Εικόνες σελίδας
PDF
Ηλεκτρ. έκδοση

Towanda Creek; thence along the ridge which divides the waters of the east branch of the Susquehanna, from those of the west branch, to a point due west from the mouth of the Nescopeck creek; thence east to the place of beginning, which shall henceforth be known and called by the name of Luzerne county.

In respect to the boundaries, it may be remarked that they include about the western half of the old town and county of Westmoreland. When the act was drawn, the northern line was evidently imperfectly known, for it crosses the Susquehanna three times instead of once, as seems to have been supposed. But the limits were fair and liberal, and included all the New England emigrants, excepting those in the ancient "Lackawa" settlement, and a few on the Delaware.

The five succeeding sections were in the usual form, and invite no comment. Sect. 8, provides that " on the second Tuesday of October next, there shall be chosen (in the town of Wilkesbarre) one representative to serve in the Assembly, one counsellor, two fit persons for sheriff, two fit persons for coroner, and three commissioners. Section 9 provides, "that Zebulon Butler, Nathaniel Landon, Jonah Rogers, Simon Spalding and John Phillips,"* shall be commissioners to purchase land whereon to erect the necessary public buildings.

But no provision had been made for the "little election" to choose judges and inspectors, and the day passed over, no counsellor, assemblymen, or county officers having been chosen.

The least curious reader will be led to inquire, whence the name of "Luzerne?" And especially the young and intelligent citizen of the county, may be presumed earnestly to desire full information on the subject. In the fall of 1778, the alliance with France was formed, and in the following year the Sieur Gerard had leave to return, and a new minister was accredited to the United States. In Congress, "Wednesday, November 17th, 1779, according to order, the Honorable Chevalier de la Luzerne, Minister Plenipotentiary of his most Christian Majesty, was introduced to an audience by Mr. Matthews and Mr. Morris, the two members for that purpose appointed, and being seated in his chair, the Secretary of the Embassy delivered to the President a letter from his most Christian Majesty, of which the following is a translation:

While his companions in the commission are all long, long since gathered to their fathers, we have the pleasure to say that John Phillips, Esq., was last winter married, and is still a highly respectable, hale old gentleman, (May 1843.)

To our very dear, great friends and allies, the President and Members of the General Congress of the United States in North America. Very dear, great friends and allies:

66

The bad state of health of the Sieur Gerard, our Minister Plenipotentiary to you, having laid him under the necessity of applying for a recall, we have made choice of the Chevalier de la Luzerne, a colonel in our service, to supply his place. We have no doubt but he will be agreeable to you, and that you will repose entire confidence in him. We pray you to give full credit to all he shall say to you on our behalf, especially when he shall assure you of the sincerity of our wishes for your prosperity, as well as of the constancy of our affection, and of our friendship for the United States in general, and for each one of them in particular. We pray God to keep you, our very dear, great friends and allies, in his holy protection.

(Underneath)

Your good friend and ally,

LOUIS.

GRAVIER DE VERGENNES."

Done at Versailles, the 31st of May, 1779.

"The Minister was then announced to the House: Whereupon he arose, and addressed Congress in a speech, which, when he had finished, the Secretary delivered in writing to the President, and of which the following is a translation:

"Gentlemen, the wisdom and courage which have founded your republic; the prudence which presides over your deliberations; your firmness in executing, the skill and valour displayed by your generals and soldiers, during the course of the war, have attracted the admiration and regard of the whole world. The king, my master, was the first to acknowledge a liberty acquired amidst so many perils, and with so much glory. Since treaties, dictated by moderation, have fixed upon a permanent base the union of France, with the American Republic, his Majesty's whole conduct must have demonstrated how dearly he tenders your prosperity, and his firm resolution to maintain your independence, by every means in his power. The events which have successively unfolded themselves, show the wisdom of those measures. A powerful ally hath acknowledged the justice of those motives which had compelled the king to take arms, and we may reasonably hope for the most solid success, from the operations of the united fleets. The naval force of the enemy hath been diverted from your Continent.-Compelled to flee to the defence of their own possessions,

all their efforts have been too feeble to prevent our troops from conquering a considerable part."

