constrained to leave you in the hands of your ene-

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

A Noble
Reply

A Martyr to
his Faith

mies, and to-morrow you will be burned unless you be
come con verted. "

"Sire," answered the unconquerable old man, "lam
ready to give my life for the glory of God. You have
said many times that you have pity on me ; and now I
have pity on you, who have pronounced the words, ' I
am constrained.' It is not spoken like the King; it is
what you, and those who constrain you, can never effect
upon me — for I know how to die. ' ?

The King, who admired the brave man and ths great
artist, did not permit Palissy to be burned, but did leave
him in prison, where he died — a real martyr to his faith
—less than a year later. This was the kind of character
and of ability that France lost. There was nothing left
to replace such genuine religion, nothing out of which to
create such type of citizens, who are the bulwark of the
state as they are its glory. Palissy the potter deserves
high place on the roll of honour of the Huguenot
martyrs.

An Enemy's
Praise

Louis XIV himself bore testimony to the high char
acter of his Protestant subjects, whom he declared, in
1666 : " Being no less faithful than the rest of my people,
it behooves me to treat with no less favour and consider
ation." But this was the very year in which the "re
lapsed heretics" were placed entirely at the mercy of the
Roman Catholics, and subjected to all kinds of annoy
ances and persecutions. As one wrote, "The members
of the reformed religion are so cruelly persecuted through
the whole kingdom that, if the work go on, it is to be
feared that nothing less than a great massacre must be
looked for." Public worship was proscribed and even
the singing of psalms prohibited on the highways or in
private houses. The Protestants were forbidden to bury
their dead in open day.

Perhaps nothing could show the condition and spirit of

THE HUGUENOTS IN FEANCE 61

the Huguenots in France in 1668 better than this trans- ,
lation of a letter written by one of their number :

These things make us justly apprehensive that in the end they will
break out in acts of open violence ; there being nothing which they are
not in case to undertake for accomplishing of our mine. And unless
we be willfully blind, we cannot but see that they design to drive us
into some insurrection. (But thab we never shall do, preferring rather
to suffer the greatest extremity and our blood to be shed, than in the
least to violate the respect which we owe to our prince.) And if they
cannot overcome our patience (as assuredly they never shall), then
their resolution is, By continual importunity to prevail with his
Majesty to drive us out of the kingdom. But we hope that the King
is so good and just that he will never gratifie them in such a thing,
without a parallel. And if we should be called to such a trial, we hope
God will give us such strength and courage that we may serve Him where-
ever His providence shall call us. And this in effect is the general reso
lution of all the Protestants in the kingdom.

That is the kind of Christian spirit and character that,
banished from France, was to enrich every European
country, and our own America. " Patient as a Hugue
not" became a proverb, because the ministers were re
solved to suffer for righteousness' sake rather than again
make appeal to arms.

u One might be tempted to suppose," says Poole, " that
not the least reason for the energy of the clergy in opposi
tion to the Huguenots was suggested by jealousy of the
contrast between their own scandalous neglect and the
careful order and nice discipline of the Protestants." As
Gustave Masson, the historian, says: " The Vitality of
Protestantism in France, despite the severest persecutions
that can be imagined, is a circumstance which, while it can
not be denied, fills us with hope for the future. ' 7 The hope
of Protestant France lies in the noble words which Theodore
de Beze spoke to the King of Navarre : "Sire, it is the
part of the Church of God to endure blows, and not to
deal them : but your Majesty will please to remember
that it is an anvil which has already worn out many a
hammer."

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Marot's
Psalms

Widespread

Influence

A Rallying
Cry

Oiie of the most powerful influences of the Eeforruation
in France, as in Switzerland, was Clement Marot's Psalms.
The young Clement, whose father was a poet, was at
tached to the family of the Duke D' Alencon about 1520.
He was led to translate some of the Psalms into French
verse. Having put them into lively ballad measure, he
printed about twenty translations, dedicating them to the
king. The sweetness of the poetry won a great success
at the court, the king was pleased with the dedication,
and the demand for copies was large. The ecclesiastical
authorities censured the book, but the king and court
carried the day, and Marot's hymns began to be sung
everywhere. At all times and in all places the Psalms
might be heard sung to lively ballad tunes. They took
for a time the place of national songs. Marot paraphrased
thirty more of the Psalms, and the fifty were printed in
Geneva in 1543 with a preface by Calvin, and had a wide
circulation. No one then realized what part these Psalms
were to play later, when the persecutions came. In the
Netherlands they were sung in the field meetings of the
Eeformed, and the effect on the crowds was electric and
resistless. The different Psalms were fitted to tunes ac
cording to the popular taste, and were sometimes accom
panied by musical instruments. Calvin got two excel
lent musicians to set the whole number of Psalms to mu
sic, and words and music were printed together. That
was the original church hymn book, and oddly enough
for a time Eoman Catholics as well as Protestants carried
and used the book. The Psalms were sung in private and
in company, and the effect was marked. Fearing that
the court would become too religious, the evil-disposed
tried to counteract their influence by translations of Latin
odes ; but the influence of the Marot Psalms long contin
ued even in those fashionable circles.

As for the Protestants, they found their rallying cry in
these hymns. The adoption of them as a part of public

THE HUGUENOTS IN FKANCE

worship caused their rejection by the Eomanists. On
the field of battle, at the funeral pyre of the martyr, in
the prisons, all through the terrible period of religious
persecution and bloodshed, the Psalms of Marot could be
heard, and were the source of inspiration and courage.
It is well said that the influence of Marot on the language
and poetry of France has been enduring, and the good
accomplished by introducing the singing of David's
Psalms into the Reformed congregations and families can
not be estimated. As Luther's Hymn, which is a trans
lation of a Psalm, was the Protestant battle hymn of
Germany, so the Marot Psalms led the French forward
in their long struggle for religious liberty and human
rights.

~~ Massacre

CHAPTER III
THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUROPE

*HAT France lost and what the other countries
of Europe gained at her expense by giving
refuge to the Huguenot exiles is shown in de-
Europe's Gain tail by Weiss in his History of the French Protestant Ref-
Frlncf's Foiiy ugeeSj and by Poole, an English writer, in his Huguenots
of the Dispersion, a valuable essay. England was doubt
less the largest gainer in the arts and manufactures, yet
nearly all the countries of Northern Europe received
valuable accessions in artisans and agriculturists, some
reaching even into Russia. Skilled trades were thus car
ried into sections where they had previously been un
known.

s!ioteeri?r?ty in -^ almost every branch of industry the French Prot-
In~ estants greatly surpassed the Roman Catholics. Why, is
an interesting question for discussion. Poole attributes
it to the free spirit, fostered in the consistories and syn
ods of the Protestants and in their schools of learning,
which found an apt expression in the zest and success
with which they devoted themselves to the improvement
of manufacture and the extension of commerce. They
were mentally quickened by a religion which exercised
thought and reason, and their training in the administra
tion of the church fitted them for business transactions.
Whatever the reason, the fact is indisputable as to the
immense vigour with which the Huguenots applied
themselves to trade, and the excellence which, thanks to
their tone of mind and the superior length of their work
ing year, they attained in it. For holidays, for example,
the Huguenots allowed only the Sundays and the two re-

THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUROPE 65

ligious festivals of Christmas and Easter, while the EomaD
Catholics had double the number iu order to celebrate the ""
saints' days. Thus the Huguenots worked on 310 days
in the year, the Roman Catholics only on 260, which
made a decided difference, aside from the superior qual
ity and speed of the Protestant workmen.

Weaving was one of the principal industries of France, Arts and
with over 44,000 persons engaged in it in 1669; and the
Protestants had a practical monopoly. Cloth in Cham
pagne and the southeast, serges and light stuffs in Langue-
doc, the linens of Normandy and Brittany, the silks and
velvets of Tours and Lyons, glass in Ormandy, paper in
Auvergne and Augoumois, the tan-yards of the Touraine,
the furnaces of iron, steel and tin in the Sedanais — these
were Protestant industries whose products made France
known in every market. And it was this splendid indus
trial population which the infatuated Louis, at the be
hest of his Roman Catholic advisers, scourged from his
kingdom.

Colbert, the great French minister of finance, and the
only French statesman who knew the value of trades, A valuable
recognized the worth of the Huguenots. i i This great Factor
man," says Angillon, "was too able an administrator
to fail of being tolerant. He had learned that civil and
religious liberty was the principle of work, of industry,
and of the wealth of the nations." Thus he employed
the German Protestant Herward, his comptroller-general
of finance, and kept the Huguenots in the financial de
partment as long as his influence prevailed at court. It
was not until the profligate king had wearied of his faith
fulness and wise counsels that the fierce persecutions began,
and not until after his death that the Edict was revoked
and commerce lost to the France he devotedly loved and
served.

Holland at first received the intellectual and com- Holland
mercial flower of the French Protestants. Haarlem is

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Woollen
Manufactures

A French

Section

A Dutch
Estimate 1750

an illustration. The exiles reached there, as the munici
pal records state, "in a sorely destitute state, lacking
the means of life, and in no wise able to sustain their
families." But not long did they require town help or
support. Their woollen manufacture increased till the
town became too small for them, and they built the
Nieuwe Stad (new city). Besides cloth, druggets, and
such woollen stuffs, they introduced into Haarlem a
variety of silk product, velvet, plush, and the like,
which, though coarser than the original manufactures
at Lyons, Tours and Paris, were long in great demand
abroad because cheaper. Haarlem was soon outstripped
in the woollen trade by Leydeu, where the French made
the finest cloth, the best serges to be found in the country.
The comfort of these thrifty and expert immigrants was
such that even Eoman Catholic soldiers would desert to
settle there.

But Amsterdam was the centre, and a whole quarter
of the city was settled by the Protestant workmen of
Pierre Baill6, the richest manufacturer of his district in
France. Before this, Amsterdam had been busied al
most exclusively with maritime commerce. Now, in
dustries were rising everywhere in silk and wool and
linen ; a new part of the city, as at Haarlem, was built
for the workers, and almost entirely occupied by hat
manufactories. Paper mills were in plenty also, and the
book trade was largely stimulated.

These cases are typical of the impulse given by the
French refugees to trade. What was true of Holland
and its cities was true also of England and Ireland, of
Germany and Switzerland, of Sweden and Austria, and
not least of America, where the French transplanted
their commercial, industrial, agricultural and religious
characteristics in full measure.

Here is what a writer in the Nederlandsche Spectator
of 1750, who does not quite like the dash and swing and
success of the newcomers, in contrast to the Dutch

THE FBENCH EXILES IN EUROPE 67

stolidity, says of the Huguenot immigration : i 1 This
people, oppressed and hardly handled, came over to us
in so great swarms, that it seemed about to equal the
number of the inhabitants, and scarcely to be provided
with places to live in. Not alone were they received
cheerfully as brothers and fellows in faith ; but people
of every diverse sect lavished abounding gifts upon
them: and everywhere, as guests, free from the charge
of scot or lot, they were furnished and favoured with
rare immunities. The engaging joyousness, which no
tyranny could quench, the courteous grace which could
gain an entrance by its modest tact everywhere, soon
made so much impression here on the more and better
part of the people, and so used its mind to their manners,
that it came to be reckoned an honour the most to re
semble the foreigners."

This is a high tribute indeed, and something of the
same result was produced in America by those gracious
qualities and graceful manners which found as much
contrast in the New Englanders as in the Hollanders, who
come of the same sturdy and conquering though less
polished stock.

Ill

In Great Britain the French immigrants made lasting in Great
impress, and gave trade and manufacture an impulse Bntain
and breadth never afterwards lost. The lace makers
spread their manufactures over several countries, and
made this industry famous and remunerative. Furriers
and beaver hat makers in large numbers settled in
Waudsworth ; and for forty years, until a theft restored
the art, France was compelled to import all the best
goods of this kind, made by Frenchmen, from England.
It is said that even the cardinals of the Holy College had
to buy their hats in English Wandsworth ; which ought
to have been sufficiently humiliating to the high officials
of the Church which drove the industry forth from
France.

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

London

1687

South Coast

Shipping and
Commerce

To LondoD the refugees came by thousands, " far the
greater numbers in a state of persecution, empty and
naked, to depend on the hospitality and charity of this
good-natured kingdom." But never for long were they
dependent. Workshops and churches sprang up to
gether. In a single year the official account of the relief
committee reported that 13,500 refugees had been helped
in London ; while two French churches were organized
in Spitalfields and one by the Strand. Commerce and
church went together where the Huguenots were.
Among those thousands aided there were 143 ministers
and 283 families of quality. Their children were sent to
the best trades or into his Majesty's troops — the latter to
the number of 150. In the next year the French minis
ters in and about London were incorporated, with power
to purchase lands and build houses, and three new
churches were provided for. The peopling of the waste
Spitalfields was due to the French, and in a generation
nine churches had arisen there, and the workmen were so
many and so busy that the silk manufacture of London
was multiplied twentyfold.

French colonists lined the south coast, where the exiles
gathered around such leaders as the Marquess de Euvigny,
their aged chief who long guarded them at the French
court and was now their sponsor in England ; whose sons,
by the way, rendered great service to England in war.
These coast refugees devoted themselves chiefly to ship
ping and commerce. At Exeter the tapestry weavers,
however, established themselves, and in other southern
towns trades were created, among them the fine linens
and sail cloth. In nearly all the industrial centres the
French were to be found, engaged in weaving, in print
ing calicoes in their unrivalled style, in making glass and
paper ; and everywhere setting an example of skill, thrift
and cheerfulness. The paper mills extended from Eng
land into Scotland, the first being started at Glasgow.
Edinburgh received a number of cambric makers, and

THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUKOPE 69

the burghers built them a large house on the common,
long known as little Picardya. In 1693 the city was Scotland
charged to the amount of two thousand marks for the
support of the manufactory. Others worked in silk, and
planted mulberry-gardens on the hill slopes. Helped by
the public alms at first, these Picard exiles fared pros
perously, and maintained their native speech and man
ners, living in a house, itself of French fashion, until the
middle of the eighteenth century.

The gentry and artisans formed the bulk of the French
immigrants to England. The agricultural classes pre
ferred Germany, Holland and Sweden, which were less
thickly peopled. It was the craftsman, carrying his
means of support in his hands or in his brain, that
enriched England and did much to make the little island
the workshop as well as the counting-house of the world.
A strong contrast these French craftsmen were to the
English workmen, who belonged in general to a rougher
and less skilled type ; who needed the greater refinement
and joyousness of the newcomers as much as the Puritans
did in New England j and who on the whole received the
foreigners quite as hospitably as could be expected.

Most heartily were the persecuted fugitives welcomed Professional
in the various countries to which they fled. At Dord- Enrichment
recht, in Holland, the burghers " received them as kins
folk into their houses, cared for them as for their children,
and put them in the way of earning honourably their
bread," while the magistrates loaded them with privileges
and pensions. This was characteristic of the countries
generally. The French Protestant ministers and men of
letters, many of them eminent for learning, enriched
Holland by their presence. It was the artisan and agri
cultural class that chiefly pushed on further. Colonies
escaped through the German border to the north, and the
immigration to Hamburg embarrassed that great city by

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Denmark
Gains a Com-
mander-in-
Chief

Russia Gives
Free Entry

its numbers. Hamburg got in return, however, the linen
manufacturing industry which made it famous and greatly
increased its riches.

Sweden 1681 King Christian of Sweden was among the first to offer
asylum to banished families, promising to grant them
lands and build them churches with full religious freedom.
One of the Huguenot ministers who went to Copenhagen
was Phillippe Menard, afterwards French chaplain to
William III.

The Refuge in Denmark included a few military offi
cers ; one of whom was Frederic Charles de la Roche-
foucault, ancestor of the Irish earls of Liiford. This
Huguenot became grand marshal and commander- in-chief
of the Danish forces. But the bulk of the French settlers
were farmers, cultivating especially potatoes, the tobacco
plant, which they introduced, and wheat, which they
improved.

The small settlement in Russia was singular in that the
Czar granted free entry and exit to any emigrants of the
evangelical faith who might choose to come, and also
religious liberty and chance for government service. It
is said that when Peter the Great built St. Petersburg he
seemed to take pleasure in outraging the prejudice of the
Orthodox Greek Church by giving all encouragement to
Lutherans and Calvinists. The imported population gave
a new tone to the rising capital, different in manners and
civilization from the rest of Russia. Thus a French society
grew up there, with a church built in 1723, frequented by
the Swiss and English as well as by the French residents.

in Germany In the German states the Huguenots' influence was
marked. There the French proved that gracious and
civilizing power which was conspicuous subsequently in
the society at Berlin. At Celle and Hanover French was
Spoken as purely as in Paris, and a refinement altogether
new sprang up in the German principalities. French
politeness softened Saxon brusqueness and made life much
more enjoyable.

THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUROPE 71

The population of Switzerland was naturally greatly Switzerland
enlarged by the number of refugees who there found
asylum. Geneva benefited by the coming of workers in
silk and wool, print manufacturers, goldsmiths and watch
makers. A greater advantage even resulted from the
gathering there and at Lausanne of many families of
rank, the artists and men of science, who raised the
social culture. It should be noted that wherever they
went the Huguenots conferred not only commercial bene
fits and carried their religion, but they elevated the
culture. To their refining influence the refugees added
a material benefit throughout Switzerland. They im
proved the vinegrowing and husbandry, and added the
culture of orchards and kitchen gardens. This was the
same thing they did in the New World ; besides opening
shops, starting manufactures as they were needed, and
generally taking the initiative in improvements.

Germany owes not a little of its present fame as a Q^JjjJj,*11,, b
manufacturing country to the French immigrants who the French
were hospitably taken in when they were homeless.
"Made in Germany" is stamped on many manufactures
which, if the history was traced back, would show a
Huguenot hand at the beginning. Jewelry, woollen
goods, flannels, carpets and cloths, hats and gloves, all
sorts of ornamental wares, for which Germany is known
were introduced by the French artisans. There were
agricultural as well as industrial settlements, and French
villages dotted many a German valley. There were also
many gentle families, which gradually became absorbed
in the German population. The one thing that made
the French unpopular was their lively, light-hearted be
haviour, which seemed frivolous to the staid German,
who appreciated neither their talkativeness in church,
their strange dress with short cloaks, nor their snuff-boxes.

This did not apply so much to Berlin, which got the Berlin
most out of the French both in manufactures and man
ners. Hither flocked not only the best artisans, as to

72 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEKICA

strong French England, but especially the soldiers and nobles and gentry,
until it was no wonder that Berlin was in danger of be
coming more French than German, though the French
element was not of the Parisian type. The trade and
craft of the French colony were remarkable. The new
comers introduced numerous arts as yet unknown to the
Brandenburgers when the Great Elector Frederick Will
iam welcomed the French to his dominions. Not an
industry but claimed its place among the labours of the
French, while most were their special or exclusive pos
session. As in England, paper and glass were before
this only made in the commonest and coarsest kinds ;
now paper of the finest was made in Berlin, while the
looking-glasses were said to excel those of Venice. Then
there was a large mercantile element which rapidly
gained supremacy, so that the Germans came to learn
from them how to do business. In mining and metal
founding the French opened to Germany an unworked
field. The copper hitherto sent by Sweden to France
was now turned into French workshops in Germany, and
the iron trade helped Brandenburg on its way into the
rank of kingdoms and head of an empire. She could
not make her own arms.

^e German army owed much to the French gentry,
who multiplied many times their real efficiency, it was
declared, by their moral sway. Two companies of
Grands Mousquetaires were formed of officers only,
under French Marshal Schomberg and his son. Whole
regiments were formed or recruited from the body of the
refugees, who thus as on the farm and in the factory
richly repaid the land that gave them liberty and a home.
In the social order the refugees were given the same
place they had in France, and it was the aim of the
German monarch to impress upon the lt unpolished
surface of the manner of his court something of the
refinement and grace of France." There were two
French churches and nine ministers in Berlin. In

THE FRENCH EXILES IN EUROPE

education the French led the way to higher medical
training, and in scientific knowledge. The French Col
lege of Berlin was a notable institution. Poole goes so
far as to assert that the society of Berlin was the creation
of the exile, and it was the refugees who gave it that
mobile course of thought, that finer culture, that tact
in matters of art and that instinct of conversation which
had before been the unique possession of France. They
diffused their own spirit, quick, fine, lucid ; the spirit
of French vivacity and precision. And thus they ex
erted, whether in Germany or Switzerland or England,
that influence peculiar to France, upon the society into
the midst of which they were thrown.

Having thus seen something of the exiles in European
countries, we shall be prepared to understand them and
their influence in our own land, where we may be sure
they would be not less influential along the same lines,
social, commercial and religious. We can somewhat
estimate also the loss to France of such an element ; in
reality its great middle class, the reliable and thoughtful
and inventive class, combining the artisan, agricultural
and professional, which gives to a nation its best life and
its material and moral soundness and strength.

Church and
Education

Peculiar Per
sonal Quality

CHAPTER IV
SUFFERING FOR THE FAITH

pe?s"cutionf TT ^ *s cominonly thought that the history of the
Huguenots in France ends with the Revocation of
1 the Edict of Nantes, and that the record of blood
and fire concludes with the great emigration of 1685. But
for a hundred years thereafter the spirit of intolerance
and persecution held its deadly sway. If nearly half a
million Protestants left France at the Revocation, there
were fully twice as many who remained in their native
land, and of these only a small minority abjured their
faith. Their churches had been destroyed, their pastors
banished, and themselves forced to wear an outward
dress of Roman Catholicism ; but in their hearts they
were Huguenots still, and whenever a leader was raised
up for them they rallied round Trim and showed that the
light of the Christian truth still burned within staunch
French hearts.

In the Cevennes the peasants retreated into the moun
tain fastnesses and held the persecutor at bay for years.
But numbers finally overcame them, and open resistance
ceased when the last of those heroic peasants lay dripping
in his own blood. Then came the "Church of the
desert " with its midnight assemblies, its pastors hiding
in holes and caves, its glorious martyrs.

At this time the saviour of French Protestantism was
Court Antoine Court, born 1696, two years before the illustri
ous Claude Brousson sealed his faith with his life at
Montpelier. At seventeen Court resolved to give his life
to the restoration of French Protestantism. He began
to preach, gathering together a little audience of eight

SUFFERING FOE THE FAITH 75

or ten in some isolated barn or hole in the rocks. He
was an orator, was without fear, and was eminently
prudent withal. When he was nineteen he was made
pastor of the Reformed Church at Nismes, and a year
later, in 1716, the first synod was held, the meeting tak
ing place in an old Roman quarry in the neighbourhood.
"The pastors were six young men, peasants of the
Cevennes, several of them younger even than Court him
self. They walked all night to the place of meeting,
which meant for themselves, if taken, the gallows, and
for their audience, penal servitude for life. At dawn
the whole company knelt and invoked the presence of
the Holy Ghost, after which Antoine Court stood up.
He told them of the ruinous condition of their Church,
and counselled that discipline be restored and a form of
constitution drawn out and signed. Here are some of
their rules : 1. Assemblies to be convened once a fort
night ; 2. Family prayer to be held three times a day ;
3. The pastors to meet twice a year in synods. Six
pastors signed the Covenant. The first was hanged in
1718, the second and third in 1728, the fourth in 1732.
One other beside Antoine Court escaped. "
In 1720 the Church at Languedoc held a midnight Treachery and

, . . , . . „, Heroism

meeting in a large cavern, Antoine Court presiding.
Treachery had been at work and two companies of sol
diers burst in upon the astonished worshippers. Fifty
men, women and children were made prisoners, Court
himself having a "miraculous escape." "Some were
sent to the galleys, and nineteen were sentenced to trans
portation. As they entered Msmes, drenched with rain,
they sang a psalm while marching through the streets.
They started for the seaport of La Rochelle chained to
gether and escorted by soldiers. Each night they slept
in stables and were made to lie down in dung. At La
Rochelle the whole party was stricken with malarial
fever, of which several died.

" . . . The English ambassador induced the govern-

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Edict of
Louis XV

Hunted but
Persistent

merit to send them to England. The English chaplain
took them on board a vessel, and a large crowd heaped
blessings upon them as they sailed away to exile and to

freedom."

In 1724 Louis XV thought he would outdo his prede
cessor, and accordingly issued an edict, some of the pro
visions of which were as follows : Every minister to be
put to death, and any one helping them in any way to be
rewarded by penal servitude for life. Life imprisonment
was to be meted out to any one attending a Protestant
service. All children were to be baptized by the priests
within twenty-four hours of birth. No marriage to be
held legal unless performed under Eoinan Catholic aus
pices. Every one who knew when a meeting was to be
held and did not betray the fact to the authorities was to
lose his property and go to the gallows. Whenever a
Protestant pastor was arrested every Huguenot in the dis
trict was to be fined $25,000 — amounting, in nearly every
instance to confiscation of entire property. The absolute
fiendishness of these provisions needs no comment ; they
represent the high mark of Eoman Catholic craft and
cruelty.

But the Eeformed Church of France was not blotted
out. The meetings in the forests were continued, the
galleys were recruited from the ever faithful Protestant
ranks, and though minister after minister was made to
ascend the gallows, there were plenty of brave hearts
ready and eager to take his place in the pastorate. These
pastors were hunted like wolves through the country,
bounties being placed on their heads whether taken dead
or alive. Like criminals they were forced to resort to
aliases. They travelled by night through the woods and
fields. Journeying thus, Antoine Court once covered three
hundred miles within the space of two months, speaking
to three thousand of his people at thirty-two meetings.
One pastor had a hut of stones hidden away in a ravine ;

SUFFEEING FOE THE FAITH 77

this he used for his study where he prepared his sermons
(surely they were sermons worth hearing). Another
made his home in a hole covered over with brambles in
the middle of a great plain ; here he read his Bible and
slept, until one day some sheep fell into the hole and the
shepherd, thus discovering the hiding-place, informed
the magistrates. In 1758 Paul Eabaut, the " Apostle of Paul Rabaut
the Desert," going by some lonely crossroads, would spy
a placard : " Wanted, Paul Eabaut, the minister. Aged
about forty ; visage plain, long and thin ; a little sun
burned ; black hair, aquiline nose ; has lost a tooth in the
upper jaw," etc. The authorities rated his capture as
being worth 20,000 francs — little realizing that the value
of one such man as Paul Eabaut could not be expressed
in terms of money.

Ill

But after the middle of the century persecution grew A B< Day
lighter and lighter. The wishes of Eomanism finally
were forced to give way to the growing spirit of human
ity. Toleration came at last, though with lagging foot
steps. In 1762, in the city of Toulouse, the last Prot
estant martyr ascended the scaffold. This was Pastor
Eochette, twenty-five years old. When the judge read 1762
the sentence of death, Eochette knelt and prayed in the
court-room. u The recorder shed tears, so did jailers and
soldiers. Eochette kindly turned to one of them : l My
friend, you would readily die for the king. Do not pity
me, who am going to die for my God. '

" At 2 P. M. , the last Protestant scaffold was made
ready. He walked barefoot, with a placard around his
neck — Minister of the Pretended Eeformed Eeligion.
Every balcony and house-top was crowded. The whole
city was shocked. Pity and sympathy were on every
face. Eochette stepped on the scaffold, saying, Here
comes the happy day. It was coming — for the martyr
first, and soon for his brethren."

78 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

The last minister to receive the death sentence was
Beranger, in 1767 — but only his effigy was hanged. The
last pastor to be imprisoned was Broca, who was thrown
into a dungeon in 1773. The last Protestant assembly to
be attacked by the dragoons was the Church of Orange.
Eight of those present were captured, and the officer in
charge begged them to escape. This they refused, saying
it was for public authority to set them at liberty. They
remained in prison for two months and then a pardon
from the king gave them freedom. In 1780, when the re
peal of the persecuting edicts seemed imminent, the as
sembly of the Eoman Catholic clergy sent a petition to
Louis XYI asking him to recommence persecution again,
but he refused. Seven years later the Edict of Toleration
put in an appearance. It caused a great debate in the
Parliament of Paris. One delegate declared that the
Virgin had come to him in a dream and bidden him fight
the heretics. Holding aloft a crucifix he demanded,
"Will you crucify Jesus again?'' But public opinion
was for abolishing the Inquisition, and the Edict passed.
It provided that Protestants could marry, bury their
dead, engage in a trade, and hold private worship. In
1802 Huguenots were given the privilege of holding pub
lic services, and the Pretended Eeformed Eeligion could
at last stand on a legal equality with the Eoman Catholic
Church.

The French Eevolution was the ultimate result of the
Eoman Catholic effort to crush out Protestantism in
France. In that reign of terror the Church had to meet
what it had pitilessly inflicted upon the Huguenots. But
the spirit of reform was to live and of religious reform.
There was a great revival in France in 1827-30, which
roused the French Protestants to new life. Bible, tract
and missionary societies were established, Sunday-schools
opened, philanthropies organized j and in this Christian
work dissenters of every shade — Wesleyans, Baptists,

SUFFERING FOE THE FAITH

Cougregationalists — co-operated heartily with the Re
formed Churches. In literature the French Protestants
have honourable rank, and France is steadily verging
towards the realization of a Protestant Republic in which
religious liberty shall be secured as thoroughly as in
America.

The separation of Church and State is already an ac
complished fact, and the most fateful fact for France since
Waterloo. Frenchmen are proud to-day to claim as an
cestors those martyrs who helped with their blood in es
tablishing the great principle of religious freedom.

The French Protestant Hospital,
Vidona Park 1866.

CHAPTER V

Living Death

Strong
Character

Amadee's
Memoirs

Youth of
Eighteen

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS

iHOUSAKDS of the Huguenots who attempted
to escape from France after the Eevocation were
arrested and condemned to the galleys. This
was a punishment far worse than torture and death.
Men of gentle birth and breeding, whose only fault was
their Protestant religion, were worn to death in this
inhuman form of slavery, whose horrors are almost
beyond description. One of the most graphic narratives
of this terrible experience is given in this chapter, in
order to show of what stuff the French Protestants were
made, that they would undergo such merciless fate rather
than abjure their faith. We can only honour and admire
these heroes, while we abhor the government that per
mitted the galley system to exist.

The following account of life in the galleys is based
upon the memoirs of a young Huguenot named Amade'e,
who in 1700 was convicted of the crime of trying to leave
his country when he was forbidden to practice his religion
in it.

Amad6e was a mere stripling of eighteen when he was
sentenced to the galleys for being on the frontier without
a passport. His youth aroused the pity of his captors,
and they made many attempts to get him to abjure his
faith. One priest told him that a beautiful woman, the
possessor of a large fortune, had expressed a desire to
marry him in case he should renounce his faith ; and
other equally attractive bribes were offered him — but all
in vain, for the young man met each temptation with the
answer that he was " determined to endure even the

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS 81

galleys or death, rather than renounce the faith" in Bribery
which he had been educated. Finding their efforts of
little avail, the priests finally declared that his soul was
in the possession of the devil and therefore gave his body
over to the civil authorities.

In company with a fellow prisoner, to whom he was
tied and handcuffed, Ainadee was led away to the prison
at Touruay where he was thrown into a loathsome dun
geon. Six weeks was he forced to drag out a miserable Dungeon Life
existence in this human kennel — living on a scanty
allowance of bread and water, sleeping on the bare pave
ment, and " suffering inexpressibly" from the accumu
lated filth of his apartment. From Tournay he was
taken to Lisle, where he was thrown into a room where
about thirty unfortunates were confined in total darkness
— not a ray of light entering the apartment. These
prisoners were of the lowest type, and their vile company
was abhorrent to Amadee. He did not remain among
them for long, however, for the turnkey, fancying him
self insulted, removed the youth to a solitary dungeon
whose floor was covered knee- deep with water. Amade"e
now refused to eat the portion of bread which was brought
to him and resigned himself to a lingering death ; but
fate, in the person of the Grand Provost of the prison,
ordered otherwise. The Provost, who was himself of
Protestant extraction, upon hearing that Amadee was a
Huguenot, at once ordered him removed to a more com
fortable quarter of the prison and saw to it that he was
supplied with wholesome food and drink.

This comparatively mild detention did not last a great The Galleys
while, for at the end of three months Amadee was
ordered to depart for Marseilles with a party of galley-
slaves. On the journey, which was one of some three
hundred miles, a beautiful girl was attracted to Arnade"e
and approached him, holding a rosary with a crucifix
attached to it, which she offered him. Though he would
gladly have accepted it as a token from the tender-

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Powerful
Temptation

Heroic
Resistance

A Vision

A Galley
Described

hearted maiden, he felt that it would be considered as a
sign of abjuration of his own faith, and heroically
declined it. That evening she came to his prison bring
ing a priest, and declared her object to be his conversion.
" This," said Amadee, " was a trial that God alone
enabled me to go through. Once I became faint from
emotions, and I was on the point of yielding. I pressed
the soft, delicate hand, that I held, to my lips again and
again, and tried to release it, but I could not let it go.
The priest saw my yielding spirit. ' That hand may be
yours,' he said, 'for all eternity, by renouncing your heresy
and embracing the true religion. ' Did God put those
words into his mouth to nerve me with courage ! l No,?
I exclaimed, with new resolution ; l it might be mine for
this life, but I should purchase it by an eternity of misery.
Let me rather die a galley-slave, at peace with my own
conscience and my God. ' Yet, when I saw her no more,
when the last glimpse of her sweet and sorrowful face was
gone, when even her white dress could no longer be dis
cerned, I sat down and wept aloud. At length the agony
of my soul began to yield to a still, small voice within. I
grew calm, and thought I was dying. ' God hears my
prayers, ' said I ; i He has sent His angels to minister to
me, to conduct me to the realms of bliss. ' Shall I confess
it ? The face of the sweet Catholic girl was ever before
me. She seemed to emit a radiance of light through my
prison. I know not whether my dream was a sleeping or
waking one, but methought she leaned over me, and,
raising the hand I had resigned, said in a soft, silver
voice, l Thou hast won this for eternity.' How often, in
successive years, when chained to the oar, have I heard
that voice and seen the beautiful vision ! God ministers
to us by His holy angels ! "

When he arrived at his destination he was placed on
board a galley called the Heureuse, of which he gives the
following description: "Ours was a hundred and fifty
feet long and fifty broad, with but one deck, which cov-

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS 83

ered the hold. The deck rises about a foot in the middle,
and slopes towards the edges to let the water run off more
easily ; for when a galley is loaded it seems to swim under
the water ; and the sea continually rushes over it. To
prevent the sea from entering the hold, where the masts
are placed, a long case of boards, called the coursier, is
fixed in the middle, running from one end of the galley
to the other. The slaves, who are the rowers, have each
a board raised from the deck under which the water
passes, which serves them for a footstool, otherwise their
feet would be constantly in the water. A galley has fifty Three Hun-
benches for rowers, twenty-five on each side ; each bench
is ten feet long, one end fixed in the coursier, that runs
through the boat, the other in the band or side of the
boat ; the benches are half a foot thick, and placed at
four feet distance from each other, and are covered with
sackcloth, stuffed with flock, and a cowhide thrown over
them, which, reaching to the footstool, gives them the
appearance of large trunks. To these the galley-slaves
are chained, six to a bench. The oars are fifty feet long,
and are poised in equilibrio upon the apostic, or piece of
timber for this purpose. They are constructed so that the
thirteen feet of the oar that go into the boat are equal in
weight to the thirty-seven which go into the water. It
would be impossible for the slaves to grasp them, and
handles are affixed for rowing.

" The master, or comite, stands always at the stern, near The Master
the captain, to receive his orders. There are sous-comites,
one in the middle and one near the prow, each with a
whip of cords to exercise as they see fit on the slaves.
The comite blows a silver whistle, which hangs from his
neck ; the slaves have their oars in readiness and strike
all at once, and keep time so exactly, that the half a
hundred oars seem to make but one movement. There is
an absolute necessity for thus rowing together, for should
one be lifted up or fall too soon, those before would strike
the oar with the back part of their heads. Any mistake

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Pitiless
Discipline

Self-sacrifice
and Love

of this kind is followed by blows given with merciless
fury. The labour of a galley-slave has become a proverb ;
it is the greatest fatigue that a man can bear. Six men
are chained to each bench on both sides of the coursier
wholly naked, sitting with one foot on a block of timber,
the other resting on the bench before them, holding in
their hands an enormous oar. Imagine them lengthen
ing their bodies, their arms stretched out to push the oar
over the backs of those before them ; they then plunge
the oar into the sea, and fall back into the hollow below,
to repeat again and again the same muscular action. The
fatigue and misery of their labour seems to be without
parallel. They often faint, and are brought to life by the
lash. Sometimes a bit of bread dipped in wine is put
into their mouths, when their labour cannot for a moment
be spared. Sometimes, when they faint, they are thrown
into the sea, and another takes the place. "

An incident which Amadee relates shows admirably the
Huguenot character with its self-sacrifice and brotherly
love. He had been recommended to the captain of the
galley for the position of steward of the provisions, and
the captain had ordered him to be brought into his pres
ence. " 'They tell me,' he said, l you are the only slave
that can be trusted, and you are a Huguenot.' I an
swered submissively, that there were other Huguenots on
board the galley that could be trusted. ' I will try you,
said he, l and give you the care of the stores ; but, re
member, for the slightest infidelity you receive the basti
nado.' ' The office entitles the slave who holds it to an
exemption from the oar and a dinner every day upon the
captain's provisions.

"Such a situation was comparative happiness to the
hard duty I was undergoing ; my heart beat rapidly. I
made no reply, for I was buried in thought. l Dog of a
Christian, ' he exclaimed, i have you no thanks ? ' At
this moment a struggle, not inferior to that I had experi
enced once before, took possession of my mind. ' There

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS 85

is another Huguenot on board this galley,7 said I, 'who Preferring
is every way more worthy of the office than myself. He
is an old man, broken down by labour, he is unable to
work at the oar, and even stripes can get but little service
from him. I am yet able to endure ; grant him this place,
and let me still continue at the oar.' The captain seemed
doubtful whether he understood me. i I know who he
means,' said the comite, 'it is old Bancillon.' 'Let him
be brought,' said the commander. Bansillon was brought
forward, bowed down by age and labour, his venerable
head covered with white hair. The comite acknowl
edged that, excepting inability of strength, he had no
faults, and was respected for his integrity by every one.
It is unnecessary to go into the details. He was ap
pointed to the office, and the young Amadee returned to
the oar. ' How weak was my virtue ! ' he exclaims ;
1 though it enabled me to resign the office to this vener
able minister (for such he was, once), it could not restrain
bitter emotions. I felt my face bedewed with scalding
tears of regret, as I once more commenced my hard
labour. But when, a short time after, I beheld the
venerable Bancillon losing the emaciated and distressed
appearance he had worn, smiling benignantly on me, and
imploring for me the blessing of heaven, I no longer
murmured ; I was rewarded for my sacrifice.' "

When Amadee had been a slave for seven years his Gaiiey in
galley, together with several others, engaged in a strug
gle with an English frigate. After describing the first
part of the battle, he goes on to say : "We have seen
how dexterously the frigate placed herself alongside of
us, by which we were exposed to the fire of her artillery,
charged with grape-shot. It happened that my seat, on
which there were five Frenchmen and one Turk, lay just
opposite one of the cannon, which was charged. The
two vessels lay so close, that, by raising my body in the
least, I could touch the cannon with my hand. A
neighbourhood so terrible filled us all with silent con-

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Marvellous
Escape

Death and
Darkness

sternation. My companions lay flat on the seat and in
that posture endeavoured to avoid the coming blow. I
had presence of mind enough to perceive that the gun
was pointed in such a manner that those who lay flat
would receive its contents ; and I sat as upright as pos
sible, but being chained, could not quit my station. In
this manner I awaited death, which I had scarce any
hope of escaping. My eyes were fixed upon the gunner,
who with his lighted match fired one piece after another.
He came nearer and nearer to the fatal one. I lifted my
heart to God in fervent prayers. Never had I felt such
assurances of divine mercy, whether life or death awaited
me. I looked steadily at the gunner as he applied the
lighted match. What followed I only knew by the
consequences. The explosion had stunned me ; I was
blown as far as my chain would permit. Here I re
mained, I cannot say how long, lying across the body of
the lieutenant of the galley, who had been killed some
time before. At last, recovering my senses and finding
myself lying upon a dead body, I crept back to my seat.
It was night, and the darkness was such that I could see
neither the blood that was spilled, nor the carnage
around me. I imagined that their former fears still
operated upon my companions ; and that they lay on
their faces to avoid the no longer threatening danger. I
felt no pain from any wound and believed myself un
injured.

1 1 1 remained in a tranquil state for some moments, and
even began to be amused with the motionless silence of
my fellow slaves, who, I supposed, were still lying as
they first threw themselves. Desirous to free them from
their terrors, I pushed the one next to me. l Rise, my
boy/ said I, 'the danger is over.' I received no an
swer. I spoke louder ; all was silence and Egyptian
darkness.

"Isouf, a Turk, had often boasted that he never knew
what fear was. He was a remarkable fellow for his truth

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS 87

and honesty. 'My good fellow/ said I, in a tone of
raillery, * up, the danger is over, you may be as brave as
ever. Come, I will help you.7 I leaned over and took
his hand. O horror ! my blood still freezes at the re
membrance ; it came off in mine, stiff and deadly cold.
The first gleam of light showed me my companions all
slaughtered ! Of the six on our seat I alone survived.
Alas ! I may well say, I was the miserable survivor ; The sole

J ' Survivor

their toils and agonies were over. It was some time be
fore I discovered that I was wounded, and then not by
pain, but by blood which deluged me." After a long
period of suffering, Amadee was considered to be
sufficiently recovered to take his place again at the oar.

The winter following the above engagement, Amade'e
was confined to winter quarters — a short account of which
he gives. During the winter months, if it chanced to be
a season of peace, the galleys were laid up for the time
being. " The order is given from Court about the latter
end of October. The galleys are then arranged along
the quay. The galley is entirely cleared, and the slaves
remain fixed to their wretched quarters for the winter.
They spread their greatcoats for beds on a board, and
here they sleep. When the weather is extremely cold
they have a tent, made of coarse woollen cloth, raised
over the galley. They never have fire or blankets. It
is now a season of some rest for them, and they are per
mitted to earn a little money. Among the variety there
are often tradesmen, tailors, shoemakers, gravers, etc.
These are sometimes permitted to build wooden stalls
upon the quay opposite their respective galleys. The
keeper chains them in their stalls. Here they may earn
a few halfpence a day, and this situation is comparative
ease. There is, however, still hard labour aboard the |°™paratjve
galley. The comites still use the lash without mercy,
and often without discrimination. One of the hardest
labours to Amade'e, because the most tyrannical and de
grading, was the exhibition to which they were constantly

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Entertain
ment of
Guests

Heartless
Sport

exposed by the officers for the entertainment of their
friends. The galley was cleaned anew, and the slaves
were ordered to shave, and put on their red habits and
red caps, which are their uniform, when they wear any
garments. This done, they are made to sit between the
benches, so that nothing but heads with red caps are
visible, from one end of the galley to the other. In this
attitude the gentlemen and ladies, who come as spectators,
are saluted by the slaves with a loud and mournful cry
of <Heu.> This seems but one voice; it is repeated
three times, when a person of high distinction enters.
During this salute the drums beat, and the soldiers, in
their best clothes, are ranged along the sides of the boat
with their guns shouldered. The masts are decorated
with streamers ; the chamber at the stern is also adorned
with hangings of red velvet, fringed with gold. The
ornaments in sculpture, at the stern, thus beautified to
the water's edge ; the oars lying on the seats, and ap
pearing without the galley like wings, painted of different
colours, — a galley thus adorned strikes the eye magnifi
cently ; but let the spectator reflect on the misery of
three hundred slaves, scarred with stripes, emaciated
and dead-eyed, chained day and night, and subject to
the arbitrary will of creatures devoid of humanity, and
he will no longer be enchanted by the gaudy outside.
The spectators, a large proportion of whom are often
ladies, pass from one end of the galley to the other, and
return to the stern, where they seat themselves. The
comite then blows his whistle. At the first blast every
slave takes off his cap ; at the second, his coat ; at the
third, his shirt, and they remain naked. Then comes
what is called the monkey-exhibition. They are all
ordered to lie along the seats, and the spectator loses sight
of them ; then they lift one finger, next their arms, then
their head, then one leg, and so on till they appear
standing upright. Then they open their mouths, cough
all together, embrace, and throw themselves into ridicu-

LIFE IN THE GALLEYS

lous attitudes, wearing, to appearance of the spectator,
an air of gayety, strangely contrasted with the sad,
hollow eyes of many of the performers, and ferocious,
hardened despair of others. To the reflecting mind
there can scarcely be anything more degrading than
this exhibition ; men, subject constantly to the lash,
doomed for life to misery, perpetually called upon to
amuse their fellow beings by antic tricks."

To conclude this melancholy history, be it said that
Amadee was released after thirteen years of this miserable
existence. Owing to the intercession of Queen Anne, of
England, a hundred and thirty-six Huguenot slaves were
given their freedom on condition that they should pay
their own expenses in leaving the country. And of these
fortunate persons the hero of this sketch made one.
After all his suiferings, it is good to know that he found
happiness and freedom.

Released After

Thirteen

Years

MUUCT* of KfeMft

BOOK TWO
EARLY ATTEMPTS AT COLONIZATION

CHAPTEE I
VILLEGAGNON'S FAILURE IN BRAZIL

HE earliest efforts to settle a body of French

Colonization

Protestants in the New World were inspired by scheme
Admiral Coligny, more than a century before
the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, and before the bitter
religious persecutions had begun in France. Admiral
Coligny was easily the greatest Frenchman of the age in
far-seeing statesmanship, as he was in character the most
resolute, high-minded and sagacious, and in looking at
the conditions of France he saw clearly the dangers
which threatened her and the people he loved. In
establishing a Protestant colony he aimed at founding a
refuge for the Protestants wherein they would be free
from the persecutions which he realized must soon de
scend upon them with fury, for there was every indica
tion that the tempest of hatred was about to burst. The HIS Plan
bitterness and malignancy of the Romish clergy were al
ready being aroused to feverish activity by the growth
and success of the Reformed Church. Their hatred was
only intensified by the fact that the virtues and sobriety
of the Huguenot ministers threw into unpleasant relief
their own utter lack of conscience and morals; the
Christian and self-sacrificing character of their adver
saries served only to heighten their rage. Their open
advocacy in Parliament of introducing the Spanish In
quisition to cope with heretics gave Coligny his strongest
impulse towards founding a Protestant colony, and he
straightway sought the ear of Henry II. Henry's consent
was gained, for to him the project appealed as an oppor
tunity for winning to France a share of the rich domain

94 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

claimed as a monopoly by Spain and Portugal. The idea
of adding to the prosperity of France by increasing her
industrial resources appealed to Coligny also, but in his
case the religious motive was the dominating one.

Brazil was selected as the site for the first Protestant
Brazil chosen Frencn colony in America, and Duraud de Villegaguou,
July, 1555 a soldier of fortune who had professed the Reformed
doctrines, was chosen as leader. In July, 1555, the
N little fleet, consisting of two ships and a transport, set
sail from Havre de Grace, carrying several hundred
colonists. The character of many of these colonists was
not propitious for the success of the venture, for while
some were Protestants, including noblemen, soldiers and
mechanics, the majority were recruits from the prisons
of Paris. So many of them deserted on the way, how
ever, that only eighty were left to complete the voyage,
and of these but thirty were artisans. After a long and
stormy experience, the adventurers reached the wonder
ful Bay of Rio de Janeiro. Here they landed on an
island, constructed huts, and commenced building a fort
which they called Fort Coligny.

Tlie condition of the colony was precarious, and un
less fresh supplies of food and reinforcements of men
were received from France, the venture would prove
a failure. The island was too small to admit of
cultivation, and on the mainland the settlers were
threatened by the Portuguese, who regarded them as un
lawful invaders of the soil. Many of the colonists re
turned to France in the ships which had brought them
over, leaving Villegagnon with a diminished band con
sisting mostly of the convicts he had taken from the
prisons. In addition to the dangers of famine and
destruction by the Portuguese, internal dissensions threat
ened the life of the colony. " Villegagnou signalized
his new-born Protestantism by an intolerable solicitude

VILLEGAGNON'S FAILUKE IN BEAZIL 95

for the manners and morals of his followers. The whip
and the pillory requited the least offense. The wild
and discordant crew, starved and flogged for a season
into submission, conspired at length to rid themselves of
him ; but while they debated whether to poison him,
blow him up, or murder him and his officers in their
sleep, three Scotch soldiers, probably Calvinists, revealed
the plot, and the vigorous hand of the commandant
crushed it in the bud."

In response to Villegagnon's letters of appeal, Coligny Missionary
sent out re-enforcements under Bois-Lecomte, a nephew of
Villegagnon. The better part of these fresh recruits
were Huguenots, and among them were several young
theological students from Geneva, who were full of zeal
at their opportunity to carry forward the growth of the
Eeformed religion. Equally zealous were the two
ministers, Pierre Eicher and Gillaume Chartier, the first
Protestant clergymen to cross the Atlantic, and who were
anxious, as the old chronicler Lescarbot says, "to cause
the light of the Gospel to shine forth among those barbar
ous people, godless, lawless, and without religion." This
little band of Genevans was headed by the venerable Phil
ippe de Corguilleray, Sieur de Pont, an old neighbour of
Coligny, who had left his estates in France to enjoy the
religious privileges of Geneva. Several other noblemen
joined the expedition, which was notable for its quality.
Sailing from France on November 20, 1556, after four
months on the "great and impetuous sea," the pilgrims
landed at Fort Coligny. i i The first thing we did, ' ' says
Jean de Lery, one of the Genevan students, "was to
join in thanksgiving to God."

Ill

From Parkman's graphic account we quote the follow- Theological
ing: "For a time all was ardour and hope. Men of
birth and station and the ministers themselves, laboured
with pick and shovel to finish the fort. Every day ex-

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A False
Lead

Expelling the
Ministers

hortations, sermons, prayers, followed in close succession,
and Villegagnou was always present, kneeling on a vel
vet cushion brought after him by a page. Soon, how
ever, he fell into sharp controversy with the ministers
upon points of faith. Among the emigrants was a
student of the Sorbonne, one Cointac, between whom and
the ministers arose a fierce and uniutermitted war of
words. Is it lawful to mix water with the wine of the
Eucharist ? May the sacramental bread be made of meal
of Indian corn? These and similar points of dispute
filled the fort with wrangliugs, begetting cliques, factions
and feuds without number. Yillegagnon took part with
the student, and between them they devised a new doc
trine, abhorrent alike to Geneva and to Rome. The ad
vent of this nondescript heresy was the signal of redoub
led strife. . . . Villegagnou felt himself, too, in a false
position. On one side he depended on the Protestant, Co-
ligny ; on the other, he feared the court. There were
Catholics in the colony who might report him as an open
heretic. On this point his doubts were set at rest ; for a
ship from France brought him a letter from the Cardinal
of Lorraine, couched, it is said, in terms which restored
him forthwith to the bosom of the Church. Villegagnon
now affirmed that he had been deceived in Calvin, and
pronounced him a ' frightful heretic.' He became des
potic beyond measure, and would bear no opposition.
The ministers, reduced nearly to starvation, found them
selves under a tyranny worse than that from which they
had fled.

1 l At length he drove them from the fort, and forced them
to bivouac on the mainland, at the risk of being butch
ered by Indians, until a vessel loading Brazil-wood in the
harbour should be ready to carry them back to France.
Having rid himself of the ministers, he caused three of
the more zealous Calvinists to be seized, dragged to the
edge of a rock, and thrown into the sea. A fourth, equally
obnoxious, but who, being a tailor, could ill be spared,

VILLEGAGNON'S FAILURE IN BEAZIL 97

was permitted to live on condition of recantation. Then,
mustering the colonists, he warned them to shun the
heresies of Luther and Calvin ; threatened that all who
openly professed those detestable doctrines should share
the fate of their three comrades : and, his harangue over,
feasted the whole assembly in token, says the narrator,
of joy and triumph.

" Meanwhile, in their crazy vessel, the banished minis- Perils and
ters drifted slowly on their way. Storms fell upon them,
their provisions failed, their water casks were empty, and,
tossing in the wilderness of waves, or rocking on the long
swells of subsiding gales, they sank almost to despair.
In their famine they chewed the Brazil-wood with which
the vessel was laden, devoured every scrap of leather,
singed and ate the horn of lanterns, hunted rats through
the hold, and sold them to each other at enormous prices.
At length, stretched on the deck, sick, listless, attenuated,
and scarcely able to move a limb, they descried across
the waste of sea the faint, cloud-like line that marked the
coast of Brittany. Their perils were not past ; for, if we
may believe one of them, Jean de Lery, they bore a sealed
letter from Villegagnon to the magistrates of the first
French port at which they might arrive. It denounced
them as heretics, worthy to be burned. Happily, the A Disastrous
magistrates leaned to the Eeformed, and the malice of the
commandant failed of its victims."

Soon after the return of the ministers to France, Ville
gagnon himself followed them, leaving the deserted colony
to its fate. The end was not long in coming, and before
the close of the year 1558 a Portuguese fleet arrived in the
Bay of Eio de Janeiro and overpowered the feeble re
sistance of the little garrison, razed the fort, and put its
unhappy defenders to the sword. Thus Coligny's first
experiment in colonization failed most disastrously.

CHAPTEE II

DISASTEOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLOEIDA

Ribault's Ex
pedition, 1562

River of May

years after the failure of the colony at Fort
Coligny, the Admiral again undertook his cher
ished plan of colonization. Under the leadership
of Jean Eibault, who was the greatest navigator and cap
tain of France, and a staunch Huguenot, an expedition
sailed from Havre for Florida on the 18th of February,
1562. The two ships contained a goodly company of
volunteers, and nearly all the soldiers and labourers, as
well as the few noblemen, were Calvinists. Eene" de
Laudonniere, next to Eibault, was the leading man among
them, while another of the party, Nicholas Barre, had
been with Villegagnon in the expedition to Brazil.

Six weeks after setting out from France the ships made
the coast of Florida, and proceeding northward reached
the mouth of a large river which was named the Eiver
of May (now the St. John' s) because it was the first of
May when the voyagers sailed into its welcome calm.
Here they landed, and immediately knelt in thanksgiv
ing to God, and in prayer that He would bless their en
terprise and bring to the knowledge of the Saviour the
heathen inhabitants of this new world. Thus both these
unfortunate colonies were founded in the spirit of evan
gelism and missions.

The friendly natives who gathered fearlessly about
them watched with wonder this ceremony and the further
formal proceedings whereby Eibault took possession of the
country in the name of the King of France, setting up in
evidence a pillar of stone, engraven with the royal arms,
upon a small elevation in a grove of cypress and palm
trees near the harbour.

DISASTEOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLOEIDA 99

Then the French explored the coast further, until they
reached the channel of Port Eoyal, off the coast of what Port Royal
is now South Carolina. Entering the harbour, "one of
the largest and fairest of the greatest havens of the
world," Bibault decided here to lay the foundations of his
colony. The site of a fort was chosen not far from the
Beaufort of to-day, and Charlesfort was the name given chariesfort
in honour of the boy King who had lately come to the
throne of France. When the work was under way, Eibault
left a number of his men to garrison the little fort, and
returned to France, to report his findings and secure
larger supplies of men and means for the colony. He
reached Dieppe only five months from the day of sailing.
But during this brief interval France had been plunged
into civil war by the unprovoked assault which the Duke
of Guise had made upon a Protestant assembly in a town
of Champagne, and the cold-blooded slaughter of a half
a hundred inoffensive persons. In the midst of such
troublous times it was impossible to get either men or
money for Florida, and Eibault followed his old leader,
Admiral Coligny, into the field for the Protestants. Thus
the small body of men at Charlesfort was left to its fate.

Things had gone from bad to worse with them after
Eibault' s departure. Albert, their leader, developed into
a harsh tyrant, and was finally killed on account of his
cruelty. Famine stared them in the face, thoughts of
home filled their hearts, and they resolved to forsake
their life of dreary monotony and escape from their prison
at all hazards. After infinite toil they constructed a
rude ship, fitting her with sails made from their shirts
and their bedding, and set forth on their long journey
across the Atlantic. A long stretch of calm exhausted
their supplies, and fierce gales racked their rude craft
until she leaked at every seam. Many died from thirst
and exhaustion, while others were barely able to sustain
life by chewing upon their shoes and leather doublets.
After a series of indescribable privations and sufferings

100

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Laudonniere's
Expedition

April, 1564

Account by
Laudonniere

Toy
We

ous
elcome

the survivors were driven frantic with joy at the sight
of the coast of France.

Coligny knew nothing of the fate which had befallen
his second attempt at colonization, and when the first
civil war was ended by the peace of Amboise, which
brought the Protestants peace for a time, he obtained
permission of the King to fit out three ships to go to
the rescue of the Florida expedition. Laudonniere was
placed in command, and a number of noblemen together
with experienced officers and sailors joined his party.
This expedition sailed April 22, 1564, and safely reached
the mouth of the St. John's. A graphic idea of what
took place thereafter may be had from the following
account, written by Laudonniere himself :

Afterwards, we passed between Anquilla and Aue-
garda, sailing towards New France, where we arrived
fifteen days after, to wit : on Thursday, the 22d of June,
about three of the clock in the afternoon.

. . . The next day, the 23d of this month, I gave
commandment to weigh anchor, and to hoist our sails to
Bail towards the Eiver of May, where we arrived two
days after, and cast anchor. Afterwards, going on land
with some number of gentlemen and soldiers, to know for
a certainty the singularities of this place, we espied the
paracoussy (chief) of the country which came towards us,
which, having espied us, cried, very far off, Antipola !
Autipola ! and, being so joyful that he could not contain
himself, he came to meet us, accompanied with two of
his sons, as fair and mighty persons as might be found in
all the world, which had nothing in their mouths but this
word — amy, amy ; that is to say, friend, friend ; yea, and
knowing those which were there in the first voyage, they
went principally to them to use this speech unto them.
There was in their train a great number of men and
women, which still made very much of us, and, by evi-

DISASTEOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLORIDA 101

dent signs, made us understand how glad they were of our
arrival.

. . . I was of opinion, if it seemed good unto them,
to seat ourselves about the River of May, seeing, also
that, in our first voyage, we found the same only among
all the rest to abound in maize and corn, besides the gold
and silver that were found there : a thing that put me in
hope of some happy discovery in time to come. After I
had proposed these things, every one gave his opinion
thereof ; and, in fine, all resolved, namely, those which
had been with me in the first voyage, that it was expe
dient to seat themselves rather on the River of May than
on any other, until they might hear news of France.
This point being thus agreed upon, we sailed towards the site selected
river, and used such diligence that, with the favour of
the winds, we arrived the morrow after, about the break
of day, which was on Thursday, 29th of June.

Having cast anchor, I embarked all my stuff, and the
soldiers of my company, to sail right towards the open
ing of this river, wherein we entered a good way up, and
found a creek, of a reasonable bigness, which invited us
to refresh ourselves a little, while we reposed ourselves
there. Afterwards we went on shore, to seek out a place
. . . then we discovered a little hill adjoining unto a
great vale, very green, and, in form, flat ; wherein were Landing
the fairest meadows of the world, and grass to feed cattle.
Moreover, it is environed with a great number of brooks
of fresh water, and high woods, which make the vale
more delectable to the eye. After I had taken the view,
thereof, at mine ease, I named it, at the request of our
soldiers, the Vale of Laudonniere. . . .

. . . We gathered our spirits together, and, march
ing with a cheerful courage, we came to the place which
we had chosen to make our habitation in : whereupon, at
that instant, near the river's brink, we strewed a num
ber of boughs and leaves, to take our rest on them the
night following, which we found exceeding sweet, because

102 THE FBKNCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Thanksgiving
Day

Building a
Fort

of the pain which before we had taken in our
travel.

On the morrow, about break of day, I commanded a
trumpet to be sounded, that, being assembled, we might
give God thanks for our favourable and happy arrival.
Then we sang a psalm of thanksgiving unto God, be
seeching Him of His grace to continue His accustomed
goodness towards us, His poor servants, and aid us in
all enterprises that all might turn to His glory and the
advancement of our King. The prayer ended, every man
began to take courage.

Afterwards, having measured out a piece of ground,
in the form of a triangle, we endeavoured ourselves on all
sides — some to bring earth, some to cut faggots, and
others to raise and make the rampart ; for there was not
a man that had not either a shovel, or cutting-hook, or
hatchet, as well to make the ground plain by cutting
down the trees, as for the building the fort, which we did
hasten, in such cheerfulness, that, within a few days, the
effect of our diligence was apparent. . . .

Our fort was built in the form of a triangle ; the side
towards the west, which was towards the land, was
inclosed with a little trench, and raised with turns made
in the form of a battlement, of nine feet high ; the other
side, which was towards the river, was inclosed with a
palisade of planks of timber, after the manner that
gabions are made. On the south side, there was a kind
of bastion, within which I caused an house for the
munition to be built ; it was all builded with faggots and
sand, saving about two or three feet high, with turf,
whereof the battlements were made. In the midst, I
caused a great court to be made, of eighteen paces long
and broad, in the midst whereof, on the one side drawing
towards the south, I builded a corpse de gard, and an
house on the other side, towards the north, which I
caused to be raised somewhat too high, for, within a
short while after, the wind beat it down ; and experiences

DISASTEOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLORIDA 103

taught rue that we may not build with high stages in this
country, by reason of the winds whereunto it is subject.
One of the sides that enclosed my court, which I made
very fair and large, reached unto the range of my mu
nitions, and, on the other side, towards the river, was
mine own lodging, round about which were galleries, all
covered. One principal door of my lodging was in the
midst of the great place, and the other was towards the
river. A good distance from the fort, I built an oven, to
avoid the danger against fire, because the houses are of
palm-leaves, which will soon be burned after the fire
catcheth hold of them, so that, with much ado, a man
shall have leisure to quench them. Lo, here, in brief, the
description of our fortress, which I named Caroline, in Fort Caroline
honour of our prince, King Charles.

. . . In the meanwhile, I was not able, with the
same store of victuals which I had, so well to proportion
out the travel upon the ships which we built to return
into France ; but that, in the end, we were constrained to
endure extreme famine, which continued among us all Famine
the month of May ; for, in this latter season, neither
maize, nor beans, nor mast, was to be found in the
villages, because they had employed all for to sow their
fields, insomuch that we were constrained to eat roots,
which the most part of our men pounded in the mortars
(which I had brought with us to beat gunpowder in), and
the grain which came to us from other places. Some took
the wood of esquine, beat it, and made meal thereof,
which they boiled with water, and eat it ; others went,
with their barquebuses, to seek to kill some fowl. Yea,
this misery was so great, that one was found that gathered
up, among the filth of my house, all the fish bones that he
could find, which he dried and beat into powder, to make
bread thereof.

. . . I leave it to your cogitation to think how near
it went to our hearts to leave a place abounding in riches
(as we were thoroughly informed thereof), in coming

104 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Sails Espied

Sir Francis
Drake

Kibault's Ar
rival

whereunto, and doing service unto our Prince, we left
our own country, wives, children, parents, and friends,
and passed the perils of the sea, and were therein arrived,
as in a plentiful treasure of all our hearts7 desire. As
each of us were much tormented in mind with these, or
such like cogitations, the 3d of August, I descried four
sails in the sea as I walked upon a little hill, whereof I
was exceeding well repaid. I sent, immediately, one of
them which were with us, to advertise those of the fort,
thereof, which were so glad of these news, that one would
have thought them to be out of their wits, to see them
laugh and leap for joy.

. . . Captain Vasseur and my lieutenant, which
were gone to meet them, which brought me word that
they were Englishmen. . . . The general (Sir Francis
Drake) immediately understood the desire ' and urgent
occasion which I had to return into France, whereupon
he offered to transport me and all my company home ;
whereunto, notwithstanding, I would not agree, being in
doubt on what occasion he made so large an offer ; for I
knew not how the case stood between the French and the
English ; and, although he promised me, on his faith to
put me on land in France, before he would touch in
England, yet I stood in doubt, lest he would attempt
somewhat in Florida in the name of his mistress ; where
fore I flatly refused his oifer. . . .

As I was thus occupied in these conferences, the wind
and the tide served well to set sail — which was the eighth
and twentieth of August ; at which instant, Captain
Vasseur, which commanded in one of my vessels, and
Captain Verdier, which was chief in the other — now ready
to go forth, began to descry certain sails at sea, whereof
they advertised me with diligence. . . .

Being, therefore, advertised that it was Captain
Ribault, I went forth of the fort to meet him ; and, to do
him all the honour I could by any means, I caused him
to be welcomed by the artillery, and a gentle volley of

DISASTROUS ATTEMPTS IN FLORIDA 105

my shot, whereunto he answered with his. Afterwards,
being come on shore, and received honourably with joy,
I brought him to my lodging, rejoicing not a little, because
that, in his company I knew a good number of my friends,
which I entreated, in the best sort that I was able, with
such victuals as I could get in the country, and that small
store which I had left me, with that which I had of the
English general. . . .

But, lo ! how oftentimes misfortune doth search and
pursue us, even when we think to be at rest ! Lo ! see
what happened after that Captain Ribault had brought
up three of his small ships into the river, which was the
4th of September. Six great Spanish ships arrived in the sp*™*h ShiPs
road, where four of our greatest ships remained, which
cast anchor, assuring our men of good amity. They
asked how the chief captains of the enterprise did, and
called them all by their names. I report me to you if it
could be otherwise ; but these men, before they went out
of Spain, must needs be informed of the enterprise, and
of those that were to execute the same. About the break
of day, they began to make towards our men, but our
men, which trusted them never a deal, had hoisted their
sails by night, being ready to cut the strings that tied
them ; wherefore, perceiving that this making towards
our men of the Spaniards was not to do them any pleas
ure, and knowing well that their furniture was too small
to make head against them, because that the most part of
their men were on shore, they cut their cables, left their
anchors, and set sail. . . .

After he (Ribault) understood these news, he returned A Bad Plan
to the fortress, and came to my chamber, where I was
sick ; and there, in the presence of several gentlemen, he
propounded that it was necessary, for the King's service,
to embark himself, with all his forces, and, with the three
ships that were in the road, to seek the Spanish fleet;
whereupon he asked our advice. . . . Then he told
me that he could do no less than to continue this enter-

106 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

prise ; and that in the letter which he had received from
my Lord Admiral, there was a postscript, which he
showed me, written in these words : i i Captain John
Eibault, as I was enclosing of this letter, I received a
certain advice, that Don Pedro Melendez departeth from
Spain, to go to the coast of New France. See that you
suffer him not to encroach upon you, no more than he
would that you should encroach upon him."

"You see," quoth he, "the charge that I have; and
I leave it unto yourself to judge if you could do any less
in this case, considering the certain advertisement that
we have, that they are already on land, and will invade
us." . . .

The night between the 19th and 20th of September,
La Cigne kept watch with his company, wherein he used
Taken by all endeavour, although it rained without ceasing. When
the day was, therefore, come, and that he saw that it still
rained worse than it did before, he pitied the sentinels so
moiled and wet, and thinking the Spaniards would not
have come in such a strange time, he let them depart,
and, to say the truth, he went himself unto his lodging.
In the meanwhile, one which had something to do with
out the fort, and my trumpeter, which went up unto the
rampart, perceived a troop of Spaniards which came
down from a little knappe, where, incontinently, they
began to cry alarm, and the trumpeter also, which, as
soon as ever I understood, forthwith I issued out, with
my target and sword in my hand, and got me into the
midst of the court, where I began to cry upon my sol
diers. ... As I went to succour them which were
defending the breach on the southwest side, I encountered,
by chance, a great company of Spaniards, which had
already repulsed our men, and were now entered, which
drove me back unto the court of the fort . . . and,
in the meanwhile, I saved myself by the breach, which
was on the west side, near unto my lieutenant's lodging
and gateway, into the woods, where I found certain of

DISASTBOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLOEIDA 107

my men, which were escaped, of which number there
were three or four which were sore hurt. . . /

Being able to go no farther, by reason of my sickness
which I had, I sent two of my men, which were with me,
which could swim well, unto the ships, to advertise them
of that which had happened, and to send them word to
come and help me. . . . The 25th of September, we Escape to
set sail to return into France. The indifferent and un-
passionate readers may easily weigh the truth of my
doings, and be upright judges of the endeavour which I
there used. For mine own part, I will not accuse, nor
excuse any ; it sufficeth me to have followed the truth
of the history, whereof many are able to bear witness,
which were there present. I will plainly say one thing —
that the long delay that Capt. John Eibault used in his
embarking, and the fifteen days that he spent in roving
along the coast of Florida before he came to our fort,
were the cause of the loss we sustained ; for he discovered
the coast on the 14th of August, and spent the time in
going from river to river, which had been sufficient for
him to have discharged his ships in, and for me to have
embarked myself to have returned into France. I note
well that all that he did was upon a good intent ; yet, in
mine opinion, he should have had more regard unto his
charge than to the devices of his own brain, which, some
times, he printed in his head so deeply, that it was very
hard to put them out, which also turned to his utter
undoing ; for he was no sooner departed from us but a
tempest took him, which, in fine, wrecked him upon the
coast, where all his ships were cast away ; and he, with
much ado, escaped drowning, to fall into their hands,
which cruelly massacred him and all his company.

Ill

To this graphic story something may be added from
other sources. Once more the French proved that, while French not
they make a most admirable element in a colony estab- Colonizers

108 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

lished by others, they have not the peculiar qualifications
requisite to successful colonizing when left to themselves.
In this instance they invited the fate that overtook them.
They had to depend upon themselves for food supplies,
yet neglected to cultivate the soil, fell to quarrelling,
treated the natives unwisely, and proved generally unfit
for their undertaking, difficult at best. Laudonniere was
weak as leader ; the young nobles who had crossed the
ocean to find gold could not stoop to work, and grumbled
at being required to do their part in the work of fortifi
cation. The Protestants had no pastor, and complained
that Laudonniere was indifferent to religion. Then came
famine, owing to the failure to raise crops. The second

Bad Manage- summer found scarcity at La Caroline, although the river
teemed with fish. Laudonniere at last decided to return
to Europe and give up his attempt. The one ship usable
was put in repair and the French were making ready to
depart when the English fleet appeared. The captain
was friendly, relieved their necessities, and offered to
transport them to France. Unhappily that was declined,
but a ship was bought from the English. Soon another
fleet appeared, commanded by Eibault, who had been
sent to supersede Laudonniere. His fleet comprised
seven ships and carried not far from a thousand men,
including a number of Huguenot gentlemen. At least
one minister was in the company, M. Eobert. Lau
donniere was able to clear himself from the charges laid
against him, and was cordially treated by his old-time
commander.

The Spaniards The end drew near. Five days after Eibault' s arrival
a third fleet came in sight. It was the Spaniards.
Eibault' s larger ships had fled. Spain denied the right
of France in the new world, and especially the right of
French Protestants to live anywhere. The King of Spain
had sent Menendez, one of his bravest and cruelest cap-

Menendezthe tains, to dislodge the French colony. With a fleet of
fifteen ships and two thousand six hundred men, Spanish

DISASTEOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLOEIDA 109

and Portuguese, Menendez attacked the body of less than
half his numbers and little prepared to resist. Lau-
donniere's plan was to strengthen the fort, secure the
help of the friendly Indians, and harass the Spanish, who
had landed thirty miles south on the coast. Eibault alone
insisted upon a naval engagement, and as he was in com
mand, his will was law. Euin resulted. A storm wrecked
Eibault' s ships, and left Menendez free for his work of
butchery. He surprised Fort Caroline, put all to the
sword save the women and children, and returned to his
landing-place. Laudonniere, the minister Eobert, and a
few others fled, reached the coast and one of the smaller
ships which Eibault had left in the river, and finally
reached France. Eibault, meanwhile, with his ship
wrecked followers, made their way to La Caroline only
to find the Spanish there ; and a little later Eibault at
tempted to treat with Menendez, who would give no
assurance beyond saying : i i Yield yourselves to my
mercy, give up your arms and your colours, and I will
do as God may prompt me." Two hundred of Eibault' s
men refused to accept these terms and fled into the wil
derness. The others, one hundred and fifty in number, Horrible

Massacre

threw themselves upon the compassion of a man who
knew none for Protestants. Though Spain was at peace
with France, as Eibault reminded Menendez, the answer
was, "Not so in the case of heretics." Thus did this
inhuman monster, sacrilegiously using the name of God,
announce his action to his government. "I had their
hands tied behind their backs, and themselves put to the
sword. It appeared to me that by thus chastising them,
God our Lord and your Majesty were served. Whereby
this evil sect will in future leave us more free to plant the
gospel in these parts."

Those who refused to surrender were pursued by
Menendez, but after strong resistance were promised
treatment as prisoners of war, and were finally sent to
the galleys by the Spanish king. Thus came to its

110 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

DeGourges'
Revenge

dreadful end Coligny's last hope to found a Protestant
colony in America. On the spot of the La Caroline
massacre Meuendez placed a tablet bearing this inscrip-
A Fatal Tablet tiou i " Hung not as Frenchmen, but as Lutheran.'7

Two years later, Dominique de Gourges, a gallant
French officer, determined to avenge this slaughter of
his countrymen, though he was not a Huguenot. The
brutality of the Spaniards had aroused great indignation
in France, yet the court remonstrances had not succeeded
in obtaining any redress from the Spanish King.
Hence de Gourgues took vengeance into his own hands.
Selling his patrimony, with his brothers' help he fitted
out three small vessels, and after a perilous voyage he
reached the Florida coast, enlisted the service of the
friendly Indians, and falling upon La Caroline, took prison
ers the Spanish forces left to garrison it. Then he put
most of them to the sword, and hung the remainder upon
the trees from which Menendez had hung his French
prisoners ; and upon the other side of the tablet which
the Spaniard had placed near by, he inscribed these
words : " I do this not as unto Spaniards, nor as unto
seamen, but as unto traitors, robbers, and murderers." It
was a pity that Menendez himself could not have re
ceived the punishment he so richly merited.

It should be said, in closing this dreary record, that
the French in their short residence had made a deep im
pression upon the Indians, whom they treated in a man
ner quite unlike that of the Spaniards and Portuguese.
Their habitual gayety and good nature and kindliness
attracted the natives, and the singing of the Huguenots,
who were like Cromwell's men great and sonorous singers
of hymns, printed itself upon the Indian memory, so that
long afterwards the European cruising along the coast
would be saluted, says Baird, with some snatch of a
French psalm, uncouthly rendered by Indian voices, in
strains caught from the Calvinist soldier on patrol. No
fierce imprecation or profane expletive lingered in the

French
Influence
Upon the
Natives

DISASTBOUS ATTEMPTS IN FLOEIDA 111

recollection of the red men, as the synonym for the
French Protestant. Moreover, the Genevan students on
the second expedition had succeeded in reaching a num
ber of the Indian tribes with the truth, and obtained
promises from many that they would stop their cannibal
ism, practiced upon their enemies.

LB MOINElS SKETCH OF THE BUILDING OF FORT CAROLINE

CHAPTEE III
THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA

High Aim of
King Henry IV

French
Fishermen

ENEY IV entered heartily into the colonization
plans of his great minister, Admiral Coliguy,
and after the Edict of Nantes had brought peace
to France, this monarch undertook to realize his am
bitious plans to build up a powerful navy, promote
exploration and trade with distant parts, and carry out
Coligny's scheme to establish a French colony in
America. The honour belongs to this enlightened king,
who strove to deal fairly with all his subjects and to pro
tect the Protestants in their rights, of founding the first
agricultural colony on our continent, and of basing it,
moreover, upon the principles of religious liberty and
equality.

To understand the character of this new movement of
colonization and of those who engaged in it, it is neces
sary briefly to review the religious history of the western
seacoast provinces of France. The fisher-folk and sailors
of Normandy, Brittany, Saintonge, and the islands along
the coast, were of the hardy sort of which explorers are
made. From the year 1504 these seamen had crossed to
the banks of Newfoundland and rivalled the English and
Spaniards in discovery, fishing, and commercial enter
prise. Many of these men were Protestant, and many
of the ships engaged in these voyages were owned by
Huguenot merchants, and manned by Huguenot sailors,
who persisted in singing lustily Clement Marot's version
of the Psalms, to the scandal of the Eoman Catholics
who heard them. It was as early as 1534 that Protestant
ism made its way into the seaboard provinces, through

112

THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA 113

the preaching of two of Calvin's most zealous and fiery
disciples. The spread of the new doctrines was rapid,
as the simpler religion appealed to the common people.
A strange thing happened which aided in this quick ca[v?nis°m on
growth of the Protestant movement. A number of monks the Seaboard
in central France, hearing of Luther, left their monas
teries and crossed into Germany to learn directly from
the Reformer himself. As a result, they returned to
France and began to preach against Eome in the same
vein that Luther did in Germany. They were soon
compelled to hide, and a number of them found refuge
in Saintonge, among the seamen. The persecution that
brought several of these reformed monks to the stake
did not check the belief of the people in their doctrines,
and again the blood of the martyrs became the seed of
the church. By 1550 a large proportion of the people
of this province had become Protestants, and La
Eochelle, the capital town of the province, was the
stronghold of Protestantism. To show how thorough
the change was, it is said that when the Edict of Nantes
was proclaimed in 1598 the Eoman mass had not been
said openly at La Eochelle for nearly forty years, while
in many other Huguenot towns the Eoman Catholic wor
ship had practically disappeared, so predominantly
Protestant were the people.

It was a Protestant population, therefore, that wel- Protestant
corned the colonization idea, not only for commercial
reasons, but because experience had taught them how
insecure they were in France. Even the new Edict of
Henry could not guarantee continued possession of their
religious liberties. The edict had inflamed the Eoman
Catholics, and it was plain that persecution would again
break out the moment opportunity could be found. The
day foreseen by the wise Coligny might dawn on any
morrow, when the Protestants of France would need a
place of refuge for themselves and their children.

114 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Hence it was that when, November 8, 1603, Pierre de
Monte, a Huguenot gentleman of Saintonge, received a
royal commission authorizing him to possess and settle
that part of North America embracing what is now Nova
Scotia, New Brunswick and Canada, and granting him a
trade monopoly for ten years, this brave Protestant
leader and good man found no difficulty in securing
Protestant followers. He had himself accompanied
Chauvin on his first visit to the St. Lawrence, and
thinking that region too severe in temperature had de
cided on a more southerly region for his colony. Nova
Scotia was his choice. The name La Cadie had then been
given to this fertile country by the French discoverer
Cartier, and thus the Acadia of poetic legend came to be
known. The royal grant emphasized the King's firm
resolution ."with the help and assistance of God, who is
the author, distributor, and protector of all kingdoms and
states, to seek the conversion, guidance and instruction
of the races that inhabit that country, from their
barbarous and godless condition, without faith or re
ligion, to Christianity and the belief and profession of
our faith and religion, and to rescue them from the
ignorance and unbelief in which they now lie." Thus
the purpose was declared to be spiritual as well as secular ;
and the Sieur de Monts was appointed the King's lieu
tenant-general with powers to " subject all the peoples of
this country and of the surrounding parts to our au
thority ; and by all lawful means to lead them to the
knowledge of God and to the light of the Christian faith
and religion, and to establish them therein." But there
was one great difference between this missionary purpose
and that of the ordinary Roman Catholic ruler. It was
decreed that religious liberty should prevail in the new
colony, and that all the colonists were to be maintained
and protected in the exercise and profession of the Chris
tian faith, and in peace, repose and trauquility. Calviuist

THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA 115

and Eomanist were to be safe to follow their own con
sciences without molestation from the other. De Monts
was well fitted for leadership. He was a valiant soldier,
who had won the entire confidence of his sovereign, and
was a man of highest integrity and patriotism, as well as
of exemplary piety. By the testimony of his contem
poraries, he was thoroughly qualified by his courage,
energy, perseverance, tact and firmness, to found New
France in America, and represented the commanding
qualities of the Huguenot gentleman.

With two ships he sailed from Havre in March, 1604, Port Royal
taking about one hundred and twenty persons. High
and low birth, Protestants and Catholics, with a Protestant
minister and a Eoman Catholic priest to look after the
spiritual interests, made up the company, which was de
cidedly superior in character to most of those that had
previously gone forth in search of adventure. Two of
de Monts' former comrades, gentlemen of fortune and
rank — Samuel de Champlain and Baron de Poutrincourt,
accompanied him. Proceeding to the Bay of Fundy,
passing through the narrow channel into the beautiful
basin now known as Annapolis Harbour, de Monts
named the basin Port Royal, and here de Poutrincourt
decided to found a settlement and bring families from
France to develop his grant. No more favourable place
could have been found for the purpose. De Monts fixed
upon a small island at the mouth of the St. Croix for his
own colony — a site as poor as Port Eoyal was good ; and
after Jurying the hard experiences of a winter he saw his
mistake and decided to unite forces at Port Eoyal. Only
forty of seventy-nine of his company survived, owing to
sickness at St. Croix, and among those who died were the
priest and the minister, so that no religious teacher was
left. In this emergency, Marc Lescarbot, a Protestant
lawyer and writer, became teacher and preacher, * l in
order that we might not live like the beasts," as he tells
us in his most interesting " History of New France,'7

116 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

" and that we might afford the savages an example of our
way of living." It is worthy of mention that Baron de
Poutrincourt, while nominally a Eoman Catholic, was
apparently in full sympathy with his Protestant asso
ciates, and was an open enemy of the Jesuits. Lescarbot
was not only teacher of his countrymen, but reached a
number of the natives, for whose conversion the Hugue
nots of La Eochelle daily prayed.

