the lower end of the candle and then into a block of wood nailed against the wall.

13. There were no carpets, except such as were made of rags and had been woven by the family. The many floors were sprinkled with sand. This was particularly the custom among the Dutch, who, also, ornamented their front doorsusually in two parts, upper and lower-with large brass knockers, which had to be burnished every day. Pewter plates were in ordinary use, and also plain crockery instead of china. Ladies, belonging to the wealthy classes, had each her silk gown, but they did not wear them every day, or change them with every puff of fashion. Home-made woolen garments were the common wear of men; calico and blue check of women. In New Hampshire "it was ordered that the sleeves of the women should reach down to their wrists, and their gowns be closed round their necks. Men were obliged to cut short their hair, that they might not resemble women.

14. In New York many of the customs were such as had been introduced by its Dutch founders. Some of them still remain; such as the "May-day moving," the visit of Santa Claus "the night before Christmas," the coloring of "Easter eggs," and the general visiting on New Year's day. In the houses of the wealthy planters of the south the "people sat on carved chairs at quaint tables, amid piles of ancestral silver ware, and drank punch out of costly bowls from Japan." In that early period, long before railroads were even thought of, the facilities for traveling were small indeed. Stage coaches were few, and horseback riding was common. In the towns

of Maryland and Virginia the ladies made visits in sedanchairs borne by lackeys in livery. A coach ran in two days from New York to Philadelphia. From Boston to New York was a week's journey.

15. The Indians had a kind of money called wampum, which was made of clam shells. Gold and silver were of no value to them. For the furs and skins which they brought to the whites, they would only receive their pay in strings of

Money.

wampum, or in powder, shot, muskets, or rum. Strange to say, the whites adopted this kind of money, not only in transactions between themselves and the Indians, but it was taken in payment of debts due by one settler to another. But wampum, in the course of time, became so abundant that custom and law abolished it. The gold and silver money of England, Spain and Portugal, then came into general use; "but these coins being scarce, the people were often forced to barter their commodities instead of sciling them. If a man wanted to buy a coat, he perhaps exchanged a bear skin for it. If he wished for a barrel of molasses, he might purchase it with a pile of pine boards. Musket balls were used instead of farthings. There was not money enough in any part of the country to pay the salaries of the ministers, so that they sometimes had to take quintals of fish, bushels of corn, or cords of wood, instead of silver or gold."

16. As the people grew more numerous, and their trade one with another increased, the want of current money was still more sensibly felt. To supply the demand in Massachusetts, a mint was established in Boston (1652), which coined "pine-tree shillings" for more than thirty years. "The

cles were doubtless thrown into the melting-pot together. But by far the greater part of the silver consisted of bullion from the mines of South America, which the English buccaneers had taken from the Spaniards. Each coin had the date (1652) on the one side and the figure of a pine tree on the other. Hence they were called pine-tree shillings."

SUMMARY BY COLONIES.

1492.

1492-1763.

America having been discovered and extensively explored, actual possession was taken of the new regions by the planting of settlements in them. The first attempts at settlement on the part of the French and English were not successful. On the part of the Spaniards, St. Augustine, Florida, was settled in 1565, and is therefore the oldest settlement in the United States.

Virginia.-The next permanent settlement 1607. (this was made by the English) was at Jamestown. The growth of Virginia was at first slow, owing to the unfitness of the settlers for pioneer life. Domestic strife, the "Starving Time," hostility of the Indians, and Bacon's Rebellion were causes against the progress of the colony; the marriage of Pocahontas, importation of wives, and the cultivation of tobacco contributed to its prosperity. African slavery began in 1619.

1609.

1620.

English king and English church were alike faithfully honored here. The gentry of Virginia. dwelt on their great plantations after a fashion almost patriarchal.'

New York and New Jersey.-The discovery of the Hudson river for the Dutch and their explorations gave them a title to the country, which they took advantage of by making settlements at various places. Liberal inducements were offered to settlers, who, coming mostly from England, preferred English rule; and the Dutch governor was compelled to submit (1664). New Netherlands, while in the possession of the Dutch, made good progress in population and wealth. A large fur trade was carried on with the Indians. The early history of New Jersey is connected with that of New York, both colonies having been under the same ownership or governor much of the time. In both were large numbers of slaves. The Jerseys were never disturbed by Indian wars. The government of both colonies was of the class called provincial or royal.

New England.-Religious motives influenced the first settlers of all the New England colonies. The Pilgrims left England to escape persecution, and, after a brief stay in Holland, established themselves at Plymouth. The other New Eng

Sovereigns of England

Elizabeth. 1558-1603.