Such was the letter of introduction from the Count de Vergennes of the Chevalier de la Luzerne; such was a part of his address to Congress; and from this gentleman is derived the euphonious, the sweetly flowing name of the newly erected county. Still surprise might exist that the name of a foreigner, however worthy, should have been selected for the honour, in preference to many equally worthy, who were citizens of Pennsylvania, who had distinguished themselves in council, or in the field; or if a foreigner was to be so honoured, why Rochambeau, the commander of the French forces, who aided Washington to capture Cornwallis, was not preferred? So early as May, 1784, the Chevalier had taken leave, and returned to France. What Minister is now remembered two years and a half after his departure for a distant home? The difficulty is solved by relating, that, in 1782, on the birth of the Dauphin of France, the Chevalier de la Luzerne gave an entertainment in Philadelphia, then, except by the Maschienza, never equalled; and the account of it, written in an extremely popular style to a lady in the country, was first published, or republished about the time Luzerne was erected, and probably, nay, almost certainly, led to the selection of the name. Not doubting such to be the fact, both for the instruction and amusement imparted, I have copied the letter in a note.*

PHILADELPHIA, July 16, 1782.

MADAM,-For some weeks past our city has been amused with the expectation of a most splendid entertainment to be given by the minister, to celebrate the birth of the Dauphin of France. Great preparations, it was said, were made for that purpose. Hundreds crowded daily to see a large frame building, which he had erected for a dancing room, on one side of his house. This building which was sixty feet in front, and forty feet in depth, was supported by large painted pillars, and was open all round. The ceiling was decorated with several pieces of neat paintings emblematical of the design of the entertainment. The garden contiguous to this shed was cut into walks, and divided with cedar and pine branches into artificial groves. The whole, both of the building and walks, were accommodated with seats. Besides these preparations, we are told that the minister had borrowed thirty cooks from the French army, to assist in providing an entertainment suited to the size and dignity of his company. Eleven hundred tickets were distributed, most of them two and three weeks before the evening of the entertainment. Forty were sent to the Governors of each State, to be distributed by them to the principal officers and gentlemen of their respective governments; and I believe the same number to General Washington, to be distributed among the principal officers of the army.

For ten days before the entertainment, nothing else was talked of in our city. The shops were crowded with customers. Hair dressers were retained, and tailors, milliners and mantuamakers, were to be seen covered with sweat and out of breath, in every street.

Monday, July 15, was the long expected evening. The morning of this day was ushered in by a corps of hair dressers, occupying the place of the city watchmen. Many ladies

If history be philosophy teaching by example, the deduction might be that the road to immortality was not that of war, sacrifice, or privation, but the primrose path of hospitality, of courtesy, of display.

were obliged to have their heads dressed between four and six o'clock in the morning, so great was the demand, and so numerous were the engagements this day of the gentlemen of the comb. At half an hour after seven o'clock in the afternoon, was the time fixed in the tickets for the meeting of the company. The approach of the hour was proclaimed by the rattling of all the carriages in the city. The doors and windows of the street, which leads to the minister's, were lined with people, and near the minister's house, there was a collection of all the curious, and idle men, women and children of the city, who were not invited to the entertainment, amounting probably to ten thousand people. The minister was not unmindful of this crowd of spectators. He had previously pulled down a board fence, and put up a low fence before the dancing room and walks, on purpose to gratify them with a sight of the company and entertainment. He intended further to have distributed two pipes of Madeira wine, and six hundred dollars in small change among them; but he was dissuaded from this act of generosity by some gentlemen of the city, who were afraid that it might prove the occasion of a riot, or some tumultuous proceedings. The money devoted to this purpose was charitably distributed among the prisoners in the jails, and the patients in the hospitals in the city. About eight o'clock, our family, together with Miss and Miss, and our good neighbours Mr. and Mrs., entered the apartments provided for this splendid entertainment. We were received through a side gate by the minister, and conducted by one of his family forward towards the dancing room. The scene now almost exceeds description. The numerous lights distributed through the garden-the splendour of the room that we were approachingthe size of the company, which was now collected, and which amounted to about 700 persons-the brilliancy and variety of their dresses, and the band of music which had just began to play, formed a scene that resembled enchantment. Our companion, Miss — said "her mind was carried beyond and out of itself." We entered the room together— and here we saw the world in miniature. All the ranks and parties, and professions in the city, and officers of our government were fully represented in this assembly. Here were ladies and gentlemen of the most ancient, and of the most modern families. Here were lawyers, doctors, and ministers of the gospel. Here were the learned faculty of the college, and with them many who knew not whether Cicero plead in Latin or Greek, or whether Horace was a Roman or a Scotchman. Here were painters and musicians, poets and philosophers, and men who were never moved by beauty, nor harmony, nor by rhyme nor reason. Here were merchants and gentlemen of independent fortunes, as well as many respectable and opulent tradesmen. Here were whigs, and men who formerly bore the character of tories. Here were the president and members of Congress, governors of Statesgenerals of armies—ministers of finance, and war, and foreign affairs, judges of superior and inferior courts, with all their respective suits of assistants-secretaries and clerks. In a word the assembly was truly republican. The company was mixed, it is true, but the mixture formed the harmony of the evening. Every body seemed pleased. Pride and ill nature for awhile forgot their pretensions and offices, and the whole assembly behaved to each other as if they had been members of the same family.

