Read A History of New York Online
Authors: Washington Irving
A History of New York (53 page)
p. 188
Tom Paine:
It would have been impossible for Stuyvesant to read the work of Thomas Paine, who was born in 1737 and published his most famous pamphlet,
Common Sense,
in 1776. Paine died in New York in June 1809, just six months before the History was published, so it is possible that Irving includes him in this litany of political philosophers as a kind of memorial homage.
Tom Paine:
It would have been impossible for Stuyvesant to read the work of Thomas Paine, who was born in 1737 and published his most famous pamphlet,
Common Sense,
in 1776. Paine died in New York in June 1809, just six months before the History was published, so it is possible that Irving includes him in this litany of political philosophers as a kind of memorial homage.
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p. 202
long sided Connecticut schoolmaster:
This is another prefigurement of Ichabod Crane, the lanky, Connecticut-born schoolmaster of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
long sided Connecticut schoolmaster:
This is another prefigurement of Ichabod Crane, the lanky, Connecticut-born schoolmaster of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
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p. 240
Dirk Schuiler:
In an 1851 letter to his friend Jesse Merwin, the model for schoolmaster Ichabod Crane in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” Irving told him that the “character of Dirk Schuyler [sic]” came from Merwin's tales of “John Moore, the vagabond admiral of the lake” at Kinderhook, and the pranks that Irving and Merwin pulled on Moore in 1808. The idea of an earlier Knickerbocker character being inspired by stories told by the living inspiration for a later Knickerbocker character has a kind of backward symmetry that the Dutch historian would applaud.
Dirk Schuiler:
In an 1851 letter to his friend Jesse Merwin, the model for schoolmaster Ichabod Crane in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” Irving told him that the “character of Dirk Schuyler [sic]” came from Merwin's tales of “John Moore, the vagabond admiral of the lake” at Kinderhook, and the pranks that Irving and Merwin pulled on Moore in 1808. The idea of an earlier Knickerbocker character being inspired by stories told by the living inspiration for a later Knickerbocker character has a kind of backward symmetry that the Dutch historian would applaud.
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p. 244
But trust me gentlefolk:
Irving's rhapsodic depictions of the “wildness and savage majesty” of the Hudson River inspired the poet William Cullen Bryant and the artists Thomas Cole, Asher Durand, and William Guy Wall, who would come to be known as the foremost members of the Hudson River School of painting. Irving's Hudson River writings would also help drive tourism to the region, and prompt the construction of several resorts, such as the Catskill Mountain House. Some of these vacation spots would later advertise their proximity to “Rip's cabin” or other landmarks of Irving's stories.
But trust me gentlefolk:
Irving's rhapsodic depictions of the “wildness and savage majesty” of the Hudson River inspired the poet William Cullen Bryant and the artists Thomas Cole, Asher Durand, and William Guy Wall, who would come to be known as the foremost members of the Hudson River School of painting. Irving's Hudson River writings would also help drive tourism to the region, and prompt the construction of several resorts, such as the Catskill Mountain House. Some of these vacation spots would later advertise their proximity to “Rip's cabin” or other landmarks of Irving's stories.
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p. 253
Van Winkles:
In the story “Rip Van Winkle,” Knickerbocker will compare his hero unflatteringly to his martial ancestors, who “figured so gallantly in the chivalrous days of Peter Stuyvesant, and accompanied him to the siege of Fort Christina.” This is also an opportunity for Knickerbocker to corroborate Seth Handaside's remarks about his own Scaghtikoke ancestry.
Van Winkles:
In the story “Rip Van Winkle,” Knickerbocker will compare his hero unflatteringly to his martial ancestors, who “figured so gallantly in the chivalrous days of Peter Stuyvesant, and accompanied him to the siege of Fort Christina.” This is also an opportunity for Knickerbocker to corroborate Seth Handaside's remarks about his own Scaghtikoke ancestry.
