These are the persons at Newcastle with whom we have some acquaintance, and such the hope they have given us. We have promised them to continue it, and write to them, and send them such books as we might deem necessary for them.
Returning now to our boat, it left about ten o'clock for a place a little higher up the river where they had to take in some wheat, and where we were to go on foot, with the Quaker's wife. We reached it about noon, and found the boat laden, and lying high up on the land, so that we had to wait until the tide was half flood. We saw there a piece of meadow or marsh, which a Dutch woman had dyked in, and which they assured us had yielded an hundred for one, of wheat, notwithstanding the hogs had done it great damage. The boat getting afloat, we left about three o'clock, and moved up with the tide. The weather was pleasant and still, with a slight breeze sometimes from the west, of which we availed ourselves; but it did not continue long, and we had to rely upon our oars. We arrived at Upland about seven o'clock in the evening, and it was there only half flood, so much later does the tide make there than at Newcastle. The Quaker received us kindly, gave us supper, and counselled with us as to how we should proceed further. We were shown a better place to sleep than we had when we were here before.
27th, Wednesday. It rained some during the night and it was very misty early in the morning. Before the tide served to leave, we agreed with this man who had brought us up, to send us in his boat to Burlington, with two boys to manage it, paying him twenty guilders for the boat, and three guilders a day to each of the boys for three days, amounting in the whole to thirty-eight guilders; but one of the boys wishing too much, he determined to take us up himself. A good wind coming out of the south, we breakfasted and dined in one meal, and left about ten o'clock, with a favorable wind and tide, though at times the wind was quite sharp. We sailed by Tinakonk again, but did not land there. It began at noon to rain very hard, and continued so the whole day, and also blew quite hard. We ran aground on the lee shore upon a very shallow and muddy place, from which we got off with difficulty. On account of this and other accidents, if we had had the boys it would have been bad for us. We arrived at Wykakoe,[268] a Swedish village on the west side of the river, in the evening at dusk, where we went, all wet, into the house of one Otto, who had three children lying sick with the small-pox. We dried ourselves here partly. He gave us supper and took us to sleep all together in a warm stove room, which they use to dry their malt in and other articles. It was very warm there, and our clothes in the morning were entirely dry.
28th, Thursday. It was flood at daylight when we left, but had not gone far before I discovered I had left one of my gloves behind, whereupon we ran the boat ashore, and I went back and found it. My comrade was more unfortunate, for after we had proceeded full two hours, and when we were going to breakfast on what our female friend had given us, he found he had left his knife and fork; but we had gone too far to lose the time to go back for them. The weather was foggy, but when the sun had risen a little, it cleared away and became pleasant and calm. We therefore advanced rapidly, rowing with the tide, and reached Takany of which we have before spoken, about ten o'clock, and where we landed a person who had come up with us. We continued on, and as the tide just commenced rising there we had a constant flood tide with us to Burlington, where we arrived about two o'clock. We were put ashore on an island of Peter Aldrix[269] who had given us a letter of recommendation to a person living there, and working for him. We paid Robert Wade who and his wife are the best Quakers we have found. They have always treated us kindly. He went immediately over to Burlington where he did not stop long, and took the ebb tide and rowed with it down the river. It was not high tide for an hour and a half after we arrived at the island, and there is, therefore, a difference of eleven hours or more in the same tide from Newcastle.
The man who lived on this island was named Beerent ——, and came from Groningen. He was at a loss to know how to get us on further. Horses, absolutely, he could not furnish us; and there was no Indian about to act as a guide, as they had all gone out hunting in the woods, and none of them had been at his house for three weeks. To accompany us himself to Achter Kol or the Raritans, and return, could not be accomplished in less than four days, and he would have to leave his house meantime in charge of an Indian woman from Virginia, who had left her husband, an Englishman, and with two children, one of which had the small-pox, was living with him; and she could be of no use to any one, whether Indians or other persons who might come there. We were compelled again to wait upon the providence of the Lord.
About three o'clock in the afternoon a young Indian arrived with whom we agreed to act as our guide, for a duffels coat which would cost twenty-four guilders in zeewant, that is, about five guilders in the money of Holland; but he had a fowling-piece with him which he desired first to take and have repaired at Burlington, and would then come back. He accordingly crossed over, but we waited for him in vain, as he did not return. The greatest difficulty with him was, that we could not speak the Indian language, and he could not speak a word of anything else. He not coming, we asked Beerent if he would not undertake the task, which, after some debate, he consented to do. He arranged his affairs accordingly, and prepared himself by making a pair of shoes or foot-soles of deer skin, which are very comfortable, and protect the feet. That was done in half an hour. We were to give him thirty guilders in zeewant, with which he was satisfied.
29th, Friday. We breakfasted, and left about ten o'clock in a canoe, which set us on the west side of the river, along which a foot-path runs a part of the way, in an east-northeast direction, and then through the woods north-northeast. We followed this path until we came to a plantation, newly begun by a Quaker, where we rested and refreshed ourselves. We agreed with this man, who came in the house while we were there, that he should put us over the river for three guilders in zeewant. We crossed over about one o'clock, and pursued a foot-path along the river, which led us to a cart-road, and following that we came to the new grist-mill at the falls, which, in consequence of the great flow of water, stood in danger of being washed away.[270] Crossing here, we began our journey in the Lord's name, for there are no houses from this point to Peskatteway, an English village on the Raritans. We had now gone twelve or thirteen miles from Peter Aldrix's island, and it was about two o'clock in the afternoon.