Ill

France seemed destined to defeat in the new world. If
religious troubles did not bring disaster, commercial
rivalries did. De Monts was just getting his new colony
in prosperous condition, when in 1607 his trade monopoly
was withdrawn at the instance of merchants of Brittany,
who learned with indignation that a rival threatened their
traffic along the American coast, and that exclusive rights
had been granted which shut them out from the fisheries
and fur trade. The withdrawal of his exclusive rights
crippled de Monts in his plans and led to the abandon
ment of Port Eoyal. Already a small palisaded fort had
been built, besides a mill, storehouses and dwellings, and
friendly relations had been formed with the Indians.
De Poutrincourt held his grant to the site, and took
possession of it again, but the chance for a strong colony
was lost.

De Monts now made another attempt, selecting the
interior for his new venture. For this purpose he ob
tained a renewal of his trade monopoly for a single year,
and taking Champlain with him, made his way up the
St. Lawrence with two vessels, one equipped for the
expedition, the other for the fur traffic which was to
Quebec 1608 bring the needed funds. In the summer of 1608, Cham-
plain, under de Monts' authority, landed on the site of
Quebec, and established a trading-post at that strategic
point. De Monts now took in with him the rivals who
had formerly broken in upon his monopoly, and pros-

THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA 117

perity attended his venture. Many merchants of La
Eochelle actively engaged in the profitable trade.

Religious liberty had not as yet been interfered with,
and though there were serious discussions between the
Romanists and Calvinists, the friendly intercourse pre
vailed in the main so long as de Monts was in control.
Presently, however, Champlain, who was a Roman Cath
olic, was appointed governor of the colony, and the re
ligious contentions gave him much trouble. The Calvin
ists remained true to their faith, and on most of the 5eligti?us

Troubles

" company's vessels the crews were assembled daily for
prayers, after the manner of Geneva ; and even good
Catholics, it was complained, were required by the
Huguenot captains to join in the psalmody which formed
so important a part of the Protestant worship." But now
came the terrible blow to the Protestants in France.
Tolerant and sympathetic King Henry IV fell under the
assassin's knife, and it was plain that no longer would the
Huguenots enjoy their freedom of worship. De Monts
gave up his hopes and plans, and surrendered his com
mission as viceroy of New France to the Prince of Conde",
who had been a Huguenot leader, but was now engaged
in politics rather than religion, using the latter as a po
litical weapon. The proprietary rights which had be
longed to de Monts passed, by the irony of fate, into the
hands of the Jesuits, most inveterate and implacable of
foes to the Protestant faith. One of the romances of his- peMonts

Loses Canada

tory stranger than fiction is to be found in the passing of
the title to half a continent from Protestant to Roman
Catholic hands, through the missionary zeal of a French
noblewoman controlled by the Jesuits on the one hand, Jesuits in Con-
and the financial needs of the noble de Monts, who had
become governor of a Huguenot town and wanted to de
fend it against time of persecution, on the other. Thus
began the Jesuit missions in North America under fa
vourable auspices, and thus sounded the death -knell of a
Protestant New France in North America.

118 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

France
Loses North
America as a
Result

Shutting Out
Protestants

To the Jesuits, those fomenters of wars and mischief in
every country where they have been permitted to live,
France owes it that North America was lost to her. The
first thing the Jesuits aimed at was to get control of
Acadia and Canada, and banish every heretic from the
new world, then prevent any more from coming. In that
simple way New France was to be kept Eoman Catholic,
and free from religious troubles such as had long dis
tracted France and Germany and other nations. By the
formation of a new company, the Company of New
France, in which no Huguenot had place, and by the
taking away of its charter from the former company, at
the head of which was a Huguenot, the transformation
was accomplished after a few years. Complaints of the
singing of the Huguenots on shipboard brought orders
prohibiting the singing of hymns, which was peculiarly
distasteful to the Jesuits, of whom it was said, l i They do
not sing ; birds of prey never do." Champlain, as gov
ernor of Quebec, tried to enforce the orders against sing
ing and public saying of prayers, but says : u At last it
was agreed that they might meet to pray, but should not
sing psalms. A bad bargain, yet it was the best we
could do."

It was not long, however, before the Jesuits had grown
strong enough to stop even the arrival of the singing
Protestants. Under the policy of Cardinal Eichelieu,
who was as zealous a Eoman Catholic as he was energetic
and unscrupulous a minister of Louis XIII, every emi
grant who went out under the Company of New France,
must first profess the Eoman Catholic faith. This was in
the line of Eichelieu' s plan to crush out Protestantism in
France also, and was regarded as a master stroke of
policy. What it accomplished was to hand over North
America to England, and to pave the way in France for
the awful days of Eed Revolution and a descending scale
of power and influence among the world powers.

THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA 119

It was oue of the reprisals of justice, one of the right
eous punishments of religious usurpation, that when the
English king determined to contest the claim to North |Jj^8 Nova
America by right of discovery, Sir William Alexander,
who had a royal grant to Nova Scotia, found the best
material for his expedition of conquest in the large num
bers of Huguenot seamen and soldiers who had found
refuge in England from the renewed persecutions at home,
and were only too glad to engage in war against the
Jesuits, even though they were French. Hence we find
that the admiral who had charge of Sir Alexander's
squadron, fitted out for the conquest of New France, was
David Kirke, while his brothers were his assistants — all
natives of Dieppe in Normandy, and staunch Protestants Helped by
who had fled from their country rather than deny their
faith. The sailing master, Jacques Michel, was an ardent
Calvinist, who had been in the employ of Guillaume de
Caen when that strong Huguenot leader was at the head
of the former Canadian Company organized by de Monts.
Acadia was an easy prey to these bold invaders, and
Kirke then turned his attention to Quebec, and on July
20, 1629, that stronghold, under Champlain, was obliged
to surrender. And now the Jesuit fathers who had lately
come to occupy the mission field which they proposed to
hold forever shut against heretics, were prisoners in the
hands of the very heretics whose destruction at home and
abroad they had planned.

That Quebec again passed into French possession, be
cause peace had been signed between England and France
three months before Quebec was captured, was a fortune
of war ; but during the three years of negotiations a
Huguenot, Louis Kirk, was in command, and won the
confidence and respect of all by his admirable and toler
ant conduct. His English name came from the fact that
his father was a Scotchman who lived and married in Louis Kirk at
France. He tried to induce the French families to re-

120 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

main in Quebec, and permitted them their religious lib
erty — an example which the Jesuit fathers, whom he per
mitted to say mass, never reciprocated when they were in
power. It is significant, also, that it was a Huguenot,
Emery de Caen, who was made the agent of France to re
ceive back her American province. The truth seems to
be that the Huguenots were men of such ability and trust
worthiness that they were chosen when public service de
manding highest integrity and capacity was to be ren
dered. We are constantly reminded of the fact that
France lost her best blood when her Protestant subjects
were massacred or exiled. They were the people who
had convictions and courage, capacity and character such
as make nations powerful and influential. And while
New France was to cease to exist, the best of Old France
was to enter into the making of the New World. The
religious bigotry and crime and folly of the leaders of one
nation, inspired by a hierarchy as pitiless as it has ever
been shortsighted and grasping, were to contribute ele
ments of inestimable value to other nations, particularly
to that new one that was destined to be the wonder of
them all.

May 23, 1633, was a decisive day for New France. On
that day Champlain, again appointed governor, received
the keys of the fort of Quebec from the Huguenot de Caen,
and from that hour Canada was closed to the Huguenot as
a colonist. None but Eoman Catholic Frenchmen could
acquire permanent residence. Dr. Baird is undoubtedly
right when he says : " In this prohibition, religious in
tolerance pronounced the doom of the French colonial
system in America. The exclusion of the Huguenots
from New France was one of the most stupendous blunders
that history records. The repressive policy pursued by
the French government for the next fifty years, culminat
ing in the Eevocation of the Edict of Nantes, tended more
and more to awaken and to strengthen among the Protes
tants a disposition to emigrate to foreign lands. Industri-

THE HUGUENOT COLONY IN CANADA 121

ous and thrifty, ready for any sacrifice to enjoy the liberty
of conscience denied them at home, they would have
rejoiced to build up a French state in the New World.
No other desirable class of the population of France was
inclined for immigration. It was with great difficulty
that from time to time the feeble colony could be recruited,
at vast expense, and with inferior material. Meanwhile,
hundreds of thousands of expatriated Huguenots carried
into Protestant countries of Northern Europe, and into the
British colonies of North America, the capital, the indus
trial skill, the intelligence, the moral worth, that might
have enriched the French possessions, and secured to the
Gallic race a vast domain upon the North American
continent."

BOOK THREE

THE FRENCH PROTESTANTS IN
AMERICA

PAET ONE
NEW ENGLAND

CHAPTER I
THE FIEST COMEKS

N the list of passengers on the good ship Mayflower The May-
may be seen the names of a family called "Mulling," flower' l630
consisting of father and mother and two children : a
son named Joseph and a daughter named Priscilla. But
while the name William Mullins is thoroughly English,
investigation proves that the man so called was not Eng
lish at all. When the little ship Speedwell put out from
Delfthaven in Holland to meet the Mayflower at South
ampton, among the Pilgrims there was a Huguenot family,
the father's name being Guillaume Molines. Already in The Molines
the Old World, in that haven of Holland, the English and
French refugees, sufferers alike for their religion, had
clasped hands of kinship ; and in the first company that
made home in the New World the Huguenots were
represented, although the habit of corrupting names
tended to conceal the fact. In that first awful year of
starvation and suffering that followed the coming of the
Pilgrims to the Massachusetts coast, Guillaume Molines,
his wife, and the son perished. But Priscilla survived,
and by her marriage with John Alden became the ances
tress of that celebrated New England family, the Aldens. PriSCiiia a
From this descent, too, was John Adams, second Presi- Hueuenot
dent of the United States. More than this, Longfellow's
poem has enshrined this French girl in the affections of

125

126 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

New England as the typical Puritan maiden ; and so com
pletely is she identified in thought and imagination with
the story of the Pilgrims, that in spite of the record of
history it is probable that the picture of John Aldeu and
his fair young bride will remain the popular representa
tion of the peculiarly English ancestors of New England.
French Traits And yet, as a recent writer suggests, it has always been
a source of wonder that an English girl could have had
the ready wit to give John Alden " the tip" that released
him from his ambiguous wooing and herself from the
domination of the fierce little captain. "How blind we
were to the Gallic coquetry with which she held on to
Miles till she had secured John ! She was a worthy pro
genitor of the Yankee girl in her ability to take care of
herself. We must blot out, then, from the historic portrait
the blue eyes and rosy cheeks of the English maiden whom
our fancy has called up whenever we have thought of
Priscilla ; and we must paint in a slender, graceful, black -
haired brunette, with brown-black velvet eyes and long
sweeping lashes, from under which were shot such glances
as melted the hearts of all the colony ; and we must adorn the
Puritan garb with some dainty ribbon." We can at once
see how this different feminine element would exert its
powerful influence, and how Priscilla would be a marked
character.

A still greater shock will be given to tradition and
family pride when it is said, further, that there are very
good grounds for believing that John Alden himself had
Huguenot blood in his veins. Let this case be stated by
Julien, author of Tales of Old Boston, who made it a mat
ter of careful research, and thought the evidence rather
strongly in favour of a Huguenot origin. The Alden
genealogies, he says, state vaguely that the name of Alden
is not found in England, or mention a certain Mr. Aldeu
of St. John's College, who is referred to as "one who
suffered by the tyrannical Bartholomew act" — which
suggests that it was a French refugee of 1572 who was

John Alden
French

THE FIEST COMEKS 127

the ancestor of this family. There is mention also of a
" John Alden of the Middle Temple, " to whom a coat of
arms was assigned in 1607. Now the John Alden of the Ald«n ped*-
Mayflower, it will be remembered, was a cooper, whom the
Pilgrims met at Southampton, just before their departure
for America, and whom they induced to join their com
pany with the understanding that he should be free to
remain, or return to England as he pleased. I find in the
list of persons, mostly Huguenots naturalized by royal
letters patent and recorded at Westminster for the 5th of
March, 1691, the name of Anne Alden, with those of her
son-in-law Jean Biancard and Mary, his daughter. And
there is a still more significant record of the granting of
naturalization in 1575 — that is, three years after the
massacre of St. Bartholomew — to u Susan and Sarah
Alden, daughters of John Alden of London, grocer, and
Barbara, daughter of Jacques du Prier, his wife." In
these records we have sufficient evidence at least to surmise
that the John Alden of the Mayflower, as well as his wife
Priscilla, was of direct Huguenot origin. Everybody is
familiar with Millais' beautiful picture of the i i Huguenot
Lovers ' ' of the period of the St. Bartholomew massacre.
It would be a curious continuation of the story which that
picture suggests if it should have a New World companion
piece in the New England lovers of 1620, who on the
white sand and amid the tangled sea grasses of Plymouth
beach, vowed fealty to each other.

The case of Priscilla Molines is more or less typical of changes in
the record of other Huguenot emigrants. Her name was
distorted into the uneuphonious appellation of Mullins,
and her identity was swallowed up in all its superficial
aspects by the outward characteristics of her alien neigh
bours. It is easy to account for the changes which took
place in the French names : even common English names
of that period were spelled in a great variety of ways, ac-

128 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Loss of
Identity

Quick As
similation of
the French

cording to the whim or degree of learning of the user, and
so it is not to be wondered at that the strange and unfa
miliar names of the French emigrants should have been
mangled almost out of all resemblance to the originals.
We shall find this to be the case over and over again.
And while the Huguenots did not lose the essential traits
of character which are the pride of their descendants,
they were very adaptable, and soon learned to conform to
the outward customs of the people among whom they found
themselves. They entered into the spirit of the civili
zation by which they were surrounded and thoroughly
identified themselves with it. For these reasons it is
often extremely difficult to separate their history from the
history of the country at large, just as in the present in
stance it would be an almost impossible task to convince
the general public that Priscilla Mullins, the flower of
early Puritan civilization, was in reality a daughter of
France.

A year after the landing of the Pilgrims on Plymouth
Eock another Huguenot joined his fortunes to those of the
infant state. This was Phillip de la Noye, who came over
in the ship Fortune. Like so many other French emi
grants who came to America, la Noye was born in Hol
land, where his parents had taken refuge, and had there
made his acquaintance with the Puritans. Fate was
kinder to him than it had been to Guillaume Molines, and
he was enabled to gain a strong foothold in the colony.
His descendants, whose name became anglicized into
Delano, are numerous in the region where their ancestors
landed, and are to be met with in the West as well as in
New England. The late Eev. H. A. Delano, a Baptist
minister of marked gifts as a preacher, was an honoured
member of this family.

Ill

Teuton's Peti- In the year 1662, Jean Touton, " of Eotchell in France,
Doctor Chirurgion," forwarded a petition to the "Magis-

Phillip de la
Noye

THE FIRST COMERS 129

trates of the Massachusetts Colonie" on behalf of himself
and other persecuted citizens of that town. The petition-
ers stated that they "are for their religion sake, outed
and expelled from their habitations and dwellings in
Rotchell," and humbly crave the "liberty to come heather,
here to inhabit and abide amongst the English in this
Jurisdiction, and to follow such honest endeavours &
yniploymts, as providence hath or shall direct them unto,
whereby they may get a livelihood, and that they might
have so much favour from the Govmt here, as in some
measure to be certayne of their residence here before they
undertake the voyage, and what privileges they may
expect here to have, that so accordingly as they find
incoridgmt for further progress herein, they may dispose
of their estates of Eotchell, where they may not have any
longer continuance." In October of that year the Gen- October 1662
era! Court of Massachusetts granted the petitioners the
right to take up their residence in the Colony, but how
many took advantage of the opportunity it is quite impos
sible to tell. A list of the petitioners was forwarded with
the petition itself, but unfortunately it was destroyed.
Doubtless several of them found their way to Boston, for
we have evidence that Jean Toutou himself arrived in
Massachusetts during the very year of the petition. In
1687 we find him again addressing the General Court., de
claring that he had i i ever since the year 1662 been an
Inhabitant in the Territory of his Majesty."

Philip English, who was baptized Phillip L'Anglois,
came to Salem, Massachusetts, in or about the year 1670. saiem 1670
He was a high-spirited man and possessed of a great store
of energy, and he at once made a place for himself in the
affairs of that thriving seaport. He built up a large trade
with France, Spain and the West Indies, and soon came
to be recognized as one of the most prosperous merchants
of Salem. At one time, when at the height of his good
fortune, he was credited with owning fourteen buildings Philip English
in the town, a commodious warehouse and wharf, to say

Revocation
1685

130 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

nothing of the twenty -one vessels which brought in
splendid profits under his skillful management. Eng
lish had made his way to Salem from the Island of Jersey,
and he was instrumental in bringing over a number of
his compatriots who had taken refuge there. There is no
complete record of their names, but we know that among
those who came to Salem were John Touzell, John
Browne (Jean Le Brun), Nicholas Chevalier, Peter
Morall, Edward Feveryear, John Voudin, Eachel Delia-
close, the Valpy family, the Lefavors and the Cabots.

But it was not until the Revocation of the Edict of
Nantes crushed all hope of religious toleration in France
and rendered the lives of Protestants unsafe, that the
Huguenots began to flock to New England in any consid
erable numbers. In the very month of the Revocation
their eyes were turned longingly towards the new world
that promised them, an asylum from their persecutions
and an opportunity to enjoy that liberty of conscience for
which they had so manfully struggled during a period of
over a century and a half. On October 1, 1685, a letter
was sent from La Rochelle to some unknown correspond
ent in Boston ; it expressed the condition of the Rochel-
lese and the faith they had in New England as a place of
refuge, as the following extract will show :

Letter from
Rochelle

God grant that I and my family were with you, we should not have
been exposed to the furie of our enemies, who rob us of the goods which
God hath given us to the subsistence of our soule and body. I shall
not assume to write all the miseries that we suffer, which cannot be
comprehended in a letter, but in many books. I shall tell you briefly,
that our temple is condemned, and razed, our ministers banished for
ever, all their goods confiscated, and moreover they are condemned to
the fine of a thousand crowns. All t'other temples are also razed, ex-
cepted the temple of Re, and two or three others. By act of Parlia
ment we are hindered to be masters in any trade or skill. We expect
every days the lord governour or Guiene, whom shall put soldiers in

THE FIEST COMERS

131

our houses, and take away our children to be offered to the Idol, as
they have done in t'other countrys.

The country where you live (that is to say New England) is in great
estime ; I and a grat many others, Protestants, intend to go there. A Haven
Tell us, if you please, what advantage we can have there, and particu
larly the boors who are accoustumed to plow the ground. If somebody
of your country would hazard to come here with a ship to fetch in our
French Protestants, he would make great gain.

Five years previous, in 1680, some commissioners dele
gated by the Protestants of La Rochelle had visited Boston
and gained permission for a number of their countrymen
to settle in Massachusetts. But the projected emigration
was given up, though two years later twelve persons did
find their way to Boston, coming by way of London.
They were 6lie Charron, Fran£ois Basset, Marie Tissau
Pare" and her three daughters, and a widow named
Guerry, with her two sons, her son-in-law and two small
children. This little company was very hospitably re
ceived by the good people of Boston. They were in abso
lute poverty ; so great was their destitution, and so sym
pathetic were the people for the sufferings which they had
undergone for conscience' sake, that the governor and coun
cil recommended that on a certain day all the churches
of the neighbourhood should take up a collection to relieve
their distress, referring to them as " these Christian suf
ferers." At such a welcome these forlorn pilgrims must
have indeed thought that they had at last reached the
Promised Land, and it was probably the news of their
kindly reception which caused the Eochellese to look with
such yearning eyes towards Boston and Massachusetts.

Boston
Hospitality

Nor had they any cause to be disappointed when, in
1686, a company of them reached the colony. The first
ship arrived in July of that year, coming by way of St.
Christopher's. In granting their application for admis
sion to the colony, the council passed an order including

Free Citizen
ship Granted

132 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

other French Protestants within its scope as follows : ' ' Or
dered, That upon the taking the oath of allegiance before
the president, and under his hand and seal of his Majtys
Territory and Dominion, they be allowed to reside and
dwell in his Majtys sd dominion, and to proceed from
hence and return hither as freely as any other of his
Majtys subjects, and this to be an order for all such
French Protestants that shall or may come into this his
Majtys Territory and Dominion." By this generous
action of the council, Massachusetts put herself on record
as being ready and eager to furnish a home for all those who
truly desired to dwell in liberty of conscience. And we
can only add that she was amply repaid for her liberality
by the high character and loyalty of the French refugees
whom she sheltered. Bowdoin, Faneuil and Eevere, are
names that she could ill afford to have stricken from her
annals.

Christian In August the second party of emigrants arrived. They

had suffered much from the long voyage and had lost
their doctor and twelve of their fellows through sickness
on the way over. The survivors who landed in Boston
were wasted by sickness and were almost wholly destitute
of property. Their sad plight did not escape the vigilance
of the ever watchful and solicitous council, which pre
pared a statement of the needs of the Huguenots and
caused it to be read in all the churches of the colony.
This paper represented them as " objects of a true Chris
tian charity," exhorted the people to give liberally in so
good a cause, and asked the ministers to "put forward
the people in their charity." Captain Elisha Hutchin-
sou and Captain Samuel Sewall, two of the leading citi
zens of Boston, took charge of receiving and distributing
the relief fund, and everything was done to provide for
the fugitives' comfort and welfare. We are told in the
brief prepared by the council that this stricken company
consisted of " fifteen French familyes with a religious

THE FIRST COMEES

133

Protestant minister, who are in all, men, women and chil
dren, more than fourscore soules."

The third party, " crowded into a small ship," reached
Salem in September of that same year. The same kind- A French
ness that had been shown the others was dealt out to ^a°iemin
them, and a large house (even down to the middle of the
nineteenth century known as the "French House") was
set apart for their use. Philip English, by this time well
on the road to prosperity, was unremitting in his efforts
to alleviate the misery of his countrymen, and his gen
erosity was unbounded. Not for long, however, did these
devoted emigrants stand in need of assistance. They had
brought little property with them, but they were rich in
thrift, perseverance, and industry, and they were soon
able to take care of themselves and lend a helping hand
to later arrivals.

CHAPTEE II
THE OXFOED SETTLEMENT

Bernon the
Founder

Nipmuck
Region near
Worcester

• WEALTHY refugee from La Eochelle, Gabriel
Bernon, who reached London in 1697, was the
prime mover in the French settlement of Oxford,
Massachusetts. He had for some time contemplated go
ing to America, and his design was stimulated by the
offer of a grant of land on condition that he should form
a settlement thereon. Bernon chose for his agent a refugee
from Poitiers, one Isaac Bertrand du Tuffeau, and fur
nished him with the necessary funds for effecting an im
mediate settlement. Du Tuffeau reached Boston in the
latter part of the summer of 1687, and upon presenting
his credentials was given a grant of seven hundred and
fifty acres of land in the Nipmuck region, on the site of
the present town of Oxford.

The place selected for the little colony was far from
civilization, in the heart of the forests that stretched in
every direction undisturbed by the settler's axe. It could
be reached only by the faint trail known as the Bay Path,
which connected Boston with the valley of the Connecti
cut Eiver and the settlement of Springfield ; but remote
and difficult of access as it was, the Oxford region had
many features to recommend it. A small river flowed
through the centre of a delightful valley which was walled
in by a circle of rolling hills. Abundant water-power
was at hand, the level plain which stretched out on either
side of the river gave evidence of great fertility, while
the near-by hillsides offered admirable opportunities for
orchards and meadows.

To this promising locality, then, the first group of set-

134

THE OXFOED SETTLEMENT 135

tiers made their way in the summer of du Tuffeau's ar- Arrival of
rival in Boston. There were not more than ten families in
the party which Daniel Bondet, an intrepid French Prot
estant minister who had come to Boston during the pre
vious year, led forward into the wilderness. Hardly had
the work of clearing the land and building the rude log
cabins been gotten under way when du Tuffeau himself
took up his residence in the colony. Fortunately for the
colonists the winter proved to be a very mild one ; and al
though they had arrived too late for gathering any crops
they did not suffer for lack of food, as the woods abounded Game and Fish
in game and the numerous lakes and streams were well
stocked with fish, while from the neighbouring Indians
they were able to procure supplies of corn. Du Tuffeau's
first ,"care was to erect a fort on a hill which commanded
the little village and the surrounding valley. The remains
of this fort are still extant, and show it to have been a The Fort
carefully planned and solidly built structure, consisting
of a roomy inclosure surrounded by a stockade, near the
centre of which stood a block -house about thirty feet long
by eighteen feet wide. The fort was equipped with a well
and a powder-magazine and was adapted to resist a sud
den onslaught or an extended siege ; for the settlers of
those days were forced to hold themselves in readiness
against every conceivable stroke of ill fortune. But the
Indians were apparently peacefully disposed and the
Huguenots wasted but little thought on them.

The year following the establishment of the colony
Bernou himself set sail for America, bringing with him a
number of servants and several families of prospective
settlers. This company numbered about forty persons in
all, and Bernon took upon himself the expense of fitting
out the entire enterprise. As soon as he arrived at Bos- less
ton Bernon proceeded to get a confirmation of a grant of
land giving him a tract of twenty-five hundred acres

136 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Bernon Ar
rives

House of
Worship

A.Compact
Village

Du Tuffeau
Magistrate

Some of the
Families

lying within the boundaries of Oxford. A little later he
set out from Boston accompanied by Joseph Dudley, then
Chief Justice of Massachusetts and one of the principal
proprietors of the Oxford lands, who desired to show all
courtesy to the powerful and agreeable Huguenot by put
ting him in formal possession of his property. Bernon' s
presence gave a fresh impetus to the thriving little vil
lage. He at once set about causing needed improvements
to be made ; built a grist-mill and a saw-mill to utilize
the excellent water-power, and in many other ways pro
vided for the comfort and welfare of the colonists. It is
significant to note that among his earliest enterprises on
American soil was the erection of a commodious "tem
ple" for the worship of God. Previous to his coming,
religious exercises had been conducted in minister Bon-
det's " great house,'7 which stood a little apart from the
village, but owing to the number of new arrivals it was
no longer large enough to serve as a place of gathering.

The village itself was built in the compact style to
which the refugees had been accustomed in their native
country. All in all, the town probably contained between
seventy and eighty inhabitants during the second year of
its establishment. Gabriel Bernon was only an occasional
resident, spending the greater part of his time in Boston.
After Bernon, du Tuffeau was probably the most impor
tant personage connected with the village. Besides acting
as Bernon' s agent he was the village magistrate, commis
sioned by the General Court in 1689 to l i have Authority
for Tryall of small Causes not exceeding forty shillings,
and to act in all other matters as any other Assistant may
doe, as the Lawes of this Colony direct." Andre Sigour-
ney was likewise a leader in the community. His ap
pointment as constable of t i the French Plantation, ' ' an
office which carried with it considerable respect and in
fluence, shows how highly he was regarded by his fellow
citizens. With Sigourney was his wife, Charlotte Pairan,
and five children, who fled with him from La Rochelle

THE OXFOED SETTLEMENT 137

during the winter of 1681. Francois Bureau came of
noble blood, and fled to London with his brother Thomas
from their native village of Niort, in Poitou. In 1688
Franyois came to Oxford with his wife Anne and their
two sons and two daughers. The eldest daughter, Anne,
became later on the wife of Benjamin Faneuil and the
mother of Peter Faneuil of Boston fame.

Besides these, there was Jean Germaine, whose name
was corrupted into Germon or German, and his daughter
Margaret, who came from La Tremblade, in the province
of Saiutouge ; Paiz Cassaneau, of Languedoc ; Daniel
Johonnot, a youthful nephew of Andre Sigourney ; Jean
Martin, his wife Anne, and their two children ; Elie
Dupeux, a native of Port des Barques on the Saintonge
coast ; Eene Grignon, Thomas Mousset, Guillaume Bar but,
Jean Millet, Pierre Cante (Canton), Cornilly, Butt,
Thibaud, Mourgues, and an Englishman named Johnson
who married Susanne Sigourney. Jacques Depont was a
nephew of Bernon, while Jean Baudouin was the eldest
son of Pierre Baudouin, founder of the illustrious Bow-
doin family in America.

Ill

But the little colony so prosperously begun was destined
to have its full share of troubles. The practice of some Troubles
unscrupulous traders in selling rum to the Indians seems Traders
to have given the settlers the first premonitions of im
pending disaster. In 1691 the worthy Pastor Bondet, 1691
who had an appointment from the^ Society for the Propa
gation of the Gospel to work among the Indians, wrote a
letter to one of the Massachusetts authorities imploring
him to use his influence in putting a stop to the traffic.
After stating that the cause of his request is one which
fills his heart with sorrow, he writes, "My humble re
quest will be at least before God and before you a solemn
protestation against the guilt of those incorrigible persons
who dwell in our place. The rome is always sold to the

138 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Indians Crazed Indian without order and measure, insomuch that accord
ing to the complaint sent to me by master Dickestean
with advice to present it to your honour, the 26 of the
last month there was about twenty Indians so furious by
drunkeness that they fought like bears and fell upon one
called Eemes who is appointed for preaching the Gospel
amongst them. He had been so much disfigured by his
wonds that there is no hope of his recovery." Bondet
then goes on to beg his reader to interpose and maintain
"the honour of God in a Christian habitation" and give
comfort to "some honest souls which being incompatible
with such abominations feel every day the burden of
afliction of their honourable peregrination aggravated."

But no steps appear to have been taken to suppress the
evil on the part of the authorities, for two years later
Andre Sigourney made the following deposition :

No Help— Andre" Sigourney ages of about fifty years doe affirme that the 28

ing day of nouember last he was with all the others of the village in the

mill for to take the rum in the hands of Peter Canton and when they
asked him way hee doe abuse soe the Indiens in seleing them liquor to
the great shame and dangers of all the company hee sd Canton an
swered that itt was his will and hee hath right soe to doe and asking
him further if itt was noe him how make soe many Indiens drunk he
did answer that hee had sell to one Indien and one squa the valew of
four gills and that itt is all upon wch one of the company named
Ellias Dupeux told him that hee have meet an Indien drunk wch have
get a bott fooll and said that itt was to the mill how sell itt he an
swered that itt may bee trueth.

p?ie*tsainncite The settlers had real cause for alarm when, in the
to Murder summer of 1694, a band of Indians set on by the Canadian
priests, brutally murdered the young daughter of one of
the villagers named Alard, and carried off two little chil
dren. Other depredations followed, and the whole line
of the outlying English colonies was threatened by the
attacks of roving bands of Canadian Indians accompanied
by Jesuit missionaries. The inhabitants of Oxford were
continually stirred by the news of some bloody foray ;

THE OXFOED SETTLEMENT 139

now it would be the story of how some isolated farmhouse
had been attacked in the middle of the night and its
sleeping occupants butchered ; or again, it would be the
tale of a whole settlement put to the tomahawk. During
the latter part of the summer the appearance of several
bands of savages compelled the French colonists to take
refuge in their fort. But though they were safe from
actual danger within the confines of their strong stock
ade, yet they were made to suffer greatly through the
destruction of their crops and a large number of their
cattle, which left them in a feeble condition to meet the
rigorous winter which followed. As soon as they thought
it prudent to leave the protection of the fort, several of
the Huguenots made their way to Boston, being under
the strong impression that their isolated settlement would
not be able to maintain itself in the face of the roving
bands of marauders, who being perfectly at home in the
woods had every advantage of their civilized opponents.
Among the number who left was du Tuffeau, who had
been called to account by Bernon for mismanagement of
his property.

Nothing further happened to disturb the peace of 1696 Johnson
Oxford until the summer of 1696. The home of the Eng- fa'cke1/ A
lishman Johnson, who had married Susanne Sigourney,
stood a little removed from the other houses of the town
in the midst of a level stretch still known as Johnson's
Plain. On August 5th, a band of Indians approached
this dwelling while Johnson was some distance off, seized
his three small children, Andre", Pierre and Marie, who
were playing about the door-step, and dashed their brains
out on the stones of the fireplace. The dazed and agonized
mother made her escape and started out to warn her hus
band, but failed to find him. Johnson, unsuspecting the
fate that had befallen his home, returned soon after the
atrocity had taken place and was felled to the ground as
he crossed the threshold. As the news of this massacre
spread through the outlying districts the inhabitants were

140 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

one and all aroused to the danger which threatened them.
A body of troops was sent out from Worcester, supported
by forty friendly Indians, and for many days the neigh
bouring woods were scoured for traces of the murderers,
but none of them were ever brought to justice.
The feeling of insecurity that had been gaining ground

Abandoned *n Oxf°r(l was so heightened by the killing of the Johnson
children that with one accord the refugees decided to
abandon their settlement. Sigourney, Germou, Johonuot,
Boutiueau, Dupeul Cassaneau, Grignon, Barbut, Montier,
Canton, Maillet, and Mousset retired to Boston. Depont
found a new home in Milford, Connecticut. Bondet and
Martin went to New Eochelle, in the province of New
York ; Bureau and Montel to New York. Baudouin
made his way to Virginia, where his descendants may
still be traced.

An attempt to revive the settlement was made three
years later, in the spring of 1699. The refugees who had
gone back to Boston returned to Oxford and reclaimed
their abandoned farms. It is probable that the energetic
Bernon was the prime mover in this endeavour at reset
tlement, for he had expended a large sum of money in
developing his Oxford property and in providing for the
common welfare. The greatest loss, therefore, resulting
from the abandonment of the project fell upon his shoul
ders. As soon, however, as the colony was revived he
proceeded to invest more capital in its interests, and to
gether with Eene" Grignon and Jean Papineau established
a wash-leather manufactory on the banks of the river that

New industry flowed through the town. This new industry gave em
ployment to many of the villagers in hunting and trap
ping the game that abounded in the surrounding forests,
and proved itself a decided advantage to the refugees.
Loads of dressed skins were carted down to Providence
and thence shipped by water to Boston and Newport,

THE OXFORD SETTLEMENT 141

where they were made into hats and gloves by the skilled
Huguenot artisans.

Jacques Laborie, a minister who had come to Boston

Intrigues

from London during the previous year, accompanied the
returning settlers. He brought with him his wife, Jeanne
de Eessiguier, and his daughter Susanne. As he held an
appointment from the corporation for promoting the
Gospel in New England he at once set to work among the
savages, with whom he soon came to be on the most
friendly footing. It was owing to his intimacy with the
Indians and his knowledge of their language that the
warning of fresh intrigues on the part of the Jesuits was
brought to the attention of the authorities. In spite of
the treaty of Eyswick it soon became evident that the
priests were again endeavouring to stir up the friendly
tribes to proceed against the English colonies.

In a letter to Governor Bellomont, Laborie informs
him that numbers of the neighbouring Indians are pre
paring to leave and join the Pennacooks in New Hamp
shire. That they declare the " French" religion to be
"plus belle que la notre" (more beautiful than ours),
and that they will be furnished with silver crosses to
hang about their necks, and that great promises have
been made to them. Laborie is confident from the things
he has heard that the priests are hard at work perfecting
some scheme which they will bring forward when a
propitious occasion presents itself. Rumours of such a
nature kept the people of Oxford in a constant state of
tension, but it was not until the summer of 1703 that 1703
actual hostilities broke out. They did their best to pre
pare for any sudden emergency that might arise ; a mil- Deerfieid
itary company was formed and the town's defenses were
strengthened by building a palisade around Bernon's
house to serve as a stronghold for the garrison. But
after the Deerfieid massacre, where over a hundred and
fifty persons were slain or made prisoners, the handful of

142 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Final refugees felt that they were too tempting and easy a bait

to hold their isolated position with any degree of security,
and they accordingly abandoned their settlement in the
spring of 1704, never to return again.

THB." .BOSTON MASSACRE, MARCH 5, 1770

CHAPTEE III
GABEIEL BEENON

ABEIEL BEENON came of an ancient family The Bernon
claiming descent from the house of the Counts of Ancient
Burgundy. Even without this noble lineage the
Bernons had an independent patent of nobility, due to the
fact that they had furnished several mayors to the inde
pendent city of La Eochelle. Gabriel, who succeeded his
father Andre" iii business, was born April 6, 1664. He
was a skillful man of affairs and under his guidance the
house of Bernon became one of the wealthiest and most
influential concerns in the flourishing seaport. The de
velopment of a considerable trade with Canada caused
Bernon to take up his residence there for a number of
years, and so successful was he that the governor of
Canada, de Denonville, refers to him as the principal
merchant in the colony.

But Bernon was a Protestant, as his father had been
before him ; indeed, the family had been one of the first staunch
in La Eochelle to adopt the Eeformed religion, and it was
in the Bernon mansion that many of the earliest Protes
tant services were held. His religion made him obnoxious
to the Jesuits, who had by this time gained control of
Canada and were bent on persecuting the Huguenots as
heartily as did their compatriots at home, and so he was
given notice to recant or quit. " It is a pity that he can
not be converted," wrote de Denonville, uas he is a
Huguenot, the bishop wants me to order him home this
autumn, which I have done, though he carries on a large
business and a great deal of money remains due to him here."

143

144 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Personal Ap
pearance
1688

Jesuit Honour If they could not make him a Catholic they would at least
make sure that his faith should cost him a fortune !
Nothing daunted by this blow, Bernon returned to La
Eochelle, arriving at the height of the persecution. He
was at once thrown into prison where he was confined for
some months, being released finally through the influence
of his brothers, who had recanted. Unshaken in his
faith, he made the best disposition of what property re
mained to him and escaped to Holland in May, 1686.
From Amsterdam he made his way to London the follow
ing year and formed the project of the Oxford settlement,
as we have seen.

In the summer of 1688 Bernon reached Boston after a
voyage of ten weeks, a rapid journey for those days. His
personal appearance is described, by a tradition dating
from his arrival in Boston, as that of a man of command
ing presence whose bearing always won the respect and
consideration due to his character and ability. His figure
was tall and of slender proportions ; his carriage, erect
and expressive of energy in every movement, yet tem
pered with a peculiar grace and courtly suavity. While
on ordinary occasions his manner was affable and kindly,
his hot temper sometimes led him to assume a tone of de
cided imperiousness. Thoroughly upright in all the acts
of his life, thinking high thoughts, genuine in his re
ligious feelings, thoughtful, optimistic and daring in his
public and private ventures, he was naturally qualified
for leadership. Misfortunes never daunted him, and left
him ever the same brave, steadfast, hopeful man.

Such a man would soon make his presence felt in the
colony, and Bernon shortly became one of the leading
citizens of Boston. After attending to the matters of the
Oxford settlement and getting himself naturalized as a
British subject, he devoted his attention to several in
dustrial enterprises. Prominent among these undertak
ings was the manufacture of rosin and other naval stores.

A Leading
Citizen

GABEIEL BERNON 145

He was so successful in this that he engaged the interest Naval stores
of a government agent who had been sent to Massachu
setts to learn what means were to be found in America for
supplying the royal navy with such articles. By the ad
vice of this agent, Bernon took a trip to London in the
year 1693 to inform the admiralty of the opportunities
for producing naval stores on a large scale in America,
and also for the purpose of securing a patent on their
manufacture. He was very favourably received by Lord
Portland and other high officials, and succeeded in se
curing a contract from the government to supply a quan
tity of stores for a term of years.

Three years later he again made a visit to England on
the same errand, returning to Boston with Governor Bello-
mont. To the governor Bernon unfolded his schemes for Developer ot
developing the manufactures and produce of the colony,
and Lord Bellomont was greatly taken with his ideas,
even recommending the royal council to appoint the
refugee superintendent of naval stores in America. But
it was the government's policy, at that time, to discourage
colonial industries even in a case where they would mani
festly benefit the public interests, and nothing ever came
of Bernon' s efforts in that direction.

But during these years Bernon' s activities were not
confined to endeavouring to overcome British insularity.
His energy found vents for itself in a hundred other direc- Large Enter-
tions. Besides retaining an active interest in the Oxford
settlement he joins the Faneuils and Louis Allaire in trad
ing with Virginia and Pennsylvania ; he becomes a
prosperous exporter to England and the West Indies;
trades in furs with the Nova Scotians ; invests considera
ble capital in ship-building ; sets up salt - works, and
undertakes the manufacture of nails. Indeed, there was
hardly a department of colonial enterprise to which Ber
non did not turn his attention. He did not put business Religion First
first, however, but was always scrupulous to discharge his
obligations as a Christian and a member of the state. He

Removal to
Rhode Island

Newport

146 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

was free -handed in his dealings with his fellow refugees
and aided many of them, who had been compelled to leave
all their property in France, to get on their feet. When
he had been a resident of Massachusetts for but two years
the expedition against Port Eoyal was sent forward, and
Bernon was not slow to contribute more than his share in
furnishing arms, munition and money.

Ill

After a residence of nine years in Boston he removed to
Ehode Island and settled first in Newport, from there
going to Providence. While in Newport his career was
substantially the same that it had been in Boston. He
identified himself with the life of the growing town and
was a leader in many of its numerous enterprises. With
Daniel Ayrault for a partner he engaged largely in the
West India trade, in which Ehode Island was then taking
the lead. It was a hazardous business, involving great
risks and great profits as well, as many wealthy Ehode
Island families of to-day whose fortunes date back to the
days of the t i triangular trade ' ' attest. Fortune did not
favour Bernon in most of these ventures, however. He
suffered losses from the French privateers which scoured
the neighbouring waters, and from shipwreck, also.
Greater than any loss of wealth to Gabriel Bernon was
the death of his only son, who met his death in one of his
father's ships that was outward bound for the Indies.
Soon after leaving Newport the vessel was overtaken by
a violent storm, and it is believed that she must have
foundered, for none of her ship' s company was ever heard
from again. It was a great blow to the Huguenot, with
his pride of birth and ancestry, to lose the only member
of his family who could perpetuate the name of Bernon
in America. Perhaps the death of his son may have in
fluenced him to withdraw from the trade and take up his
residence in Providence, for he did so not long after
wards.

GABKIEL BERNON 147

But though he gradually withdrew from active partic- Providence
ipation iu business affairs, he lost none of his former
zeal in the cause of religion. While living in Boston he
had been a devoted member of the French Reformed
church, and the relations he afterwards sustained with
that church were always of the most cordial nature, but
on coming to Rhode Island, where there were not enough
of his countrymen to support such an organization, he
immediately allied himself with the Anglican communion.
More fervent in his faith than the majority of the Epis
copalians in the colony, and accustomed to act rather Founder of
than talk, he was largely instrumental in founding the
first three Anglican churches in the province — Trinity
Church in Newport, St. Paul's Church in Kingston and
St. John's Church in Providence. In the year 1724,
when he was eighty-one years old, he crossed over to Devotion to
present to the Bishop of London the needs of the church
in Providence and the benefits which would accrue from
sending there an able and competent minister. Surely
it is not too much to say that a man who, in the declining
years of his life, was willing to undertake the perils and
hardships of a voyage that was at its best an uncomfort
able and hazardous proceeding — and willing to do this
not for personal motives but for the well-being of others
— was a man of heroic mould, and one of whom his de
scendants may well be proud.

Bernon had lost much of his property by some of his Last Years
later ventures, yet enough remained to him to enable him
to build a fine house in Providence "near Roger Will
iams' spring," and there he lived his last few years in quiet
happiness, giving his time to writings and correspond
ence, mostly of a religious character. Up to the very
last his Protestantism was pronounced and vigorous. He
could never endure anything in the nature of priestly as
sumption or ecclesiastical domination, and in a letter to
the vestry of Trinity Church in Newport written in his
old age, denouncing a pamphlet on church order which

His Views

Memorial
Tablet

148 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

they had sanctioned, he says : "I am a born layman of
France, naturalized English, which I hold a greater
honour than all the riches of France, because the English
laity are not, like the laity of France, slaves of the clergy
and hackneys of the Pope ; wherefore rather than submit
to this I abandoned my country, my fortune, and my
friends, in order to become a citizen under the English
government." And because of his staunch belief in the
rights of the laity he found Ehode Island a more congenial
place of residence than Massachusetts, with its ecclesias
tical hierarchy, which smacked too much of the intoler
ance of Catholicism in France to meet with his entire ap
proval.

He died in 1736, at the age of ninety-one, and was
buried under St. John's Church, Providence, with every
token of public respect. A tablet in the church bears
the following inscription :

Bernon's De
scendants

In Memory of Gabriel Bernon, Son of Andre and Suzanne Bernon,
Born at La Rochelle, France, April 6, A. D. 1644. A Huguenot.
After two years' imprisonment for his Religious Faith, Previous to the
revocation of the Edict of Nantes, He took refuge in England, and
came to America A. D. 1688. Here he continued steadfast in promot
ing The Honour of the Church And the Glory of God. It is recorded
in the History of Rhode Island, that " To the persevering piety and un
tiring zeal of Gabriel Bernon the first three Episcopal Churches in
Rhode Island owed their orgin," King's, now St. John's Church, Provi
dence, Founded A. D. 1722, being one of them. He died in the Faith
once delivered to the Saints, Feb. 1, A. D. 1736, A 92, And is
buried beneath this Church. " Every one that hath forsaken houses,
or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or
lands, for My name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall in
herit eternal life."— St. Matt.

Bernon's first wife was Esther Le Eoy, daughter of a
wealthy Huguenot merchant of La Rochelle. She ac
companied her husband to America and died in Newport
in 1710, at the age of fifty-six. The children by this

GABRIEL BERNON 149

marriage were Gabriel, Marie, Esther, Sarah, and Jeanne.
Gabriel died unmarried. Marie married Abraham Tour-
tellot, a Huguenot who was at that time master of a ves
sel sailing from Newport. Their descendants are numer
ous. Esther married Adam Powell, of Newport, in 1713.
She gave birth to two daughters, the elder of whom,
Elizabeth, married the Reverend Samuel Seabury, of New
London, Connecticut ; while the younger, Esther, married
Chief-Justice Helme of the Superior Court of Rhode
Island.

Sarah married the representative of a prominent New
England family, Benjamin Whipple, in the year 1722.
Jeanne married Colonel William Coddington, of Newport,
in 1722. The issue of this union was two sons and four
daughters j John and Francis, Content, Esther, Jane and
Ann.

The children of Bernon's second wife, Mary Harris,
granddaughter of William Harris, who accompanied
Roger Williams when he landed at Whatcheer rock in
1636, were Susanne, Mary, and Eve. There was also
born to her a sou, Gabriel, who died at an early age.

Susanne married Joseph Crawford in 1734. Nine
children were born to them, the youngest of whom, Ann, Honorable
was married to Zachariah Allen in 1778. The Honour- AUenariah
able Zachariah Allen, son of Ann Crawford and grandson
of Susanne Bernon, was born in Providence, Rhode
Island, in 1795, where he died in 1882 at the age of eighty-
seven. His Huguenot ancestry was always a matter of
keen interest to Mr. Allen, and as president of the Rhode President
Island Historical Society and first president of the His°torii?so-
Huguenot Memorial Society of Oxford, Massachusetts, he
was enabled to further the growing sentiment which gives
to the French Protestant emigrants their rightful place
among the founders of the Republic. As Baird says of Brown 1813
Mr. Allen, " perhaps more than any other American who
has lived in these times, Mr. Allen himself illustrated
some of the finest traits of the Huguenot character. " A

150 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

graduate of Brown University in the class of 1813, he
studied law and medicine and then engaged in business
with marked success. Inheriting the versatility of his
ancestor, Gabriel Bernon, his public and his private in
terests were of the broadest character ; he was a thorough
student of the sciences, made several valuable improve
ments in the construction of machinery, was largely en
gaged in promoting philanthropic activities, and wrote
several books and many papers. But above all, he was
loved by all who knew him for his buoyancy, kindliness,
unfailing sympathy and simple piety.

Mary Bernon married Gideon Crawford, and gave birth
to seven sons and four daughters. Her younger sister,
Eve, died unmarried.

THE BAL.L.OU CHUR.CH-.-J64O
ay PRgs.G^RFiei-0'S

CHAPTER IV
THE NARRAGANSETT SETTLEMENT

more unfortunate in its outcome than the A Land
Oxford settlement was the attempt to establish a

Huguenot community near the shores of Narra-
gansett Bay, within the limits of the township known to
day as East Greenwich. The complete failure of this proj -
ect was in no wise due, however, to the refugees them
selves, but to the fact that they were inveigled by
an unscrupulous land company into purchasing a tract
whose title was later shown to be invalid.

In October, 1686, a body of Huguenots in London made xese London
arrangements with the "Atherton Company," which °°n
claimed the ownership of the " Narragansett Country,"
whereby they acquired a site for a settlement. According
to the terms of the contract each family was to receive
one hundred acres of upland and a share of meadow ; the
price for which was fixed at twenty pounds the hundred
acres if paid for at once, or twenty-five pounds if settled
for at the end of three years. The " Narragansett
Country," comprising all that portion of Rhode Island
which to-day lies south of the town of Warwick on the
western side of Narragansett Bay, had long been the
cause of dispute between Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Connecticut claimed that her borders extended to the
shores of Narragansett Bay and therefore included the
disputed territory, and Rhode Island, on the other hand,
as stoutly denied it. These rival claims had already been
submitted to the crown for adjustment and the decision
was still pending when the Huguenots made their
unfortunate purchase, little dreaming that their homes

151

152 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

would be taken from them through a judgment of the
courts.

The colonists Immediately following the purchase of their town-site
from the "Atherton Company, " the refugees took up
their residence in Ehode Island. They numbered in all
forty-eight families, ten of whom came from La Eochelle,
ten from Saintonge, with perhaps as many more from
Poitou ; the remainder hailing from Guyenne and Nor-

Pastor mandy. ^zechiel Carre* was the pastor and principal

leader of the colony. He had studied under Calvin at
Geneva, and had already held the pastorate of two
churches in France, at Mirameau in Saintonge, and La
Eoche Chalais in Guyenne. Closely associated with him
as a leader was Pierre Berthon de Marign (Peter Berton,
or Burton), who was descended from a prominent family
of Chattelerault in Poitou. With Berton came his wife,
Margaret, a native of the same town. Pierre Ayrault, a
native of Angers, province of Anjou, was the physician
of the colony, and brought with him his wife, Francoise,
his son Daniel, and nephew named Nicholas. Besides
these leaders the list of the colonists comprises the
following names : Andre Arnaud, Jean Amian, Louis
Allaire, ^zechiel Bouniot, Jean Beauchamps, Pierre
Bretin dit Laronde, Daniel Belhair, Paul Bussereau,
Guillaume Barbut, Jean Coudret, Jean Chadene, Paul
Collin, Jean David, Josue David, Sr., Josue David, Jr.,
Pierre Deschanips, Theophile Frontier, Jean Galay,
^zechiel Grazilier, Eene Grignon, Jean Germon, Jean
Julien, Daniel Jouet, fitienne Jamain, Daniel Lambert,
Pierre Le Moine, Etienne La Vigne, Moise Le Brun,
Daniel Le Gendre, Jean Lafon, Franyois Legare, Menar-
deau Milard, Jacques Magni, Jean Magni, £lie Eambert,
Jacob Eatier, Daniel Eenaud, Etienne Eogineau, Daniel
Targe, Abram Tourtellot. Pierre Traverrier, Pierre
Tougere.

The first care of the settlers was to provide themselves

THE NAKKAGANSETT SETTLEMENT 153

with places of shelter against the approaching winter. Homes bum
According to the account left by Ayrault, some twenty
houses were built that fall, together with " some cellars
in the ground." The latter refers, undoubtedly, to the
dug-outs which many of the early settlers found it con
venient to occupy until opportunity came for constructing
more comfortable and pretentious dwellings. The com
mon type of such " cellars " was a square pit six or seven
feet deep, floored and walled with wood, and roofed with
logs covered by a layer of sod. If we may believe the
testimony of a contemporary writer and observer it was
possible for the occupants of these residences to "live
dry and warm with their families for two, three and four
years." During the winter they occupied their time in
clearing away the stones that littered their farms, felling
trees, and otherwise preparing for the planting season.
Fifty acres of land were set apart for the maintenance
of a school, provision was made for erecting a church as
soon as the weather permitted, and one hundred and fifty
acres were freely donated to Pastor Carre" for his support ;
for among these worthy people, religion, education and
industry went hand in hand. And although their labours
were of necessity very severe at first they went about with
glad hearts, "for," says Ayrault, "we had a comfort;
we could enjoy our worship to God."

In the course of a few years the appearance of " French- Frenchtown
town," as it was then called, and as the locality is known
to-day, was greatly changed. By their industry and skill
the refugees had turned a wilderness into a garden. The
"cellars" had been replaced by comfortable houses, the
forest had given way to orchards and vineyards, and
neat fences and hedges surrounded trim gardens. The
mild climate of that section of Ehode Island, resembling
Virginia, was found to be admirably adapted to the cul
tivation of grapes, and some persons in Boston who had
tasted the wine from them gave the judgment that they
"thought it as good as Bordeaux claret." Other plans,

154 THE FBENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Land Claimed
by the English

Pitiable Plight
of the Victims

too, filled the busy minds of the settlers ; among them
being the planting of mulberry trees upon which to breed
silk-worms. In this effort to establish a profitable indus
try they hoped to be aided by further accessions of their
countrymen, and the prospect seemed good that within a
few years Ehode Island would be the home of a large
number of Huguenot silk producers.

But though the future prospect of the settlement seemed
bright, it was never realized. Within five years of its
establishment only two families out of the forty-eight
remained on the land they had improved and rendered
fertile. For by the decision of the court it was made
apparent that the refugees had been innocently occupying
lands to which other parties held prior claims, and that
the "Atherton Company" had deluded them with spe
cious pretenses. In the summer of 1691 the settlement
was broken up and the various families sought homes for
themselves in more hospitable localities. Dr. Ayrault
gives the following account of the troubles which beset
the refugees :

The protecting of us in our liberty and property was continued not
two years under said Government, before we were molested by the
vulgar sort of the people, who flinging down our fences laid open our
lands to ruin, so that all benefit thereby we were deprived of. Ruin
looked on us in a dismal state ; our wives and children living in fear
of the threats of many unruly persons ; and what benefit we expected
from our lands for subsistence was destroyed by secretly laying open
our fences by night and day ; and what little we had preserved by
flying from France, we had laid out under the then improvements. It
looked so hard upon us, to see the cryes of our wives and children,
lamenting their sad fate, flying from persecution, and coming under
his Majesty's gracious Indulgence, and by the Government promised
us, yet we, ruined. And when we complained to the Government, we
could have no relief, although some would have helped us, we judge, if
by their patience they could have borne such ill treatments as they must
expect to have met with by the unruly inhabitants there settled also.
Many of the English inhabitants compassionating our condition,
would have helped us ; but when they used any means therein, they
were evilly treated. So that these things did put us then upon looking

THE NABKAGANSETT SETTLEMENT 155

for a place of shelter, in our distressed condition ; and hearing that
many of our distressed country people had been protected and well
treated in Boston and Yorke, to seek out new habitations, where the
Governments had compassion on them, and gave them relief and help,
to their wives and children subsistance. Only two families moving to
Boston, and the rest to New York, and there bought lands, some of
them, and had time given them for payment. And so was they all
forced away from their lands and houses, orchards and vineyards,
taking some small matter from some English people for somewhat of
their labour ; thus leaving all habitations. Some people got not any
thing for their labour and improvements, but Greenwich men who had
given us the disturbance, getting on the lands, so improved in any
way they could, and soon pulled down and demolished our church.

It is only fair to the "Greenwich men" to state that
the tract of land occupied by the French had been granted
to these " unruly persons" by the legislature of Ehode
Island in 1677, so that they looked upon the refugees as
nothing short of interlopers. Besides doing everything
in their power to dispossess the Huguenots, the people of
Greenwich sent a petition to the governor in which they
desired to know i i by what order or Lawe or by what means
those Frenchmen are settled in our town bounds," and
in which they asserted that the presence of these intruders
"proves great detriment to us," and prophesied that
unless the French were made to vacate their illegal hold
ings the persons to whom the land belonged would "be
utterly ruined."

Their plan for establishing a community proving itself scattered
a failure, and having sunk the greater part of their funds c
in the common venture, the refugees could no longer pro
ceed as a body but were forced to become widely scattered
upon leaving the Narragansett settlement. The condi
tions prevailing in the province of New York seemed
most favourable to the majority of the Huguenots, and
of the twenty -five families who removed thither the fol
lowing found homes in New York city itself : Bouniot,
Coudret, the three David families, Galay, Grazilier,
Jamain, Lafon, Lambert, La Vigne, LeBreton, the two

156

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Magni families, Eambert, Eatier, Eobineau, both Targe
families, Traverrier, and Touge"re. The families of Ber-
tiD, Chadene, Frontier and Benaud joined the settlement
at New Eochelle. The families of Allaire, Arnaud,
Beauchamps, Barbut, Deschamps, Legare and Tourtellot
went to Boston. Germon and Grignon journeyed through
the woods to the settlement at Oxford. South Carolina
received Amian, Jouet, Le Brun and Le Gendre, and
Milford, Connecticut, became the home of Paul Collin.
Jean Julien went only as far as Newport, while Ayrault
and Le Moine, of all the settlers, were the only ones to
remain in Greenwich. Le Moine' s descendants, under
the name of Money or Mawney, still possess the farm
which their ancestor cut out of the forest. A few of the
emigrants, Pastor Carre among them, disappear from the
records after the year 1691, and it is impossible to trace
them to their new habitations or state what fate befell
them.

£psfon Old Latin School Where French Church Jlst

CHAPTEE V
THE FEENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON

THE history of the French Protestant Church in
Boston forms an essential part of the story of the
French who found refuge among the Puritans in
this land which was destined to become one of religious
liberty, although the principle of freedom of conscience
had to be established through the independent stand of
those who would not yield to Congregationalism in
America those things from which they had fled in
Europe.

The date of the organization of the French Protestants
of Boston into a church is not definitely known. Such an Organized by
organization was in existence as early as 1685, with a l68s
settled minister, as is shown by the correspondence be
tween Eev. Peter Daille and Eev. Increase Mather, min
ister of the North Church in Boston and President of
Harvard College. Dr. Charles W. Baird thinks it highly Peter Daille
probable that this congregation, like some others, may
have been gathered together by the excellent Daille,
who gained the title of the l i Apostle of the Huguenots in
America," collecting them into churches in various
sections of the country as Paul gathered the Christian
converts in Asia Minor. Daille came to America in 1682,
sent out by the Bishop of London to labour among the
French emigrants in the new world.

We know that the French were treated most kindly by „ Latine
the ministers and the public authorities of Boston, who |ra°?ed°fo?e
received the little flock of strangers as brothers fleeing Meetings
from home persecution on account of their faith, and thus

157

Proposed
Temple

1704

158 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

worthy of every consideration. The Council of Boston
on November 24, 1687, granted liberty " to the French Con
gregation to ineete in the Latine Schoolhouse at Boston as
desired." This Latin School was the beginning of the
educational system in Boston, and gave the name of
Schoolhouse Lane to what is now School Street. In the
old schoolhouse, which stood just southeast of the present
King's Chapel, the French Church continued to worship
for nearly thirty years. At least ten years earlier than
this there was an effort made to build a suitable * l tem
ple," as we learn from the Massachusetts Archives where
are preserved the Minutes of Council. Under date of
January 12, 1704 is this record :

Upon a Representation made by Mr. Daill6 Minister and the Elders
of the French Protestant Church in Boston That his late Majesty, King
William, had bestowed on them Eighty -three pounds to be Imploy'd
towards building them a House for the Publick Worship of God, set
ting forth, That they have purchased a piece of land in Schoolhouse
Lane in Boston for that use, Praying to be licensed to aske and receive
the Benevolence of well-disposed persons that shall be willing to en
courage so pious a worke to assist them in said Building : Advised
that License be accordingly granted and the moneys thereby collected
to be put into the hands of Simeon Stoddard Esqr and to be applyed
for the use afores'd and no other. And the House when built to be
forever continued and improved for religious worship.

Ref£sedion While the Council consented, the selectmen refused

their permission to build at this time, renewing however
the " offer of the free liberty to meet in the new school-
house," which, they said, was " sufficient for a far larger
number of persons'7 than that composing the congrega
tion. Mr. Julien thinks it may fairly be surmised that
this refusal was based upon a feeling that the Huguenot
custom of observing Christmas and like festival days, to
gether with the fact that the congregation spoke a
foreign tongue, seemed to justify to their Puritan neigh
bours a measure of restraint. This is not unlikely in

THE FEENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON 159

view of the fact that it was deemed essential to enact in
the laws of Massachusetts Bay, 1651, that " whosoever
shall be found observing any such day as Christmas, or
the like, either by forbearing labour, feasting, or any
other way upon such account as aforesaid, every such
person so offending shall pay for every such offense, five
shillings as a fine to the county. ' '

It is known, moreover, that while Pastor Daille" was Liturgy not
admired and esteemed by the English, many of whom
sometimes came to hear his eloquent sermons, yet the
stricter class of the Puritans could not be expected to
favour a liturgical worship that reminded them of what
they would fain forget, or observances which savoured to
them of popery. Samuel Sewall, who was next door neigh
bour to one of the Huguenot merchants, Jacques Leblond,
enters in his famous diary a gentle protest against one of
these practices : i i This day I spake with Mr. Newman
about his partaking with the French Church on the 25th
of December on account of its being Christmas day, as
they abusively call it." Another surmise may be made,
namely, that the selectmen, who represented a govern
ment that was a combination of Church and State, did not
wish any other form of church organization to become so
firmly established as to own a house of worship, and
treated the French precisely as they did the Baptists who
desired to build meeting houses : with this difference, that
they were much more kindly and lenient in disposition
towards the French, and did not persecute them as they
did those of kindred blood who took their stand for
liberty of conscience. There are, indeed many evidences
that the French had the cordial regard of their Puritan Regard for the
neighbours. " 'Tis my hope," said Cotton Mather, French
" that the English churches will not fail in respect to any
that have endured hard things for their faithfulness to
the Son of God." This hope was realized. While the
plans for a church building were delayed for a decade,
until after the death of the good minister, Daille", who had

160 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

House in 1715 cherished the project, in 1715 a house of worship, an un
pretentious brick building, was erected on the plot of
ground originally intended for it, and the French church
had a home of its own until it gave up its separate
existence.

Ill

The first pastor of the French church was a severe trial
Erratic Pastor both to the members and the outside friends. Laurent-ills
Van den Bosch, more properly Laurent du Bois, of
French parentage, had lived some time in Holland and
adopted a Dutch patronymic. He was erratic in the ex
treme. Eeinoving to England, he conformed to the Eng
lish church, and came to America with a license from the
Bishop of London. In Boston he speedily made himself
disliked by his disregard of rules and haughty and stub
born demeanour when reproved. He also embroiled his
little congregation, and his conduct was so prejudicial
that Mr. Daille" wrote to Eev. Increase Mather, begging
him not to permit the annoyance occasioned by Mr.
"Vandenbosk" to diminish his favour towards the
French, since the fault of a single person ought not to be
imputed to others to their harm.

Fortunately for all concerned Vandenbosk soon left

Boston, and was followed by a man of very different

character, a most estimable minister who accompanied

Good the French Protestants from the island of St. Christopher

Bonrepos

in 1686. The coming of this company added much to
the strength of the French congregation, which was
• never large in numbers, and the new pastor, David Bon
repos, was able to heal the divisions caused by his pred
ecessor, and to enter into most pleasant relations with
his fellow ministers. His little flock was to be pitied
that after a year of such admirable service to the cause in
Boston he was called to minister to the Huguenot colonies
in New Eochelle, Stateu Island, and New Paltz, in the
province of New York.

THE FEENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON 161

" There are not more than twenty French families
here," he wrote from Boston in the winter of 1687, " and
their number is diminishing daily, as they remove into
the country to buy or take up lands for cultivation with
a view to permanent settlement." The way these com
paratively few families held together and maintained their
church is remarkable ; all the more so when it is con
sidered that for eight years after Mr. Bonrepos left them
they were pastorless, the pulpit being supplied irregularly
by ^zechiel Carre", minister of the French colony in Nar-
ragansett, Daniel Bondet, of New Oxford, and occasion
ally by Eev. Nehemiah Walter, John Eliot's successor at
the First Church in Eoxbury, who was an accomplished
French scholar, and was glad to render this service to the
appreciative refugees

Affairs were not promising until Mr. Daille" came to
Massachusetts from New York, where he had been settled
as minister of the French congregation from the time of
his arrival in America. He served as pastor of the French
church in Boston from 1696 until his death, nineteen
years later. This was the period of greatest prosperity
for the church. Mr. Bailie" was received by his brother
ministers with the consideration his character and talents
merited. He bore a distinguished name — that of the
famous minister of Charenton, Jean Daille, one of the
most learned scholars and theologians of his age. Before
coming to America, moreover, Pierre had been professor A scholar and
in the great Protestant Academy of Saumur, the most
celebrated of the four Protestant colleges of France, "for
eighty years a torch that illuminated all Europe." Like
other scholars of his time he wrote Latin fluently, and
his letters to Eev. Increase Mather show the marks of the
scholar and courteous French gentleman. He was in
truth a fine type of the Huguenot, adding to his breeding
and learning an earnest and unaffected piety. "He is
full of fire, godliness and learning," wrote the Dutch
minister Selyns of New York. i i Banished on account of

162 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

his religion, he maintains the cause of Jesus Christ with
untiring zeal." Such a minister and man was an influ
ence of inestimable good to the New England colony, not
simply to his own people, who revered and loved him as
one who had shared the fires of persecution in the bonds
of a common faith.

The liturgy observed by the refugees in their public re-
ligious services, says Baird, was that which had been in
use among the Eeformed churches of France for nearly a
century and a half. Modelled by Calvin upon primitive
offices, it was of rigid simplicity, yet it was orderly and
impressive. The Sunday service was preceded by the
reading of several chapters of Holy Scripture. The read
ing was performed, not by the clergyman, but by a "lec-
teur," who was also the "chantra" or precentor, and who
frequently united with these functions those of the parish
schoolmaster during the week. In Dailies day the "lec-
teur" was probably "old Mr. John Eawlins," whom the
pastor remembered affectionately in his will. The read
ing ended with the decalogue ; and then came the service
conducted by the minister. It began with a sentence of
invocation, followed by an invitation to prayer, and a
general confession of sins. The congregation rose with
the words of invocation, and remained standing during
prayer, but resumed their seats when the psalm was given
out for singing. This was the people's part — the service
of song — in a ritual without other audible response ; and
all the Huguenot fervour broke out in those strains that
had for generations expressed the faith and the religious
joy of a persecuted race. A brief extempore prayer pre
ceded the sermon. They closed with the Lord's Prayer
and the Apostles' Creed, except when the Communion
was to be administered ; and after the benediction the
congregation was dismissed with the word of peace, and
an injunction to remember the poor, as they passed the

THE FEENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON 163

alms' chests at the church door. A prominent seat was
reserved in the church for the " anciens " or elders of the
congregation. These, with the pastor, constituted the
Cousistoire, or Church Session. They were elected by
the people, holding office for a term of years, and had en
tire charge of the church government, both spiritual and

material.

The Earl of Bellomont, while governor of Massachu- Favourable
setts, in an address to the General Court upon his last
visit to Boston, thus expressed his opinion of the French
refugees : "I recommend to your care the French min
ister of this town, who is destitute of a maintenance, be
cause there are so few families here. Let the present
raging persecution of the French Protestants in France
stir up your zeal and compassion towards him. I wish
for your sakes the French Protestants had been encour
aged among you. They are a good sort of people, very
ingenious, industrious, and would have been of great use
for peopling this country, and enriching it by trade. "
Perhaps stimulated by this interest, the French Protes
tants in Boston presented a petition to him and to the
general court for aid in the support of the gospel ministry
among them. They ' ' take leave to signifie that many of
their flock being already gone away who contributed
much for the subsistence of their minister, the few that
remain are not capable of furnishing the one-half that is
necessary, and they must undergo the unhappyness of
being deprived of the consolation of the holy ministry of Petition for
the word of God (whereof the unheard-of cruelty of the
persecutors of the church had deprived them in their own
country) unless they may obtain your Christian assist
ance.7' The petitioners also state that they have " borne
great charges in paying taxes for the poor of New Ox
ford, who by occasion of the war withdrew themselves,
and since that they have assisted many who returned to
Oxford in order to their resettlement."

164 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Slender Sup
port

Tomb in Old
Granary

His Will

This petition was referred to a committee, which re
ported that "for their encouragement as strangers and
for the carrying on the publick worship of God amongst
them there be paid unto their minister twelve punds
of the publick treasury." This report was passed by
both branches of the General Court, and so far as recorded
was the only grant from the public funds.

The support was so slender that Mr. Daille sometimes
questioned whether he could remain ; but he lived up to
his own declaration that " A minister must use every ex
pedient before deserting his flock. ' ? Among those expe
dients was an appeal to the English Society for the
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts ; an appeal
that was seconded by Governor Dudley, who spoke of
him as u an honest man and good preacher, ' ' who in the
governor's belief had not more than thirty pounds per
annum to live upon. The society declined, on the ground
that the French church did not belong to the Anglican
communion, and the pastor laboured on till his death,
May 20, 1715, in his sixty- seventh year.

No minister of the early colonial days did more honour
to his calling than the learned and devoted Pierre Daille*,
whose tombstone may be seen in the Old Granary Bury
ing Ground. And however inadequate his salary, with
the characteristic thrift of his people, this good man in
some way managed to save up enough to be able to leave
some considerable bequests in his will. His first remem
brance was for the church and its ministers. He gave all
his French and Latin books — at a time when such books
were of great value — to the church for the use of its min
isters. He remembered their necessities, besides, by giv
ing one hundred pounds to be let out at interest for the
help and support of the minister ; and he bequeathed
ten pounds towards the erection of the meeting house
for which he had longed. For the rest he gave three
hundred and fifty pounds in province bills or silver
equivalent thereto, and his negro man-servant named

THE FRENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON 165

Kuffy and all his " plate, cloaths, household goods and
furniture," to his "loving wife, Martha," who was his
third wife ; the residue of his estate going to his brother
Paul in Holland. In saving as in spirituality this
French apostle set a worthy example to his brethren
in the ministry. His character may be read as through
an open window in a sentence in one of his private
letters: "I have always determined to injure no one His Motto
by my words or otherwise, but on the contrary to serve
whomsoever I might be able to serve."

The French Church in Boston was to have but one
more pastor, who was settled before many months. A
call was given to Andre Le Mercier, a young man lately Pastor
graduated from the Academy of Geneva, and recom- from Geneva
mended highly by the church authorities there, who took
a paternal interest in the Calvinistic churches in America.
A salary of one hundred pounds was offered him, the
arrangement being made by Andrew Faneuil, indicating
that the congregation was more prosperous than hitherto.
Leaders in it were Andrew Faneuil, James Bowdoin,
Daniel Johonnot, and Andrew Sigourney, each of whom
at his death left a generous bequest to the pastor. This
may perhaps explain in part the amount saved by Mr.
Daille, though such bequests to him are not a matter of
record. Soon after the coming of the new minister the
" meeting house" was built, diagonally opposite the
Latin School on School Street. This pastorate continued
thirty-four years. While not so brilliant a preacher as Thirty-four

-rx •!! / T T..- • Years' Pastor-

Daille, Le Mercier was pious and earnest and a diligent ate
worker in various fields. Two books from his pen are
extant: a " History of the Church and Eepublic of
Geneva," and a " Treatise Against Detraction." He
busied himself in the improvement of agriculture in Mas
sachusetts, and was very zealous in humane endeavours
to preserve the lives of seamen shipwrecked upon the

166 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Originator of

Life-Saving

Service

Sable Island

Dissolving
Church

End in 1748

dangerous coast of Nova Scotia. In 1738 he petitioned
the governor and council of Nova Scotia for a grant of
the Sable Island, off that coast, that he might erect build
ings thereon and stock the island with such domestic
animals as might be useful in preserving the lives of
escaped mariners. The grant was made, and the colonial
governments of Nova Scotia and Massachusetts issued
proclamations warning all persons against destroying or
removing the improvements made by the proprietor of
the island. It is said that many lives were saved by this
humane enterprise, which in a sense was the origin of the
life-saving coast service of to-day. Sable Island has con
tinued to be the scene of frequent shipwrecks, and at
present the noble work begun by the Huguenot pastor of
Boston is carried on by government at an expense of four
thousand dollars yearly, maintaining a force of men
furnished with provisions and appliances for the relief
of shipwrecked sailors. Let it not be forgotten that the
sailors owe a debt of gratitude to Andre Le Mercier, the
refugee minister of Boston.

That the membership of the French Church decreased
under his ministry is not to be attributed chiefly to any
lack in him either as preacher or pastor, but rather to
the aptitude of the French for assimilation. The chil
dren became proficient in the English language, and
through their associations were led naturally to favour
the American churches. The tendency was irresistible,
and when the young people were "driven to other
churches" (a charge laid against Le Mercier with prob
ably scant justice) it was only a question of time when
the French Church should cease to exist. This time came
in 1748, when the membership had become reduced to a
mere handful. Through intermarriage the leading French
families had formed close interests in such churches as
Trinity and King's Chapel, the Faneuils becoming prom
inent supporters of the latter. On the dissolution of the
French Church the meeting house passed into possession

THE FEENCH CHUECH IN BOSTON 167

of a new Congregational society, with the proviso that
the building was to be preserved for the sole use of a
Protestant sanctuary forever. How little human pro
visions can control is shown by the fact that, in spite of
the condition of sale, forty years later the Huguenot
" tern pie" was sold to the Eoman Catholics, and mass
was said within its walls by a Eomish priest November
2, 1788. As for Le Mercier, he lived for sixteen years
after the dissolution of the church, spending his last days
upon an estate which he had purchased in Dorchester,
Massachusetts, where he died March 31, 1764.

During Daille's pastorate the church received a present Queen Anne
of a Bible from Queen Anne for pulpit use. This Bible I
was highly esteemed and continued in use until the
church dissolved, when it passed into possession of Eev.
Mather Byles, first pastor of the Hollis Street Congrega
tional Church, whose library was subsequently sold, the
Bible going to Mr. E. Cobb, by whose widow it was pre
sented in 1831 to the Divinity Library of Harvard Uni
versity, where it is now carefully preserved. The book
is in a very good state of preservation ; contains a few
illustrations and maps, and the Apocrypha; and was
printed in Amsterdam, by the Elzeviers in 1669.

CHAPTER VI

The Rivoires

Early Life

Artist En
graver

PAUL REVERE

>AUL REVERE, born in Boston on January 8,
1735, was descended from an honourable Huguenot
family — the Rivoires of Romagnieu. His father,
Apollos Rivoire, came to Boston from the Island of
Guernsey, when he was a lad of thirteen, and was set to
learn the goldsmith's trade as apprentice to John Coney.
After he had established himself in the business of a gold
and silversmith, he married Deborah Hichborn ; and the
third child of this union was Paul Revere, craftsman,
artist and patriot.

Revere received his education at the famous old i i North
Grammar School," which stood on North Bennett Street.
After leaving school he entered his father's shop as an
apprentice. He possessed a natural taste for drawing,
and became very skillful in the use of the graver ; exe
cuting most of the embellishments on the silverware then
manufactured in Boston. Many are the cups, spoons,
mugs, pitchers, tankards, and other articles of beautiful
patterns, made by him, and still owned by our New Eng
land families ; some are now in every day use ; all are
treasured relics. If not as famous or gifted as Cellini,
abundant monuments remain to prove that Revere was
also an artist, as praiseworthy for the beauty and grace
of his artistic creations as for their excellent handiwork.
Long practice in the successful embellishment of silver
ware caused him to learn the art of engraving on copper
plate, entirely self-taught ; and numerous specimens of
his handiwork in this line are still in existence, treasured
memorials of a skillful and patriotic hand. Many of his
pictures were political caricatures, and engravings of his-

168

PAUL REVERE, Portrait by Gilbert Stuart

PAUL EEVEEE 169

toric scenes closely connected with the struggle for Inde
pendence.

But Eevere was not wholly satisfied with leading a life hiesgMiiit1agr°f
of quiet prosperity. He longed for a taste of military life, career
and obtained his desire by joining the second expedition
against Crown Point— serving through the campaign as a
lieutenant of artillery. On his return to civil life he mar
ried Miss Sarah Orne and settled down to his trade.
From thence on he devoted considerable of his time to en
graving, and his art was immensely popular during the
years preceding the Eevolution. His bold attempts at £2!caturis?
copperplate engraving are rude enough to be sure ; but
they were considered good at the time, and were vastly
better than nothing. His keen sense of humour found con
genial employment in the caricatures of political events
which issued from his shop and obtained a wide popular
ity. His art was always used in favour of the people, of
the masses ; he was quick at perceiving the striking
features of the hour ; and his ready genius to portray
them made him the l l offhand artist of many caricatures
intended to bring ridicule upon the enemy, and the author
of various sketches of interesting scenes of which he was
an eye-witness."

Eevere' s patriotic services began in 1765, when he be
came one of the first members of the famous ' ' Sons of sons of
Liberty" — an organization which soon became famous
for its intimidation of the stamp -distributors and its keen
opposition to any enforcement of the hated Stamp Act.
He was likewise an active member of "Long Eoom
Club" and the "STorth End Caucus"— the latter being
the association which gave birth to "The Boston Tea- Boston Tea
Party." Eevere became the confidential messenger of
the patriots and travelled thousands of miles on horseback,
during troublous times, when railroads and steamboats
were unknown. During all these years he had a large
family to support ; yet he was so constituted as to find Ardent Patriot
sufficient leisure to interest himself in all the matters

170 THE FEENCH BLOOD

AMEEICA

The Midnight
Ride

pertaining to the public good, watching closely the
course of political events in the pre-revolutionary
days. " With well-considered, settled opinions, his will
was strong ; while his general gifts rendered him com
petent to great emergencies, and equal to great events.
The result was, that in a crisis like that of rousing the
people to conflict on the eve of the first struggle for our
Independence, he was the wise counsellor at home, and
the daring actor in the field."

Eevere took many rides in the service of the Eevolu-
tionary party, but most famous of them all was the ride
on the night of the 18th of April, 1775 — " the most im
portant single exploit in our nation's annals." Long
fellow's account is known throughout the land ; and there
fore the insertion of the following extracts from Eevere' s
own version of the affair is made at the risk of repeating
a well-known story :

Revere's

Telling of the
Story

April 18, 1775
Committee on
Watch

The Lantern
Signals

In the fall of 1774, and winter of 1775, I was one of upwards of
thirty, chiefly mechanics, who formed ourselves into a committee for the
purpose of watching the movements of the British soldiers, and gain
ing every intelligence of the movements of the Tories. We held our
meetings at the Green Dragon Tavern. We were so careful that our
meetings should be kept secret, that every time we met, every person
swore upon the Bible that they would not discover any of our trans
actions but to Messrs. Hancock, Adams, and one or two more. . . .
In the winter, towards the spring, we frequently took turns, two by
two, to watch the soldiers, by patrolling the streets all night. The
Saturday night preceding the 19th of April, about twelve o'clock at
night, the boats belonging to the transports were all launched, and
carried under the sterns of the men-of-war. We likewise found that
the grenadiers and light infantry were all taken off duty. From these
movements we expected something serious was to be transacted.
. . I agreed with a Colonel Conant and some other gentlemen^
that if the British went out by water, we would show two lanterns in
the North Church steeple; and if by land, one as a signal ; for we were
apprehensive it would be difficult to cross Charles River, or get over
Boston Neck. ... I then went home, took my boots and surtout,
went to the north part of the town, where I kept a boat ; two friends
rowed me across Charles River a little to the eastward where the

PAUL EEVERE

171

Deacon

Larkin

Meeting

British

Officers

Sounding the
Alarm

Somerset man-of-war lay. It was then young flood, the ship was wind
ing, and the moon was rising.

They lauded me on the Charlestown side. When I got into town, I Getting Ready
met Colonel Conant and several others ; they said they had seen our
signals. I told them what was acting, and went to get me a horse ; I
got a horse of Deacon Larkiu. While the horse was preparing, Richard
Deveus, Esq., who was one of the Committee of Safety, came to me,
and told me that he came down the road from Lexington, after sun
down, that evening ; that he met ten British officers, all well mounted
and armed, going up the road.

I set off upon a very good horse ; it was then about eleven o'clock
and very pleasant. After I had passed Charlestown Neck, and got
nearly opposite where Mark was hung in chains, I saw two men on
horseback, under a tree. When I got near them, I discovered they
were British officers. One tried to get ahead of me, and the other to
take me. I turned my horse very quick, and galloped towards Charles-
town Neck, and then pushed for the Medford road. The one who
chased me, endeavouring to cut me off, got into a clay pond, near where
the new tavern is now built. I got clear of him, and went through
Medford, over the bridge, and up to Menotomy. In Medford I waked
the Captain of the minute men ; and after that, I alarmed almost
every house till I got to Lexington.

At Lexington he gave the alarm to John Hancock and
Samuel Adams, and then pressed on towards Concord
" to secure the stores, etc., there." On his way, how
ever, he met with some British officers ; u in an instant I
was surrounded by four j — they had placed themselves in
a straight road, that inclined each way ; they had taken
down a pair of bars on the north side of the road, and two
of them were under a tree in the pasture. ... I ob
served a wood at a small distance, and made for that.
When I got there, out started six officers, on horseback,
and ordered me dismount. ' ' And thus the i ' midnight
ride of Paul Bevere" came to an untimely end.