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p. 267
Brummagem:
An expression meaning “cheap and showy” as well as “counterfeit,” from a dialect form of Birmingham, the English city that was known in the seventeenth century as a center for the manufacture of counterfeit coins.
Brummagem:
An expression meaning “cheap and showy” as well as “counterfeit,” from a dialect form of Birmingham, the English city that was known in the seventeenth century as a center for the manufacture of counterfeit coins.
p. 272
“Brimful of wrath and cabbage!”:
The great Dutch poet here is Knickerbocker (Irving) himself: there is no previous usage to be found.
“Brimful of wrath and cabbage!”:
The great Dutch poet here is Knickerbocker (Irving) himself: there is no previous usage to be found.
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p. 295
mushrooms of a day:
Another reference to the New York nouveaux riches Irving lampooned as “mushroom upstarts” in
Salmagundi.
mushrooms of a day:
Another reference to the New York nouveaux riches Irving lampooned as “mushroom upstarts” in
Salmagundi.
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p. 296
true Hollands:
Also known as Holland gin, a liquor distilled from rye and barley and flavored with juniper berries, that was originally manufactured in Holland.
true Hollands:
Also known as Holland gin, a liquor distilled from rye and barley and flavored with juniper berries, that was originally manufactured in Holland.
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p. 302
hoe cakes, bacon, and mint julep:
Like the poet Joel Barlow before him, who hymned “Hoe-Cake, fair Virginia's pride!” in his poem “The Hasty Pudding,” Irving takes an interest in the foods of other American regions. Hoe cakes, which are made from cornmeal and fried in oil, are not unlike the Dutch “dough nut” whose praises he prefers to sing.
hoe cakes, bacon, and mint julep:
Like the poet Joel Barlow before him, who hymned “Hoe-Cake, fair Virginia's pride!” in his poem “The Hasty Pudding,” Irving takes an interest in the foods of other American regions. Hoe cakes, which are made from cornmeal and fried in oil, are not unlike the Dutch “dough nut” whose praises he prefers to sing.
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p. 332
compelled to learn the English language:
Like Stuyvesant, some of Irving's Dutch American contemporaries were still refusing to adopt the English language in their communities. Mitchill's
Picture of New York
particularly notices the neighborhood of Flatbush, Brooklyn, for its poignant adherence to the Dutch language in the face of certain dissipation:
compelled to learn the English language:
Like Stuyvesant, some of Irving's Dutch American contemporaries were still refusing to adopt the English language in their communities. Mitchill's
Picture of New York
particularly notices the neighborhood of Flatbush, Brooklyn, for its poignant adherence to the Dutch language in the face of certain dissipation:
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The principal inhabitants of this county are descendants of the Dutch settlers, who first encroached upon the natives, in these parts. They have Dutch preaching in some of the religious meeting-houses, and many families learn no other language, until they are old enough to go abroad. But there are no Dutch schools, and, consequently, the language is on the decline.
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The Dutch language was also still in active use in upstate New York, where Dutch was spoken by the descendants of the original settlers into the early nineteenth century, and used as the language of record by town courts and Dutch Reformed churches until the Revolutionary War.
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p. 343
English cherry trees:
Regardless of whether or not Stuyvesant decimated his cherry orchard in a Washingtonian manner, one fruit tree from Stuyvesant's “bouwerie” survived to outlive Irving himself: a pear tree, which had reportedly been planted on the Dutch governor's farm in 1647. The tree, revered by New Yorkers as a last tangible connection to New Amsterdam, finally succumbed in 1867. A plaque at the north-east corner of Third Avenue and Thirteenth Street commemorates the spot where it stood.
English cherry trees:
Regardless of whether or not Stuyvesant decimated his cherry orchard in a Washingtonian manner, one fruit tree from Stuyvesant's “bouwerie” survived to outlive Irving himself: a pear tree, which had reportedly been planted on the Dutch governor's farm in 1647. The tree, revered by New Yorkers as a last tangible connection to New Amsterdam, finally succumbed in 1867. A plaque at the north-east corner of Third Avenue and Thirteenth Street commemorates the spot where it stood.