James I. 1603-1625.

James L

1634.

1650.

Summary by Colonies.

land colonies, except Rhode Island, were settled
by Puritans. Church and civil matters were
united, and church members only, in two of the
colonies, were permitted to vote and hold office.
The first settlers of Rhode Island, under the lead-
ership of Roger Williams, admitted all persons
of whatever religion to participate in the civil
affairs of the colony. The habits of the early
New Englanders were simple but strict.
"The
church and the school house were built side by
side." Fishing, fur-trading, and agriculture were
the pursuits. The Pequod War, Persecution of
the Quakers, King Philip's War, and the Witch-
craft Delusion were causes that operated against
the progress of the colonies; but the principles,
energy, and character of the people, with their in-
struments of church, school, and college, over-
came all adverse circumstances. At the close of
this period, New Hampshire was under provincial
or royal government; the other colonies of New
England were under the charter rule.

Maryland. The first settlement was made at
St. Mary's. The settlers, like those of New Eng-
land, were influenced by religious motives; but
while they welcomed comers from every Chris-
tian denomination, it was understood that the
colony was established for the particular benefit
of Catholics, who could here enjoy that freedom
which the Puritans had in New England. The
settlers were intelligent and enterprising. Their
principal occupation was the cultivation of to-
bacco. Clayborne's Rebellion and the Civil Wars
were impediments in the progress of the colony.
The form of government was proprietary.

North and South Carolina.-The first settlement in North Carolina was made on the Chowan river (1650), that of South Carolina on the Ashley (1670). The settlers were from Virginia, England, or from English possessions: they were influenced by the hope of bettering their worldly condition. The cultivation of rice was carried on extensively; and indigo, tar, and turpentine were exported. The "Grand Model," from which great expectations had been formed, was a hindrance to the growth of North and South Carolina. The colony was divided in 1729. The form of government of both colonies was provincial or royal.

Pennsylvania and Delaware. -Both Delaware and Pennsylvania were settled by Swedes, the former more than forty years before Penn received his charter (1638). The subjugation of the Swedes by the Dutch placed the settlers under the rule of New Netherlands (1655), but the sur

121

Charles I. 1625-1649.

Charles I

Charles II 1660-1685.

Charles I.

render of New Netherlands to the English gave that power undisturbed possession of the whole region (1664). The charter obtained by Penn, with his grant of Delaware from the Duke of York, put both Pennsylvania and Delaware under 1682. proprietary rule. Like the New England colonies

1733.

1689 to

and Maryland, a leading motive for the settle-
ment of Pennsylvania was religious. Penn wel-
comed all good men to his colony, but he ex-
tended a special invitation to Quakers, who were
subjected to persecution in England. As the In-
dians were dealt with justly and kindly, no
Indian war ever disturbed the colony of Pennsyl-
vania or Delaware. Both colonies, especially the
former, made rapid growth in population.

Georgia. -The first settlement was at Savannah.
The colony was established for the poor—that
is, for those persons in England who could not
pay their debts, and who, in consequence, were
condemned by law to spend their lives in prison.
Other distressed persons found a shelter in
Georgia, but for a long time the colony did not
prosper. How could it with such settlers? The
hostility of the Spanish neighbors of Florida was
another cause that operated against its prosperity,
until, finally, the colony was returned to the
crown, and thence forth was under provincial or
royal government.

European Wars.-The three wars of European origin-King William's, Queen Anne's, and King 1748. George's-afflicted the northern colonies most. Their only important result in America was the transfer of Acadia to England's possession.

1754.

French and Indian War.-This was a contest between England and France for dominion in America. Both powers claimed the territory west of the Alleghany mountains. The English were aided by their colonists and the Iroquois, the French by their colonists and the Indians of Canada. The French, in the first years of the war, drove the English from the western part of Pennsylvania and the northern part of New York; but the English expelled the Acadians from Nova Scotia, recovered their lost territory of Pennsylvania and New York, and finally gained a great victory before Quebec. Result: Canada and all the region to the Mississippi, except a very small portion at the mouth of that river, became British 1763. territory; the debt of Great Britain was greatly increased; and the colonists had taken important lessons in the art of war, which, in a short time, were to be turned to account in enabling them to resist oppression and gain their independence.

Charles II.

George II.

1727-1760.

William III

1689-1702.

Anne. 1702-1714.

George II.

George IIL

1760-1820.