During the war Eevere served his country in a dual
capacity — as a Colonel in the Massachusetts artillery, and
as a producer of gunpowder and cannon. In the capacity
of Colonel, he had active command of the defenses of
Boston harbour until he resigned from the service in 1779.
As a manufacturer he was sent to Philadelphia by the

Stopped by
the Enemy

Colonel and
Powder Maker

172 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Successful
Manufacturer

Mechanics'
Association
1795

Death in 1818

Council to gain a knowledge of powder making in order
that the colony might make its own ammunition ; and he
also was engaged to oversee the casting of cannon. He
found time, meanwhile, to engrave and print the Massa
chusetts colony notes, and make dies for coins.

After the war Revere launched out into new enter
prises, the most important of which was the establishment
of a foundry where he undertook the casting of cannon,
ironware and church bells. He perfected a process of
preparing copper for use in bolts and spikes, etc., for
naval purposes, and furnished the sheathing and fittings
for Old Ironsides, and many another gallant vessel.
His business prospered greatly, as his foundry was the
only one in the country which could turn out sheet cop
per. It is interesting to note that he furnished the cop
per boilers for Robert Fulton's Hudson River steamboats.

A lasting monument to the ruling passion of his life is
the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanics Association
which, chiefly through his instrumentality, was formed in
1795. He was its first president, and continued in that
office until 1799, when he declined re-election, although
his interest in its affairs was undiminished and his counsel
its main dependence.

Revere died on May 10, 1818, at the age of eighty-three
years. His body was placed in the Granary Burial
Ground near that of his fellow Huguenot, Peter Faneuil,
almost under the shadow of the State House whose cor
ner-stone he helped to set and whose significance he had
laboured to establish. It is pleasant to know that the last
years of his useful, self-sacrificing life were passed in
prosperity, and in the esteem and love of his countrymen.
He was a fine type of the highly skilled artisan class
which formed so large a part of the Huguenot emigration.
He was equally a true representative of the Huguenots in
his sturdy patriotism and devotion to the right as he saw
it. He was a zealous and honoured member of the Ma
sonic fraternity in Boston, as appears elsewhere.

CHAPTER VII
THE FANEUIL FAMILY

NE of the foremost families of these early settlers Benjamin
from France was that of Faneuil — name indissol-
ubly associated with Boston. In a list of the
French nationality admitted into the Bay Colony by the
Governor and Council, on February 1, 1691, are the
names of Benjamin, John and Andrew Faneuil. As
these brothers were among the refugees who were fortu
nate in bringing property with them to this country, it is
probable that Benjamin had a financial interest in both
of the Huguenot settlements — that at Oxford, Massachu
setts, and at New Eochelle, New York, as his name ap
pears in connection with them. When the Oxford enter
prise was given up, after a ten years' struggle with
hardship and Indians, Benjamin Faneuil chose New
York for his residence, and established a home there,
marrying one Anne Bureau, a French lady of that place.
On a horizontal slab in Trinity churchyard, New York,
is the inscription : i i Here lies buried the body of Mr.
Benjamin Faneuil of the city of Eochelle, France, who
died the 31st of March, 1719, aged 60 years and 8
months."

Andrew Faneuil, brother of Benjamin, was one of the
most prominent members of the Huguenot colony in Andrew-
Boston, and a leader in the organization of the French l
Protestant Church. He escaped from France and lived
for a time in Holland, where he was married. This
record is preserved : l i The death of Mrs. Mary Cather
ine, wife of Mr. Andrew Faneuil, occurred in Boston,

173

174 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

His Fine
Mansion

July 16, 1724, a gentlewoman of extraordinary perfections
both in mind and body. ' ' A portrait, representing her
as a beautiful woman, was brought to America and treas-
citizen in 1691 ured in the family. The exact date of their coming is not
known, but Andrew's name appears on the tax list in
1691, and it is plain that he was a man of affairs in the
town at that time. Like his brother, he was doubtless
one of those fortunate Huguenots who, having an estate
in France, had been able to take a goodly portion with
him when he left his native land, and had not come
empty handed to Boston. It is evident that he made an
early investment in the city, for in a petition dated Feb
ruary 20, 1709, to build a wharf from the bottom of King
(now State) Street to low water mark, it is described as
"of the width of King Street, between Mr. East Ap-
thorp's and Mr. Andrew Faneiol's." He was soon well
established in a lucrative business, and the owner of large
real estate interests. His warehouse was on Butler Square,
out of State Street, and his mansion, one of the finest in
the city, surrounded by seven acres of admirably kept
gardens, was on Tremout Street, opposite King's Chapel
Burying Ground.

Andrew Faneuil was a positive, peculiar and interest
ing character. He did not remarry, though he kept up
his stately establishment, and had black and white serv
ants in plenty. His brother Benjamin of New York had
a family of eleven children, and Andrew undertook the
care of three of them — Benjamin and Peter, the oldest
sons, and Mary Anne, their sister. He chose Benjamin,
his nephew, for his heir, on the one freakish condition
that the young man should never marry. Benjamin
agreed, and the relations went on harmoniously enough
until a certain Miss Mary Cutler, a young lady of many
personal attractions, educated, refined, and a poetess to
boot, led the nephew to choose expulsion from his home,
with his love, just as the uncle preferred exile with

Nephew
Benjamin
Loses a For
tune

THE FANEUIL FAMILY 175

religious liberty to France and spiritual enslavement.
Andrew was inflexible, and turned to Benjamin's brother,
Peter, as his hope for a worthy heir and representative.
Peter was without matrimonial inclinations and accepted Nephew Peter
the terms, becoming heir presumptive in his turn, and Becomes Heir
likewise the business partner of his uncle. The ousted
Benjamin, who had gone into business on his own ac
count, was prospering, and all three Faneuils were happy
and highly respected, and becoming rich and influential
as the result of ability, integrity, and that sturdy quality
of conscience that compels recognition. Three of the
New York Benjamin's daughters had meanwhile married
Boston citizens — a clergyman, a lawyer, and a prosperous
merchant — so that the Faneuil family was well established
in the business and social life of Boston.

Andrew Faneuil died in February, 1738, and the mag- A Great
nificence of his funeral gave evidence of the position he 1738
had attained in the city. The newspaper report says,
"Last Monday the corpse of Andrew Faneuil, Esquire,
whose death we mentioned in our last, was honourable
interred here, above 1,100 persons of all Eanks, beside
the Mourners, following the Corpse, also a vast number of
spectators were gathered together on the Occasion, at
which time the half -minute guns from on board several
vessels were discharged. And 'tis supposed that as the
Gentleman's fortune was the greatest of any among us,
so his funeral was the most generous and expensive of
any that has been known here."

Peter Faneuil saw to it that every propriety was ob
served, and three thousand pairs of mourning gloves were
distributed to the friends in attendance, while two hun
dred mourning rings were given to the nearer friends of
the family. The business and estate now fell to Peter.
In his will, however, Andrew proved his devotion to his
faith by first of all leaving his warehouse in trust for the
support of the ministers and elders of the French church
in Boston, which he had staunchly supported. If the

176 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Boston's

Wealthiest

Merchant

Peter
Described

A Good Liver

Generous and
Just

church should cease to be, as he foresaw it might through
the intermarriage of the Huguenot with the Puritan ele
ment, the warehouse was to revert to his heirs.

Ill

How much property Andrew Faneuil left was not an
nounced, but it was commonly understood that he was
the wealthiest merchant in the province, and Peter now
succeeded to that proud position. He was thirty-eight
years old when he became the i i topiniest merchant in the
town," as Thomas Hancock put it. He was corpulent,
with large, well-rounded features, had a genial disposi
tion, and ambitions and tastes in keeping with his for
tune. He was fond of display and good living, and his
home was the scene of open-handed hospitality. He or
dered from London a ' l handsome chariot with two sets
of harness, with the arms as inclosed in the same in the
handsomest manner that you shall judge proper, but at
the same time nothing gaudy," and ordered also "two
sober men, the one for a coachman, the other for a gar
dener ; and as most servants from Europe are apt when
here to be debauched with strong drink, rum, etc., being
very plenty, I pray your particular care in this article."
He sends for the " latest best book of the several sorts of
cookery, which pray let be of the largest character for the
benefit of the maid's reading." He refurnishes and re
stocks the mansion, and among other new articles, buys
for house use "as likely a strait negro lad" as could be
found, " of a tractable disposition and one that had had
the smallpox."

With the waning of the French church, Peter Faneuil
became a worshipper at Trinity church, of which his
brother-in-law, the Rev. Addington Davenport, was rec
tor. In one of his orders from London is this item :
"Purchase for me 1 handsome, large, octavo Common
Prayer Book of a good letter, and well bound, with one
of the same in French for my own use." Thus the mother

THE FANEUIL FAMILY 177

tongue remained dear to him. He was one of the early
members of the Episcopal Charitable Society, and gave a
large sum to Trinity church to support the families of the
deceased clergy. Indeed, every charity of the time had
his name on its subscription list for a generous sum.
While Peter Faneuil was liberal to all good objects, he
was scrupulous in his business transactions, and expected
to be dealt with justly, in the same spirit in which he
dealt with others. He did not like to be wronged out of
any amount, however small, as the following extract from
his correspondence shows: "I have been very much
surprised that ever since the death of Captain Allen, you
have not advised me of the sale of a horse belonging to
my deceased uncle, left in your hands by him, which I
am informed you sold for a very good price, and I am
now to request the favour you would send me the net
proceeds in sweetmeats and citron water, your compli
ance with which will stop me from giving some of my
friends the trouble of calling you to an account there. I
shall be glad to know if Captain Allen did not leave
a silver watch and some fish, belonging to a servant of
mine, with some person of your island, and with who?
I expect your speedy answer. ' '

As Mr. Brown, the biographer of the family, puts it,
4 1 While giving a pound with one hand, he was holding
the other for a penny that was j ustly his. ' ' Some branches
of his business, although endorsed by the trade and so
ciety of his time as perfectly legitimate, would be found
wanting if weighed in the balance of modern commercial
integrity — from which we may see that, after all, the
standards have been raised instead of lowered, as is often
intimated by those pessimistically inclined. Trading with
so many ports, he received all kinds of merchandise,
wines and other liquors seeming to predominate, while
occasionally a negro slave was consigned to him. He
lived up to his conscience, however, for he writes to one
correspondent : " I would have you know that I am not

Slave Trade

The Jolly
Bachelor

178 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEETCA

so fond of a commission as to go a begging for it, or
to do any base thing to attain it. I bless God I have
fortune enough to support myself without doing any
base action." The products of the fisheries, with to
bacco, tar and staves, made up the burden of his out
going cargoes. He built sailing vessels for his own trade
and for others, and in addition to his trade with foreign
ports he carried on an extensive commerce with New
York and Philadelphia. The whole commercial world
rated Peter Faneuil as a responsible merchant, and he
never wanted for business.

The slave trade was then not disreputable, and Peter
Faneuil, like his contemporaries, was often found en
gaged in it. "The merchants of Boston quoted negroes
like any other merchandise demanded by their cor
respondents." He also did not think it wrong on occa
sion to evade the duties of the custom-house, though he
was honest in his declaration, "I value my character
more than all the money on earth." He simply shared
what may be called a common commercial conscience of
the times, which ever counted government as a lawful
prey, and accounted smuggling as skillful rather than
dishonest.

Peter Faneuil became known in his circle of intimates
as the " Jolly Bachelor," which name he gave to one of
his ships. His sister Mary Anne looked out for the care
of the household and presided with grace over his estab
lishment. It is certain, however, that he had his love
affair, and that if a certain Miss Mary Jekyll had not ac
cepted a Mr. Eichard Saltonstall instead, she might have
found a husband in Mr. Peter Faneuil. After this break
in his desire for a single life, he had no second, so far as
is known, and his sister remained mistress of the fine
mansion and generally desirable situation.

With all his love of display and good living, Peter

THE FANEUIL FAMILY 179

Faueuil was a public-spirited citizen. While engrossed
in the cares of extensive business, he had vital inter- Faneuii Haii
est in the welfare of his neighbours and friends and
in the future good of the town of Boston. From his own
experience he realized the disadvantages under which
trade was conducted without a local market. He desired
improvement in this direction, and was finally led to test
the public sentiment, which had been strangely an
tagonistic to the establishment of a public market, by
making a proposition which is set forth in a petition,
sent to the selectmen with the signatures of three hundred
and forty prominent citizens attached. The petition de
clared that Peter Faneuii, Esq. , i i hath been generously
pleased to offer at his own cost and charge to erect and
build a noble and complete structure or edifice to be im
proved for a market, for the sole use, benefit and ad
vantage of the town, provided that the town of Boston
would pass a vote for that purpose, and lay the same un
der such proper regulations as shall be thought necessary,
and constantly support it for the said use." So the war
rant for the town meeting was posted, and the matter was
discussed pro and con, for there was a great division
of opinion. There were seven hundred and twenty-
sev^en ballots cast, and the yeas won by only seven votes.
Thus near did Boston come to losing Faneuii Hall and
the "cradle of liberty." But Peter Faneuii' s plans in- TheCradieof
eluded a public meeting hall in addition to a market, ]
and it was due to him that the people had a forum. In
August, 1742, after two years spent upon the work, the
selectmen were informed that the market was finished,
and on September 10, the keys were delivered to the city
authorities. There had been a great change in public
opinion, and now the citizens unanimously voted to " ac
cept this most generous and noble benefaction for the use
and intention they are designed for."

The name came from no initiative of Peter Faneuii, but source of the
from an outside source. The records show that it was Name

180 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

voted, on motion of Thomas Hutchinson, later royal
governor, "that in testimony of the town's gratitude to
the said Peter Faneuil, Esq., and to perpetuate his memory,
the hall over the market place be named Faneuil Hall."
In response Mr. Faneuil said, l i I hope what I have done
will be for the service of the whole country." Little did
he realize how true a prophecy his words were. And in
this way this French Protestant, whose father came to
America as a refugee on account of his religious convic
tions, wrote his name indelibly on the pages of American
history. By vote his picture was drawn at full length at
the expense of the town, and placed in the hall ; and the
Faneuil coat-of-arms, so much prized by the merchant,
was carved and gilded by Moses Deshon, bought by the
town and likewise set up in the hall. The selectmen im
mediately began to meet in the new and more comfortable
quarters provided for them, and selected one of their
number to purchase i ' two pairs of brass candlesticks with
steel snuffers, and a poker for the town's use." The
house given by Peter Faneuil was regarded as the greatest
munificence the town of Boston had received. It was
built of brick, two stories high, and in comparison with
other buildings in the vicinity of Dock Square presented
a commanding appearance. With the exception of the
old State House, all the buildings that surrounded Faneuil
Hall have been replaced. But Faneuil Hall " stands and
will remain as long as the power of patriotic citizens can
retain it. The force of sentiment is seen in its preserva
tion ; and many generations yet unborn will early learn to
cherish this New England forum." The power of the
sentiment of religion that led the Huguenots to America
is akin to the sentiment of patriotism that made them of
so much good to the new world.

As for the history of Faneuil Hall, it can only be said
here that it was burned in the destructive fire of January
13, 1761 ; was rebuilt by money secured by a lottery, the
tickets being signed by John Hancock ; was enlarged and

THE FANEUIL FAMILY- 181

much altered in appearance in 1805-6 under direction of
Charles Bulimch, who designed the State House on
Beacon Hill ; and in 1898 was practically rebuilt with
steel walls, though the Bulfinch appearance was retained
outside and within. While only a small portion of the
original hall given by Peter Faneuil remains, it is still
Faneuil Hall, with all its sacred associations. In the
words of Lafayette, the great Frenchman who did so
much for America in a critical period, and whose sympa
thies were with the Huguenots, "May Faneuil Hall ever words of

Lafayette

stand, a monument to teach the world that resistance to
oppression is a duty, and will under true republican in
stitutions become a blessing.'7

Peter Faneuil died the next year after his market and
hall had been given to Boston, March 3, 1743. The Death 1743
market bell was tolled from one o'clock until the funeral
was over, by town order, and every honour was paid to
his memory. According to the obituary in the News
Letter, u he was a most generous spirit, whose hospitality
to all and secret unbounded charity to the poor, made his
life a public blessing, and his death a general loss to, and
universally regretted by, the inhabitants ; the most public-
spirited man, in all regards, that ever yet appeared on the
northern continent of America." In addition to a great Man of Public
funeral there was a public memorial service. From Will
iam Nadir's Almanac, under date of March 10, 1743, this
extract is taken : "Thursday 10, buried Peter Faueuil,
Esq., in the 43d year of age, a fat, corpulent, brown,
squat man, hip short, lame from childhood, a very large
funeral went around ye Town house ; gave us gloves at ye
funeral, but sent ye gloves on 11 day, his Coffin covered
with black velvet, & plated with yellow plates."

John Lovell, master of the Boston Latin School, de
livered the funeral oration at the memorial service held in
Faneuil Hall, and this was the beginning of such services

182 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

there. A single quotation must suffice : "It was to him
the highest enjoyment of riches, to relieve the wants of
the needy, from which he was himself exempted, to see
mankind rejoicing in the fruits of his bounty, and to feel
that divine satisfaction which results from communicat
ing happiness to others. His alms flowed like a fruitful
river, that diffuses its streams through a whole country.
He fed the hungry, and he cloathed the naked, he com
forted the fatherless and the widows in their afliction,
and his bounties visited the prisoner. So that Almighty
God in giving riches to this man, seems to have scattered
blessings all abroad among the people."

From this common testimony as to his charity, he must
have been entitled to large praise as a benefactor of the
needy. He failed to make a will, and the estate which
his uncle expressly withheld from his brother Benjamin
now came into the custody of that individual, and a good
share of it into his possession. The estate was soon scat
tered. The Faneuils during the Revolutionary days were
among the Tories, and fled either to England or Nova
Scotia. The Faneuil tomb is in the westerly corner of the
Granary Burying Ground. After the Revolution, the
family played an unimportant part in the life of Boston ;
but Andrew and Peter Faneuil will ever be among the
noted names of the Huguenot settlers in the new world.
They represented in many respects the best traits of the
Huguenot character, and show what splendid material
France lost through her misguided policy.

CHAPTER VIII

THE BOWDOINS, DANAS, AND OTHEE
FAMILIES

JAMES BOWDOIN, elder son of Pierre Baudouin the
emigrant, was born in 1676. He became a highly l676
successful Boston merchant, was for a number of
years a member of the Massachusetts council, and when
he died, in 1747, was accounted to have left the largest
estate ever owned by any citizen of the province.

His son, James, was born in Boston in 1727 and was james Bow-
graduated from Harvard in 1745. By the death of his doin Scientist
father two years later he came into possession of the great
estate, and for the next few years devoted himself to the
care of his property and to scientific and literary studies.
When he was twenty-four years old he paid a visit to
Benjamin Franklin, with whom he afterwards corre
sponded to such good purpose that Franklin read his let
ters before the Eoyal Society of London. It is interest
ing to note that in one of these letters Bowdoin suggested
the theory, now generally accepted, that under certain
conditions the phosphorescence of the sea is due to the
presence of minute animals. During his entire life he
was greatly interested in natural science, and it is highly
probable that he would have made still more valuable
contributions to knowledge if patriotism and ill health
had not cut short his studies. But although suffering
from consumption for many years, he nevertheless threw
himself with ardour into the turbulent political life of the
day.

His public career began with his election to the Massa-

183

184 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Public

Servant

Defender of
Liberty

President
Convention of
1779

American
Academy

chusetts General Court when he was twenty-six years old.
His ability soon asserted itself and three years later he
was made a member of the council. Here he distinguished
himself by his firm opposition to the royal governor and
to the encroachments of the crown upon the popular
liberty of the colony. His popularity with the people
became thus solidly intrenched, while the royal officers
both hated and feared him. In 1769 he was again chosen
as one of the councillors and was promptly negatived by
Governor Bernard. This aroused the resentment of the
Bostonians, and they showed their feeling by immediately
electing him to the assembly with an overwhelming
majority. Sickness alone prevented him from attending
the Continental Congress to which he was delegated in
1774, but by the end of the next year he was so far re
covered as to be able to act as president of the council.
The constitutional convention which assembled in 1779
chose him for its presiding officer, and he took prominent
part in shaping the action of that body. Shortly after
his election as governor of the state in 1785, he was con
fronted by a difficult problem in the shape of Shay's Ee-
bellion. His firmness and decisive action quelled the
rapidly growing insurrection without resort to blood
shed, though, in taking his prompt measures he was com
pelled to pay the expenses of the militia largely out of his
own pocket. In the words of President Timothy Dwight,
"This measure preserved the State, perhaps the Union,
and deserved for the author of it a statue." His last
public service was as a member of the convention that
adopted the federal constitution in 1788.

Although most of Governor Bowdoin' s rapidly decliniog
energies were devoted to politics, he yet found time to aid
and further many charitable and scientific enterprises.
He was one of the founders, and the first president, of the
American Academy of Arts and Letters ; and willed to
the society his valuable library. He aided in establish
ing the Massachusetts Humane Society. For many years

BOWDOINS, DANAS, AND OTHER FAMILIES 186

he was a Trustee and Fellow of Harvard College ; and Patron of
was a Fellow of the Royal Societies of London and college1"
Edinburgh. Bowdoiu College has proved a splendid
memorial to his generosity and interest in the public wel
fare.

His son, James, born in Boston in 1752, was graduated Last of
from Harvard, travelled extensively abroad, and then re
turned to serve in the assembly, state senate and state
council. He was a delegate to the constitutional conven
tion, and in 1804 was appointed minister to Spain. He
was a man of fine tastes and scholarship and of an ardent
disposition which was constantly thwarted by physical
weakness. At the outbreak of the Revolution he had en
listed, and it was the keenest regret of his life that sick
ness had prevented him from serving. He was a gener
ous patron of Bowdoin College, giving it six thousand Bequests to

f , , , .. & ,. ... the College

acres of land, a large sum of money, and bequeathing it
his library and collections of painting and scientific ap
paratus. He died without issue and "with him the
name of Bowdoin passed away from the annals of New
England."

The excellent Huguenot blood of the Bowdoins persists,
however, in the descendants of Governor Thomas L. Win-
throp, who married Elizabeth Temple, granddaughter of
Gov. James Bowdoin. The late Robert C. Winthrop,
lawyer and statesman, was thus a great-grandson of James
Bowdoin.

The sole ancestor of the Dana family in America was The pana
Richard Dana, who came to Cambridge, Mass., in 1640. Familyl6*°
The only record of the name in England is that of the
Rev. Edmund Dana, a great-grandson of Richard, who
went to England from America in 1761. According to
the traditions of the family, Richard's father was a
Huguenot who fled from France and settled in England
about 1629. One of Richard's descendants, Judah Dana,
is said to have had a silver cup which had once been

186 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Richard Dana
Patriot

Resisting the
Stamp Act

Francis 1743

Public Spirit
and Service

among the belongings which the refugee had carried with
him out of France. In view of the fact that the name
does not occur in England, and that no documentary
proof has come to light, the family tradition must be ac
cepted.

Among Eichard Dana's numerous descendants there
have been many men of eminence. It will be possible to
mention only a few of them here. Eichard Dana, grand
son of the emigrant, was born in Cambridge in 1699. He
was graduated from Harvard in 1718 and practiced law
in Boston, becoming one of the two acknowledged leaders
of the bar in that city. He was a staunch patriot and
took a prominent part in the opposition to British oppres
sion. All the offices which lay in the people's gift were
his if he so desired, but he wished no titles. Between the
years 1763 and 1772 he called and presided over many
patriotic meetings of Bostonians. He was one of the first
members of the Sons of Liberty, and in 1765 acted as
chairman of the citizen committee which devised ways
and means to thwart the Stamp Act. His death in 1772
was felt to be a distinct loss by all the patriots of Massa
chusetts.

His son, Francis, born in 1743, devoted himself to the
cause of colonial rights. He was a member of the first
Provincial Congress of Massachusetts. In 1775 he went
to England with confidential letters bearing on the state
of feeling in America, in the hope of persuading Parlia
ment to retract. A. year later he was elected to the ex
ecutive council "of the colony, and was also sent to the
Continental Congress, where he became chairman of the
committee on the reorganization of the army. He was
one of the embassy which negotiated for peace in 1779.
In 1780 he was sent as minister to Eussia, remaining there
in an endeavour to get Eussia to recognize the independ
ence of the United States — a task in which he was unsuc
cessful. After further service in the Continental Congress
he became a justice in the Supreme Court of Massa-

BOWDOINS, DANAS, AND OTHEE FAMILIES 187

chusetts, and was made chief justice in 1791, an office
which he held until his death, fifteen years later.

His son, Eichard Henry Dana, was for many years
closely connected with American literature. He was one Richard
of the founders of the North American Review, and pub- Author
lished poems, stories and essays which made him one of
the most eminent writers of his day. His son, Eichard
Henry, Jr. , will always be remembered as the author of
that American classic, " Two Years Before the Mast."

James Dana, born in 1735, was a famous Congrega- Eminent sons
tional minister. His oldest sou, Samuel W., was a
congressman for thirteen years and a senator for eleven.
Joseph Dana, a grandson of the emigrant, was also a
well-known Congregational preacher, retaining his pas
torate at Ipswich for sixty-two years. His grandson,
Israel T., was the leading surgeon of Maine and one of the
founders of the Maine General Hospital. Judah Dana
was senator from Maine in 1836, and his son, John Win
chester, was governor of that State in 1847. Samuel L.
Dana was prominently identified with the progress of
cotton manufacturing in New England, making many im
provements in the methods of printing, bleaching, etc.
He also contributed to the growth and knowledge of
scientific agriculture. Charles A. Dana was for many
years the editor of the New York Sun, making a record in
American journalism equalled only by Horace Greeley's.
The works of James Dwight Dana, professor of miner
alogy at Yale for forty-five years, are known by every
geologist throughout the civilized world.

This remarkable family, with its wide reaching in
fluence in professional lines, in public life, in education
and religion is a signal witness to the value of the
Huguenot contribution to American life.

Ill

OTHER IMMIGRANTS
About the time that the companies of destitute refugees

188 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Men of Estates were coming into Boston and Salem, other and more
fortunate Huguenots made their way to New England.
" Men of estates," as they were referred to in Sewall's
diary, who had been able to save something from the
wreck of their fortunes in France, began to seek new
homes for themselves in the colonies. It has been es
timated that one hundred and fifty families came to New
England during the last decade of the seventeenth cen
tury. Such an estimate only approximates the real
number, for the names of many families were never
entered on any records that are accessible to the historian,
and even of those whose names were recorded many
have always been regarded as of English origin, owing to
the fact that their French patronymics had become
anglicized beyond all hope of recognition.

The following are the names of some of the more im
portant refugees who were settled in and near Boston by
the end of the century :

Andrew Sigourney, who became the ancestor of a well-
known New England family, was a citizen of La Eochelle
at the time of the Eevocation. When the time came for
a squad of dragoons to be quartered in his house Sigour
ney and his wife, Charlotte Pairan, decided to hold to
their faith and make their escape from France. To this
end they laid their plans carefully, and by making use of
several ingenious devices they were able to get a portion
of their property on board a friendly vessel then lying in
the harbour. The day set for their attempt to escape was
a holiday which they felt sure the soldiers would wish to
celebrate. Accordingly they made ready a tempting
feast, and while the unsuspecting troopers were in the
middle of their celebration, the family stole unobserved
from the house and got aboard the ship, in which they
were carried safely to England. From England they
came to Boston in the summer of 1686.

Daniel Johonnot, nephew of Andrew Sigourney, was a
member of the Oxford settlement until 1696, when he came

Andrew
Sigourney

Escape from
France

Daniel
Johonnot

BOWDOINS, DANAS, AND OTHER FAMILIES 189

to Boston and set up a distillery. In the year 1700 he
married his cousin, Suzanne Sigourney, in the Old South
Church. His business, which was a prosperous one, was
carried on successively by his son Andrew and grandson
of the same name.

Anthony Olivier (Oliver) was a native of Niort, in
Poitou. He settled in Boston shortly after the Revoca
tion and engaged in the chandlery trade. His daughter,
Susanna, married Andrew Johounot, and the name is
still found in Boston to-day in the family of George Stuart
Johonnot Oliver.

Peter Chardon became one of the richest merchants in
the town. At the time of the Revocation he was a banker
in Paris. He fled to England and was naturalized in
1687, coming to America shortly afterwards. His house,
a handsome mansion for that day, stood for many years
at the corner of the street which was named in his honour.
His son Peter, the last of the family, died in the West
Indies in 1766. Of him John Adams spoke as being one
of the few young men of Boston who was on * i the direct-
est road to superiority."

Paix Cazneau (Casuo) was one of the Oxford settlers, cazneau
Returning to Boston, he went into business as a felt-
maker and built up a fortune. He was active in trade
and an influential citizen as late as the year 1738. He
had a son Isaac and a daughter who married a refugee
named Adam de Chezeau.

John Chabot was probably from Bergerac, in Guienne. chabot
His name is mentioned in 1700 as among the leading
members of the French Church, who are planning soon to
leave Boston. From Boston he undoubtedly went to New
York, for it is recorded that in 1711 a John Chabot sub
scribed to the building of Trinity Church steeple.

Peter Canton, one of the Oxford men, was in Boston as canton
early as 1692 making rosin in partnership with Gabriel
Bernon.

Anthony LeBlond (Blond), a refugee from Normandy,

190

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Rawlings
Teacher

Beauchamp

Allaire

Boutineau

was a prosperous chandler in Boston before the end of the
century. His brother James must have been established
in the town before the year 1690, for in that year his
wife Ann joined Cotton Mather's Church. James
was the father of four sons, James, Peter, Gabriel and
Alexander, and three daughters, Phillippa, Ann and
Marian.

John Eawlings probably came to Boston as early as
1684. In 1683 he was one of the " Euliug Elders " of the
French Church in Southampton, England. His name has
come down to us as the honoured i t French schoolmaster
in Boston " for a long period of years, and he was a man
of marked piety and uprightness of life. In 1696 his
name was recorded as one of the elders of the French
Church.

Jean Beauchamp was the son of a Parisian lawyer who
fled to England and died there in 1688. Jean came to
Boston the year previous to his father's death. After the
failure of the Narragansett settlement he became a pros
perous leather dresser and owned a substantial house on
Washington Street. In 1720 he removed to Hartford,
Connecticut, where one of his daughters married Allan
McLean, another married Thomas Elmer, a third became
the wife of Jean Chenevard, while the fourth married into
the Laurens (Lawrence) family.

Louis Allaire, of La Eochelle, a nephew of Gabriel
Bernon, was the founder of the firm of " Louis Allaire
and Company," which carried on an extensive trade with
southern ports. A descendant settled in New York and
founded the Allaire Iron Works ; he was philanthropic
and established a model working men's village in New
Jersey, the first settlement of its kind. The enterprise
was not financially successful, but Allaire, the employer,
was recognized as a benefactor.

Stephen Boutineau, a lawyer from La Eochelle, became
one of the leading French citizens of Boston. He settled
first in Casco, Maine (now Portland), and came to Boston

BOWDOINS, DAN AS, AND OTHEE FAMILIES 191

in 1690. In 1708 he married Mary Baudouin, who bore
to him six sons and four daughters.

A further list of the refugees includes the names of
Abraham Tourtellot, who married Marie Bernon ; Peter
Siguac, who manufactured hats and carried on a trade in
peltries from Newfoundland ; John Tartarien, of Saint-
onge ; David Basset, mariner and trader, one of the first
refugees to make Boston his home ; Dr. Peter Basset, of
Marennes ; Philip Barger, who died in 1702, leaving a Family
son Philip ; William Barbut, of Languedoc, who was ad
mitted into Massachusetts in 1691, and soon afterwards
became an elder in the church ; Francis Legare, of Lyons,
who practiced the goldsmith's trade, bought an estate in
Braintree, and founded a family of whom the Hon. Hugh
Swintou Legare was an able representative ; Thomas
Moussett, who owned a tract of land in Boxbury in 1698
and was an elder in the church ; Isaac Biscon, a native
of the island of Oleron ; Francis Bridon (Bredon, Breedon)
who fled from the Port des Barques in 1681 ; Stephen
Bobineau, whose daughter Mary married Daniel Ayrault
in 1703 ; Abraham Sauvage (Savage from St. Algis), in
Picardy ; James Montier, from Bouen ; Jean Maillet,
Joseph Boy, Bastian Gazeau, Deblois of Saintonge, Bene"
Grignon, Louis and Henri Guiouueau, Louis Boucher,
Jean Girote and Jean Petel.

CHAPTER IX

Boston as
Seen by a
Refugee

The Ship
Voyage

A DESCRIPTION OF EARLY BOSTON

ONE of the best descriptions of Boston and its
surrounding settlements in these early days is to
be found in the " Narrative of a French Protes
tant Refugee in Boston." Some extracts from that very
valuable document will be of interest here, as they show
the conditions by which the Huguenot settlers were sur
rounded, and give a hint as to the kind of life which went
on in Boston prior to the opening of the eighteenth cen
tury. As will be gathered from the first selection, the
narrative was written as a guide to refugees in London
who contemplated emigrating to America. Says the
author :

1 l First, in order to come to this country, it is necessary
to embark at London, from which place a ship sails about
once a month. The most favourable time to embark is
the latter part of March, or the end of August and the
beginning of September. These are the proper seasons ;
all the more because the weather is then neither too hot
nor too cold, and one does not experience the dead calms
which occur frequently in summer, and on account of
which vessels take four months to cross hither : besides
which, the heat often produces sickness on shipboard.
If one will provide himself with suitable refreshments of
all kinds, he will not have to endure any discomfort.
With regard to danger, one must be particular to take
passage on a good vessel, well equipped with men and
with cannon, and well provided with an unfailing supply
of bread and water.

i i There is risk only in approaching land, and on the
sand banks which one finds. (After stating that l Cap

192

A DESCRIPTION OF EAELY BOSTON 193

Coot ' was sighted some twenty leagues south of Boston,
he continues) : On the following day we reached Boston, Boston
after meeting a multitude of exceedingly pretty islands in
front of Boston, most of them cultivated, and inhabited
by peasants, and presenting a very pleasing appearance.
Boston is situated within a bay three or four leagues in
circumference, and shut in by these islands. Here ships
ride in safety, in all kinds of weather. The town is built
upon the slope of a little hill, and is about as large as La
Eochelle. With the surrounding land it measures not
more than three miles around, for it is almost an island.
It would only be necessary to cut through the sand about
three hundred paces, and in less than twice twenty -four
hours Boston would be made an island, with the sea beat
ing upon it on every side. The town consists almost en- A wooden
tirely of houses built of wood : but since the ravages made
by fires, it is no longer allowed to build of wood, and
several very handsome houses of brick are at present go
ing up. . . , . There is no other religion here than the
Presbyterian, Anglican, the Anabaptist, and our own. varieties of
We have no Papists, at least none that are known to us.

1 ' One may bring with him persons bound to service, of
whatever calling ; they are indispensable in order to the
cultivation of the ground. One may also hold negroes, Negro
male and female ; there is not a house in Boston, however
small the means of the family, that has not one or two.
Some have five or six, and all earn well their living. The
savages are employed, for the tilling of the lands, at a
shilling and a half, or eighteen pence per day, with their
board. . . . Negroes cost from twenty to forty pis
toles, according to their skill or vigour. There is no
danger that they, or even the bond -servants will leave
you, for so soon as one is missing from the town, it is only
necessary to give notice of the fact to the savages, and
describe the person to them, promising them some re
ward, and the man is soon found. But it seldom hap
pens that they leave you, for they would not know whither

194 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

to go, few roads having been opened, and those that have
been opened leading to English towns or villages, which,
upon your writing to them, would forthwith send back
your people to you.

High wages " Houses of brick and of wood can be built cheaply, as
it regards the materials, for as to manual labour that is
very dear ; a man could scarcely be induced to work for
less than twenty-four pence per day and his board. . . .
The rivers abound with fish, and we have so much, both
of sea and river fish, that no account is made of it. There
are persons here of every trade, and particularly carpen
ters for ship-building. The day after my arrival, I wit-

ship Building nessed the launching of a vessel of three hundred tons,
and since then, two others, a little sinaller, have been
launched. This town carries on an extensive trade with
the islands of America and with Spain. To the islands
they take meal, salt beef, salt pork, codfish, staves, salt
salmon, salt mackerel, onions, and oysters — a great quan
tity of which are caught here — preserved with salt in
barrels ; and upon their return they bring sugar, cotton -
wood, molasses, indigo and other freight. As for the
trade with Spain, they carry thither nothing but dry fish,
which can be had here at eight to twelve shillings per
quintal, according to the quality. Their return cargo
consists of oils, wine, brandy and other merchandise.
. . . I came in season to see a prodigious quantity of
apples, of which they make cider that is marvellous. A
barrel costs only eight shillings, and in the taverns they
sell it for twopence per quart, and beer for two
pence.

Good opening " If our poor refugee brethren who understand farming
should come here, they could not fail to live very com
fortably and gain property ; for the English are very
lazy, and are proficient only in raising their Indian corn
and cattle. . . . With regard to wild beasts, we have
here a quantity of bears and wolves in great numbers,
who commit many depredations among the sheep, when

A DESCRIPTION OF EAKLY BOSTON 195

due precautions are not taken. We have also a quantity
of rattlesnakes, but they are not to be seen as yet.

"The English who inhabit these countries are, as else-
where, good and bad ; but one sees more of the latter
than of the former class, and to tell it to you in a few
words, there are all kinds, and consequently all kinds of
life and manners. It is not that strife and quarrels occur
among them, but it is that they do not lead a good life.
There are some that practice no other formality of mar
riage than that of taking each other by the hand ; and
they live together peaceably 5 there are others, sixty years
of age, who have not yet been baptized because they are
not members. About a month ago, a woman forty-five
years of age was baptized in our church, with five of her
children. They would not baptize her among the Pres
byterians because she had not become a member."

It will not do to place too much reliance upon the
writer's remarks as to the moral character of the people.
His associations were evidently not of the best. What
he says about looseness of marriage ties does not accord
with the Puritan strictness. His narrative is to be taken
with the same large allowance that belongs to the tourists
who spend a few weeks in America and then write vol
umes of description.

CHAPTER X
FRENCH SETTLEMENT IN MAINE

The Dresden
Settlement

Stephen
Houdelette

[HE visitor to the Forest Grove Cemetery, in the
village of Richmond, on the eastern bank of the
Kennebec, finds a reminder of the refugee set
tlers in an inscription on a tombstone : " Louis Houde-
lette and Mary Cavalear, his Wife, French Huguenots."
The Maine historians, for the most part, have failed to
give credit to the French settlers, either affirming that
Dresden was settled by Germans, or passing lightly over
the French part of the record.^ But later researches have
shown that the founders of Dresden were nearly all
French, who had first fled to Germany after the Revoca
tion, and had thence emigrated to the new world in com
pany with a few German families. Dresden was settled
by these people in 1752, and in many instances the fami
lies still retain the French names, with such changes as
time and new environment work in nomenclature.

These French Protestants belonged to the Lutheran
branch of the Reformed Church, and came from the east
ern provinces of France. Of the forty-six French and
German emigrants who left Frankfort in 1752, twenty-
eight French names are known and five German, so that
the colony was preponderantly French. Among the
more important of these families was that of Charles
Stephen Houdelette, the father of Louis. He was a lace
weaver, and represented the best type of the French
skilled artisan, and was equally prominent in the civil
and spiritual life of the little colony. Some of his de
scendants still remain in Dresden, while others are scat
tered throughout various parts of the country. Henry

196

FEENCH SETTLEMENT IN MAINE 197

Clay Houdelette, direct descendant of Louis Houdelette
and Mary Cavalier, was commander of a steamship ply
ing between San Francisco and the Sandwich Islands.
One of the most interesting passages in his career was the
occasion on which he received knighthood at the hands of
the potentate of that group of islands.

Another family was that of Jean Pochard, weaver, son jean Pochard
of the Honourable Nicholas Pochard, mayor of Anne-sur-
1'eau in France. In May, 1751, the ministers and elders A "Char-
of the church at Chenebie gave him a certificate for him
self and family, comprising his wife and four sons, set
ting forth that "they and their children have lived up to
the present time in a Christian manner, professing the
holy religion according to the Confession of Augsburg,
having committed no crime, at least that has come to our
knowledge." The mental reservation at the end shows
an admirable degree of caution on the part of the writers,
to say the least. Jean Pochard with his family sailed
from Eotterdam to Boston on the ship Priscilla in 1751, ship Prisciiia
and reached Frankfort plantation, the first township or- I751
ganized for settlement on the Kennebec after the proprie
tors of the Kennebec Purchase came into possession, in
March of 1752. Tradition says they tarried awhile at
Fort Eichmond, from fear of the Indians. Indeed, an
Indian tragedy on Swan Island was then a very recent
affair. They very soon built for themselves log houses on
the banks of the Eastern Eiver, the sites of some of which
are still distinctly traceable. In 1765, John Pochard mort
gaged forty acres of land situated on Dresden neck, to
William Bowdoin, of Eoxbury, in trust, to secure the
owners of the ship Priscilla the sum of £27, 15s. , 6d. , the
amount of his passage money from Eotterdam to Boston ;
and in 1773, James Bowdoin, administrator of the estate
of William, discharged that mortgage. We can gather
from this kindly action how ready were the Bowdoins to
aid their fellow countrymen, and we may be sure that
Bowdoin College proceeded from the same trait of char-

198

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Asking for a
Missionary

Firm but not
Narrow

acter in the Bowdoin family. The name Pochard became
corrupted to Pushard, and one branch of the family
petitioned the legislature to have their name changed to
Shaw.

These settlers were ever mindful of their religion. In
1759, with the Houdelettes, the Gouds, the Stilphens, and
others, John Pochard and three of his sons were among
the petitioners who asked that Jacob Bailey be sent them
as missionary. Of John Pochard's four sons, Abraham
worked at Fort Western as a hewer of timber ; tradition
says George was killed by the Indians while hunting up
river in the vicinity of the wilds of Augusta ; Christopher
settled in Pownalboro ; and Peter, the youngest, became a
shoemaker, and after marrying Daniel Malbon's daughter
Betsey, settled on the lot of land where West Dresden
post-office now is. His cellar and well are still to be seen,
and some apple trees planted by his hand still bear fruit.
Two of his grandchildren were living in 1892, and a great-
grandson preserves the old shoemaker's lapstone and other
of his tools. A copy of his will shows that he was
thrifty, like his race, and died possessed of some property.
He was a respected and worthy citizen.

i l Baptized a Lutheran in France, he attended Episco
pal service until Eev. Mr. Bailey's departure for Halifax
in 1779 ; and when the Congregational Church was erected
in 1801, Peter became its first sexton, purchased a gallery
pew for eighteen dollars, and a floor pew for forty-seven
dollars. I think these people were piously inclined with
out being narrow." Writing thus, Mr. Charles E. Allen
expresses a significant fact concerning their character.
They would not abjure Protestantism and embrace popery,
though they gave up life itself ; but, on the other hand,
they were not bigoted or small sectarians. They could
be brotherly in any church that upheld the great Prot
estant principles of liberty of conscience and a free Bible ;

FKENCH SETTLEMENT IN MAINE 199

and in every community they contributed to the best
citizenship.

As a whole, these colonists of Dresden township were A Good Type
earnest and capable, though poor. Contending against c
poverty, besides being menaced by Indians, snow and ice,
wolves and bears, they yet managed to wrest a fair degree
of prosperity from the wilderness. By dint of hard and
persevering labour they turned the forest into a farming
country. Among numerous other products, they cul
tivated flax with good success, and so deftly did their
wives and daughters spin this into linen that many of
their fabrics are in existence to-day. Among the number
of these settlers whose names have been preserved are the
following : Charles Houdelette, Louis, his son, John
Pochard and his four sons, Jean Goud, Daniel Goud,
James Goud, Jacques Bugnon, Daniel Malboii, Amos
Paris, Philip Fought, John Stain, John Pechin, John
Henry Laylor, Francis Eiddle, Michael Stilphen, George
Jaquin, James Frederick Jaquin.

Ill

The two letters which follow are interesting documents, TWO charac-
and not the less so because they show a remarkably rapid ters8 "
progress in a new and stubborn language :

FRANKFORT, September 13, 1752.

SIRS : — We have learnt from James Frederick Jaquin, lately from
Halifax and settled amongst us that all those that arrived there since
some short time from Urope, was by means of the letters we wrote to
our friends in our country, and instead of their being transported to
Boston according to our intentions, was carried to Halifax by the ill
conduct of the commisary J. Crelious, which is verified by the wife
and children of Malbon being there, and ye mother, brothers and sisters
of Daniel Jacob likewise, and generally their own brother and brothers-
in-law, or other relations, which makes us humbly entreat of the honour
able company to have the goodness and regard for us, that all those
the said Jaquin proposed to the gentlemen he should go and bring to
our settlement from Halifax by transporting himself to Boston in the
first sloop, the which persones would be very necessary amongst us,

200 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

some being artist and brought up to such trades as we cant well do
without, and it is our generall request to the company to have them
if possible, and in particular Malbon and Daniel Jacob ; and if these
cant have their families with them at Frankfort, they say of necessity
though much against their inclination must go to Halifax, not being
able to live with any comfort or satisfaction so near them and not be
near their dear relatives ; therefore further humbly and earnestly in-
treat of the venerable good company to use their utmost interest to ob
tain said persones for their friends and for which favours shall be ever
obliged. Signed in behalf of all the French settlers at Frankfort,

CHARLES STEPHEN HOUDELETTE.

Malbon's wife's name is Margaret Humbart. If the gentleman
writes to Halifax about the above mentioned persones, he desires they
would let his wife know he is in good health, and that he desires noth
ing more in the world but to have her with him.

To Mr. Peter Chardon.

FRANKFORT, November 2, 1752.

SIR : — We ask with great humility, pardon for our importunities
and trouble we give you, and we take again the freedom to write pray
ing Almighty God for the preservation of your dear health and of all
those that belongs to you. We had great satisfaction in the grant of
fourty acres of land each in this place, but at the same time the afflic
tion to see the English quit their first lots and settle upon the French
line in such a manner as to oblige some of us to take up with the other
twenty acres at a great distance from the first, although we had almost
finished our settlements ; and further, we are very much troubled to
see said persons to our great inconvenience fit their houses in such for
wardness as only to want coverings which would been likewise done
if they had the tools necessary for their work.

The most honourable gentlemen of the company promised to settle
all the French upon one line near one another, so as to enable them
hereafter to settle a minister for Divine Service and a schoolmaster for
the instruction of their children. We desire, dear sir, you would be
so good as to communicate to the honourable gentlemen of the com
pany our former requests for sundry articles, we are in very great want
of, in particular the provision our three men that went to Boston lately
desired, not have half enough to carry us through the winter, and as
for other necessaries every one asks for himself, besides what each de
sired some time ago, namely for George Gout 2 hatts, 1 a half castor,
the other a felt, 3 shaves to shave wood, black pepper, smoak tobaca.
For John Pochard, 2 hats, 1 shaver for wood, 1 hand saw, 2 gimlets, 1
large, 1 small ; smoak tobaca, black pepper, sewing thread for cloth, 2

FRENCH SETTLEMENT IN MAINE

201

chisels, small hatchet. For John Bugnont — barrel vinegar, bushel of
onions, black pepper, felt hat, blanket or rugg, thread for clothes,
smoak fx>baca, barrel of rum for him, George Gout & Peter Gout. For
Daniel Jalot, 5 yards middlin coarse cloth for clothes, hats, axe,
thread, black pepper. For Peter Gout, hats, sewing thread, hand
saw, chisel, shaver, bushel of onions. For Joseph Bas, shaver, hat,
bushel of onions, black pepper, tobaca to smoak, cive for flower.

Signed by

JAMES BUGNONT,
PETER GOUT,
JOHN POCHARD &
DENIS JACOB.

I have received 3 barrels, 1 of flour, 1 of Indian corn, & one of
pork. I humbly intreat of you, dear sir, to ask the favour of those
gentlemen to have the goodness to send me 3 barrels more of flour, 3
of Indian corn, and 2 of pork, 1 of rum, and 1 of molasses, these last
two for Daniel Jacob and Joseph Bas ; and for me, James Frederick
Jaquin, the last comer, a small quantity of the best flax for a piece or
two of linen, 19 Ibs. of tobaca, 1 Ib. black pepper, bushel of onions,
bushel of good peas. This signed only by

JAMES FREDERICK JAQUIN.

View of New Amsterdam

CHAPTEE XI

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE UPON PUEITAN
CHAEACTEE

E are led constantly to wonder at the radical
difference between the men and women of Eng
land and of New England. Of the same race,
the same stock, they are yet so unlike as to occasion in
vestigation into the causes of such wide divergence. No
speedy Differ- sooner were the Pilgrims and Puritans established on this
side the sea than they began to differentiate from their
forebears on the other side. And the peculiarities which
distinguish the New Englanders are not merely in dress,
accent, speech or customs, they extend to face and figure,
physique and manner. Where the Englishman is phleg
matic, the New Englander is alert and wiry ; where the
former is burly, the latter is slight and quick by compar
ison. Perhaps nowhere does the difference stand out
more conspicuously than in the treatment of women by
the men — a treatment that has made the American hus
band and father a standard of excellence and genuine
chivalry.

This wide-reaching change which came over the trans
planted Puritans is of great interest to the student of
race development and of the influence of mixed bloods.
Whence came the greater flexibility of the Yankee intel
lect, the larger spirit of liberality, that great hospitality
towards men and ideas? What produced the livelier
and more cheerful temperament, and that darker and
warmer physical colouring, so that the ruddy-cheeked,
blue-eyed Saxon type became rarer among the New Eng-

202

"Whence the
Change

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE 203

landers, and the brown skin and dark eyes common!
This subject is considered philosophically by Horace
Graves, of whose study, "The Huguenot in New Eng
land," we make free use in this chapter.

So keen an author as Hawthorne, who had full chance contrast
to observe, in his English Note Book sets forth in strong HawtEonne
colours the characteristics of the Englishmen who have
remained at home, and of those who are the product of
two or three centuries of life in America. "We, in our
dry atmosphere," he wrote in 1863, "are getting nervous,
haggard, dyspeptic, extenuated, unsubstantial, theoretic,
and need to be made grosser. John Bull, on the other
hand, has grown bulbous, long-bodied, short- legged,
heavy-witted, material, and, in a word, too intensely
English. In a few centuries he will be the earthiest
creature that the earth ever saw."

He speaks still more candidly of the British woman, as ungaiiant but
contrasted with her American sister. "I have heard a Graphl
good deal of the tenacity with which the English ladies
retain their personal beauty to a late period of life ; but
it strikes me that an English lady of fifty is apt to become
a creature less refined and delicate, so far as her physique
goes, than anything that we western people class under
the name of woman. She has an awful ponderosity of
frame, not pulpy, like the looser development of our few
fat women, but massive, with solid beef and streaky tal
low ; so that (though struggling manfully against the idea)
you inevitably think of her as made up of steaks and
sirloins. When she walks, her advance is elephantine.
When she sits down, it is on a great round space of her
Maker's footstool, where she looks as if nothing could
ever move her. Her visage is unusually grim and stern,
seldom positively forbidding, yet calmly terrible, not
merely by its breadth and weight of feature, but because
it seems to express so much well-founded self-reliance."

Hawthorne and others attributed this great difference climate as
in the men and women of the two countries to climate, Cause

204 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Palfrey

Fiske

Not a Suf
ficient Cause

The True
Cause

and this theory has been largely accepted as sufficient to
account for all dissimilarities. It has been generally be
lieved that a clearer, sunnier air has browned the race
permanently, and begotten nervousness of physical and
mental constitution. It is assumed that there could have
been no more powerful, and indeed no other intervening
cause. In support of this conclusion it is pointed out
that the New England colonists were purely and ex
clusively English. Palfrey contends that the population
" continued to multiply for a century and a half on its
own soil, in remarkable seclusion from other communi
ties.'7 John Fiske accepts Palfrey's statement, and cites
Savage as demonstrating, after painstaking labours, that
ninety-eight out of every hundred of the early settlers
could trace their descent directly to an English ancestry.
These authorities would leave us no alternative but to
conclude that climate alone must have wrought the re
markable transformation of mind, character and body,
through which have been evolved and fixed the idiosyn
crasies of the New Euglander.

But if climate was the potent cause, why did not the
changes appear in the first century of colonial life ? In
1776 the portraits of the men who won our liberties show
us veritable Englishmen. Yet in 1863 the change had
come about, and Hawthorne found the two peoples rad
ically different. Climate is much slower in its effects than
this. The truth is, it is impossible that the Yankee could
have been so greatly differentiated from the Englishman
in three or four generations merely from exposure to a
climate but little unlike that of Great Britain. Having
disposed of this fallacious theory, the search for an ef
fective cause begins, and later historical researches have
made it plain. This transformation came from mixture
of bloods, from intermarriage between the early English
colonists and some race of a slighter build, a less sombre

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE 205

disposition, a more active mind and an intenser nature.
There is no race which at once combined proximity and
the other requisites except the French ; and in the French
—with their clearness and quickness, their bright dispo- The French
sition — were to be found every required element. There
are two classes of French ; and that which came to
America to seek a home and religious liberty possessed
a remarkable combination of traits — a mingling of the
sanguine, light, cheerful, witty, sincere, devout, and ami
able. Disposed to enjoy life, even under hardest circum
stances, the Frenchman was the best of companions. As
Lavater, the great physiognomist, says: "His counte
nance is open and at first sight speaks a thousand pleasant,
amiable things. His eloquence is often deafening, but his
good humour casts a veil over his failings."

This is the stock that intermingled with the Puritan
and wrought the change, and it is strange that historians
should not have given them larger credit for their racial
influence. It is equally strange that only recently has the
extent of the Huguenot immigration been recognized in
any adequate degree. One reason given is that the French A strong
refugees came to New England from motives so much like
those which brought the early settlers that these strangers
did not, on arriving, exhibit the strong contrast with
their English predecessors which appeared on the entry
of the French exiles into other parts of our country. The
Huguenots and the Puritans had both suffered bitter per
secution. They had faced death from devotion to the
same religious principles. Moreover they were not
strangers to one another ; for when the little congregation
from Scrooby sought refuge in Holland, they found Ley-
den full of Frenchmen who had fled from their native
country. For a time both bodies of people were allowed
to worship in the same edifice, and both were eagerly
waiting the opportunity to put the ocean between them
selves and their enemies. In one particular they differed
radically, and that favoured the loss of recognition by the

206 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

French at the
Base

The French
Contribution

Huguenots. The English were fearful lest they should
lose their English name and tongue ; while the French
seemed indifferent to their native speech, and were ready
to translate their names into equivalent Dutch or English,
according to the predominant population of the commu
nity in which they happened to be. They soon merged
into New Englanders. Before the first ships reached shore,
indeed, the French Molines had become plain English
Mullins, as we have seen.

The English got away from Holland first, and those of
the French Protestants who cast lots in with them speedily
assimilated with their fellow voyagers. This was done so
unobtrusively that only in recent days has the truth been
realized that the Plymouth colony was not of unmixed
English blood, but contained an element that was pro
foundly to affect the English stock. Thus right at the
base of the first effort to settle New England is this reve
lation of the stealthy introduction of the Huguenot to the
hearthstone and into the very hearts of the New England
ancestors. It is no surprise, after this, to find that many
of the eminent men of our early history were in some de
gree at least of Huguenot descent.

What did the Huguenots contribute to the change in
English character t All the lighter, happier, more refin
ing and spiritual qualities, the joyous temperament. The
thrift of the Protestant French is proverbial. It found
speedy expression in New England in commerce And in
devising new subjects of manufacture and exportation.
We have noted how the Faneuils and Gabriel Bernon and
their French fellows were of the mercantile and manu
facturing class that built up Boston. As the exiled
French were founders of many British industries when
they settled in England, so they were most efficient in
developing the resources of the new country in which
they were heartily given asylum. But they were never so
engrossed in trade that they allowed their passion for
civil and religious liberty to expire. It was a Huguenot,

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE 207

Paul Kevere, who was the trusted messenger of the Boston
patriots on the night before the conflict at Lexington.
There is no name of traitor in all the list, though many
of them, owing everything to England and regarding her
as their deliverer, could not see it right to rebel against
her authority, and remained on the Tory side.

Ill

It is all the more singular that Palfrey did not recog- LOSS of
nize the Huguenot influence upon the Puritan life, since l
he knew of their presence. In his " History of New Eng
land " he makes the extremely conservative statement that
at least one hundred and fifty Huguenot families came to
Massachusetts after the Eevocation in 1685. He makes
no account of those already here, nor of those who did
not come directly from France, nor of those who kept
coming from time to time, even down to 1776. Nor does
he take account of the number who have names that
seem to be English or Dutch, but which are French trans
lated, as in the case of some of the Duboises, living in
Leyden, who allowed themselves to be called Van den
Bosch, and came to America under that name. Gerneau
became Gano in English mouths, and at last the owners
of the name let it go at that. Thus Erouard became
Heroy, Bouquet is now spelled Bockee, Tissau became
Tishew, and Fleurri is hid in Florence. Olivier has been
confused with the English Oliver, and Burpo was origin
ally Bonrepos. Nor was the assent to this distortion due
to ignorance on the part of the Frenchmen ; for Bonrepos
was a learned pastor of the French church in Boston, and
the refugees were generally of the higher and culti
vated classes of their native land.

The merchants of the Huguenot seaports of France French-Swiss
were already familiar with the New England seaports,
and fled to Boston and Salem when the time of peril came.
Many of them found shelter in neighbouring countries be
fore coming to America, and sometimes for that reason

208

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

were not recognized as French. In this way families like
those of Agassiz and Audubou are known as Swiss, while
there is little doubt that their origin was French. When
the Cabots, the Lefavours, the Beadles, the Valpys and
Philip English had established themselves in Salem, they
began to bring over their fellow countrymen. English,
whose real name was L? Anglois, became owner of a large
Philip English number of ships and a great deal of other property. For
years he imported young men to be apprenticed as sailors
and young girls to be employed as domestics. They were
all of Huguenot ancestry and their descendants to-day
disclose their French origin in their personal appearance.
Between the Connecticut Eiver and Massachusetts Bay,
young men of that line of ancestry are by no means rare,
with large brown eyes, black hair and slender, graceful
figures, which proclaim them Frenchmen in everything
except speech ; and yet their forefathers have been in
habitants of eastern Massachusetts since the beginning of
the seventeenth century. In a little seaport near Salem
there are to be found to-day at least fifty family names
which are distinctly French ; yet those who bear them
now have never suspected that they were of other than
English origin.

In this connection, it may be asked how many New
Englanders would at first thought suppose or admit that
Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, American of the Americans, and
author of the "Battle Hymn of the Eepublic," had
Huguenot blood in her ancestry. Yet she was the great-
graudniece of General Francis Marion, which explains
the strain that made a battle hymn her natural expres
sion. Her mother had the high type of French beauty,
and through all the French side of the family ran the
best traits of the Huguenot blood.

How extended may have been this influence flowing
into our national life may be inferred from the fact that of
the twenty-five thousand or more English who were to be
found in New England towards the middle or latter part

Julia Ward
Howe

An Estimate

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE 209

of the seventeenth century, the descendants are reckoned
by Mr. Fiske at fifteen millions. To these few thousands
of English, the Huguenots, as admitted by Palfrey, made
an accession of one hundred and fifty families, — which
means nearly a thousand persons, as families went then ;
but after this first flood had spent its strength, nearly
every ship from London, according to Baird, for many
years brought additions to those who had come in the
past. The exodus from France continued for full fifty
years from 1666, and within that time at least a million
Frenchmen were expatriated, and those the flower of the
nation. It is not possible that less than four or five
thousand came to dwell in New England.

The gain for New England is distinctly revealed in the
development of Yankee enterprise along those very lines
in which it was started by the French colonists. But
these were present in the requisite number j and when the
eye is once trained and the ear attuned to detect the
names which indicate Huguenot ancestry, it is astonish
ing how frequently they reveal themselves. If New
Euglanders are closely questioned concerning their an
cestry, there are few who do not confess to some trace of
French blood, though it be slight. This is peculiarly
true of the eastern half of Massachusetts.

When the Huguenots contributed their genial presence common
to our population, it was like the influx of a gladdening
river into a thirsty land, carrying joy wherever it goes.
At first, like all foreigners, they were reserved, and mar
riages were mostly confined to their own nationality ; but
the second or third generation, under American influences
which break down race barriers, found alliances that
made Americans of them all. How rapidly nationalities
merge in this country is seen in the case of a young man
whose father was a Frenchman and whose mother was an
American of English descent. His wife's mother is an

210 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

An Illustra
tion

A Social
Factor

Irishwoman, and her father a German. Thus that mar
riage rolled four nationalities into one within two genera
tions. But between the Huguenot and Puritan there was
no stream to bridge over. They had in their common
Calvinism and love of freedom a bond of sympathy and
union that brought them into harmony as soon as their
tongues had learned to speak a common language.

It is evident that the absorption of the Huguenots
would occur more rapidly after the Revolution, and would
manifest itself unmistakably during the first half of the
nineteenth century, the time when the contrast between
the New Englanders and the Old Englanders made such
an impression upon Hawthorne and Emerson. The
result is so noteworthy that it is marvellous that we did
not long ago recognize the method of the brewing of that
race of men and the material which entered into it.
" There is a substance known to chemistry as diastase,
which is an active element in the germination of every
seed, and which, on being sprinkled, never so sparingly,
over a great mass of the brewer's cloudy, pasty ' mash,7
clears it instantly and leaves it a sweet, pure, transparent
liquid. Such an office might the introduction of the
Huguenot into New England seem to have performed, in
dissipating the heaviness and dogged prejudice of our
insular kinsmen." That is Mr. Graves' conclusion, and
it is justified by the facts continually coming to light.

The Huguenot element, not only in New England, but
equally in New York and Pennsylvania and the Caroliuas,
was a powerful social factor. Not numbers but character
made them so effective in changing conditions. Every
record we have of them in persecution and suffering and
torture displays the same disposition to endure bravely
and to make the best of the worst situations. Shipwreck,
stormy voyages, homelessness, deprivations and perils of
every kind — these circumstances only bring out the
courage and cheer and uprightness and dauntless spirit of
the Huguenots. And when circumstances improved,

HUGUENOT INFLUENCE 211

their genial and lovable temperament always became a

wholesome quality in a life that was far too sombre and

grim and gloomy when the Puritan had it to himself.

Where the French were, there was the wise admixture of

grave and gay, the enjoyment of life. And these much

needed elements entered into the New England social A High Type

development, and far exceeded climate in altering the New

Englander and creating on our continent a new type,

comprising the best qualities of Protestant English and

Protestant French — the best type of American perhaps

yet to be found. Certain it is that New England character

cannot be explained without the presence of the French

blood.

In an exceedingly interesting article on "The Brain of
the Nation, " M. Gustave Michaud says that the immi
grants who peopled New England during the seventeenth
century may be roughly divided into two categories :
those who emigrated because they wished to improve
their position through the acquisition of property, audj
those who wished above all to enjoy religious liberty. I
The latter contained among them an unusual number of
men of talent. Lombroso has demonstrated the close '
connection which exists between exalted religious ideas
and ideals and the nervous temperament characteristic
of genius. In our country examples of that connection
are abundant. Henry Clay, Lowell, Bancroft, Park-
man, Samuel F. B. Morse, Cyrus W. Field, were sons of
clergymen. Cooper, Howells and Whittier were sous of
Quakers. Agassiz was the son of a Swiss pastor, himself
of Huguenot descent. The Huguenots— in America still
more than in England — were a hotbed of talent. And
study reveals the curious influence which the blood of
thousands of Huguenots who were among the very first
settlers of South Carolina, now exerts upon the intellec
tuality of the state.

PART TWO
THE FRENCH IN NEW YORK

CHAPTER I
THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTERDAM

WHILE the Dutch long had all the credit of
founding New Amsterdam, which afterwards
became New York, later historical researches
have brought to light the fact that French Protestants
had an important part in the early settlement, and were
among the original company that established a colony on
Manhattan Island. The Walloons were French who had
fled from the province of that name, on the northern
boundary of France, to escape religious persecution, and
had taken up their residence in Holland, where other
French Protestant refugees came at one time and another
during the century that followed the massacre of St.
jesse de Forest Bartholomew. The same Jesse de Forest that proposed
to the Virginia Company to bring a French colony to
America, when that offer was declined so far as material
aid was concerned, repeated the proposition to the Dutch
West India Company, just then forming. It was ac
cepted, and as a result the French Protestants made up a
large part of the expedition of thirty families which
sailed in March, 1623, in the ship New Netherland, to
found a Dutch colony at the mouth of the Hudson.
Under the ordering of Providence, what strange results
follow apparently slight causes. The English Puritans
offered to establish a colony for the Dutch on the Hud-

212

THE FOUNDEES OF NEW AMSTERDAM 213

son ; but the Dutch not being ready to move, found a
home at Plymouth instead ; while the French Protestants,
who offered to establish a colony in Virginia, since the
Virginia Company was not wise enough to accept the
offer, went to the Hudson instead of the James, and
helped found a Dutch commonwealth.

After a specially favoured voyage, early in May, four
teen years after Henry Hudson had discovered the noble
river which perpetuates his name, the ship New Nether- N
land sailed into the "most beautiful bay" that now shel- Ife3
ters the commerce of the world. At that very moment a
French ship lay in the harbour, on errand to take pos
session of the country in the name of France, on the
ground of Verrazzano's discovery a century before ; and
thus French Eomau Catholic and French Protestant met
again. Fortunately for the newcomers, a Dutch " vessel
of several guns ' ' chanced to lie a little further up the
river ; and between the remonstrances of the colonists and
a show of force from the Mackerel, the French ship sailed
away, leaving the Dutch and Walloons free to land and
make their settlement. They found a few huts near the
southern end of the island, where a trading-post had been
maintained by Amsterdam merchants. With this excep
tion the country was a wilderness.

The inhabitants of the little trading-post were not all
Dutch, however, for in 1614 a child was born of Hugue- 1614
not parents. This baby, named Jean Vigne, disputes the First child
right with Virginia Dare of being remembered as the
first white child to see the light on the continent of North
America. The second birth to take place within the
limits of the Dutch province was that of Sarah Eapalie,
likewise of Huguenot blood, who was born at Orange.
The names of her parents, indeed, George Eapalie and
Catalina Trico, were the only ones definitely known hith
erto of the French colonists brought over in the New
Netherland. They went, with seventeen other families,
up the North Eiver, landed and built a fort called Orange,

214 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

The French
Dispersed

A Happy Set
tlement

near what is now Albany. Of the other families, eight
remained on Manhattan and took possession there for the
West India Company ; four newly married couples went
westward and established a little post on the Delaware ;
while two families pushed eastward through the wilds of
Connecticut and built homes on the banks of the Hartford.

There is no list of names of these first Huguenot set
tlers, but by comparing the names affixed to Jesse de
Forest's petition to the Virginia Company with the
records of Manhattan about fifteen years after the settle
ment (no records being kept during the first fifteen years
of the colony), the following names are gleaned : Kapalie,
De la Mot, Du Four, Le Eou, Le Eoy, Du Pon, Chiselin,
Cornille, De Trou, De Crenne, Damont, Campion, De
Carpentier, Gille, Catoir, de Croy, Maton, Lambert, Mar
tin, and Gaspar.

The settlement was prosperous from the start, and the
colonists happy. A ship which returned to Holland car
ried glowing accounts of the new country. An extract
from one of the letters is as follows :

We were much gratified on arriving in this country. Here we found
Extract from a beautiful rivers, bubbling fountains flowing down into the valleys ;
basins of running waters in the flatlands, agreeable fruits in the woods,
such as strawberries, walnuts, and wild grapes. The woods abound
with venison. There is considerable fish in the rivers, good tillage
land ; here is, especially, free coming and going, without fear of the
naked natives of the country. Had we cows, hogs, and other cattle
fit for food — which we expect in the first ships— we would not wish to
return to Holland.

Peter Minuit
Huguenot

The effect of such accounts was to bring over new
colonists, among whom were many Huguenots. A
Huguenot, Peter Minuit, was the second director or gov
ernor of the settlement. He reached Manhattan Fort in
1626 when the colony comprised about thirty houses
closely grouped about the block-house, and tenanted by

THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTERDAM 215

Dutch, French, and a few English. Minuit's family had
taken refuge in Wessel some fifty years before this date,
and there is a record in the Walloon Church of that place 1626
which shows that he acted for a time as deacon. He was
an active, energetic man, firm in temper, friendly in dis
position, just and honourable, and granted religious lib
erty and a fair amount of political freedom.

De Rasieres, his secretary, was likewise a Huguenot Religious
and a man of parts. Minuit sent him to visit Governor Granted
Bradford, of Massachusetts, regarding the relations of the
two colonies, and Bradford alludes to him as " a man of
fair and genteel behaviour. " He proved himself as a
diplomat, concealing from the English the fact of the val
uable fur trade, a knowledge of which would surely have
brought the English in force against the Dutch possessions.

Among the other Huguenots who were prominent in
the first days of New Amsterdam was Johannes La Mon- First Doctor a
tagne, the first doctor to settle on Manhattan. He came LaMontagne
from Leyden in 1637, from whence the family of his first
wife, Rachel De Forest, had already emigrated to New
Amsterdam. Previous to his coming the Zieckentroosters
(comforters of the sick) were the only props which the
unfortunate sick of the colony had to lean upon. Dr. La
Montague was a man of varied gifts, who subsequently
occupied several stations of trust under the government.
His name appears as a member of the council, and as
official schoolmaster, and after a few years of practice he
seems to have given up the medical profession and de
voted himself entirely to the civil and military service.
It is quite probable that the colonists found the fresh air A Man of
and outdoor life of the new world too healthy to make Affairs
the practice of medicine in New York as profitable as it
has since become. He must have prospered in his new
work, however, for he became the owner of a " bouwery "
located at what is now the northern end of Central Park.
His daughter, Marie, married Jacob Kip in 1654. His
farm comprised two hundred acres, for which he paid

216

THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Knicker
bockers a
Mixed Blood

Stuyvesant's
Wife a
Huguenot

Bedloe's
Island Named
After Isaac
Bethlo

$720 ; it was situated on Eighth Avenue between Ninety-
third Street and the Harlem Eiver. He named it i i Vre-
dendal " or " Valley of Peace." Its value to-day is high
in the millions.

Ill

The French and Dutch mingled together harmoniously,
setting each other off to great advantage. How excellent
was the result produced by the infusion of the facile
French blood with that of the stolid Dutch may be seen
in the great Knickerbocker families. Nearly every New
Yorker who can trace his ancestry back to the founders
of New Amsterdam will find traces of Huguenot blood in
his veins, for both in the earlier and later days the inter
mixture of races was the almost constant rule. So evenly
matched were the two nationalities in point of numbers
by the year 1656, that all government and town procla
mations were issued in French as well as in Dutch.

Peter Stuyvesant, the famous director-general, had a
Huguenot wife, Judith Bayard, daughter of a refugee
minister ; and during his administration he had living
with him his sister, who was the widow of a Huguenot,
Samuel Bayard. It was her son who founded the illustri
ous Bayard family of America. For these reasons, if for
no others, he took much interest in the French exiles
who sought refuge within his dominions. He not only
kindly received those who came, but went further, and in
1664 offered flattering prospects to a company of Protes
tants in La Eochelle who were on the point of emigrating,
carrying out his promises by presenting them with grants
of land. Small bodies of French colonists kept coming,
mostly from the northern provinces of France and Nor
mandy. Among them was Isaac Bethlo, a native of
Calais, who arrived in 1652, and gave his name to the
island in New York harbour known as Bedloe's. It is
among the strange coincidences that this island, named
after a French Huguenot refugee, should become the
site for that colossal statue, "Liberty Enlightening the

THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTERDAM 217

World," the gift of France to the United States nearly

two and a half centuries later. From the outstretched Liberty

arm of that figure gleams the light that illuminates the the wodd ng

harbour, typical of the light of religious liberty which

the persecuted of all lauds were here to enjoy.

The French did not confine themselves to the town of
New Amsterdam entirely, but formed settlements on
Staten Island, the upper end of Manhattan, Long Island,
and in Westchester County.

Stateu Island, in the bay of New York, was one of their French on
favourite asylums. a It might properly have been called island
Huguenot Island." A considerable number of refugees
settled there in 1657, locating their dwellings near the
site of the present town of Richmond. The names of
Guion, Dissosway, Bedell, Fontaine, Reseau, La Tourette,
Rutan, Puillon, Mercereau, La Conte, Butten, Mancey,
Perrin, Larselene, De Pue, Corssen, Martineau, Tuenire,
Morgan, Le Guine, and Jouerney, have been preserved.
Like the descendants of the emigrants to Ulster County,
the progeny of the refugees to Staten Island still occupy,
in many cases, the land held by their ancestors. The
number of the island colony was constantly increased by
the coming of little groups of refugees. Any complete
ness of record is out of the question, but it is possible to
add a few names to the above list. In 1662 came Pierre
Martin, Gerard Ive, and Juste Grand ; the year following,
Jerome Bovie, Pierre Noue, and Pierre Parmentier had
the distinction of arriving on a vessel called the Spotted

Cow.

At the period just preceding the Revocation, and
especially during the few years following that royal in- increasing
vitation to exile, the emigration to New York was greatly
accelerated. From France direct, from England, from
the Antilles, the refugees came in a steady stream to the
growing metropolis which afforded them all a welcome.
It would neither be desirable nor possible to recount the

218 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

names of all who came, but in the following pages will be
found a brief record of some of the refugees who estab
lished homes here, founding a posterity which has given
to America many men of eminence and a multitude of
those citizens who, though less noted, go to make up the
bone and sinew of the nation.

The LeContes Guillaume Le Conte, of Eouen, a descendant of the
barons of Nonant on his mother' s side, was one of these
refugees. By his first marriage he had a son, Guillaume,
and by his second marriage, a son, Pierre. Guillaume' s
descendants are to be found among the well-known Seton
and Bayley families, while the honoured name of Le
Conte survives through Peter's offspring. As the Bay
ards, the Danas, and the Bowdoins have been publicists,
so the descendants of the elder Le Conte have been men
of science. Pierre was a noted surgeon of his day. His
grandsons, Lewis and John LeConte, living together on
their large plantation in Georgia, devoted themselves to
the study of natural history, making contributions to our
knowledge of the Georgia flora and fauna. Of Lewis's
sons, John is among the front rank of American students
of physics, while Joseph is probably our foremost geolo
gist. John LeConte' s son, John Lawrence LeConte, who
died in 1883, was a brilliant naturalist, and is ranked as
the "greatest entomologist this country has yet pro
duced."

Of a different family were Pierre and Jean Le Conte,
who came to New York in 1687 and acquired an estate on
the western side of Staten Island.

Gabriel Minvielle, a native of Bordeaux, came to New
York by way of Amsterdam in 1673. He took a high
station in the province at once, being elected alderman
within two years after his arrival. In 1684 he was mayor
of the city, and served under four administrations. He
was married to Judith Van Beack in 1674 but had no
issue ; the family name was perpetuated, however, by the
children of his brother Pierre.

Minvielle
Mayor

THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTERDAM 219

In 1688 Jean Barbarie and his sons Pierre and Jean
settled in New York. Barbarie acquired considerable Barbaric
wealth, was active in politics, and distinguished himself
by taking the lead in the organization of the French
church. His son Pierre became one of the prominent
members of Trinity Church, and served at various times
as warden and vestryman.

Jean Fouchart (Fouchard) a native of Duras, settled in
New York in 1704. Denis Lambert, of Bergerac, came
in 1691. Lewis Lyron came in 1696, but made his final
home in Milford, Conn. At his death he gave £200 to the
French Church of Boston and £100 to the church in New
Rochelle. Pierre Moutels, of Canet, was naturalized in
England and came to New York in 1702. He had been a
prosperous iron manufacturer, and before leaving home
he had deeded his property to his son-in-law, Noe Cazalet,
who was outwardly a * t new convert. ' ' When Cazalet was
examined by the priests as to his orthodoxy, he replied
that he had told his children to attend the mass, but that
as for himself " it must come from God." Shortly after
making this declaration he, too, found it best to come to
New York.

From Sedan came Jacques Tiphaine, the ancestor of the
Tiffany family, distinguished merchants of New York.
Henry Collier, who founded the important American
family of Colliers, was a native of Paris. He reached
England in 1681, but setting out on a trading voyage in Coiner
1686 he had the misfortune to be shipwrecked on the
French coast and was promptly put in prison. He made
good his escape a second time, however, and subsequently
came to New York. Claude Requa, the ancestor of the
Requa family of New York and Pennsylvania, was a child Requa
when his parents decided to come to America. The story
of his emigration, which is not unlike that of thousands
of others, is as follows : i c They departed in the night, to The Escape
save their lives, leaving the greater part of their property,
which they could not convert into money. There were

220 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Peril of
Twelve
Families

Legrand

Cousseau

Crommelin

eleven other families that went at the same time. The
priests used to search every house where they imagined
that Bibles were concealed or meetings held. They con
cealed their Bible for some time, but finally it was dis
covered and taken away. They managed, however, to re
tain some leaves, which were concealed under the bottom
of a chair. The twelve families fled by night from Paris
to La Eochelle, where they continued for some time. But
intelligence from Paris to La Eochelle soon detected their
several abodes. Their houses were to be broken into on
a certain night. They would all have been cut off, had it
not been for a good man, a Catholic, who had become ac
quainted with them. He gave them notice, so they fled
the night before, at about one or two o'clock. The twelve
families muifled the wheels of their wagons, so as not to
make any noise, but they were discovered on the way and
pursued to a river, before they were overtaken. Ten
families got over the stream in safety, but two were taken.
The others succeeded in getting aboard a ship which
sailed for America.'7 During the voyage over a plague
broke out on shipboard and many of the passengers died,
among them being both of Claude Eequa's parents.

Pierre Legrand, native of Hahain, was naturalized in
England in 1682. In 1684 he was in New York, as his
application for membership in the Dutch Eeformed
Church shows. He seems to have lived for a year or so in
Kingston, N. Y. , and then returned to New York to engage
in the tobacco trade.

Among those who accepted the articles of capitulation
by which New Amsterdam became New York we find the
name of Jacques Cousseau, one of the French citizens,
who had attained prominence.

The well-known Crommelin family is descended from
Daniel Crommelin, son of a wealthy manufacturer of Saint
Quentin. He fled to England, from thence to Jamaica,
and finally settled in New York. His sons Charles and
Isaac established the ancient country-seat of the family in

John Jay
First President

Frederick J. De Peyster
Third President

T. J. Oakley Rhinelander
Treasurer

Henry G. Marquand
Second President

William Jay
Fourth and Present President

Mrs. James M. Lawton
Secretary

EX-PRESIDENTS AND PRESENT OFFICERS OF THE HUGUENOT
SOCIETY OF AMERICA

THE FOUNDEES OF NEW AMSTEEDAM 221

Ulster County, named "Gricourt" after the old home in
France.

The New York Chevaliers are descended from Jean le
Chevalier, who was probably related to the other emi- chevaliers
grants of that name who settled in Philadelphia and
Charleston. He married Marie de la Plaine in the Dutch
Church in 1692. From Normandy came Fran§ois le
Comte, who was married to Catharine Lavandier in 1693.
He seems to have been one of the victims of the laws LeComte
which allowed the priests to bring up Huguenot children in
the Eoman faith, for before his marriage he was compelled
to make abjuration.

From Eouen came Jean Gancel, Pierre Chapron, and
Abraham Dupont before the close of the century. Daniel
Marchand. of Caen, came before 1692. Andre* Foucault, Foucauit
descended from a family of Poitou that was noted for the
sufferings it had endured in the cause of religion, was in
New York by the year 1691. In 1703 the governor
authorized him to open a French and English school in
the city of New York. About the same time came
Zacharie Angevin, likewise of Poitou. In 1701 he moved
out of the city to New Eochelle, where his descendants
were numerous for many years. Jacob Baillergeau, of
Loudoii in Touraine, was naturalized in New York in 1701,
and in 1704 was licensed to practice medicine in New
York and New Jersey. Thomas Bayeux, of Caen, came
to New York shortly after the E evocation, and became
one of the leading merchants of the city. He married
Madeleine Boudinot in 1703 and left a large posterity.

Daniel Targe, of Port des Barques, was among the Other
Narragansett settlers, and on the breaking up of the set- Families
tlement removed to New York, where his descendants
survive under the transformed names of Targer and Tar
get. Fran£ois Bouquet, a ship captain from the same
port, fled to England in 1681, coming to New York to
wards the close of the century. He was a man of prop
erty and well -known in shipping circles. The Tillou

222 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Basset

Quintard

Hollands

Prominent
Factor

family, of which the late Francis E. Tillou was a member,
was established by Pierre Tillou, who fled from Saintonge
in 1681. Jean Elizee was a fellow townsman of Fran 9013
Bouquet, and married his daughter Jeanne in New York
in 1701.

