Plate XXXIX.—Sheraton type, in Kittredge House; Four-poster, about 1825.
In colonial homes, where bedrooms were fireless, curtains and hangings were important accessories of the bed to shield the sleeper from drafts. These were often made of linen, handspun by some member of the household, and while many were white, some were in colors. One of these, of blue and white homespun pattern, edged with hand-made ball fringe, has been in constant use for generations, and as yet shows not the slightest sign of wear. It is now owned by a fortunate Salem woman.
Plate XL.—Field Bedstead, slept in by Lafayette, in Stark Mansion. Owned by Mrs. Charles Stark, Dunbarton, N. H.
Many of these hangings were made of chintz and hand-embroidered linen, and in homes of limited means they were also made of patch, following the style of the quilt. Blankets were likewise home-made, of handspun wool, adorned with roses in each corner, which gave them the name of rose blankets. A blue and white homespun counterpane added the finishing touch, and often the hangings of the bed were of this same material, the curtains being drawn back loosely so that, on cold nights, they could be permitted to fall about the bed. Often both counterpane and hangings were finished with a hand-made netted fringe, varying in width from five to eight inches.
While beds were a scarcity in the rude homes of our early ancestors, still they were sometimes brought here from over the seas, as is proven from an account written by Rev. Robert Crowell in his History of Essex, in which he speaks of two bedrooms in Darius Cogswell's house. These were divided off from the main room by handsome curtains that were stretched the whole way across, and, in the bed reserved for visitors, the guests of the night lay inclosed with curtains to exclude the night air; these, when drawn in the morning, allowed one to peer through the cracks in the shrunken logs at the world outside.
Most of our ancestors, however, were content with much simpler beds than this, for mere frames, with curtains and valances, were most frequently used, the beds stuffed with straw or feathers plucked from live geese, or poultry, and laid on the floor. Among these early types are "Cupboard" or "Presse" bedsteads, frequently mentioned in the inventories from which we gather much of our information. These, when not in use, were fastened up against the wall, proving valuable space savers where space was limited. Bunks were another type of the early bed in use here, one specimen, used in early days for slaves who were in the family, being still shown at the Adams house at Byfield.
Possibly the early settlers may have used a bed that is still in fashion among the Kentucky mountaineers, known as "Wild Bill." This is a one-poster, rather than a four-poster, and occupies a corner of the loft in a log cabin. The side and end of the cabin serve for headboard and one side of the bed; saplings nailed to the solitary post that runs from roof to flooring supply footboard and sidepiece; springy poles, running crosswise, uphold the home-made straw mattress and feather bed. Doubtless the rest of the mountaineer who uses this is sweet, but to one unused to it, it seems a diabolical bed!