Jefferson & Liberty

"Let foes to freedom dread the name;

But should they touch the sacred tree,

Twice fifty thousands swords would flame

For Jefferson and liberty."

--campaign song from the election of 1800.

In America's first two presidential elections, George Washington was the unanimous choice, both by popular vote and by the new, cumbersome Electoral College system.  But come 1796, when Washington politely but firmly stepped aside, the election wasn't quite so easy.  Thirteen men received electoral votes, including two for Washington.  The winner was John Adams with 71.  Thomas Jefferson came in a mere 3 votes behind Adams, with 68.  At the  time, the runner-up became Vice President, so Jefferson served in that office.

In 1798, the Adams administration passed four controversial acts:

1.  The Naturalization Act.  Aliens had been required to live in the United States 5 years before they could become citizens.  This act extended the period to 14 years.

2.  The Alien Friends Act gave the president the power to deport any alien considered "dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States."

3.  The Alien Enemies Act gave the president power to apprehend and deport any aliens whose home countries were at war with the United States.  (This act is still in force today.)

4.  The Sedition Act made it a crime to publish "false, scandalous, and malicious writing" against the government or its officials.  (Freedom of Speech?  Who needs it?)

Vice President Jefferson and his followers argued that the acts violated the Constitution.  In November 1798, a group in Dedham, Massachusetts set up a liberty pole with the words, "No Stamp Act, No Sedition Act, No Alien Bills, No Land Tax, downfall to the Tyrants of America; peace and retirement to the President; Long Live the Vice President."  The group's leader, David Brown was arrested and tried in 1799.  When the judge wanted Brown to name everyone who'd helped him or subscribed to his writings, Brown refused.  He was sentenced to 18 months in prison (and prisons were pretty horrendous back then).

In the 1800 election, Adams' Federalist party used the Sedition Act to try to stifle the opposition, but Jefferson's Democratic-Republicans continued to publish and voice their criticisms, such as the campaign song "Jefferson & Liberty."  Here are two verses:

"The gloomy night before us flies,

The reign of terror now is o'er;

It's gags, inquisitors and spies,

It's herds of harpies are no more.
 

"Let strangers from a thousand shores

Compelled by tyranny to roam

Shall find amidst abundant stores

A nobler and a happier home."

For an idea of the mud-slinging and name-calling, watch this video, courtesy of ReasonTV:

The 1800 election was one of the hardest fought in American history.  The results?

Thomas Jefferson: 73 electoral votes
John Adams: 65
Aaron Burr (another Democrat-Republican):  73
Charles C. Pinckney (a Federalist): 64
John Jay: 1

Because Jefferson and Burr were tied for the lead, the House decided the election, giving Jefferson the presidency and Burr the vice-presidency.

"Rejoice, Columbia's sons, rejoice!
To tyrants never bend the knee,
But join with heart and soul and voice,
For Jefferson and liberty!"

Please vote on November 2nd.

Your humble servants,
HH

Colonial Revelers November Events

Now some with feasts do crown the day,
Whilst others loose their coyn in play...
--from an American almanac, 1714

Friday, November 5, 2010

Phoenixville First Friday
Bridge Street,
Phoenixville, PA

Evening

Colonial Revelers will be performing at Phoenixville's First Friday cultural event.  We'll be the ones dressed like refugees from Valley Forge, 1777.  We'll also be the ones singing the best drinking songs of the evening.

For more information and a map of the street, go to their website.
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Saturday, November 13, 2010

Greenbank Mills Tavern Night Fundraiser
500 Greenbank Road
Wilmington, DE 19808

                               

Time: 7 to 10 pm - Adults only

 $35 for Members reserved before October 23
 $50 for Non-members before October 23
 $60 - All Tickets after October 23

Proceeds benefit Greenbank Mill's Operations Fund.

Colonial Revelers will provide tavern music for this night of 18th century food, drink, dancing and games.  Participation will be encouraged in all the amusements of the evening.

For information on the menu and planned activities, download the Tavern Night event brochure.