Other immigrants with earliest known dates, were
as follows : Marc Boisbelleau, 1685 ; Andre Jolin,
1686 ; Louis Carre", 1686 ; Gilles Gaudineau, 1686 ; John
Pelletreau, 1687 ; Peter Eeverdy, 1687 ; John de Neuf-
ville, 1687 ; Jacques Dubois, 1688 ; Jean Pinaud, died
1688 ; Aman and Gousse Bonnin, 1688 ; Daniel Mer-
ceveau, 1689 ; Jean Equier, 1689 ; Paul Drouhet,
1869 ; Andre Paillet, 1690 ; Daniel Lambert, 1691 ;
Daniel Coudret, 1691 ; Jean Piervaux, 1692 ; Louis
Geneuil, 1692; Elie Eembert, 1692; Jean Eoux, 1692;
Charles Lavigue, 1692 ; Jacques Many, 1692 ; Elie
Chardavoinne, 1692 ; Jean Coulon, 1692 ; Jean Chadaine,
1693 ; Elie Charrou, 1693 ; Estienne Archambaud, 1693 ;
Isaac Quintard, 1693 ; (removed later to Stamford, Conn.,
where his descendants are still to be found ; Bishop
Quintard, of Tennessee, is a member of this family) ;
Pierre Girrard, 1694 ; Jean Doublet, 1695 ; Jean Boisseau,
1698 ; Isaac Boutineau, 1698 ; Elie Badeau, 1698 ; David
Fume, 1698 ; Jacques Yinaux, 1699 ; Jean Faget, 1699 ;
Pierre Trochon, 1700 ; Andre Lamoureux, 1700 ; Jacques
Dosbrosses, 1701 ; Pierre, Jean and Abraham Eolland,
1702 ; Pierre Arondeau, 1703 ; Pierre Durand, 1706 ;
Jacques Bergeron, 1712 ; Jean Dragaud, 1729 ; Daniel
Gillard, 1792 ; Pierre Euslaud, 1792.

These names indicate that in the early life of New
York the French played a more prominent part than in
any other centre, not excepting Boston. Socially they
were a most effective factor, tempering the tone of society,
and in large measure creating it. That so many of the
streets of the city, as Desbrosses, Lispenard, etc., were
named after the French citizens, shows that they were
men of note in the business and public life of the time.

THE FOUNDERS OF NEW AMSTEEDAM 223

The intermingling of the French and Dutch produced a
strong and charming type of character, in which the best
traits of both races appear. Indeed, wherever the Hugue
not blood entered, it improved the type. In some the
blood was mixed before coming to this country. Such
cases are illustrated by Professor Johann Daniel Gros,
minister of the Dutch Reformed Church in New York,
and later occupant of the chair of intellectual and moral
philosophy in Columbia College (now Columbia Uni
versity), and author of the first text-book on moral phi
losophy published in America. His family was French
and German from the Alsace-Lorraine section where
French and German commingled. His brother, Lorenz
Gros, pushed on beyond Albany up the Mohawk Valley,
and built near Fonda the first gentleman's mansion west
of Albany, using brick and tile imported from Holland ; a
mansion still standing as strong as when built, and long a
landmark in its section. He was a captain in the Conti
nental Army, and also an officer in the War of 1812.
From the fact that these families spoke German, they
were indiscriminately classed among the Dutch element
and their French descent was obscured. Without dates
of coming are the names of Crucheron, Martiline, Ganne-
pains, Begrenier, Casses and Cannon.

Huguenots were the first settlers in that part of Man- Huguenots
hattan now known as Harlem (an account of their settling

being given in the sketch of the De Forest family) ; and
when the village of New Harlem was laid out in 1658,
nearly one half of the thirty -two heads of families in the
settlement were Huguenots. Other of the hardier souls
among the French likewise pushed out from the original
settlement ; fourteen families joined in founding Bush-
wick, others went to Flushing, where they introduced the on Long
fine fruit culture which distinguished that Long Island l
city for so many years. Later, in 1677, David Demarest
gathered together a few families and formed the settle
ment that has since become Hackensack, New Jersey.

224 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Gabriel
Bernon

The French
Club

After the Eevocation of the Edict of Nantes, the immi
gration to New York was so considerable that the French
became an important factor in politics. Governor Lord
Bellomont wrote to the Board of Trade in 1698 : "I must
acquaint your lordships that the French here are very
factious and their numbers considerable. At the last elec-
vtion they ran in with the Jacobite party, and have been
since so insolent as to boast they had turned the scale and
could balance the interests as they pleased." That Gov
ernor Bellomont, who was not in good favour with the
people, did not despise this French influence in public
affairs is proved by the fact that he tried to gain them to
his side, and to this end invited Gabriel Bernon, one of
the most influential Huguenots in the country, a resident
of Providence, to come to his aid. Bernon did his best
in this direction, with but partial success. The French
were disposed to independence and to choose for them
selves in politics as in religion.

Among the considerable social factors of the city in its
day was the French Club, which was established largely
through the influence of the Bayards, the family of which
the long time United States Senator from Delaware was a
descendant. French became the fashionable language of
the new community. From 1648 to 1658 the French ele
ment of North America had become so important that,
according to Bancroft, the public documents were issued
in French as well as in Dutch and English. It is esti
mated that by 1688 some two hundred Huguenot families
had found a home in New York, or about one quarter of
the population. In 1661 half the inhabitants of Harlem
were Huguenots.

THE FRENCH CHURCH IX NEW YORK AT THE PRESENT TIME

CHAPTEE II
THE FEENCH CHUECH IN NEW YOEK

TJEING the earlier years of the colony the French The Earlier
had no church of their own. In 1628, when the

first minister, Eev. Jonas Michaelius, of the Ee-
forined Church of Holland, came to New Amsterdam,
services were conducted for both the French and the
Dutch. Of the two elders who were chosen, one was a
Huguenot, the "honourable director" Peter Minuit.
Pastor Michaelius himself left the following account of
this first organization : i i We have had, at the first ad
ministration of the Lord's Supper, full fifty communi
cants, Walloons and Dutch : not without great joy and
comfort for so many. Of these, a portion made their first
Confession of Faith before us (he probably is referring to
some of the unregenerate traders), and others exhibited
their church certificates. Some had forgotten to bring
their certificates with them, not thinking that a church
would be formed and established here ; and some, who
had brought them, had lost them unfortunately in a gen
eral conflagration ; but they were admitted upon the sat
isfactory testimony of others to whom they were known,
and also upon their daily good deportment. We admin
ister the Holy Sacrament of the Lord once in four months,
provisionally, until a larger number of people shall
otherwise require. The Walloons have no services on
Sundays, other than that in the Dutch language, of which
they understand very little. A portion of the Walloons
live far away, and could not come on account of the heavy
rains and storms, so that it was neither advisable, nor
was it possible, to appoint any special service for so small

225

226

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Church
Founded by

a number with so much uncertainty. Nevertheless, the
Lord's Supper was administered to them in the French
language, and according to the French mode, with a
preceding discourse, which I had before me in writing,
as I could not trust myself extemporaneously."

Dutch Aid The Dutch are to be highly commended for the aid they

gave the French in their religious services. In 1652 Eev.
Samuel Drisius, a German, was called to be a colleague
to Eev. Joannes Megapolensis, of the Dutch Eeformed
Church, for the reason that he was able to preach both in
Dutch and French. The French were thus kindly pro
vided for until they had a fully organized church and a
preacher of their own, which was not later than 1659.
In 1682 there came a new era for them religiously with
the arrival of Eev. Pierre Daille. He was a rare spirit.
He applied himself at once to the difficult task of preach
ing the gospel to his brethren scattered through the
province of New York. He reorganized the French
Church of New York, which prospered under his care
until 1692. Even Governor Andros, who spoke and un
derstood both Low Dutch and French, became an attend
ant at the French services, which were held, like the
English, in the Dutch Church within the fort. Mr. Daille
next revived the church on Staten Island, then visited
New Paltz and established a church there. He also
founded a church near Hackensack, and repeatedly vis
ited all the Huguenot settlements, like a modern Paul
visiting the churches. He was, says Selyns, his colleague,
"full of fire, godliness and learning, and maintained the
cause of Jesus with untiring zeal."

First House It was in the year 1688 that the French first built a
1688 house of worship for their exclusive use. This was a

very humble chapel on Marketfield Street, near the Bat
tery, and it ' t was here that, every Sabbath day, the peo
ple assembled from twenty miles around, from Long

THE FEENCH CHUECH IN NEW YOEK 227

Island, Staten Island, New Eoclielle, and other points,
for public worship. Every street near was filled with
wagons as early as Saturday evening, and in them many
passed the night and ate their frugal Sunday repast, pre
senting a touching spectacle of purity and zeal."

This house proved too small, and they were allowed to
buy land for a second and larger, a plain stone edifice
nearly square, which was built in 1704, directly opposite Pine street
the Custom House on Pine Street. This was the same
year in which the French in Boston bought the land for
their church, but were not permitted by the Congrega
tional authorities to build. The church in New York
was named " L'Eglise du St. Esprit" ( The Church of the
Holy Spirit ), and still bears the name. The congrega
tion worshipped in Pine Street until 1831, and then re
moved to what was the upper part of the city at the time,
the corner of Church and Franklin Streets, where a white church street
marble edifice, noted in its day, was erected. Mean
while, in 1804, the church had become Episcopalian in
affiliation, and as such still exists in the present Church
du St. Esprit, which has its fourth home in a fine stone
edifice in Twenty -seventh Street, near Madison Avenue, Twenty-

., __ Seventh Street

where the French service is maintained. Slow in its or- site
ganization, the church reached its highest point of devel
opment in the sixty years from 1690 to 1750, declining in
the next half century, largely because of the Eevolutioii-
ary War. After 1804 there was a new lease of life.

Among the names of the members are such fam
ilies as Quintard, Pintard, Maynard, LeConte, Lorillard,
Lamoureaux, Iselin, Guion, Girard, Galaudet, Dupuy
(Depew), Anne Bureau, Basset, Bayard, Badeau and
Allaire, which have figured in the professional, com
mercial and social life of the metropolis.

Ill

For over forty years Eev. Louis Eou was pastor of the pastor ROU
French Church. In this period trouble arose over the

228 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

absorption of the French Church in New Rochelle by the
Episcopalians. Gradually the influences were working
in this direction, and in 1804 the Episcopal liturgy was
adopted in New York as the only means of saving the
church. Among the names of the pew owners at that
time are Jacob Schieffelin, John R. Livingston, C. Low,
John Pintard, Gulian Verplanck, all names thoroughly
identified with the growth of the city, and some of them
still prominent, as that of Low, the family from which
came the reform Mayor of New York, Honourable Seth
Lowe, formerly president of Columbia University. But
the most eminent name on the roll was that of Jay, which
ranks high in American history.

During Mr. Ron's pastorate also, a great excitement
was occasioned by a party question. The merits of the
case, according to Waldron, were as follows : Stephen
De Lancey, a wealthy merchant, and among the chief
patrons of the church, was dissatisfied with Mr. Rou, and
procured his dismissal for his want of zeal, and some in
novations which he had introduced to the church dis-
cipliue. The deposed minister appealed from the decision
of the congregation to Governor Burnet and his council,
who sustained the appellant. Both parties published in
dignant memorials on a dispute which had proceeded so
far that, when De Lancey was elected to the Legislative
Assembly, the governor refused to administer to him the
oath of office, alleging that he was not a British subject.
De Lancey contended that he had left France previous to
the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and had received
denizenship, under the great seal of Great Britain, from
James the Second, previous to his abdication. De Laucey
was proved to be right, and the Assembly sustained his
claims against the governor. Mr. Rou's assistant, the
Rev. Mr. Mouliuard, took part against his superior. The
consistory stated that they had paid Mr. Rou in full of
all demands, and could dismiss him when they pleased.
Still, the council decided in Mr. Rou's favour, and directed

Original Bayard House, 1800, noth Street, Harlem, near First A
Home of the Bayard Family in New York

The Rappelyea Estate, foot of Thirty- fifth Street, North River

THE FRENCH CHURCH IN NEW YORK 229

that the ministers who should officiate on the following
Sabbath in the church, must proclaim the same decision
publicly, after divine service in the forenoon. All these
efforts, however, did not produce reconciliation, as Mr.
Moulinard was much opposed to the Church of England.
A feature of the case was the proving of citizenship on
the part of the French claimant. It should be said, in
praise of Mr. De Lancey and his following that they ac
cepted the adverse decision, and did not obstruct the
pastor in his work. Few churches in the state or country
have had a longer or more honourable history than the
French Church in New York, which has enrolled so
many influential men and women, known for uprightness
and philanthropy.

The church is at present actively engaged in philan- The church
thropic effort. But recently it purchased the property
adjoining its fine house of worship, on the corner of
Fourth Avenue and Twenty-seventh Street, for $150,000,
as an investment. The title will be held in the name of
some of the prominent members. The object is to pro
cure sufficient funds from rentals to found an institution
for homeless men. If this investment results as success
fully as others which the astute members of the church
have made in the past, ample provision will be made for
the proposed charity. This movement is one of the
many good movements instituted by the present pastor,
Rev. Alfred V. Wittmeyer, who has been in charge nearly
thirty years. For a long time the church has been the
real friend of homeless men. Every Sunday evening a
company of the park bench loungers attend the evening
services, the collection at which is used to provide bed
and supper for the homeless and destitute. The work
among this class has led to the founding of an institution
which will be to many a means of reformation and new
beginning. It is peculiarly fitting that such work should
be done by a church which dates back to the days of
homelessness, exile and persecution, and whose first

230 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

members knew well the meaning of a helping hand in
time of need.

The harmony of the French colony was much disturbed
by reports, carefully circulated, that they were inviting
an invasion of New York by their compatriots in Can
ada. In order to avoid the odium which must neces
sarily arise from this scandal, they called a meeting and
framed the following address :

To His Excellency Lord Cornbury, Governor of New York :

We, the undersigned, pray your Excellency to inquire into the re
port that we were inviting our countrymen to invade this province ;
the report has been spread throughout the whole State, and proves
pernicious to all the French Refugees in general, and disturbs their
peace and quiet, as it obstructs that affection and familiarity which
they had formerly enjoyed with the other inhabitants of this province,
to their grief and resentment. We pray your Excellency to instruct
your printer to publish the result, for the pleasure and vindication of
our reputation in this respect. And your Petitioners, as in all duty
bound, will ever pray.

The Huguenots also had some connection with Trinity
parish, through one of their ministers. In 1685, the Rev.
Mr. Neau, with his wife and daughter, left France for
America, accompanied by other Huguenots. The Rev.
Mr. Vesey, the first rector of Trinity Church, appointed
Mr. Neau his catechist, which office he filled for several
years, and he might be considered the founder of Trinity
School — an institution distinguished among the noble
charities of the city. This excellent man closed his prof
itable life in 1722, and was buried near the northern
porch of old Trinity, where he had long worshipped and
served. A granddaughter of his married the brave Cap
tain Oliver H. Perry, who was ever ready to defend his
country ; and their only daughter, Elizabeth Mason
Perry, married the Rev. Francis Viuton, D. D., long
time rector of Trinity.

CHAPTER III
NEW ROCHELLE, THE HUGUENOT SETTLEMENT

IN the year 1689 the lord of Pelham Manor, Mr. John
Pell, deeded 6,000 acres of land to Jacob Leisler, a
prominent Dutch merchant of New York. Leisler,
who had the misfortune to be hung a couple of years after
this transaction, on a charge of high treason, made the
purchase on behalf of a band of refugees from La Rochelle,
and the 6,000 acres of land which he took over form the
present township of New Rochelle, in Westchester County.
Some of the Huguenots who joined in the settlement
had lived in New York for some years previously, while
others came from the West Indies, where they had hastily
sought refuge ; but the greater part of the colonists came
from England, as tradition has it, in one of the King's
ships. They were Rochellese who left their city four
years before the Revocation, fled to the neighbouring Isle
of Rhe, and thence on British ships to hospitable Eng
land. The exact date of their landing in America is not
known, but it must have been during the year 1689 ; local
tradition points out their landing place as Bonnefoy's
Point, on what is now known as Davenport's Neck. The
Rochelle colonists were not the first Huguenots to settle
within the limits of the Pell Grant, for in 1686 we find
Maria Graton, widow of William Cothouueau, conveying
a tract of land to Alexander Allaire in what is now New
Rochelle, and Allaire himself sold a piece of land to
Theophilus Forestier one year later.

During the year following the arrival of the refugees Early
there was much suffering in the settlement, as the follow- ]

231

232 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

ing " humble petition of ye inhabitants of New Eochelle,
humbly showeth."

That your petitioners having been forced by the late persecutions in
France to forsake their country and estates, and flye to ye Protestant
Princes. Their Majestyes by their proclamation of ye 25th of Aprill,
1689, did grant them an azile (asylum) in all their dominions, with
their Riyall protection ; wherefore they were invited to come and buy
lands in the province, to the end that they might by their labour help
the necessityes of their familyes, and did spend therein all their smale
store, with the help of their friends, whereof, they did borrow
great sums of money. They are above twenty (Ms. torn) poor and
needy, not able . . . ties and clothing, much . . . they did
hitherto beare above their . . . thereby reduced to a lamentable
condition, as having been compelled to sell for that purpose the things
which are most necessary for their use. Wherefore your petitioners
humbly pray, that your Excellency may be pleased to take their case
in serious consideration, and out of Charity and pity, to grant them
for some years what help and priveleges your Excellency shall think
convenient, and your petitioners in duty bound shall ever pray, etc.

THAUVET ELSI COTHOUNEAU.

Among the number of those who had lived in New
York a year or so previous to the coming of the main band
of settlers, and who later joined them in New Eochelle,
were Theroulde, Allaire, Le Vilain, Machet, Bongraud,
Thauver, Mercier, Mastier and Jouneau. The town rec
ords, which were begun in 1699, give us the names of the
freeholders at several different periods. In 1708 the land
was divided among the following : Daniel Lambert, Elie
Badeau, Daniel Giraud, Gregoire Gougeou, Daniel Bon
net, Elie de Bonrepos, Jean Magnon, Besly, Isaac
Mercier, Bartholomew Le Eoux, Pierre Valleau, Jacob
Scurman, Ambroise Sycart, Benjamin Faneuil, Alexander
Allaire, Jean Pemeau, J. Levillain, Daniel Eayneau,
Guilleaume Le Counte, Frangois Le Counte, Zacharie
Angevin, and Frederick Schormau. The next sixteen
years must have seen many changes in the growing town,
for the list of freeholders for 1724 has a totally different

NEW EOCHELLE 233

complexioD. The following names were signed to a deed
* ' granting to Anthony Lespinard a portion of land for
the erection of a mill" : Besly, Oliver Besly, Simon
Mabe, Francis Ganyard, Frederick Scurmau, Gilleaume
Clapp, John Clark, John Martin, Estienne Guerin, Benj.
Petit, Josias Le Conte, Abel Devoux, Samuel Barnard,
John Moras, Peter Samson, John Coutant, F. Bolt, Jr.,
Zaccarie Angevin, Pierre Elisse Gallaudet, Isaac Mercier,
Lancinie Thauvet, Anani Guion, Andre Naudain, Alex
ander Allaire, Gregoire Gougeon, James Eoubet, Henry
Shaddeu, Bachel Neufille.

In 1695 letters of deuization were issued to Francis Le
Count, David de Bonrepos, Alexander Allaire, Henry
Beignou, Esaye Valleau, Andrew Thaunet, David Bonne-
foy, Louis Guion, and Louis Guion his son, Pierre Das,
Pierre Pal cot, Andrew Naudin, and Andrew and Louis
his sons, Theophile Fourrestier, Charles Fourrestier, Am-
broise Sycard, and Ambroise, and Daniel and Jacques his
sons, Guilliaume Landriu, Guilliaume Cothouneau, Isaac
Caillard, Marie Cothouneau, and Guilliaume Cothouneau
her son, Jean Neufuille, Estensie Lavinge and Jean
Coutanti, of foreign birth.

Emigrants continued to come to New Eochelle up to
1700. One of these was Daniel Bonnet, perhaps the last Bonnet
to come. He purchased land from Bartholomew Le
Eoux, and the property is still held by his descend
ants. The following incident is related of his flight from
France :

" Daniel and his wife were attempting to reach the
French coast with two small children concealed in the story o$
paniers of a donkey, covered with fresh vegetables. The
mother having enjoined upon the children to keep perfect
silence, no matter what might occur, they had scarcely
commenced their journey when they were overtaken by a
gendarme who demanded to know what the paniers con
tained. The mother replied, 'fresh vegetables for the
market.' As if doubting her words, the rough soldier

234 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

rode up to the side of the donkey, and thrust his sword
into the nearest panier, exclaiming as he rode away, ' Bon
voyage, mes amis ! ' The agony of the parents may be
conceived, until the soldier was well out of sight, when
the panier was immediately opened, and one child was
found to have been pierced through the calf of his leg."
The Another of the later arrivals was Margaret Lepperner,

who came with her two children, Anthony and Susanna.
Anthony became the founder of a well-known family, the
Lispenards ; Lepperner being merely a malformation of
the name due to the peculiar orthographic methods then
in vogue. A French diary in the possession of the
Lispenard family, dating back to the days before the
Revocation, contains many interesting and pious entries
of which the two following are fair examples :

From a " September 20th, 1671.— I have been married to Abel de Forge. I

Family Diary beg tne gOO(j Lonl, that He gives us the grace to live a long time in
His holy fear, and that it will please Him to give us a good paradise
at the end."

" October 2d, 1672.— My wife has been confined of a girl Margaret,
at about ten o'clock of the day, on a Wednesday. Margaret died, and
has given her spirit to God, between six and seven o'clock of the after
noon."

Ill

A Description From the pen of Madame Knight, who passed through
New Rochelle in the year 1704, conies the following brief
description of the village at that time : "On the 22d
of December we set out for New Rochelle, where being
come, we had good entertainment, and recruited ourselves
very well. This is a very pretty place, well compact,
and good, handsome houses, clean, good and passable
roads, and situated 011 a navigable river, abundance of
land, well fenced and cleared all along as we passed, which
caused in me a love to the place, which I could have
been content to live in it. Here we rid over a bridge
made of one entire stone, of such a breadth that a cart
might pass with safety, and to spare. It lay over a pas-

of the Place
1704

Berrian House

Jean Machet House
OLD HUGUENOT HOUSES AT NEW ROCHELLE

NEW EOCHELLE 235

sage cut through the rock to convey water to a mill not
far off. Here are three fine taverns within call of each
other, and very good provision for travellers. "

Very early in its history New Eochelle became a place A Resort
of some resort, i i not only for the acquirement of the
French language, but on account of the hospitality and
politeness of its inhabitants.'7 And although there were
no regular schools in the town for some time after its es
tablishment, the children receiving their instruction at
home, New Eochelle became rather famous for the number Good schools
of sous of well-to-do citizens who sent them there to be
educated. The most illustrious of the boys who were
thus trained in the homes of New Eochelle were John
Jay, who is treated of elsewhere in this volume, General jay
Philip Schuyler, the Eevolutionary soldier, and Wash- schuyier
ington Irving— three pupils whom the lay schoolmaster Irving
of New Eochelle might well have been proud of. When
we remember that, in spite of their poverty for a short
period during the first trying days of settlement in the
New World, these founders of New Eochelle were not
mere fortune seekers, but men of birth and breeding and
of good estate in France — of a far higher average of centre of
wealth and culture than the English and Dutch of New Cul
York — we need not be surprised that the little village on
the Sound soon gained a reputation for elegance and cul
ture which far surpassed that of its neighbours.

The settlers of New Eochelle were not able to build a
church for themselves at once. For the first three years church Going
they attended communion service at the French church in
New York which stood on Marketfield Street. From
New Eochelle to New York was a distance of twenty-three
miles by road, and the refugees admirably evinced their
devotion to their faith by walking the entire distance
there and back in order to take part in the Lord's Sup- Genuine
per. Some of the women and the weaker children were

236 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

placed in the few rude carts which the emigrants pos
sessed, and then the picturesque caravan set out on its long
journey to church, the men and the remainder of the
women walking beside the carts, many of them bare
footed, yet all rejoicing, and showing by their happy
faces and the ringing hymns they sang that they took
their privations lightly. All lesser evils were swallowed

joy in Liberty up in the great good for which they were never tired of
giving thanks to God — the freedom to worship God openly
and without a shadow of misgiving, and the knowledge
that they were laying up for their children and their
children's children a like heritage. But it must not be
thought that these exiles did not love their native land.
They left France with regret in their hearts, and often
turned towards their old home with pity and with long
ing. Of one old man it is related that every evening at
sunset he would go down to the shore of the Sound, look
off across the water in the direction of France and sing
one of Marotf s hymns, while the slow tears fell upon the
sand at his feet. Gradually others met with him, until
there gathered daily a little group of exiles to pray and
sing.
As to this attendance upon church in New York, the

True to their fac^ js attested by the celebrated Huguenot, Dr. John
Pintard, the founder of the Historical Society, who says
in his Recollections: " The holy sacrament was ad
ministered to the Huguenots, at New Eochelle, four times
a year, namely, Christmas, Easter, Whitsuntide, and the
middle of September. During the intermissions that
occurred, the communicants walked to New York for that
purpose. Prior to their departure on Sunday, they always
collected the young children, and left them in the care of
friends, while they set off early in the morning, and
walked to the city barefooted, carrying their shoes and
stockings in their hands. They were accustomed to stop
at a rock, about twelve miles from the city, to rest and
take refreshments, where they put on their shoes and

NEW EOCHELLE 237

pursued their journey, and arrived at the French church
in time for service. The earliest French church in New
York was in Marketfield Street, near the Battery. It
was a very humble edifice, but still, being the house of
God, sufficient to attract the worshippers from States-
Island and New Eochelle on the Sabbath, where they
used to chant Marot's hymns — those animating strains
that had so often cheered their pious fathers at the stake
in the time of the bloody persecution of their fatherland.
With these hymns in their heads, and the little Testa
ments which they brought from France concealed in
their hair, they enjoyed that peace of mind which passeth
knowledge, unknown to their persecutors."

The first church building was erected in 1692, and was The First
a small edifice constructed of wood. Provision for a
church had been made in the grant of laud to Jacob l692
Leisler, it being there declared that John Pell, lord of
the manor, with the consent of Eachel, his wife, did (be
sides the six thousand acres) give and grant l i to the said
Jacob Leisler, the further quantity of one hundred acres
of land for the use of the French church, erected, or to
be erected by the inhabitants of the said tract of laud."
The church stood on the old Boston post road, near the
location of the present Presbyterian church. About the
time that the church was built Louis Bongrand donated
a piece of land forty paces square to be used as a " church
yard to bury their dead." And subsequently a house church Yard
and about three and a half acres of land were given " by
the town to the church forever."

It would seem that the emigrants had a pastor two Notes from
years before they had a church, as is shown by the fol- the Pastor
lowing note to Governor Leisler :

SIR : I have too much respect for your orders not to execute them
punctually, so that pursuant to what you did me the honour lately to
give me, I spoke to the principals of this new colony about the nomi
nation of some persons for the vacant office of Justice of the Peace ;
but as the condition you require — that is a knowledge of the English

238 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

The French
in Citizenship

tongue — has precluded them from making the election of two or three
according to your order, they cannot pitch upon any except Mr.
Strang, saving your approbation which, if you will have the goodness
to accord them, you will oblige them infinitely. Mr. Pinton has also
delivered me, this day, an order to be communicated to the sd (said)
inhabitants relative to the election and nomination of Assessors, Col
lectors, and Commissaries, for levying, imposing, and receiving taxes
for his Majesty's service. The time is very short, since it is the
twenty-seventh inst., they must be at Westchester; but they look for
some forbearance and delay from your goodness in case, notwithstand
ing their diligence, they may not be able punctually to answer. It is
not through any unwillingness to exert themselves to meet it, but you
know their strength as well as I. Notwithstanding, despite their
poverty and misery, they will never lack in submission to the orders
on behalf of his Majesty, both for the public good and interest. This
they protested to me, and I pray you to be persuaded thereof. I am
with respect, and I pray God for your prosperity, sir,

Your very humble and very obedient servant,

D. BONREPOS,

Pastor of this French Colony.
N. Rochelle, 29 Octob., 1690.

School

Master's

License

The period of Dr. David Bonrepos' pastorate in New
Rochelle was a short one, for in 1694 he went to the
church at Staten Island. In 1695 the Rev. John Miller,
describing the province of New York, says, "There is a
meeting house at Richmond (Staten Island) of which Dr.
Bourepos is pastor." This charge he retained until his
death in 1734.

His brother, Elias Bonrepos, lived in New Rochelle,
and like the pastor was a man of learning and attain
ments. In 1705 he was licensed to keep school, as the
following shows :

Edward Visco't Cornbury, Capt. -General and Governor-in-Chief of
ye provinces of New York, New Jersies and Terr'es depending thereon
in America and vice-admiral of ye same, &c. To Elias Bon Repose
greeting you are hereby impowered and lycen'd to keep school within
ye town of New Rochelle in ye county of Westchester and carefully
and diligently to instruct ye children under yo' care and tuition in ye
art of reading and writing during my pleasure, given under my hand

NEW ROCHELLB

239

and seal at New York this 23d day of June, 1705, and in ye 4th year
of her uia'tys Reign. COENBURY.

The next minister at New Rochelle was the Rev. Daniel Pastor Bondet
Bondet. He had been a student of the seminary at Geneva,
and upon the Revocation fled into England where he was
received into orders by the Bishop of London. He ac
companied the settlers to New Oxford, where he was en
gaged in missionary work among the Indians, and came
to New Rochelle probably during the fall of 1695. He
soon took a high place among the provincial clergy, and
in 1704 we find the clergy of New York writing of him
as follows: "Mr. Daniel Bondet has gone further and
done more in that good work (converting the heathen)
than any Protestant minister that we know ; we commend
him to your pious consideration as a person industrious
in ye service of the church and his own nation, ye French,
at New Rochelle."

In 1709 the French Reformed Church of New Rochelle Becoming
conformed to the Church of England. The following is 1709
an extract from a letter of Colonel Heathcote, who was
instrumental in bringing the change to pass :

At first Mr. Bondet used the French prayers, according to the
Protestant churches of France ; and subsequently on every third Sun
day, as appears by the above letter, the Liturgy of the Church of Eng
land ; but in 1709 his congregation, with the exception of two indi
viduals, followed the example of their Reformed brethren in England,
by conforming to the English Church. This memorable event is thus
recorded in the charter : " That on the 12th day of June, in the year
of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and nine, all the inhabitants
of the township of New Rochelle, who were members of the said
French Church, excepting two, unanimously agreed and consented to
conform themselves, in the religious worship of their said Church, to
the Liturgy and rites of the Church of England as established by law ;
and by a solemn act or agreement did submit to, and put themselves
under the protection of the same."

Since the first wooden church had been built the num
ber of communicants had greatly increased, and in 1709

New Stone
Church 171°

240 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A Church
Secession

Presbyterian

Church

Formed

A Missionary
Pastor

Pastor
Stouppe

1727

a license was procured for building a new one. The new
church was begun in the summer of the following year
and was completed that same autumn. It was of stone,
nearly square in shape, and perfectly plain both outside
and in. Of the building of this church a pious chronicler
records that u so anxious were all to contribute something
towards its completion, that even females carried stones
in their hands, and mortar in their aprons, to complete
the sacred work."

Shortly after the conformation to the Episcopal Church,
a schism arose to rend the harmony of New Eochelle.
" The seceders erected a meeting-house, styled themselves
'The French Protestant Congregation/ and remained
violently opposed to their lawful pastors ; and not only
so, but in opposition to their own founders, proscribed
the Church of England in her doctrine, discipline, ordi
nances, usages, rites and ceremonies, as popish, rotten
and unscriptural." Those were " parlous times," and
if we may read between the lines, religious discussion
waxed extremely warm in the otherwise peaceful village.
The present Presbyterian Church is the flourishing
progeny of the " seceders."

Concerning Pastor Bondet the same active layman,
Colonel Heathcote, writes : * l He is a good man, & preaches
very intelligibly in English, which language he uses every
third Sabbath, when he avails himself of the Liturgy ; he
has done a great deal of service since his arrival in this
country. His pay is only thirty pounds ($150) per
anum." In 1714 this good man took the spiritual charge
of the Mohegans, or Eiver Indians. In his reports he
states that there were fifty communicants in his church.
After labouring here twenty-seven years, he died in his
sixty-ninth year, in 1722.

The third minister was Eev. Pierre Stouppe, A. M. He
gives some interesting information in a letter dated Decem
ber 11, 1727, about the early settlement of New Eochelle.
He writes : l k The present number of inhabitants is about

NEW ROCHELLE 241

four hundred ; there is one dozen houses round the church,
near each other, which gives the place the appearance of
a town. There are several French families settled within
bounds of the settlement, who worship with the congrega
tion. Such was the commencement of the beautiful and
picturesque village of New Rochelle. More than a
century and a half have passed away since its founders
immigrated to America, and their noble and holy princi
ples have left good influences, evidently discernible in
the refinement, morals and religion of their descendants,
still bearing their patronymics. Let it not be forgotten
that the Bible came with these early settlers, & was
the foundation of their legislation. The Dutch and
Lutheran families generally unite with the church when
the service is performed in English, & they bring their
children to be baptized by the French ministers." There
was no school in the place, and the parents supplied the
deficiency by instructing their children. There were
about one hundred slaves in the settlement, who were
taught to read by their masters, and were baptized and
admitted to the communion.

In July, 1760, the revered and venerable Pierre 1760
Stouppe rested from his labours on earth, leaving behind
him a reputation unsullied by a stain, after having, for
the long period of thirty-seven years, faithfully discharged
the duties of his mission. He w^as greatly respected by
his people, and at the time of his death the number of
his communicants amounted to eighty. As a mark of
respect his remains were interred under the chancel
where he had so long officiated.

His successor was Rev. Michael Houdin, the last
French preacher in New Rochelle. This zealous mission
ary was born in France, in 1705. At the beginning of
war between France and Great Britain he quitted Canada,
where he first settled, and went to New York, where he
read his recantation, being previously a member of the
Church of Rome. Mr. Waldron tells us, in his Hugue-

242 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Service as
Interpreter
and Guide

A Tribute

nots of Westchester, that when Mr. Houdin and his
wife reached New York, in June, 1744, Governor Clinton,
suspicious of all Frenchmen, confined the strangers to
their lodgings, and set two sentinels to guard them. His
Excellency summoned them before him, when Mr. Houdin
first informed him that the French intended to attack
Oswego with eight hundred men, being long desirous of
possessing that town. After filling the office of mission
ary for some years in Trenton, New Jersey, he was em
ployed, in 1759, as a guide to General Wolfe, in his expedi
tion against Quebec. Before he undertook this business,
he preached to the Provincial troops destined for Canada,
in St. Peter's Church, Westchester, from St. Matthew
10 : 28: "Fear not them which kill the body." This
church, at that time, was the only parochial place of
worship in a district of many miles, including Fordham,
New Eochelle, West Farms, etc. The chaplain escaped
the danger of the war ; but the gallant Wolfe fell, mor
tally wounded, at the moment of victory, on the Heights
of Abraham, September 13, 1759. After the reduction
of Quebec, Mr. Houdin asked permission to return to his
mission again, but General Murray would not consent, as
there was no other person who could be relied on for in
telligence concerning the French movements.

Eeturning to New York in 1761, he was appointed to
New Bochelle, which village, as well as Fordham, was
considered within the spiritual jurisdiction of West-
Chester Village, then the only parish in the county. The
French church was named Trinity, and received, at this
time, a charter from George the Third, dated 1762. Mr.
Houdin served until his death in 1766. i t He was a man
of considerable learning and research, as well as of irre
proachable character. He was not excelled in zeal and
energy by any of his predecessors, and was followed to the
grave by the regrets of his numerous parishioners. He
was interred under the chancel of the old French church,
in the same grave with Bondet and Stouppe. Since the

NEW EOCHELLB

243

removal of the sacred edifice, to make way for the high
road to Boston, the mortal remains of these faithful and
pious labourers, in the service of their Master, repose
beneath the public way, and not a memorial stone marks
the spot where they lie, or commemorates their useful
ness, excellence, or piety.1'

While our interest in the church as a French church
ceases largely at this point, since it lost its distinctive
character, it is to be noted that among the later rectors
of the parish was Eev. Louis Pintard Bayard, a descend
ant of two of the best known Huguenot families.

New Eochelle still retains something of a French char
acter. Here and there a house with a Huguenot history
can be found, and many of the old families are repre
sented by their descendants. The growth of New York,
however, has made New Eochelle one of the favourite
suburban sections, and it will soon take on a metropolitan
character that will obliterate what is left of its early
French atmosphere.

VIEW OF THE OLD FORT, THE CHURCH, AND NEIGHBOURING HOUSES, NEW AMSTERDAM

CHAPTEE IV
JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JUEIST

THE most eminent of the Huguenot descendants
in our early history as a nation was John Jay,
who, as one of his biographers says, by reason of
his character, u conscientious, upright, just and wise, like
Washington, survives in the popular imagination as an
abstract type of propriety." He was exceptional in
character as in statesmanship.

John Jay was the eighth child and sixth son of Peter
Jay and Mary, daughter of Jacobus Van Cortlandt, and
thus united the French and Dutch blood and two dis
tinguished New York families, to which a third, the Liv
ingstons, was to be added. John was born December 12,
1745. His father was a rich merchant. His great-grand
father, Pierre Jay, was a Huguenot merchant of Kochelle,
who left France on the Eevocation of the Edict of Nantes,
when the greater part of his property was confiscated.
In the Life of John Jay, by his son, some account is given
of the fortunes of this ancestor.

" Pursuant to an order passed in January, 1685," says
this account, "the Protestant Church at Eochelle was
demolished. The ensuing summer a number of troops
were marched into the city and quartered on the Protes
tant inhabitants, and these troops were soon followed by
four companies of dragoons. The attempt made to con
vert or intimidate Mr. Pierre Jay proving fruitless, some
of these dragoons were sent to his house to live and act
at their discretion." There is no evidence that they of
fered personal violence to Mr. Jay or his family, but in

244

JOHN JAY, FIRST JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT

JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JUKIST 245

other respects they behaved as it was intended they
should. Such a situation was intolerable, and Mr. Jay
lost no time in relieving his family from it. He found
means to withdraw them, together with some articles of
furniture, secretly from the house, and succeeded in
putting them on board a vessel which he had engaged
for the purpose. They fortunately set sail without being
discovered, and were safely landed at Plymouth in Eng
land. He thought it advisable to remain behind, doubt
less with the design to save what he could from the
wreck of his fortune. It was not long before the absence
of his family excited attention and produced investiga
tion. After some time he was arrested and committed to
prison. Being closely connected with some influential
Roman Catholics, he was, by their interposition and good
offices, set at liberty. He was fortunate enough to escape
to England in one of his own vessels that arrived from
Spain. As soon as his departure was known, his estate
was seized, and no part of it afterwards came to the use
of either himself or his family. He died in England. Augustus jay
His son Augustus, after many adventures, settled in New
York in 1686, where he married Anna Maria Bayard,
descendant of the Protestant professor of theology at
Paris, who had left his country on account of his religion,
like so many others, and made his home in Holland.
Through his wife's relatives, the Bayards and Stuyve-
sants (Peter Stuyvesant's wife being a Huguenot), and
his brother-in-law, Stephen Peloquin, a merchant of
Bristol, England, Augustus Jay soon formed a profitable
business connection. His son became partner in his
firm ; and in 1740 his name appears as alderman, while
the family became allied with the manorial families of
Van Cortlandt, Phillipse, and Livingston.

From his father, Peter Jay, who was a typical New
York merchant of the time, a gentleman of opulence,

246 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

character and reputation, John inherited many marked
traits. Peter was a very pious man. In letters to his
son James in England he writes : ' ' Let us endeavour to
adhere to the worship of God, observing His holy ordi
nances as the rule of our lives, let us disregard the
wicked insinuations of libertines, who not only deride
our most holy religion and the professors of it, but also
endeavour to gain proselytes to their detestable notions,
and so rob the Almighty of the honour and adoration
that is due to Him from His creatures." And again,
"Don't forget to bring me Bishop Patrick's Devout
Christian, a book you doubtless will remember, as it con
tains the family prayers we always use."

Peter Jay was a colonist and not a Eoyalist, and his
son came naturally by his Whig notions. u I have noth
ing to ask or fear from any man, and will not be com
pelled into measures. ' ' That was the man, and that was
his son John. Firmness of character that in excess would
have been obstinacy was a notable trait in them. John
was brought up in Eye, in the old Jay house, a long low
building only one room deep but eighty feet long, that
grew as the family required. He was taught by his
mother the rudiments of English and the Latin grammar.
" Johnny is of a very grave disposition and takes to
learning exceedingly well," wrote his father when the
lad was seven. He was sent to grammar school at eight,
a school kept by Eev. Peter Stouppe, pastor of the
French Huguenot Church, then lately joined to the Epis
copal communion at New Eochelle. French was then
spoken generally at the school.

In 1760 he entered King's College (Columbia Univer
sity of to-day), when a little over fourteen. After grad
uation in 1764, he studied law, in 1768 receiving admis
sion to the bar. Family and ability combined to gain
Marriage 1774 him a large practice. In 1774 he was married to Sarah
Livingston, whose father later became governor of New
Jersey.

iducation

JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JURIST 247

The Revolution gave him opportunity to serve his
country in most conspicuous manner, and opportunity
found him ready and eager. He took an active part in
the measures that led to independence. In the year of his Active Patriot
marriage he was one of the committee of fifty appointed
by the citizens of New York to correspond with other
colonial committees concerning the Boston Port Bill. His
talents were recognized and his advancement was rapid.
In September, 1774, he was elected a delegate to the Con
tinental Congress in Philadelphia, and took a leading
position in that body, although one of the youngest mem
bers. It is sufficient proof of his position that he was
charged with drawing up the Address to the People of
Great Britain, and the utmost confidence was placed in
his judgment.

He was a member also of the second Congress, in 1775, Member of
and wrote the addresses to the people of Canada and Ire
land. He rendered most useful service on the secret
committee which corresponded with the friends of Amer
ica in Europe. His pen was able and eloquent, and none
could more forcibly present the cause of the colonies.
He was a member of the committee that drew up the
Declaration of Independence, and doubtless had full
share in that document, although he was not among its
signers, owing to the fact that it was deemed essential to
the cause of liberty that he take the seat in the provincial
Congress of New York, to which he was elected in April,
1776. In that body he was a leader, and it was his hand constitution
which drafted the constitution adopted by the State.

Ill

It should not be forgotten that it was the descendant of
a French Huguenot refugee who, as chairman of the com- Resolution for
mittee of the New York Congress to which the Declara- IndePendence
tion of Independence had been referred, wrote and re
ported this resolution, which was unanimously adopted :

* ' That the reasons assigned by the Continental Con-

248 THE FEENCH BLOOD

AMEEICA

Chief Justice

President of
Congress

Spain 1780

Negotiating
Peace 1781

gress for declaring the United Colonies free and independ
ent States are cogent and conclusive ; and that while we
lament the cruel necessity which has rendered that
measure unavoidable, we approve the same, and while at
the risk of our lives and fortunes, join with the other
colonies in supporting it."

Then the New York delegates at Philadelphia were
authorized to sign the Declaration. Jay served as one
of the Council of Safety in New York, and later accepted
provisional appointment as Chief Justice of the State.
This appointment was confirmed under the constitution,
when adopted, but he was prohibited from holding any
other office except that of Congressional delegate "on
special occasion." Events now moved rapidly and the
special occasion soon came in the secession of Vermont
from New Hampshire and New York. In December,
1778, Jay was sent to Congress, and elected its president.
He was the author of the letter, written in 1779 in the
name of the Congress, to the people of the States on the
subject of currency and finance. Then came a stress in
foreign affairs, and it was necessary to send abroad the
ablest men to be found. Jay was accordingly despatched
as plenipotentiary to Spain, arriving there in January,
1780. He resigned his chief justiceship and the presi
dency of Congress to undertake a mission that proved
unsatisfactory, though through no fault of his 5 he suc
ceeded in gaining material help from Spain.

In 1781 he was commissioned to act with Franklin,
Adams, Jefferson and Laurens in negotiating peace with
Great Britain. Thus two of the five members of that
most important diplomatic body were Huguenot descend
ants. Jay arrived in Paris from Spain in June, 1782,
the provisional articles were signed November 30, 1782,
and the formal treaty on September 3, 1783. During
this period Jay was the one who *' evinced a jealous sus
picion of the disinterestedness of France and a punctil
ious attention to the dignity of his country" — perhaps

JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JURIST 249

remembering the treatment which France had given to
his forebears. When the peace treaty had been signed,
Jay resigned all his commissions and came back to New
York in 1784 as a private citizen, after ten years of most
arduous and brilliant service for his country — a service
that had contributed as much as that of any other man to
the shaping of the policies and course of the young Re

public.

But he could not remain in private life ; he was too
valuable to the state. He was presented with the freedom offices and
of the city, and at once elected delegate to Congress.
Before he reached America, indeed, that body had chosen
him to be foreign secretary, and he held that position
until the beginning of the Federal Government in 1789.
He was foremost in the organization of that government,
and joined Hamilton and Madison in issuing the Feder
alist. He published an address to the people of New
York, in vindication of the Constitution, and worked
zealously with Hamilton for its adoption by New York.
From his legal acquirements and judicial temperament it First chief

was natural and fitting that under this new government

he was appointed, September 26, 1789, the first Chief Court
Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The
two men who through their ability and influence swung
New York into line for the Federal Constitution were of
French blood.

None of the great statesmen who founded the Republic
escaped detraction at some period, and Jay was in the jay's Treaty
company of Washington and others in this respect. It
was necessary to 'make a commercial treaty with Great
Britain, if war was to be averted, and Chief Justice Jay
was appointed envoy to England for that purpose in 1794.
He signed a treaty with Lord Grenville November 19th,
after four months spent in negotiations, and landed in
New York again in May, 1795. " Jay's Treaty" was
fiercely attacked, particularly because of the article de-

250

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Governor of
New York

Death in 1829

Christian
Philan
thropist

Webster's
Eulogy

claring that a free ship did not make free cargo. In spite
of the fact that by the treaty provisions the eastern
boundary of Maine was determined, that American citizens
recovered over ten millions for illegal captures by British
cruisers, and that the western posts held by British gar
risons were surrendered, Jay was accused of having be
trayed his country, and his effigy was burned together
with copies of the treaty. Washington, however, ratified
the treaty, with the approval of the Senate, and its ben
eficial effects were subsequently recognized.

Two days before he arrived in New York from this
foreign mission, Jay had been elected Governor of New
York ; and in spite of the violent denunciation of his
treaty was re-elected, serving six years. At the close of
his second term, in 1801, he resolutely withdrew from
public life, living on the ancestral estate at Bedford,
Westchester County, for a quarter century. He died
May 17, 1829. He declined a second appointment by
President Adams as Chief Justice of the United States
Supreme Court, and kept himself free from politics.

The characteristics of his ancestry now appeared prom
inently. He was devoted to religious and philanthropic
movements, and his public utterances in his later years
were chiefly as president of the American Bible Society.
He was a member of the Episcopal church, in which most
of the Huguenot churches in this country became merged,
and maintained the highest character for moral purity,
philanthropy, patriotism, and unyielding integrity. He
was long in advance of the latter-day abolitionists. As
early as 1785 he was president of a New York society for
the emancipation of the slaves, and it was largely due to
his efforts that slavery was abolished in New York in
1799. As a private citizen his influence was scarcely less
marked than when he was in public life. In his eighty -
fourth year closed a life whose purity and integrity are
summed up in a sentence by Daniel Webster that forms a
fitting epitaph : " When the spotless ermine of the judi-

JOHN JAY, STATESMAN AND JUKIST 251

cial robe fell on John Jay, it touched nothing less spot
less than itself." America owes a lasting debt of grati
tude to this great jurist and statesman, one of the greatest
gifts France made to this country through the persecution
of her Protestant citizens.

The following a Befleetion of John Jay

..,.,.

ancestry is given in his biography :

concerning his J*y on hi«

Ancestry

After what has been said, you will observe with pleasure and grati
tude how kindly and how amply Providence was pleased to provide
for the welfare of our ancestor, Augustus. Nor was his case a soli
tary or singular instance. The beneficent care of heaven appears to
have been evidently and remarkably extended to all those persecuted
exiles. Strange as it may seem, I have never heard of one of them
who asked or received alms ; nor have I any reason to suspect, much
less to believe, that any of them came to this country in a destitute
situation. The number of refugees who settled here was considerable.
They did not disperse and settle in different parts of the country, but
formed three societies or congregations, one in the city of New York,
another at Paltz, and a third at a town which they purchased and
called New Rochelle. At New Rochelle they built two churches, and
lived in great tranquillity. None of them became rich, but they lived
comfortably.

LIBERTY HALL, BIRTHPLACE OF MRS JAY

CHAPTEE V

ALEXANDEE HAMILTON, STATESMAN AND
FINANCIEE

A Huguenot
Mother

Birthplace
1757

I IDE by side with John Jay among the great figures
of the Eevolutionary period stands Alexander
Hamilton, who had in his veins Huguenot blood,
on his mother's side. No more brilliant genius has our
country known. Many have ranked him next to Wash
ington. Commonly he is placed in the eminent group
that includes Franklin, Jay and Adams. He was second
to none in the character and importance of his services to
his country. To his commanding abilities as a financier
the new Eepublic owed its financial salvation, and for his
achievements in this difficult line he received as high
praise as language could bestow. It was Daniel Webster
who said of him : " He touched the dead corpse of pub
lic credit, and it sprang upon its feet." And this was no
hyperbole.

His career was romantic and remarkable. He was born
January 11, 1757, on the island of Nevis, in the West In
dies, where his father, an English officer of Scotch blood,
met and took for wife the descendant of a French refugee,
one of the considerable number that found an asylum in
the West Indies. The boy was destined to know little of
home life. In 1772, when he was fifteen, a hurricane
swept over the island. A newspaper account of the
disaster was so graphic in description that its unknown
author was sought for, and found to be the lad Hamilton.
So impressed was the governor of Nevis with the boy's
talents that he was sent to the American colonies, where
he could find wider field. He was placed in a grammar

252

ALEXANDER HAMILTON 253

school at Elizabethtown, New Jersey, and in less than a Racing ^
year was declared ready for college. Princeton would
not allow him to advance as rapidly as he was able, re
gardless of the established four years, so he applied for
this privilege at King's College in New York, and was ac
cepted. He went through college at an amazing pace,
taking such extra studies as he desired.

Meanwhile the storm of the Eevolution was approach
ing. As a British subject the young man's sympathies
were at first with England. But in 1774, when he was
seventeen, he visited Boston, where the "tea party" and
its consequences were the absorbing topic. This led him
to study with the thoroughness that marked him the
whole subject of the relations of the colonies to the
mother country and the questions at issue. As a result
he returned to New York an American. A mass meeting
of patriots was held in July of that same year, and
Hamilton heard the speeches. Suddenly, uninvited and
unannounced, he took the platform and began to speak.
M first surprise kept the people silent, as this youthful Maiden
and slender student went on. Soon they forgot his age,
and listened to one who knew his subject and was en
lightening as well as enchaining them. That incident,
which reminds us of Wendell Phillips' first anti-slavery
speech, introduced Alexander Hamilton to the American
public. From that day Hamilton used his voice and pen
with telling effect. A recent writer says :

During the winter of 1774-5, a coterie of Tory writers, mostly Tory
clergymen and educators, issued a series of essays presenting the Essayists
British side so strongly as to threaten great harm to the popular cause,
unless ably answered. These essays were soon met by anonymous
replies so exhaustive and convincing as to excite the admiration of the
Tories themselves. On every hand eager search was made to discover
this new " Juniua. " The reputation of John Jay and of Governor
Livingston was augmented in no small degree by the supposition that
they were the authors of the patriotic answers. Great was the sur
prise at the discovery, after some weeks, that the real author was the

254 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

youthful student from the island of Nevis. Oddly enough, it turned
out that one of the Tories with whom the lad had been conducting his
newspaper controversy was Dr. Cooper, president of King's College.

A Soldier

Aide-de-
Camp to
Washington

The Little
Lion

But now the time for action came, and Hamilton, who
had leaped from boyhood into manhood, devoted himself
to the study of war. So apt a scholar was he that when
the New York Convention ordered the raising of an ar
tillery company, he was made its captain. His company
was brought to a high state of discipline so rapidly that
it attracted the attention of General Greene, who brought
the young officer to the attention of Washington.

Nothing could hold this precocious genius back. He
was with the Continental Army on Long Island and in
New Jersey. At Princeton and Trenton he shared in the
laurels. He constructed some earthworks with such un
usual skill that they were noticed by Washington, who
traced them to their author. So drawn was the great
commander to the youth that he appointed him aide-de
camp to himself with rank of lieutenant-colonel, and
made him secretary and confidential adviser. This
when he was twenty, in 1777. Washington was forty-
five, and members of his staff were old enough to be
Hamilton's father, yet he won them all by his modesty
and genuineness and ability. For four years he served
on Washington's staff, and then their official relationship
came to an end through a misunderstanding. Hamilton,
however, remained with the army, preferring life on the
line. At Yorktown, commanding a corps under Lafay
ette, he led an assault upon a British redoubt with
such gallantry, taking the redoubt at the point of the
bayonet, that Lafayette was high in his praise, while
Washington said, "Few cases have exhibited greater
proof of intrepidity, coolness and firmness than were
shown on this occasion." By his courage Hamilton won
the name of "the Little Lion." He had the military
instinct, and would have made a great general, had his

ALEXANDER HAMILTON 255

life so developed ; but he was destined for something
higher.

When the end of the war was in sight, Hamilton re
signed his commission, took up the study of law at
Albany, and in four mouths was admitted to the bar.
In the fall of 1782 he was elected to the Continental
Congress, where he devoted his genius to the financial
and political problems that threatened the destruction
of the new Confederation. He adopted the national or
republican principle, as against the strictly democratic
idea. He believed that the best people must rule. He
felt that unless a stronger central government was formed
the people must lose what they had gained by the long
war. To create such a government became his passion.
He did more than any other man to secure the conven
tion that wrought out the Constitution of the United
States, and in that convention he was a leading spirit creating the
and power. Then he threw himself into the struggle to
secure the adoption of the constitution by the States.
His ends were gained, and two Huguenot descendants —
Jay and himself — had much to do with the success
achieved, which meant stability for the new Eepublic, if
not existence itself.

Washington as president made Hamilton the first
secretary of the treasury, and in this office his genius
blossomed. He was secretary of a treasury that had no secretary of
treasure in it. The government was not only moneyless *
but in debt. Public credit had to be created. And
Hamilton created it. He caused the adoption of the
dollar first used by the United States in 1793. He in
duced Congress to assume the whole of the war indebted
ness and pledge the resources of the United States for its
payment. In the process, to secure the necessary votes,
he made the famous bargain with Jefferson whereby the
national capital was located on the Potomac, a wise
choice. By financial measures which evoked the admira
tion of foreign statesmen, he bound the States into a

256 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

From Public
Life to Law
Practice

The Duel and
the End

union of such cohesive force that a half century later the
fibres of civil war, burning with increasing fury for four
years, could not naelt it.

Broad and deep he laid the foundation principles.
And then, having done his duty at personal sacrifice, he
left public life to practice his profession and make a
living for his family. New York never had a more
brilliant lawyer. Chancellor Kent said, "Hamilton rose
to the loftiest heights of professional eminence, He was
a very great favourite with the merchants of New York,
and was employed in every important and every com
mercial case." He was marked by profound penetration,
power of analysis, comprehensive grasp, strength of un
dertaking, firmness, frankness, and integrity. It was
said he could win any case he undertook, right or wrong ;
but he took only the case he considered right. Socially
he was as popular as professionally. He was fascinating
in his personality, was generous, polished, a brilliant
conversationalist. In the prime of life, only forty-four,
a great career seemed to lie before him, with no height
that he might not reach.

Then came the tragic end. Aaron Burr, longtime a
political opponent, made cause of offense, and challenged
Hamilton to a duel. Burr thirsted for revenge, Hamil
ton felt no ill-will, tried to avoid the duel, but at length
felt compelled to accept the challenge, which resulted in
his death. It was nothing less than cold-blooded murder,
and Burr the assassin. It is well said that not until Lin
coln fell was the country again so shocked and stricken
with horror. Burr, like Booth, fled, pursued by the
anathemas of his countrymen. He had robbed the coun
try of one of its greatest men, one who had rendered in
valuable service at a critical time, and who deserves the
honour and enduring remembrance of Americans. On
his monument in Boston are carved these words, " Alex
ander Hamilton, Orator, Writer, Soldier, Jurist, Finan
cier." Senator Henry Cabot Lodge says of him, " In

ALEXANDEB HAMILTON

257

founding a government he founded a nation. His versa
tility was extraordinary. He was a great orator and
lawyer, and he was also the ablest political and constitu
tional writer of his day, a good soldier, and possessed of
a wonderful capacity for organization and practical ad
ministration. He was a master in every field he entered
and never failed. " Such was the man who inherited his
keen, intellectual powers from his Scotch father, and his
fascinating vivacity and ardent temperament from his
Huguenot mother.

The Grange, as it appeared in Hamilton's time. From an old print

CHAPTEE VI
SOME PROMINENT NAMES

1686

In Old New
York

A Fine
Mansion

THE DE LANCET FAMILY

TIENNE DE LANCEY, born in Caen in Octobei
of the year 1663, came to New York in 1686, ar-
f riving on the seventh day of June. He had brought
with him some of his family jewels and these he disposed
of for the sum of £300. With this money (which in those
days of scarce currency represented a far greater degree
of value than would fifteen hundred dollars to-day) he set
himself up as a merchant. He proved to be a shrewd and
bold trader, and so well did his business ventures prosper
that in the year 1700 he was enabled to marry the aristo
cratic Anne van Cortland. For her he built a brick man
sion on Broadway between the present Thames and Cedar
Streets. It was one of the fine houses of the city, and
from its windows a striking panorama of life and death
could be seen ; for on the one hand lay the Mall where
New York's fashionable set was wont to walk of a sunny
afternoon, and on the other lay Trinity churchyard where
fashionable folk rested. There was a broad veranda at
the rear of the house which commanded a view of the
North Eiver, and there were stately gardens which sloped
gently down to the edge of the water. Half a century
later the fine old residence was turned into a tavern under
the sign of the Province Arms, and for nearly fifty years it
flourished as the fashionable hostelry of the town, and
was the scene of many famous social and patriotic occa
sions. The Boreel building of to-day marks the site of
^tienne De Lancey's once elegant mansion.

258

SOME PKOMINENT NAMES 259

Before moving into their new home the De Lanceys
lived for a time in the house which Etienne had first built
for himself at the southeast corner of Broad and Pearl
Streets. Afterwards it was used for a time as a store,
and then, like the other De Lancey residence, it was con
verted into a tavern. Samuel Fraunces was the first inn-

Tavern

keeper, and Fraunces' Tavern it has ever since been
called. Here it was, in the long room which had once
been Mrs. De Lancey' s drawing-room, that George Wash
ington said farewell to the officers of his army on the
4th of December, 1783. Many other hallowed memo
ries cluster about the old building, as well befits the oldest
landmark in the city of New York. It is pleasing to
know that the De Lancey homestead has recently (1904)
passed into the keeping of a patriotic society and will be
preserved to future generations : nor is it without signifi
cance, as showing the important part played by Huguenot
blood in the founding of the city, to note that the oldest
and most historic edifice in the metropolis to-day was
once the home of a French refugee.

But fitienne De Lancey did not confine his energies to
laying up a fortune and building fine residences. He Alderman
took a keen interest in all the affairs of the city and of Spirited
the province. For several years he was a member of the
board of aldermen, and for a long period, covering twenty-
four years, he represented the city in the provincial as
sembly. It was through his generosity that the first town
clock was set up in the city ; and the first fire-engine to
be imported into America was brought over by De Lancey
and presented to the people of New York. In these, and
in a hundred other ways did he show himself a public-
spirited citizen ; and as, when he came to die in 1741,
none had amassed a greater fortune than he, so none had Death in 1741
won a better title to the love and respect of his fellow-
townsmen.

James, the eldest son of Stienne De Lancey, was born
in New York on the 27th of November, 1703. As a boy

260

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

City Charter

Chiefjustice

Practically
Governor

he gave evidence of powers far above the ordinary, and
everything was done for him which might foster the de
velopment of his talents. England was then the Mecca
of the American educational world, and to England ac
cordingly young De Lancey was sent by his devoted
father. After graduating at the University of Cambridge
lie completed his training by a course of legal study at
the Inner Temple, London, and returned to New York in
1725. He soon became prominent in the public life of
the province, and his legal talents received an early
recognition. In 1729 he was elected to the council. The
following year he was appointed as the head of a com
mission to frame a charter for the city of New York.
The u Montgomery Charter, " as this instrument was
known, was mainly the result of De Lancey 's labours ;
and for this distinguished service he was rewarded by
being presented with the freedom of the city, an honour
which he was the first person to receive. In 1731 he was
appointed to the highest tribunal in the province as sec
ond judge of the Supreme Court, and two years later was
made Chief Justice, a position which he retained with
honour until the close of his life. During the next
twenty years he was occupied with his judicial duties,
with the care of the immense estate left to him by his
father, and with many important public commissions.

During these years his influence and reputation grew
among the citizens of New York and spread to England,
so that in 1753 he was appointed by the Crown Lieuten-
ant-Governor of the province. For several years, in the
absence of an English governor, he was the real ruler of
New York. Shortly after taking his oath of office he
convened and presided over the first congress ever held
in America, which met at Albany on the 19th of June,
1754. Delegates from all the colonies were present to
take measures for the common defense and to devise
means of conciliating the Indians. The congress is chiefly
remembered, however, from the fact that Benjamin

SOME PROMINENT NAMES 261

Franklin took occasion to propose a union of all the
colonies by act of Parliament, a proposal which it is
hardly necessary to state was not adopted. In October
of the same year, Governor De Lancey granted a charter
to King's College (now Columbia University). He died
on the 30th of July, 1760. As a jurist he was possessed
of great learning ; the wise and enlightened use of his
vast wealth earned for him a position of almost bound
less influence and power ; and he will always be remem
bered as one of the best and ablest provincial rulers of
New York.

James, eldest son of Governor De Lancey, was born in
New York in 1732. He was educated at Eton and Cam
bridge, and returned home at the beginning of the French
War. He immediately turned soldier and went through soldier
the Niagara campaign of 1755. He was in command of
the detachment which prevented the relief of Fort Niagara,
and it was through his efforts that that strong position
was finally taken. In the expedition against Ticonderoga
in 1758 he acted as aide-de-camp to General Abercrombie.
In 1760, when he succeeded to his father's estate he was Richest Man
the richest man in America, and for several years he
devoted his time to the care of his property. But the
active Huguenot blood which flowed in his veins would
not permit him to live the life of a merely selfish rich
man, and in the year 1768 he became a member of the
assembly and engaged actively in public affairs. He
soon became recognized as the leader of the conservative
party in the province, bending all his energies towards a
peaceful solution of the differences between the colonies
and the mother country. Perhaps his most notable
service was in introducing and putting through a resolu
tion which ordered a petition sent to the king, a memorial
to the lords and a remonstrance to the commons, demand
ing redress for the grievances of the colonists. He him
self drafted the remonstrance to the commons, producing
an able document which was presented to parliament by

262 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Edmund Burke, but which met with the contemptuous
indifference of that body. With a view to impressing
the needs of pacifying the colonies upon the English gov
ernment, he went to London in 1775, but was unsuccessful
in his efforts. While engaged in this business actual
hostilities broke out in America. De Lancey remained
faithful to the king and saw the confiscation of his vast
estates. In our day, so far removed from the bitterness
of the revolutionary struggle, we may frankly admire the
loyalty of a man who preferred to lose a great fortune
rather than prove a rebel to that power which had be
friended so many of his persecuted Huguenot brethren.
While we must disagree with his view of the situation,
we must, nevertheless, give him all honour for his self-
sacrifice and devotion to his principles.

wiiuarn^ William Heathcote De Lancey, nephew of James, was

Bishop ' born in Mamaroneck, N. Y., in 1797. He graduated
from Yale in 1817, went to Philadelphia and took orders
in the Episcopal Church. In 1827 he was persuaded to
become provost of the University of Pennsylvania, which
at that time had become greatly run down. There were
twenty-one students in the institution when De Lancey
accepted the provostship, but when he came to leave it
in 1836 to become rector of St. Peter's Church, Phila
delphia, he had raised the number to one hundred and
twenty-five. After serving as rector of St. Peter's for
three years, De Laucey was made bishop of Western New
York on the creation of that diocese in 1839. He was an
eloquent speaker and a man of excellent judgment and
tact, and living at a time when the Episcopal Church in
America was in a formative condition he was able to
exercise a generous influence in shaping its policy. He
was the first, for example, to propose the " provincial
system" in the American Church, and it was Bishop De
Lancey who laid out the lines along which the General
Theological Seminary should work. The two most last
ing monuments of his energy and devotion are Hobart

SOME PEOMINENT NAMES 263

College and the training school at Geneva, N. Y. In
the grounds of the latter there is a fine chapel which was
erected in his honour shortly after his death in 1865.

Peter De Lancey, second son of Etienne, was born in other sons
New York in 1705. He was a man of great wealth and
influence, and from 1750 to 1768 he was a member of the
provincial assembly. His daughter Alice married Ealph
Izard, the South Carolina Senator, and his daughter
Susan married Colonel Thomas Barclay. Of his three
sons two became loyalists ; the youngest, James, being a
thorn in the side of Westchester County patriots. At the
head of his troop of light horse he made frequent raids
through the countryside, and his alertness and courage
made his name one to conj ure with throughout the length
and breadth of the " neutral grounds." fitienne's third
son, Oliver, was an able soldier. He gained his first ex
periences during the French and Indian War, taking
part in the Niagara campaign and commanding the New
York troops at the capture of Ticonderoga. During the
Eevolution he raised three regiments of loyalists at his
own expense, known as "De Lancey' s Battalions," and
was given command of Long Island.

Oliver's two sons both joined the British service.
Stephen served through the Eevolution as a colonel in
the English army, and after the war was made governor
of Tobago, a small island of the West Indies ; while
Oliver had attained the rank of general when he died in
1822.

THE DE FOREST FAMILY

The members of the large and well-known De Forest jesse
family of America trace their descent to the Jesse de J&if01
Forest who in 1622 propounded his scheme of colonization
to the Virginia Company. Jesse de Forest came from an
old family of Avesnes, but was forced for conscience' sake
to take refuge in Holland. His name first appears on

264 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Planning a
Colony

Henry and
Isaac
DeForest 1636

the records of Leyden in 1615, and three years later we
hear of him as a resident of the Hague. His fortunes
were at a low ebb at this time and the records show that
he was in the direst poverty, pledging his household
goods and the tools with which he prosecuted his trade as
dyer. He was not alone in his poverty, however, for
there were many scions of noble French houses begging
for their daily bread in the streets of Amsterdam and
other Dutch cities. Of this period of distress Mr. J. W.
De Forest writes as follows : i i Perhaps there is no more
sublime spectacle in history than that of a man who
knows not where to lay his head, stepping forward to
guide and save his fellow creatures, with a perfect confi
dence that he can do it. The thought of our exiled an
cestor, with his ten young children and his haunting debt
of fifty florins, planning and petitioning and recruiting
for a Protestant colony in America, is a remembrance
which ought to fill his descendants with pride, and to
stimulate them to courage of soul and energy of deed."

Jesse de Forest did not himself affect a settlement in
North America, but joined a band of colonists who were
bound for the coast of Guiana, the " Wild Coast," as the
Dutch called it. It was left to his sons Henry and Isaac
to carry the family fortunes into New Amsterdam. These
brothers sailed from Amsterdam in the tiny ship Eenssel-
aerwick in October, 1636, with the intention of setting up
as tobacco planters. t ' The upper portion of New York
island was then a mere wilderness of virgin forest and
natural clearing, inhabitated by bears, catamounts,
painted Wickasqueeks and other savage creatures, and
giving small promise of the vast civilized population
which now loads the soil of Harlem."

To the brothers de Forest belongs the distinction of
being the first white settlers in this wild region. To live
there meant exposure to many hardships and dangers,
but land was abundant and cheap and the young men
(Henry, the married brother, was thirty and Isaac was

SOME PROMINENT NAMES 265

only twenty years of age) were courageous. " From the
rough, forest-clad hills," writes Mr. J. H. Innes, First in
1 ' seamed with deep ravines, a part of which now occupy
the north end of the Central Park, these two brothers, as
they explored the island of the Mannahatoes, soon after
their arrival, must have seen, as they looked to the north
ward, towards the wide salt-water estuary which we now
know as Harlem River, a level expanse of some seven or
eight hundred acres in area, broken only by one or two
isolated rocky eminences crowned with trees. Through
the midst of this ran a small fresh -water stream, and
there is little doubt that portions of the plain had been
long cleared and cultivated by the Indians." Here Di
rector van Twiller granted two hundred acres of meadow
land to Henry, with the customary formalities of the
times: " The said de Forest and his successors shall
acknowledge their High Mightinesses, the Directors of the
West India Company, as their sovereign Lords and
Patroons, and at the end of ten years after the actual set
tlement shall render the just tenth part of the product
wherewith God may bless the soil, and from this time
forth shall annually deliver on account of the dwelling
and house-lot, a pair of capons to the Director for the
holidays." Shortly afterwards the brothers erected the
first house on upper Manhattan ; a solidly built dwelling
forty-two feet long and eighteen feet wide, protected by a
heavy palisade. It is interesting to note that the site of
this house was not far from the present Harlem Lake in
Central Park.

The rewards of his arduous labours, however, were not
destined for Henry de Forest. Hardly had the spring
plowing been completed in the year 1637 when he died of
some cause unknown. The Harlem estate passed into the
hands of his widow, only a small portion of the movable
property going to Isaac ; a half interest in a boat, half of
a bull calf and the half of two kids are mentioned as be
longing to him. It became necessary for Isaac, therefore,

266 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Of the Nine
Men

The
Descendants

to establish a plantation for himself ; and he procured a
grant of one hundred acres which extended in a narrow
strip from " about the present Fifth Avenue and One
Hundred and Twelfth Street to the river shore in the
neighbourhood of First Avenue and One Hundred and
Twenty-sixth Street," including not a little of what is at
present Mt. Morris Park.

The loneliness of bachelor life must have weighed
heavily on Isaac, and in the records of the Dutch Re
formed Church for June 9, 1641, appears the following
note : "Isaac de Forest of Leyden, bachelor, was mar
ried to Sarah du Trieux of New Amsterdam, spinster."
At the time of his marriage he already had a dwelling
and a tobacco house on his plantation. Two years later
he leased the farm on shares and moved into the village of
New Amsterdam, where he opened a tobacco warehouse
in the Old Church, a deserted building which stood on
the Strand, now Pearl Street. From dealing in tobacco
Isaac branched out into the brewing line, and by 1653 he
was reckoned as a thoroughly successful brewer. In many
ways did he identify himself with the life of the grow
ing town : in 1652 he was one of the Nine Men (the advis
ory committee of the town) ; during the following year
he was inspector of tobacco ; in 1656 he was appointed
" Master of the Weight House" ; was made a great
burgher two years later; and served in the common
council for several years.

When Isaac de Forest died in 1674 he was survived by
a widow and seven children ; Susannah, Johannes, Philip,
Isaac, Hendricus, Maria, and David. Susannah married
Peter de Riemer ; Maria married Alderman Isaac de
Riemer ; Johannes died without issue. Of the remaining
children, Philip, husband of Tryntie Kip, founded the
Albany branch of the family ; Isaac remained in New
York, where many of his descendants are living to-day ;
Hendrick settled on Long Island, and left a goodly prog
eny ; while David removed to Stratford, Conn., where he

SOME PROMINENT NAMES 267

married Martha Blagge. From Connecticut, the little
State which has sent so many colonists out into the un
settled portions of the country, the De Forests spread un
til to-day they are to be found in nearly every section of
the United States.

Ill
GENERAL RICHARD MONTGOMERY

This noble martyr to liberty, who fell at Quebec on the
last day of 1775, was descended from the Huguenots
through that Comte de Montgomerie who mortally
wounded Henry II of France, July 10, 1559, in a tourna- A Revolution-
ment in honour of the marriage of his daughter. Though and Martyr
the King forgave the Count, the queen mother, Catherine
de Medicis, did not, but pursued the brave Huguenot with
implacable vengeance till she brought him to the scaffold,
May 27, 1576. His family fled to Ireland and won dis
tinction. Richard Montgomery was third son of an Irish
baronet, and was born December 2, 1738, at his father's
country seat in the north of Ireland. Liberally educated,
young Montgomery entered the British army and served
under General Wolfe in the war between England and
France for supremacy in Canada. Thus he gained his
experience for the Revolutionary days, when he espoused
the cause of the American colonies, and was elected a
brigadier-general by the Continental Congress. He was
then living on his farm at Rhinebeck, having married
into the Livingston family. The distinction conferred Leaving the
upon him without his solicitation was accepted with Farm for War
characteristic modesty and a patriotic sense of duty.
Writing to a friend he says: " The Congress having
done me the honour of electing me a brigadier-general in
their service, is an event which must put an end for a
while, perhaps forever, to the quiet scheme of life I had
prescribed for myself: for, though entirely unexpected
and undesired by me, the will of an oppressed people,
compelled to choose between liberty and slavery, must be

268 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A Daring As
sault on
Quebec

The

Chivalrous

Soldier

"Men of New
your general

obeyed." From that hour he was devoted to his adopted
country. He was sent to capture Montreal, which he did
after a most brilliant campaign. When the news of his
signal success reached Congress, that body passed a vote
of thanks and promoted him to be a major-general ; but his
untimely death prevented his receiving this reward of
merit. Quebec was his next objective, for as he wrote to
Congress : l ' Till Quebec is taken, Canada is uncou-
quered." It is a romantic but tragic story, how he led his
band of three hundred patriots over frozen ground and
drifting snows ; made juncture with Arnold, who had com
pleted a wonderful march with a half-starved and frozen
army through the wilderness of northern Maine ; only to
fall into a trap at last, and perish while at the head of his
hapless command, leading an assault on the strongly
fortified city. His last words were
York, you will not fear to follow where
leads ! March on, brave boys ! Quebec is ours ! '• But
they marched into the jaws of swift death. Through the
courtesy of General Carleton, British commander, Mont
gomery's body was privately interred, January 4, 1776,
near where he fell. By friend and foe alike his bravery
and ability were recognized and admired. His death
made a profound impression, both in Europe and
America, for the excellency of his character had won him
affection, as his great abilities had gained public esteem.
The Continental Congress caused to be executed a monu
ment of white marble, with a classical inscription written
by Franklin, which has since 1789 adorned the front of
St. Paul's Church in New York. It was fitting that this
monument should be executed by a Frenchman, Cameres,
sculptor to Louis XVI. He was eulogized even in the
British Parliament by Chatham and Burke. Forty-three
years after his death his remains were removed from
Quebec, by an u act of Honour ' ' of the legislature of New
York, and buried with brilliant military ceremonies near
the cenotaph erected by Congress to his memory. Of

SOME PKOMINENT NAMES 269

Washington's thirteen generals, elected by Congress,
Montgomery was second to none. He was " the embodi
ment of the true gentleman and chivalrous soldier," and
in his veins flowed the best of the French and English
blood.

PHILIP FRENEAU, POET
So expert a critic as the late Mr. Stedman asserted that Laureate

of the

the ' l first essential poetic spirit ' ' in American letters is Revolution
to be found in the earlier odes and lyrics of Philip
Freneau. He has been fitly called the "Laureate of the
Bevolution," and his name will always be remembered
in connection with the history of American literature as
the first poet to be produced on this continent. Mr.
Stedman says further of Freneau that he was " a true
poet, one of nature's lyrists, who had the temperament
of a Landor and was much what the Warwick classicist
might have been if bred, afar from Oxford, to the life of
a pioneer and revolutionist, spending his vital surplusage
in action, bellicose journalism and new- world verse."

Philip Freneau was born in New York on January 2, Birth in 1752
1752. The best Huguenot blood flowed in his veins, the
Freueaus being an able and distinguished family. His
grandfather, Andre Fresneau, emigrated to Boston in
1705 ; journeyed thence to Connecticut, where he was en
gaged for a while in mining ventures ; and finally arrived
in New York to take a position with the Eoyal West
India Company. Here his son Pierre was born, who was
the father of the poet. Pierre was so successful in his
business affairs that the year his son Philip was born he
was able to purchase a large estate in Monmouth County,
New Jersey, and build thereon a handsome spacious
mansion. Two years later he retired from active business
and withdrew with his family to his picturesque estate.
Here Philip was surrounded by everything that might
tend to develop his poetic impulse.

270 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Princeton After a due course of preparation in the classics he

entered Princeton College. Tradition has it that his
roommate there was James Madison. Certain it was that
Madison was among his classmates, as were Aaron Burr,
Aaron Ogden and Hugh Henry Breckenridge. While in
college he gave much of his time to writing poetry, and
the year before his graduation in 1771 he and his friend
Breckenridge published a volume of verses. The years
between his leaving college and the breaking out of the
Eevolution were devoted to teaching, and various light
skirmishes with the law, with theology, and with medi
cine. Many of his choicest nature-lyrics were written

Martial Songs during this period. In 1775 the cause of freedom aroused
Freneau to a high pitch of activity, and he freely gave
all that he had in the way of satirical power to arousing
the spirit of the public. He did not enter the army, but
it is safe to say that his satires and his martial songs ac
complished more for the cause of Independence than his
individual efforts as a soldier could have done. While
sailing in Delaware Bay in 1780, he was taken prisoner
by the British man-o'-war Iris, and spent many weary
weeks aboard an English prison- ship. When he was at
last released, he returned to New Jersey weak from fever
and hardship, but firm in will. He now had a personal
grievance to add to the fires of his zeal against the red
coats, and his satire and invective became more biting
and effective than at first. Many of his pieces achieved
a wide-spread popularity among the troops and the
people, and did much to foster the spirit of patriotic
ardour.

When the war was over, Freneau engaged in many
journalistic enterprises, the most notable of which was
the editing of The National Gazette.

Freneau espoused the cause of Jefferson, as against the
Federalists under the leadership of Alexander Hamilton,
and became involved thereby in a long train of acrimo
nious disputes. And while Freneau was of too independ-

Poems of
Patriotism

Editor

SOME PKOMINENT NAMES 271

ent a nature to allow his paper to become a mere tool in
the hands of his able friends, it was recognized, never
theless as the semi-official organ of Jefferson and Madi
son. Towards the latter part of his life, Freneau for
sook journalism, and in partnership with one of his
brothers ventured his fortune in trade with the West
Indies, the poet himself acting as commander of a brig.
He seems, indeed, to have been decidedly proud of his
title as "Captain Freneau." His death, which was a
tragic one, occurred in December of the year 1832.

Of Freneau, Professor Bronsou, one of the best of
recent critics of American literature, writes : " In poems
of fancy and imagination he was the most original and
truly poetical poet in America before the nineteenth cen
tury. . . . The i Wild Honeysuckle ' is the high-
water mark of American poetry of the eighteenth cen
tury, in delicacy of feeling and felicity of expression be
ing at least the equal of Bryant's 'To the Fringed
Gentian.' When such lines were possible in the very
infancy of the national life, there was no reason to de
spair for the future of American literature."

HEKRY DAVID THOREAU

In connection with Freneau we may properly speak of
Thoreau, though he was a New Englander. Henry David A New
Thoreau, born in Concord, Massachusetts, in 1817, was
the great-grandson of Philippe Thoreau and his wife
Marie le Gallais, French refugees who settled at St.
Helier in the Island of Jersey. The events of his life
ai?e few and simple. At school and at Harvard Univer
sity he did not distinguish himself as a student, but yet
managed to pick up enough Latin and Greek to qualify
himself as a quondam schoolmaster. The profession of
teaching, however, proved to be extremely distasteful to
him, and abandoning it after a short trial he devoted
himself to the family occupation — pencil-making. But

272 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

what men call the " business of life" accorded little with
the aims and interests of Henry Thoreau. "He had
early discovered, by virtue of that keen insight which
looked through the outer husk of conventionality, that
what is called profit in the bustle of commercial life is
often far from being, in the true sense, profitable ; that
the just claims of leisure are fully as important as the
just claims of business ; and that the surest way of be
coming rich is to need little ; in his own words, ' a man
is rich in proportion to the number of the things which
he can afford to let alone.' '

A Lover of He refused to pledge himself "to some professional

treadmill, and for the sake of imaginary i comforts ' sac
rifice the substantial happiness of life." He gave himself
over to a " loitering" in which idleness held no part.
Supporting himself by pencil-making, surveying, lectur
ing and writing, as occasion demanded, he spent the bulk
of his time in the study of wild nature. ' ' His business
was to spend at least one half of each day in the open
air ; to watch the dawns and the sunsets ; to carry ex
press what was in the wind ; to secure the latest news
from forest and hilltop, and to be * self-appointed in
spector of snow-storms and rain-storms.' '

In 1845 he built a hut near Walden Pond and retired
to a closer intimacy with nature. "His residence on the
shore of Walden Pond has often been misinterpreted,"
says Professor Bronson, in his History of American Liter
ature. " It was only an episode in his life, and he never
meant to preach by it that all men should live in huts
or that civilization was a mistake. Eather it was a
demonstration, first to himself and then to others, that
man's happiness and higher life are not dependent upon
luxuries nor even upon external refinements." After
two years of life in his simple hermitage he returned to
Concord, where he supported his mother and sisters
largely through the old trade of pencil-making. He died
on May 6, 1862, at the age of forty-five.