It was impossible to partake of the joy of the evening, without being struck with the occasion of it. It was to celebrate the birth of a Dauphin of France. How great the revolution in the mind of an American! to rejoice in the birth of an heir to the crown of France! a country against which he had imbibed prejudices, as ancient as the wars between France and England. How strange! for a protestant to rejoice in the birth of a prince, whose religion he has been taught to consider as unfriendly to humanity—and above all, how new the phenomenon, for republicans and freemen to rejoice in the birth of a prince, who must one day be the support of monarchy. Human nature in this instance seems to be

An event occurred in the autumn of this year, regarded by all the ancient people as too important to be omitted. In October the waters of the Susquehanna rose to a height never known except at the ice

turned inside outwards. The picture is still agreeable, inasmuch as it shows us in the clearest point of view, that there are no prejudices so strong, no opinions so sacred, and no contradictions so palpable, that will not yield to the love of liberty.

The appearance and characters, as well as the employments of the company, naturally suggested the ideas of Elysium, given us by the ancient poets. Here were to be seen heroes and patriots in close conversation with each other. Washington and Dickinson held several dialogues together. Here were to be seen men conversing with each other, who appeared in all the different stages of the American war. Dickinson and Morris, frequently reclined together against the same pillar. Here were to be seen statesmen and warriors from the opposite ends of the continent, talking of the history of the war, in their respective States. Rutledge and Walton from the south, here conversed with Lincoln and Duane, from the east and the north. Here and there too, appeared a solitary character, walking among the artificial bowers in the garden. The celebrated author of "Common Sense," retired frequently from company to enjoy the repast of his own original ideas. Here were to be seen men who had opposed each other in the councils and parties of their country, forgetting all former resentments, and exchanging civilities with each other. Even M-n and R――d, accosted each other with all the kindness of ancient friends. Here were to be seen men of various countries and languages, such as Americans and Frenchmen, Englishmen and Scotchmen, Germans and Irishmen, conversing with each other like children of one father. And lastly, here were to be seen the extremes of the civilized, and of the savage life. An Indian chief in his savage habits, and the Count Rochambeau in his expensive and splendid uniform, talked with each other, as if they had been the subjects of the same government, generals in the same army, and the partakers of the same blessings of civilized life.

About half an hour after eight o'clock, the signal was given for the dances to begin. Each lady was provided with a partner before she came. The heat of the evening deterred above one half of the company from dancing. Two sets however, appeared on the floor during the remaining part of the evening.

On one side of the room were provided two private apartments, where a number of servants attended to help the company to all kinds of cool and agreeable drinks, with sweet cake, fruit and the like. Between these apartments, and under the orchestra, there was a private room where several ladies, whose dress would not permit them to join the assembly, were indulged with a sight of the company through a gauze curtain. This little attention to the curiosity of these ladies, marks in the strongest manner the minister's desire to please every body.

At 9 o'clock, were exhibited a number of rockets from a stage erected in a large open lot before the minister's house; they were uncommonly beautiful, and gave universal satisfaction.

At 12 o'clock, the company was called to supper. It was laid behind the dancing room under three large markees, so connected together as to make one large canopy. Under this canopy were placed seven tables, each of which was large enough to accommodate fifty people. The ladies, who composed near one-half of the whole assembly, took their seats first, with a small number of gentlemen to assist in helping them. The supper was a cold collation, simple, frugal and elegant, and handsomely set off with a desert consisting of cakes, and all the fruits of the season. The Chevalier de la Luzerne, now appeared with all the splendour of the minister, and all the politeness of a gentleman. He walked along the tables, and addressed himself in particular to every lady. A decent and respectful silence pervaded the whole company. Intemperance did not show its head-levity composed its

« ΠροηγούμενηΣυνέχεια »