Part 26

Some elegiac verses, under the title of a “poetic tribute” to the memory of this worthy man,—from the pen of a lady in Philadelphia,—were published in the Port Folio, for April 1813.

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Mr. Shoemaker (who married again) had an only child named Jacob, by his first wife here mentioned. This son became a young man of promising character: but, having entered the American army at the commencement of the revolutionary war, and attained (it is believed) the rank of captain, under the patronage of his uncle David Rittenhouse, he was slain in the campaign of 1781, in South-Carolina. Mr. Rittenhouse was much afflicted by the death of this gallant young man, who fell in the flower of his age.

An occasion presented itself, in which Mr. Rittenhouse, when only in the thirty-second year of his age, was employed in transacting an important piece of business of a public nature: it was as follows.

In consequence of a petition of the Messrs. Penn to the court of chancery in England, exhibited in the year 1735, it was decreed by the lord chancellor, in 1750,—That an agreement which had been entered into between the Penns and Lord Baltimore, concerning the long-subsisting controversy relative to the boundary lines between Pennsylvania and Maryland, should be carried into specific execution: and, accordingly, a final agreement was executed by those proprietaries of the two provinces, on the fourth day July, 1760.

In pursuance of the chancellor’s decree, provision was made for ascertaining and fixing the “circle,” to be “drawn at twelve miles distance from New-Castle, northward and westward, unto the beginning of the fortieth degree of north latitude;”—and thence, running a straight line westward, five degrees in longitude, to be computed from the eastern boundary; as described in the royal charter to William Penn. Commissioners were appointed under the chancery-degree, for settling these boundaries. But nothing was definitively done in the business, until the eleventh of January, 1769; when the line which was run by Messrs. Mason and Dixon in the years 1767 and 1768, in pursuance of the final agreement between the parties before mentioned, was approved and ratified by the king in council.

So early, however, as about the close of the year 1763, four or five years before the running and marking of Mason and Dixon’s line, Mr. Rittenhouse was employed by the Penn family in making some geographical arrangements, preparatory to the final establishment of those boundaries. He was engaged to perform this service, by the Rev. Mr. Richard Peters, (afterwards D. D. and rector of the united churches of Christ-Church and St. Peters, in Philadelphia,) who then officiated as the Governor’s provincial secretary; a gentleman of learning and great worth; and one who, on various occasions, manifested a friendship for Mr. Rittenhouse, as well the high opinion he entertained of his abilities.

The particular department of that business thus committed to Mr. Rittenhouse, seems to have been the fixing of the Circle,—or at least, the tracing of its course or route, topographically; and this was, certainly, a matter of no little difficulty. That this service was performed to the satisfaction of the then administrators of the government of Pennsylvania, and that it was an arduous one, will appear by the following extract of a letter from Mr. Rittenhouse to the Rev. Mr. Barton, dated the sixteenth of February, 1764.

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Footnote 101:

This letter contains, likewise, a short narrative of an occurrence which excited much feeling, and claimed a considerable portion of the public attention, at the time. As Mr. Rittenhouse’s account of the transaction referred to, will serve to shew that he was not an indifferent spectator of the political events of that early day; and, further, that he was zealously disposed to support the legitimate authority of the government, in order to suppress illegal and disorderly proceedings, subversive of the laws and dangerous to the public peace and safety; this part of his letter to Mr. Barton (of the 16th of February, 1764,) is also presented to the reader.

It will be recollected that what was called the Paxton Riot in Pennsylvania, in the year 1763, was occasioned by an attempt made by many of the inhabitants of a district in the upper end of Lancaster (now Dauphin) county, called Paxton, with some of their neighbours, to destroy a number of Indians resident in and near that county; who were extremely obnoxious to the Paxton people, by reason of the supposed treachery, if not actual hostility, of these Indians to the settlers on the Paxton frontier, in the war that had then recently terminated. These unfortunate Indians had, nevertheless, uniformly professed themselves to be friendly to the English, in that war; and were so reputed by the government of Pennsylvania: but finding themselves, notwithstanding, threatened with extermination by “the Paxton Boys” (as they were then called,)—by whom a few old men, women, and children had been destroyed, shortly before, at their homes,—they sought the protection of the government. Part of them were, accordingly, placed in the public prison in Lancaster, and the remainder at the barracks in Philadelphia, as places of security. Those in Lancaster, to the number of fourteen or fifteen, were soon after, as is well known, killed by the Paxton people, one of the prison doors having been forcibly broken open by them. The remnant of these persecuted Indians, who were in Philadelphia, were more fortunate than their brethren; they escaped the horrors of assassination: And it is to the expedition against these wretched fugitives—a mere handful of men, unarmed, and claiming from Christians an asylum from massacre,—that Mr. Rittenhouse refers in his letter.