Henry D. Thoreau

Philip Frencau

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

John Greenleaf Whittier

SOME PROMINENT NAMES 273

Thoreau's life and writings, taken together, form a The Life of
strong protest against the modern vice of over-atten- Emphasized
tion to the mere externals of life. Says his biographer,
Henry Salt: "He shows us that it is possible for
men to-day to live as the Stoics strove to live, in ac
cordance with Nature, with absolute serenity and self-
possession ; to follow out one's own ideal in spite of every
obstacle, with unfaltering devotion ; and so to simplify
one's life, and clarify one's senses, as to master many of
the secrets of that book of Nature which to most men
remains unintelligible and unread."

It was Thoreau's distinction to be the pioneer among
Americans in the nature study that is the favourite pur- A pioneer in
suit of so many to-day. He was the apostle of the simple
life, and lived as he preached. He tells us of his house
keeping methods at Walden : " When my floor was
dirty I rose early, and setting all my furniture out of
doors on the grass, bed and bedstead making but one
budget, dashed water on the floor, and sprinkled white
sand from the pond on it, and then with a broom scrubbed
it clean and white ; and by the time the villagers had
broken their fast, the morning sun had dried my house
sufficiently to allow me to move in again, and my medi
tations were almost uninterrupted. It was pleasant to see
my whole household effects upon the grass, making a
little pile like a gipsy's pack, and my three-legged table,
from which I did not remove the books and pen and ink,
standing amidst the pines and hickories."

If Thoreau seemed unsympathetic to certain classes of
people, he loved children and animals, and was at home
with them and they with him. He proved his theory
1 i that to maintain oneself on this earth is not a hardship
but a pastime, if we will live simply and wisely. ' ' Here is
a characteristic description of himself by Thoreau : " Am
not married. I don't know whether mine is a profession,
or a trade, or what not. It is not learned, and in every
instance has been practiced before being studied. The

274 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEKICA

A Self-Char
acterization

A Pen
Portrait

Poem on the
Sea

mercantile part of it was begun by myself alone. I am a
Schoolmaster, a private Tutor, a Surveyor, a Gardener, a
Farmer, a Painter (I mean a House Painter), a Carpen
ter, a Mason, a Day-labourer, a Pencil-maker, a Writer,
and sometimes a Poetaster. . . . My steadiest em
ployment is to keep myself at the top of my condition,
and ready for whatever may turn up in heaven or on
earth."

Thoreau maintained sincerity to be chief of all virtues,
and may be called a Yankee stoic. He held the old
stoical maxim that all places are the same to the wise
man, and that "the best place for each is where he
stands." On the same principle, being asked at table
what dish he preferred, he is said to have answered,
"The nearest." He was a radical abolitionist, and a
patriotic American. His writings have given him high
rank among literary men, and his influence abides.
Ellery Channing, an intimate friend, thus describes his
appearance :

"His face, once seen, could not be forgotten. The
features were quite marked : the nose aquiline, or very
Roman, like one of the portraits of Caesar ; large, over
hanging brow above the deepest-set blue eyes that could
be seen, in certain lights, and in other gray — eyes ex
pressive of all shades of feeling, but never weak or near
sighted ; the forehead not unusually broad or high, full
of concentrated energy or purpose ; the mouth with
prominent lips, pursed up with meaning and thought
when silent, and giving out when open a stream of the
most varied and unusual and instructive sayings. His
whole figure had an active earnestness, as if he had no
moment to waste." New England and America needed
just such an influence as this scholar and genius of French
descent exerted. •

Space forbids quotations that would show Thoreau' s
pithy and witty prose style, and we can give but a single

SOME PEOMINENT NAMES 275

illustration of his poetry. These stanzas on the sea were
written at Staten Island :

" My life is like a stroll upon the beach,
As near the ocean's edge as I can go ;
My tardy steps its waves sometimes o'erreach,
Sometimes I stay to let them overflow.

" My sole employment 'tis, and scrupulous care,
To place my gains beyond the reach of tides,
Each smoother pebble, and each shell more rare,
Which Ocean kindly to my hand confides.

" I have but few companions on the shore :

They scorn the strand who sail upon the sea ;
Yet oft I think the ocean they've sailed o'er
Is deeper known upon the strand to me."

MATTHEW VASSAR

Among the men of Huguenot blood who have through Founder of
philanthropy written their names indelibly on history's
page must be placed Matthew Vassar, founder of Vassar
College, the original woman's college of the first order
established in any land. Matthew Vassar was born in
England, but came to America when a young child with
his parents. His father was the direct descendant of a
Huguenot exile who found a home in England. Mat
thew's mother was led to brew English ale, in order to
stop the common drinking of whiskey by the farm hands.
Her brew was so popular that it largely replaced the
stronger liquor, and demands for it increased until the
son began to brew as a business. Out of this beginning
developed the Vassar brewery, which was famous for
many years, and which made a large fortune for the
family.

Not a highly educated man himself, Matthew Vassar
appreciated education, and was of a philanthropic turn.
He wanted to do good with his money. He established a

276 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

home for old men, and had plans for a hospital. The
subject of woman's education interested him, and he
thought women should have as good educational advan
tages as men. He was ready, therefore, to consider the
matter with Professor Eayrnond, who had worked out the
plans for a distinctive woman's college. Mr. Vassar
furnished the capital, and Vassar College was started as
an experiment, with Professor Eaymond as president.
Into this enterprise, which grew far beyond the original
plans, Matthew Vassar put a large part of his fortune ;
and had the satisfaction of seeing the institution a great
success before he was taken away. This was the pioneer,
but soon his example was followed — in Massachusetts by
Mr. Durant, who founded Wellesley . To-day the women7 s
colleges are thriving and numerous, and hold the highest
rank, while their thousands of alumni are to be found in
all parts of the laud. Huguenot descendants may remem
ber with just pride that the first of these institutions, and
one still in the front rank, was due to the philanthropy
and far-sightedness of one of their number.

VII

THOMAS HOPKINS GALLAUDET

The Gaiiaudet Qne of the Huguenot emigrants from France was Peter
Gallaudet, who left Mauze, near La Eochelle, shortly after
the Eevocation, and came to America, transferring to new
shores the traditions of a family long identified by act
and sympathy with the cause of Protestantism. Gal
laudet settled in New Eochelle, whence his descendants
have spread to various parts of the country.

One of Gallaudet' s great-grandsons was Thomas Hop
kins Gallaudet, who more than any other member of the
family has brought the name into prominence. Thomas
was born in Philadelphia in 1787, and there spent his
early days. Moving to Hartford in 1800, he entered Yale,
and was graduated in 1805. The three following years he
spent as travelling salesman for a New York firm. Then

SOME PROMINENT NAMES 277

for two years he tutored in Yale, arid for three more at
tended the Andover Theological Seminary, graduating in
1814. During this educational period there were un
folded in Gallaudet the characteristics which have always
marked the Huguenots — sociability, a wide range of in
terests and sympathies, versatility, ingenuity, and a
desire to turn all faculties to account in unselfish human
service.

Up to the beginning of the nineteenth century organ- instruction for
ized charity was a thing unknown in New England. Es- Deaf Mutes
pecially pitiable was the plight of the deaf mutes, of
whom, it was estimated, there were four hundred in New
England, all out of reach of instruction. One of these
deaf mutes was Alice Coggswell, daughter of a wealthy
physician of Hartford. She had been afflicted from an
early age ; as she approached maturity her father was im
pelled to find some means of relieving her tragic situa
tion. Several philanthropists joined with him in the ef
fort to establish regular instruction for deaf mutes in
America. The first step was to secure an American who
would undertake to learn the methods of instruction
abroad. Their plans reached the point of action at the
very time when Gallaudet was deciding on his career.
His name was at once brought forward, the more readily
because he had for some time shown an interest in Alice
Coggswell, and had even succeeded in teaching her a few
words.

Gallaudet accepted the commission with a confidence
which was characteristic, crossed the ocean, and after en- organizes the
countering many obstacles, induced the Abbe Sicard, in faSStton fot
Paris, to teach him. Here he worked zealously for a *
year, varying his labour by preaching. At the end of this
time he returned to America, fitted for introducing the
approved French methods of instruction. From 1817 to
1830 he controlled the policy and working of the Hart
ford Institution for Deaf Mutes. So intense was his ap
plication during these thirteen years, in the face of a

278 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

steadily declining physique, that when at length ill
health compelled him to resign, he left the institution
equipped with well -trained instructors, and in shape to
continue its activities unimpaired.

Gallaudet found that the relief from continuous labour
gave him a new lease of activity. He was at once oifered
several promising positions, but declined them all, and
applied himself for some years to writing books of
various kinds, principally books for children, such
as The Child's Book of the Soul (1830), and Bible
Stories for the Young (1838), for which he was admi
rably fitted by his pedagogic experience. In 1838 he
found congenial employment as chaplain of the Hartford
Eetreat for the Insane. Here he carried on a gentle
ministry for long and profitable years, until his death in
1851. His sons have carried forward the noble work in
which he was so long engaged, and the family name is
one that will be held in high honour for splendid service
rendered in the cause of humanity. The deaf mutes of
America and the world owe a large debt of gratitude to
the Huguenot descendants who have consecrated their
lives to opening the world of thought, knowledge and
communication to a class of unfortunates.

CHAPTEE VII
JOHN AND STEPHEN GANG

AMINISTEE of prominence in New York and New
Jersey during the Eevolutionary period was Eev.
John Gano, a Baptist. This exceptionally able fjjpjj£er and
man, who was to come into somewhat intimate relations Patriot
with Washington, was a descendant of the French refugee
family of Ganeau, which settled in Ehode Island. It was
John Gano's great-grandfather Francis who came to this
country to escape persecution. John was born at Hope-
well, New Jersey, 1727, being thus six years older than
Washington. He has left a most interesting autobiog
raphy, in which he states that he believed himself con
verted when about eighteen. His father was a Presbyte
rian, but his mother was a Baptist, and after careful consid
eration he thought it his duty to join a Baptist church.
Thus that denomination gained a minister of great in
fluence and usefulness. He early felt convictions of duty
to enter the ministry, and decided to do so, though he
shrank from the calling. He was educated at Princeton
College, at "that time kept in Newark, and governed by
President Burr, with whom I was a great favourite,'7 he
tells us. Before leaving college he began to preach and
made a missionary journey to Virginia. He was gifted
as writer and speaker, had a fine presence and great
magnetism, so that his fame grew rapidly and he was re
peatedly invited to pastorates before his studies were
finished. Morristown became his temporary home, and
subsequently he accepted the call of the church there.
The church record for October, 1755, says : "Mr. Gano
at the earnest request of the church concluded to settle

279

280 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Chaplain
in the
Revolution

Usefulness
Recognized by
Washington

with us for the sum of forty pounds a year." He mar
ried Sarah Stites, daughter of the mayor of Elizabeth-
Town, and thus became related indirectly to James
Manning, the first president of Brown University, who
married his wife's sister. The young minister bought a
farm near Morristown, and thus managed together with
his meagre salary to meet current expenses. But he was
not long to remain there. Missionary in spirit he spent
two years in North Carolina, among the religiously desti
tute people, and then returning North, organized the
First Baptist Church of New York City, and for twenty-
six years was its pastor and a citizen of no little repute.
During this period he also served for a time as pastor of
the First Baptist Church of Philadelphia, spending two
Sundays of the month there ; since preachers of his rank
were few and in great demand.

At the outbreak of the Eevolutionary War John Gano
became chaplain, and remained in the army seven years,
giving a devoted and highly acceptable service. More
than once he was under fire. Part of the time he served
as aide to General James Clinton. He participated in
the capture of the Hessians at Trenton, the overthrow of
the English allies — the Pennsylvania Indians, and reached
Yorktown just too late to witness the surrender of Corn-
wallis. When peace was at last concluded, and the
happy event celebrated at Washington's headquarters,
near Newburgh, April 19, 1783, Chaplain Gano was
selected by General Washington to offer the prayer of
thanksgiving on that joyous and memorable occasion.
After the war, Washington said, " Baptist chaplains
were the most prominent and useful in the army." Gen
eral Washington and Mr. Gano were close friends, and
this compliment applied especially to him.

When peace was restored, Mr. Gano returned to his
New York pastorate. In 1788 he resigned to go to Ken
tucky. He became at once the leading preacher of that
State and for ten years rendered most efficient service,

JOHN AND STEPHEN GANG 281

In 1798 he fell from his horse, breaking his shoulder.
Soon after he was stricken with paralysis. During the
Great Eevival, 1800-1803, his speech was restored and he
preached, as a contemporary described it, " in an as
tonishing manner."

Consider what an influence was exerted by this Hugue
not descendant. The territory covered by his labours was
larger than that of the Apostle Paul. It extended from An American
Connecticut to Georgia and west to the Kentucky Eiver.
He was interested in all of the denominational enterprises
of his time. He was one of the first home missionaries
sent out by the Philadelphia Association, the first Amer
ican Baptist chaplain, a loyal supporter of Hopewell
Academy and Ehode Island College. He was present en
couraging the movement when the South Carolina Baptists
set apart the first money for the education of their young
preachers. From this beginning came the Southern Bap
tist Theological Seminary. He gave sound Calvinistic
colouring to the theology of the Virginia Baptists, and
stirred all the churches to which he preached with mis
sionary zeal.

Eev. Stephen Gauo, son of John Gano, was a man of A worthy son
mark, whose chief work was done in Ehode Island, where
his ancestor Francis found refuge. Like John Gano, the
son possessed great personal magnetism and charm. He
had the French clearness of style, vividness of imagina
tion, warmth of temperament, and flow of language. At
the same time he combined with pulpit power executive
ability, and^was marked by strong common sense and
practical judgment. He was a leader in Providence, as
John Gano was in New York and later in Kentucky. As
pastor of the historic First Baptist Church of Provi- Pastor of
dence — the church founded by Eoger Williams, that chrurch?pt
great apostle of religious liberty— Stephen Gano exerted Rogerdec
a wide influence. He held this pastorate from 1793 till Williams
his death in 1828, a period of thirty-five years. In every

282 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

way this ministry was remarkable. Dr. S. L. Caldwell,
one of his biographers, says : "He had what I may call
a pastoral heart. Of large person, of loud, almost sten
torian voice, he spoke with fluency ; often pathetic and
hortatory in his application of truth, always possessed
with a strong conviction of it, he had power over a large
audience, which daring his time filled the house."

Stephen Gano was filled with the missionary spirit that
characterized the early Baptist ministry. During a
journey to the West, while visiting his brother in Cincin
nati, he organized the first Protestant church of any de
nomination in the State of Ohio. It was located in a
little settlement known as Columbia, now within the city
limits of Cincinnati. The church continues in existence.
Interested in education, he stimulated the founding of
colleges and academies, as well as of churches, and was
a loyal supporter of Brown University. Two denomina
tional leaders of their generation were thus contributed
to American life by that brave Huguenot who fled from
his home in France by night, and after many perils
found refuge in that freest of colonies, where Eoger Will
iams guaranteed to all the religious liberty for which he
himself had twice been exiled.

SECOND FRENCH CHURCH ON PINE STREET, 1704, USED TILL 1 8* I, NEW YORK.

CHAPTEE VIII
NEW PALTZ

THE Huguenot settlement at New Paltz was 1677
brought about by the purchase of a tract of land
from the Indian owners in the year 1677. In
consideration of the rights acquired, the patentees agreed
to pay to the Indians the following articles :

Forty kettles, ten large, thirty small ; forty axes, forty
adzes ; forty shirts ; four hundred fathoms of white net
work ; sixty pairs of stockings, half small sizes ; one hun
dred bars of lead ; one keg of powder ; one hundred
knives ; four kegs of wine ; forty oars ; forty pieces of
"duffel" (heavy woolen cloth); sixty blankets; one
hundred needles ; one hundred awls ; one measure of
tobacco ; two horses — one stallion, one mare.

The twelve men who thus agreed to collect the above The Twelve
assortment of merchandise and put it into the possession ]
of the Esopus Indians were all Huguenots who had come
to the New World by way of the Paltz, of Palatinate.
Their names, as appended to the deed with all the bliss
ful ignorance of spelling which marked the period, were
as follows : Lowies Du Booys, Christian de Yoo, Agra-
ham Gaesbroeco, Andrie Lefeber, Jan Broeco, Piere
Doyo, Anthony Crespel, Anrahain Du Booys, Hugo
Freer, Isaack D. Boojs, Symon Lefeber, Louis Baijvier.
Previous to their coming to America, these men had
taken refuge in and about Mannheim, in the Palatinate,
and had there formed the ties of friendship which led to
their association in the founding of New Paltz.

The first of the Mannheim party to arrive in America

283

284

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

The First
Comers

Wiltwyck

Harmony and
Peace

was Matthew Blanshan and his wife, Maddeleen Jorisse,
together with his son-in-law, Anthony Chrispel. They
sailed in the Gilded Otter in April, 1660, and by Decem
ber of the same year were settled in the village of Wilt
wyck, now called Hurley. The following year Louis
Du Bois and his wife Catherine Blanshan, with their two
sous, Abraham and Isaac, took up their residence there
also. Simon and Andre" Le Fevre were in Wiltwyck by
April 23, 1665, on which day they united with the
church. Owing to the disturbed condition of the prov
ince at that time, no more members of the group left
Mannheim until the year 1672, when Jean Hasbrouck
and his wife, Anna, daughter of Christian Deyo, joined
their friends. Louis Beviere and his wife, Maria La
Blan, came to New York in 1673, where they remained
until the founding of New Paltz, four years later. In
1675 Abraham Hasbrouck came to Boston, and shortly
afterwards made his way to the banks of the Hudson.
Hugh Frere and his wife, Mary Haye, with their three
children, came over about 1676 ; as did Christian Deyo,
with his son Pierre, and his daughter-in-law, Agatha
Nickol, and his three unmarried daughters. Thus slowly
the little group was reunited, and when the circle was
complete the project was formed whereby its members
might dwell together in peace and amity.

The life of the settlement was harmonious from the first.
The colonists lived on the friendliest terms with their
Indian neighbours, who always considered that they had
been treated with fairness in the matter of the purchase
of the land ; and among themselves they acted as brothers
in Arcadia. At the commencement of the colony the
patentees and their families all laboured together in
clearing the land, in erecting their log dwellings, and in
planting their first crops. Afterwards, they met together
and portioned out the lands among themselves by word
of mouth, dispensing with the formality of deeds.

A form of town government was inaugurated that is

OLD HUGUENOT HOUSES AT NEW PALTZ

NEW PALTZ 285

without a close parallel in our colonial history. At first
the heads of the families met together and settled what
ever public business there was on hand. But as the town
grew in numbers, this primitive democracy gave way to
a unique institution locally known as the Dusine, or
Twelve Men. The Dusine was a legislative and execu
tive body made up of twelve members who were elected
annually by a popular vote. To the Dusine was given The
* l full power and Authority to Act and Sett in Good order
and unity all Common Affairs, Businessess or things
comeing before them." If its powers were autocratic,
its composition was certainly aristocratic ; for no one but
a patentee or an heir of a patentee could be elected to the
Twelve. That is to say, the active government of the
town was vested in the families of the twelve original
settlers. This peculiar condition of government was con
tinued until 1785, when the town was incorporated in the
State government, and the previous measures of the
Dusine were confirmed by a special Act of Legislature.

When the first settlers of New Paltz alighted from church and
their wagons, one of their number read a psalm of
thanksgiving, and one of the earliest log buildings which
was erected was devoted to uses as a church and school-
house. In this cabin the little community of Huguenots
kept alive the traditions of the Keformation, meeting
there for informal devotions led by one of their own
number, reading passages from the Bible, singing the
sonorous hymns which had been rendered sacred by the
blood of so many martyrs, and uttering simple prayers.
Five years after the establishment of the town a regular
church was organized under the advice and guidance of
the worthy Eev. Pierre Daille*. A translation of the first
entry in the church records is as follows :

The 22d of January, 1683, Mr. Pierre Daille, minister of the Word Missionary
of God, arrived at New Paltz, and preached twice on the following
Sunday, and proposed to the heads of the families that they should
choose by a majority of votes, by the fathers of families, one elder and

Dedication
1717

286 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

one deacon, to assist the minister in guiding the members of the church
that meets in New Paltz ; who were subsequently confirmed in the
said charge of elder and deacon. This minute has been made to put
in order the matters which pertain to the said church.

For ten years Daille acted as pastor to Iris countrymen
in New Paltz. His principal field of labour was in New
York, but he never failed to visit New Paltz for a time
in the spring, and then again in the fall. The difficulties
and hardships of the long journeys he was thus forced to
make cannot easily be overestimated ; they are a splendid
testimony to the unflagging zeal and loyal devotion to
duty which marked the man. The same must be said of
his successor, the Eev. David Bonrepos, who, from 1696
to 1700, journeyed from his pastorate at Staten Island to
New Paltz twice a year. After Bonrepos ceased to visit
them it is probable that for the next thirty years they
had no regular pastor ; for they had not, as yet, united
with the Dutch Church, and those few French ministers
who had come to this country were by this time dead, or
else settled in other pastorates. But although there was
thus every temptation to leave neglected the duties of
their religion, such was neither the spirit nor intent of
our refugees. They kept up their informal worship in
the log cabin until it became too small for their rapidly
increasing numbers, and then they set about building a
more suitable house of worship. This edifice, which was
constructed of stone, was completed in 1717, and was in
use until 1773, when a larger church was built. When
the church was finally completed, the following entry was
made in the record book :

Blessed be God, who has put it into our hearts to build a house
where He may be adored and served, and that by His grace we have
finished it in the year 1717 ; and God grant that His gospel may be
preached here from one age to another till the day of eternity. Amen.

Our Huguenots were no bigots or petty sectarians, for
during the thirty year interval when they were without

NEW PALTZ 287

a pastor, they took their children to the Dutch church
at Kingston, sixteen miles away, to be baptized ; and
during the summer months they were in the habit of
taking the rough journey through the forest to join with
their Dutch brethren in receiving the communion. A
sixteen mile journey through the woods and unbridged
streams was no luxury ; there were no spring wagons for
the women and children to ride in, and the trip had to be
made either a- foot or on horseback, for the highway of
that day was nothing more than a rude trail.

The lack of sectarianism that prevailed in the New
Paltz community was clearly shown in the choice of their
next pastor, the Rev. Johannes Van Driessen, a minister
of the Dutch faith who had been educated in Belgium.
The salary which he received was the munificent sum of
£10 a year, but it is highly probable that he devoted but
a small proportion of his time to the New Paltz congre
gation. The first entries which he made in the church
book were, in French, and in one place he refers to the
church as "our French church." This was in 1731.
Twenty years later, however, the New Paltz church had
ceased to be distinctively French, and we find the next
pastor, the Eev. B. Vrooman, making an inquiry as to
whether the members accepted the doctrines of the Dutch
Reformed church according to the Heidelberg catechism.
Dutch was being more and more generally spoken in New
Paltz, and an interesting evidence of its rapid growth in
popular use is found in a clause of Jean Tebenin's will
wherein the old schoolmaster gives his property to the
church with the provision that if the French language
should be entirely superseded, the Bible should be sold
and the proceeds given to the poor.

Coincident with the founding of a church at New Paltz
was the founding of a school. Out of their scanty fortunes Education
these worthy pioneers set aside a sum sufficient to employ Appreciated
a schoolmaster. Jean Tebenin was the first to fill the
position, which he retained until 1700. Jean Cottin fol-

288 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

lowed in his footsteps. That he was treated with the
greatest liberality is evidenced by the following deed of
gift which the citizens bestowed upon him • this docu
ment also throws a strong light on the character of the
men who made up the colony and the ideals they had in
mind in regulating its growth :

A Gift to the \Ve the undersigned gentlemen, resident proprietors of the twelve

parts of the village of New Paltz, a dependency of Kingston, county
of Ulster, province of New York, certify that of our good will and to
give pleasure to Jean Cottin, schoolmaster at said Paltz, we to him
have given gratuitously a little cottage to afford him a home, situated
at said Paltz, at the end of the street on the left hand near the large
clearing extending one " lizier " to the place reserved for building the
church and continuing in a straight line to the edge of the clearing,
thence one " lizier " to the extremity of the clearing, and we guarantee
the said Cottin that he shall be placed in possession without any
trouble and we allow said Cottin to cut wood convenient for his pur
pose for building and he is given the pasturage for two cows and their
calves and a mare and colt. We the proprietors at the same time
agree among ourselves, for the interest of our own homes to request
said Cottin that he will not sell the above mentioned property to any
one not of good life and manners, and we are not to keep said Cottin
as schoolmaster longer than we think fit and proper.

Progress and By steady toil and exercise of thrift the descendants
of the patentees raised themselves to a comfortable degree
of prosperity. Within a few years after the building of
the town, the original wooden houses gave way to spacious
and solid structures of stone, many of which are standing
to-day, still occupied by direct descendants of the build
ers. This is one of the marks of the town, that the fami
lies of the founders still cling to the locality. The hurry
and bustle of modern American life is not felt to any
great degree in New Paltz, and men may be 'seen tilling
the fields that their great-great-grandfathers tilled before
them.

For many years one of the Huguenot descendants, Mr.
Ralph LeFevre, of New Paltz, has been gathering facts
concerning the families which trace their origin to the

NEW PALTZ

289

Esopus colony, and he has recently published the results
of his zealous labour in a large and handsome volume,
entitled History of New Paltz and its Old Families, which
goes minutely into family history. We are largely in
debted to him for the facts given above, and for other
favours.

SECOND STONE CHURCH* IVLW P*UTZ.

PAET THEEE

PENNSYLVANIA AND THE SOUTHERN
STATES

CHAPTER I
PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE

First White

Settlers

Huguenots

Probably as
Early as 1625

Penn's Grant
1681

EVEN years before the building of Fort Nassau on
a branch of the Delaware River and the granting

w_ ' of patents to Godyn and his colleagues, a small

trading station was erected on an island (now almost en
tirely washed away) in the Delaware a short distance be
low the present town of Trenton Falls. The hardy settlers
who undertook the labour of establishing this station in
the wilderness, and who thus isolated themselves from all
contact with civilization, were members of the band of
refugees, collected by Jesse de Forest, which reached
New York in the spring of 1623. Although the attempt
was an abortive one and had to be abandoned a few years
later, nevertheless the four young couples who made up
the garrison of the trading station are entitled to recogni
tion as the first white settlers of Pennsylvania. Unless
new facts come into the light of history, we may safely
say that the first homes which were built in that com
monwealth which has proved such an asylum for the
persecuted, were erected by the most bitterly persecuted
of all European people, the Huguenots.

Prior to the grant to William Penn in 1681, the region
now known as Pennsylvania, and which then included the
state of Delaware, contained many French refugees among
its inhabitants. The names of most of these settlers have

290

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWAEE 291

passed into oblivion ; in some cases being irrecoverably
lost, in other cases being so confused with the Dutch and
Swedish colonists as to defy all attempt at separation.
It is not altogether strange that the early settlers in Penn- French
sylvania who were of French descent lost their national
identity. The majority of them did not come direct from
France, but from Germany and Holland, where most of
them had long resided and where many of them, indeed,
had been born. During their residence in the Palatine
and in Holland, they identified themselves with the in
habitants of those countries in speech and name. That Adaptability
faculty which the Huguenots possessed to an eminent de
gree, and which made of them such desirable immigrants,
the ability to adapt themselves readily to new conditions
and new environments, operated against the preservation
of their identity as Frenchmen. How completely had
the Gallic flavour disappeared from such a typical Ger
man name as Kieffer, or such a typical Dutch name as
De Witte ! Yet the Kieffers, of Pennsylvania, and the
De Wittes, of New York, were once the Tonnelliers and
the Le Blancs of France. And even Peter Minuit, "the
discontented governor," is described as a German by our
historian Bancroft. Little wonder, then, that the Hugue
not settlers in America have never received their due
meed of justice at the hands of historians, and have
never been given the popular recognition which they de
serve.

A majority of the French settlers in the Delaware region
came over at the time of the first general influx of emi
grants from the Palatine ; roughly speaking, between the
years 1654 and 1664. The names of some of the more influx
prominent of these refugees have been preserved, and the I654~l664
positions which some of them held in the colony give
proof of the high esteem in which the Huguenots were
held among the Dutch. The first Huguenot of note to
take up his residence in the Delaware colony was the ex-
director of the New Netherlands, Peter Minuit, something

292 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Christiana

Tacquett
Vice-
Director

De Haes

Boyer

Other
Families

of whose history is given in another section of this book.
During Minuit' s residence in Delaware the colony came
founds under the rule of Sweden, and Minuit was appointed gov
ernor. During his term of office, which was a short one,
lasting only from April 28, 1638, to January 30, 1640, he
founded the town of Christiana in Delaware, where he
died the year following his release as governor.

After the Dutch had regained possession of the colony
from the Swedes, another Huguenot was placed in a po
sition of the highest authority. Jean Paul Jacquett, born
in Nuremberg of French parents, was appointed vice-
director in 1655, and was responsible to the governor of
New Netherlands for the welfare of the colony. Doubt
less the fact that a refugee occupied the highest position
in the colony had much to do with the coming of num
bers of his brethren, for at just about this time a con
siderable tide of immigration set in. Later on, in 1676,
Jacquett was made a justice, and was in other ways a
man of great distinction in the colony. He died in 1684,
at a patriarchal age. Among his descendants may be
mentioned his great-grandson, Major Peter Jacquett, who
was a gallant officer in the Continental Army. Two
years after Jacquett was made justice, Captain John de
Haes was elevated to the same office. Previous to this he
had been commissioner to receive and take charge of quit
rents, and later, collector of customs at New Castle.
Another Huguenot who was prominent in the govern
ment of the colony for many years was Alexander Boyer,
who as early as 1648 had been made deputy commissioner
of Delaware.

Among the earlier settlers on the Delaware were the
Le Fever brothers, Jacques, Hypolite and Jean. Joost
de la Grange came to America in 1656 by way of Hol
land, and became the owner of Tinicum Island in 1662.
He left a son named Arnoldus. Gerrit Eutan was a cit
izen of the colony before 1660, and established a family
well known in Pennsylvania, of which the Hon. James

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE 293

S. Rutan was a worthy representative. Other heads of
families who established themselves along the banks of
the Delaware were : Daniel Rouette (prior to 1683) ;
Jean du Bois (prior to 1694) ; Elie Naudin in 1698, a
native of La Tremblade ; John Gruwell, with his sons
John and Jacob ; the brothers, Daniel, James and Will
iam Voshell, who were probably related to Augustine and
Peter Voshell who came to New York in 1700 ; Dr. des
Jardines (prior to 1683), who came as a naturalized
Englishman ; Jacob Casho ; Laurens Rochia, who fled
first to Ireland ; and Richard Saye, of Nismes, who came
in 1686. Other names appear before the end of the
seventeenth century, many of them given distinction by
the upright and honourable lives of their bearers, as fol
lows : Philipe Chevalier, Henri Clerq, Albert Blocq,
Math, de Ring, Mosis de Gau, Hubert Laurans, Paul
Mincq, Jean Savoy, Belle vill, Cammon, Bassett, Cazier,
Deto, La Pierre, La Farge, Le Compte (La Count), Larus,
Sees, Setton, Janvier, Du Chesney (Dushane), Vigoure,
Tunnell, Le Croix, and Hueling (Huling).

The Ferree family was descended from an old and noble The Ferree
family of Normandy, and at the time of the Revocation Family
of the Edict, Daniel, one of the best representatives of the
family, was a silk manufacturer of wealth and influential
position. Owing to his prominence and the staunchness
he had displayed in clinging to his faith, he was marked
by the dragoons for the bitterest persecutions. To save
his wife, Mary, and his six children from the abuse and Daniel's
insults of the troopers, he managed to convey them secretly Fllght
to Strasbourg, where they were in comparative safety.
Remaining here for some time, the Ferrees moved to
Bittingheim in the Palatinate. Here Daniel Ferree died.
The leadership now developed upon Mary Ferree, and Mary
the difficulties of her position cannot be well over-esti-
mated ; an exile from her native land, living amongst a

294 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

strange people, and with but scant means with which to
provide for her family, the future must, indeed, have
looked black to her. But she proved to be the stuff of
which heroines are made, and surmounting every obstacle,
managed to keep her little flock together. As time passed
on, and her children grew to maturity, she developed the
plan of seeking out a home in the new world where her
girls and boys would have a better chance in the world
seeks America than was offered by Germany, already overcrowded with
children refugees, and far from secure from the inroads of the

Papal troops. Her eldest daughter, Catherine, had mar
ried a young refugee by the name of Isaac le Fevre, and
he, together with the wife of Madame Ferree's oldest son,
Daniel, joined the little band which left the Palatinate in
1708.
Their church The church letter which Daniel received was as

Letter „ ,,

follows :

Certificate for Daniel Fir re and his family.

WE, the Pastors, Elders and Deacons of the Reformed Walloon
Church of Pelican, in the Lower Palatinate, having been requested
by the Honourable Daniel Firre, his wife, Anne Maria Leininger, and
their children, Andrew and John Firre, to grant them a testimonial of
their life and religion, do certify and attest that they have always
made profession of the pure Reformed religion, frequented our sacred
assemblies, and have partaken of the supper of the Lord with the other
members of the faith, in addition to which they have always con
ducted themselves uprightly without having given cause for scandal
that has come to our knowledge. Being now on their departure to
settle elsewhere we commend them to the protection of God and to the
kindness of all our brethren in the Lord Christ. In witness whereof
we have signed this present testimonial with our signature and usual
marks. Done at Pelican, in our Consistory, the 10th of May, 1708.
MICHAEL MESSAKOP, J. ROMAN, Pastor,

PETER SCHARLET, JAMES BAILLEAUX, Deacon,

JOHN BAPTISTE LEPLACE, Deacon.

The civil passport which Madame Ferree obtained is
not without interest as a historical document, and a
translation of it is as follows :

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWAEE 295

WHEREAS, Maria, Daniel Fuehre's widow, and her son, Daniel
Ferie, with his wife and six children, in view of improving their condi
tion and in furtherance of their prosperity, purpose to emigrate from
Steinweiler, in the Mayorality of Bittingheim, High Bailiwick Ger-
mersheim, via Holland and England, to the island of Pennsylvania, to
reside there. They have requested an accredited certificate that they
have left the town of Steinweiler with the knowledge of the proper
authorities, and have deported themselves, and without cause for cen
sure, and are indebted to no one, and not subject to vassalage, being
duly solicited it has been thought proper to grant their petition, de
claring that the above named persons are not moving away clandes
tinely.

That during the time their father, the widow and children resided
in this place they behaved themselves so piously and honestly that it
would have been highly gratifying to us to see them remain among us ; Commenda-
that they are not subject to bodily bondage, the Mayorality not being tions
subject to vassalage. They have also paid for their permission to emi
grate. Mr. Fisher, the Mayor of Steinweiler, being expressly inter
rogated, it has been ascertained that they are not liable for any debts.
In witness whereof I have, in the absence of the Counsellor of the Pa
latinate, etc., signed these presents, and given the same to the persons
who intend to emigrate.

J. P. DIETRICH, Court Clerk.

Dated Bittingheim, March 10, 1708.

Armed with these documents the party made its way to
England to complete its arrangements for settling in
America. Madame Ferree sought and obtained an inter
view with William Peun, to whom she told the story of
her misfortunes and her desires for the future. Penn was interview
deeply interested by her recital and agreed to give her a wm. Penn
tract of land in Pennsylvania. The day following her
visit he took her to see Queen Anne, and that generous Aid from
sovereign also became interested in the courageous woman °-ueen Anne
and promised her " substantial aid, which she in due time
rendered."

After a six months' residence in London the Ferrees and
Le Fevre joined a band of Huguenot and Palatine ref-

ugees who were about to set out for America under the s
leadership of the Kev. Joshua Kocherthal. Arriving in

296

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

1713

2.000 Acres
Tract

Peaceful

Death

1716

Numerous
Descendants

Soldiers and
Patriots

General
Reynolds

New York, the party continued on up the Hudson to
Esopus, where their relatives, Michail Ferree and Andreas
Lefevre, had already settled. Here they remained for four
years, until, in 1712, it became feasible for them to re
move to Pennsylvania and settle upon the lands which
had been granted to them in the valley of the Pequea.
The tract which came into their possession contained two
thousand acres, in consideration for which they paid over
to Penn's commissioners the sum of one hundred and fifty
pounds.

In 1716, four years after her arrival in Pennsylvania,
Madame Ferree found a peaceful grave near the home
which she had established for her children. It is pleas
ant to know that the last years of this brave woman were
in marked contrast to the stormy years of her flight from
France and her struggles in Germany, and that she died
happy in the knowledge that her children were on the
high-road to prosperity in a land where freedom of con
science was the birthright of all her sons. Her descend
ants prospered and multiplied until to-day they are to be
numbered by the thousand. In every walk of life they
have earned distinction and have proved an honour to
their Huguenot ancestry. It will be possible to mention
but a few of them in this book, for a full list would oc
cupy pages.

In the Eevolutionary struggle the family took an im
portant part. Besides a great number of privates and
non-commissioned officers, the Ferrees gave to the cause
such brave soldiers as Colonel John Ferree, of the Tenth
Pennsylvania Eifles, Colonel Joel Ferree, Major Michael
Ferree and Major George Lefever. Prominent among the
members of the family who took part in the war of 1812
were Colonel Joel Ferree (a cousin of the Eevolutionary
colonel of that name) and Colonel Daniel Lefevre. In
the Civil War the most distinguished representative of
the family was Major-General John F. Eeynolds. His
grandmother on the paternal side was Catherine Ferree Le

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWAEE 297

Fevre, who was a direct descendant from Madame Ferree.
General Eeynolds' record is too well known to require
repetition here ; certainly no more gallant soldier was
developed during the war than the commander of the
First Army Corps who died so nobly at the battle of
Gettysburg. His brother, William Eeynolds, who died a Rear Admiral
Eear Admiral in the United States Navy, was also a dis
tinguished member of the family and helped carry on the
family traditions by his service in the Mexican and Civil
Wars. The Schreiver family of Maryland is another
branch of Madame Ferree' s descendants which has made
an honourable record for itself, tracing its descent from
Eebecca Ferree. Abraham Schreiver (1771-1848) earned
an enviable reputation as a judge of great legal ability
and uprightness. A very distinguished descendant of Admiral
this branch is Admiral Winfield Scott Schley, who earned Schley
lasting glory at Santiago. Admiral Schley is descended
from Mary Schreiver, daughter of David and Eebecca
(Ferree) Schreiver, who married John Schley, the ad
miral's grandfather. How much of his success as a fighter
Admiral Schley owes to the strain of martial Huguenot
blood in his veins it is, of course, impossible to say ; but
when we look at the records of the Ferree- Lefever de
scendants in camp and field, we may feel sure that his debt
is no inconsiderable one.

Ill

Three Huguenots were among the first residents of
Philadelphia — Jean de La Vail, Edmund Du Castle, and Early in
Andrew Doz. Doz, who was a refugee in London at the PhiladelPhia
time of Penn's purchase, came over with Penn to inves
tigate the advisability of planting vineyards. In 1690
he was rewarded for his services by a grant of two
hundred acres of land, which included the vineyards al
ready laid out along the banks of the Schuylkill Eiver.
Settling upon this grant, he prospered, found himself a Doz I6go
wife and established a worthy family. His grandson,

298 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A Leader
Among the
Masons

Daniel
Roberdeau

likewise named Andrew, became widely known as a
thoroughly public-spirited citizen and gave away large
sums of money for those days, to numerous charitable
and philanthropic institutions of the city. Other Hugue
nots who were citizens of Philadelphia at a very early
date were Samuel Eobinett, Gabriel Eappe, and Nicholas
Eeboteau, of the Isle of Ehe, and Andrew of Nismes.

In 1684 Andros Souplis and his wife came to Philadel
phia. He had been an officer in the French army, was a
very brilliant young man, and soon became a great
favourite with Penn. He left behind him one son,
Andrew, who changed the name to its present form of
Suplee.

Isaac Eoberdeau, with his wife Mary Cunyngham, a
descendant of the Earl of Glencairn, fled to Philadelphia
from St. Christopher at an early date. His son, Daniel,
became one of the leading merchants and first citizens of
Philadelphia. By the year 1756 he had become one of
the managers of the Pennsylvania hospital, and was a
leader among the early Masons, being closely associated
with Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton and
others. During the years 1756-60 he was a member of
the Pennsylvania assembly, and five years later he was
made an elder in the Presbyterian Church. He was an
ardent patriot and gave himself unsparingly to the cause
of independence. In 1775 he served as a colonel of
Pennsylvania troops. In 1776 he presided over a public
meeting in Philadelphia which wielded a large influence
in favour of the Declaration of Independence. Shortly
afterwards he fitted out a couple of privateers, and when
one of these vessels captured a rich prize with $22, 000 in
silver aboard, he promptly placed the money at the dis
posal of Congress. On July 4, 1776, while he was a
member of the council of safety, he was chosen as first
brigadier-general of the Pennsylvania troops. Later he
was elected as delegate to the Continental Congress. In
1778 there was a scarcity of lead in the American army,

PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE 299

and General Roberdeau, securing a leave of absence from,
the Congress, with his private fortune established a fort An Ardent
in Bedford County as protection against the Indians and
worked a lead mine there. At the close of the war he
retired from business as well as from public life, and
settled down in Alexandria, Virginia, where he was fre
quently in the habit of entertaining General Washington.
He died in 1795.

His son, Isaac, grandson of the emigrant of that name,
early showed a love for engineering and received the best
kind of technical education which the times afforded.
In 1791 he acted as assistant engineer in laying out the
city of Washington, and later was engaged in canal con
struction in Pennsylvania. In 1813 he was appointed
topographical engineer in the regular army, with the
rank of major. In this capacity he had charge of the
survey which laid out the boundary line between Canada
and the United States under the treaty of Ghent. He
organized the bureau of topographical engineers in the
War Department, in 1818, and remained as its chief until
his death in 1829.

Among the records of Christ Episcopal Church, of Christ
Philadelphia, occur the following names of Huguenot
parents ( first entries alone being given ) : Le Tort,
James, 1709 ; Le Boyteau, William, 1711 ; Voyer, Peter,
1713 ; Tripeo, Frederick, 1713 ; Chevalier, Peter, 1712 ;
Garrigues, Francis, 1721 ; Durell, Moses, 1731 ; Fleury,
Peter, 1731 ; Le Dru, Noel, 1732 ; Pinnard, Joseph, 1733 ;
Renardet, James, 1733 ; Doz, Andrew ; Duche, Jacob,
1734 ; Boyer, James, 1734 ; Bonnett, John, 1736 ; Gar
rigues, Peter, 1736 ; Doutell, Michael, 1737 ; Hoduett,
John, 1737 ; Boudinot, Elias, 1738 ; Brund, John, 1738 ;
Purdieu, Guilliam, 1738; La Rue, John, 1739; Le
Shemile, Peter, 1741 ; Le Gay, Jacob, 1744 ; Votaw, Paul
Isaac, 1747 ; Dupeen, Daniel, 1747 ; de Prefontain, Peter,
1754 ; Vidal, Stephen, 1754 ; Couche, Daniel, 1756 ;
Paca, John, 1758 ; Le Dieu, Lewis, 1758 j Lacallas,

300 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

James, 1759 ; Hillegas, Michael, 1760. Among these
names are many which are held in respect to-day ;
two especially being worthy of notice — Boudinot and
Hillegas.

CHAPTER II
ELIAS BOUDINOT AND STEPHEN GIEAED

N 1686, Elias Boudinot, of La Tremblade, came to

New York. His son, Elias, Jr., left New York some f6^dinot

time prior to 1 735 and established himself in Phila
delphia. There his son Elias ( third of the name ) was
born in 1740. The boy received a good classical educa
tion, and when the usual course of Latin and Greek was His Abie
completed he set himself to study law under the guidance f°£ Elias> Jr>i
of the famous Eichard Stockton. He was an apt scholar
and soon achieved an enviable reputation at the bar.
At the opening of the war, though still a young man, he
was recognized as easily among the most eminent lawyers
which the colonies had produced. He began his public
career as commissary-general of prisoners, in 1777, and
the year following was elected to the Continental Con
gress. Here his abilities were brought into full play and
he soon became one of the most powerful leaders of that
body. Four years after his first election to Congress he Member of
was chosen as its president, and in that capacity he signed Congress
the treaty of peace with England. He then wished to President
take up his law practice again, and succeeded for a short
while. But he had proved himself too valuable a public
servant for his constituents to allow him to remain in
private life, and when the constitution was adopted he
was elected successively to the first, second and third
congresses. In 1795 Washington appointed him Director
of the Mint at Philadelphia. He held this position until
1805, when he resigned and retired to Burlington, New
Jersey, in order to devote his attention to study and Director of the
philanthropic work. He was for many years a trustee Mint

301

302 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Philan
thropist

Student and
Author

Benefactor

Story of
Stephen
Girard

of Princeton College, and in 1805 presented that institu
tion with a valuable collection of specimens in natural
history. He was greatly interested in philanthropic
work of a religious nature. He served on the American
Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, and was
generous in his contributions to that cause. He was also
one of the founders of the American Bible Society, be
coming its first president in 1816. Other lines of phil
anthropic endeavour in which he was actively engaged
were the education of deaf mutes, the training of young
men for the ministry, and the relief of the poor. While
thus busily engaged in promoting the welfare of his fel
lows, he found time to undertake many arduous studies
in biblical literature, and published a number of
volumes on religious subjects — the most famous of these
being a reply to Tom Paine. He died in 1821, full of
years and good deeds. In his will he gave 13,000 acres
of laud to the city of Philadelphia in order that the poor
might be able to buy wood at a small price ; 3, 000 acres
to the Pennsylvania hospital, etc. Among the other be
quests was the rather odd one of a fund with which to
buy spectacles for the aged poor.

No short sketch of his life can do justice to Elias
Boudinot. To appreciate his real significance as an
actor in the drama which took place at the founding of
the Eepublic, it is necessary to read the history of his
times. As lawyer, statesman, patriot, scholar and phil
anthropist, he was one of the most remarkable men of
the Eevolutionary period.

One of the most interesting characters that France has
contributed to America is Stephen Girard, founder of
Girard College in Philadelphia. He represented the ac
cumulative and thrifty spirit of his race. From a penni
less runaway he rose to be merchant, banker, multi-million
aire, the richest man of his day in America, and at the

ELIAS BOUDINOT AND STEPHEN GIEAKD 303

end a philanthropist and benefactor. He was one of the
most eccentric of men ; and his homely chaise, drawn by
a sleepy looking farm horse, was for years to be seen
every day except Sunday at about the same hour, making
its way slowly along the main business street of his
adopted city. This description of him is given by a
recent writer : * " His low, square, sturdy frame was in
variably clad in a faded coat of an ancient and foreign
pattern. His slouch hat half concealed a cold and melan
choly face marked with deep lines of thought and care.
His small, bright eye looked hard and cunning, and his
firm, determined mouth and square jaw indicated the
indomitable will that lay beneath the uncouth exterior."

He was born near Bordeaux, in France, May 24, 1750, Bom 1750
of seafaring parents. His childhood was unhappy, and
at fourteen he ran away from home, shipping as cabin-
boy on a trading vessel bound for the West Indies. Dur
ing his voyages he read carefully every book he could
get hold of, and gained a large fund of information. Of seif-Made
a keen mind, he studied thoroughly the commercial con
ditions and operations of the countries he visited. By
and by he rose to the command of a ship, and presently
became ship owner, purchasing vessel after vessel until his
fleet was famous the world around. He made Philadel- Philadelphia
phia his headquarters in 1777, and became engaged in 1777
numerous enterprises. His marriage to a Philadelphia
shipbuilder's daughter was unhappy, his wife becoming
insane and spending twenty-five years in an asylum be
fore death relieved her. This blasting of his domestic
happiness, together with his boyhood miseries, embittered
him, and led him to assume a harsh and cynical exterior
foreign to his real nature.

He bent all his energies to the accumulation of wealth,
and came to be regarded as a miser. The truth would Miser-
seem to be, however, that all this time he had the fixed fhhroj?st
purpose of founding an institution that should through
1 W. H. Kirkbride.

304 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Eccentric
but Just

Respect for
True Piety

A Quaker's
Method of
Getting a
Subscription

generations feed, clothe and educate the humble and
homeless. Rich as he was, his tastes were of the sim
plest. Indeed, he lived in obscurity, in a small house on
an unattractive side street, and it is said his personal ex
penses were not so great as those of his clerks. His
breakfast and supper usually consisted of biscuits and
milk, while for dinner he occasionally allowed himself a
little meat.

His eccentricities were many, and the stories told of
him well illustrate this side of his character. We give
two or three which are thoroughly characteristic. He
was not in the habit of giving promiscuously, and
seldom, if ever, gave to beggars. A very poor man once
knocked at his door, begging for bread to save his wife
and children from starvation. Girard drove him roughly
away, but secretly followed him home, and, finding that
he had spoken the truth, ordered the baker to leave four
loaves a day at the house until the man procured work
enough to support his family.

He had the greatest contempt for any one who professed
religion and did not practice it, but respected the man of
religion who was honest and straightforward in his deal
ings. One of the few men that he trusted implicitly
was a Mr. Inglis, an expert accountant, and a man of
sincere religious opinions. Recognizing his value and
his honesty, Girard offered him the position of cashier in
his bank, which was refused. "You and I serve differ
ent masters, Mr. Girard, and could never agree." His
views were respected and nothing further was said on the
subject.

To get a subscription from Stephen Girard was not an
easy matter. It required tact and the right introduction
and many failed while a few succeeded. It is told that
Samuel Coates, a genial Quaker, was one of the few men
who knew how to approach the eccentric millionaire.
He was a manager of the Pennsylvania Hospital, and
called on Girard for the purpose of raising money for the

ELIAS BOUDINOT AND STEPHEN GIEAED 305

support of that institution. "Well, how much do
you want, Coates?" asked Girard in his usual brusque
tones. "Just what thee pleases to give, Stephen,"
quietly replied the Quaker. Girard wrote out a check
for $2,000, and, handing it to Mr. Coates, was sur
prised to see that gentleman pocket it without looking
at the amount. "What! you don't look to see how
much I give you?" cried Girard incredulously. " Beg
gars must not be choosers, Stephen," replied the
Quaker.

" Give me back my check and I will change it," said
Girard after a moment's pause.

"A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, thee
knows, Stephen," mildly replied the Quaker. Without
another word Girard sat down and wrote him out a second
check for $5,000.

His farm on the outskirts of Philadelphia was one of Detecting
the best in the country, and while living in town he often a Lle
drove out before breakfast to see that all was going well.
He was very exacting with his hired hands, and never
trusted the management of his farm to any one else, but
ran it himself, as he did all his affairs. Arriving one
morning a little earlier than usual he was greatly annoyed
at not finding his man at work on a fence that he was
building. The man's wife, noticing Girard approaching
the house, hurriedly awoke her husband and sent him to
his duties by way of the back door. After visiting the
house Girard returned to the fence, and seeing the man at
his post reprimanded him for being late. "I'd been
here, sir, but went back for a spade, ' ' said the workman.
1 ' You lie ! I went and put my hand in your bed and
found it warm," replied Girard, and he discharged the
man on the spot.

Not only did he personally supervise the affairs of his working with
farm, but also prided himself on performing much of the
manual labour. He frequently killed as many as fifty
steers with the assistance of one hired man. and in

306 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEKICA

Financial
Mainstay
of the
Government

Often
Misjudged

Yellow Fever
Episode

Founding
Girard College

harvest-time would spend twelve hours at a time with the
pitchfork loading the hay wagon.

This was the man who at the opening of the War of
1812 bought out the old Bank of the United States, and
during the war was the financial mainstay of the govern
ment. In 1814 when the government called for a loan of
$5,000,000 the subscriptions amounted to only $20,000.
The credit of the country was at its lowest ebb ; but
Girard had faith in the nation and saved the day by
coming out from behind the ramparts of his bank and
advancing the entire sum. He did not stickle about the
interest ; he had faith, and he could wait for that, he
said.

In childhood Girard had sustained an accident which
blinded one of his eyes and gave a distorted twist to his
features. The bitterness attendant upon this was prob
ably the cause in part of his shyness and unsocial habits.
Many of his contemporaries thought him harsh and re
clusive, but this opinion undoubtedly arose from his man
ner rather than from any lack of kindness and humanity
in Girard' s heart, for the open record of his life is suffi
cient evidence of his altruistic nature. During the
epidemic of yellow fever which swept over Philadelphia in
1793, he was instrumental in organizing a hospital for the
plague-stricken people and gave largely to it. And when
no one could be hired to take charge of it, Girard him
self, although his business interests suffered greatly from
his absence, went to the hospital and for sixty days
laboured with might and main to establish order and
cleanliness.

During his life he gave thousands of dollars to the city
of Philadelphia for public improvements and was a
liberal contributor to many churches and various chari
ties. At his death he left about nine million dollars to
philanthropic enterprises, his principal bequest being the
orphanage known as Girard College. This unique insti
tution receives orphans between the ages of six and ten

ELIAS BOUDINOT AND STEPHEN GIKAKD 307

years, inclusive, educates them under excellent masters,
trains them for mechanical, agricultural or commercial
pursuits, and at the end of eight years gives them a fur
ther start in life by finding them suitable positions in
their chosen trades. Thus thousands of poor boys have
been cared for and reared into useful, upright men ; and
many generations of well -trained and worthy citizens
have reason to rise up and call Stephen Girard blessed.
The college has had a remarkable success. Financially Endowment
the estate increased in value until it is estimated at
thirty-eight millions and the annual expenditures of the
college are over half a million, as against forty-seven
thousand dollars at the beginning. Fifteen millions have
been spent upon the maintenance and enlargement of the
institution, which has an enrollment of 1,550. A prefer
ence is given to orphan boys from Philadelphia, secondly,
to those born elsewhere in Pennsylvania, thirdly, to those
born in New York city, and lastly, to those born in New
Orleans — these last two being the first cities he visited
after reaching America.

The will provided strictly that no sectarian teaching
should ever be allowed in the college, but said : i i My
desire is that all instructors and teachers in the college
shall take pains to instill into the minds of the scholars the
purest principles of morality, so that, on their entrance
into active life, they may, from inclination and habit,
evince benevolence towards their fellow creatures, and a
love of truth, sobriety and industry, adopting at the same
time such religious tenets as their matured reason may Pure Morality
enable them to prefer."

This French- American, who wished to spare other boys
the sorrows of his own early life, not only has the credit
of founding a distinctive institution of noble aim, but of
being a pioneer in great gifts by rich men for educational A Noble
and philanthropic purposes. His was the first large
benefaction of its kind in the country ; and in Girard
College he reared both a monument and an example.

The American
Bayards

Nicholas

Delaware

Branch

John Bayard

CHAPTER III

THE BAYARDS AND OTHER FAMILIES
I

iRADITION traces the Bayard family back to
that great French Knight who was dubbed " sans
peur et sans reproche ' ' (without fear and with
out reproach). The history of the American Bayards
properly begins with Nicholas Bayard, a Huguenot min
ister who fled into Holland after the massacre of St. Bar
tholomew and settled in Amsterdam. His daughter,
Judith, married Peter Stuyvesant, the last of the Dutch
governors of New Amsterdam, and one of his sous mar
ried Stuyvesant' s sister. From this alliance sprang
Nicolas, Balthazar, and Peter Bayard, the founders of the
American branches of the family.

Nicholas and Balthazar became prominent citizens of
New York, while Peter, offending his aristocratic breth
ren by joining the Labadists, went to Bohemia Manor and
established the Delaware branch. No American family
has a more honourable record than the Delaware Bayards,
who for generation after generation have been zealous for
the public welfare, as the following brief sketch of some
of its members will show.

Colonel John Bayard, born in Bohemia Manor, Md., in
1738, was the great-grandson of Peter Bayard. When he
was eighteen years old he went up to Philadelphia and
there commenced his commercial career. He was very
successful in business, and in the course of a few years was
reckoned among the leading merchants of that flourishing
city. He was a patriot through and through, and as he
was a man of strong character he soon became a vital

308

THE BAYAEDS AND OTHEE FAMILIES 309

force in the growing resentment against British oppres
sion and the movement for independence. He was one of Sons of

Liberty

the first to join the famous organization known as the
Sons of Liberty, and in spite of the injury to his busi
ness which it entailed, he was one of the first merchants to
sign the non-importation agreement of October, 1765. In
1774 he was elected to the Provincial Congress ; two years
later he became a member of the Council of Safety. Dur
ing the campaign of 1776-7 he was in the field at the head
of a Pennsylvania regiment. So brave a soldier was he
that after the battle of Princeton Washington compli- Gallant

Soldier

mented him in person upon his gallantry in that action.
The year following he again took up his legislative duties,
serving as speaker of the Pennsylvania house of assem
bly. In 1781 he was appointed to the supreme executive
council, and in 1785 completed his public services by
representing his state in the Continental Congress. He
deserved to be remembered, in the phrase of Bancroft, as
"a patriot of singular purity of character."

Samuel Bayard, born in Philadelphia in 1767, was the Samuel
fourth son of Colonel John Bayard. He graduated from
Princeton with the class of 1784, studied law and com
menced his practice in Philadelphia. In 1791 he was
made clerk of the United States Supreme Court, but left
that position in 1794 to become the agent of the govern
ment in prosecuting the claims before the British Court of
Admiralty. On his return from London he settled in
New York and commanded a large and lucrative practice.
While living in New York he became instrumental in Founder of
founding the New York Historical Society. In 1806 he Hi
purchased a beautiful estate in Princeton, New Jersey, Society
becoming a country squire and philanthropist. He at
tended session after session of the state legislature, and for
many years was the presiding judge of the Court of Com
mon Pleas of Somerest County. Among other things, he
was associated with Elias Boudinot in forming the Ameri
can Bible Society, and was one of the founders and patrons

310 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

James

Asheton

Bayard

Federalist
Leader

Family of
Great Senators

of the Theological Seminary at Princeton. He died in
1840.

James Asheton Bayard, son of Dr. James Asheton
Bayard, and nephew of Colonel John Bayard, was born
in Philadelphia in 1767. He graduated from Princeton
in 1784 in the same class with his cousin Samuel. Three
years later he was admitted to the bar and located in
Wilmington, Del. His ability as a lawyer was soon
recognized, and at the time he was elected to Congress, in
1796, he was already among the most prominent men in
the profession. A year after his election to Congress he
achieved a national reputation by his management of the
impeachment of William Blount. His power as an orator
and his wide knowledge of constitutional law soon brought
him to the fore in Congress, and he rapidly developed
into a leader of the Federalist party. In 1801, when the
choice lay between Burr and Jefferson, Bayard was influ
ential, together with Hamilton, in swinging the scales in
favour of Jefferson. That same year he declined an ap
pointment as Minister to France. From 1804 to 1813 he
represented Delaware in the United States Senate. Pres
ident Madison selected Bayard as a joint commissioner
to act with Albert Gallatin, John Adams and Henry Clay
in arranging terms of peace with Great Britain in 1814,
and he was prominent in the negotiations which brought
about the treaty of Ghent. While in Europe he con
tracted a serious illness, and returned to his home in
Wilmington only to die early in the following year.

Eichard Henry Bayard, his eldest son, was born in
Wilmington in 1796, graduated from Princeton in 1814,
and then devoted himself to the law. He was a brilliant
lawyer, and in 1836 was made United States Senator from
Delaware.

His youngest brother, James Asheton, was born in
1779. He, too, became a lawyer, and won high distinc
tion at the bar. He was federal attorney for Delaware
during the administration of President Van Buren, and

THE BAYARDS AND OTHER FAMILIES 311

in 1851 he became a Senator from that state, continuing
until 1869. He was for a long time chairman of the com
mittee on the judiciary, and was generally esteemed for
the high sense of public honour which he evinced on
numerous occasions.

His son, Thomas Francis Bayard, was born in Wil
mington in 1828. He was admitted to the bar in 1851 Last of a
and practised law until he was elected to succeed his *
father in the Senate in 1868. He served as Senator until
1885, when he became Secretary of State. In 1893 he
was appointed Ambassador to Great Britain.

The Duche family is descended from Jacques Duche, a The puche
native of La Eochelle, who was naturalized in England Family
in 1682 with his wife, Mary, and two sons, Arnold and
Anthony. Anthony came to Staten Island at an early
date and removed to Philadelphia a few years prior to
1700. His son Jacob, born in Philadelphia in 1708, was
the father of the Eeverend Jacob Duche, a noted clergy
man of his day. He was born at Philadelphia in 1737,
graduated from the University of Pennsylvania when he
was twenty years old, and then went to Cambridge, Eng
land, to pursue his studies further. In 1759 the Bishop
of London licensed him to preach in the Philadelphia
churches, and that same year he returned to this country.
He was a very popular preacher and by 1775 had become
rector of Christ Church, the leading Episcopal congrega- Jacob
tion of Philadelphia at the time. He has come down to Patriot
us in history as the minister who delivered the prayer at
the opening of the first Continental Congress — a prayer so
patriotic and reverent withal that the assembled patriots
gave him a vote of thanks. In 1776 he was chosen chap
lain of Congress. He died in 1798.

Ill
The Du Pont family, long known as the great powder pjj^j" Pont

312 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

manufacturers of the country, are descended from an old
Huguenot family of Eouen in France. Du Pont de Ne
mours was the founder of the family. His story has been
written by G. Schelle, and published by Gillaumin in
Paris. A writer in the Magazine of American History, for
March, 1889, reviews the Memoir. The Du Pont works
at Wilmington, Delaware, and their branches and busi
nesses in other places, have given them a commercial
reputation hardly equalled in any other calling. During
the long period from the beginning of the last century to
our own time many members of the Du Pont family have
gained distinction by their services in the army and navy.
They were represented in the War of 1812, and in the
Civil War Admiral Du Pont and Colonel Henry Du Pont
were both men of mark.

DU Pont de Du Pont de Nemours was born in Paris in 1739. He

' was precocious, noted at his twelfth year for his knowl
edge, and at twenty submitted to Choiseul a plan for en
couraging agriculture, establishing domestic free trade,
suppressing taxes, and remodelling the financial system of
France. He was soon recognized as one of the most
brilliant and able publicists and economists of France.
He was the most chivalric champion of liberty in France,
according to Madame de Stael, and successively urged
the abolition of slavery, the repeal of the game laws,
liberty of the press, relief from the laws controlling
labour, reform in public charity, the repeal of monopolies,
and other public oppressions and abuses. Benjamin
Franklin especially commended his economic tables. If
France had heeded him, the French Eevolution would
not have been necessary. He was too much of a reformer
to be acceptable to a corrupt court, and during the stress
of the Eevolution, his life being in peril, he escaped to
America, where his eldest son had established himself.
Jefferson, who had known him in France, heartily wel
comed him to the United States. He laboured to effect
Jefferson's purpose of securing Louisiana by purchase

THE BAYAEDS AND OTHER FAMILIES 313

from Napoleon, having returned to France after the Revo
lution. When Napoleon returned from Elba, Du Pont
again took refuge in the United States, and lived with
his sons near Wilmington until his death in 1817, in his
seventy -seventh year.

His second son, Irene*e, was the founder of the powder
works. He had shared imprisonment with his father,
and on reaching the United States in 1798 found the great
need of a domestic supply of good gunpowder. He re
turned to France to study its manufacture, came back to
this country, and from a small beginning built up a busi
ness which has become one of the notable industries of
the country. He died in 1834.

Admiral Du Pont, one of the distinguished officers of Admiral
the United States Navy, was the son of Victor, older ?fU
brother of Irenee, and engaged with him in business. It
was Admiral Du Pont who was the commander and hero
of the Port Royal Expedition. This descendant of a
Huguenot won that unexpected, absolute and decisive
victory which thrilled the loyal hearts of the country
with hope and thankfulness, coming as it did when only
such a victory could counterbalance the alarm caused by
the defeat at Bull Run. The story of this remarkable
expedition is told by General Egbert L. Viele in the
Magazine of American History, October, 1885. Admiral
Du Pont had to attack with his fleet the great forts
which guarded the harbour of Port Royal, in order to
establish a system of blockade that would cripple the
Confederacy. There were 20,000 soldiers and 5,000
sailors under the admiral's command, and his fleet con
sisted of seventy-seven vessels, including transports. It
was a motley collection, and storms had to be overcome
as well as forts ; but the brave and able commander car
ried out his plan, won a decisive and crushing victory,
and matched Farragut's daring strategy at New Orleans.

"The planning of the bombardment, the manning of A Brilliant
the ships, and the effective work done by the fleet," says Naval Victory

314 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

General Viele, " will pass into history as one of the most
successful achievements of the kind, as it marked an era
in naval warfare. It was the first time that the powerful
auxiliary of steam was brought to play such a decided
part in war operations. . . . Du Pont had planned
the attack with the utmost precision. Every vessel had
its designated place. The fleet sailed in the form of an
ellipse, each ship to deliver its fire at each fort as it passed
abreast. Three times this circle of death passed in its
relentless course. For four hours the terrible duel was
maintained, and then after a well directed broadside from
the Wabashj all was over. . . . Such utter destruc
tion probably never overtook a fortification."

In a private letter, dated on board the flagship Wabash,
Port Royal, November 9, 1861, Admiral Du Pont wrote :
" During the disheartening events of our passage my
faith never gave way ; but at some moments it seemed
appalling (referring to a severe storm that scattered the
fleet and wrecked a number of vessels). On the other
hand, I permit no elation at our success. Yet I cannot
refrain from telling you that it has been more complete
and brilliant than I ever could have believed.
I kept under way and made three turns, though I passed
five times between the forts. I could get none of my big
frigates up. I believe my plan was clever. I stood
against the side, and had the management the better in
consequence. The confidence of the enemy was extreme
that they could drive us away. They fought bravely,
and their rifle guns never missed. They aimed at one
bridge, where they knew they could make a hole if they
were lucky. A shot in the centre let water into the after
magazine ; but I saved a hundred lives by keeping under
way and bearing in close. I never conceived such a fire
as that of this ship on her second turn, and I am told that
its effect upon the spectators outside of her was intense.
I learn that when they saw our flag flying on shore the
troops were powerless to cheer, but wept."

THE BAYAEDS AND OTHEE FAMILIES 315

On the reception of the official dispatches in Washing
ton, the general order was issued by Secretary Gideon
Wells, "that to commemorate this signal victory, a
national salute be fired from each navy yard, at meridian,
on the day after the reception of this order. ' >

John Stephen Benezett was^the founder of the family of Benezett
that name. He was born in Abbeville in 1682, at the
Eevocation was taken to Holland, and from thence to
England in 1715. He settled in Philadelphia in 1731 and
became prominent in the affairs of the city, having the
distinction of being the first city treasurer. He was also First city
one of the leading members of the Society of Friends, and Treasurer
for some years was a pillar in the Moravian church. Of
his three sons, one became a major in the Eevolution,
while Anthony, the youngest, grew into one of the most
philanthropic citizens of Philadelphia. He advocated
the emancipation of the slaves and was zealous in pro
moting their education, opening a night school for their
benefit and showing his sincerity by teaching in it him
self. He deserves to rank as the earliest abolitionist who Anthony first
openly dared to express his views, a pamphlet of his en- Abolitionist
titled Considerations on the Keeping of Negroes being the
first anti-slavery work published in America. During
the Eevolution he was active in relieving the sufferings
of prisoners and wounded, thus being in a way the fore
bear of the Eed Cross Society.

Michael Hillegas was the son of a refugee who fled Michael
to the Palatinate shortly after the Eevocation. He was
born in Philadelphia in 1728 and amassed a considerable
fortune in the sugar refining business. He was an ardent
patriot and at an early date placed himself and his for
tunes at the service of the cause of independence. He
was made the first treasurer of the United States, and his

316 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

First united

integrity and financial ability made him a i * tower of
strength " during the dreariest and most hopeless days of
the Eevolution. Among the many descendants of the
Hillegas family may be named the Honourable John
John Richards Eichards, who was a member of Congress in 1796, and for
many years prominent in legal and political circles in

Settlers in
Germantown

Leverings

De la Plaines

Pennsylvania.

Huguenots were among the earliest settlers of German-
town, in the vicinity of Philadelphia. Within three years
of the date of settlement we find Jean Le Brun, Jean
Dedier, Wigard and Gerhart Levering mentioned as heads
of families. The peculiarly German names Gerhart and
Wigard were due to the fact that the father of the emi
grants, Doctor Eosier Levering, a refugee to Germany,
married a German lady named Elizabeth Van der Walle,
both sons being born on German soil. The Leverings
have been prominent in Pennsylvania for many years.
Wigard, a man of strong character, was the founder of
Eoxborough. Among Gerhart7 s descendants may be
mentioned the Honourable Joshua Levering and the
Eight Eeverend J. Mortimer Levering.

The descendants of James De la Plaine, son of Nicholas
De la Plaine, who came to New Amsterdam via Holland
prior to 1663, are numerous in Pennsylvania and Mary
land. James settled in Germantown in 1691, became a
leader in the Society of Friends, and died in 1750. Be
sides James, four daughters of Nicholas De la Plaine
came to Philadelphia at about the same period ; Eliza
beth, wife of Casper Hoodt ; Judith, wife of Thomas
Griffith ; Susanna, wife of Arnold Cassel ; and Crejanne,
wife of Ives Belangee, — the last three being married in
Philadelphia. John and Joseph De la Plaine, grandsons
of James, and the latter an officer in the Eevolution,
removed to Maryland and established a numerous
progeny.

THE BAYAEDS AND OTHEE FAMILIES 317

VII

The Garrigues family, represented in Philadelphia by
William H. and Samuel E. Garrigues, traces its descent Descent
from the Garric family, of Monpellier, in Languedoc. At
the Eevocation, David Garric fled to England, where the
name became Garrick ; while another brother took refuge
in Germany, whence under the modified name of Gar
rigues, his descendants established themselves in Phila
delphia shortly after 1700.

Eichard De Charms, one of the best known Sweden-
borgian preachers of the first half of the century, who
held successful pastorates in Philadelphia, Baltimore and
New York, was born in Philadelphia in 1796.

Abram Markos, or Marcou, was a distinguished resi- Abram
dent of the city prior to and during the Eevolution. He
was born in the Danish West Indies in 1729, and was
descended from Count Marcou, a native of Montbeliard,
in French -Comte, who settled in the Antilles and became
a prosperous planter. Abram came to Philadelphia when
he was a young man and traded extensively between
Philadelphia and Santa Cruz, where he was largely in
terested in raising sugar. He acquired a considerable
holding of real estate, one of his plots being the land on
which the government buildings now stand. In 1774 he
organized the company of light horse now so famous as
the "city troop" of Philadelphia, and became its first
captain. A year later he presented the company with a
silk flag, the first flag to bear the thirteen stripes sym
bolical of the thirteen colonies struggling for freedom.
As he was a Danish subject, the neutrality proclamations
of the king of Denmark prevented him from taking an
active part in the Eevolution.

The Pennsylvania branch of the Chevalier family was The
founded by Pierre Chevalier, who settled in Philadelphia Chevalier8
in 1720. His father, of a noble family of Bretagne, fled
to England, where Pierre was born. Before emigrating
to this country, Pierre married an English lady. He

318 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Lancaster
County

The Boyers

Easy
Assimilation

left two sous, Peter and John, whose sons became promi
nent merchants of the city. His daughters married well,
and among their descendants may be numbered Judge
Samuel Breese, of New Jersey, and Professor Edward E.
Salisbury, of Yale.

Other Huguenot names which occur among the emi
grants to Philadelphia before 1750 are : Montadon, Le
Colle, Casser, Eemy, Huyett, Eemley, Eansier, Suffrauce,
Bouton, Eena, Du Bois, Le Brant, and Piquart.

VIII

Lancaster County was a place of refuge for many
Huguenots. In the days before a permanent settlement
had been effected, there were several Huguenots in that
region who were engaged in trading with the Indians.
Among these was Captain James Letort, who with his
sons is frequently mentioned as being in the government's
employ. He afterwards settled in Philadelphia.

Samuel Boyer was one of the first of the regular settlers
to arrive, coming in 1710. The Boyer family in France
is a large and honourable one, and the American Boyers
are worthy of their heredity. Members are to be found
throughout Pennsylvania, and mention may be made of
Honourable Henry Boyer, General Philip Boyer, of the
War of 1812, Honourable Benjamin M. Boyer, member
of Congress in 1864, Colonel Zachur Boyer, of the Civil
War, and Honourable Henry K. Boyer, Treasurer of the
State and Director of the United States Mint at Phila
delphia.

As news of the colony spread among the exiles in the
Palatinate, they came over in large numbers. They did
not support any separate church organization of their
own, having united with other churches while in Ger
many, but it is recorded that Lewis Boehm, pastor of the
First Eefornied Church in Lancaster in 1771, used to de
liver frequent sermons in French. The following refugees
were members of this church : Viller, De Gaston, Mel-

THE BAYAEDS AND OTHEE FAMILIES 319

chior Boyer, Beauchamp, Fortune, Fortuney, Ferree,
Fortunet, La Eou, Eacque, Bounett, Marquet, Eosier, De
Dieu, Allemand, Huttier, Berott, Le Fever, Trebert, Le
Crone, Delancey, Eoller, Le Eoy, Vissard, Maquinnette,
Vosiiie, Le Brant, Eaiguel, Du Fresne and Lorah. Hold
ing membership in Trinity Lutheran Church, of Lan
caster, were Hubele, Morett, Moreau, Mathiot, Santeau,
De Mars, Dilliers, Cossart and Sponsilier.

Among the descendants of these emigrants are Dr. pubuc Men
Henry Bernard Mathiot, of Pittsburg; Adam Hubele,
member of the Provincial Assembly in 17 75 and a colonel
in the Ee volution ; John Hubele, member of the Consti
tutional Convention of 1776, of the Committee of
Safety, etc. ; General Peter Forney, an officer in the Eev-
olution, and member of Congress in 1813 ; the Honourable
David Marchand, Jr., member of Congress in 1817 ; the
Honourable Joshua Mathiot, Congressman from Ohio in
1841 ; Colonel Forney, member of Congress in 1851 and
an officer in the Civil War ; the Honourable Albert
Marchand, member of Congress in 1839 ; Commodore
John Bonnett Marchand, famous for the part he played
in the naval fight in Mobile Bay ; and General John E.
Eoller.

Near the present town of Sheridan is still standing a other Parta
massive stone mansion built by Jean Henri Cellier in oftheState
1727. The Cellier family was scattered to the four winds
by the Eevocatiou, representatives being found even in
Africa, where the descendants of the branch which took
refuge in Holland are among the prominent citizens of
Cape Colony — one of them, General Cellier, being es
pecially noted through his operations in the Boer War.
In Pennsylvania the name has been corrupted to Zeller.

To the Universalists the stone house erected in Oley,
Berks County, by Dr. George De Bonneville in 1745, will Dr. DeBonne-
always have peculiar interest. For this house, still well vlll(
preserved, is " the undoubted birthplace of Universal ism

320

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Birthplace of
Universalism
in America

Passevant
Preacher

Chauvenent
Mathema
tician

in America. In this edifice De Bonneville had a large
room fitted up as a chapel where he was wont to preach
the doctrine of universal redemption to his friends and
neighbours who gathered to hear him." De Bonneville
was descended from the Lords of Bonueville, whose an
cestral seat was at Limoges. His grandfather was
Francis De Bonneville, who went to England at the invi
tation of William III, and whose son married a member
of the famous Granville family. From this marriage
was born George De Bouneville in 1703. While a young
man De Bonneville returned to France to preach to his
Huguenot brethren, was captured and was on the point
of being beheaded when a reprieve came from the king,
Queen Anne of England having pleaded in his behalf.
After his release he preached through Germany and
Holland and finally emigrated to America in 1741. He
will always be remembered as one of the prime movers in
what was, perhaps, the profoundest change which took
place in religious conceptions during the eighteenth
century.

A Pennsylvanian of Huguenot descent who will long be
remembered by many grateful hearts is Eeverend Will
iam A. Passevant, of the Lutheran Church. The greater
part of his life was devoted to philanthropic enterprises.
He was instrumental in founding hospitals in Pittsburg,
Milwaukee, Chicago and Jacksonville. He helped es
tablish orphanages at Rochester, Pa., and Mt. Vernon,
N. Y., and was the founder of Thiel College at Green
ville, Pa.

William Chauvenent, the brilliant mathematician, was
born in Milford in 1820. He was active with Maury, a
Virginia Huguenot, in bringing about the establishment
of the United States Naval Academy, and was the leading
professor there for several years. For his patriotic
efforts in establishing the academy on its present admirable
basis, and for his many contributions to the scientific
literature of the day, he deserves to be remembered.

THE BAYARDS AND OTHER FAMILIES 321

General James A. Beaver is descended from a Revolu
tionary soldier, John George Beaver, who came to Penn
sylvania in 1731 in the good ship Pink. General Beaver
served as Colonel of the One Hundred and Forty-eighth
Pennsylvania Regiment during the Civil War, and was
brevetted Brigadier for his services. He has since been
Governor of Pennsylvania, and at present is a Judge of
the Superior Court.

Governor
Beaver

THIRD FRENCH CHURCH, MARBLE, AT FRANKLIN AND CHURCH STREETS, NEW YORK

CHAPTER IV
SOUTH CAROLINA

Successful
Settlement

French in the
Front Rank

Port Royal
1670

Liberal
Charter

ORE than a century after the disastrous failure
of Admiral Coligny's plans to establish French
colonies which might become asylums for
Protestant refugees in America, in the very same Caro
lina that was the scene of devastation, demouisin, despair
and death, it came to pass that French settlements were
established. In no section, moreover, were the French
settlers more numerous and influential. The story of
the state cannot be written without them. In the
colonial days they ranked among the foremost citizens
in public affairs, and in the War of the Revolution they
stood in the front ranks of the patriots and soldiers.
One has but to mention the same of Henry Laurens, a
chief among the men who resented royal tyranny and
carried the Carolinas into line with Massachusetts in de
fense of human liberty ; and in the army the name of
Marion, one of the most romantic figures as well as ef
fective fighters of the Revolution, to prove this.

Owing to the Spaniards and their hatred of the French,
and particularly the Protestant French, it was left for
the English, under direction of William Sayle, the first
governor, to establish the first permanent settlement in
South Carolina. This was at or near Port Royal in 1670.
The charter was especially inviting to emigrants. It
granted liberty of conscience to every one, and this at a
time when in England conformity to the Anglican
Church was pressing hard upon many good men, j ust as
in France Roman Catholicism was driving out the Hugue
nots. The civil government of this new colony laid only

322

MAROT PSALM BOOK OF GABRIEL MANIGAULT

GABRIEL MANIGAULT, MERCHANT, 1704-1781
From Painting by Jeremiah Theus, Charleston, 1757

SOUTH CAROLINA 323

three conditions with respect to religion : 1. To believe
that there is a God ; 2. That He is to be worshipped ;
and 3. That it is lawful and the duty of every man when
called upon by those in authority, to bear witness to the
truth. Without acknowledging this no man was per
mitted to be a freeman, or to have any estate or habita
tion in Carolina. But persecution for observing different
modes and ways of worship was expressly forbidden ;
and every man was to be left full liberty of conscience,
and might worship God in that manner which he thought
most conformable to the divine will and revealed word.
Ramsay, whose history of South Carolina was written
at the beginning of the last century (published 1808), and A Medley
who renders due credit to the French, says the early emi
grants were a medley of different nations and principles.
Every year brought new adventurers. From England
there came both Cavaliers and Puritans, and many a severe
clash they had. A colony of Dutch settlers came from
New Amsterdam, after the English had taken it and made
New York of it, and these newcomers settled Johnstown,
but subsequently spread themselves over the country. It 1679
was in 1679, the year before Charleston was founded on its Established
present site, that the French refugees reached Carolina to
stay. King Charles II was the direct means of their
coming. He saw the value of skilled labour to the
new colonies, and ordered two small vessels to be
provided at his own expense to transport to Carolina
a company of the foreign Protestants, who had found ref
uge in his realm, who proposed to raise wine, oil, silk,
and other products of the south. a Though they did not
succeed in enriching the country with these valuable
commodities/' says the historian, " their descendants
form a part of the present inhabitants."

Then came the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes,
fifteen years after the settlement of Carolina, and this be-

Honoured
Names

Elias
Prioleau

Judith

Manigault's

Letter

324 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

came a large contributor to the growth and prosperity of
South Carolina, as of other parts of the world. France's
inestimable loss was the gain of nations born and as yet
unborn. To South Carolina were transplanted from
France the stocks from which have sprung such respect
able families, some of them renowned, as Laurens,
Marion, Manigault, Prioleau, Horry, Huger, Postell,
Guerard, Benoist, Dubois, Dupre", St. Julien, Chevalier,
Simons, and a score of others. This group of refugees
settled at first on the Santee Eiver, and from them that
part of the country in old maps was called French Santee.
Their religious leader was Eeverend Elias Prioleau, who
had brought with him a considerable part of his congre
gation from France. He was the grandson of Anthoine
Prioli, who was chosen Doge of Venice in 1618, and was
a man of unusual parts.

