CHAPTER VI
Bedford—Travellers and travelling—Whiskey preferred to victuals and necessaries—Obliging disposition of inhabitants—A musical and social judge—Departure in the stage—The Allegheny mountains—Somerset—Good inn—A murder—visit to the gaol.
Making a virtue of necessity, I consoled myself under my disappointment, by restoring to my constitution the equilibrium of rest, which it was deprived {46} of last night, by the anguish of my foot, and the impatience of the elder Wilson; I accordingly went to bed, and enjoyed an hour’s refreshing repose, after which I arose and sauntered about the house until supper was announced, which I partook of with my civil and attentive host and hostess Mr. and Mrs. Fleming.
Soon after supper, five travellers from the N. W. part of the state, arrived on horseback, with whom I conversed until bed time. They were on their way to Baltimore, and were plain Irishmen, uninformed of any thing beyond their own business, which appeared to be that of packers, or travelling merchants, who vend groceries and various merchandize through the country.
The travelling on these roads in every direction is truly astonishing, even at this inclement season, but in the spring and fall, I am informed that it is beyond all conception.
Apropos of travelling—A European, who had not experienced it, could form no proper idea of the manner of it in this country. The travellers are, wagonners, carrying produce to, and bringing back foreign goods from the different shipping ports on the shores of the Atlantick, particularly Philadelphia and Baltimore;—Packers with from one to twenty horses, selling or trucking their wares through the country;—Countrymen, sometimes alone, sometimes in large companies, carrying salt from M’Connelstown, and other points of navigation on the Potomack and Susquehannah, for the curing of their beef, pork, venison, &c.;—Families removing further back into the country, some with cows, oxen, horses, sheep, and hogs, and all their farming implements and domestick utensils, and some without; some with wagons, some with carts and some on foot, according to their abilities:—The residue, who made use of the best accommodations on the roads, are country merchants, {47} judges and lawyers attending the courts, members of the legislature, and the better class of settlers removing back. All the first four descriptions carry provisions for themselves and horses, live most miserably, and wrapped in blankets, occupy the floor of the bar rooms of the taverns where they stop each night, which the landlords give them the use of, with as much wood as they choose to burn, in consideration of the money they pay them for whiskey, of which they drink great quantities, expending foolishly, for that which poisons them, as much money as would render them comfortable otherwise.—So far do they carry this mania for whiskey, that to procure it, they in the most niggardly manner deny themselves even the necessaries of life; and, as I was informed by my landlord Fleming, an observing and rational man, countrymen while attending the courts (for they are generally involved in litigation, of which they are very fond) occupy the bar rooms of the taverns in the country towns, for several days together, making one meal serve them each day, and sometimes two, and even three days—but drinking whiskey without bounds during the same time. The latter description of travellers—the merchants, lawyers, &c. travel as in other countries—making use of and paying for their regular meals, beds, &c.
The pain of my foot having been much alleviated, by an application of bran and vinegar all night, the next morning after my arrival in Bedford, I walked out into the town, and having occasion to call at some tradesmen’s shops, and at another excellent tavern where the stage from the eastward stops, as that from the westward does at Fleming’s, I was much gratified with the civility and desire to please, which I observed throughout, which impressed me much in favour of the place, and the impression was heightened by another circumstance that forenoon. I had sat down to write, and while engaged at it, the bar {48} keeper, who had been amusing himself with an octave flute, of which I had made a pocket companion, opened the door, and introduced a gentleman of the middle age, who I supposed to be a traveller; but he soon undeceived me, by telling me that he had been informed I was fond of musick, and that I had a German flute with me, which was also his instrument, and he had taken the liberty of calling on me to inform me, that there was a musical society in Bedford, of which he was a member, and that he would convene it that evening for my amusement, if I would assist them by taking a part. I excused myself on account of the pain of my foot, and also on my flute being an octave. He then hoped a glass of punch would be acceptable, which I declined, saying, I never drank spirits of any description. There was something perhaps ungracious in my refusal of his proffered civilities, for he appeared hurt, and made a movement to depart, but I made my peace, and prevailed on him to give me half an hour of his company, by observing that although I was a bad fellow with respect to the bottle, I nevertheless enjoyed very much the society of the well bred and well informed, and felt myself much obliged to him for his polite attention. He proved to be a man of good theoretick information, but with little practical worldly knowledge. From a desire to appear to merit the compliment I had paid him, he was particularly studious of his language, measuring each word, and weighing every sentence before he gave it utterance;—prefacing each speech with “If I may be permitted to hazard an opinion,”—“According to my local ideas,” and other set phrases to fill up the vacuum, while considering what he should next say on the subject under discussion. We talked of the country—of robberies—murders and accidents, and at last he bade me good morning; setting me down, no doubt, as a poor devil without soul, who would {49} not drink spirits. On his taking leave, “my name, Sir, said he is S—— it would perhaps be an unwarrantable liberty to ask yours,” “Not at all, Sir, mine is ——.” Mrs. Fleming afterwards told me that he was one of the associate judges of the county, “a very clever and fine spoken man,” but rather over fond of the universal enemy;—that he had lost considerable property, but that his wife’s fortune being secured to herself, enabled him to still enjoy some of the comforts of life.