The current gristmill at Greenbank was built in the 1760s as a merchant mill, to export flour.  In 1777, when Washington arrayed his troops across Delaware in an effort to stop the British from invading Philadelphia, it's said that the general posted a guard at Greenbank to protect the provisions.  Improvements to the mill in the 19th century kept production flourishing until the 1960s, when an arson fire devastated the business.  The  non-profit Greenbank Mill Associates formed and began restoration in 1987.  The site is now open to the public as a living history museum.

For more information about Greenbank Mill and its history, click here  or call 302-999-9001.
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Saturday, November 27, 2010

Brandywine Battlefield Patriots Day
1491 Baltimore Pike
Chadds Ford, Pa 19317
                               
Time: 10am to 4 pm
                               
Adults: $6, Seniors: $4, Youth/Student: $3, Under 5: Free
10% holiday discount in the Museum Shop

Colonial Revelers will sing and stroll the grounds for this all-day event.  Living history regiments will present firing and medical demonstrations, 18th century sutlers will sell all sorts of goods and baked items, plus you can tour the historic buildings and museum.  Chadds Ford Rotary will provide food and refreshments.

Check out the battlefield calendar for more info.

On September 11, 1777 at Brandywine, Washington's troops met the British and Hessians under General Howe for the largest battle of the Revolution.  For more information about the battle and the park, go to the Friends of Brandywine Battlefield website,  call 610-459-3342 x3001, or check them out on Facebook.

Your humble servants,
HH

Hymns for the American Patriot

There have been as great Souls unknown to fame

as any of the most famous.

Poor Richard, 1734

Dear Reader,

For this year's celebration of our Independence, we offered a short biography of Mr. William Billings.  We  told of his talent at musical composition, his prolific body of work, and his ability to eke a living from his craft, despite being self-taught and physically impaired.  Yet in addition, Mr. Billings ought be remembered for siring the American patriotic hymn.

One of his first musical works was titled America.  Indeed, many hymn tunes were named for places, but this composition paid tribute to the country as well.  Mr. Billings had decided to set the poem The New England Hymn by Rev. Dr. Mather Byles, Sr. (1706-1788) of South Boston.  Here is the first verse:

To Thee the tuneful Anthem Soars.
To thee, our Father's God, and ours;
This wilderness we chose our Seat:
To Rights Secured by Equal Laws
From Persecution's Iron Claws,
We here have sought our calm Retreat.

Mr. Billings chose an old melody, popular since the 1640s when the Puritans were warring with the Anglican church.  He wrote a new version of the tune, to fit Dr. Byles lyrics, and set the song for four-part harmony.  The result was a blend of patriotic sentiment and sacred praise.  America was published in October of 1770, the first full hymn in Billings's The New-England Psalm-Singer.

In that same volume was a hymn called Chester (likely named for Chester, MA) with Billings's own lyrics:

Let tyrants shake their Iron rod
And slavery Clank her galling Chains
We fear them not, we trust in god
New England's god forever reigns.

When New England militias marched into battle five years later, Chester became their rallying cry.  As the Revolution progressed, other American soldiers adopted Chester as a marching song.  In 1778, Billings modified the original and added more verses, such as

When God inspired us for the fight
Their ranks were broke, their lines were forced
Their ships were shattered in our sight
Or swiftly driven from our shores.

The song quickly grew in popularity, rivaling only Yankee Doodle among the troops.  Chester has been called America's first national anthem. With these first patriotic hymns, Billings began a tradition that came to include The Battle Hymn of the  Republic, America The Beautiful, and God Bless America.

Chester can be heard on Colonial Revelers' CD Revelry, Reflection & Revolution. To hear a sample, watch the video.

As always, your servants,
HH

Colonial Revelers Events

We of Colonial Revelers are yet again pleased to present our music at some of the Delaware Valley's most historic venues.

Our calendar for
October, 2010:

Saturday the 2nd

Fall Harvest Festival at
Newlin Grist Mill Park
219 South Cheyney Road
Glen Mills, PA 19342

Time: 10-4 -- FREE

In this historic setting, Colonial Revelers will present concerts at 11:30 and 1:30.  We'll stroll around singing the rest of the time.

Newlin Mill is the oldest operating grist mill in Pennsylvania.  It was built by Nathaniel  Newlin in 1704, the third mill built on the site by the Newlin family, who had come to  America in 1683.  The mill was run by the Newlins until 1817, then by other owners through 1941.  A descendent of the Newlin family bought it in 1958 and began restoring it to its 18th century appearance.  Besides the mill, this living history site has two houses, an office, a barn and a grain storage building.