“You are no doubt, long before this time, well acquainted,” said our young philosopher, “with every particular of the Paxtonian expedition to Philadelphia: nor need I tell you, that whatever information you may have through the channel of ——, will be abominably corrupt. About fifty of the scoundrels marched by my work-shop—I have seen hundreds of Indians travelling the country, and can with truth affirm, that the behaviour of these fellows was ten times more savage and brutal than theirs. Frightening women, by running the muzzles of their guns through windows, swearing and hallooing; attacking men without the least provocation; dragging them by the hair to the ground, and pretending to scalp them; shooting a number of dogs and fowls;—these are some of their exploits.

“I received a letter from sister E. soon after the alarm at Philadelphia was over, and will give you a part of it, which I doubt not will be agreeable to you.”—It is as follows.

—“On Monday morning between one and two o’clock, an express came to the governor, informing that the rebels were on their way, and that a great number of them were on this side the White Horse. There was one express after another, till there was certain intelligence that some of them were at Germantown. When the first express came, the bells were rung, the drums beat, and the constables were ordered to go from house to house, to knock up the inhabitants, and to bid them put candles at their doors: it had the appearance of all the houses being illuminated. Before day, there were above twenty men met at J. J.’s, and chose their officers. Before night they were increased to nearly an hundred; as were likewise most of the other companies: E—— and all our men were in captain Wood’s company. They all appeared to be in high spirits, and desirous to meet the rebels. On Tuesday, when the mayor and the other gentlemen set off for Germantown, the heads of the companies begged of them not to comply with any dishonourable terms, and told them—“Gentlemen, we are ready to go wherever you may command us; and we had much rather you would let us treat with them (the rebels) with our guns.”—On their return, there was a general murmur among the companies against the proceedings of our great men; they knew it, and there was a long harangue made by Mr. Chew: but it did not answer the end. On Wednesday morning I went to —-—, as usual; and on my return home, I stopped at our friend H. J.’s; when, on a sudden, the alarm-gun was fired, the bells began to ring, and the men called “to arms,” as loud as possible. I cannot describe, my dear brother, how I felt: we ran to the door, when to add to my fright, I saw E——, amidst hundreds of others, run by with his gun. They met at the court-house, formed themselves into regular companies, and marched up Second-street as far as the barracks; when they found it was a false alarm.

“It was a pleasing, though melancholy sight, to view the activity of our men. In less than a quarter of an hour, they were all on their march,—it is supposed above a thousand of them; and by all accounts, there were not ten —— among them. It was the common cry, while our men were parading—“What! not one —— among us!”—Instead of joining with others, they would sneak into corners, and applaud the “Paxton-boys.” Their behaviour on this occasion has made them appear blacker than ever.”

Concerning these extraordinary transactions, to which much importance was attached in their day, and which, moreover, constitute a curious and interesting occurrence in the history of Pennsylvania, in the time of our philosopher, the testimony of another respectable witness is added; a person, besides, who bore a principal part in arresting the progress of the insurrection referred to. On the 2d of June, 1765, Dr. Franklin, who was then in London, wrote a letter to the celebrated Henry Home, lord Kames, in which the following interesting circumstances are related, respecting what was called the Paxton Expedition: this letter is inserted entire in lord Woolhousie’s Memoirs of the Life and Writings of Lord Kames. The Doctor therein says—“In December (1763,) we had two insurrections of the back inhabitants of our province, by whom twenty poor Indians were murdered, that had from the first settlement of the province lived among us, under the protection of our government. This gave me a good deal of employment; for, as the rioters threatened further mischief, and their actions seemed to be approved by an increasing party, I wrote a pamphlet, entitled A Narrative, &c. to strengthen the hands of our weak government, by rendering the proceedings of the rioters unpopular and odious. This had a good effect: and afterwards, when a great body of them with arms marched towards the capital in defiance of the government, with an avowed resolution to put to death one hundred and forty Indian converts, then under its protection, I formed an association at the governor’s request, for his and their defence, we having no militia. Near one thousand of the citizens accordingly took arms: Governor Penn made my house for some time his head-quarters, and did every thing by my advice; so that, for about forty-eight hours, I was a very great man, as I had been once some years before, in a time of public danger. But the fighting face we put on, and the reasonings we used with the insurgents, (for I went, at the request of the governor and council, with three others, to meet and discourse them,) having turned them back, and restored quiet to the city, I became a less man than ever; for I had, by these transactions, made myself many enemies among the populace.”