What these families went through for the sake of their
religion is indicated in a letter written by Judith Mani
gault, wife of Peter Manigault, founders of a family that
was long well known in the State. This lady, when about
twenty, embarked in 1685 for Carolina by way of London.
She subsequently wrote to her brother in France a letter,
giving some account of her experiences. This is a trans
lation of it into English :

Since you desire it, I will give you an account of our quitting
France, and of our arrival in Carolina. During eight mouths, we had
suffered from the contributions and the quartering of the soldiers,
•with many other inconveniences. We therefore resolved on quitting
France by night, leaving the soldiers in their beds, and abandoning
the house with its furniture. We contrived to hide ourselves at Ro
mans in Dauphigny, for ten days, while a search was made after us ;
but our hostess being faithful, did not betray us when questioned if
she bad seen us. From thence we passed to Lyons — from thence to
Dijon — from which place, as well as from Langres, my eldest brother
wrote to you ; but I know not if either of the letters reached you.
He informed you that we were quitting France. He went to Madame
de Choiseul's, which was of no avail, as she was dead, and her son-in-
law had the command of everything ; moreover, he gave us to under-

SOUTH CAEOLINA 325

stand that he perceived our intention of quitting France, and if we
asked any favours of him, he would inform against us. We therefore
made the best of our way for Metz, in Lorraine, where we embarked
on the river Moselle, in order to go to Treves — from thence we passed
to Coblentz and Cologne, where we left the Rhine, to go by land to
Wesel, where we met with an host who spoke a little French, and in
formed us we were only thirty leagues from Lunenburg. We knew
that you were in winter quarters there. Our deceased mother and
myself earnestly besought my eldest brother to go that way with us ;
or, leaving us with her, to pay you a visit alone. It was in the depth
of winter ; but he would not hear of it, having Carolina so much in
his head that he dreaded losing any opportunity of going thither. Oh,
what grief the losing so fine an opportunity of seeing you at least once
more, has caused me ! How have I regretted seeing a brother show so
little feeling, and how often have I reproached him with it ! But he
was our master, and we were constrained to do as he pleased.

We passed on to Holland, to go from thence to England. We re
mained in London three months, waiting for a passage to Carolina.
Having embarked, we were sadly off : the spotted fever made its ap- The Spotted
pearance on board our veasel, of which disease many died, and among Fever
them our aged mother. Nine months elapsed before our arrival in
Carolina. We touched two ports — one a Portuguese, and the other an
island called Bermuda, belonging to the English, to refit our vessel,
which had been much injured in a storm. Our captain having com
mitted some misdemeanor, was put in prison, and the vessel seized.
Our money was all spent, and it was with great difficulty we procured
a passage in another vessel. After our arrival in Carolina we suffered Hardships and
every kind of evil. In about eighteen months our elder brother, un- ermgs
accustomed to the hard labour we had to undergo, died of a fever.
Since leaving France we had experienced every kind of affliction —
disease, pestilence, famine, poverty, hard labour. I have been for six
months together without tasting bread, working the ground like a
slave ; and I have even passed three or four years without always hav
ing it when I wanted it. God has done great things for us, in enab
ling us to bear up under so many trials. I should never have done,
were I to attempt to detail to you all our adventures ; let it suffice that
God has had compassion on me, and changed my fate to a more happy
one, for which glory be unto Him.

Such was the faith that could not be overthrown by
suffering and hardship. This young woman, left alone in
the world, found a worthy husband in Peter Manigault.

326 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

A Noble Son

Favoured
Carolina

1764
Immigration

She died in 1711, seven years after she had given birth to
Gabriel Manigault, who in a long and useful life ac
cumulated a fortune so large that he was able to give a
loan of £220,000 — a remarkable fortune in those days —
to the colonial government for carrying on its war for in
dependence. This he did at an early period, when there
was no certainty whether payment would ever be pos
sible. Thus he repaid the debt his parents owed to the
land which had given them asylum and a home.

Ill

Besides these Huguenots who came direct from France,
a considerable number of the refugees who came at first
to New York and New England, after a short residence
in those colder climates, found their way to Carolina,
which became a general rendezvous, as originally con
templated by their distinguished leader Coligny shortly
after the discovery of America. Another and a very
considerable company of French came from Acadia,
when, after Nova Scotia had been surrendered to England,
the Acadians were dispersed among the English colonies,
as a measure of safety. About fifteen hundred of them
were sent to Charleston, and some of them rose to wealth
and distinction, though the larger part of them left the
country as soon as it was possible to get away.

In 1764 another colony of Huguenots came from
France, in charge of Eeverend Mr. Gilbert, a popular
preacher, who prevailed on a number of persecuted fam
ilies, after the peace of Paris, to seek a home in South
Carolina, which was now highly reported of by the
French residents there. On his solicitations the govern
ment of England, which appreciated the quality of the
French Protestants as settlers, encouraged the project,
and furnished the means of transportation. Going to
England, Mr. Gilbert directed the movements of the emi
grants, who found it necessary to leave France privately,
at different times, and in small numbers. They rendez-

SOUTH CAROLINA 327

voused at Plymouth, England, and sailing from that post, southern
reached Charleston in April, 1764. They were received
with great kindness and hospitality. Vacant lands were
laid out for their use, grants of land were made to them
respectively by the Provincial Assembly, and means of
conveyance to their settlement were provided. They
named their new settlement New Bordeaux, after the
capital of the province in France whence most of them
came. They introduced in earnest the manufacture of
silk. The historian says of them: " They have been
distinguished for their industry and good morals. The
climate has agreed so well with them that they have gen
erally enjoyed good health. The manufacture of silk is
still continued among them." They sent representatives
to the legislature, were able in public as well as private
affairs, and ranked among the first elements in the popu
lation.

Thus in her early days South Carolina proved indeed
an asylum for those of different nationalities who fled worthy
from tyranny and persecution. The results to the state
were most beneficial ; while as for the colonies at large,
they owed much to South Carolina for the part she played
during the Revolution ; and the brave sons of Carolina
who engaged most notably in that memorable struggle
for human rights and liberty were those very French
Protestant families which had found welcome and shelter
within her territory.

There was a certain period in the early days when the French and
French refugees were a source of controversy between the Enellsh
proprietors and the people of English blood. The French
settlers were orderly, industrious, religious, in every way
exemplary citizens. Some of them had brought property
with them which enabled them to buy land and settle
with greater advantages than many of the poorer English
emigrants. They were, moreover, of a more cultivated
type, which did not make them more agreeable to their
neighbours. The result was that, while the French were

328 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

busy clearing and cultivating their lands, the English
settlers were reviving national antipathies, and classing
them as aliens and foreigners, legally entitled to none of
the privileges and advantages of natural born British
subjects. The proprietors, greatly to their credit, sided
with the refugees, and instructed their Governor Ludwell
to allow the French the same privileges and liberties
with the English colonists. But the people carried their
jealousy so far that the county in which the French lived
was not allowed a single representative in the assembly.
Wise measures served to lessen the friction, and by ex
cluding the French from office the disturbers were satis
fied. In process of time the national antipathies abated.
Gradual union The French proved their courage and fidelity, made
friends by their excellent behaviour, and when they pe
titioned the legislature to be incorporated with the freemen
of the colony, an act was passed in 1696 making all
aliens then residents free, on petition to the governor and
taking the oath of allegiance to King William. This
same law conferred liberty of conscience on all Christians,
with the exception of Papists. With these conditions the
refugees, who were all Protestants, joyfully complied ;
and the French and English settlers, being made equal in
rights, became united in interest and affection, and lived
together in peace and harmony thenceforward.

The position held by the French settlers is indicated by
the fact that among the Council of Twelve nominated by
the proprietors of South Carolina in 1719, two were
Huguenots, Benjamin de la Consiliere and Peter St.

Julien.

French in the It is when we come to the Ecvolutiouary War, how-
eve^ that ^ part playe(j by the French comes out in
strong relief. It must be realized that South Carolina
had not the same present and living issues that stirred
Massachusetts to rebellion. To the South the questions
were more remote and of principle solely. The odious

SOUTH CAKOLINA

329

taxation was not felt by the southerners, and their rela
tions to the home government had been tolerable. There
were many reasons why the state should refrain from
making common cause with other colonies, when war was
the consequence. But love of liberty and devotion to
principles touching human rights and liberties prevailed,
and when the actual contest began at Lexington and Con
cord, in spite of the strong royalist following, South Car
olina ranked herself beside the Puritan Commonwealth.
As Eamsay says, " All statutes of allegiance were consid
ered as repealed on the plains of Lexington, and the laws
of self-preservation left to operate in full force." The
Provincial Congress was immediately summoned, and
great were the objects brought before it. The president Henry
of this important body, be it remembered, was Henry Patriot
Laurens, one of the French Protestants. When on the
second day of the meeting it was unanimously resolved
that an association was necessary, it was that same great
citizen, a Huguenot, who drew up the following associa
tion and put his name as the first to it :

The actual commencement of hostilities against this continent by the South
British troops, in the bloody scene on the 19th of April last, near Bos-
ton — the increase of arbitrary impositions from a wicked and despotic
ministry — and the dread of insurrections in the colonies— are causes
sufficient to drive an oppressed people to the use of arms. We, there
fore, the subscribers, inhabitants of South Carolina, holding ourselves
bound by that most sacred of all obligations — the duty of good citizens
towards an injured country, and thoroughly convinced that, under our
present distressed circumstances, we shall be justified before God and
man in resisting force by force — do unite ourselves under every tie of
religion and honour, and associate as a band in her defense against
every foe — hereby solemnly engaging that, whenever our continental
or provincial councils shall decree it necessary, we will go forth and
be ready to sacrifice our lives and fortunes to secure her freedom and
safety. This obligation to continue in full force until a reconciliation
shall take place between Great Britain and America, upon constitu
tional principles — an event which we most ardently desire. And we
will hold all persons inimical to the liberty of the colonies who shall
refuse to subscribe this association.

330 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Huguenot
Leader

John Huger

In the work of this Provincial Congress, perhaps the
most important which ever assembled in the state, Henry
Laurens the Huguenot was easily the commanding figure
and the leading influence. His character and talents fitted
him to command. He was a gentleman, scholar, states
man and patriot, supplementing his own fine qualities
by a sincere piety. He was later to fill a larger sphere.
He was among the first to see the trend of the British
policy towards the colonies and to argue in behalf of the
colonial rights, and it was in large measure owing to his
bold and outspoken convictions that the sentiment of his
state was so sound and strong.

In the Council of Safety chosen by the Congress Henry
Laurens stands first, and John Huger, another Huguenot,
was a second member. Some time later, when the Pro
vincial Congress had voted itself to be the General As
sembly of South Carolina, and had adopted an independ
ent constitution, a legislative council and other officers
were elected. In the council were George Gabriel Powel
and Le Roy Hammond ; Henry Laurens was vice-presi
dent ; John Huger was secretary. This was an honourable
Huguenot representation in the civil government.

Lieut. -Col.
John Laurens

When it came to military service, of which South Car
olina had full share, the French were still more in evi
dence. Aside from Marion, whose story will be told else
where, Lieu tenant- Colonel John Laurens, son of Honour
able Henry Laurens, was a notable figure. Highly edu
cated, widely travelled, the correspondence between him
and his father shows both the literary ability and the un
usually close relationship between the two. Possessed of a
charming personality, handsome and accomplished, he
had a host of friends, and promised to be perhaps the
most popular citizen of his state. He entered upon the
war for independence with all the ardour of patriotism,
and proved a most efficient officer and gallant leader.

SOUTH CAROLINA 331

He was the idol of his men, and for his known bravery
and quickness of resource was chosen for difficult and
dangerous service. Thus we find him detailed to dispute 5J0111fz"tdand
the difficult pass of Cossawhatchie bridge, near Charleston,
with the British General Prevost and his large force ;
while Laurens had only eighteen continentals and some
militia under him. He persevered in the defense until
he was wounded and had lost half his continentals, when
the militia, in peril for the first time, retreated. In the
campaigns of 1779 and 1780 Lieu tenant- Colonel Laurens
was actively engaged. When Sir Henry Clinton landed
on the main, in his siege of Charleston, it was the intrepid
Laurens who, with a corps of light infantry, briskly at
tacked his advance guards. While during the next year
the American cause was low in South Carolina, with
Charleston in the hands of the British, military opera
tions were continued, and the value of Laurens' serv
ices was fully recognized.

When the brighter days came for the colonists, he fell A Martyr
a martyr in the struggle for freedom. The British an
nounced their intention to evacuate Charleston in the
summer of 1782 ; but before going sent out marauding
parties to seize provisions. A considerable party was
sent to Combakee Ferry, and Brigadier-General Gist,
with about three hundred cavalry and infantry of the
Continental army, was detached to oppose them. Lieu
tenant-Colonel Laurens, though he had been confined by
illness for several days, hearing of the expedition, rose
from his bed and followed General Gist. When the
British and American detachments approached within a
few miles of each other, Lieutenant- Colonel Laurens, be
ing in advance with a small party of regulars and militia,
engaged with a much superior force in expectation of
support from the main body in his rear.

" In the midst of his gallant exertions," says Eamsay,
"this all- accomplished youth received a mortal wound. Tribute to his
Nature had adorned him with a profusion of her choicest

332 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

gifts, to which a well conducted education had added its
most useful as well as its elegant improvements. Though
his fortune and family entitled him to pre-eminence, yet
he was the warm friend of republican equality. Gener
ous and liberal, his heart expended with genuine philan
thropy. Zealous for the rights of humanity, he con
tended that personal liberty was the birthright of every
human being, however diversified by country, colour or
capacity. His insinuating address won the hearts of all
his acquaintances ; his sincerity and virtue secured their
lasting esteem. Acting from the most honourable prin
ciples — uniting the bravery and other talents of a great
officer with the knowledge of a complete scholar, and the
engaging manners of a well-bred gentleman, he was the
idol of his country — the glory of the army — and an orna
ment of human nature. His abilities shone in the legis
lature and in the cabinet, as well as in the field, and were
equal to the highest stations. His admiring country,
sensible of his rising merit, stood prepared to confer
on him her most distinguished honours. Cut down in
the midst of all these prospects, he has left mankind to
deplore the calamities of war, which in the twenty-seventh
year of his life deprived society of so valuable a
citizen.'7

Allowing something in this tribute to state pride and
the pathos of the event, there is no doubt that this young
man was one of the best examples of the educated Amer
icans of his day — American by birth and principle and
affection — yet the son of a French refugee, an exile for
religion and conscience. There was no better stock than
this out of which to make the true Americanism.

Major Huger Another brave French officer who gave his life for his
country was Major Benjamin Huger, whose ancestors
came to South Carolina in 1696. Daniel Huger, born in
the province of Poitoux, France, fled to La Rochelle dur-

SOUTH CAROLINA 333

ing the bitter persecution of his province at Loudun, his
native town, where fifteen hundred Huguenots were com
pelled to recant in a single night by two companies of
dragoons. Stealing away from his home with his wife
and child, under cover of the darkness they made their
escape, and when La Eochelle could not afford shelter
they came to America, being among the early settlers in
South Carolina, where two children were born to them.
From this family came John Huger, who was made sec
retary of the new state after the Provincial Congress had
been dissolved ; and Benjamin Huger, who entertained
the army as captain, and by merit was advanced to the
rank of major. In the attack upon Charleston by the Killed in 1779
British in 1779, by a false alarm at night the militia were
led to fire upon the supposed advancing enemy. By this
unfortunate mistake Major Huger, who was without the
lines on duty with a party, was killed by his own coun
trymen. He is described as " a brave officer, an able
statesman, and a highly distinguished citizen." He led
his company in the defense of Fort Moultrie, which was
one of the brilliant events in the state's revolutionary
history.

Eminent service was rendered also by Colonel Daniel
Horry, of a Huguenot family. After a long series of dis- colonel Horry
asters, for the greater safety of its people the State Assem
bly passed a severe militia law, intended to strengthen
the Continental army. The extent and variety of mili
tary operations in the open country pointed out the ad
vantages of cavalry ; and a regiment of dragoons was
raised and put under command of Colonel Horry. While
its work was very different from that which made the
dragoons of France a terror to the innocent Huguenots,
this regiment did most valiant service under its brave leader,
who possessed something of the dash and daring that made
Marion conspicuous. Marion himself, in his exploits, Regiment of
received great assistance from the active exertions of the
French officers, Colonels Peter and Hugh Horry, Colonel

French Exiled
for Patriotism

An Early
Description
by an English
Traveller

334 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

James Postell, and Major John Postell ; while in the ranks
the Huguenot descendants were well represented. Cer
tainly the French exiles had repaid the land which gave
them refuge, and proved the quality of their loyalty to
their adopted country.

It is significant both as to their rank as citizens and
loyalty to the American cause, that among the prominent
citizens of Charleston who were exiled to Florida by Lord
•Cornwallis were John Mouatt, John Neufville, Ernest
Poyas, Samuel Prioleau, Daniel Bordeaux, Daniel Des-
saussure, and Benjamin Postell. The influence of this
class of patriots was so feared by the British commander
that he was not content to have them paroled at home.
In their attitude towards the revolution the Huguenots
of South Carolina differed from the majority of those in
New England and New York, who were ranked among
the Tories. It is not strange that men who had been
hospitably welcomed and treated by the representatives
of the British government should hold loyally to it as
long as its authority endured.

VII

In 1701 Mr. John Lawson published u A Journal of a
Thousand Miles travelled through several Nations of the
Indians." He thus describes a visit to the first Hugue
nots who settled in South Carolina :

The first place we designed for was Santee River, where there is a
colony of French Protestants allowed and encouraged by the lords
proprietary. As we rowed up the river we found the land towards
the mouth scarce anything but a swamp, affording vast cypress trees
of which the French make canoes, that will carry fifty or sixty barrels.
There being a strong current in Santee River caused us to make but
small way with our oars. With hard rowing we got that night to
Monsieur Eugee's (Huger's) house, which stands about fifteen miles
up the river, being the first Christian dwelling we met with in that
settlement, and were very courteously received by him and his wife.
Many of the French follow a trade with the Indians, living very con-

SOUTH CAROLINA 335

veniently for that interest. There are about seventy families seated
on this river, who live as decently and happily as any planters in these
southward parts of America. The French being a temperate, industri
ous people, some of them bringing very little of effects, yet, by their A Tribute to
endeavours and mutual assistance among themselves, which is highly to Character
be commended, have outstripped our English, who brought with them
large fortunes, though, as it seems, less endeavour to manage their
talent to the best advantage.

We lay all night at Monsieur Eugee's, and the next morning set out
further to go the remainder of our journey by land. At noon we
came up with several French Plantations, meeting with several
Creeks by the way. The French were very officious in assisting
with small dories to pass over the waters, whom we met coming
from their church, being all of them clean and decent, their houses
and plantations suitable in neatness and contrivance. They are
all of the same opinion of the church of Geneva ; there being no
difference amongst them concerning the punctilios of the Christian
faith, which union hath propagated a happy and delightful concord,
and in all other matters throughout the whole neighbourhood ; living
amongst themselves as one tribe or kindred, every one making it his
business to be assistant to the wants of his countrymen ; preserving
his estate and reputation with the same exactness and concern as he
does his own ; all seeming to share in the misfortunes and rejoice at
the advancement and rise of their brethren.

Towards the afternoon we came to Monsieur L. Jandron (Gendron),
where we got our dinners. There came some French ladies whilst we
were there, lately from England, and Monsieur Le Grand, a worthy
Norman, who hath been a great sufferer in his estate by the persecu
tion in France against those of the Protestant religion. . . . We
got that night to Monsieur Gailliar's the elder (Gailliard) ; who lives
in a very curious contrived house, built of brick and stone, which is
gotten near that place. Near here comes in the road from Charles-
town, and the rest of the English settlement. . . . We intended
for Monsieur Gailliar's, Jr., but were lost, none of us knowing the way
at that time, although the Indian with us was born in that country,
it having received so strange a metamorphosis. When we got to the
house we found our comrades, and several of the French inhabitants
with them who treated us very courteously. . . . After having
refreshed ourselves we parted from a very kind, loving, and affable
people, who wished us a safe and prosperous voyage.

These people were indeed kind and affable, courteous Genial
and agreeable. They carried with them a cheerfulness

336 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

and geniality, a spirit of cornradery and honour, that
made them model settlers. They bore hardships with
little complaint, and soon put a new face upon every
thing by their skill. Their plantations were sure to be
the best and most attractive. Their gardening was justly
famous, and their taste was manifest. They were not too
busy wrestling with the virgin soil for livelihood to culti
vate flowers and gratify their esthetic natures. In all
these respects they differed materially from the Puritan
type. Yet they were as devoutly and staunchly religious,
as the fact of their exile proved. They generally bought
lands, and some of them had means of purchasing large
tracts, which they portioned out and sold at a low price
to their distressed brethren. l i We do not hear of any
instance of oppression among them,'7 says Allen, " either
exercised towards each other or Americans."

Their Religion ju gollth Carolina they very generally adopted the
Episcopal mode of worship. The French Calvinistic
church in Charleston adhered to its peculiar worship. It
was built about 1693. The time of worship was regu
lated by the tide, for the accommodation of the members,
many of whom came by the river from the settlements
around. We can hardly imagine anything more pic
turesque than these little boats, borne on the water and
filled with noble and daring beings, who had endured
danger and suffering, and risked their lives, for the spir
itual life of the soul. " Often the low chant was dis
tinguished amidst the dashing of the oars, and sometimes
an enthusiastic strain swelled on the ear, like those which
proceeded from the lips of the martyrs when the flames
curled around them."
Their conduct was not marked by rash enthusiasm ;

Founded on theirs was a religion founded on principle. They were

Principle

free from fanaticism and exaggeration. Their memorials
to the government are simple and concise, and bear every
evidence of truth. When they petition for their rights,
it is done in a calm, conciliatory manner ; and this is

SOUTH CAKOLINA 337

the more extraordinary, from the impetuous constitution
of Frenchmen and the keen sense of wrongs they had en
dured in their own country. This spirit of forbearance,
integrity and perseverance, marks them wherever they
settled, North or South.

" Who does not feel," says their historian Allen, " that The strength
there is more to be reverenced in the exiled Huguenot, '
who has forsaken all from the highest sense of duty, who
has uniformly placed his confidence in God under the
severest trials, than the mighty monarch who exiled him f
It is those in whom the power of virtue is formed and
matured that are really great. The history of the Hugue
nots would be an enigma without this key to human
power ; but he, who feels this undying principle, cannot
be trodden under foot, for he holds fast the inward con
sciousness of his own worth, which supports him under
every oppression, and makes him strong to endure — a
strength derived from genuine piety, and the deep sense
of Christianity enjoined by its author."

In France these Huguenots were a law-loving and law- A Cultured
abiding people. They feared God and honoured their Pe°Ple
king. They were reared in habits of sobriety and virtue.
They may be said to have inherited cultivated manners,
so careful were parents to set examples to their children,
and form the manner of intercourse in households and in
society. Enduring the hardships of a new colony in a
foreign land, they preserved the amenities of life. In
their distress and in their prosperity, they never forgot that
they sprung from the most polished country in the world.

The habits of both mutual and self-respect, of social
intercourse and enjoyments, of activity and enterprise,
created the wealth and formed the manners of South
Carolina. Frank, urbane, cultivated, kind, resolute, en
ergetic, the descendants of colonies composed of Hugue
nots and English and Scotch-Irish intermingled and
amalgamated, hold an enviable place among the sister
hood of states.

CHAPTEE V
FEANCIS MAEION

A Revolu
tionary Hero

Grandson of a

French

Refugee

YEEY war lias its conspicuous leaders, and de
velops heroes hitherto unknown to fame. The
'war of the American Eevolution produced one of
the most dashing and daring of these heroic and romantic
personages in the South Carolina Huguenot, Francis
Marion. His story reads like historical romance, how
ever soberly and truthfully it is told. He may be called
the Garibaldi of America. His name became a terror to
the British. They knew that when he was about, it
would be the unexpected that would happen. By the
very recklessness of his attacks, by the risks he ran, by
the sheer audacity of his movements, he astounded and
defeated the enemy time after time, unless his name
possessed something of the quality of magic. What gal
lant "Phil " Sheridan was in our Civil War, Marion was
in the Eevolution. And Francis Marion was the grand
son of a French refugee from Languedoc, who found his
way, with the Manigaults and Laurenses and Hugers, to
South Carolina. Of thirteen children of this staunch
Huguenot, the eldest was the father of Francis, who was
to become an American general.

Born at Winyaw in 1733, at sixteen the boy decided on
a seafaring life, but on his first voyage to the West Indies
was shipwrecked, and was one of the three of the crew
rescued after being six days in an open boat. This dis
aster and his mother's entreaties induced him to quit the
sea. A life of adventure had irresistible attractions for
him, and when the Indians became troublesome he found
his opportunity. In 1759 he went as volunteer in his

338

FRANCIS MAEION 339

brother's militia troop of horse in Littleton's expedition,
and two years later was serving as lieutenant under Capt.
William Moultrie, in Grant's expedition to the Indian
country.

When a regular army was formed in 1775 to defend '775
South Carolina against Great Britain, Marion was ap
pointed a captain in the second South Carolina regiment,
and before the fall of Charleston had risen to the rank of
colonel. A fractured leg caused his absence from the
garrison at its surrender and saved him from being made
prisoner. He retreated to North Carolina, and on the colonel
approach of General Gates made his way to the Santee,
where he found a number of his French countrymen ready
to put themselves under his command, to which he had
been appointed by General Gates. This corps acquired
the name of Marion's Brigade, and its exploits became
famous. Its original members were French and Irish. Marion's
For chief officers Marion had Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh
Horry, his bosom friend, Colonel Peter Horry, Captain
Lewis Ogier, and the Postell brothers of his own nation
ality ; with Major James, a gallant Irishman who had been
the means of arousing the section to resistance through
his insolent treatment by a British officer ; Major Vander-
horst, representing the Dutch blood ; and Captain John
Milton of Georgia.

Marion's Brigade immediately set itself to serious busi
ness. A few days after taking command, General Marion
led his men across the Peedee at Post's Ferry, to disperse a
large party of Tories. He surprised them in their camp,
killed one of their captains and several privates, and
routed them, horse and foot. This was the beginning of
a series of remarkable encounters and victories. We find Remarkable
him, on hearing of the defeat of General Gates at Cam-
den, marching to intercept and rescue the prisoners on
their way to Charleston. One of his divisions, sixteen
men, under command of Colonel Hugh Horry, by a dash

340 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Resource
fulness

The Swamp
Fox

in the dark took a British guard of thirty-two men and re
leased 150 prisoners, with only one man wounded. When
the general cause looked hopeless, reduced in men to a
handful through desertion and discouragement, the
spirits of Marion were undaunted, and with the band of
faithful officers who were ready to follow him to the death,
he revived courage among the despondent, recruited his
forces, and by spirited attacks and steady victories of
surprising character inspired such confidence that men
flocked to his command.

He was marvellous in resourcefulness. Once he was
attacking a far superior force of the Tories, who were ad
vantageously posted to receive him. In the sharp conflict
that followed, suddenly Marion was heard to call out,
"Advance cavalry and charge on the left," whereupon
the dismayed Tories, thinking their flank was turned,
broke and ran for the swamp. This victory enabled
General Marion to march into Williamsburg. His suc
cesses were often due to the fact that his attacks were
surprises. In all his marches Marion and his men lay in
the open air with little covering, and with little other
food than sweet potatoes and meat mostly without salt.
The general fared worse than his men ; for his baggage
having caught fire by accident he had literally but half a
blanket to cover him from the dews of the night, and but
half a hat to shelter him from the rays of the sun. But
he established himself in impregnable positions, and be
came known as the Swamp Fox, sending his scouts in all
directions, harassing the enemy at diverse points, making
unexpected assaults upon supply stores, and giving the
Tories some of their own medicine in the way of devasta
tion.

Marion indeed so effectually thwarted the schemes of
the British against South Carolina, that a turning point
in the fortunes of the war came largely through his perni
cious activity, which inspired the superior forces of the
enemy with dread, and discouraged the Tories who hoped

FKASTCIS MAEION 341

to win the state to the British side. To drive Marion out
of the country was a favourite object of the British, and
in 1781 a thoroughly organized attempt was made to des
troy or disperse his now noted Brigade, which was held to
be invincible. The story of the way Marion led the enemy
into ambuscades and defeated them, though he was prac
tically without ammunition, forms one of the stirring in
cidents of a war full of surprises and heroism. Coming
later under direct command of General Greene, to the end
of the war Marion continued his distinguished services.
Illustrious among the patriot soldiery are the French
Protestants of South Carolina, to whom it was given by
the fortunes of the War for Independence to play an im
portant part.

Ill

To Marion and his surroundings in the swamp we are
introduced in the historical romances of William Gilmore A Hero of
Simms. Discounting the romance sufficiently, let us F
penetrate the Cypress with one of his heroes, and after
hours of hard riding through thicket and morass, perhaps
splashed with water and torn by the undergrowth, we
shall find ourselves admitted to the famous camp of
Marion. From the time of our entrance into the swamp,
scouts and sentries have been safely passed at intervals
along the way, the guide elected of our fancy answering
sundry hootiugs of owls and familiar whistlings with
satisfactory repetitions of the same. "Owls abroad?" Picture of the
has been the challenge of some coon-skin-covered head SwamP
thrust out at us from the bushes, to which the responsive
" Owls at home ! " has been promptly given. And when,
on nearer approach, the demand is made, "What owl
hoots f ' ' the due answer has been forthcoming ; until at
last we are permitted to dismount.

At once we become conscious of a little world out here
in the woods by itself. In a hollow, the better to hide the
flames, the party has built its fires, about which, in vary
ing degrees of activity or repose, are grouped the hunted

342 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

followers of the " Swamp Fox." Here a trooper is
mending his bridle beneath a gigantic oak, or ash, or
hickory, while a little further away another of less stren
uous make-up is stretched at length, with feet to the fire,
and half- closed eyes peering dreamily up through the
branches into the starlit sky. Yonder a knot of younger
men are busy fashioning arrows from a great pile of
canes or reeds such as abound in the lowlands of this
region, while a basket stands near by crowded with
feathers of the eagle, crane, hawk and common turkey, to
be fitted to the shafts when ready. In the hollow trunk
of a tree bows and these arrows will be stored against the
possible failure to capture more of King George's baggage-
wagons laden with British arms and ammunition. The
trees are a veritable depository for bridles, blankets, coats
and cloaks, and a dozen saddles lie scattered about.

Here in his element is the typical ranger, or forester, of
the period, with his scanty though picturesque costume,
consisting of a mixture of Indian undress and military

The Dashing uniform, with his nonchalance, his drawl, and his almost
uncanny cleverness in woodcraft, or the fence which is
capable of deluding an enemy into the feeling that he is a
friend. Even the names by which he is familiarly known
among his fellows bespeak the haunts and habits to which
his peculiar warfare has driven him ; for, in the frank and
unconventional phrase of the camp, we shall be sure to
meet Hard-Biding Dick, Dusky Sam, Clip the Can,
Prickly Ash, and Black Fox. Such a leader, in such
surroundings, was Francis Marion, who seemed to his
slower antagonists to wear a charmed life and possess
wings.

The Men who And what a company it was one might have met in the
Swamp on occasion. There was the powerful Ehode
Islander, General Greene, in whose veins was Huguenot
blood, and who was majestic alike in person and in pro
fessional dignity ; as unlike Marion as one could imagine ;
noble Governor Eutledge, the veritable father of the peo-

FKANCIS MAKION 343

pie ; the Swamp Fox himself, that famous guerrilla of
Carolina, with his modest person and demeanour, even
while he remained the sleepless master of every situation ;
the Game Cock, Sumter, with his dash and sensitive
pride ; besides William Washington, the nephew of the
commander-in-chief, and Lee, and the Huguenot Horry
and the rest.

In this connection we may well give place to some A stirring
verses of one of Simms' ringing martial lyrics which Lyric
well describes Marion and his men :

We follow where the Swamp Fox guides,

His friends and merry men are we ;
And when the troop of Tarleton rides,

We burrow in the cypress-tree.
The turfy hammock is our bed,

Our home is in the red-deer's den.
Our roof, the tree-top overhead,

For we are wild and hunted men.

Free bridle bit, good gallant steed,

That will not ask a kind caress,
To swim the Santee at our need,

When on our heels the foemen press —
The true heart and the ready hand,

The spirit stubborn to be free —
The twisted bore, the smiting brand —

And we are Marion's men, you see.

Now light the fire, and cook the meal —

The last, perhaps, that we shall taste.
I hear the Swamp Fox round us steal,

And that's a sign we move in haste.
He whistles to the scouts, and hark !

You hear his order calm and low —
Come, wave your torch across the dark,

And let us see the boys that go.

344 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Now stir the fire, and lie at ease ;

The scouts are gone, and on the brush
I see the colonel bend his knees,

To take his slumbers too — but hush !
He's praying, comrades : 'tis not strange ;

The man that's fighting day by day
May well when night comes, take a change,

And down upon his knees to pray.

Now pile the brush and roll the log :

Hard pillow, but a soldier's head,
That's half the time in brake and bog,

Must never think of softer bed.
The owl is hooting to the night,

The cooter crawling o'er the bank,
And in that pond the plashing light

Tells where the alligator sank.

What — 'tis the signal ! start so soon,

And through the San tee swamp so deep,
Without the aid of friendly moon,

And we, heaven help us, half asleep !
But courage, comrades ! Marion leads,

The Swamp Fox takes us out to-night ;
So clear your swords and spur your steeds,

There's goodly chance, I think, of fight. '

c^l

:&ir-U| OENL. FRANCIS MARION |||2C, .

ah-^^^sllbS

£.-\

CHAPTER VI
THE HUGUENOTS IN VIRGINIA

HE earliest mention of the French in colonial Earliest

Mention in

Virginia occurs in the year 1610. In June of rfw
that year Cap tain- General and Governor Lord
De la Warr arrived off the Virginia coast at the mouth
of the James River. Before proceeding up the river to
Jamestown, he went ashore with several of his officers to
inspect the soil and vegetation of his new dominion. All
were charmed with the fertility and luxuriance which
they beheld on every side, and the governor, as the ac
count runs, on discerning the richness of the soil and the
mildness of the climate l i determined to set a Frenchman
heere awork to plant Vines which grew naturally in great
plentie." Going on up the river to Jamestown, De la French vine
Warr " alloted every Man his particular Place and Busi
ness. The French prepared to plant the Vines ; the Eng
lish laboured in the Woods and Grounds."

In 1619 Sir Edwin Sandys, treasurer of the Virginia
Company makes mention of the vines " which by culture
will be brought to excellent perfection. For the affecting
whereof divers skillful Vignerons are sent. . . . Our
Frenchmen assure us that no Countrie in the World is
more proper for vines . . . than Virginia."

In 1621, the new governor, Sir Francis Wyatt, was in- I62I
structed " to plant Mulberry trees and make silk, and
take care of the Frenchmen sent about that work. ' '

The Virginia Company expected a great future for the
wine and silk trade in the New World, and in order to
foster it they brought over several skillful Frenchmen.
The venture did not appear to succeed, however, and not

345

346 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Petition to
Colonize

Remarkable
Document

To Build a
City

Cannon for
Defense

Husbandry

long after their arrival in America the French began to
plant tobacco — much against the wishes of the company,
who saw a greater profit slipping away from it. The
numbers of the French who were brought over at the ex
pense of the company were probably not large, and their
names have utterly perished.

In July, 1621, Sir Dudley Carleton, British ambassa
dor at the Hague, received the following petition :

His lordship the ambassador of the most serene king of Great Britain
is humbly entreated to advise and answer us in regard to the articles
which follow.

I. Whether it would please his Majesty to permit fifty to sixty
families, as well Walloons as French, all of the Eeformed religion, to
go and settle in Virginia, a country under his rule, and whether it
would please him to undertake their protection and defense from and
against all, and to maintain them in their religion.

II. And whereas the said families might find themselves near upon
three hundred persons ; and whereas they would wish to carry with
them a quantity of cattle, as well for the cultivation of the earth as for
their sustenance, and for these reasons would need more than one
ship ; whether his Majesty would not accommodate them with one, well
equipped and furnished with cannon and other arms, on board of
which, together with the one they would provide, they could accom
plish their voyage ; the same returning to obtain merchandise for the
regions granted by his said Majesty, as well as that of the country.

III. Whether he would permit them, on their arrival in said coun
try, to choose a convenient spot for their abode among the places not
yet cultivated by those whom it has pleased his Majesty to send thither
already.

IV. Whether, having secured the said spot, they might build a city
for their protection and furnish it with the necessary fortifications,
wherein they might elect a governor and magistrates for the main
tenance of order as well as justice, under those fundamental laws
which it has pleased his Majesty to establish in said regions.

V. Whether his said Majesty would furnish them cannons and
munitions for the defense of said place, and grant them right in case
of necessity to make powder, fabricate balls and found cannons under
the flag and arms of his said Majesty.

VI. Whether he would grant them a circuit or territory of eight
English miles radius, that is sixteen in diameter, wherein they might
cultivate fields, meadows, vineyards, and the like, which territory

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIEGINIA 347

they would hold, whether conjointly or severally, from his Majesty in
such fealty and homage as his Majesty should find reasonable, without
allowing any other to dwell there unless by taking out papers of resi
dence within said territory, wherein they would reserve rights of in
ferior lordship ; and whether those of them who could live as nobles
would be permitted to style themselves such.

VII. Whether they would be permitted in the said lands to hunt
all game, whether furred or feathered, to fish in the sea and rivers, and
to cut heavy and small timber, as well for navigation as other pur- Free Trading
poses, according to their desire ; in a word, whether they might make
use of everything above and below ground according to their will and
pleasure, saving the royal rights ; and trade in everything with such
persons as should be thereto privileged.

Sir Dudley himself, who knew Jesse de Forest, the what Virginia
leader of the petitioners, favoured the project and re- L°st
ferred the matter to the lords in council, who for their
part turned the petition over to the Virginia Company.
The answer of the directors was not unfavourable, but
they refused to give the would-be colonists a ship, " being
utterly exhausted and unable to afford other help than
advice as to the cheapest mode of transporting them
selves." The company also said in its reply, " that for
the prosperity and principally securing of the plantation
in his Maj's obedience, it is not expedient that the said
families should be set down in one gross and entire body,
but that they should rather be placed in convenient num
bers in the principal cities . . . there being given
them such proportions of land and all other privileges
and benefits whatsoever in as ample a manner as to the
natural English." It is probable that the petitioners
came to the conclusion that advice was quite as cheap in
England as it was in Leyden, for they engaged in no
further parleying with the Virginia Company. But
what was Virginia's loss was New Amsterdam's gain,
for two years later the Dutch sent part of the band
to the mouth of the Hudson, as we have previously
related.

348

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

DeSauce's
Venture

Unfit Site

After the fall of La Eochelle, the Baron De Sauce, a
hero of the defense of that city under the Duke of Eohan,
took refuge in England, and in 1629 begged permission
of the government to establish a colony of Huguenots in
Virginia "to cultivate vines and to make silke and salt
there." The request was favourably received and he was
given letters of denization for himself and son in order
that he might return to France in safety to get his family
and property. Careful preparations were made, and in
due course of time the expedition sailed for Virginia. It
landed safely on the southern side of the James Eiver and
a settlement was commenced in what is now the county
of Nansemond, then known as " Southampton Hundred,"
a patent of 200,000 acres granted several years be
fore.

No records of this colony have been discovered, and its
fate is a matter of conjecture. Says Colonel E. L. Maury,
who has carefully examined the Virginia records, l i I
have not been able to learn further of this colony ; mani
festly it did not flourish, and must have soon dispersed,
having left no enduring memorial."

The place chosen for this abortive attempt at coloniza
tion was perhaps the worst that could have been selected
in all Virginia. In 1698, Col. William Byrd, in helping the
government to locate the band who finally settled at Man -
akin Town ( about twenty miles above Eichmond, on the
James Eiver), wrote of u Southampton Hundred," "that
part is according to its name, for the most part low
swampy ground, unfit for planting and Improvement and
ye air of it very moist and unhealthy so that to send
French thither that came from a dry and serene Clymate
were to send them to their death, and that would very
ill answer his Maj'tys charitable intentions."

The settlers did not all perish, however, for Huguenot
names became frequent in the records of Norfolk
County.

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIRGINIA 349

III

" As the seventeenth century waxed so did the Hugue- Virginia

_ ,, _, Hospitable to

not emigration to Virginia continuously increase." The settlers
refugees came singly, or in isolated groups and families.
Among the colonial legislatures that of Virginia was
foremost in encouraging applications for naturalization.
In 1659, or thereabouts, it was enacted, "That all aliens
and strangers who have inhabited the country for the
space of four years, and have a firme resolution to make
this countrey their place of residence shall be free deni
zens of this collony." In 1661 the General Assembly of
Virginia passed an act admitting all strangers desirous of
making their homes in Virginia, to the liberties, privi
leges and immunities of natural born Englishmen, upon
their petition to the Assembly, and upon taking the oaths
of allegiance and supremacy. New York adopted a sim
ilar measure in 1783, and South Carolina fourteen years
later. The colonies were in this ahead of the home gov
ernment, which had not sanctioned such acts.

Among the Huguenots who took advantage of these Family
laws were John Battaille, Eichard Durand, De la Mun-
dayes, Durant, de Hull, De Bar, D'Aubigne (Dabney),
De la Nome, De Young, De Bandy, De Berry, Roger
Fontaine, Stephen Fouace, Hillier, Jordan, Jourdan, La
Furder, Lines, Louis, Lassall, La Mont (Lamont),
Moyses, Martian, Mountery, Michael, Mellaney, Mille-
chops, Moyssier, Morel, Norman, Noel, Poythers, Perin,
Poleste, Paule, Perrot, Place, Pluvier, Pensax, Peron,
Pere, Pettit, Pruett, Pallisder, Robins, Ravenell, Rab-
nett, Rosier, Regault, Roden, Roye, Rue, Regant, Revell,
Royall, Sully, Sabrell, Sorrel, Sallis, Tollifer (Tallia-
ferro), Therrialt, Toton, Tranier, Vicomte, Vasler,
Vaus, Vallentine, Vaulx, Vardie and Vodin.

Major Moore Faunt Le Roy, founder of a " very ancient Faunt LeRoy
and numerous family of Virginia," owned a large tract
of land on the banks of the Rappahanuock prior to 1651.
In 1683 the Huguenot Relief Committee in London " Paid

350 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

French
Ministers

1700

Manakin-
town

Marquis de la
Muce the
Leader

A Noted
Colony

Mr. David Dashaise, Elder of the French Church in
London, for fifty-five French Protestants to go to Virginia,
Seventy pounds sterling." In 1687 Stephen Fouace came
from London with letters from the Archbishop of Can
terbury. He became rector of a church near Williams-
burg, was prominent among the colonial clergy and was
later made a trustee of William and Mary College. In
1689 came another Huguenot rector, the Rev. James
Boisseau.

In the last decade of the seventeenth century at least a
thousand French Protestants came to America, receiving
transportation from the Relief Committee in London. A
few of these settled in Florida, a number in South Caro
lina, but not less than 700 of them landed in Virginia, to
establish a settlement, according to the earlier idea of
Jesse de Forest. In 1700 four fleets sailed from Graves-
end, bringing all told more than seven hundred of the
French refugees, with ' l the brave and devoted ' ' Marquis
de la Muce at their head, and Charles de Sailly as his as
sociate. There were with the expedition three ministers
and two physicians. Various sites had been considered
for a settlement, but on arrival in Virginia the colonists
were directed to a spot about twenty miles above Rich
mond, on the James River, where they were given ten
thousand acres of land which had belonged to the extinct
tribe of Manakin Indians. Thus the name of the settle
ment became Manakiutown. Baird says no more in
teresting body of colonists than that conducted by Oliver
de la Muce had crossed the ocean. Many of them be
longed to the persecuted Waldeusian race, who had taken
refuge in Switzerland when driven from their Pied-
inontese homes by the troops of Louis XIV. Their num
ber being too large for the Swiss Cantons to support, Eng
land responded liberally to the appeal for aid, and they
were given transportation to America, together with the
Huguenots. Three thousand pounds were appropriated

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIKGINIA 351

for "the transportation of five hundred Vaudois and
French refugees designed for some of his Majesty's plan
tations." Of individual accounts the records show the
sum of £38 given " out of the collection to Mons Benja
min DeJoux, Minister, appointed to go to Virginia ; be
sides £24 for the providing of himself with necessities
for the voyage." In August, 1700, the Bishop of London
writes to the city chamberlain, " Sir : the bearer, Mon
sieur Castayne, is going out Surgeon to ye French now
departing for Virginia. He wants £20 to make up his
Chest of Drugs and instruments. It is a very small mat
ter for such a voyage ; but if you have in your hands to
supply that sum, I will answer for my Lord of Canter
bury, that he shall allow of your so doing. ' ' Six pounds
per head was allowed for transportation. The names of
the other ministers were Claude Philippe de Eichebourg
and Louis Lataue. They and the two surgeons had
plenty of occupation in caring for the large company
under their charge.

Among the list of the expenses of the journey to items 01
"Manicanton" appear the following items: "for one Expense
distiller and one Kettle, 3£ 2s ; To Mr. Stringer for
fusils, coutlas, bayonetts, blunderbushes, flints, etc., 41£
Is, for several Coates, waist coates, briches, etc., 10£; for
blew Cloth handkerchieffs, cravats, etc., 26£ ; for a great
Black Trunck to put ye goods in, 10s ; for Brandy, Sugar,
figgs, raisons and sugar buiscuits for the sick, 5£ ; to ye
ship's crew for brandy 15s ; for a boat to put some people
ashoare, and to goe to Mr. Servant for a Certificate how
he saw Capt. Hawes abuse us and our goods, and to bring
ye salt, 3s ; To Capt. Hawes for Hamacks, brandy, and
other extraordinary s 21£ 8s; To Cuper for his sabre Saitand
broken by ye sentry upon the Shippe, 2s 6d ; for great Brandy
nailes for the Pares ( parish ) doors, 9d ; To ye Miller to
suffer our people by his fire and to dispatch them, 2s 6d ;
to Corne for ye Horse, Is."

In connection with the expenses of the journey it is

352 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

ship Bin of interesting to note the bill of fare which was set before
the transatlantic passengers of that day. From the
agreement made before commencing the voyage we take
the following : " To every passenger over six years to
have 7 pounds of Bread every week, and each mess, 8
passengers to a mess, to have 4 pounds Porke 5 days in a
week, with pease. 2 days in a week to have 2 four
pound piece of Beefe with a pudding with pease. If the
kettle cannot be boyled for bad weather, every passenger
to have 1 pound of cheese per day." Those who were
sick fared better, according to this item among the ex
penditures : "for Brandy, Sugar, figgs, raisons and sugar
busicuits for the sick . . . £5." While fifteen shil
lings were presented "To ye ships crew for brandy,"
and five shillings "To ye Cooke."

All the Huguenots who came over with la Muce did
not settle at Manakin Town, but scattered themselves
through the province along the banks of the James and
Eappahannock Eivers ; some even pushing southward

Liberal Treat- into the Carolinas. Those who joined the settlement at

ment

Manakin Town were treated very liberally by the gov
ernment of Virginia. By the king's orders the refugees
were to be taken under the special protection of the gov
ernor, and the legislature showed every intention of
making their settlement as easy and pleasant for them as
lay within its power. Public subscriptions were taken
for the purpose of relieving their most pressing necessi
ties for food and shelter.

Says Beverly, in his history of Virginia: "The As-
Freed from sembly was very bountiful to those that remained at this
town, bestowing on them large donations of money and
provisions for their support. They likewise freed them
from every tax for several years to come, and addressed
the governor to grant them a brief, to entitle them to the
charity of all well-disposed persons throughout the coun
try, which, together with the king's benevolence, sup
ported them very comfortably till they could sufficiently

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIEGINIA 353

supply themselves with necessaries, which they now do
indifferently well, and have stocks of cattle which are
said to give abundance of milk more than any other in
the country. In the year 1702 they began an essay of «7oa wine
wine which they make of the wild grapes gathered in
the woods, the effect of which was a strong bodied claret
of good flavour. I heard a gentleman who had tasted it,
give it great commendation. I have heard that these
people are upon the design of getting into the breed of
buffaloes, to which end they lay in wait for their calves,
that they may tame and raise a stock of them, in which,
if they succeed, it will in all probability be greatly for
their advantage ; for these are much larger than the
cattle, and have the benefit of being natural to the Buffalo
climate. They now make their own clothes, and are
resolved, as soon as they have improved that manufac
ture, to apply themselves to the making of wine and
brandy, which they do not doubt to bring to perfection. "
But the endeavour to introduce the manufactures of
France here at the extreme frontier of Virginia was a
task too great for any set of colonists, and was doomed
to failure from the first. In planning as they did they
showed the characteristic Huguenot enterprise, but the
necessities of life drove them to agriculture as the only
means of keeping the wolf from the door.

A letter from William Byrd thus described the settle- Description of
ment a year after its founding: "We visited about theSettlement
seventy of their huts, being, most of them very mean ;
there being upwards of fourty of y' m betwixt ye two creeks,
w'ch is about 4 miles along on ye Eiver, and have cleared
all ye old Manacan ffields for near three miles together,
as also some others (who came thither last ffeb'ry) have
done more work than they y't went thither first. . . .
Indeed, they are very poor. . . . Tho' these people
are very poor, yet they seem very cheerful and are (as
farr as we could learn) very healthy, all they seem to de
sire is y't they might have Bread enough. "

354 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

A French

Parish

Established

Parish

The strict parish laws of the province were relaxed in
favour of the Manakin Town settlers. In 1700 the As
sembly enacted as follows :

Whereas a considerable number of French Protestant refugees have
been lately imported into his Majesty's colony and dominions, several
of which refugees have seated themselves above the falls of James
River, at, or near to a place commonly called and known by the name
of Mauakin towne, for the encouragement of said refugee to settle and
remain together, as near as may be to the said Manakin towne, and
the parts adjacent, shall be accounted and taken for inhabitants of a
distinct parish by themselves ; and the land which they now do and
shall hereafter possess, at, or adjacent, to the said Manakin towne,
shall be, and is hereby declared to be a parish of itselfe, distinct from
any other parish, to be called and known by the name of King Will
iam Parish, in the county of Henrico, and not lyable to the payment
of parish levies in any other parish whatsoever. And be it further
enacted ; That such and so many of the said refugees, as are already
settled, or shall hereafter settle themselves as inhabitants of the said
parish, shall themselves and their familyes, and every of them, be
free and exempted from the payment of public and county levies for
the space of seven years next, ensuing from the publication of this act.

A French

Church

Organized

Owing to such liberal treatment the colonists were
enabled to have a church of their own, and at the first
division of land a choice plot of the best glebe was set
apart for the use of the pastor. The church which was
immediately organized (as a matter of fact the colonists
had come as one united church) prospered with the
growth of the settlement. According to Bishop Meade,
the life of this old church lasted down to about the
middle of the last century, services being held in the
name of the original organization until 1857. Where
harmony and quiet prosperity are the rule, there is apt
to be a dearth of material in the shape of records and
documents. Such is the case with the church at Manakin
Town. The peace was broken, however, in the year
1707, when there was an altercation between the pastor
and the vestry. Abram Salle, vestryman, deposeth :

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIRGINIA

355

and Growth

When Mr. Philipe had finished the service of the ... the
first thing he did was to demand the Register of Christenings to be de
livered up to him . . . and in case he (Salle ) refuse to do it he
would excommunicate him ; he was pleased to say this with a rage
very unbecoming the place, which made me intreat him to have a lit
tle patience . . . upon this he flew out into a greater passion
than before and frankly told us that he acknowledged no Vestry there
was, neither would he have the people acknowledge any. Immedi
ately upon his uameing the People, sevarol of his party . .
stood up ... and took the liberty to utter many injurious
things against me . . . and Michael . . . prest thro' the
whole congregation to get up to where I was, and then catching me by
the coat he threatened me very hardly, and by his Example sevarol of
the crowd were heard to say, we must assassinate that fellow with the
black beard. The said Philipe was — lowder than anybody.

Eev. "W. H. Foote writes of the colonists in Virginia as Enterpr
follows : "The colonists that remained at Manakin town,
disappointed in their efforts to introduce the manufac
tures and productions of France, conformed their labours
to the soil and climate and conditions of a frontier set
tlement ; and went on increasing and multiplying, and
subduing the earth, according to the command of God in
Eden. The ten thousand acres were soon too few for this
enterprising people. They lengthened their cords and
strengthened their stakes, and soon began to emigrate to
portions of the unoccupied wilderness of Virginia.
Goochland, and Fluvanna, and Louisa, and Albermarle,
and Buckingham, and Powhatan, and Chesterfield, and
Prince Edward, and Cumberland, and Charlotte, and
Appomattox, and Campbell, and Pittsylvauia, and Hali
fax, and Mecklinburg, all gave these emigrants a home.
And then county after county to the west and south
beckoned them on; and they went on and grew and
multiplied according to the blessing of Jacob on Joseph's
children. Go over Virginia and ask for the descendants
of those Huguenot families, that cast their lot, on their
first landing, among the English neighbourhoods, and as

Assimilation

356 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEKICA

speedily as possible conformed to the political usages of
the colony, and adopted the English language, and by
intermarriage were soon commingled with English society ;
and then follow the colonists of Manakin town, as they
more slowly assimilated with the English ; and number
those that by direct descent, or by intermarriage have
Huguenot blood in their veins, and the list will swell to
an immense multitude. The influence which these de
scendants of the French refugees have had, and still exer
cise, in the formation and preservation of the character
of the state and the nation, has unostentatiously and
widely extended."

Happily settled, indeed, were the French refugees in
A Garden what they made one of the garden spots of the country.
They were not far from the home of Pocahontas, the In
dian princess, where, a little more than a century before,
Captain John Smith had found his brave rescuer, and put
a touch of enduring romance into the first days of the
white foreigner on American soil. The Indians were not
yet gone, and sometimes the French were made to feel a
spirit of vengeance that classed all whites as alike
enemies of the red men. To the English Cavaliers and
the French gentlemen Virginia owes its peculiar type
of cultivation, which made the plantations the scene of a
gallantry and courtliness and grace not yet extinct.
Where other nations often sent their poorest classes as
emigrants, France had driven away her best to enrich
the life of another and freer land.

One of the most distinguished of the Huguenot families
of Virginia was that of the Bufords, a corruption of the
original name of Beaufort, meaning ''beautiful fort," or
castle. The name was variously spelled, as Beauford,
Bufford, and Buford, the form finally common. Some
members of this family, which was royal and allied to
Henry IV, were Huguenots, and emigrated to England
after the Revocation. From England some came to
America, and in both countries the descendants are found

THE HUGUENOTS IN VIKGINIA 357

to-day. The Virginia ancestor was John Beauford, of
Christchurch Parish, Middlesex County. From him came
a distinguished line of soldiers, who served their country
well, some of them conspicuously. The Third Virginia
Eegiment in the Ee volution had Colonel Buford at its
head ; and two other military members of the family were
Major-General Napoleon B. Buford, and Major-General
John Buford. General James H. Wilson unhesitatingly
ascribes to General John Buford the distinction of mak
ing Gettysburg possible. General Buford fired the first
gun at Gettysburg, and in the address at the unveiling of
his statue General Wilson said : l i Strong, courageous,
and generous, as they (the Bufords) were through many
generations, the very flower and jewel of this family was
the gentleman in whose name we gathered to-day. He
selected Gettysburg for the field of battle."

General Buford was called by the soldiers " Old
Steadfast. ' ' He himself said of Gettysburg : "A heavy
task was before us. We were equal to it, and shall remem
ber with pride that at Gettysburg we did our country
much service." He was of the true type of French gen
tleman and loyal citizen.

CHAPTEE YII

Xavier 1740

Natural
Leader

JOHN SEVIEB AND HIS BEAYE WIFE

OHN SEVIEE, "The Commonwealth builder," is
among the notable descendants of the Huguenot
stock in Virginia. His father, Valentine Xavier,
came from London in 1740 and settled in Eockingham
County where Sevier was born in 1745. John received a
fair education until he was sixteen years old, and the fol
lowing year he married and founded the village of New
market, in the Shenandoah valley, thus early showing his
propensity. He was a young man of exceptional dash and
courage and soon became known throughout the region
as an invincible Indian fighter. In 1772 he was made a
captain in the Virginia line for the services he had ren
dered in the Indian wars, and that same year, he moved
out to Watauga, a new and rude settlement on the west
slope of the Alleghanies, now eastern Tennessee. Through
his courage, popular address, and ability as a commander,
he became the undisputed leader throughout the whole of
that fertile wilderness. Space does not permit the recital
of all the Indian campaigns he engaged in, or a list of the
victories he won. In this manner his years were occupied
until the breaking out of the Eevolution, when we find
him petitioning the North Carolina legislature on behalf
of the settlers at Watauga, asking to be annexed to that
province that " they might aid in the unhappy contest
and bear their full proportion of the expenses of the
war." The request was granted, and under the title of
Washington District the whole of that territory which is
now Tennessee was added to North Carolina as a county.
Sevier was active in the local government of this vast new

358

JOHN SEVIER AND HIS BEAYE WIFE 359

county and under the title of l i clerk of the county ' ' he
held in reality entire control of the administration of the
district.

In 1784 North Carolina ceded the territory to the Fed- The state of

Franklin

eral government in order to lighten the debts of the state.
When the settlers heard of this they determined to found
a government of their own and apply to the Union for
admission. Sevier was elected governor of this new
state, known as the State of Franklin, and for two years
— as long as the commonwealth lasted, — retained his diffi
cult position. Within sixty days after taking office,
Sevier organized a court, a militia, and founded Wash- court and
ington College, the first school of a liberal nature which
was established west of the Alleghanies. At last, how
ever, a proclamation from Governor Caswell, of North
Carolina, pronounced the new government a revolt and
ordered it to be abandoned. In the face of superior forces
the infant state was compelled to submit, and Sevier was
captured and thrown into prison. He was rescued shortly Sevier -
afterwards, however, by his incensed followers, took the Rebeited
oath of allegiance to the United States, and was made
brigadier -general of the territory. As a delegate to Con
gress he was the first representative to that body from the
valley of the Mississippi. When Tennessee was made a in congress

Governor

state Sevier was elected its first governor, serving for

three terms, and then after a short period, serving three

more. In 1811 he served in Congress, and in 1815 he

was again elected, but died before he could take his seat, unique Ruler

His biographer says of him : " A rule like his was never

before nor since known in this country."

Captain Sevier' s wife was a remarkable woman, a her
oine of the pioneer days, whose story is a romance. A colonial
Catherine Sherrill was the daughter of a North Carolinian
who pushed his way into Tennessee in the Revolutionary
days. Samuel Sherrill and his family were in that com-

360

THE FEENCH BLOOD

AMERICA

Gallant
Rescue

Marriage
in 1780

Sevier's
Regiment

Woman
Manager and
Quarter
master

pany of pioneers which halted in the Watauga Valley,
where the king of the Cherokees planned to exterminate
them. He brought his whole fighting strength against
the fort defended by Captain Sevier. In the confusion
of the battle, it is told that the French captain saw a tall,
graceful girl running towards the fort pursued by a pack
of savages. Exposing himself above the walls, heedless
of the peril, the gallant captain shot down more than one
Indian who had raised his tomahawk to brain the girl,
who succeeded in leaping the palisades and fell into his
arms. It was in that exciting manner that the brave
Frenchman first met the woman who was to be for forty
years his companion in adventure, hardship and success.
They were married in 1780, four years after that Indian
attack. From captain, " Nolichucky Jack, " the idol of
the pioneers, had risen to colonel by that time, and his
whole regiment rode with him to the house of Mr. Sherrill,
and held a ' i barbecue ' ' in honour of the great event of
their leader's wedding. Not long afterwards came the
stress of the struggle for liberty, with its demands upon
John Sevier and his wife. The few steadfast patriots of
North Carolina were hard oppressed by the soldiers of
Tarleton and Ferguson, and appealed to Sevier to help
them. He had but a small command and no means to
equip a large one ; but in this extremity the wife under
took to provide the equipment, while he immediately
took the field. The result was that when Colonel Sevier
rode away at the head of his famous regiment, the " ten
hundred and forty," it was perhaps the best equipped
regiment of the war. It was with that regiment Sevier
stormed King's Mountain, and signally aided in turning
the tide of the Revolution. And through all the time that
he was kept in the field, his wife provided the resources.
She had, besides, to manage the large estate and be financier
and quartermaster j and that in a region infested by
hostile savages and equally hostile Tories, many of whom
she met, rifle in hand, awing them by her determination.

JOHN SEVIEB AND HIS BEAVE WIFE 361

It is said that once she rode boldly into a carnp of out
laws who had stolen her horses, told the leader that the
penalty of his crime was hanging, and promising him
speedy execution at the hands of her husband if the
property was not returned. The horses were restored to
her. Yet this woman, who knew no fear and could be
as stern as her husband, was all gentleness and kindness
to those in distress, a model housewife when peace came
and she was mistress of her happy home.

When John Sevier was induced, by his loyalty to his
Watauga people, to become governor of "the Free and
Independent State of Franklin," the result of a secession
from North Carolina, his wife supported him, though
she did not believe in the futile project. She kept an
open "Governor's House," from which no one was turned Governor's
away, and the people were as proud of the "Governor's *
lady " as of him. Major Elholm, an officer of Pulaski's
Legion, writing to the governor of Georgia at this time,
said : "If Colonel Sevier is king here, his gracious lady
is certainly queen of the Franks. She is gifted with great Queen of the
beauty and the art of hospitality, but above all is to be
esteemed her discreet understanding." After stirring
scenes, including the kidnapping of Colonel and Governor
Sevier and his rescue by his wife's ingenious plan, Ten
nessee emerged from the governmental chaos, the charge
of treason made against the French leader was dismissed,
and in recognition of his many services to his country he
was appointed general. Near Knoxville, the first and
new capital of the state, he built another home ; and a
little later his wife rode with him to witness his inaugura
tion as the first governor of Tennessee. Six terms was First
this Huguenot descendant elected governor, and his wife Tennesse"e°f
was noted for her hospitality as much as for her beauty.
It is an interesting sidelight on the times that during the
first term as governor some eastern friend presented Mrs.
Sevier with a brace of silver candlesticks and an im
ported carpet — the first ever spread on the puncheon

362 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

floor west of the Alleghanies, and never used save on
state occasions. Then the candles were lighted and the
carpet was laid in the reception-room, and there Louis
Philippe and his brother, Andrew Jackson and many
other notables, had the honour to rest their feet upon it.

General Sevier died in 1815, while engaged as com
missioner in establishing the boundaries between Georgia
and the Creek Nation, and all Tennessee was in mourn
ing for the most distinguished leader in a trying period,
one of the truly great pioneers and commonwealth build
ers of America, where his persecuted forebears had
found refuge. And ever associated with him in memory
is his heroic and accomplished wife.

, «0«TH SQUARE, BOSTO»

CHAPTER VIII

THE THRILLING EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED
FAMILY

THE Memoirs of a Huguenot Family, by Ann
Maury, one of its descendants, throw an inter
esting sidelight upon the sufferings and triumphs
of a Huguenot family in entering upon their life in the
New World. When all the manuscripts in the possession
of Huguenot descendants in America shall have been
brought equally into the light, the history of the French
blood in this country can be written from a far more in
timate point of view than this present history can hope
to take. The extracts we make from this most interest
ing but not generally accessible volume begin with the
autobiographical introduction by the head of the Fon
taine family, who reveals at once his deep piety.

"1, James Fontaine, have commenced writing this his- introduction
tory, for the use of all my children, on the 26th day of
March, 1722 ; being sixty-four years old.

"My dear Children— Whenever I have related my own
adventures to you, or given you details of the incidents
that befell your ancestors, you have evinced so deep an
interest in them, that I feel I ought not to neglect mak
ing a record of the past for your use ; & I am determined
to employ my leisure time in this way. I would fain
hope that the pious examples of those from whom we are
descended may warm your hearts and influence your
lives. I hope you will resolve to dedicate yourselves
wholly and unreservedly to the service of that God whom
they worshipped at the risk of their lives, and that you,

363

364 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

and those who come after you will be stedfast in the pro
fession of that pure reformed religion for which they en
dured, with unshaken constancy, the most severe trials.
You cannot fail to notice, in the course of their lives, the
watchful hand of God's Providence, supporting and pre
serving them thro hardship and suffering.

"For my own part, I trust that, while recording the past
mercies of God for the benefit of my descendants, I
may derive personal advantage from the review. The
frailties and sins of the different periods of my life, thus
brought to mind, ought to cause me to humble myself be
fore the throne of grace, and tremblingly implore pardon
for the past, through the mediation of my blessed
Saviour ; and the assistance of the Holy Spirit to make
me watchful and circumspect for the time to come.
When I look back upon the numberless, uncommon, and
unmerited mercies bestowed upon me during the whole
course of my life, I hope that my gratitude will be in-

Gratitude and creased towards my Almighty Benefactor, and my con
fidence in Him so strengthened that I may be enabled
for the future to cast all my care upon Him. Great as is
my debt of gratitude for the things of this life, its mani
fold comforts and conveniences, how incalculably greater
is it for the mercy to my immortal soul, in God having
shed the blood of His only begotten Son to redeem it !
Oh, my God ! I entreat Thee to continue Thy fatherly
protection to me during the few days I have yet to live,
and, at last, to receive my soul into Thine everlasting
arms. Amen."

soul window This is like looking through an opened window into
the soul of the good man and seeing his beautiful charac
ter. The following synopsis of the story is given because
it discloses both the Huguenot character and the suffer
ings for faith's sake, at the same time proving the care of
God for His children.

De la Fontaine was the original name, as on record in

EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 365

Rochelle, where Juquos de la Fontaine, grandfather of Erasing sign
James the autobiographer, held some command in the
Tower. From motives of humility the father of James
cut off De la, the indication of the ancient nobility of the
family. This commonly happened among the French
refugees in the foreign parts. John de la Fontaine, great
grandfather of James, was born in 1500 in the province
of Maine, near the borders of Normandy. His father Protestant in
procured him a commission in the household of Francis
I, and he became conspicuous in the king's service. He
became a convert to Protestantism on the first preaching
of the Reformed religion in France, about 1535. He re
mained in royal service for a time because this was a safe
guard from persecution on account of his religion. Be
sides, he was thus able to show much kindness to his
Protestant brethren, whom he often shielded from op
pression. He had four sons. When Charles IX issued
the Edict of Pacification in 1561, the Protestants, believ
ing this to be in good faith, generally laid down their
arms, and at this time John de la Fontaine resigned his
commission, thinking himself protected by the Edict in
the exercise of his religion. He retired to his paternal
estates, hoping to end his days peacefully in the bosom
of his family, worshipping God according to the dictates
of his conscience.

But the change was for the worse, instead of better,
after the Edict ; now all was secrecy, and any wretehed
vagabond, imbued with the spirit of bigotry, could at
once exercise the functions of judge and executioner.
Armed miscreants broke into the houses of the Protes
tants at midnight, robbed and murdered their inmates Persecution
with a cruelty at which humanity shudders, and were en
couraged in their atrocities by priests, monks and bigots.
The Protestants were again driven to recourse to arms.
John de la Fontaine was hated because of his piety and
zeal for the pure worship of God. In 1563 his house was
attacked at night, he was surprised, dragged out of doors,

366 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Murdered
1563

James a Hero

A Ministerial
Family

A Model
Pastor

and his throat cut. His wife, rushing after him in hopes
to soften the hearts of their midnight assassins, was also
murdered. The lives of the three younger boys were
preserved — the oldest, about eighteen, perished. The
second son, James, grandfat\er of our autobiographer,
was about fourteen, Abraham about twelve, and the
youngest nine. They fled from the scene of horror, with
no other guide save Providence, and found their way to
Eochelle, then the stronghold of Protestantism in France.
These poor boys, deprived at one blow of parents and
property, plunged from affluence into poverty, were
taken in by the inhabitants, who gave them food and
shelter for little services they could render. A shoe
maker, a charitable, God-fearing man, received James into
his own house, treated him with affection, and taught him
his trade. Before long he was earning wages which en
abled him to support his younger brothers. When he
reached manhood he engaged in commerce and was com
paratively prosperous. He had three children who grew
to maturity, two daughters and one son. The latter,
father of James, was born in 1603. Henry IV called
the grandfather the handsomest man in his kingdom.

His son James, delicate, fond of books, early evinced an
inclination for the ministry, was afforded college advan
tages, and became a Protestant pastor over the churches
of Vaux and Eoyan. He married an English lady named
Thompson, in 1628, and they had five children, two of
whom became ministers. By a second wife he had five
children more, two of whom were sons and both became
ministers, so that this was emphatically a ministerial
family, and we do not wonder to find descendants contin
uing to follow in the clerical line.

James, our author, was the youngest child of all. He
says his father was a man of fine figure, pure red and
white complexion, of very dignified deportment, com
manding the respect of all. He was remarkably abste
mious, living chiefly upon milk, fruit and vegetables.

EXPEKIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 367

He was never seen among his flock at feasts or entertain
ments, but made it an invariable rule to visit each family
twice in the year. He hastened to the sick and afflicted
as soon as their sorrows were made known to him. When
it was known he was praying with any sick person crowds
would flock to hear him. He was zealous and affection
ate, of unusual attainments, having great learning, quick
and ready wit, clear and sonorous voice, and always used
the most chaste, elegant and appropriate language. He
was invited to take charge of a church at Eochelle, with
salary twice as large as that he was receiving, but refused
decidedly. He had not the heart to abandon a flock who
loved him so much.

Ill

James was born April 7, 1685. A nurse's carelessness 1685
lamed him for life. When only four he was so taken Early Life
with hearing his father read the Scriptures and pray with
the family, that he called together the servants and his
sisters and made them kneel while he prayed. He was
rather precocious, and early at six was placed in school.
When he came of age at twenty-five, after many trying
school experiences, he was possessed of the family estate,
and had an apparently prosperous outlook. First came Prosperity
the tribulations of his ministerial brother-in-law, who
was thrown into prison on a false charge of proselyting,
and was persecuted until finally he made his escape to
England. Then his brother Peter, who had succeeded
his father in the pastorate at Yaux, was seized and con
fined in a prison, without charge or trial, while the
church was levelled to the ground. James now was sur
rounded by neighbours who had no church privileges,
and he invited them to join him in his family devotions.
They came until the number reached 150. Then they A Benefactor
came two or three times a week, and he preached and
expounded the Scriptures to them. All possible was
done to escape observation which should draw persecu
tion upon the people ; but at length a rumour got abroad

368 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Arrest and
Imprisonment

Boldness and
Acquittal

1685 The
Dragoons

An Exile

that ineetiDgs were held in the parish and that he was the
preacher. He was advised by friends to stop the meet
ings, but believed he was in the path of duty and kept on
leading the services.

In 1684 at Easter the open attacks began. On deposi
tion of a lawyer M. de la Fontaine was arrested on a
charge of leading in unlawful assemblies. He advised
all the Protestants to remain steadfast, and willingly went
to jail to test the rights of citizens. In prison he offered
prayer aloud, and established a daily prayer circle, by
this means confirming in their faith the many Protestants
who were brought there for no other crime than meeting
together quietly to worship. The people had become so
determined through this bold stand of their leader and
his willingness to suffer imprisonment for the truth, that
they no longer fled from the provost and his archers who
were sent out to arrest them, but indeed seemed to be
eager to show their courage. When M. de la Fontaine
came to trial, charged with having taught in prison,
given offense to the Roman Catholics who were in prison,
and interrupted the priest in his celebration of divine
worship, suborned evidence was produced ; but acting in
his own defense, the able minister turned the tables on his
persecutors, and was triumphantly acquitted in the end
by Parliament, to which he appealed his case.

But the spirit of persecution became more and more
bitter, and in 1685 the dragoons appeared. Then James
de la Fontaine left the home of his childhood, never to
return to it. He had 500 francs, two good horses, on one
of which his valet was mounted, and was well armed.
From his amply furnished house he removed nothing,
and within two hours after he quitted it the dragoons
came and lived there till they had consumed or sold
everything they could lay hands on, even to the locks
and bolts of the doors. If one would abjure his religion
he would be let alone, if not, death or torture was his
fate. Riding rapidly forward, he visited the homes of

EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 369

his relatives, and found many of them had recanted, to

escape the dragoons ; but as soon as possible they left

France for countries where they could be free to worship

according to their faith. He did all he could to stem the

tide of abjuration, and failure to do so made him sick

and careless of life. For three months did this heroic

man travel about the country endeavouring to encourage

the Protestants. He rode by night, resting by day, to Heroic Effort

avoid detection ; and would be six and seven days at a

time without chance to undress. And his anxiety was

increased by fear lest evil befall " that worthy and pious

woman whom God gave to me afterwards for my beloved

partner and helpmate, and my greatest earthly comfort

— your dear mother. '?

The Eevocation of the Edict of Nantes (October, 1685),
left no hope save in flight, and M. de la Fontaine made Thrilling

Escape

preparations in good earnest, His escape was most
thrilling. He arranged with an English captain to take
him and four or five persons to England, but as the coast
was guarded to prevent emigration, which was made a
crime, it was only after several days of distressing experi
ences that the party was able to board the ship and leave
forever the shore of France. It should be realized here
that this jeopardy of life and this loss of a comfortable
fortune and pleasant home, together with an influential
position as country nobleman, was undergone without a
murmur all for the sake of religion, for the right to
worship God according to conscience, when a word of
recantation would have made exile and hardship unneces
sary. Of such stuff were these Huguenots made.

Bead his brave words: "A blessed and ever-memo
rable day for us, who then effected our escape from our cheerful
cruel enemies, who were not so much to be feared because
they had power to kill the body, but rather from the
pains they took to destroy the souls of their victims. I
bless God for the multitude of His mercies in earthly en
joyments also. He allowed me to bring to England the

370

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Romantic
Story

New Start in
Ireland

dear one whom I loved better than myself, and she will
ingly gave up relations, friends, and wealth to be the
sharer of my poverty in a strange land. I here testify that
we have fully experienced the truth of the promise of our
blessed Saviour, to give a hundredfold more, even in this
present life, to those who leave all and follow Him.
Certain it is that a man's life consisteth not in the abun
dance of the things that he possesseth, but in the enjoy
ment he has of them and it is in this sense that I would
be understood, when I say that we have received the hun
dredfold promised in the Gospel ; for we have had in
finitely more joy and satisfaction in having abandoned
our property for the glory of God, than they can have
had who took possession of it."

Few stories are more interesting in detail than that of
this French family, as they sought to make a living in
England, where ready hospitality was afforded. When,
however, through his superior commercial ability, he be
came a manufacturer of worsteds, jealousy was aroused
that led him to give up business and leave Taunton and
England. He also discovered that while, if he would
join the Church of England he could secure ready pre
ferment, as a Presbyterian he had no hope of favour.
He felt that the Episcopalians were not much different in
spirit in England from the Eoman Catholics in France,
though the persecution was not of the same outrageous
character. And as he held to the simplicity of the Ee-
formed worship in which he had been trained from boy
hood, he preferred exile again to further persecution of
any sort. He gave up once more his means of livelihood
and went to Ireland, where he expected to become pastor of
a church of French refugees. He had now six children,
five sons and one daughter. In 1694 he became pastor in
Cork, and started another manufactory, making broad
cloth. Here he was happy and prosperous, and the church

EXPEKIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 371

increased daily. But his cup of happiness was dashed
to the earth through the coming to the church of one
Isaac de la Croix, who had already caused dissensions in
two other churches, and now did the same thing at Cork.
As a result the pastor resigned, to the great grief of his
people. "Thus you see," says he, "how much injury
may be done by one quarrelsome, malicious individual in
a church. The poor minister is under the necessity of
sacrificing his own comfort for the peace of the church.
I was certain that if I did not resign a schism would be
created, and did my best to prevent it."

After this M. Fontaine was ready to leave Cork, and
made a venture in the fishery line, which led him to be- Philanthropic
come famous as a defender of an exposed point on the
Irish coast against French privateers. For his services,
which were of a most romantic character, recalling the
most exciting pirate stories, he received recognition and
a pension from the British government. He finally
settled in Dublin, establishing a school there, and main
taining relations with many notable people.

In 1714 his sons visited Virginia and became owners of
a plantation, and gradually the children settled on this sons go to
continent. The daughter married a Frenchman named
Maury, and the editor of this Memoir is a great-grand
daughter of that branch of the family ; while the
Fontaines are among the honoured names of the
South.

John Fontaine, son of James, who wrote the Memoir,
desired to be a soldier and saw service in Spain. Plan- John
ning for the good of his brothers and sisters he took ship j0u"naine
at Cork for Virginia, sailing December 3, 1714. These I?I4
notes are taken from his Journal :

Struck by a tempest, for days there seemed little hope, the vessel toss
ing at the mercy of wind and overwhelming waves. In these condi
tions this prayer, recorded in the journal, must be regarded as remark-

372

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Prayer at Sea

in Storm

Reaching
Virginia 1715

The First
Sunday

able, indicating the strength of character and faith that marked this
family :

We are almost wasted by the violent motion of the ship, being with
out masts ; but we still trust in Thee, O God, and wait patiently for
our deliverance by Thy almighty hand. Stretch forth Thine arm to us,
O Lord, and bear us up in this our distress, lest we sink and fall un
der the weight of our sins. Suffer us not to repine against Thee in our
trouble, but let us confess that we merit to be afflicted. Thou hast, O
Lord, given for us Thy only Sou, our Lord Jesus Christ : to His merits
we fly, and through Him we hope for salvation. Do Thou pardon us,
O Lord, and accept of these our imperfect prayers, and if Thou seest fit
to take us to Thyself, do Thou also cleanse us, that we may be worthy
of appearing before Thee. All these thoughts came now before us, be
cause we see death as if it were playing before our eyes, waiting for
the sentence of Almighty God to destroy us. Nothing makes this
sight so terrible as our sins, and it is our weakness and ignorance that
makes us think more of death now than when we are at our homes,
and in our accounted places of security. If we rightly considered, we
should think ourselves safer here than if we were in prosperity at
home, for it is the devil's greatest cunning to put in our hearts that we
are in a safe place, that we have long to live, and that a final repent
ance will be sufficient for our salvation. O God, give us grace that
while we live, we may live unto Thee, and have death always before
our eyes, which most certainly will not cheat us, but come at last and
take us out of this troublesome life, and if we are prepared for it,
then shall we have our recompense for past watchfulness ; therefore, let
us cast off this world, so far as it may be prejudicial to our everlasting
inheritance, and seek after Thy laws, expecting mercy through the
merits of our blessed Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.

For six weeks the ship was tossed about in almost con
tinuous storms, before she could again make the English
coast, the idea of crossing the Atlantic having been
abandoned on account of the loss of sails and masts. In
another month the vessel was repaired and sailed again,
and this time the voyage was made in three mouths.

At nine of the morning on May 26, 1715, they saw
land, and that night entered the mouth of the Potomac
Eiver. Here is the record of his first Sunday on shore
of the new world :

29th, Sunday. — About 8 of the clock we came ashore, and went to

EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 373

Plantation

church, which is about four miles from the place where we landed.
The day was very hot, and the roads very dusty. We got to church a
little late, but had part of the sermon. The people seemed to me pale
and yellow. After the minister had made an end, every one of the
men pulled out his pipe, and smoked a pipe of tobacco. I informed
myself more about my own business, and found that Williamsburg was
the only place for my design.

This design was to establish a plantation for the family.
He made a horseback journey to Williamsburg, became TO Establish a
acquainted with Governor Spotswood, and later formed a
solid friendship with that functionary, going in his com
pany on a number of long journeys of inspection through
the unsettled country. His journal of their experiences
is exceedingly interesting, and as historical material
valuable. He proves how carefully the Lord's day was
observed by the statement that on Sunday they saw a
number of deer and two bears, but did not shoot them
because it was the Sabbath. While out in the forest on
their travels, they never omitted at least having prayers Observance
read on Sunday. He decided to take up 3,000 acres of
land, and thus Virginia became the home of the Fontaine
and Maury families — Miss Fontaine, the only daughter,
having married M. Maury.

Sabbath

Before returning to England, John Fontaine sailed
from Hampton for New York, landing on Staten Island, journey
of which he says : "There are some good improvements Y°
here ; the inhabitants are mostly Dutch ; the houses are
all built with stone and lime ; there are some hedges as in
England." From Staten Island they went by the ferry
to Long Island, and then had an eight mile horseback
ride to reach Brooklyn and the ferry to New York. " As
soon as we landed we went and agreed for our lodgings
with a Dutch woman named Schuyler, and then I went to
see Mr. Andrew Freneau at his house, and he received
me very well, after which I went to the tavern, and about

ork

374 THE FEENCH BLOOD

AMEEICA

ten at night to my lodgings and to bed." Next day he
waited upon Governor Hunter, who invited him to dine ;
thence to see the mayor, who kindly received him.
Next day he rode about seven miles out of town to
Colonel Morris's, "Who lives in the country, and is
judge or chief justice of this province, a very sensible
and good man." Next day he saw the town. "There
are three churches, the English, the French, and the
Dutch Church ; there is also a place for the Assembly to
sit, which is not very fine, and where they judge all
matters. The town is compact, the houses for the most
part built after the Dutch manner, with the gable ends
towards the street.'7 "The French have all the privi
leges that can be, and are the most in number here, they
are of the Council and of the Parliament, and are in all
other employments." He was dined and wined with
true hospitality by the Irish Club, the French Club, and
various friends he made, including Mr. Hamilton, the
postmaster-general.

From New York he went to Philadelphia, going to
church in Amboy, New Jersey, on the way. Philadelphia
he found built very regularly upon rising ground on the
Delaware Eiver. "The inhabitants are most part Qua
kers, and they have several good meetings, and there are
also some English churches." He had a letter to Mr,
Samuel Perez, but says "He had no service for me."
Then they continued the overland journey to Virginia,
much of the way through wild territory, in which they
had some exciting experiences with robbers.