This afternoon my wagonner arrived, and went on, appointing to be in Pittsburgh on the Friday or Saturday evening of next week.
Bedford the capital of a county of the same name, is very romantically situated—being hemmed in on all sides by low mountains covered with woods except on the north, towards which point is a long vista, so that it has not unaptly been compared to a barber’s bason, with the rim cut out on one side for the chin. It was considered as a frontier only about twenty years ago; when some of the stoccado which had defended it when it had a garrison, was still to be seen.[19] It now contains about 80 houses, of brick, stone and logs. It has a court-house, a gaol, and school-house, and I was informed that a house is used as a place of worship for any Christian sect, and that sometimes a travelling minister of one or other of the various divisions into which, to its disgrace, Christianity is split, stops to remind the inhabitants of their religious duties.[20]
{50} Apropos of religion.—Asking for a book last night, my landlord sent me Richard Brother’s prophecies, with which farrago of enthusiastick madness, I read myself to sleep. The town is supplied with water from a spring half a mile distant, by means of wooden pipes, which conduct it to a reservoir in the centre: And some chalybeate springs strongly impregnated with sulphur, have lately been discovered in the neighbourhood; to which, according to custom, whether with justice or otherwise, great medicinal virtues are attributed.[21] This town was incorporated in 1794, and is governed by two burgesses, a constable, a town clerk and three assistants.
{51} The 31st day of January at 4 in the morning, I left Bedford in the stage with three gentlemen and a young girl passengers. It had snowed all night, {52} and the ground was covered some inches deep, so we had to proceed slowly to break the road, crossing the West branch of the Juniata twice in the first three miles. As day dawned, the country appeared to be in general rather better settled and cultivated than on the eastern side of Bedford, but it was still very hilly, and wood was the prevailing feature. At half past 10, we had reached the foot of the Allegheny {53} ridge, where we breakfasted; and here I found one of the advantages of travelling in the stage, was to be charged a sixteenth of a dollar more per meal, than if one travelled in any other way.
We were now in Somerset county, and having changed stages, horses, and drivers, we ascended by a very easy road of one mile to the top of the highest ridge of land in the United States, to the eastward of which all the rivers flow to the eastward, to empty themselves into the Atlantick ocean, while to the westward, they flow westerly to unite with the Mississippi, which is their common aqueduct to the gulph of Mexico.[22]
The face of the country before us now changed for the better; not being broken as to the eastward, but fine extensive levels and slopes, well inhabited and cultivated; and the ridges of hills, though long, not so steep, and finely clothed with heavy wood. This was the general appearance of the country, until we arrived at Somerset, the capital of the county, 14 miles from the top of the Allegheny ridge.
This is a new town, having been laid out and built within twenty years: It contains about seventy tolerably good houses, with a court-house, where upstairs, is the present place of worship, common to all sects like Bedford, until a church, which is to be in common also, is erected, for which the town has petitioned the assembly to enable them to raise $3000 by lottery.
We stopped at Webster’s excellent, comfortable, and well furnished inn, where we found good fires, a good supper, and a series of the Baltimore Daily Advertiser.
Since I had come over the three mountains between Strasburgh and Ramsay’s, the principal subject of conversation along the road, was concerning the murder by two Frenchmen of a Mr. David Pollock, on the 23d of this month, on Allegheny mountain. {54} They had shot him, and when he fell in consequence from his horse, they dragged him off the road into the wood, and stabbed him with a knife in several places. He was soon after discovered dead by a company of packers, who had seen two men but a little while before, and had heard soon after, the reports of a double barrelled gun carried by one of them. This, and the meeting of a horse with a saddle and saddle-bags, and no rider, gave them a suspicion, and induced them to search in the wood, following the tracks of men from the road into the wood, to the body. After returning to the road they again saw the two men whom they suspected come out of the woods before them. They pursued them, but lost sight of them at a turning in the road, where they again took into the woods. The packers rode on to the next house and gave an alarm, which soon mustered the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, who arming themselves, went in pursuit of the murderers. One of them resisting, when discovered, was shot, and the other apprehended, and lodged in Somerset gaol.
I had been informed that the prisoner neither spoke, nor understood English, and that since his apprehension, he had no interpreter with him, except a German farmer, who understood French but badly. Impelled by humanity, I asked my landlord to accompany me to visit him. He was a poor, ignorant, abject, pusillanimous wretch of the name of Noel Hugue, and had lately arrived in America from Marseilles, where he had been a traiteur or cook. He denied the murder or any knowledge of it, but his story was inconsistent and dissatisfactory. On my informing him of the motives of my visit, he was very grateful. I advised him to write to any persons at New York or Philadelphia, where he had staid some time after his arrival, who might have it in their power to send him any testimonial of character; {55} and, as I thought his case desperate, to write to his friends or connections in France, and that the court before which he would be tried, or whatever lawyer was charged with his defence, would forward his letters. On my return to the inn a Mr. Leiper, a young gentleman just called to the bar, requested me to accompany him to the gaol, to interpret between him and the prisoner, as he intended voluntarily to undertake his defence, although it was so unpopular as not to be unattended with personal danger, in the irritated state of mind of the country. I complied with his request, but from the interview, I had no reason to expect his humane attempt would be, or ought to be successful.[23]