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p. 344
stocking in the chimney:
Another St. Nicholas innovation that would reappear in Moore's poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas”: “the stockings were hung by the chimney with care / In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there.”
stocking in the chimney:
Another St. Nicholas innovation that would reappear in Moore's poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas”: “the stockings were hung by the chimney with care / In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there.”
1
Beloe's Herodotus.
2
Faria y Souza. Mick. Lus. Note B, 7.
3
Sir W. Jones, Diss. Antiq. Ind. Zod.
4
Plut. de plac. p. p.
5
Achill. Tat. Isag. cap. 19. Ap. Petav. t. iii, p. 81. Stob. Eclog. Phys. lib. i, p. 56. §Diog. Laert. in Anaxag. 1. ii, sec. 8. Plat. Apol. t. i, p. 26. Plut. de Superst. t. ii, p. 269. Xenoph. Mem. 1. iv, p. 815.
6
Aristot. Meteor. 1. ii, c. 2. Idem. Probl. sec. 15. Stob. Ecl. Phys. 1. i, p. 55. Bruck. Hist. Phil. t. i, p. 1154, et alii.
7
Philos. Trans. 1795, p. 72.âidem. 1801, p. 265.âNich. Philos. Journ. 1. p. 13.
8
Aristot. ap. Cic. lib. i, cap. 3.
9
Aristot. Metaph. lib. i, c. 5. Idem de cÅlo 1. 3. c. i. Rousseau mem. sur musique ancien. p. 39. Plutarch de plac. Philos. lib. i. cap. 3. et. alii. â¡Tim. Locr. ap. Plato. t.
3
. p. 90.
3
. p. 90.
10
Aristot. Nat. Auscult. 1. 2. cap. 6. Aristoph. Metaph. lib. i. cap.
3
. Cic de. Nat. deor. lib. i. cap. 10. Justin. Mart. orat. ad gent. p. 20.
3
. Cic de. Nat. deor. lib. i. cap. 10. Justin. Mart. orat. ad gent. p. 20.
11
Mosheim in Cudw. lib. i. cap. 4. Tim. de anim. mund. ap. Plat. lib.
3
. Mem. de l'acad. des Belles Lettr. t. 32. p. 19. et alii.
3
. Mem. de l'acad. des Belles Lettr. t. 32. p. 19. et alii.
12
Book i. ch. 5.
13
Holwell. Gent. Philosophy.
14
Johannes Megapolensis, jun. Account of Maquaas or Mohawk Indians. 1644.
15
MSS. Biblist. Roi. Fr.
16
Darw. Bot. Garden. Part I, Cant. i, 1. 105.
17
Vide Ed. Review
18
Grotius. Puffendorf, b. 4. c. 4. Vattel, b. i. c. 18. et alii.
19
VattelâB.i, ch. 17. See likewise Grotius, Puffendorf, et alii.
20
Black. Com. B. II, c. i.
21
Ogilvie calls it a frigate.
22
This river is likewise laid down in Ogilvy's map as ManhattanâNoordtâMontaigne and Mauritius river.
23
Juet's Journ. Purch. Pil.
24
So called, because one Joseph Andrews, a pirate and murderer, was hanged in chains on that Island, the 23d May, 1769. EDITOR.
25
“Men by inaction degenerate into Oysters.” Kaimes.
26
This is a fearful combination of rocks and whirlpools, in the sound above New York, dangerous to ships unless under the care of a skillful pilot. Certain wise men who instruct these modern days have softened this characteristic name into
Hurl gate,
on what authority, I leave them to explain. The name as given by our author is supported by Ogilvie's History of America published 1671, as also by a journal still extant, written in the 16th century, and to be found in Hazard's state papers. The original name, as laid down in all the Dutch manuscripts and maps, was
Helle gat,
and an old MS. written in French, speaking of various alterations in names about this city observes “De
Helle gat
trou dâEnfer, ils ont fait
Hell gate,
Porte d'Enfer.ӉPrinter's Devil.