For more information about the park, its history, and this event click here , email info@newlingristmill.org or call 610-459-2359.

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Saturday the 9th
Downingtown Friends Meeting
Fall Festival
800 East Lancaster Avenue
Downingtown, PA 19335

Time: 9-4 -- FREE

Colonial Revelers will present a concert at noon.  Homemade soups, chili, funnel cake and other foods will be available for purchase.  Come for lunch and music!

In 1774, John Downing donated land for the Lionville Friends to build a school.  Friends around "Downing's Town" were granted permission to meet at the school in 1784.  In 1806, Jenu Roberts donated land for the building of a meetinghouse for Downingtown Friends.

For more information about Downingtown Friends and this event, click here , phone 610-269-4223 or email info@downingtownfriendsmeeting.org
 

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Saturday the 23rd
Marshallton Ghost Walk & Family Fun Night
Village of Marshallton
559 Northbrook Rd
West Chester, PA 19382

Time: 5-8 pm -- FREE

Colonial Revelers will sing throughout the evening at the historic ruins of Martin's Tavern.  Friends of Martin's Tavern will provide hot cider, cookies and other food.  The event involves the whole town, including all kinds of activities for kids, so park at the United Methodist Church at 1282 W. Strasburg Road and follow the signs.

Martin's Tavern, also called Center House, was built in 1764.  The inn played a prominent role during the Battle of Brandywine in 1777.  Much of the original tavern was lost over the years, but the ruins were restored and form the centerpiece of Marshallton's public square (really more of a triangle).

Click here for a look at last year's poster, which will give you an idea what to expect.

Find out about the Friends of Martin's Tavern: http://www.martinstavern.org/

For more information, contact West Bradford Township at 610-269-4174.


Your humble servants,
HH

The Law Against Peace

"Be at War with your Vices,

at Peace with your Neighbours..."
Poor Richard's Almanack, 1755

 

September 1777

The Redcoats were headed for Philadelphia. On August 23rd, the British ships were sighted in the Chesapeake.  They were coming from the southwest, from Maryland.  While Washington arrayed his troops in an arc across Delaware, a panicky Continental Congress debated how they might make Philadelphia (and more to the point, themselves) safe.

Therefore, on August 28th, they resolved to arrest prominent Quakers.

Say what?

What did the Quakers do to make Congress so afraid of them?  Yes, many members of the Society of Friends had loyalist leanings, but then, so did quite a few other colonists at the time.  The majority of Americans were against the war on some level, most simply wanting to be left alone.  And loyalists in some colonies formed their own militias to fight against Washington.

The Quakers, however, did literally nothing.  Unlike other colonists, they couldn't be persuaded to donate or even sell food or blankets to the American army.  They took their pacifism seriously, believing that if they gave supplies to soldiers who then went and killed human beings, the blood would be on their own hands.  Friends caught disobeying this central belief could be shunned from their meetings.  After some members left  to form the Free Quakers, who did support and fight in the Revolution, traditional Friends' Meetings communicated with each other about the necessity to stand firm and not give in.

Congress, unfortunately, viewed this with a "if you're not for us, you must be against us" attitude.  Pennsylvania had already passed a law in February 1777 that stated in part,

"...if any person or persons, within this state, shall...by
publicly and deliberately speaking or writing against our public
defense,...or shall ...discourage the people from enlisting into
the service of the commonwealth;...or oppose and endeavor to
prevent the measures carrying on in support of the freedom and
independence of the said United States; every such person...shall
be adjudged guilty of misprision of treason..."

The Supreme Council of Pennsylvania and, by extension, Congress, came to believe that the Quakers with any wealth would ride out to meet General Howe and give him support.  Not understanding the Friends' religion, they couldn't fathom that the Quakers would never give aid to either side.

So, on September 1, prominent Quaker men were arrested, placed under house arrest and all their papers plus a good percentage of their wealth seized.  On September 4, the men were imprisoned at Masonic Hall (mainly because the Third Street Jail was already full).