We must here make some general observations in relation to the South River. The Dutch, who first discovered and took possession of it, so named it, undoubtedly because it empties into the sea in the most southerly part of New Netherland, to wit, in latitude 39° north, being one degree and twenty minutes, or more, further south than the mouth of the North River. It runs up from the sea northwesterly, making a fine, large bay, much better than that of the North River, or Godyn's Bay.[271] It is not only of greater length, which is about forty miles, with a breadth of six or seven miles; but it has a fine bottom of sand, and gravel reefs all along the banks. The water is purer up above. From the inside or middle of the bay, its course to the narrow part, or river, is mostly south [north] or bent gradually from northwest to north, with here and there a small bay, and it continues running so, from twenty to twenty-four miles, or more, to Newcastle, where it bends to the east to northeast, with several bays on both sides, to Upland and Tinakonk, a distance of twenty-four miles. At Tinakonk, it runs about east or east-northeast, but having passed that island it bears off again, north to northeast; also, with several bays to Wykakoe about twenty miles, and continuing so to Takany, sixteen miles. From Takany to Burlington, it runs again more easterly and east-northeast twenty miles, thence due east six miles, where there is a round bay turning north to north-northwest to the falls four miles, so that from the falls to the sea coast it is about eighty English miles, or twenty Dutch miles, from Newcastle each way. It has numerous fine navigable creeks on both sides of it, which are like small rivers running far inland, but how far is not yet known; nor is it known how far the South River extends above the falls, as they have not explored above them. This river is generally very clear. I do not know that there is anything above to be avoided, except occasionally a muddy point on the margins. Heavy ships, drawing ten, twelve, and fourteen feet water, go up the river as far as Burlington, and higher; but in the great bend where it runs to the falls, it can be navigated close to the falls by boats, drawing five and six feet and more. The land on the east side is generally lower than on the west, and is not so good. It continues very flat, deep into the country, as you go far down. On the west side the land is tolerably high, immediately off from the river, and is generally good all the way down. Both sides being low, this river is better to navigate than the North River, for that has very high banks, which being frightfully steep and rocky, it is subject to great whirlwinds and squalls, which, coming suddenly over the hills, fall upon the river, which is no small inconvenience. The water which comes over the falls is pure and clear, and is quite blue, but running lower down, it gradually becomes muddy, but is entirely clear again at Takany, and reasonably so at Wikakoe; further on it becomes thick, but it is always good. As to the salubrity of the climate of which we did not say anything when we spoke of Maryland, it is certain that Virginia being the lowest on the sea, is the most unhealthy where they [die] by thousands sometimes of the epidemical disease of the country. In Maryland, which lies higher up from the sea than Virginia, it is more healthy, although it is subject to the epidemic. Therefore, all those who come into the country, must undergo this sickness without escape. Even the children who are born there are not excepted, as those who live there and have experienced it told us when we were there. And although their manner of life is the cause of much irregularity in their health, there is nevertheless something in the atmosphere which produces disease: but this will become gradually better, as the country is measurably populated, and thereby becomes more cleared, as experience shows is true of all the lands in America which have been unhealthy. The uppermost parts of Maryland are more healthy than those lowest down. The South River is more salubrious than Maryland, as it lies higher. It partakes however somewhat of the nature of Maryland, especially below, but with great difference, which every year increases. The higher the more healthy; although at the Hoerekil, which is near the sea, it is as healthy as anywhere, because it is well populated. In the upper part of the river it is as healthy as it can be anywhere, and for myself, I believe that New Netherland has not a place in it which is not healthier than any part of old Netherlands in the United Provinces, and is becoming every day more salubrious, especially if they live here as they do in Holland. The North River is entirely healthy, for it lies much higher up than the South River, that is further to the north, and although it is nearer the sea than where they live in Maryland and on the South River, it is nevertheless more wholesome, which shows that it is not the air of the sea which causes the insalubrity, but other reasons which I will not consider at present.
As the Hollanders were the first discoverers of this river, they were also the first residents, settling themselves down in small numbers at the Hoerekil and thereabouts, and at Santhoeck, though the most people and the capital of the country were at the Manhatans, under the rule and authority of the West India Company.[272] The Indians killed many of them because they did not live well with them, especially with their women, from which circumstance this kill derives its name. Others fled to the Manhatans, but afterwards returned, and have since continued in possession of the river, although in small numbers and with little strength. Meanwhile some Swedish soldiers, who had been in the service of the West India Company, went to Sweden, and there made known the fact that the country was so large the Hollanders could not possess it all, especially the river called the South River, lying next to Virginia, their old friends, and that it was only necessary to go there with a small number of people to take possession of it, as no one in that country was powerful enough to prevent it. They accordingly ordered a levy to be made of men, half of them under the name of soldiers, and half of boors, and sent them under a certain commander to settle on the west side of the river, well knowing where the best and healthiest climate was, namely, up the river, and being thus near their friends, the English. Whether these good friends, here or in Europe, have not assisted them in this matter, is not known. They thus established themselves there, the Hollanders either being not strong enough or too negligent to prevent them, whilst the West India Company began gradually to fail, and did not hinder them. The Swedes therefore remained, having constructed small fortresses here and there, where they had settled and had Swedish governors.
The Hollanders did not abandon this river, but they, as well as the Swedes, sought to advance their settlements; but although the whole country belonged to them, they were nevertheless unable to possess it, the company either having too much to do elsewhere, or not ability sufficient, or sending over too few people. They always however had their forts, without hindrance or molestation from the Swedes, or being brought under their dominion. This continued during the time the burgomasters of the city of Amsterdam had this territory under their protection, up to the year 1664, when Governor Stuyvesant went there with a large force, planted himself before the fortress of Christina on Christina Kill, cannonaded it and compelled them to surrender it with all their government to him, in the name of the city of Amsterdam.[273] In that year the whole country was reduced under the dominion of the crown of England, which put an end to the rule of the Hollanders, who had then recently conquered the Swedes.