Then Peter his brother arrived from England, and the
work of establishing the plantation in King William
County proceeded. Peter was a preacher, and was soon
presented to Eoauoke parish. Another brother, James,
with his family, arrived in the autumn of the same year,
1717, and the next year his brother-in-law, Mr. Matthew
Maury, with his family, completed the party. All had
to go through chills and fever in the process of acclima-

EXPERIENCES OF AN EXILED FAMILY 375

tization, and Peter suffered greatly from this cause. He
returned to England in 1719 for a visit.

VII

After the Fontaines emigrated to Virginia, they were
in the habit of meeting annually, to hold a solemn re-
ligious thanksgiving, in commemoration of their remark- Reunion
able preservation when attacked by French privateers in
the south of Ireland. A sermon preached by Eev. Peter
Fontaine, on one of these occasions, is preserved, bearing
date of 1st June, 1723, text, Eom. 15 : 5, 6. His three
points are : Firstly, The duty here enjoined, that is, to
glorify God. Secondly, The manner of performing it,
that is, with one mind and one mouth. And Thirdly,
Put you in mind of your high obligations to comply with
this duty, not only because of the signal deliverance
which we are met to celebrate, but by reason of that
infinite number which God hath vouchsafed to favour us
with at other times, no less worthy of our remembrance
and thanks.

A distinguished son of this famous family was Matthew
Fontaine Maury, "The Pathfinder of the Seas." He
was born in Spottsylvania County in 1806. He became a
midshipman in the navy at nineteen, but his career as an
active officer was cut short by an accident which lamed
him for life. After that he devoted himself to study, and
his contributions to useful knowledge have been excelled
by those of no man of his time. He was the founder of
the modern science of hydrography. His great work,
i 'The Physical Geography of the Sea," published in
1856, made him at once world famous ; it was the pio
neer venture in a new field, and though new facts have
been and will be added to our store of knowledge of ocean
winds and currents, it will always be remembered that
Maury " blazed the trail." He was the first to plot out
the path of the Gulf Stream ; he originated the system of Deep sea
deep sea sounding ; he was the first to suggest the laying SoundlDg

376 THE FEENCH BLOOD

AMEEICA

Ocean Cables of oceanic cables ; he organized the system of crop obser
vation which has proved of such countless value ; and in
a hundred other ways that are not sensational did he
labour to benefit mankind. If sheer usefulness were the
universal test applied to greatness, Matthew Fontaine
Maury, next to George Washington, would be the great
est Virginian.

PAET FOUR
THE FRENCH IN VARIOUS RELATIONS

CHAPTEE I

AMERICA'S DEBT TO FEANCE DUEING THE
EEVOLUTION

WHILE in one sense not strictly germane to our
subject, it is certainly fitting to recognize here A Most
the immeasurable debt of gratitude which Val
America owes to France for the aid given to the young
Eepublic in its War for Independence. This aid it was
that undoubtedly enabled us to gain the victory that put
a new nation on the world's map ; a nation that was to
be the first to set the example of true democracy, and to
start that great idea of political equality which during
the nineteenth century brought the people of nearly every
nation in Europe to a consciousness of their power, and
largely to their rightful place in government. It is the
judgment of most historians that France turned the scale
in favour of the colonies in their unequal struggle. It
was when the American cause was seemingly hopeless,
when there was no national credit, that France gave
recognition and espousal to our cause. It matters not
what were the controlling motives which led the French
government to take the American side. The result was
in the interest of humanity and of right.

Not only did the French government give recognition Lafayette the
and financial aid at a time when these were invaluable, uSSiy f
but some of the best blood of France came over to render

377

378 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

personal assistance in the field. As for the motives that
impelled the foremost among them, the young and gallant
Marquis de Lafayette, to leave courtly luxury and ease
for camp life in a strange land, no one questions their
purity and unselfishness. He is taken at his own words
when he tells us his u heart was enlisted" when he
" heard of American independence." We shall not for
get what a comfort this young French nobleman was to
Washington, who needed just such inspiration and com
panionship as Lafayette could give. Washington, who
was not given to overpraise, said of him, ' l This noble
soldier combines all the military fire of youth with an
unusual maturity of judgment." The American com-
mander-in-chief relied upon this French officer as upon
few men, and the friendship between them was one of the
fine outgrowths of the war. On Lafayette's side there
was the deference and courtesy not only born of his ex
quisite breeding, but of an intense admiration for a char
acter whose greatness he appreciated from the first ; while
Washington also found much to admire in the brilliant
young soldier and true gentleman who was as devoted as
himself to the cause of human freedom. More than once
the American commander had reason to be out of humour
with some of the French officers, who assumed too much
by reason of their rank at home ; but Lafayette was his
comfort and dependence, always to be counted upon in
an emergency.

thaefaFreenchn After the war Lafayette continued to render all the aid
Revolution in his power to the Republic he had helped establish. A
man of influence in his own country, he co-operated with
the American diplomats, and was a steadfast friend until
France came to her Revolution, and his hopes for such
liberty there as the American Republic knew seemed for
ever blasted. A recent writer l gives an account of the
later years of Lafayette's life, and of the honours paid to

1 Augustus E. Ingram, deputy consul of the United States in Paris.

AMERICA'S DEBT TO FRANCE 379

his memory by Americans. " When we visit the grave
of Lafayette in the remote and obscure little burying
ground of the Dames Blanches, in the eastern fringe of
Paris," he says, " we are reminded of the sad, dark
years that came later in his life, and the unpretentious
tomb of his wife, close beside her husband's, tells of her
heroic share in his sufferings. ' '

Soon after Lafayette's return to France, the Revolution
broke forth, and he took an active part in it. But he
was too republican to suit the aristocrats and too moder
ate to suit the revolutionists. Denounced by the Jacobins,
he was obliged to flee from France, but was captured by
the Austrians, and confined in the damp, dark dungeons
of Olmutz. Meanwhile in Paris the Eeign of Terror was
running its course. Among its victims was Madame de Heroism of
Lafayette, who was thrown into prison, partly because
she was the daughter of the Duke d' Ay en, partly because
she refused to disown her husband. Still more terrible
was the fate of her mother and sister, who perished under
the guillotine. The scene of their execution is not far
from the spot where Lafayette lies buried.

After the downfall and death of Eobespierre, Madame
de Lafayette was released and soon succeeded in finding
her husband's Austrian prison. Refused permission to
see him unless she shared his captivity, she accepted
heroically these harsh terms. The damp, unwholesome
dungeon soon seriously affected her health, but as she
could only escape at the cost of separation from her hus
band, she declined to leave, preferring to sacrifice her
life. When the devoted pair had endured five years
of imprisonment, Napoleon secured their release, but
Madame de Lafayette was liberated only in time to die a
free woman. In 1815 Louis XVIII granted to the
families of the victims of the Revolution the right to be
buried near their martyred relatives. Thus the little

380 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Bartholdi's
Statue

Tribute of
American
School
Children

cemetery of the Dames Blanches came into existence, since
it was near the old quarry where thirteen hundred vic
tims were buried, and there Madame de Lafayette's body
was placed. Later her noble husband was laid by her
side, and their son, George Washington Lafayette, is
buried near by.

America does not forget Lafayette. His name lives in
our history closely associated with that of the great
American chief whom he venerated. As Decoration Day
rolls around each year, Americans in Paris make a pil
grimage to the little cemetery and place flowers upon the
tomb of the hero, and words of appreciation are spoken.
In our own country there are statues of him in the
public squares of many of our large cities. Nor are
there wanting tokens of American appreciation in the
French capital itself. In the quiet, picturesque little
Place des Mats- Unis (Place or Square of the United
States), under the shady chestnut trees, stands a beautiful
bronze group by Bartholdi, the same French sculptor who
designed the colossal statue of " Liberty Enlightening
the World," which graces New York harbour, represent
ing Washington and Lafayette, hand in hand, with the
flags of the two republics entwined, and an inscription
reading :

" Hommage a la France, en reconnaissance de son genereux
concours dans la lutte du peuple des Mats- Unis pour V Inde-
pendance et la Liberte."

(Homage to France, in recognition of her generous aid
in the struggle of the people of the United States for in
dependence and liberty.)

Ill

Some years ago some five million school children of
America contributed their pennies for the erection of an
other statue of Lafayette in Paris. The French govern
ment gave a site in the gardens of the Louvre, and during
the summer of the exposition of 1900 the unveiling of a

AMERICA'S DEBT TO FRANCE 381

staff model of the proposed statue was made the occasion
of great rejoicing and the manifestation of friendship
between the sister republics. Paul Waj^land Bartlett,
an American sculptor, was commissioned to design the
statue, and most effectively he has executed his work.

While Lafayette was by no means the only Frenchman
who served in the Rebellion, his is the conspicuous name,
as his was the most consecrated spirit, and it is not nec
essary to particularize concerning others. They were all
brave and competent men, who were astonished at the
quality of manhood they found in the little-trained and
half -equipped colonials, every one of whom had imbibed
the spirit of independence, and was able to fight on his
own initiative when necessary, instead of being military
puppets like the ordinary European soldier.

It is one of the strange providences of history that the
nation which thrust forth its Protestant citizens and thus
weakened itself immeasurably among the world powers,
should have been the means of materially assisting in the
establishment of the greatest Protestant nation and one
of the foremost world powers. Roman Catholicism could
drive out of France her best people, but it could not
plant successful and permanent colonies in America, nor
long keep advantages momentarily gained. Nor is the
day far distant, if the signs of the times count for any
thing, when France will read the lessons of her own his
tory, and secure her own future by becoming a land
where religious liberty shall be as dearly prized as in our
own. That will mean a Protestant nation as the only
progressive one.

While the noble Lafayette, who rendered such ines- Lafayette a
timable service to the cause of American liberty, was not
of Huguenot blood or creed, he was nevertheless in sym- ants
pathy with the cause of religious liberty, and became its
advocate at a critical period. When he had returned to
France, crowned with the laurels he had won in the
American struggle for independence, and imbued with

382 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

the spirit of the American people, he was stirred at the
condition of affairs in the homeland, and at once became
a zealous pleader for the oppressed Huguenots. He ar
gued with all his eloquence the right of the Protestants
at least to be permitted to marry and to die according to
their faith. His efforts were not successful at that time,
but, true to his high character, he cared nothing for the
obloquy which his stand brought upon him from the ec
clesiastics. It is probable that he would have gained the
amount of liberty he sought for the Protestants had not
the clergy exhorted the king in opposition. Not daunted
at this failure, Lafayette again in the Assembly of Nota
bles pleaded for the heretics, and was now more favourably
listened to. He was even seconded in his just and fair
propositions by the Bishop de Langres, and a petition was
civil Rightp presented to the king. As a result an edict was regis
tered which secured the Protestants in their civil rela
tions, after nearly two centuries of bloodshed. The bigots
of course denounced the bishop as anti- Christ, and spared
no abuse or defamation of Lafayette for using his domi
nant influence to secure this act of simple justice. After
the Eevolution, which was the inevitable outcome of con
ditions that had made such continued persecution of the
Huguenots possible in France, Napoleon granted religious
toleration, although Roman Catholicism remained as the
State Church. After another century, in which the
church has been as of old the enemy of political and re
ligious liberty, the French government has broken with
Eome, and the Eepublic will probably see to it that re
ligious liberty shall henceforth be actual, and every form
of religious persecution cease.

CHAPTER II
THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE

NEXT to the debt America owes France for her A Rich and
aid in the Revolution is the gratitude due her
Emperor Napoleon for the sale of the Louisiana
territory to the United States. While the first aid helped
us put a new nation on the map, it was the second that
enabled us to own territory that was indispensable to the
United States if she was to be the predominant power on
the American continent. Until that purchase our gov
ernment was hemmed in on all sides. England had Can
ada on the north, and was likely very soon to take from
France the Louisiana territory just as she had taken
from France her Canadian possessions. With England
in possession of this great section on our western boun
dary, with Spain still on the south and in the far west, it
would have been easy for England to gain the ascendancy
on the continent after all, and the United States would
have covered but a small portion of the North American
continent.

We must realize this in order to estimate what vast
service Napoleon rendered us when for his own selfish
purposes he consummated the Louisiana Purchase for a
sum amazingly small in comparison with the value of the
territory. He needed money, it is true, and twenty-two
millions were something. The amount indeed loomed
large to the American commissioners, who were not au
thorized to enter into any such financial engagement.
But it was not the money that chiefly influenced Napo
leon. He had good reason to believe that England would
soon drive out the French and seize the territory, and he
desired to have the United States rather than England

383

384 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

The Greatest
Land Sale in
History

The Field

enter into possession of it. It is an interesting fact that
he was doubtless influenced in his decision by Marbois,
one of the two commissioners whom he appointed to treat
with the American representatives. Marbois had an
American wife, and he radically favoured the sale ; while
Talleyrand as vigorously opposed it.

By this purchase, the most stupendous land transfer in
history, the United States was placed in position subse
quently to acquire the Spanish region, and thus to gain
its present territorial proportions. There are now four
teen populous and prosperous states of the Union com
prised within this section, which includes a large part of
the world's granary. Jefferson did buy a wilderness, but
it has been made to blossom as the rose. Prosperous and
populous cities and towns exist where in 1803 nature and
the savage held sway, and the " wilderness ' ? contains
nearly one-fifth of the 80,000,000 of our people. There
are three times as many people in the Louisiana Purchase
now as there were in the whole United States when the
sale was completed, and the centre of population as of po
litical and industrial power is fast moving towards the
Mississippi. The state of Missouri alone has more peo
ple than the thirteen colonies had when they won their
independence. St. Louis, a single city, has more inhab
itants to-day than New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and
all other cities of the country put together in 1800. Then
think of such centres of wealth, industry and culture as
Denver, Omaha, St. Paul and Minneapolis, Sioux City,
Kansas City, with the host of smaller but not less pro
gressive cities and towns.

Such has been the field opened up to commerce and in
dustry. Under the homestead laws a vast number of
immigrants swept into this region, in addition to the
thousands attracted from the eastern section. When we
realize that other nations have furnished us with 22,000,-
000 of their people since 1820, and 16,000,000 of these
since 1862, the year in which President Lincoln signed

THE LOUISIANA PUKCHASE 385

the significant homestead act, we shall see what a complex
population has to be dealt with in the Louisiana Pur
chase, as well as in the great cities of our land. But for
tunately, the assimilation of foreign elements is far easier
and quicker on the prairies than in the cities. While it
is true that in the Louisiana Purchase there is the great
est number of languages heard anywhere, and that a large
percentage of the population in the various states had its
nativity in other countries, it is also true that nowhere
else could be found such rapid Americanization of all
these diverse elements.

And here once more we note the overrulings of Provi- Protestantism

^ Dominant

dence. This Louisiana Purchase was opened up to civ
ilization by the Jesuit missionaries who made their way
down the Mississippi, bent on converting the Indians and
establishing a new France, Roman Catholic and free from
any Protestant taint, in America. Many of these pioneers
were brave and self-sacrificing men, who gave their lives
for the cause. But every attempt to keep out the Protes
tants failed : and it was with the opening of the region to
the same religious light and liberty enjoyed in the older
states that progress came and a new civilization. As
with Eoman Catholic France, so with Eoman Catholic
Spain. Neither nation found it possible to keep the
advantage gained by priority of possession ; both were
gradually conquered and compelled to withdraw before
the Anglo-Saxon, who represented in religion the very
antipodes of the spirit of the Latin and Eoman Catholic
peoples. In this he who will may see the hand of God,
working out human destiny along the lines of true relig
ious and political liberty. Since Protestantism is demo
cratic in its essential principles, it must prevail in a
democracy. Autocracy in America is no more possible
in religion than in government.

CHAPTEE III
THE FEENCH IN FEEEMASONEY

Patriots in T T was perhaps natural that the French Protestants
who came to America should be favourable to Free-

masonry, this being an institution that had been put
under the ban by the same Eoman Catholic Church which
had so bitterly oppressed them and driven them into
exile. Aside from this, there was everything in the spirit
of the ancient fraternity that would appeal to them.
Hence there are many names of distinguished Huguenot
families in the Masonic rolls of the period of the Eevolu-
tion, as in the rolls of later days.

Freemasonry in this country early took high rank from
the character of the leaders who wore the lambskin apron.
It was enough to establish its worth in the estimation of
multitudes that George Washington was a Freemason and
was proud of the fact. He was not alone in this regard
among the leaders during the Eevolutionary period.
Albert Gallatin, Paul Eevere, the Boston patriot, General
Joseph Warren, who fell at Bunker Hill, Francis Marion,
the intrepid South Carolina cavalryman, DeSaussure, and
many others of equal patriotism and loyalty, were mem
bers of the order. The French officers, who came to aid
in our struggle for Independence, under the lead of the
noble Lafayette, in most instances became Freemasons
while here. General Lafayette, with his son, George
Washington Lafayette, and his companion, Colonel La
Vasseur, all Freemasons, visited Fredericksburg, Vir
ginia, November 27, 1824. This visit was made the oc
casion of a grand reception. The general was escorted
into the town by hundreds of mounted militia, with mar-

386

THE FRENCH IN FREEMASONRY 387

tial music, amid the greatest display and wildest enthusi
asm on the part of the people. On the following day,
Lafayette was made an honourary member of the Freder-
icksburg Lodge, which was organized in 1752. This
lodge has the honour of being General George Washing
ton's " Parent Lodge," and the records state that on the
fourth day of November, A. L., 5752, the " light of
Freemasonry " first burst upon his sight. Visitors to the
library of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, A. F. &
A. M., in the Masonic Temple, Boston, look with deep
interest upon the Masonic relics treasured there. Among
them is a Masonic apron worn by the Marquis de Lafay
ette at the laying of the corner-stone of the Bunker Hill
Monument, June 17, 1825. Thus, among the other at
tachments which bound the gallant Frenchman so closely
to Washington were the ties of Masonic brotherhood.
Another apron to be seen in the Temple, is one that was
worn by General Oliver, of Boston, at a lodge meeting
when General Washington was present.

It is an interesting fact that the French Lodge, Lodge
UAmenite, in Philadelphia, was the first to hold a lodge
of sorrow in this country, and did so upon the death of
Washington in December, 1799. This French Lodge was
chartered by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, and in
cluded in its membership a large number of Huguenot
descendants, one of whom, Simon Chaudron, delivered
before the lodge a funeral oration on George Washington,
on January 1, 1800. He said in part :

A new spectacle bursts on the eye of philosophy. The whole uni- oration on
verse perhaps, for the first time, will unite in offering a tribute of Washington
gratitude to the memory of a mortal . . . the modest Hero,
whom impartial truth this day proclaims the defender of the human
race. . . . He took up arms only for the defense of the soil that
gave him birth, and only to prevent its devastation. It was without
doubt that, then fighting against Frenchmen, he learnt what powerful
aid might be derived from that brave and generous nation for the es
tablishment of liberty in the new world. ... To us Frenchmen,

388 THE FBENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

who have been so kindly received on these peaceful shores, it belongs
to pay distinguished respect to the wisdom of the Hero whom we de
plore ; we, whom cruel fate has torn from our homes, without suffer
ing us to carry away anything but tears and our innocence, to interest
the pity of mankind, should ever hold him in grateful remembrance.

Modern Freemasonry owes more than is commonly
known to the Huguenot blood. The records show that
the four " Immemorial Lodges," which established the
Grand Lodge of England, June 24, 1717, had for their
Grand Lodge leading spirits James Anderson, a Scotch Presbyterian
1717 minister of London, and John Theophilus Desaguliers,

LL. D. , of Christ Church, Oxford, a French Huguenot, and
the son of a clergyman. He was a Fellow of the Eoyal
Society, and engaged so earnestly in the "revival" and
promotion of Freemasonry that he deserves the title of
" The father of modern speculative Freemasonry." The
present Grand Lodge of England, which was instituted in
London in 1717, is largely indebted to him for its exist
ence. In 1719 Desaguliers was elevated to the throne of
the Grand Lodge. He did much to make Freemasonry a
living institution for the good of humanity, and his learn
ing and social position gave a prominence to the order
which brought to its support noblemen and other men of
influence. With others he instituted the l ' Plan of
Charity," which was subsequently developed into what is
now known in the Grand Lodge of England as the "Fund
of Benevolence." It was from the union of these four
lodges that the Fraternity spread into Scotland and Ire
land and then to the Continent — France, Germany and
Italy. In Germany, Frederick the Great became Grand
Master and constituted lodges. In Italy, the affiliation
with Freemasonry of the great leaders, Garibaldi, Cavour,
Mazzini and Victor Emmanuel, who were active in the
abolition of the temporal power of the papacy and the
establishment of the kingdom of Italy, was one of the

THE FEENCH IN FEEEMASONEY 389

facts which caused a renewal of the attacks of the Eoman
Catholic Church upon Freemasonry.

Ill

America was frontiered and bulwarked with the spirit The order in
of Freemasonry. A recent writer says : i l Out from its Am
living heart sprung those principles and sentiments of
true liberty and impartial laws which led to the formula
tion of the Declaration of Independence. Our Eevolu-
tionary fathers held Freemasonry as their Egeria. Its
fires purified their patriotic hearts. Franklin shed the
luster of his glowing name upon it. It actuated the
spirit of Paul Eevere on his midnight ride, and its im
passioned voice swelled from Bunker Hill to Mount
Vernon in links of fraternal patriotism. Very many of Freemasons
the generals of the American Eevolution were Brothers of
the Mystic Tie. Many of those distinguished men who
signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitu
tion of the United States were members of the Fraternity.
The important part Freemasonry played in the struggle
for liberty, and the debt of gratitude our glorious Ee-
public owes to the Fraternity, are to-day little known out
side the Craft, and but vaguely comprehended by the
rank and file within it. Its principles were woven into
the warp and woof of our Constitution. The name of
Washington stands out in bold relief on the Masonic
roster of the United States. He was a type of the order
which numbers among its members the best and noblest
in the world."

One of the fundamental principles of Freemasonry is Freemasonry
that of religious liberty. Out of this principle grows the
absolute separation of Church and State which is a fun
damental principle of our government. It is this prin
ciple which has called down upon Freemasonry the papal
decrees, which forbid any Eoman Catholic to join this
Fraternity on penalty of excommunication. The spirit of
Freemasonry is exactly that of the French Protestants and

390 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

In Defense of

Liberty

Liberty of
Conscience a
Crime

the English Puritans and Pilgrims — the spirit that
founded our free Eepublic, in which freedom of conscience
is recognized. Here there is not merely toleration for the
varying religious views, but in matters of opinion all are
free and equal. Hence there has been a close union be
tween Protestantism and Freemasonry— both standing for
civil and religious liberty and the rights of man.

One of the strong defenses of Freemasonry was called
forth by the Encyclical Letter of Pope Leo XIII against
u Freemasonry and the Spirit of the Age," dated April
20, 1884. The unwarranted charges made in this official
letter against Freemasonry were answered by " A Eeply
of Freemasonry in behalf of Humanity," from the Su
preme Council, thirty-third degree, of the Ancient
Accepted Scottish Eite of Freemasonry, for the Southern
Jurisdiction of the United States of America, through
Albert Pike, Grand Commander. We quote from his
Allocution these forcible words :

If the Encyclical Letter of Leo XIII, entitled, from its opening
words, Humanus Genus, had been nothing more than a denunciation of
Freemasonry, I should not have thought it worth replying to. But
under the guise of a condemnation of Freemasonry, and a recital of
the enormities and immoralities of the order, in some respects so ab
surdly false as to be ludicrous, notwithstanding its malignity, it
proved to be a declaration of war, and the signal for a crusade, against
the rights of men individually and of communities of men as organ
isms ; against the separation of Church and State, and the confinement
of the church within the limits of its legitimate functions ; against
education free from sectarian influences ; against the great doctrine
upon which, as upon a rock not to be shaken, the foundations of our
Republic rest, that "men are superior to institutions and not institu
tions to men " ; against the right of the people to depose oppressive,
cruel and worthless rulers ; against the exercise of the rights of free
thought and free speech, and against, not only republican, but all con
stitutional government.

In the eye of the Papacy it is a crime to belong to an Order thus
constituted requiring only belief in God and immortality, and allow
ing full liberty of conscience in religious belief ; and this the letter of
Pope Leo preaches to Roman Catholics living in a Republic, the very

THE FEENCH IN FEEEMASONEY 391

corner-stone of which is religious toleration, and which was peopled in
large measure, at first, by Puritans, Quakers, Church of England men,
and Huguenots.

The gist of the Pope's charge, and the reason for chief dread of its
spread among Roman Catholics, may be found in the statement of the
Encyclical, that Freemasonry exerts itself for this purpose, that the
rule of the Church should be of no weight, that its authority should be
as nothing in the State ; and for this reason they everywhere assert
and insist that sacred and civil ought to be wholly distinct. By this
they exclude the most wholesome virtue of the Roman Catholic relig
ion from the laws and administration of a country ; and the conse
quence is that they think whole States ought to be constituted outside
of the institutes and precepts of the church.

In other words, the Roman Church protests against that fundamen
tal principle of constitutional government, dear above almost all else
to the people of the United States, that Church and State should act
each within its proper sphere, and that with the civil government and
political administration of affairs the Church should have nothing to
do. The people of the United States do not propose to argue that with
the Church of Rome.

The first permanent foothold of Freemasonry in North First Lodge in
America was made in the town of Boston, Mass. , in the l
year 1733. It was then that under a dispensation issued
by the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England to
Henry Price, Esq., of Boston, the First Lodge of Boston
and the Saint John's Grand Lodge were instituted.

The records of the First Lodge — now called St. John's
Lodge — and of the other early lodges in Boston, disclose
a large number of Huguenot names. The following
names of brethren, evidently of Huguenot blood, are
drawn from the lists of members of St. John's lodge, with
the year of taking membership affixed.

Philip Audibert, 1741. Nicholas Faucon, 1805.

Belthazar Bayard, 1748. Thomas J. Gruchy, 1742.

Francis Beteilhe, 1734. Francis Johonot, 1742.

Nathaniel Bethune, 1736. William Joy, 1742.

John Boutin, 1743. Gabriel Johonot, 1780.

Samuel Cazeneau, 1800. John Joy, 1762.

392 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Lewis DeBlois, 1753.

Stephen DeBlois, 1737.

Alexander Delavoux, 1739.

Lewis Dolobartz, 1744.

Philip Duraaresque, 1764.

Thomas Durfey, 1740.

Peter Fabre, 1780.

Nicholas Farritoe, 1748.

Louis A. Lauriat,
James Montier,
John Nappier,
John Odin,
Andrew Oliver,
Francis J. Oliver,
Peter Oliver,
Thomas Vavasour,

1819.
1739.
1739.
1750.
1740.
1800.
1749.
1748.

Luke Vardy, 1734.

Lodge of
St. Andrew
Boston 1756

Francis J. Oliver, 1800, was a Harvard graduate, an
eminent merchant and banker, a member of the Legisla
ture, and president of the American Insurance Company
and of the City Bank. He was M. W. Grand Master of
Masons in Massachusetts during three years, 1817-1819.

The Lodge of St. Andrew, in Boston, was chartered by
the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1756. The lists of mem
bers of this Lodge present the names of many members
of Huguenot blood, among whom are the following :

Isaiah Audibert, 1777.

John Boit, 1780.

Gibbons Bouv6, 1773.

Edward Cailleteau, 1763.

Isaac DeCosta, 1756.

John DeCosta, 1768.

William Darracott, 1766.

Moses Deshon, 1761.

George DeFrance, 1782.

Philip Lewis, 1757.

Philip Marett, 1762.

Benjamin Mayhew, 1769.

Robert Molineux, 1793.

Peter Nogues, Jr., 1766.
Israel Obear, 1761.

James Oliver, 1782.

Thomas Oliver. 1776.

William Palfrey, 1761.
St. DeMertino Pry, 1779.
Col. Henry Purkitt

(Purruquet), 1799.

Paul Revere, 1761.

Rev. James Sabine, 1823.
Andrew Sigourney, 1766.
Andrew Sigourney, 1794.
Elisha Sigourney, 1",89.

Andrew
Sigourney

In this Lodge's records appears the name of Fosdick,
1768, which links the author's family with the Huguenot
exiles, and in some measure explains his personal interest
in the subject of which this volume treats.

It is a noteworthy fact that Andrew Sigourney, 1794,
was the founder of the first benevolent fund of its kind

THE FRENCH IN FREEMASONRY 393

established by Freemasons. When he was Grand Treas
urer of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, 1810-19, he
gave his last year's salary, amounting to one hundred
and seventy dollars, to found a Charity Fund for the
Fraternity, to be used for the benefit of its members, or
of widows and orphans, in case of need.

The name of Paul Revere is as familiar to the Paul Revere
present generation as household words. His Masonic
career began in the Lodge of St. Andrew in 1761. In
1782 he was a charter member of a new Lodge which
took the name of " Rising States." He was Grand Mas
ter of Masons in Massachusetts for three years, 1795-1797,
during which time he signed the charters of twenty-
three new Lodges, all of which are now in existence ex
cept two.

Of Paul Revere as a Freemason, this is said by Charles
Ferris Gettemy, in The True Story of Paul Revere, just
issued : " In none of the civic activities of the time was
he more prominent than in the affairs of the Masonic fra
ternity. One of the most eminent and widely known
Masons of the Revolutionary era, he, in the lan
guage of a Masonic eulogist (G. Ellis Reed, W. M. of
Revere Lodge), t served his country and his beloved Fra
ternity with a spirit that should inspire every Brother ;
a spirit composed of the three great essentials, freedom,
fervency, and zeal.' i In the Green Dragon Tavern/ says
E. Bentley Young in his oration at the Centennial cele
bration of Columbian Lodge in 1895, i where he first saw
Masonic light, he met his patriotic Brethren in secrecy to
devise means for impeding the operations of the British,
then in possession of the city. Masonry and patriotism
were identified in his person and in those of his compa
triots who met him in retirement.'

" Entering Masonry through St. Andrew's Lodge, Sep
tember 4, 1760, he maintained a zealous interest in the

394 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEBICA

affairs of the fraternity for the remainder of his life, fill
ing the high office of Grand Master of the Massachusetts
Grand Lodge in 1795, 1796, and 1797. One of the most
picturesque ceremonials of his career, and indeed of the
early years of the constitutional history of Massachusetts,
occurred during the first term of his grand mastership :
the laying of the corner-stone of the new State House —
the l Bullfinch front ' as it was called in later years — on
Beacon Hill. The authorities having requested the
Masonic Order to participate in the dedication exercises,
the various lodges assembled in the Bepresentatives' Hall
of the Old State House on State Street, and, with the
state officials, marched to the Old South Meeting House,
where an oration appropriate to the occasion was deliv
ered by George Blake. These exercises over, the proces
sion re-formed and marched to Beacon Hill. Arriving
at the site of the new capitol, the stone, being duly
squared, levelled, and plumbed, Governor Samuel Adams
made a brief address, to which Grand Master Bevere for
the Masons responded :

" ' Worshipfull Brethren. I congratulate you on this auspicious day;
— when the Arts and Sciences are establishing themselves in our happy
country, a Country distinguished from the rest of the World, by being
a Government of Laws, where Liberty has found a safe and secure
abode, and where her sons are determined to support and protect her.
Brethren, we are called this day by our honourable & patriotic Gov
ernor, his Excellency Samuel Adams, to assist in laying the corner
stone of a building to be erected for the use of the Legislative and
Executive branches of Government of this Commonwealth. May we,
my Brethren, so square our actions thro life as to show to the World
of Mankind, that we mean to live within the compass of Good Citi
zens, that we wish to stand upon a level with them, that when we
part we may be admitted into the Temple where Reigns Silence and
Peace.' "

" It is utterly impossible," commented the unenterpris
ing Columbian Centinel, u to do justice to the scene which
presented itself on this brilliant occasion."

When Washington retired to private life the Grand

THE FRENCH IN FREEMASONRY 395

Lodge of Massachusetts sent him a fraternal greeting
signed by Grand Master Revere, and upon his death the
Massachusetts Masons arranged a mock funeral parade,
Eevere being one of the pall -bearers. A memorial urn
carried in the procession was cared for many years by
Revere at his home. Revere, with John Warren and
Josiah Bartlett, sent a letter on behalf of the Grand
Lodge dated January 11, 1800, to the widow of Washing
ton, requesting a lock of the dead statesman's hair, to be
kept as an " invaluable relique of the Hero and Patriot.'7
The request was granted, and the memento has remained
to this day one of the cherished possessions of the Grand
Lodge, preserved in a golden urn made by Paul Revere.

Friendship Lodge, instituted in Boston in 1793, con- Friendship
tained a considerable French element. One of the Mas- 1793 ge
ters of the Lodge was Le Barbier Du Plessis, whose name
revives memories of that great Huguenot Prime Minister
who would have saved France from shame and loss had
the King but followed his advice instead of that given by
the ecclesiastics. Other members of Friendship Lodge
were Le Charles Descard, Preslin Janeau, George de
France, M. D., Sy. Prea, John Beteau, and Messrs.
Truene, D' Amour and Jeaureau.

John Jutau became the Master of Perfect Union perfect union
Lodge, instituted in 1781, which was distinctively a Jj??*6 B°8ton
French Lodge. In 1785, Mr. Jutau was Senior Grand
Warden of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, in which
were enrolled also the names of William Truan, Andrew
Demarest, Dr. St. Medard, Peter La Mercier, and others.

There was still another Lodge, the Harmonic, instituted
December 8, 1792, but it was not exclusively French.
The first Master was George Gideon.

Lewis Frederick Delesdernier was a member of Warren
Lodge in Machias, Maine. The Lodge was instituted
September 10, 1778. His parents were Huguenots. He
was visited by Albert Gallatin in 1780.

The Huguenots who settled in Boston, as earlier chapters

396 THE FKENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

have made clear, became citizens of influence and much
respectability. Some of them were leaders in the mercan
tile, social and religious circles. Here they entered into
an atmosphere of liberty and opportunity which they
wisely used. They established themselves so firmly and
well in this community that their descendants — men of
integrity and influence — remain to this day. In the town
of Boston, and later in the city, as well as in the Masonic
Lodges, to which so many of them belonged, they were
active and useful, being ever outspoken and zealous on
the side of toleration, liberty and equality.

L'AMENITE LODGE, No. 73, PHILADELPHIA

February 22, 1800, was a day set apart by Congress as
a " Washington Day" throughout the United States. It
was observed in Philadelphia by the Freemasons. Nine
lodges participated in the exercises at Philadelphia.
L' Amenite" Lodge, No. 73, held a special open lodge of its
own and Brother Simon Chaudron was the orator. The
lodge was appropriately draped, and a catafalque in the
centre of the lodge room was surrounded by 300 lights.

L'Amenite' Lodge was organized by French refugees,
and chartered May 20, 1797. Its first officers were :
W. M. — Tanguy de la Beissiere ; S. W.— Gabriel De-
combaz ; J. W. — Armand Caignet. Among the members
were Abbe La Grange, Belin Gardette, and Simon
Chaudron, the orator of February 22, 1800- Chaudron
delivered his address in the presence of the Grand Lodge
of Pennsylvania, and it was the first Masonic eulogy, in
the French language, that was ever spoken upon Washing
ton. The address was printed in the French and English
languages. In view of the strained relations at the time
between France and the United States, Chaudron' s ad
dress had much political significance. L' Amenite went
out of existence in 1823.

CHAPTEE IV
THE OEDEE OF THE CINCINNATI

IT was at a critical juncture in affairs that the Order
of the Cincinnati was formed for a specific and patri-
otic purpose. Washington himself was a leader in
the movement. When the Eevolutionary War was finally
over and the army was about to be disbanded, Washing
ton had his headquarters at Newburgh. in the building organization

3 and Object

which is now preserved and occupied as a museum.
General Knox, one of his favourite officers, was in com
mand of West Point, a few miles below on the Hudson.
At Newburgh Washington made his farewell address to
the army. When it came to disbanding, however, there
was trouble, because Congress had left the officers and
men without pay, and the spirit of mutiny was rife. In
flammatory speeches were made at Newburgh, and the
mutineers threatened to band themselves together and go
about the country overawing the people, as a means of
gaining their dues. This situation, which was serious,
led Washington, Kuox and others to conceive the Order
of the Cincinnati as a means of checking this mutinous
movement. A meeting was held at the headquarters of
General Steubeu, at the VerPlanck homestead, Mount
Gulian — a homestead founded, by the way, by the Hugue
not Eoniboud, of whom we shall speak elsewhere. At May 13, 1783
this meeting the new society was born, May 13, 1783.

From an interesting history of the Order, written by
William E. Yer Planck, a descendant of an ancient family,
we derive the facts which follow. Preliminary meetings
were held near New Windsor, a suburb of Newburgh, by
the American officers who were in sympathy with the
principles of the Order. Kuox was perhaps chiefly iu-

397

398 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

The Name

Benevolent

Aim

strumeutal in the organization. The original articles are
still preserved. The object of the society was " to com
memorate the success of the war against Great Britain
and the reciprocal advantages which would ensue to the
colonies, thereby establishing themselves as sovereign and
independent states, to perpetuate sentiments of patriot
ism, benevolence and brotherly love and the memory of
the hardships of the war experienced in common." The
articles also declare that u the officers of the American
Army do hereby in the most solemn manner associate
themselves into one Society of Friends to endure as long
as they shall endure, or any of their oldest male posterity,
and in failure thereof the collateral branches who may be
judged worthy of becoming its supporters and members."

u The officers of the American army having been taken
from the citizens of America possess high veneration for
the character of that illustrious Eoman, Lucius Quintus
Cinciunatus, and being resolved to follow his example by
returning to their citizenship, they think they may with
propriety denominate themselves the Society of the Cin
cinnati."

Then follows a statement of their principles which are
of an exalted and patriotic character. Provision was
made for the establishment of state societies, and also of
district or local societies. In order that relief might be
immediately extended, it was provided that " each officer
shall deliver to the treasurer of the State Society one
month's pay, which shall remain forever to the use of the
State Society, the interest only of which, if necessary, to
be appropriated to the relief of the unfortunate." It was
also provided that ' i all officers of the American army—
as well as those who have resigned with honour after
three years' service in the capacity of officers, have the
right" to membership. Provision was made also for an
Order " by which its members shall be known and dis
tinguished, which shall be a medal of gold of a proper
size to receive the emblems and suspended by a deep

THE OEDEE OF THE CINCINNATI 399

blue ribbon two inches wide edged with white descriptive
of the Union of America and France ; the principal figure :
Cincinnatus — three senators presenting him with a sword. ' '
The French connection came from the fact that honour- French

Honourary

ary membership in the new Order was conferred on Lafay
ette and the other French officers both of the army and
navy who had so nobly aided in the struggle for Inde
pendence. This number included " His Excellency, The
Chevalier de la Luzerne, Minister Plenipotentiary," the
Counts D'Estaing, De Grasse, De Barras, and " His Ex
cellency, the Count De Eochambeau."

The first to sign the articles was Washington, the sec
ond General Heath, the third General Lincoln, and the
fourth General Greene, with Generals Knox, Putnam,
and thirty other officers following. Thus began an Order
that has survived, and been not only a benevolent or
ganization, but one deeply interested in public affairs.
Washington was the first president-general of the Society,
and held the office until his death, when he was succeeded
by Hamilton. Thus the second president was of Hugue
not blood. Naturally the Society was a warm supporter
of Washington in his terms as president, and in conse
quence became identified politically with the Federal
party. It was six years after the organization of the
Cincinnati that the Society of Tammany, or the Colum
bian Order, was formed in New York, this being at first
a benevolent society, but soon becoming political, and
antagonizing the Order of the Cincinnati.

In May, 1883, the Society of the Cincinnati celebrated centennial

J ' J Celebration

its centennial at the old Gulian mansion where it was 1883
born a hundred years before. The mansion had been
enlarged, but the original part remains, and the room in
which the Order was organized has been carefully pre
served and is known as the Cincinnati room. Newburgh
and West Point were also visited by the celebrating party.
Five or six of the original state societies survive, though
the work of the Order was long since accomplished.

CHAPTEE V

FEENCH LEADEES IN EEFOEM AND IN
INVENTION

Governor
LaFoHette

Wisconsin
Boy of
Kentucky
Huguenot
Stock

HOW the Huguenot blood has diffused itself
through the country is illustrated in the case of
Eobert. Marion LaFollette of Wisconsin, one of
the political reformers, who conceived it to be his mis
sion to break up a great political machine, and as a result
met and defeated an imposing array of hostile forces in
his party. It is not our purpose here to enter into his
campaigns or decide as to merit in disputed cases. But
it is in point that we find in this champion of the people
against monopoly a descendant of the same refugee stock
that in almost every instance was on the side of liberty
and right.

Governor LaFollette was born on a farm in Dane
County, Wisconsin, June 14, 1855. His father was a
Kentucky bred French Huguenot ; his mother Scotch-
Irish. Again and again we have met that strong combi
nation, the same that shone out in Alexander Hamilton.
The family moved to the West, where the son was to find
his opportunity and make his mark in public life. The
death of the father occurred when Eobert was less than a
year old, but the resolute mother kept her little family of
four children together, and at fourteen "Little Bob," as
his followers call him, became the working head. He
remained on the farm till he was nineteen, then sold it
and moved to Madison, where the State University at
tracted him. The French blood in him " stirred to
sentiment and the boy thrilled for glory.'7 He had a
decided gift of oratory, and won the college contests and

400

FRENCH LEADERS IN REFORM 401

debates with ease. After graduation he went to work in
a law office, and in five months was admitted to the bar,
which indicates his remarkable mental facility and grasp.
In 1880 he began to practice, but very soon was running in Public Life
for office. Public life seemed to possess for him irresist
ible attraction. He won the office — that of district at
torney — and a wife, a college classmate, one result of
co-education and a not uncommon one. He made an
excellent record in his first office, but already the ma
chine politicians did not like him, because his methods
differed from theirs, and he had broken into politics
without asking the consent of the party powers. He de
veloped a remarkable talent for getting at and getting a
hold on the people, so that they would vote for him
whether he had the machine endorsement or not. By
and by LaFollette clashed decidedly with the State party
"boss," and then he determined to stand or fall for him
self, and to stand. That was the Scotch pertinacity, and
with the French frankness and geniality it gained the
day for him. The story of his successes has much of ro
mance and strenuousness in it, but always LaFollette
won, and in office was what he promised the people he
would be, their friend, honest and true. He went to
Congress, because he made up his Scotch mind and set
his French wit to work to do it ; and then he determined
to be governor of Wisconsin, and governor he became,
although the machine said he never could be elected.
From that high place he passed to the United States
Senate. Whatever his future may be, this western de
scendant of the Huguenots has made his name known
far and wide, and honourably known as a public man
engaged in doing his duty in every office to which the
people, who believe in him, called him. Certainly the
quality of reform runs in the Huguenot blood to the latest
generation.

While less noted publicly than the statesmen and sol-

402 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

A Huguenot
Inventor
Thomas
Blanchard

Inventor of
the Eccentric

diers of French blood who rendered such signal service
to America, none of them all deserve to rank higher in
the scale of usefulness and benefaction than Thomas
Blanchard. His ancestors were among the exiles, known
as Gabriel Bernon's colony, who undertook to found Ox
ford, in what is now Worcester County. This county is
distinguished, as the late Senator Hoar wrote, as the
very home and centre of invention. " I do not think any
other place in the world, of the same size, can boast of so
many great inventions as the region covered by a circle
within a radius of twelve miles, of which the centre is the
city of Worcester. ' ' To name but three of many, in that
circle were born Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin
that doubled the value of every acre of cotton producing
land at once, and revolutionized one of the leading indus
tries of the world ; Elias Howe, inventor of the sewing
machine, one of the greatest boons ever known to woman,
which made a new household economy possible ; and
Thomas Blanchard, subject of this sketch, inventor of
the machine for the turning of irregular forms. Sena
tor Hoar regarded this as the most important and difficult
of all the inventions named, notwithstanding the vast
value of the other two.

The story of Thomas Blanchard, Huguenot descendant,
has recently been told by Hon. Alfred S. Eoe, author of
many historical monographs. We make free use of it in
this connection, glad that a man of such inventive ability
as Thomas Blanchard can find the wider recognition he
deserves. He should have place among the first in
ventors because he is credited with the discovery of a new
principle in motion, that of the eccentric. There is
scarcely a machine shop in the world to-day that does
not in some shape have instances of this French-Ameri
can's genius.

After the disastrous [ending of the colonizing attempt
at Oxford, a branch of the Blanchard family settled
finally in Sutton, where on a farm Thomas was born,

FEENCH LEADERS IN EEFOEM 403

June 24, 1788. But he had no liking for farming. He
was a born mechanic, and the despair of his industrious,
plodding father. Owing to an unfortunate impediment
of speech, which in later years he overcame, the lad was
thrown much upon his own resources as a child. His
ingenuity was early shown, as when he secured charcoal
from the home fireplace for his experiments, and at thir- Apple-Paring
teen made an apple-paring machine which revolutionized
the drying of that much-valued fruit. At eighteen, a
brother having established a tack factory in Millbury,
Thomas was transferred from the farm to help in the ex
tremely monotonous occupation of heading each object
by the blow of a hammer. It did not take his ingenious
mind long to elaborate a machine which made tacks
more rapidly than the ticking of a watch, and also made
them better than those made by hand — a machine in
which no essential improvements were made in more
than twenty years. Experts declared it almost perfect Tmck Machine
from the start. This was pretty good for a stuttering
schoolboy, so long the butt of his Sutton associates.
This tack machine was sold for $5,000, only a fraction of
its real value ; and from the proceeds Thomas established
a shop in which he was able to continue his inventive
work unhindered.

Up to this time, during scores of years there had been
no advance in the polishing of gun barrels. The rounded
part could be readily reached, but the flattened portions,
those at the breech where the stock was added, had to be
worked by hand, and it cost a dollar apiece properly to
finish them. There was an armory in Millbury, and the
proprietor learning of the genius in the confines of that
very town, sent for him and let him know the needs of
the occasion. Glancing along the lathe and beginning a
monotonous whistle, as was his wont when in a study, he Gun-Barrel
soon evolved a simple improvement in the shape of a
cam motion, and the making of gun-barrels was simpli
fied forever.

404 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

" Well done," says Mr. Waters. " I shouldn't wonder
if you yet invented a machine for turning gun-stocks."

" W-w-ell, I'll t-try," was the laconic reply.

A train of thought had been set in motion which in
time brought out the machine for turning irregular
forms. His success in the Millbury armory soon secured
a call for him to the government establishment in Spring-
field7 where he set the lathes in order, all the time appar
ently dwelling on the words of Colonel Waters. When
his work in Springfield was done and he was driving
back to his Worcester County home, he much sur
prised certain people by exclaiming, as he drove along,
"I've got it ! I've got it ! I've got it ! " They at once
pronounced him crazy, as no doubt those Syracusans did
who saw the naked philosopher coursing through their
streets, shouting "Eureka!"

For two years the world saw little of the young me
chanic, for he shut himself in his shop and there pur
sued his experiments until he was able to tell Colonel
Waters that what the latter in pleasantry had hinted at,
had become an actuality. To be sure, it was only a
miniature machine, but it was so evidently practical that
other workmen were called in and a complete lathe was
erected, thus giving to his native county and to the town
of Millbury the credit of the first machine for the turning
of irregular forms. Meanwhile, Washington had heard
of his success, and he was requested to set his lathe up in
the Springfield Arsenal, a request with which he com
plied, and it remained there long enough to have another
similar one made, when the original was returned to Mill-
bury, where it continued in constant use for more than
twenty years.

England heard of the invention, and sent over repre-
invention sentatives to examine and report. They were astonished
at what they saw, and reported accordingly, but John
Bull could not be convinced so easily, and a second mes
senger was sent with tough pieces of oak, thinking them

FEENCH LEADEES IN EEFOEM 405

too hard for any mere machine. Much to the astonish
ment of the Englishman, the specimens of hard wood
were transformed at once into the most perfect of stocks.
The report was accepted, and $40,000 worth of the lathes
were forthwith ordered. As is usual with all great in
ventions, there was little disposition to allow Blanchard
to enjoy any great results from his labours, and he him
self stated in Washington, before a Congressional com
mittee, when he applied for the second renewal of his
patent, that thus far he had received little more than his
board and clothes for what he had done, while litigation
had cost him more than $100,000. Fortunately for the convincing
inventor, Eufus Choate was then in Congress, and his wit
and wisdom coming to the rescue of the genius, he secured
a renewal of the patent. To show the possibilities of his
machine to turn irregular forms, he actually set up in the
national capitol one of the lathes, and there in the pres
ence of all who cared to look, using plaster figures as
models, he turned in marble the heads of Webster, Clay,
and others, far more exactly than the hand of an artist
could fashion them. The witty Choate said Blanchard
had i i turned the heads of congressmen, ' ' and so he had,
and they were sufficiently appreciative to grant him what
he asked.

The foregoing invention alone would have given Blan
chard immortality, but he did not stop here. He made
steamboats of such light draught that they could run
over rapids and shoals, and he invented methods of bend
ing wood so as not to impair in the least its native strength.
He could bend a shingle at right angles and leave it as
strong as before. His invention was particularly valua
ble in the bending of timber for the knees of vessels. Be
ginning to realize on the many inventions he had made,
he took a house in Boston, and there, in comfort and dig
nity, spent the remaining years of his life. Middle-aged
people can remember when the old-fashioned right-angled
slate frames gave way to a continuous frame with rounded

406 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

corners. Many such people may now learn for the first
time that each and every frame thus employed had paid
a small royalty to Thomas Blanchard, a royalty, how
ever, in the aggregate amounting to many thousands of
dollars. It is said that the manufacturer for whom the
invention was made refused to pay Blanchard two thou
sand dollars outright for the invention, preferring to pay
him a royalty of five per cent. His feelings may be
imagined when he paid over to the genius more than two
thousand dollars the first year.
A world ne improved the manner of making the handles of

Benefactor

shovels, saving material and making a stronger handle.
The principle of his inventions was applied in so many
ways that to-day the world is full of what Blanchard did.
Millions of boot and shoe lasts are made every year, and
every one is a tribute to the Button boy. To drop out for
a single day, from the factories and machine shops of the
world, the inventions and applications of Thomas Blan
chard, would throw the mechanical world into inextricable
confusion. When the nation gets tired of erecting statues
to soldiers, perhaps it will remember the men who helped
to make life worth living.

Blanchard lived till April 16, 1864, when he ceased
from earth, and his mortal remains were borne to Mount
Auburn, where hero-worshippers may find his grave on
Spruce Avenue ; his monument being surmounted by a
bust of the great inventor, while upon the base is a medal
lion or relief of the lathe which gave him his world-wide
reputation.

CHAPTER VI
HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMERICA

THIS subject is treated in a very interesting man- The Art of
ner by Helen Evertson Smith in a volume en- Happfiy
titled Colonial Days and Ways. We make such
use of her work as will give our readers a picture of
the home life, customs, and amusements of the French
in New Rochelle and at other points. This will also show
the influence which the French had upon their neighbours.
The art of living happily seems to be a native possession
of the French, while it is not so with the Anglo-Saxon.
His disposition is to take himself and life too seriously.
That was the fault and defect of the Puritan ; though it
must be said that this is a fault far less grave in its con
sequences than the modern one of not taking life seriously
enough. The Huguenots hit a happy mean for the most
part, and infused joy into their environment.

Whether they had been rich or poor in France, there Gentle and
were few of the Huguenot refugees who were not poor c
when they reached America. Notable exceptions have
been cited, like those of Gabriel Bernon, but they were
the exceptions. Whatever their fortunes, however, the
refugees were gentle, trained in many arts, and possessed
of the keen perceptions, the courtesy, and the easy adapta
bility of their race. Home life among them was different
from that of any of the other colonists, because they came
from a land more advanced in some things than either
Holland or England.

The Puritan was keen-witted, with rigid notions of
morality, and a harsh spirit towards those who disagreed
with him, particularly in religion. The conditions of his

407

408 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

life were hard, but full of mental, moral and physical
health. He despised no handicraft, neglected no means
of cultivation, shirked no duty (nor did he permit any
one else to do so, if he could help it), and fought his way
upward, unhasting, unresting, honestly, persistently.
The Dutchman was milder than the Puritan, but as stiff-
necked, and an inborn republican as well as an educated
Calvinist. Slower, narrower, more prejudiced, he was
less agressive. To his commercial and industrial in
stincts our country owes much of its prosperity.

The Huguenot — to complete the comparison between
these three races which came together in the formation of
the colonial life and character — was devout, less ambi
tious, affectionate of heart, artistic, cultivated, adaptable
and also highly endowed with the commercial instincts

cheer£fnessic an(^ s^^^e^ capacities. He brought to America the arts,
accomplishments and graces of the highest civilization
then known, together with a sweet cheerfulness all his
own. Not a colony or a class but was ameliorated by his
influence, and consciously or unconsciously, we all love
him. His was, indeed, essentially a lovable nature. No
character could be truer or nobler or at bottom prob
ably more affectionate than the Puritan, but the mani
festation of qualities was very different. The French did
not think it a shame or crime to show freely the love they
felt. They were natural where others were restrained.

It is certain, from the nature of things, that the home
lives of all these different bauds of colonists must have

Differences in differed widely. None had luxuries and few had com-

the Home Life J

forts, as we now understand these terms, but each had
some possessions, some ways, some deficiencies, and some
attainments which belonged to none of the others. Im
proved conditions came rapidly, and in improvements
one would be sure to find the French in the lead.

II
As we have intimated, although most of the refugee

HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMEEICA 409

Hugucuots had been prosperous in France, and not a few strong
had been wealthy and influential noblemen and citizens, Qua
not many had been able to take much money away with
them — the circumstances of their flight precluded that ;
but they had all brought energy, industry, thrift, and
power of endurance, as well as that truly delightful
birthright of their nation, an invincible lightness of
heart, while many of them also possessed skill in some
hitherto peculiarly French handicraft, or in mechanical
methods of unusual scope ; and others had equally high
talent in the professions, in trade, and in civil affairs.

Like the Plymouth Pilgrims, the Huguenots came with
out any backing of national trade or class interest ; but A Mixed
while the first came to preserve civil and religious rights,
the latter were exiles who had lost their rights and fled
for life, and were of all social grades, embracing a few
noblemen, a larger number of the class of gentlemen, or
the lesser nobility, and professional men, merchants,
bankers, manufacturers and artisans. In spite of previ
ous social conditions, the oneness of the French was a
wonder to the English and Dutch, who kindly welcomed
them. The persecuted were bound together by a com
mon blood, language, peril and faith. In their little
settlement at New Eochelle there was for many years as
near an approach to apostolic ways of living as has been
seen, probably, since apostolic days. They had all things
in common, cared for their own poor, and formed a
brotherhood such as Christianity was intended to produce
the world over. Every household became a little indus
trial colony. Those who had never before laboured
now learned to do so, and hardships were cheerfully
borne.

Daily life in the Huguenot household was probably less
toilsome than was common among other colonists. In- Thrift and
telligent, industrial and resourceful, there was a kind of
co-operation among the French. Equality of living and
enjoyment prevailed. The conditions were naturally

410 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

trying for many years to those who had been gently born
and nurtured in France, but the best was made of exist
ing circumstances, and the people of New Eochelle soon
were distinguished by the amount of comforts and even
luxuries they gathered about them. Their homes, to
judge by the specimens which remain in New Eochelle,
were neither large nor fine, but they were substantial and
as comfortable as was then possible. Tradition says that
the first to utilize the remnants of worn-out garments by
cutting them into strips and weaving them into carpets
were the French. The rag carpet was in its day an ad
vance agent of comfort and culture ; and one may recall
the Connecticut deacon who asked Mrs. Lyman Beecher,
who was the first to introduce a carpet into Litchfield, if
she thought she could u have all thet an' heaven too ! "
Among the earliest importations of the French settlers
were the spinning wheels and looms of better quality
than were previously known here. Immigrants from
fruit-growing and wine-making districts of France brought
grafts and roots, and naturalized most of the hardier va-
in rieties. A few were able to import hangings, mirrors,

Decorations

china and furniture of rare beauty j but in general they
possessed only those articles of furniture which could be
made here. However humble these might be in them
selves, they would surely be made decorative by little
touches which only the French hand could give, just as
the same delicate touches would be seen in the toilets of
the women.

Where the English and Dutch dyed linen yarn of
heavy quality and wove it into ugly stripes and checks
for bed and window curtains, the French used either
white linen or that with but one colour, dainty shades of
light blue or dusky green or a subdued gold colour made
by dyes of which they had brought the secret with them
being preferred. These linens, made into hangings
bordered by an embroidered vine or arabesque design in
white upon the gold, or of varied colours upon the all

HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMEKICA 411

white, were delicately beautiful, and became heirlooms in
many a family.

"The bedroom of my mother's grandmother L'Es- A French
trange," says the author, " has often been described to Bedroom
me. The floor was painted as nearly as possible to match
the subdued gold of the linen hangings. The ceilings
and side walls were whitewashed with lime. The win
dows and dressing-tables were hung with tastefully ar
ranged draperies, bordered with a grapevine pattern em
broidered in white, and further trimmed at the edge with
a knitted fringe of white linen yarn. The tall four-posted
bedstead of carved mahogany was provided with a tester,
with long draw- curtains. Over the high and downy bed
lay a fringed and embroidered coverlet of the same linen.
An immense stuffed chair, running easily upon wooden
globes the size of billiard balls, which were the precursors
of the modern caster, had a very high back and side
wings, against which the head might rest. The linen
yarn for the draperies of this room was all said to have
been spun by the first Mme. L' Estrange and her daugh
ters, and it was afterwards woven under their direction
and embroidered by themselves.7'

The cultivated taste and the dainty arts brought from Home
France made the homes of the Huguenots much more
attractive in appearance than those of the other colonists,
even though the latter might have far more wealth. The
same difference was manifest in dress. The French
woman's fine eye for colour, and her delicate skill with
brush, needle and bobbin, united to produce more attract
ive results. Similar touches of taste and skill appeared
everywhere, and gave distinction to the Huguenot homes,
whatever the owner's social standing in France. As neat
as their Dutch neighbours, they devised labour-saving
methods to maintain perfect cleanliness without being
slaves to it. As liberal as the English, they were far
more economical, and by their skill in cooking they ren
dered palatable and digestible the coarsest fare. They

412 THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A Hard Lot
for Loyal
Souls

Change of
Names

could not equal the Dutch women in rich dishes, sweet
cakes and preserves, nor the English in roasts and pas
tries, but in wholesome dishes for daily consumption they
far excelled both, and particularly in bread making.
They were the first to introduce yeast, where leaven was
the common resort. We owe to them delicately flavoured
soups, the light omelettes, and the delicious entries, be
sides the rolls and buns.

Ill

In spite of temperamental light-heartedness, the Hugue
not had a peculiarly hard lot. He was not a voluntary
colonist, but a refugee. Now there is no more patriotic
people than the French. They love their country and
homes and customs. The Huguenot was ready to sacri
fice everything but his religion in order to remain in his
own land. An exile, his feeling towards the government
and Church which had made him an outcast was bitter.
It was due to this that the Huguenot refugee ceased to
speak his own language as speedily as possible, and
sought to forget France and the past. To the land of
their adoption the Huguenots transferred to the full all
the inborn loyalty of their characters. During Great
Britain's long wars with France the Huguenot descend
ants, in England or the colonies, bore their part in the
arm service. Many of the best families in New Eochelle
sent representatives to fight the French and Indians.
The Huguenots made loyal and noble American citizens.

The abandonment of connection with France is shown
clearly in the change of names, to which reference has
elsewhere been made. The spelling was apt to follow the
pronunciation of the new friends and neighbours. Thus
Bonne Passe (Good Thrust, a name of honour when good
swordsmen were valued) became shortened to Bon Pas,
then changed to Bunpas, followed by Bumpus, and finally
contracted to Bump. L' Estrange was known as Streing,
Strange, Strang, and sometimes Strong.

HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMEKICA 413

Doctriually the Huguenots and Puritans were the same, The Huguenot
but in practice they differed not a little. The Puritan
was a very strict keeper of the Sabbath, beginning at
sunset of Saturday a twenty-four hours' abstinence from
any avoidable work, as well as from any pleasure save
that which his devoutness found in religious services.
The Huguenot Sunday began and ended as now. Like
Calvin himself, the refugees did not think it necessary to
avoid all pleasant things on Sunday more than on other
days, and all who had friends living near the wayside
stopped in to visit them as they returned from church ;
for the Sunday time that was not devoted to church serv
ices and to an hour of catechizing at home was not con
sidered as ill spent in cheerful social intercourse. In
Calvinistic Switzerland, as in Roman Catholic France, it
had been customary to indulge, after church hours, in any
form of innocent amusement. The Huguenots seem to
have drawn the line just short of this. But on week days
their national joyousness and light-heartedness was bound
to display itself in as many ways as circumstances would
permit. Tableaux and little comedies were frequent,
while dancing was the expected amusement in most
households at every evening gathering, and these took
place as often as possible. This made the pleasure of the
home life in marked contrast to much of the severer life
around them, and drew upon the Huguenots many re
proaches. Children were instructed with a degree of
gentleness and consideration quite in contrast with the
sterner ways of the English or Dutch. Cheerfulness and
even gaiety was the rule. A gloomy Huguenot was an
anomaly to be pitied and apologized for. Such happy
dispositioDS as were common among the French produced
a very great impression, and their customs did much to
break down an unnatural restraint that could not exist
permanently without defeating the high ends aimed at by
zealous and godly people.

The French boarding and day schools for young ladies

414 THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

The French
Schools

Graceful
Accomplish
ments

which were established in New Eochelle were eagerly pat
ronized by the English and Dutch, whose daughters
hitherto had possessed few educational advantages.
These schools were the originals of the young ladies'
seminaries and fitting schools, or finishing schools,
which held the field until the day of women's colleges,
which was ushered in by a Huguenot descendant — Mat
thew Vassar, founder of Vassar College. From the first
the French language was taught, and all the i i ladylike
accomplishments" of the time were imparted. English
teachers were employed to teach the grammatical use of
their own tongue, written and spoken ; but it may be
imagined that this was not considered as of nearly as high
importance as the more showy accomplishments, which
could be acquired at these schools only. These accom
plishments included enough of music to enable a young
woman to play a little for dancing, or to warble a few
songs in her fresh sweet tones to the accompaniment of
the spinet ; enough of French to read it easily, write it
fairly well, and hold a not too monosyllabic conversation.
Then much was made of instruction in the arts of paint
ing and embroidery, and more of that truly high art,
gentle manners — the manners not only of persons of gentle
birth, but of those so early taught by precept and example
that their graces seem to have been born with them, a part
of their very selves. The pupils were taught how to avoid
all awkwardness of movement or carriage ; how to bear
themselves gracefully erect ; how to enter and leave a
room, to greet properly all ages and conditions, to ar
range and preside at a dinner table with elegance, to
dress with taste and effect, and to dance gracefully. In
cidentally with all these things, a great deal of valuable
instruction was given in the finer graces of courtesy and
courteous speech, and all that gentle consideration for
others which is at once the flower and root of good breed
ing. Who shall say that this education was not fitting,
and that the colleges of to-day, with their niannishness,

HUGUENOT HOME LIFE IN AMEEICA 415

do not lack some of the feminine elements which tend to
produce rounded womanhood and to make woman a
home queen.

The Huguenots endeavoured to transmit to their chil
dren the traditions of politeness they had brought from Manners

'P. «,.»,«,_,:*

France. Even in their games and amusements good
manners were taught, and certainly the delightful traits
of courtesy and thoughtful kindness and fine breeding
have persisted in the French Protestant blood, and are
notable in the fine families which perpetuate the stock in
our land.

Transmitted

'CHpinaUy the PeLancej/ Homestet

CHAPTEE VII

What is an
American ?

Answer by a

French-
American
Farmer

AN EAELY FEENCH ESTIMATE OF AMERICAN
CHAEACTEE

THE American character is a composite, repre
senting many nationalities. In the early blend
there were four distinct types — English, Scotch,
French and Dutch. What we commonly call the Amer
icans, with reference to the early colonists and their de
scendants — using the term thus in a restricted sense —
came from the intermixture of these stocks or from the
unmixed blood. It will be interesting to read the esti
mate which a French- American colonist gives of America
and the Americans in the last decade of the eighteenth
century. The following extract is taken from the Letters
from an American Farmer, published in London in 1782,
the author being J. Hector St. John de CreVecceur :

"I wish I could be acquainted with the feelings and
thoughts which must agitate the heart and present them
selves to the mind of an enlightened Englishman, when
he first lands on this continent (America). . . . Here
he sees the industry of his native country displayed in a
new manner. . . . Here he beholds fair cities, sub
stantial villages, extensive fields, an immense country
filled with decent houses, good roads, orchards, meadows,
and bridges, where an hundred years ago all was wild,
woody and uncultivated ! . . . He is arrived on a
new continent ; a modern society offers itself to his con
templation, different from what he had hitherto seen. It
is not composed, as in Europe, of great lords who possess
everything, and of a herd of people who have nothing.
Here are no aristocratical families, no courts, no kings,
no bishops, no ecclesiastical dominion, no invisible

416

ESTIMATE OF AMEEICAN CHAEACTEE 417

power giving to a few a very visible one ; no great man
ufacturers employing thousands, no great refinements of
luxury. The rich and the poor are not so far removed
from each other as they are in Europe. Some few towns
excepted, we are all tillers of the earth, from Nova
Scotia to West Florida. We are a people of cultivators,
scattered over an immense territory, communicating with Pe°Ple
each other by means of good roads and navigable rivers,
united by the silken bands of mild government, all re
specting the laws, without dreading their power, because
they are equitable. We are all animated with the spirit
of an industry which is unfettered and unrestrained, be
cause each person works for himself. ... A pleas
ing uniformity of decent competence appears throughout
our habitations. The meanest of our log-houses is a dry
and comfortable habitation. Lawyer or merchant are
the fairest titles our towns afford ; that of a farmer, is the
only appellation of the rural inhabitants of our country.
Here man is free as he ought to be ; nor is this
pleased equality so transitory as many others are. Many
ages will not see the shores of our great lakes replenished
with inland nations, nor the unknown bounds of North
America entirely peopled. Who can tell how far it ex
tends ? Who can tell the millions of men whom it will
feed and contain f for no European foot has as yet trav
ersed half the extent of this mighty continent !

1 i The next wish of this traveller will be to know
whence came all these people ! They are a mixture of A eiood

Mixture

English, Scotch. Irish, French, Dutch, Germans, and
Swedes. From this promiscuous breed, that race now
called Americans has arisen.

"By what invisible power has this surprising meta- Metamor-
morphosis been performed ? By that of the laws and that Snd8ub°efrtLyaw
of their industry. The laws, the indulgent laws, protect
them as they arrive, stamping on them the symbol of
adoption ; they receive ample rewards for their labours ;
these accumulated rewards procure them land j those

418 THE PEENCH BLOOD IN AMERICA

Melted Into a
New Race

New Man of
New Ideas

lands confer on them the title of freemen, and to that
title every benefit is affixed which man can possibly re
quire. This is the great operation daily performed by
our laws. From whence proceed these laws f From our
government. Whence that government? It is derived
from the original genius and strong desire of the people
ratified and confirmed by the crown. This is the great
chain which links us all, this is the picture which every
province exhibits. . . .

"He is an American, who leaving behind him all his
ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from
the new mode of life he has embraced, the new govern
ment he obeys and the new rank he holds. He becomes
an American by being received in the broad lap of our
great Alma Mater. Here individuals of all nations are
melted into a new race of men, whose labours and poster
ity will one day cause great changes in the world. Amer
icans are the western pilgrims, who are carrying along
with them that great mass of arts, sciences, vigour, and
industry which began long since in the east ; they will
finish the great circle. The Americans were once scat
tered all over Europe ; here they are incorporated into
one of the finest systems of population which has ever
appeared, and which will hereafter become distinct by
the power of the different climates they inhabit. The
American ought therefore to love this country much bet
ter than that wherein either he or his forefathers were
born. Here the rewards of his industry follow with
equal steps the progress of his labour ; his labour is
founded on the basis of nature, self-interest ; can it want
a stronger allurement f Wives and children, who before
in vain demanded of him a morsel of bread, now, fat and
frolicsome, gladly help their father to clear those fields
whence exuberant crops are to arise to feed and to clothe
them all ; without any part being claimed, either by a
despotic prince, a rich abbot, or a mighty lord. Here
religion demands but little of him ; a small voluntary

ESTIMATE OF AMERICAN CHARACTER 419

salary to the minister, and gratitude to God ; can he re
fuse these ? The American is a new man, who acts upon
new principles ; he must therefore entertain new ideas,
and form new opinions. From involuntary idleness,
servile dependence, penury, and useless labour, he has
passed to toils of a very different nature, rewarded by
ample subsistence. This is an American. ' '

'CELEBRATION OF THE 'ADOPTION or THE CONSTITUTION m 178*

[ The most imposing fart of the gorgeous pageant was the Federal ship on wheels,
with Hamilton's name emblazoned upon each side of it, tfs crew going through
tvery nautical / reparation and movement /or storms, calms, and squalls, as it
moved slowly through the streets of New York City. Whtn opposite the Bowline.
Green a. salute of thirteen guns wa* fired \

CHAPTER VIII

THE FRENCH AS A FACTOR IN AMERICAN
CIVILIZATION

Huguenot
Influence

The French

Protestant

Type

Men of
Marked
Ability

N attempting to estimate the influence of the Hugue
nots in America, three facts must be taken into ac
count : first, that they were Frenchmen ; second, that
they were Frenchmen of marked ability ; and third, that-
they had been fitted by long and severe persecution for
exceptional influence.

The characteristic Frenchman is a marked man in any
zone. In physique he is slender and supple ; in intellect
imaginative, ingenious, artistic. As a man he is remark
ably light-hearted, inclined to hopefulness, loving mental
and moral sunshine ; and has, withal, a passionate devo
tion to his native land and its institutions. In addition,
he possesses fine moral fibre, together with an intensely
religious nature. The Huguenots who came to America
were French through and through. The national blood
flowed strongly in their veins ; they loved France, and
because they loved her deeply they soon became intensely
loyal to their adopted country. In suffering, in peril, in
the face of death, in the darkest hours, they sang songs
and ever turned their faces towards the brighter side of
things. Yet they did not lack seriousness, but were
thoroughly religious and were ready to die, if need be,
for their religious convictions.

The Huguenots were Frenchmen of marked ability.
They were drawn from all classes and from all occupa
tions, but were the best of their various ranks and call
ings. It is the uniform testimony of unprejudiced his
tory that the Protestants of France were her strength in

420

A FACTOR IN AMERICAN CIVILIZATION 421

agriculture, in manufacturing, and in commerce, and
that the insane policy of the crown in lending itself to
the papal determination to exterminate them bespoiled
France of much of her material wealth and glory and
sank her into the depths of moral degeneration. And of
this Protestant body, the brain and heart of a whole race,
it was the exceptionally strong, vigorous and purposeful
soul who succeeded in eluding the clutch of the emissaries
of Rome and in reaching America. Those lacking in
physical strength, or financial resources, or unusual
tenacity of purpose, became the victims of their relentless
persecutors. An elect race, men of remarkable ability,
of exceptional mental and moral worth, of deathless alle
giance to their faith and to the rights of man, were the
French Protestants who shared with their English
brethren the perils and joys of founding the American
Republic.

Further than this, the long years of harrowing and strong in
terrible persecution had given to the Huguenots a charac
ter of peculiar fibre and force. The close surveillance
which their persecutors held over them was so exacting
and minute that they were forced into the most careful
scrutiny of their every act and of the whole manner of
their lives. Thus did their tormentors instil into them
foresight and prudence and a deep wisdom in the conduct
of life. In addition, persecution drove them to the
Word of God and they became the * i direct offspring of
the Bible. " Its study was their consolation, and came to
be their strength — proving in this case, as it has proved
in countless other cases, to be an inspirer of vigorous
minds and sturdy moral natures. In the early days of
the persecution, Clement Marot had translated the Psalms
of David into French rhythm, and the singing of these Marot's
psalms became a Huguenot characteristic. They chanted Hymi
them at their services, in their homes, at their work, at
social gatherings, on the streets, in dungeons, on board
the galleys, at the stake or the scaffold : and the influence

422

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

A High Type
of Race

Skilled
Thrifty
Prosperous

Moral and
Religious Life

of these hymns in giving the Huguenots comfort and
courage and strength was remarkable. Engrafted upon
their natures as Frenchmen was a biblical breadth and
depth, and a manly gentleness of character.

It was, then, a high and peculiar type of French blood
that was infused into the English colonial life ; and
marked results followed. First of all, it quickened
material prosperity. By the addition of these skilled
artisans, agriculture and commerce and the mechanical
arts received a new impulse. They brought to perfection
the cultivation of rice and tobacco, improved the native
vines, introduced new fruits such as the quince and pear,
and added greatly to the variety and quality of American
garden products. In commercial enterprise they were
unequalled, and such merchants as the Faneuils, the Lis-
penards, the Allaires, the Marquands, the De Lanceys,
the Manigaults, were names to conjure with. The share
of the colonial wealth held by the Huguenots was out of
all proportion to their numbers, for of all the peoples
who enjoyed the bounties of the New World they were
the most prosperous. The same enterprise which caused
the settlers of the Narragansett colony to set out mul
berry trees, for the purpose of silk culture, at the same
time they planted the crops which were to serve their
immediate needs, found an outlet in the improvement of
settled manufactures and in the introduction of new ones.
In the weaving and dyeing of cloth, in the manufacture
of felt, gunpowder, sugar, etc., they were pioneers, as
they were likewise in the development of American min
eral resources.

The infusion of the Huguenot blood had a second
marked result — it produced a higher type of moral and
religious life. It modified and softened the harsher and
more austere views of the Puritans in New England and
thus helped to produce a higher and more efficient type

President lames A. Garfield

General John C. Fremont

.•

Hannibal Ilamlin

General Robert Anderson

Admiral Uewey U. S. Senator Robert La Follette

EMINENT AMERICANS OF HUGUENOT DESCENT

A FACTOR IN AMERICAN CIVILIZATION 423

of religious manhood. In the province of New Nether-
land the Huguenot influence was felt in lending a greater
spirituality to the solid worthfuluess of the Dutch, and
in Pennsylvania the result was the same. While the
fervour of the Southerner, outside of its climatic causes,
is directly traceable to the intermingling of the Huguenot
and Cavalier.

The facility and adaptability which characterized the
Huguenot emigrants was a factor of great strength in giv
ing the new race its peculiar ability to work out the
whole scheme of American government. The basis and
body of the colonial life was predominantly English — a
life of remarkable vigour, strength and genius. But the
Englishman after several years on American soil was no
longer an Englishman, but an Englishman Americanized.
He had been changed into a radically different and su
perior man. In producing this change climate and en
vironment had their effects ; the colonial life wrought
out its disciplinary and modifying results. But the
change in character, efficiency, genius and power were
too deep and radical to be explained in this way. It can
be understood only by remembering that a continuous
stream of French life was poured into the larger English
current, sweetening and purifying its waters and making
them more healthy and life-giving. This commingling
of two powerful nations produced a race of men that
neither France nor England could possibly have pro
duced had either been the sole possessor of American
soil. It needed both Huguenot and Englishman to A strong
make the American. This new race, the offspring of two Blend
great nations, faced tremendous responsibilities and as
sumed a herculean task. It undertook to transmute into
practical and enduring shape the dream of statesmen of
all ages. It undertook to build a nation unlike any na
tion of the past in all its deeper features ; to erect a
structure that should not only endure but become stronger
with the passing of the years. Civil and religious liberty

424

THE FRENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

America's
Debt to
France

Links in the
Chain

Debt to Calvin

was to be the foundation stone. The essential thing in its
accomplishment was the race of men who were to under
take the mighty task. The foundation was laid and
steadily the building went up. It took on form and
beauty and realized the dream of sage and prophet.
Time has tested its foundations j unlocked for strains
have come to its walls, but foundations and superstructure
endure, so wise and successful was the work of the build
ers. All honour, then, to the persecuted refugees who
lent their influence and their lives to the building of the
Eepublic.

Ill

America's debt to France is not likely to be fully recog
nized, so deep below the surface does it reach. Pointing
out how Providence deduces the greatest events from the
least considered causes, Bancroft instances how " a Geno
ese adventurer, discovering America, changed the com
merce of the world ; an obscure German, inventing the
printing press, rendered possible the universal diffusion
of increased intelligence ; an Augustine monk, denoun
cing indulgences, introduced a schism in religion, and
changed the foundations of European politics ; a young
French refugee, skilled alike in theology and civil law,
in the duties of magistrate and the dialectics of religious
controversy, entering the republic of Geneva, and con
forming its ecclesiastical discipline to the principles of
republican simplicity, established a party, of which Eng
lishmen became members, and New England the asylum."
There is the chain. Not only the Huguenots, but also
the Pilgrims and Puritans, with their incalculable influ
ence upon the life of the nation, are under deepest obli
gations to that Frenchman, John Calvin.

It is to Calvin, indeed, far more than to Luther, that
America owes the Protestantism that is the foundation
of its liberties and life. The Dutch brought in the Luth
eran element, but their influence religiously was much
less in the development of the national character than

A FACTOR IN AMERICAN CIVILIZATION 425

that of the New England Puritans, who were the spiritual
offspring of Calvinism. It must be remembered that
Henry VIII did not free England from the Roman Cath- wha* Henry

VIII Did for

olic church by substituting a reformed religion or a radical Reform
reform in morals. He only set himself up as a spiritual
head instead of the Pope at Rome. He simply " became
pope in his own dominions, and heresy was still accounted
the foulest of crimes. Almost all the Roman Catholic
doctrines were asserted, except the supremacy of the
bishop of Rome. The Pope could praise Henry VIII for
orthodoxy while he excommunicated him for disobedi
ence. It was Henry's pride to defy the authority of the
Roman bishop, and yet to enforce the doctrines of the
Roman church." Thus Luther would very likely have
perished by fire had he been an Englishman instead of
German. Henry limited the privilege of reading the
Bible to merchants and nobles. It was under Edward VI,
England's only Puritan kins:, that the way was opened Edward vi

f., . &\ _ . J. the Puritan

to changes within the church in England ; and these
changes were wrought through Calvinism. In the regency
the reforming party had the majority, and Calvin, burn
ing with zeal to include England with the Reformers of
the continent, urged a uniform confession of Christian
doctrine. * ' As for me, ' ' wrote Calvin to Cranmer, il if I
can be made use of, I will sail through ten seas to bring
this about." The forty -two articles promulgated as the The Forty-
creed of the English church were Calvinistic, and the
Book of Common Prayer, revised by Cranmer, did away
with most of the Romish superstitions. Calvin said of it :
"The Anglican liturgy wants the purity which was to
have been wished for, yet its fooleries can be borne with."
So much had been gained that he could put up with the
unwillingness of the English Puritans to separate them
selves altogether from the Roman usages. Many of the
English people, however, demanded a more complete re
form, and this culminated in the Puritan revolt which led
to exile and colonization in America, where religious

426

THE FEENCH BLOOD IN AMEEICA

Luther and

Calvin

Differentiated

Calvinism
Republican

liberty was to be a foundation stone. It was the sim
plicity of worship in the Eeformed churches of France
and Switzerland that set the type for the Puritans of
England.

The difference between the Lutheran and Calvinistic
types of reform is finely brought out by Bancroft, 1 in one
of his most discriminating passages :

"The reform had made great advances among the
French and the Swiss. Both Luther and Calvin brought
the individual into immediate relation with God ; but
Calvin, under a more stern and militant form of doctrine,
lifted the individual above pope and prelate, and priest
and presbyter, above Catholic Church and national
church and general synod, above indulgences, remissions,
and absolutions from fellow -mortals, and brought him
into the immediate dependence upon God, whose eternal,
irreversible choice is made by himself alone, not arbi
trarily, but according to his own highest wisdom and
justice. Luther spared the altar, and hesitated to deny
the real presence ; Calvin with superior dialectics, ac
cepted as a commemoration and a seal the rite which the
Catholics revered as a sacrifice. Luther favoured mag
nificence in public worship, as an aid to devotion ; Cal
vin, the guide of republics, avoided in their churches all
appeals to the senses, as a peril to pure religion. Luther
condemned the Eoman Church for its immorality ; Cal
vin for its idolatry. Luther exposed the folly of super
stition, ridiculed the hair shirt and the scourge, the pur
chased indulgence, and dearly -bought, worthless masses
for the dead ; Calvin shrunk from their criminality with
impatient horror. Luther permitted the cross and the
taper, pictures and images, as things of indifference ;
Calvin demanded a spiritual worship in its utmost
purity. Luther left the organization of the church to
princes and governments ; Calvin reformed doctrine,

History of the United States, Vol. I, p. 312fl.

GREAT-GRAXDFATHER OF JOHAXXIS DE PEYSTER
The First of This Family in New York

SOME OF THE DE PEYSTER FAMILY PLATE

A FACTOE IN AMEEICAN CIVILIZATION 427

ritual aud practice ; and, by establishing ruling elders
in each church and an elective synod, he secured to his
polity a representative character, which combined au
thority with popular rights. Both Luther and Calvin Religion of a
insisted that, for each one, there is and can be no other I
priest than himself ; and, as a consequence, both agreed
in the parity of the clergy. Both were of one mind that,
should pious laymen choose one of their number to be
their minister, i the man so chosen would be as truly a
priest as if all the bishops in the world had consecrated
him.'"