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“I hope,” said he, “you will never believe that I am determined to disclaim all kind of intercourse” with you: for I can say with the greatest sincerity there are very few things I so much regret, as that I have it not in my power to spend a great part of my time with you. My attention has, for some time past, been engaged with such a multiplicity of things, that I may with some reason claim your indulgence for my not writing. Have I not, indeed, an equal right to complain?—for, I think this letter will balance our accounts, from the time I last saw you.

“I waited on Mr. Peters, as you desired me to do. He treated me kindly, and made an offer of doing me some services; for which I am greatly obliged to him. He likewise paid me for my attendance at New-Castle, and much more generously than I expected;—though I found it a very laborious affair; being obliged, singly, to go through a number of tedious and intricate calculations.”

It appears that about this time, Mr. Rittenhouse’s friends had some beneficial object in view for him; perhaps some official situation, which they conceived to be adapted to the nature of his pursuits, and such as might more permanently promote his interests. But whatever that object may have been, he seems to have hesitated about it. If it were a public appointment of a permanent kind, it would probably have required his removal to the city,—a measure which he did not contemplate at that time; and he might, besides, have been disinclined to undertake any official duties, which would be likely to occupy the greater part of his time. He expressed himself thus to Mr. Barton, on the subject, in the letter just quoted:—“I am greatly obliged to you, my dear brother, for pointing out any prospect of advantage to me: I shall consider the matter you mention in your last, and let you know my opinion. The objections you have so well answered, are those which would most readily occur to me. Considering the crazy state of my constitution, a retired life would certainly suit me best. Since death, to use John Bunyan’s phrase, does usually knock at my door once a day, would it not be a folly for me to take up the load of any public business?”

Footnote 102:

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The writer of these memoirs well remembers to have heard Mr. Rittenhouse, when fully matured in years, speak of the pleasure he derived from the reading of John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, while a youth. It is, certainly, no faint compliment to the “well-told tale” of that “ingenious dreamer,” that it engaged the attention of David Rittenhouse, even at a very early period of his life: and that compliment is greatly enhanced by the following beautiful invocation, addressed to the long-since departed spirit of the humble, yet persecuted, the pious, yet fanciful Bunyan, by the amiable Cowper:—

“Oh thou, whom, borne on fancy’s eager wing, Back to the season of life’s happy spring, I pleas’d remember, and, while mem’ry yet Holds fast her office here, can ne’er forget; Ingenious dreamer, in whose well-told tale Sweet fiction and sweet truth alike prevail; Whose hum’rous vein, strong sense, and simple style; Witty, and well-employ’d, and, like thy Lord, Speaking in parables his slighted word; I name thee not, lest so despis’d a name Should move a sneer at thy deserved fame: Yet, ev’n in transitory life’s late day, That mingles all my brown with sober gray, Revere the man, whose PILGRIM marks the road, And guides the PROGRESS of the soul to God.” Cowper’s Tirocinium.

The celebrated Benjamin Franklin too, in the account of his Life written by himself, informs us, that the Pilgrim’s Progress (which Franklin there, inadvertently, calls “Bunyan’s Voyages,”) was a favourite book of his, in his earlier years. “I have since learned,” says the Doctor, “that it has been translated into almost all the languages of Europe; and, next to the Bible, I am persuaded, it is one of the books which has had the greatest spread.”

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About three years afterwards, Mr. Rittenhouse seemed to have been less indisposed to accept of an official situation: and, such was his high standing with the government and its most influential friends, there can be very little doubt he could have obtained a respectable one. It is evident that, at this latter period, when perhaps his health was improved, he had some particular office in view: because, by a letter to Mr. Barton, dated January 28th 1767, he said—“I am entirely satisfied with your proceedings in the affair I recommended to you; and I shall wait on Mr. Peters. The reputation of the office would be very agreeable to me; but the execution of it would, I am afraid, greatly interfere with the other projects you have so much insisted on.”