On September 11th (ironic, isn't it?) Washington's troops met General Howe's forces at Brandywine Creek, in what would be the largest clash of troops in the Revolution.  That same day the Quaker prisoners were being transferred by wagon over 200 miles across what was still wilderness to Winchester, Virginia, where they would be kept until the following spring, when the British finally abandoned the Philadelphia area.  Some of the prisoners were elderly.  Most were wearing summer clothes when arrested, and were not given blankets and warmer clothing for weeks, even though the weather turned suddenly cold.  One man died from the ordeal.

This earlier 9-11 marked the day that Americans created their first internment camp.  And the first time Americans persecuted a group of people for their religious beliefs.  Might do well for us to remember this at our 9-11 observances this year.

Music-wise, because of the Misprision of Treason act and others like it, you won't find Revolution era equivalents of "Blowin' in the Wind."  Protest songs did exist, however, though they were mainly sung by folks in England, protesting a war that was draining their economy, or by women, lamenting that their husbands and sons were once more being called to arms.

One such song, "Johnny Has Gone For A Soldier," can be heard on the Colonial Revelers' Revelry, Reflection & Revolution CD.  To hear a sample of it, click here.

As always, your humble servants,
HH

Methinks One Tooth is Dry

Give me yesterday's Bread, this Day's Flesh, and last Year's Cyder.
Poor Richard's Almanac, 1744

On 23 August 1775, King George III declared the American colonies to be in "open and avowed Rebellion" and issued a "Proclamation For suppressing Rebellion and Sedition."

Yet at the time General Washington had other than Rebellion on his mind.  An epidemic of dysentery raged through his camp.  As this coincided with the pressing of the first apple harvest, he made the connection and issued his own Proclamation:

"As nothing is more pernicious to the health of Soldiers, nor more certainly productive of the bloody-flux; than drinking New Cyder: The General in the most possitive manner commands, the entire disuse of the same..."
George Washington, August 28, 1775

Cyder in the 18th century meant unfiltered hard cider--a popular and very common drink.  (If you wanted it with no alcohol, you requested sweet cider.)  Every farm and estate in America (and England) had an apple orchard, and nearly everyone else with a bit of ground near their houses kept a few apple trees.  Communities had cider mills where you could bring your apples to be pressed if you couldn't do it yourself.

So it's interesting that the drinking songs of the era, while extolling the virtues of beer, wine and whisky, fail to mention cider.  Perhaps because after beer or wine, at least, you can still hold a quill to write a song.

Still, each New Year the apple trees were blessed so they'd bring a good harvest in August, along with the assurance of cider to last the winter through.

As for General Washington's dilemma, he'd likely have done better to forbid the drinking of water.

TRUDGE away quickly and fill the black bole,
Devoutly as long as wee bide,
Now welcome, good fellows, both strangers and all,
Let madness and mirth set sadness aside.

Masters, this is all my desire,
I would no drink should pass us by;
Let us now sing and mend the fire,
For still me thinks one tooth is drye.

from Thomas Ravenscroft's A Brief Discourse, 1614

(This song can be heard on Colonial Revelers'

Down Among the Deadmen CD.)

Your humble servants,
HH

Williams Billings & Independence

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another...a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, July 4, 1776

Upon this both solemn and happy Occasion of the Anniversary of our Independence, Colonial Revelers is pleased to perform Music by Mr. William Billings at St. Matthews United Methodist Church of Valley Forge on July Fourth, at half past nine in the Morning.

Mr. William Billings grew up in Boston, poor and uneducated, untidy in dress, described by some as a gargoyle, due to a short leg, a withered arm, and one blind eye. He became a tanner, yet also took up music at a young age and taught choral singing by the age of 22.


At age 24, he published "The New-England Psalm-Singer," a collection of choral works, and the first book of entirely American music. His friend Paul Revere engraved the book's frontispiece. Five more volumes followed. Within 30 years, Mr. Billings's music had become vastly popular and he was able to earn his bread and butter as a composer, the first American to do so.

His music combines traditional sacred hymn and classical styles, the new American choral-singing movement, and his own political fervor. His hymn "Chester" was considered the original National Anthem.

"I think it best for every composer to be his own carver."
William Billings

Your humble servants,
HH