This clearly shows how the Protestantism that had
become distinctive in America was the direct result of Popular
the teaching and polity of the French reformer, theolo- Sovereignty
giaii and statesman who has been one of the foremost and
most potent agencies in human civilization. It was be
cause Eichelieu, the keen statesman of France, saw that
the Huguenot faith was in its very nature opposed to
royal absolutism, and that the divine right of kings could
not exist if the people came to hold the divine sovereignty
taught by Calvin, that he was willing to go to all lengths
to crush it out of France. Thus directly and indirectly
the French have contributed to America the principles
of religious and civil liberty upon which all our institu
tions are founded. Of far deeper influence than that
which came through immigration has been the influence
of that reform in religion which began in France before
the day of Luther, and which had its supreme leader
in John Calvin, who found opportunity to do through
the Swiss Eepublic what he could not do in Eome-bound
France, his native land.

APPENDIX

FBENCH AID IN THE REVOLUTION

A volume published in Paris in 1908, entitled Les Combattants Fran^ais
de la Guerre Arnericaine gives a full list of French officers, sailors and ves
sels engaged in the War of the Revolution, together with a list of the
officers and men who aided the Army. There were sixty-two vessels
armed, manned and equipped by France in aid of the American colonies,
and there were thirteen regiments of soldiers. Both vessels and troops
were officered by Frenchmen.

THE ARTIST DURAND

The Durand family of New Jersey, which numbered several members
who took rank among the remarkably skillful American mechanicians
and artists, was descended from Huguenots who came to this country
early in the eighteenth century. The two members best known were
Cyrus Durand, who became a silversmith, and later engaged in the con
struction of machinery during the period prior to the War of 1812 ; and
Asher Brown Durand, who began as engraver, and became a painter of
distinction. He was called " one of the fathers of American landscape,"
having for nearly fifty years devoted himself to landscape painting. He
produced the best known engraving in the United States, that of John
Trumbull's famous painting of "The Declaration of Independence."
His portraits of Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, James Madison,
Edward Everett, and Bryant were also notable. He lived to be ninety.
He died in South Orange in 1886.

JUDGE TOURGEE

A Huguenot descendant who won more than ordinary distinction as an
author and patriot was Judge Albion W. Tourgee, whose book of the re
construction period, A Poors Errand, had a sale of more than 200,000
copies, unprecedented in that day. As bearing on the race problem,
the KuKlux Klan, and the difficulties of sectionalism, it produced a pro
found effect. Judge Tourgee served in the army, was severely wounded,
and never wholly recovered from the effects of campaign life. He was
appointed United States Consul at Halifax, and later at Bordeaux,
France, the land of his ancestors, where he died in 1905.

SOME SENTENCES FROM THOREAU'S DIARY

We must be at the helm at least once a day ; we must feel the tiller
rope in our hands, and know that if we sail, we steer.

429

430 APPENDIX

How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.

Silence is of various depths and fertility, like soil.

Praise should be spoken as naturally and simply as a flower emits its
fragrance.

All fear of the world or consequences is swallowed up in a manly
anxiety to do Truth justice.

We are all pilots of the most intricate Bahama channels. Beauty may
be the sky overhead, but Duty is the water underneath.

The man of principle never gets a holiday. Our true character silently
underlies all our words and actions, as the granite underlies the other
strata.

PAUL REVERE

The Paul Revere Memorial Association has been formed in Boston,
with purpose to purchase and preserve the old home of Paul Revere.
This is believed to be the oldest building now in Boston. It was erected
between 1679 and 1681. A fund of $30,000 will be raised, and the build
ing will be devoted to educational and historical usefulness.

Paul Revere engraved the plates, made the press, and printed the first
promissory notes of the State of Massachusetts Bay, when the exigen
cies of the struggle for independence made paper currency necessary.
He had a shop on what is now Cornhill, and this was the ample sign over
the door :

Paul Revere and Son, at their bell and cannon Foundry in the North
part of Boston, Cast Bells of all sizes ; every kind of brass Ordinance, and
every kind of composition work for ships, etc., at the briefest notice.
Manufacture copper into Sheets, Bolts, Nails, Spikes, rivets, etc., from
Maleable Copper.

They always keep by them every kind of copper Sheathing for ships.
They now have on hand a number of Church and Ship Bells of different
sizes, a large quantity of Sheathing Copper from 16 up to 30 oz. ; Bolts,
Spikes, Nails, etc., of all sizes, which they warrant to be equal to English
manufacture.

Cash and the highest price given for old Copper and Brass.

A FRENCH ENGINEER

It is interesting to remember that America owes the noble plan of the
national capital to a French engineer, Major Charles Pierre L'Enfant, in
whose honour it is proposed to erect a suitable memorial in one of the
parks which he laid out.

THE SOCIETY OF SOUL WINNERS

Rev. Edward 0. Guerrant, D. D., a descendant of the Virginia Hugue
nots, originated a most interesting work among the mountain people of
Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina. The religious destitution ap
pealed to him, and in 1897 he started the America Inland Mission, with one
missionary and faith for capital. The work grew, support came from un
expected sources, until the receipts for 1902 were above $7,000, and seventy
faithful men and women were employed in the most destitute places,

APPENDIX 431

preaching, distributing Bibles and tracts, teaching Sunday-schools and
day schools, caring for the sick beyond the reach of physicians, clothing
the poor, building churches, and in every way blessing the thousands to
whom they ministered. More than five hundred were received into the
church that year, showing the results of the Soul Winners' faithfulness.
This is the obligation assumed by the members of the Soul Winners'
Society :

" By the help of God, and for His glory, I will try to win at least one
soul for Christ, my Lord, every year I live, and give what I am able to
send the gospel to my perishing countrymen."

PROTESTANT PIONEER PREACHERS

The Calvinist ministers who came to Acadia from Geneva in 1557 were
the first Protestant ministers in the Western Hemisphere. Robert was
the first Protestant minister to set foot on the continent of North
America. The Huguenots were thus in the lead of all others.

THE AMERICAN HEROINE

Deborah Sampson, named the "American Heroine," who served as a
Revolutionary soldier for nearly three years, her sex never being sus
pected, was a descendant of Bathsheba LeBroche. She enlisted under
the name of Robert Shurtleff, and served under Captain George Webb in
the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment. She was wounded at Tarrytown,
and fought in the battles of White Plains and Yorktown. She exhibited
unusual heroism, was esteemed a gallant as well as faithful soldier, re
ceived an honourable discharge, and was granted a pension by the govern
ment. She was as modest as she was fearless, and was impelled to her
course by patriotism. She was born in Plympton, Massachusetts. The
story of her career has been written by Mrs. Deborah Sampson Gannett.

THE HUGUENOT CHAPEL

One of the chapels to be erected as a part of the Protestant Episcopal
Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York is to be called the Hugue
not Chapel. This will be the second chapel in a series of seven. Mrs.
Edward King, of New York, gave $100,000 for the building of this memo
rial to the Huguenots who have had from the beginning such honourable
part in the making of the Metropolis of the New World.

MANY DISTINGUISHED MEN

From a study of the names contained in Appleton's Encyclopedia of
American Biography, Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge finds that among the men
in America prior to 1789 who were of sufficient distinction to be named
in the Encyclopedia, there were 589 Huguenots, they holding fourth
place in the list. This is sufficient testimony as to the character and
ability of these Protestant French.

PRESIDENT JOHN ADAMS
In his History of Independence Hall (published by James Challon &

432 APPENDIX

Son, Philadelphia, 1859), D. W. Belisle says : " The maternal ancestor of
John Adams was John Alden, a passenger in the Mayflower, and thus he
inherited from his parentage the title of a Son of Liberty. The last
words he ever uttered were, ' Independence forever ! ' " Thus it appears
that the Huguenot " Priscilla " was the ancestress of one of our Presi
dents.

EARLY SOCIETY IN NEW YORK

In the society which marked the early days of the Republic, in New
York, then the seat of the Continental Congress, Mrs. John Jay, wife of a
Huguenot descendant, was the acknowledged leader. Her talented hus
band was secretary for foreign affairs. Her " Dinner and Supper list "
for 1787-8 contains the names of the men and women prominent in that
day. General Washington was among the honoured guests in that
hospitable mansion. Mrs. Jay was a Livingston. Early in the list are
the names of Colonel John Bayard, distinguished member of a Huguenot
family, and his wife. Other names are Alexander Hamilton, " the
vivacity of whose French blood would make him a welcome guest at
every social gathering " ; Dr. John Rodgers, Presbyterian minister, and
his wife, who was of the Delaware branch of the Huguenot Bayard
family ; and Dr. Provoost, bishop of New York, a chaplain of Congress, of
combined Dutch and Huguenot descent. Two other names of note
among the Huguenots were Elias Boudinot and Daniel Huger, the latter
of the South Carolina family so honourably represented in the Revolution.
The DeLancey family was represented, as were the Izards of South
Carolina. Both in Congress and society the Huguenot families were at
the front.

WASHINGTON AND A HUGUENOT MAIDEN

The great Washington, in his early life, was smitten, according to well
established tradition, by the charms of a maiden of French blood, the fair
Mary Philipse, who later became Mrs. Morris. Her father's mansion,
still standing on Harlem Heights and known as the Jumel Mansion, was
subsequently Washington's headquarters.

TRACING SOME OBSCURE LINES

IT is not assumed in the case of the names here given that a French
ancestry is certain ; simply that there is fair reason for believing it. No
harm will be done if the genealogical case is not made out.

Backus. Isaac Backus, Baptist author and minister, born Jan. 9, 1724,
at Norwich, Conn., died in 1806 at Titicut, Conn. Descendant in fifth
generation of William or Stephen Backus, who came to Norwich, Conn.,
from Norwich, England, in 1637. Backus doubtless from Beccues, a Wal
loon. DeSue Beccues was witness to a Walloon baptism in Norwich,
England, as the records of the Huguenot Society show.

Deland, DeLand, Delane, Delaune. Philip Delane or Deland, probably
a Huguenot, came to Newbury, Mass., in 1694. Rowland Deland, the
probable ancestor, is given as a member of the Walloon Church at Nor
wich, England.

APPENDIX 433

Belmont, Bellomont, Beaumont. Boaumonts abound in Huguenot liter
ature. LeSieur de Beaumont was a refugee in Acadia in 1604. Richard
Coot, Earl of Bellomont, governor of New York and Massachusetts in
1696, was of Flemish origin. Coot is a Huguenot name in Canterbury
Church records. While the Belmonts come from the Palatinate, Rhenish
Prussia, the family is French in origin.

Garrison. William Lloyd Garrison's grandfather Joseph was an Eng
lish settler on the St. John's River in 1767. His origin is obscure. Gar
rison was a common Walloon name in England after the Huguenot
refugees had gone thither. Isaac Garrison, a Huguenot from Montau-
bon, France, became a citizen of New York in 1765. It is not at all im
probable that the great Abolitionist had Huguenot blood in his veins.

Eustis. William Eustis, governor of Massachusetts in 1825, was a de
scendant of William Eustis of England. The family is of Norman blood,
Eustace the Count of Boulogne being the English progenitor.

Hale. Nathan Hale, of Connecticut, who was executed as a spy in the
War of the Revolution, was descended from the Hales of Kent, England,
of whom Sir Nicholas de Hales was the Norman ancestor.

Fauntleroy. Moore Fauntleroy, founder of the Virginia Fauntleroys,
was of Huguenot origin, his father being John Fauntleroy of Southamp
ton, England. Moore, the immigrant, was a man of property, member
of the Virginia House of Burgesses.

Moultrie. General William Moultrie, who defended Sullivan's Island
from British attack in 1776, was of the Huguenot blood, as the South Car
olina records show. His brother John was governor of East Florida in
1775. The family is one of the first in South Carolina.

Lyon. General Nathaniel Lyon, of Connecticut, a brave commander in
the Civil War who died at Wilson's Creek, August 9, 1861, was a descend
ant of William Lyons, who came to Roxbury from England in 1635 in the
ship Hopewell. The English ancestor was Sir Roger de Leonne, a native
of France.

Legare. Hugh Swinton Legare*, born in Charleston, S. C., Jan. 2, 1789,
died in Boston June 20, 1843, was attorney-general in President Tyler's
cabinet, and was attending the dedication of Bunker Hill Monument
when stricken with fatal illness. He was a direct descendant of Solomon
Legare, a Huguenot refugee from Bristol, England, to Charleston, S. C.,
in 1686. Solomon Legare' was one of the founders of the Congregational
Church — Circular Church — in Charleston.

Ross. Mrs. Betsey Ross, who made the first United States flag, very
likely had French blood in her veins, although proof positive is wanting.
She came from the Griscom family, and the name is in the Huguenot
records frequently. The name of Ross, also, is common among the
Huguenots as Ros. The flag was made upon an order from a committee
consisting of General Washington and Colonel George Ross, her hus
band's uncle. Her ancestor, Samuel Griscom, built the first brick house
In Philadelphia in 1682.

Russell. This family is of Norman origin, and Huguenot. The family

434 APPENDIX

of Le Rozel, from the place of that name in Lower Normandy, reaches
back into the eleventh century. In England the Ilussells have been
among the prominent families since the middle of the twelfth century.
The name, given as Rushell, Rozel, Rosel, Roussello, frequently occurs
in the Walloon records at Canterbury. Russell and Rousell, Rouselle and
Roussel were in the list of " Foreigners resident in England in 1618-1688."
The Russells were also on the original passenger lists to America in the
seventeenth century, at least a dozen entries of them bound for New
England. In the New World as in the Old, the family has won distinc
tion. The late Governor Russell of Massachusetts belonged to the best
type of American citizenship.

Vasse. Colonel Joseph Vasse, or Vose, who commanded the First
Massachusetts Bay Regiment in the Revolutionary War, was a direct de
scendant of Robert Vose, or Vasse, who came from England to America
in 1654 and bought 174 acres of land in Milton, including a portion of the
famous Brush Hill. In England the name was spelled Vaux, retaining
the Norman origin. It is not unlikely that the name Foss comes from
the same source.

8t. Glair. General Arthur St. Glair had Norman blood in his veins.
He was born in Scotland in 1786, died in Pennsylvania in 1818. He was a
general in the Revolutionary War. He married in Boston Phoebe
Bayard, daughter of a Boston Huguenot, Balthazar Bayard. His wife's
mother was a half-sister of Governor James Bowdoin. The St. Glairs or
Sinclairs of Scotland were of Norman descent from Walderne, Count de
Santo Claro, whose wife was daughter of the Duke of Normandy.

Warren. General Joseph Warren, whose name will live as long as
Bunker Hill is remembered, was born in Roxbury, Mass., June 11, 1741.
The origin of his Boston ancestor, Peter Warren, is obscure. He mar
ried Sarah Tucker, and Tucker is a Huguenot name, corrupted from
Tuttiett or Touchet. The father of General Warren married in 1710
Mary Stevens, daughter of Doctor Samuel Stevens, who first produced
the russet apple. The name of Stevens is found as Stiffens, Steffens,
Stephens, in Huguenot annals. So also the name Warren, Warene and
Werene, is common in Walloon records. Very probably Peter Warren,
ancestor of General Warren, was Pierre Warrene, a Huguenot. He was
first known in Boston in 1659.

Reverdy. Peter Reverdy and his son Benoni came to New York from
London with Pastor Peiret on the ship Robert in 1687. Peter was the
reputed author of certain Memoirs of Sir Edmund Andros. He was
chosen coroner of Newcastle, Delaware, in 1693. Reverdy was a Poitou
family, Huguenot.

Johnson. Reverdy Johnson, of Maryland, the son of John Johnson and
Ghiselin, daughter of Reverdy Ghiselin, of Maryland, was a Hugue
not, his mother being a descendant of Jan Ghiseliu, a Huguenot refugee
to England in 1566.

APPENDIX

435

Some English Surnames of French Derivation

THE following names of families, of French descent and derivation,
have been selected from Barber's British Family Names. Many of our
American families can trace through this source French blood, in very
many cases known to be Huguenot. Names given in the various chap
ters are not repeated here. The list will be of interest, whether the
American connection can be traced or not. The abbreviations used are
these: "H.," for Huguenot; "Prot. Ref.," Protestant Refugee; " L.,"
London.

AGNEW (from Aigneau).

Alexander (originally Alexandra).

Allard ; Huguenot.

Alloth (H., near Vermeil, 1688).

Ames or Games (Prot. Ref.. L., 1618).

Angler (H., Auger).

Annes, or Annls (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Arch (H..L., 1618).

Arnold (H., L., 1618).

Arnott (H., Arnaud, L., 1657).

Arundell (H., L., 1618).

Astor (Norman, 1180).

Avery (H., Norwich, 1622).

BAILEY (H., Belley, L., 1688).

Bain (H., Norwich, 1622).

Baird or Beard (H., L., 1618).

Baker (Becke, Prot. Ref., Norwich,
1622).

Ballinger (Bellanger, Prot. Ref., L.,
1688).

Barr (De la Barr, H., L., 1618).

Barrel! (H., Barill, Canterbury, 1622).

Barrett (Norman, Barette).

Bassett (H., Sandwich, 1622).

Batchelder, or Batchelor (H., Batchelier,
L., 1682).

Bean (Prot. Ref., Bienne, Norwich, 1622).

Beaumont (Norman).

Bellevv, or Bellows (Norman, Bellot).

Bellin (H., BeHn, Belyn, L., 1618).

Bence (Benson, H., Sandwich, 1662).

Bendon, or Benton (H., L., 1618).

Benn, Bennett, Beuny (EL, Benedict, L.,
1688).

Bevis (from Beauvais. France).

Bezant (H., Beaussaint).

Billyard (H., Dover, 1622).

Bissett (H., Bissot, L.,1618).

Blewitt (Norman, LaBlouette).

Boffin (H., Bovin, L., 1685).

Bogert fH., Boygard, L., 1681).

Bone (H., Bohon, L., 1621).

Bonehill (H., Bonnel, L., 1618).

Bonner (H., Bonnard, L., 1618).

Boosey (H., Bussey, L., 1618).

Bowcher, Boucher, Bowker (H., L.,
1618).

Boyd (II., Boyard, L., 1687).

Brade (II., Breda, L.. 1688).

Brain, or Brine (H., Breon, L., 1688).

Brand (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Brasier. Brazier (H., Bressuire, Nor
wich, 1622).

Breeden (H., Briden, L., 1681).

Brett ( French, LeBret).

Brewer, (Brueriain Normandy).

Briggs (H. Bruges, L., 1618).

Brill (Prot. Ref., Brille, Sandwich, 1622).

Brothers (Brodder, Prot. Ref., Sand
wich, 1622).

Brown (Norman-French, LeBrun).

Bruce (Brousse, from Breux, Nor
mandy).

Brunyee (Brune, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Bryan (Brionne, Normandy).

Bryant (from Breaunt, Normandy).

Bubier (Norman).

Buck (LeBuc, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Buckett (Bouquet, Prot. Ref., JL., 1685).

Bull (Bole, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Buller (Bolen, Prot. Ref., L,., 1618).

Burden (Fr.,Burdon).

Burdett (Bourdet, H., L., 1685). Prob
able ancestry of Robert J. Burdett,
the humourist.

Burgoyne (Norman-French).

Burr (Bure, Belgian, Prot. Ref., L.,
1687).

Burt (Norman French).

Bush (Bosch, Flemish, Prot. Ref., L.,
1618)

Bushell (H., L.,1618).

Busick (Boussoe, H., L., 1685).

Butcher (H., L., 1685).

Buttle (Butel, H., L., 1685).

Byles (H., from Bueil, France).

Byron (Norman-French, Biron).

CADE(H., Cadet).

Camp (H., L., 1618).

Campbell, and Gamble (Norman-
French).

Campion (Prot. Ref., Norwich, 1622).

Cautrell (H., L., 1618).

Capel (LaChapelle, H., L , 1618).

Card (H., Cardes, L., 1681).

Caron (H.. L., 1687).

Carry, or Carr (H., L., 1685).

Carter (Cartler, H., L., 1618).

Cartwright (Cauterets, Norman).

Case (II., De la Cuse).

Chaflfe (H., LeChauve, L., 1682).

Chamberlain (Chambellan, H., L.,1618).

Chambers (H., Chambray, L., 1618).

Chaplin (Norman-French, Capelen).

Chattin (H., Chattaine, L., 1618).

Cheney (Fr., Chesnais).

Choffin (H., Chauvin, L., 1684).

Churchill (Nor. Fr., DeCourcelle).

Clark (H., Norwich, 1622).

Clements (Flem., Clement, Prot. Ref.,
L., 1618).

Cloake (H., Clocke, L., 1618).

Close (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Closson (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

436

APPENDIX

Cocker (H., Norwich, 1622).

Cockerell (Fr., Coqueril).

Cockle (Cokele, Prot. Ref., Norwich,

1622).

Codd (H., L., 1618).
Cogger (Coege, Flem. Ref., L., 1618).
Cole (Flem. Kef., L., 1618).
Colley (H.. Colleye, 1618).
Collier, Colwer (Fr., Collioure).
Coppinger (Flem. Ref., L., 1618).
Corbett (Fr., raven).
Corbin (Norman-French).
Corke (H., Corque, L., 1618).
Courage (H., Correges).
Courteney, or Courtinay, or Courtney

(H., name).

Coward (H., Chouard, 1(588).
Cozens (Cousin, II., 1688).
Creamer (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).
Cross (Prot. Ref., St. Croix, 1618).
Crowley (Fr., Crulai).
Crudge (Prot. Ref., L., 1688).
Cruso (Creusot, Prot. Ref., Norwich,

1622).

Culley (Flemish Couillet).
Curtis (H., Courtois, Norwich, 1622).
Cushing (Nor. Fr., LeCuchon).

DAGG (Dague, H., Canterbury, 1622).
Dagget (Dackett, Flem. Ref., Norwich,

1622).
Dams (D'Ames, Prot. Ref., Norwich,

1622).

Dangerfield (Dangerville).
Daniel (H., L., 1618).
Danvers (from Anvers, France).
Dennis (St. Denis, H., L., 1682).
Derlyn, Darling (H., Norwich, 1622).
Derrick (H., L., 1622).
Devine (Desvignes, H., Norwich, 1622).
Dewey (Belgian, Prot. Ref., Dhuy, L.,

1618).

Dewfall (Duval, Prot. Ref., L., 1687).
Doubleday (Doublet, H., L., 1685).
Doughty (Daude, H., L., 1687).
Doy (H., L , 1618).
Drake (Nor. Fr., Fitz-Drac, Prot. Ref.,

L,., 1618).

Draper (Drapier, H., Dover, 1622).
Drew (Dreux, H , Norwich, 1622).
Drewry, or Drury (DeBouvray, Nor.

Fr.).

Driver (DeRivers, Nor. Fr.).
Drought (H., Droart, L., 1618).
Durrant, or Durant (Durarid, Fr.).
Durrell (Durell, H., L., 1687).

EMERY (H., L.,1685).

Eve (Prot. Ref., L.. 1618).

Kverson (Prot. Ref., Flemish, L., 1618).

Evving, or Ewen (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

FABB (H., Fabri. L., 1678).

Fairy (Verry or Ferry H., L., 1618).

Fanning (Norman).

Farjou (Fargeon, H., L., 1685).

Faulkner (Fauconnier, H., L., 1681).

Fawcett, Fassett (Fr. Fossord).

Fear (H., L., 1618).

Fellows, Fellowes (H., L., 1687).

Fenn (Fene, H., Norwich, 1622).

Ferrett (H., Dover, 1622).

Filbert (Fr., St. Phllbert).

Finch (Fl., DeVinck, Prot. Ref., L., 1622).

Flowers (H., L.,1618).

Fleury (H..L..1687).

Foggs, Fogg (H , Foucat, L., 1685).

Foljambe (Nor. Fr., Fulgent). '

Forman, Furch (Forment, H., L., 1618).

Fox (Flemish, H., L., 1618).

Foy, Faith (H., L., 1618).

Freeman (Fl., Freyman, Prot. Ref..

Norwich, 1622).
Fremont (Fr., Frimont).
Fromant (Fromeau, H., L., 1618).
Frusher (H., Fruchat, L., 1687).
Fuller (Fr., Fouleur).
Furber (H., Foubert, L., 1618).

GABBETT (H., Gabet, L., 1688).
Caches (H., Gauchez, L., 1688).
Galley (H., Gallais, L,., 1687).
Gallyon (H. , Gaillen, L., 1618).
Galpin (H., Galopin, L., 1684).
Garrard (H., L.,1618).
Garret (Fr., Garet).
Garrick (Fr., Garrigues).
Gaskin (Fr., DeGascoigge, from Gas-
cony).

German (H., Germon, L., 1618).
Giddings, or Giddens (H., Guidon, L.,

1687).

Gifford (Giffard, full cheeked).
Gillot (diminutive of Gill, H., L., 1618).
Gilyard (Gilliard, H., L,., 1687).
Gimlett (Gimlette, H., L., 1618).
Glass (H., Glace, L.,1618).
Goacher, Goucher (Fr., Goucher, H., L.,

1618).

Goddard (H., Godart, L., 1618).
Godfrey (Fr., Godefroy, H., L., 1681).
Goding (Fl., Godding, Prot. Ref., L,

1685).
Goodenough, Moodenow (Fr., Godi-

neau).

Goodfellow (Fr., Bonenfant).
Goodhew, or Gooehue (Fr., Godeheu).
Goss, or Goose (HM Norwich, 1622).
Gosling (Gosselm, Prot. Ref., L., 1622).
Gower, Gowers (Fl., Prot. Ref., Govaerts,

L.,1618).

Grant (Fr., Grands).
Grave, or Graves (Nor. Fr., De la

Greve).

Gray (H., L., 1618).
Gruel (H., Gruelle, L., 1628).
Gubbins (H., DeGobion, L., 1618).
Guerin (H., Gueron, L., 1628).
Gurner, or Gurney (H., L., 1618).
Gye(H., Gay, L., 1684).

HAGUE (H., LeHague, Prot. Ref., L.f
1621). From this family came the
eloquent preacher, Rev. Wll>u>uj
Hague, D. D., Baptist historian and
minister.

Hall (FL, Prot. Ref., L., 1699).

Hamblett (II., Hamlett, L., 1622).

Hanchett (Prot. Ref., Hansett, L., 1618).

Hardy (Nor. Fr., bold, strong; H., L.,
1684).

Harry (Harrye, H., L., 1681).

Harvey (H., Herve, L., 1681).

Hassatt (Prot. Ref., Sandwich, 1622).

Hay (De la Haye, H., Dover, 1622).

Hayes (Hees, H., L., 1618).

Ilebbert (Hebart, Prot. Ref., L., 1685).

Herbert (Herbart, Prot. Ref, Canter
bury, 1622).

Hewett (H , Huet, L., 1621).

Hood (H.,|Ude, L., 1618).

APPENDIX

437

Hook (H., Hue. L., 1618).

Hooppell i H., Dover, 1622).

Howell(H.,L.,1618).

Howes (Fl., Housse, Prot. Ref., Canter
bury 1622).

Howltt (H., Canterbury, 1622).

Hubbard, Hubert (H., Houbart, L.,
1618).

Hidden, or Iddon (Nor., Hidden, Prot.
Kef., L., 1618).

JACKMAN (H., Jacquement, Canterbury,

1622).

Jacobs (Fl., Prot., Ref., L., 1618).
James tSt. James, Prot. Ref., L., 1621).
Jar vis (H., Gerveis, L., 1688).
Jasper (Fl., Jaspard, H., L., 1621).
Jay (Jeyen, H., L., 1621).
Jolly (H., L., 1681).
Joyce (Nor., Joyeuse).
Joy (H., L., 1685).
Julian (Fr., Julien).
Juliet (H., L., 1618).

KINO (Fl. Ref., L., 1618).

LACY, or Lacey (Nor., Lessay, DeLacey)
Lambert (Fr., St. Lambert, Fl. Ref.,L.,

1618 ; General Lambert, Governor of

York).

Landers (from Landre in Burgundy).
Lane (Fr., Laigne).
Larter (LaTour, H., L., 1618).
Lawrence, Laurence (Fr.,Laurentin, H.,

L.,1618).

Laws (Prot, Ref., Norwich, 1622).
Lawson (Nor. Fr., Loison).
Laycock (H., Lecocq, Dover, 1622).
L'Amoreaux. Lamoreau (H., L., 1687).
Lepper (H., Lepere, L., 1618).
Lessey (H., Lesee, L., 1621).
Lewis (DeLuis, H., Norwich, 1622).
Littlejohn (Fr., Petitjean).
Living (Fl.; H., Livain, Norwich, 1622).
Loe, or Low (H., DeLoe, L., 1618).
Lofting ( Prot. Ref., L., 1688).
Long (DeLonga, Prot. Ref., L., 1621).
Longfellow (H., Longueville, L., 1685).
Luce, Loose (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).
Lovebond (H., Lovingsbone, L., 1621).
Lovell (H.. Louvel, L., 1618).
Lower (Fl.'Ref., L., 1618).
Lucy (Louiset, Prot. Ref., L., 1634).
Lumbard, Lombard (H., Lombuart, L.,

1687).
Lyon (Prot. Ref., Norwich, 1662).

MACE (H., Mes, L., 1618).

Mackley (Fl., Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Maitland (H., Mattalent, Nantes).

Major (H., L., 1688).

Male (DeMaisle, H., Dover, 1622).

Marcon (Marquent, Prot. Ref., Canter
bury, 1622).

Marlow (Fr., Marlieux).

Marr (H., Marre, L., 1618).

Marshall (H., Marechal, L., 1618).

Martin (H., St. Martin, L., 1688).

Martineau (Fr., Martigne). Family of
famous James Martineau, philoso
pher.

Massey (H., Macey, L., 1684).

Mason (H., Macon, L., 1618).

Mate (H., Mette, L., 1618).

Maule, or Moll (H., L., 1618).

Mayhew, or Mayo (H., Mahieu, Mayeux,
Norwich 1622).

Mayne (TI., Mayenne, L., 1687).

Maynard (H., Menard, Dover, 1622).

Means (Prot. Ref., Minnens, L., 1687).

Mear (H., L,, 1618).

Meen (H., Migne, L.. 1618).

Merritt, Merry (Marit and Meret).

Mercier(H., L.,1618).

Meyrick (DeMeric, Prot. Ref., L., 1621).

Michell. Mitchell (H., L., 1618).

Miles (Norman French). General Miles
is of this blood.

Mills (Fl., Miles, Prot. Ref., Norwich,
1622).

Minett (Minet, Prot. Ref., L., 1688).

Minter (Minder, Prot. Ref. L., 1618).

Molineux (Moliner, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Money (H., Monnaye, L., 1618).

Munsey, or Monsey (H. L., 1618).

Montague (Montaigu).

Moon, Moen (Fl., Moine, H., Sandwich,
1622).

Moore (Fl., Mor ; H., More, L., 1618).

Morrell (H., Morel, L., 1618).

Morriss, Morris (Meurisse, H., Canter
bury, 1622).

Moss (Norman-French).

Mott (De la Motte, H., L., 1621).

Mountain (H., Montaigne, L., 1618).

Mouse (H., Mousse, Moze, L., 1687).

Munn (Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Myhill, Mayall (H., L., 1618).

NEALE (DeNeel, H., L., 1688).
Nollett (Fr., Nolleau, H., L., 1687).

OLIVER, Olivier (H.. L., 1682).
Onions (Angiens, Norman).
Overy (H., Ouvry, L., 1618).
Osborne (Osbern), Osier (1'Oiselor), Nor
man.

PAGE (H., LePage, L., 1688).
Paine (Fr., Pain, H., L., 1618).
Paley, Pallett (H., Paillette, L., 1688).
Palmer (lePaumier, Fl. Ref., L., 1618).
Parry (H., Parre, L., 1687).
PasKell (H., Paschal, L., 1687).
Pate (Patte, H., Canteroury, 1622).
Paton, Patton, Peyton (H., Canterbury,

1622).

Pattison (Fl. Ref., L., 1618).
Paul (H., St. Paul, L., 1618).
Paulett (Poulet, H-, L., 1687).
Peacock (Fl. Ref., L., 1618).
Pear (A., Pierre. L., 1687).
Pears, Pearse (Fl., Piers, Peres, H., L.,

1688).

Pearson (Pierresene, Prot. Ref., L., 1688).
Peberdy, Peabody (Nor. Fr , Pabode).
Penny (Peigne, Peno, Prot. Ref.. Nor
wich, 1622).

Perkins, Peterkin (little Peter, FL).
Perowne (H.. Peronnez, L., 1618).
Peters ( Peelers, Prot, Ref., L., 1518).
Pettit (H., Petit, 1618).
Phautam, Vendome, Vandam (Prot.

Ref., L.,1618).
Phillips (Fitz-Philip, Prot. Ref., L.,

1618).

Picard (II., Picard, L., 1621).
Picken, Pickens (Fr., PicTfn).
Pickett, Pigott (H., Pegot or Pigot, L.,

1685).

Pillow (H., Pilot. 1622).
Pinchen, Pynchon (H., Pincon or

Plnchon/1622).

438

APPENDIX

Pinner (Pineur, Prot. Bef.. Norwich

1622).

Plummer (H., le Plumer, I,., 1682).
Pluukett, or Plunkitt (Nor. Pr., de

Plugenet).

Pollard (H., L., 1618).
Pond (Fl., Pont, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).
Poole (Poule, Prot. Ref., L., 1621).
Porter (H., Portier, Norwich, 1622).
Pott (PL, Pot, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).
Potter (Fr., Potier).

Poulter (H., Poultier, Canterbury, 1088).
Powell (H., Puel, L., 1618).
Pratt (H., DuPrat, L., 1687).
Prevost(H., Rye, 1621).
Prim, Prime (H., L., 1618).
Prince (H. Prins, L., 1618).
Prue (H., Preux L., 1687).
Pullen, Pullein (H., Poullain, L., 1622).

QUINCEY (from Quince in Maine;
DeQuincey).

RANNEY (H., Rene, Renie, PL, Renaix,
L,., 1688).

Reason (DeReasne, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Beay, Ray (DeRea, Ray, H., L., 1688).

Rebbeck (H., Rebache, L., 1688).

Revill, Revell (H., Revel, Reville, L.,
1618).

Ricket (Ricquart, H., Canterbury, 1622).

Robin (H., Robain, L., 1687).

Robinson (Robyns, Prot. Ref, L., 1618).

Roche, Roach (H., de la Roche, L., 1687).
Possibly the family from which John
Roach, or Roche, the American ship
builder, was descended.

Rogers (Fr., Rogier).

Rose (Nor., Ros, Rose, H , L., 1684).

Roewell, Russell (Rousselle, H , Canter
bury, 1622).

Bouse (H., LeRoux, L., 1618).

Rowan, Rowen (H., Rouen, L., 1618).

Rowell (H., Rouelles, L., 1687).

Rowland (H., Dover, 1622).

Rowley (from Norman Reullly).

SACH (Sac, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Sartoris (H., Sartorius, L., 1684).

Savage (Fr., Sauvage).

Seymour, Saymer, Simore (H., 1618)

Seeley (H., Sill, L., 1688).

Seguin (H., L.. 1688).

Sherrard (Sheraret, F., Prot., L., 1618)

South (H., L., 1618).

Spear, Speer (FL, Spiers, Prot. Ref.,L.,

1622).

Stephens (TT., L.,1618).
Sturgeon (H., Lestourgeon, L., 1683).
Summers (H., Somers, L., 1618).
Summerville (from Sommervieux,

Nor.).
Symonds, Simonds (H., Simon, L.,1618).

TABER (Taborer, Prot. Ref., L., 1678).

Tardy (H., L., 1688).

Taverner (H., Tavernier, L., 1622).

Terry (IT., Terriss, L., 1618).

Thompson (H., L., 1618).

Tibbies (TT., L., 1618).

Tiffen (H., L., 1618).

Tolver (H.,Tolleve, Norwich, 1622).

Torrey (Thouret, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Tree (Tre, Prot. Ref., L., 1618).

Tyron (H., Triou, L., 1618).

Tulley (II., Tulye. L., 1618).

Turnbull (Nor., Tournebu).

Tyrrell, Tirrell (Fr., Tirel).

VALENTINE (H., 1618).

Valiant (H., Vaillant, 1681).

Vawdrey (H., DeValdarrie, Norwich,

1622).

Vernon (H., L., 1618).
Viall(H.,Viel,L.,1684).
Vincent (H., St. Vincent. L , 1618).
Vye (H., De la Fuye, I,., 1683).

WALTERS (Wauters, Prot., Ref., L.
1621).

APPENDIX 439

SOME EMINENT HUGUENOT NAMES

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's mother was a lineal descendant of John
Alden and Priscilla Molines, and the strain of Huguenot blood accounts
for some of the finest qualities in the character of New England's most
loved poet.

The good Quaker poet of New England, John Greenleaf Whittier, was
proud of the Huguenot blood he inherited from Thomas Whittier, the
ancestor who settled in Salisbury in the days of the early colonists.
Through the peaceful training of the Quaker the Gallic blood pulsed
swiftly when wrong was to be righted, and liberty of conscience as well
as of person was inwrought into his religious creed.

Mrs. Martha J. Lamb, the historian, author of The History of New
York, and for many years editor of the Magazine of American History,
which became of much value under her control, was of Huguenot descent
through her mother's family, the Vintons. She was deeply interested in
the Huguenots and many articles in the magazine were devoted to them.
She was a leader in establishing the Huguenot Library now in possession
of the Huguenot Society of America, and served on the Library Commit
tee until her death in 1893. She was secretary of the first Sanitary Fair
in 1863 : noted for philanthropic and public spirit.

General Frederick Dent Grant traces his Huguenot descent through
the family of DeLille and of De la Noye (Delano), who was a member of
the Narragansett Settlement.

Of the Presidents of the United States, there is a strain of Huguenot
blood in John Adams, Garfleld, and Roosevelt— the latter representing
the best type of the mingling of the Dutch and French races.

Hon. Richard Olney, Secretary of State under President Cleveland, and
one of the foremost lawyers of New England, traces direct descent to
Andrew Sigourney, who was one of the settlers in Oxford. With the late
Senator Bayard, this makes two Secretaries of State of recent date who
were of Huguenot blood.

A HISTORIC HUGUENOT CHAIR

In the rooms of the Bostonian Society there is a very old Huguenot
chair, which was brought to Boston from Lyons, France, in 1685, by a
Mr. Waldo, whose family was said to belong to the Waldenses, and who
left France to escape religious persecution. His • son, Nathan, born in
Boston, emigrated to Connecticut, taking the chair with him. Later it
became successively the property of Nathan's son Edward ; of Edward's
daughter Johanna, wife of Josiah Cleveland, and of her daughter Thank
ful, wife of Thaddeus Palmer; and of Thankful's daughter Lucy, who
gave it to Rev. John Cleveland, D. D., of Providence, R. I. More recently
it belonged to the late Mrs. Jane G. Alden, Novelist, and is now loaned
to the Bostonian Society by her daughter, Mrs. Albert DeSilva, of Rox-
bury, by whose permission a picture has been obtained, which may be
seen elsewhere in this volume.

440 APPENDIX

The Huguenot Society of America

This Society was organized in 1883. Eev. Alfred V. Wittmeyer, Ph. D.,
pastor of the French Church in New York, was the founder. Honour
able John Jay was the first president, and Dr. Wittmeyer, secretary.
Henry G. Marquand was the second president, and Frederick J. de Peyster
the third. The Society has done much to bring the Huguenot descendants
into acquaintance and fellowship, has fostered family pride and stimu
lated research, and has created a racial consciousness. Its publications
have afforded a medium of historical value. Through its exercises in
commemoration of the Bi-Centenary of the Revocation of the Edict of
Nantes (held in New York in 1885), and of the Ter-Centenary of the Pro
mulgation of the Edict (held in New York in 1898), attention was widely
drawn to the subject of the Huguenots in America. The membership is
national, and about four hundred names are on the rolls, including many
families prominent in various sections of the United States.

The present officers are : President, Colonel William Jay ; Vice-Presi
dents, George 8. Bowdoin, Theodore M. Banta, Hon. H. W. Bookstaver ;
Henry M. Lester, Esq., New Paltz; Hon. A. T. Clearwater, Kingston;
Nathaniel Thayer, Boston ; Hon. Richard Olney, Boston ; William Ely,
Providence ; Prof. Allen Marquand, Princeton ; Col. H. A. Dupont,
Delaware; Herbert Dupuy, Pittsburg; Col. Richard L. Maury, Rich
mond, Va. ; Rev. Robert Wilson, Charleston, S. C. ; Treasurer, T. J. Oakley
Rhinelander ; Secretary, Mrs. James M. Lawton, New York ; Chaplain,
Rt. Rev. Bishop James H. Darlington.

The honourary members are : Rev. A. V. Wittmeyer, founder ; Prof.
Henry M. Baird, the historian ; A. Giraud Browning, president Hugue
not Society of London ; Meschinet de Richemond, LaRochelle, France ;
LeBaron De Schickler, Paris ; LeDocteur Beringuier, Berlin, president
German Huguenot Society ; LePasteur N. Weiss, Paris ; Rev. Charles S.
Vedder, pastor Huguenot Church of Charleston, S. C. ; James S. Van
Courtland. The list of deceased members includes Dr. Thomas
Gallaudet, Hon. Elisha Dyer, Prof. Joseph LeConte, Hon. Sir Henry
Austen Layard, Mrs. Martha J. Lamb, Rev. William Hague, Hon.
Abraham S. Hewitt, Col. Johnston L. DePeyster, Prof. D. D. Demarest,
Hon. Thomas F. Bayard, Dr. Edward Bayard, Dr. Charles W. Baird, the
historian, H. LeGrand Cannon, Henry G. Marquand, Bishop Quintard,
and Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, of Boston, a lineal descendant of Pierre
Baudoin (Bowdoin). The late Mrs. Robert Anderson, wife of General
Anderson, was a long time member.

THE BI-CENTENARY COMMEMORATION IN NEW YORK
The names of the General Committee of Arrangements indicate the
character of the Huguenot representatives of the present time, and show
also how fully the original Huguenot settlements were represented. For
these reasons the list will be of interest :

Members representing the Huguenot Society of America — Joseph H.

APPENDIX

441

Gautier, M. D. ; Ashbel G. Vermilye, D. D. ; Frederic J. de Peyster;
Benjamin F . de Costa, D. D. ; Pierre Lorillard ; LeGrand B. Cannon ;
Lawrence Turnure ; Louis Mesier ; Prof. David D. Demarest, D. D. ;
Rt. Rev. Charles T. Quintard, LL. D. ; Prof. Charles A. Briggs, D. D. ;
Henry G. DeForest; Peter W. Gallaudet; Rt. Bev. Edmund de Schwein-
itz, D. D. ; Walter S. Gurnee ; Henry G. Marquand ; Morey Hale Bartow ;
Rev. Alfred V. Wittmeyer, Ph. D.

Members representing the original Huguenot Settlements in America—
New York : Hon. John Jay, Edward F. deLancey. Staten Island : Hon.
Chauncey M. Depew, R. H. Disosway. Long Island : Augustus Rapelve,
Henry E. Pierrepont. New Rochelle: Henry M. LeCount, Henry M.
Lester. New Paltz : Abram duBois, M. D., Ralph LeFevre. Boston :
Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, George S. Bowdoin. New Oxford: Hon.
Richard Olney, John G. Whittier. Narragansett : William Ely, Thomas
M. Potter, D. D. Maine : Hon. Hannibal Hamlin, Gov. Joshua Cham
berlain. Delaware : Hon. Thomas F. Bayard. Pennsylvania : Charles
M. duPuy, William R. Valleau. Virginia : Charles M. Maury. Charles
ton, 8. C. : Robert N. Gourdin, Daniel Ravenel. Purysburg, S. C. : Cor
nelius J. Huguenin, Wilmot de 8aussure. New Bordeaux, S. C. : J. A.
Gibert, M. D., Rev. Benjamin Allston.

PRESENT MEMBERS OF THE HUGUENOT SOCIETY OF AMERICA

ADAMS, MRS. GEORGE F. (Demarest).
Adams, Washington I. L. (Flandreau).
Alden, Mrs. Charles H. (Cazneau, Ger-

mon).

Allen, Dr. Paul (Byssel).
Anderson, Miss Maria L. (Bayard,

Poingdextre).

Ashbridge, Miss Mary P. (Pechin).
Atterbury, Mrs. Anson P. (Bayard).
Atterbury, John T., Lewis B., Rev. W.

W. (Boudinot, Carre).
Aymar, Benjamin, Miss Elizabeth, Miss
Harriet, Jose (Aymar, Magny).

BACOT, WM. SINCLAIR (Bacot, De Saus-

sure).

Bailey, Pearce, M. D. (Jerauld, Dutee).
Balch, Thos. Willing (de Frouville).
Bangs, Mrs. Fletcher (Gaineau).
Banta, Theodore M. (Demarest, Sohier).
Barbour, Wm. Delamater (de la Maitre,

du Bois).

Barbour, Mrs. William (Mercereau).
Barrell, Harry Ferdinand (Rapalle,

Trico).

Bascome, Mrs. Western (De Lancey).
Bent, Mrs. Richard M. (Dombois).
Berrien, William Mitchell (Berrien).
Bishop, Mrs. Wm. D., Jr. (Gratiot).
Bihsell, Mrs. Sanford (Byssel).
Blackwell, Miss R. R. (Bayard).
Blackwell, Wm. Bayard (Bayard).
Blodgett, Mrs. F. J. (Aymar, Belon).
Blood, John Balch (Molines).
Bogert, Theodore P. (Benezet, Testard,

Crommelin).
Bolmer, Mrs. Gertrude (Laborie, Durand,

Gilet).

Bontecou, Fred. T. (Bontecou, Collinot).
Bookstaver, Hon. Henry W. (Bodine,

Felter).

Boucher, Miss S. (Quentin, Quereau).

Boughton, C. V. (Bouton).

Boughton, Wm. Hart (Bouton).

Bowdoin, George S. (Baudoin).

Bowdoin, Miss Isabel G. (Baudoin).

Bowdoin, Temple (Baudoin).

Boyd, Herbert Hart (Chevalier).

Brewster, Saml. Dwight (Pinneo).

Brokaw, Howard C. (Broucard, Le
Febre).

Brokaw, Irving (Broucard, Le Febre).

Brokaw, Isaac Vail (Broucard, Le
Febre).

Brokaw, William Vail (Broucard, Le
Febre).

Brown, Dr. P. Richard, U.S. A. (Rich
ard, De Bruyn).

Bull, Dr. Charles S. (Segu in, Mercereau).

Burruss, Mrs. Nathaniel (Perrin,
Thorel).

CAMERON, MRS. M. P. B. B. (Papillon).
Campbell, Mrs. H. Godwin (Mercereau).
Cannon, Col. Le Grand B. (Le Grand,

Cannon, Bouton).
Casey, Mrs. Joseph J. (Venable).
Cattus, Miss Emma E., Mrs. John 0.

(Aymar, Vincent).
Clarkson, Banyer ( Jay, Bayard).
Clarkson, Mrs. E. L. de P. (De Peyster).
Clarkson, Matthew (Jay, Bayard).
Clearwater, Hon. A. T. (Baudoin,

Bridon).
Clinch, Rev. N. Bayard (Bayard, De

Peyster, Chevalier).
Cockroft, Miss E. (De Vaux, Tourneur,

Colyer).
Coles, Henry R. R. (De Peyster, De

Rapalye).
Cooper, Miss Marian N. B. (Jay, Bayard,

DeKay).

442

APPENDIX

Coutant, Dr. Richard B. (Coutant, Bon-

nefoy).

Coxford, Mrs. William (Perrin, Thorel).
Cutting, Bobert Fulton (Bayard, Pin-

tard).
Cutting, William Bayard (Bayard, Pin-

tard).

DANFOBTH, MBS. ELLIOT (Mercereau,

La Tourette).

Darlington, Charles F. (Reyneau).
Darlington, Rev. James H. (Reyneau).
Dashiell, Nicholas L. (De Lecheilles).
Daw, George W. (Das).
De Bennevllle, James S. (DeBenneville).
de Forest, Robert W. (de Forest, Bertho-

let).

De Lamater, Ezra Doane (Le Maistre).
De Luze, Philip Schuyler (de Luze).
Demarest, Rev. Wm. H. S. (DesMarets).
Demonet, Eugene A. (Faure).
De Peyster, Frederic J. and family (de

Peyster).

De Peyster, Gen. John Watts (de Peys
ter, de Lancey).
De Peyster, Miss M.Justine (De Peyster,

de Lancey).

Depew, Hon. Chauncey M.
Devotion, Misses Elizabeth, Harriet and

Sarah (Devotion).

Deyo, Robert Emmet (Doyau, du Bois).
De Zouche, John J. (de Souche).
Dickinson, Charles D. (Laurier).
Dodge, Francis Edward (d'Espard).
Dominick, Bayard (Dominique, Blanch-

ard).
Dominick, Henry B. (Dominique,

Blanchard).

Du Bois, Wm. A. (Du Bois).
Du Bois, Wm. Maison (Du Bois, Le

Fevre, Blanshan).
Dumont, John B. (Dumont).
Du Pont, Col. Henry A. (Du Pont).
Du Puy, Miss Eleanor G. (Du Puy,

Chardavoyne, Valleau).
Du Puy, Herbert (same as above).
Duyvee, Rev. Joseph (Durie).
Duval, H. Rieman (Duval).

ECKABD, REV. L. W. (Bayard).

Ehis, John Gillett (Gilet, Byssell).

Ellis, Mrs. Wm. R. (Gilet, Byssell).

Elting, Peter J. (Du Bois, Le Fevre).

Ely, William (Bernon).

Ely, William D. (Beruon).

Embury, Aymar (Aymar, Belon,

Magny).
English, William E. (Du Bois, Blanshan).

FABEB, REGINALD STANLEY (De

Dibon).

Falconer, Wm. H. (Fauconnier).
Farlow, Mrs. W. G. (L'Hommedieu).
Farnham, Elijah S. (Molines).
Farnham, Mrs. George A. (Vermeille).
Faulkner, Dr. Richard B. (Du Puy, de

Vaux).
Ferree, Miss Annie D. (Ferree, Blan-

con).

Ferree, Barr.
Ferree, Samuel Patterson.
Flagg, Rev. Edward O. (Villeponteux).
Flandreau, Felix E. (Flandreau).
Floyd-Jones, Mrs. E. (L'Escuyer).
Fontaine, William M. (de la Fontaine,

Boursiquot, Chaillon).

Foote, Mrs. N. A. M. (Gilet).
Foster, Rev. Daniel Requa (Requa).
Fowler, Mrs. A. H. (Gratiot).
Freeman, Alden (Molines, Vassall,

Bonne).

Freeman, Joel Francis (Bonne).
Frizzell, William H. (De Courcy, Friz-

zell).
Fuller, Linus E. (Molines).

GALLAUDET, PBOF. E. M. (Gallaudet,

Prioleau).

Garden, Hugh R. (De Saussure).
Garretson, Mrs. J. B. (Delaplaine, Cres-

son).

Gautier, Dudley G. (Gautier).
Gillett, Mrs. C. M. (Gilet Byssel).
Godflard, Mrs. F. W. (Cortelyou).
Goldthwaite, Mrs. C. C. (Flandreau).
Graham, Walter (Chardavoyne, Dupuy,

Valleau).
Grant, Gen. Fred. D. (De la Noye, de

Lille).
Green, Elmer Ervlng (Du Bois, Het,

Sauzeau).

Grinnell, Wm. Milne (Molines).
Gross, Samuel Eberly (Du Bois, Blaus-

han).

Guion, Rev. Wm. B. (Guion).
Gurnee, Augustus C. (Gamier).

HALL, GEORGE P. (de Rapalie, Trico).
Harris, Mrs. Thos. Cadwalader ( Jaudon).
Hartley, Mrs. Marcellus (de Boncourt,

Byssel).

Haslock, William F. (Dombois).
Haughey, Mrs. E. McLean (Coutant, de

Pre).
Hegeman, Miss A. M. (Hegeman, de

Champ, Perot).

Heins, George L. (Fauconnier, Valleau).
HelSenstein, Dr. A. E. (Fauconnier, Val
leau, Chardon).

Heroy, William W. (Erouard, Coutant).
Hillman, William (Guion).
Hodges, Alfred (Provoost).
Hoffman. Mrs. E. A. (Mercereau, Cha-

daine).

Holbrook, Mrs. L. (Perrin, Thorel).
Holland, Rev. William J. (Benezet).
Hopkins, Mrs. E. A. J. (De Vaux,

Tourneur).
Hook, Mrs. E. Warren (Le Maistre, Du

Bois, Le Comte).

Hubbard, P. Mascarene (Mascarene).
Huidekoper, Mrs. F. W. (de Mandeville,

des Marets).

Hunter, Mrs. F. K. (Waldo).
Hunter, Jas. W. (Thelaball).
Huntington, Rev. Wm. R. (Baret).

IBELAND, OSCAB B. (Guion).

JACKSON, Miss MABGABET A. (Robert,
de la Borde, La Tour).

Jackson, Samuel Macauley.

James, Edward W. (Dauge, Thelaball).

James, Mrs. J. W. Harry (Molines).

Jay, Col. William (Jay, Francois, Bay
ard).

Johnson. James L. (Le Baron, Bayeux,
Boudlnot, Papin).

Jollne, Mrs. Adrian H. (Coutant).

Jones, Mrs. F. Cazenove (De Cazenove,
delaMar).

Jouet, Cavalier H. (Jouet, Coursier).

APPENDIX

443

Julien, Gustavus D. (Cnntine, Blanchan).
Julien, Rev. Matthew C. (Cantine,

Blanchan).

Juillard, A. D. (Julllard).
Juillard, Mrs. A. D. (Cosstt).

KENDALL, MRS. S. L. Du Bois (Du

Bois, Bentyn).

Kingsland, Mrs. J. Bayard (Bayard).
Kress, Mrs. Idabelle S. (Des Marest,

Baton, Bonnefoy).

LA BACH, JAS. O., Paul M. (Des Marest,
Sohier).

Ladew, Mrs. H. S. (Du Bois, Blanshan).

Lanier, Charles (Lanier).

Lathrop, Miss Emma G. (de Forest, du
Trieux).

Lathrop, Kirke (Gilet, Byssell).

Lawton, Mrs. G. Perkins (De Forest, Du
Cloux).

Lawton, Mrs. James M. (Bayard, de
Peyster, Masse, Poingdextre).

Lawton, Mrs. Thomas A. (Moliues).

Lea, Mrs. Henry (Jaudon).

Le Boutillier, Clement, John, Mrs. Mar
garet, Thomas, Dr. Wm. G. (Le
Boutillier, Guitton, Le Maistre,
Pel Her).

Le Conte, Dr. Root. G. (Le Conte).

Lee, Julian Henry (Mallet).

Lester, Henry M.

Loomis, Mrs. H. P. (Boudinot, Carre).

Luquer, Mrs. L. Mel. (Jay, Bayard).

Luquer, Nicholas (L'Esquyer, de Rapa-
lie, Trico).

Luquer, Thatcher T. P. (L'Esquyer, de
Rapalie, Trico).

MAC-DONALD, MBS. MALCOLM (Ferree,
Le Fevre).

Maddox, Mrs. Virginia K. (D'Aubigne).

Maltby, Miss Dorothy L. (Rapalje,
Trico).

Mann, Mrs. C. Addison (Cazneau, Ger-
mon, Molines).

Marschalk, Edwin A. (Fauconnier, Val-
leau, Chard on).

Marquand, Prof. Allan (Marquand).

Maury, Charles W. (Maury, de la Fon
taine).

Maury, Col. Richard L. (Maury, de la
Fontaine).

McAllister, Miss Julia G. (De Lancey,
Manigault, Marion).

McMurtry, Mrs. Clara L. (Molines).

Merritt, Mrs. Schuyler (Du Bois, Blans
han).

Mesier, Louis (Mesier).

Miller, Kingsbury (Rapelie, Trico).

Mitchell, Cornelius B., Hon. Edward
(Berrien).

Mitchell, Hon. J. Murray (Berrien).

Mitchell, William (Berrien).

Moffat, Mrs. R. Burnham (Jay, Bayard).

Moore, Mrs. John W ( De Maree, Sohier).

Morris, John E. (Bontecou, Collinot).

Morris, Robert Oliver (Bontecou, Col
linot).

Morrison, Mrs. G. Austin (De Camp, de
Mandeville).

Moseley, Mrs, William H. (Molines,
Gail lard).

Mottet, Frederick (Mottet).

Mount, Misses C. A., Susan (De Gray).

Murray, Charles H. (Bascom).

NICOLA, MRS. CHARLKS A. (Plnneo).
Norwood, Miss Catherine (Stelle,
Legereau).

OODEN, WM. B. (Bernon).

Oliver. General Paul A. (Ambrose,

Prioleau, Gallaudet).
Olney, Peter B. (Sigourney).
Olney, Mrs. Peter B. (Sigourney).
Olney, Hon. Richard (Sigourney).
Orr, Mrs. A. E. (L'Esquyer, de Rapalie,

Trico).

PAYNE, MRS. HENRY C. (L'Estrange,

Le Mestre).
Peabody, Mrs. Ellen R. (de Rapalie,

Trico).
Pechin, Mrs. Edmund C. (Gaillard or

Gaylord).

Pechin, Miss Lila S. (Pechin).
Peets, Mrs. Cyrus B. (Harger).
Pelletreau, Vennette F. (Pelletreau,

Gouin).

Perkins, Mrs. Charles P. (Gaineau).
Perot, Joseph S. (Perot).
Pierce, Mrs. Dean (Mascarene).
Pinney, Mrs. Maria W. (Gaillard or Gay-
lord).

Plummer, D. Bowdoin (Beaudofn).
Porter, Mrs. Henry K. (De Camp, Per-

rot).

Potter, James B. M., Jr. (Le Moine).
Potter, William H. (Le Moine).
Prall, Rev. William (Mercereau).
Putnam, Mrs. Erastus G. (Boudinot,

Bayeux, Papin).

QUINTARD, GEORGE W., (Quintard
Fume).

RALPH, MRS. C. M. B. (Chevalier,
Renaudet).

Randolph, Mrs. Edmund D. (Molines).

Rapelje, Jacob G. (de Rapelye, Trico).

Rapelye, Henry S. (de Rapalje, Trico).

Rawson, Mrs. Warren (Petit).

Rees, Prof. John K. (Du Bois, Blanshan).

Reilly, Mrs. Thomas A. (Molines).

Remsen, Mrs. Margaret S. (De Peyster).

Reynolds, Mrs. Benj. (Gaillard or Gay-
lord).

Rhinelander, Philip. T. J. Oakley (Rhine-
lander, Robert, La Tour, de la Borde,
Renaud, Mercier).

Rice, Mrs. Charles E. (Gaillard or Gay-
lord).

Richards, Charles S., Mrs. Susan A.
(Rapelye, Trico).

Rieman, Mrs. Annie L. (de Rapalie,
Trico).

Rivers, Capt. W. C., U. S. A. (Flournoy).

Robert, Miss Mary E. (Robert, La Tour,
de la Borde).

Roe, Mrs. Charles F. (Des Marest, Le
Sueur).

Roosevelt, Mrs. James (de la Noye, de
Lille).

Rumsey, Mrs. William (de Kay).

Rundall, Clarence A. (Doyou, Du Bois,
Blanshan, Ver Nooy).

Russell, Mrs. Henry G. (Bernon).

SAHLER, Miss FLORENCE L. (Du Bois,

Blanshan).
Sanger, Hon. Wm. Cary (Requa).

444

APPENDIX

Sargent, Mrs. Charles 8. (Bernon).
Schauffler, W. G. (Byssel).
Schieffelin, W. Jay (Jay, Bayard).
Schuyler, Mrs. Montgomery (Prevot,

Vincent, Felle).
Seacord, Morgan H. (SIcard, Arneau,

Bonnet, Coutant).
Sell, Dr. Edward H. M. (Seul).
Sellew, Dr. Frederick S. (Selleu).
Shannon, Mrs. P. M. (Molines).
Shelton, E. De Forest (De Forest, Du

Trieux, du Cloux).
Shelton, Miss J. De Forest (same as

above).

Shepard, Benjamin (Molines).
Sherman, Mrs. Byrou (Molines).
Shonnard, F. V. (Mizerol, Praa).
Simons, C. Dewar, J. Dewar (Bacot,

Mercier, de Saussure, Peronneau).
Smith, Miss Amanda M. (Rapalle,

Trico).

Smith, A. Augustus (Pengry).
Smith, Miss L. Cotheal (de Cotele).
Smith, Mrs. Rosa W. (Molines).
Smith, Miss Sarah P. (Rapalie, Trico).
Snitzler, Mrs. John H. (Laborie, de

Resseguier).

Snow, Mrs. James Pardon (Le Conte).
Spencer, Mrs. L. V. B. (Benin).
Stanton, F. McM., Mrs. John, John R.

(De Maree, Sohier).

Stelle, Frederick W. (Stelle, Legereau).
Stelle, Morton B., Jr. (Stelle, Legereau).
Stelle, Wm. Watts (Stelle, Legereau).
Stevenson, Richard W. (Le Fevre,

Duryee).
Stimson, Frederic J., Mrs. H. C. (Boudi-

not, Carre).
Strong, Mrs. Allen H. (de Rapalje,

Trico).

Swan, Mrs. H. Tilden (Molines).
Swift, Mrs. Edward Y. (Le Baron)
Swords, H. Cotheal (de Cotele).
Swords, Miss P. Caroline (de Cotele).

TAYLOR, MBS. VAN CAMPEN (Rapelie,

Trico, Cortelyou).
Thayer, Geo. W. (Molines).
Thayer, Nathaniel (Bayard).
Thayer, Samuel R. (Molines).
Thayer, Mrs. Stephen Van R. (Bernon).
Thomas, W. Grassett (Grassett).
Thompson. Mrs. Ellen S. (Laborie,

Durand, Gilet).

Townsend, Mrs. Howard (Bayard).
Trevor, Henry Graff ( L'Espenard).
Troxell, Miss Clementine R. (Michelet,

Mangeot).
Turner, Rev. C. H. B. (Tourneur, Poin-

sett, Fouchereau).
Turnure, Lawrence (Tourneur).

UTLEY, Miss ELIZABETH M. (Pardieu).

VAN BUBEN, MBS. ROBERT A. (Aymar,

Belon, Magny).

Vanderpoel, Miss M. V. B. (Le Baron).
Van Deventer, Mrs. L. F. (Flournoy).
Van Kleeck, Henry (de Rapelie, Trico,

Du Bois, Bruyn).
Van Rensselaer, C. S. (Bayard).
Vaughan, Miss Matilda R. (Fauconnier,

Pasquereau, Valleau).
Velazquez, Miss Mariana (de Peyster).
Vermilye, Rev. A. G. (Vermilye).
Voute, J. Oscar (de la Voute).

WAGNER, HENBY (Godde, Teulon).
Wallis, Miss Miriam K (Gamier).
Ward, Mrs. Charles Dod (Lequie).
Ward, Henry Chauncey (Gaillard or

Gaylord).
Wardwell, Mrs. Helen E. (Aymar,

Belon, Magny).

Warner, George C. (De Forest).
Weisse, Dr. Faneuil D. ( Faueuil).
Wells, Miss J. Chester (Baret).
White, Mrs. Eliza M. C. (de la Noye, De

Lille, Molines).

Wllcox, Mrs. Wm. W. (Sfileu).
Williams, Miss Anne S. (De Votion).
Williams, Mrs. Catherine P. (De Votion).
Wilson, Rev. Robert (Mazyck, Ravenel,

Le Serrurler, de St. Julien).
Woolsey, Prof Theodore S. (Chevalier).
Wright, Mrs. William J. (Rapalie, Trico,

Cortelyou).

YOUNG, Miss ELIZABETH F. (Du Bois,

Ferree, Deyo, Blanshan).
Young, Mrs. Emilia F. (Du Bois, Ferree,

Deyo, Blanshan).
Young, Mrs. Wm. Hopkins (Hasbroucq,

Doyau, Le Blanc, Du Bois).

INDEX

ACADIA, Huguenot settlement, 114

Adams, John, 431

Alden, John, pedigree of, 126

Allaire, Alexander, 231

Allaire, Louis, 190

Allen. Zechariah, 149

Amadee, sufferings of in the galleys,
80^89

America, French attempts to colonize,
93-112

American Bible Society, founded by a
Huguenot, 19

American character, French estimate
of, 416-419

American civilization, French as a factor
in, 420-427

American Protestantism, debt of to Cal
vin, 427

BANCROFT, GEORGE, 424

Baird, Charles W., 11

Baird, Henry M., 11

Ballou, Hosea, 20

Bayard family: Judith, 216; Mrs,
Samuel, 216, 308-311

Bayard, Thomas F., 311

Beaver, James A., general and governor,
321

Bedloe's Island, 216

Bellomont, Governor, 224

Bethlo, Isaac, refugee, 1652, 216

Benezett, John ^Stephen, earliest open
abolitionist a Huguenot, 315

Beruon, Gabriel : Founder of Oxford set
tlement, 134 ; sketch of his life, 143-
148; residence in Newport, 146;
death in Providence, 147 ; tablet to,
148

Bible, The, cause of reformation in
France, 43 ; clergy's Ignorance of,
40; Queen Anne's, 167; Huguenot
reverence for, 421

Blanchard, Thomas, inventor, 402-406

Bondet, Daniel, Reverend, 239

Bonrepos, David, Reverend, 238,286

Bonne Passe (Bumpus),412

Boyer family of Pennsylvania, 318

Boston : Hospitality to Huguenots, 131,
132 ; French iChurch in, 157 ; a
Huguenot's description of, 192

Boudinot, Elias, 19, 304

Bowdoin, James (Baudouin), 183

Bowdoin, James, governor, 183

Bowdoin College, 185

Brazil, attempted French colonization
In, 94-97

Briconnet, Guillaume, Bishop, 42

Bulflnch, Charles, 181

CALVIN, JOHN, America's debt to, 424 ;

contrasted with Luther, 426
Cauada : Huguenot settlement of, 116
Carre, Ezechiel, 161
Champlain, governor of Canada, 120
Character, Huguenot type of, 206, 413,

420, 421 ; moral and religious, 422

Chardon, Peter, 189

Chartier, Gillaume, first Protestant cler
gyman to cross Atlantic, 95

Cheerfulness, a Huguenot characteristic,
408

Chevaliers, The, of Pennsylvania, 317

Chqate, Rufus, 405

Civilization, American, French as a fac
tor in, 420

Clemens, Samuel L., 35

Coligiiy, Admiral, 49 ; murder of, 57

Colonization plans, 93, 98

Colonial Congress, 19

Colonial Days and Ways, 407

Colonization : French schemes of, 93 ;
Villegagnon's failure In Brazil, 93 ;
disastrous attempts In Florida, 98 ; in
Canada, 112

Columbia College, 223

Constitutional Convention of 1779, 184

Court, Antoine, 74

DANA family: Francis, 186; Richard
Henry, 187 ; James, 187 ; Samuel W..
187 ; Charles A., 187

Daille, Peter (Pierre) Reverend, 161,226,
285

De Bellamy, Governor, opinion of Prot
estants, 48

De Bonneville, George, 319

Decatur, Stephen, 20

De Forest family, the, 212, 264

De Gourges, Dominique, 110

De la Noye, Phillip, 128

Delano, H. A., 128

DeLancey family : Etienne, 258 ; family
mansion in New York, 258

Delaware : Minuit's residence in, 292

Demarest, David, founder of Hacken-
sack, 223

De Monts, Pierre, expedition of, 114-117

De Rasieres, Huguenot, 215

De Qulncey, 34

Dewey, Admiral George, 20

Dragooning, 55

Dresden settlement, Maine, 196-201

Duche family, 311

DuPont family, 311-313

Dupont, Admiral, 20, 313

Reformed Church In New York, a
Huguenot pastor of, 223

EDICT of January, 49

Edict of Nantes, 54 ; revocation of, 54

Edict of Toleration, 78

Encyclical of Pope Leo XIII, answered.

390

English, Philip (L'Anglois), 129
Etienne, Robert, 40

FANEUIL, BENJAMIN, John, Andrew,
173 ; Andrew, 173, 174 ; Benjamin,
174; Peter 175-182; his character,
177 ; gift of market to Boston, 179 ;
tribute to, 182

Faneuil Hall, 19, 180, 181

Farel, Guillaume, 42

445

446

INDEX

Ferree family, 293

Fiske, John, 15

Florida, French colonization scheme, 97

France: Loss of western world, 18;
Huguenot persecutions in, 43-61

Freemasonry, The, French In, 386-396

Fremont, General John C., 20

French Church in Boston, 157

French Church in New York, 225 ; aided
by Dutch, 226 ; first house, 1688, 226 ;
later church edifices, 227 ; members,
227, 228 ; adoption of Episcopal
liturgy, 228; present philanthropic
work of, 229

Freneau, Philip, poet, 269-271

GALLAUDET family, the, 276-278
Galleys, Life In the, 80-92
Gano, John and Stephen, 279-282
Germany, influence of Huguenots in, 70
Germantown , Pennsylvania, early

French settlers of, 316
GIrard, Stephen, 302-307
Girard College, 307
Great Britain, Huguenots in, 67
Green, Richard Henry, 34
Gros, Johann Daniel, 223
Grose, Howard B., 13
Guerrant, Edward O., 430

HAMILTON, ALEXANDER, 20, 252-257

Harlem, settled by French, 223

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 203

Henry of Navarre, Henry IV, 54

Hillegas, Michael, 315

Holland, debt of to Huguenots, 65

Home life, Huguenot in America, 407-415

Houdelette, Henry Clay, 197

Howe, Julia Ward, 208

Hubele. Adams and John, 319

Huguenots: Estimate of, 15; In Eng
land, 16 ; origin of the name, 38 ; per
secutions of in France, 43 ff . ; flight
of, 56; invincible spirit of, 61; in
Europe, 64-73 ; superiority of in arts
and trades, 64 ; later persecutions of,
74 ff. ; influence of upon Puritan
character, 202-211 ; as a factor in
American life, 420-427 ; home life of,
407 ; traits of character, 413

INDIANS, hostile at Oxford settlement,
141

JAY, John, 19, 244-251

Jesuits, intrigues of, 141

Joan of Arc, 25 ; before the Dauphin, 28 ;

trial, 30; sentence, 32; martyrdom,

34 ; estimates, 34 ff.
Johonnot, Daniel, 188

KIRK, DAVID and Lewis, 119

LABORIE, JACQUES, 141

Lafayette, Marquis de, 377; Decoration

Day observance In Paris, 380
La Follette, Robert, 400, 401
La Montague, Johannes, 215
Latin School, Boston, 182
Laudonniere, story of expedition, 100
Laurens, Henry, 327
Leclerc, John, martyr, 44
LeContes, The, Gillaume, 218; Pierre,

218; John and Joseph, 218; John

Lawrence, 218

LeFevre, Jacques, 42

LeFevre, Ralph, 288

LeMercier, Andre, 165

Lescarbot, Marc, 115

Levering family, the, 316

Lodge, Henry Cabot, estimate of Hugue
nots, 19

Louis XV, Edict of against Hugue
nots, 76

Louisiana Purchase, 383

Lovell, John, oration of, 181

Luther, Martin, 426

MAINE, French colony in, at Dresden
196

Manakintown, Va., 348

Manigault, Gabriel, 19, 326 ; Judith, let
ter of, 324

Marchands, The, of Pennsylvania, 319

Margaret of Angouleme, 43

Markos, Abram, organizer of "City
Troop " of Philadelphia, 317

Marion, Francis, 19, 338-344

Marot, Clement, hymns of, 62, 421

Maury, Ann, 373

Mayflower, Huguenot passengers on, 125

Meaux, Reformation at, 43

Memoirs of a Huguenot Family, 363

Menendez, Don Pedro, 108

Minuit, Peter, 214, 292

Molines, Priscilla (Mullins), the Puritan
maiden, 125

Montgomery, Richard, Revolutionary
martyr, 267

NAMES, changes In, 291, 412

Narragansett settlement, the, 151 ; list of
colonists, 152 ; troubles of, 154 ; dis
persion, 155, 156

New Amsterdam, French settlers of,
212 ; first child born in, French, 213 ;
names of first settlers, 214 ; second
governor a Huguenot, 214; first
doctor a Huguenot, 215; fusion of
Dutch and French in, 215

New Bordeaux, French settlement in
South Carolina, 327

New Paltz, Huguenot settlement, his
tory of, 283-289

New Rochelle, Huguenot settlement,
231 ; land bought in 1689, 231 ; names
of .families, 232, 233 ; description of,
234 ; centre of culture, 235 ; French
Church of, 237-241 ; French life of,
409 ; schools of, 414

New York : French among settlers of,
212 ; French families of, 218-222 ; type
of character, 223 ; French club in,
224; French Church in, 225 ; social
leadership in, 432

OLIVER, ANTHONY, 189
Orange, French colony of, 214
Oxford settlement, 134-142 ; families of,
137

PALISSY, BERNARD, 58 ff.

Passeyant, William A., minister and
philanthropist, founder of hospitals,
320

Pennsylvania : Huguenots first white
settlers of, 290 ; Huguenot families,
293, 298, 299

Protestantism, English, 16

Puritan, Dutch and Huguenot con
trasted, 408

Port Royal, naval victory of, 313, 314

INDEX

447

RABAUT, PA PL, pastor, 77

Kapalie, Sarah, 213

Rag carpet, introduced by French, 410

llamsay, South Carolina historian, 323

Revere, Paul, 19, 168-172; Freemason,
386,432

Reynolds, General John F., 20, 296, 297

Reynolds, Admiral William, 297

Ribault, Jean, expedition of, 98-111

Richelieu, Cardinal, 17

Roberdeau, Daniel, 298

Rochelle, La, 39

Rochette, Pastor, last Protestant martyr,
77

Roman Catholic Church : corruption of
in France, 39 ; persecution of Protes
tant reformers, 43

Rou, Louis, Reverend, 227

Russia, French colony in, 70

SALEM, Huguenot refugees in, 129, 130

Sampson, Deborah, 431

Santee River (French Santee), Hugue
not colony, 324

Schley, Admiral W. S., a Huguenot, 20,
297

Schomberg, Huguenot, 17

Sevier, John, 358

Sigourney, Andrew, 188

Simms, William Gilmore, 341

Smith, Helen Evertson, author, 407

South Carolina, Huguenots in, 322; hos
pitable treatment of, 327 ; prominent
French names, 324 ; French Church,
Charleston, 336; John Lawson's
Journal of a Visit to, 334

Staten Island, French settlement on,
217 ; names of settlers, 217

St. Bartholomew's Day, 50 ff.
Stouppe, Peter, Reverend, 240
Stuyvesant, Peter, wife a Huguenot, 216
Sunday, Huguenot observance of, 413
Superstitions fostered In France, 41

TIFFANY family (Jacques Tiphaine an
cestor), 21 9
Teuton, Jean, 128
Thoreau, David, 271-275
Trinity School, New York, 230

UNIVERSALISM, founded in America by
a Huguenot, DeBonneville, 320

VAN DEN BOSCH, LAITRENTIUS, 160
Vassar College, founded by a Huguenot

descendant, 276
Vaasar, Matthew, 20, 275
Vassy, massacre of, 49
Vaudois, persecution of the, 45
Vigne, Jean, claimed to be first white

child born in North America, 213
Villegagnon, failure in Brazil, 93
Virginia : Huguenots in, 345 ; petition to
establish colony in, 346; Manakin-
town colony, 348 ; Huguenot fami
lies, 343 ; French Church in, 354 ; the
Beauford or Buford Family, 357

WALLOONS, French Protestants, 212
Washington, George, Masonic eulogy of,

387
Wittmeyer, Alfred V., Reverend, 229

NAMES OF HUGUENOTS IN AMERICA MENTIONED IN THIS
VOLUME, BUT NOT GIVEN ELSEWHERE IN THIS INDEX

AMIAN, JEAN, 152
Andre, Arnaud, 152
Angevin, Zacharie, 221
Ayrault, Daniel, 146

BADEAU, ELIE, 232
Baillergoau, Jacob, 221
Barbane, Jean, 219
Barbut, Gillaume, 152, 191
Barger, Philip, 191
Basset, David and Peter, 191
Bayeux, Thomas, 221
Beauchamps, Jean, 152
Beaver, John George, 321
Belhair, Daniel, 152
Bergeron, Jacques, 222
Besly, Oliver, 233
Beviere, Louis, 284
Biscon, Isaac, 191
Blansbau, Matthew, 284
Blocq, Albert, 293
Bonnin, Arnan, 222
Boucher, Louis, 191
Bouniot, Ezechiel, 152
Boutineau, Stephen, 190
Bovie, Jerome, 217
Boyer, James, 299
Boyer, Samuel, 318
Brund, John, 299
Bussereau, Paul, 152

CANTON, PETER, 189
Carre, Louis, 222
Cellier, Jean Henri, 319
Chabot, John, 189

Chadaine, Jean, 222
Chadene, Jean, 152
Chapron, Pierre, 221
Chardavoinne, Elie, 222
Chardon, Peter, 189
Charron, Elie, 131
Chauvenant, William, 320
Chevalier, Peter, 299
Chevalier, Phillip, 293
Clapp, Gillaume, 233
Collin, Paul, 152
Cothouneau, William, 233
Coudret, Daniel, 222
Coudret, Jean, 152
Couche, Daniel, 299
Coulon, Jean, 222
Cousseau, Jacques, 220
Crommelin, Daniel, 220

DAVIIJ, JEAN, 152
David, Josue, 152
DeCharms, Richard, 317
De la Plaine, Nicholas, 316
De Neufville, 222
Deyo, Christian, 284
Desbrosses, Jacques, 222
Deschamps, Pierre, 152
Dissosway, 217
Doutell, Michael, 299
Doz, Andrew, 297
Drouhet, Paul, 222
DuCastle, Edmond, 297
Duche, Jacob, 299
Dubois, Jacques, 222
Dubois, Louis, 283

448

INDEX

Dupeen, Daniel, 299
Duraud. Pierre, 222
Durell, Mosea, 299

EQUIEB, JEAN, 222

FLEUBY, PETER, 299
Forney, Peter, 319
Foucault, Andre, 221
Fouchart, Jean, 219
Freer, Hugo, 283
Frere, Hugh, 284
Fume, David, 222

CANCEL, JEAN, 221
Garrlgues, Francis, 299
Gaudineau, Gilles, 222
Oeneuil, Louis, 222
Uermon, Jean, 152
Oillard, Daniel, 222
Oiraud, Daniel, 232
Girrard, Pierre, 222
Goud, Jean and Daniel, 199
Grande, Juste, 217
Gros, Lorenz, 223
Guerin, Estieuue, 233
Guion, 217

HASBBOUCK, JEAN, 284
Hodnett, John, 299
Houdelette, Charles Stephen, 197
Hubele, Adam, 319

IVE, GIBABD, 217

JAQUIN, GEORGE and Jamea F., 1
Jardiues, Dr., 293
Jolin, Andre, 222
Julien, Jean, 152

LAMBEBT, DANIEL, 152
Lambert, Denis, 21»
Lamoreaux, 227
Laurans, Hubert, 293
Lavigne, Charles, 222
Lavigne, Estensie, 233
Laylor, John Henry, 199
LeBoyteau, William, 299
LeBlond, Anthony, 190
LeBrun, Jean, 316
LeBrun, Moise, 152
LeDieu, Lewis, 299
Lefever, Jacques, 292
Lefevre, Simon, 283
Legare, Francois, 152
Legare, Hugh Swinton, 191
LeGendre, Daniel, 152
Legrand, Pierre, 220
Lepperner, Margaret, 234
LeRoux, Bartholomew, 232
LeTort, James, 299, 318
Levering, Joshua, 316
Lorillard, Pierre, 227
Low, C., Beth, 228
Lyron, Lewis, 219

MABE, SIMON, 233

Magnon, Jean, 232
Malbou, Daniel, 199
Many, Jacques, 222
Marchaud, Daniel, 221
Martin, John, 233
Martin, Pierre, 217
Mathiot, Henry Bernard, 319
Maynard, 227 •

Merceveau, Daniel, 222
Mercier, Isaac, 232
Minvielle, Gabriel, 218
Montels, Pierre, 219
Moussett, Thomas, 191

NAUDIN, ELIE, 293

PACA, JOHN, 299
Paillet, Andre, 222
Paris, Amos, 199
Parmentier, Pierre, 217
Passevant, William A., 320
Pelletreau, John. 222
Perry, OliverH.,230
Piervaux, Jean, 222
Pinaud, Jeau,222
Pinnard, Joseph, 299
Pochard, Nicholas, Jean, 179

QUINT ABD, ISAAC, 222

BAMBEBT, ELIE, 152

Rappe, Gabriel, 298

Reboteau, Nicholas, 298

Rembert, Elie, 222

Renardet, James, 299

Renaud, Daniel, 152

Requa, Claude, 219

Reverdy, Peter, 222

Riddle, Francis, 199

Robinett, Samuel, 298

Rochia, Laurens, 293

Rolland, Pierre, Jean, Abraham, 222

Roller, John E., 319

Rouette, Daniel, 293

Roux, Jean, 222

Rusland, Pierre, 222

Rutau, Gerrit, 292

SAUVAGE, ABBAHAM, 191
Saye, Richard, 293
Scurman, Jacob, 232
Signac, Peter, 191
Stain, John, 199
Stilphen, Michael, 199

TABGE, DANIEL, 152, 221
Tillou, Francis R., 222
Tissau, Marie, 131
Tourtellot, Abram, 152, 191
Tripeo, Frederick, 299
Trochon, Pierre, 222

VIDAL, STEPHEN, 299
Vinaux, Jacques, 222
Votaw, Paul, 299
Voyer, Peter, 299

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