Hurl gate,
on what authority, I leave them to explain. The name as given by our author is supported by Ogilvie's History of America published 1671, as also by a journal still extant, written in the 16th century, and to be found in Hazard's state papers. The original name, as laid down in all the Dutch manuscripts and maps, was
Helle gat,
and an old MS. written in French, speaking of various alterations in names about this city observes “De
Helle gat
trou dâEnfer, ils ont fait
Hell gate,
Porte d'Enfer.ӉPrinter's Devil.
27
Let. of I. Megapol. Hag. S. P.
28
Ogilvie, in his excellent account of America, speaking of these parts, makes mention of Lions, which abounded on a high mountain, and likewise observes, “On the borders of Canada there is seen sometimes a kind of beast which hath some resemblance with a horse, having cloven feet, shaggy mayn, one horn just on the forehead, a tail like that of a wild hog, and a deer's neck.” He furthermore gives a picture of this strange beast, which resembles exceedingly an unicorn.âIt is much to be lamented by philosophers, that this miraculous breed of animals, like that of the horned frog, is totally extinct.
29
This battle is said by some to have happened much later than the date assigned by our historian. Some of the ancient inhabitants of our city, place it in the beginning of the last century. It is more than probable, however, that Mr. Knickerbocker is correct, as he has doubtless investigated the matter.â
Print
.
Dev.
.
Dev.
30
“De Vries mentions a place where they over-haul their ships, which he calls
Smits Vleye,
there is still to this day a place in New York called by that name, where a market is built called the Fly market.”âOld MS. There are few native inhabitants, I trow, of this great city, who when boys were not engaged in the renowned feuds of Broadway and Smith flyâthe subject of so many fly market romances and schoolboy rhymes. EDITOR.
Smits Vleye,
there is still to this day a place in New York called by that name, where a market is built called the Fly market.”âOld MS. There are few native inhabitants, I trow, of this great city, who when boys were not engaged in the renowned feuds of Broadway and Smith flyâthe subject of so many fly market romances and schoolboy rhymes. EDITOR.
31
This house has been several times repaired, and at present is a small yellow brick house, No. 23, Broad Street, with the gable end to the street, surmounted with an iron rod, on which, until within three or four years, a little iron ferry boat officiated as weather cock.
32
“Perplexed with vast affairs of state and town, His great head being overset, hangs down.” TELECIDES, ON PERICLES.
33
This name is no doubt misspelt. In some old Dutch MSS. of the time, we find the name of Evert Duyckingh, who is unquestionably the unfortunate hero above alluded to.
34
Haz. Col. Stat. Paps.
35
David Pietrez
De Vries
in his “Reyze naer Nieuw Nederlandt onder het yaer 1640,” makes mention of one
Corlear
a trumpeter in fort Amsterdam, who gave name to Corlear's Hook and who was doubtless this same champion, described by Mr. Knickerbocker.
De Vries
in his “Reyze naer Nieuw Nederlandt onder het yaer 1640,” makes mention of one
Corlear
a trumpeter in fort Amsterdam, who gave name to Corlear's Hook and who was doubtless this same champion, described by Mr. Knickerbocker.
36
De Vries mentions that this windmill stood on the south-east bastion, and it is likewise to be seen, together with the flag-staff, in Justus Danker's View of New Amsterdam, which I have taken the liberty of prefixing to Mr. Knickerbocker's history.âEDITOR.
37
This is one of those trivial anachronisms, that now and then occur in the course of this otherwise authentic history. How could Manhattan notes be counterfeited, when as yet Banks were unknown in this countryâand our simple progenitors had not even dreamt of those inexhaustible mines of
paper opulence. Print. Dev.
paper opulence. Print. Dev.
38
A corruption of Varleth's berghâor Varleth's hill, so called from one Varleth, who lived upon that hill in the early days of the settlement. EDITOR.
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