Episode 8: Seabreeze in Philadelphia
The day before Seafoam left was one of the busiest in her life. There was the matter of going through all the trunks to make sure all the dresses were in as well as all the accessories. Books for the voyage were also important as she would have very little to do on the way over. Food was important since it had to last for months. Plenty of citrus for the early weeks, then dried fruits and vegetables for later on. Dried meats for later, as well needed to be stored in the trunks and various containers. Candles, paper for writing, journals, glasses, incense, games, and many small easily forgotten items were on the list. She wasn’t that keen on Aphra going to Paris, but the Burer family were pressuring for the formal education and were convinced that the colonies wouldn’t do. Not that there weren’t Jesuit colleges in the Americas, but French was the preferred second language for a lady.
Although Bill was responsible, along with Effa, for the selection of the six guards for the voyage, Rebecca kept an eye on the selection process. She noticed that Effa had an eye for one of the guards right from the start. His name was John Spencer and he fenced with some of the best swordsmen in the colonies. Whether he could hold his own with men in France was yet to be seen. Then there was the matter of the Mohawk chief. He was going to cost a small fortune and the family’s commitment to the Mohawk nation would last well into the next decade. She wasn’t sure how much money, but it must have been a lot because
there was considerable discussion for days about the cost. She never saw the Mohawk but heard he was the biggest man in the Americas.
Aphra was as independent as the woman she was named after. So when it came time to leave only Seabreeze was crying. She made Bill commit to several promises including never leaving Aphra’s side unless he had to for her safety. The huge three story house was deathly quiet when the carriages pulled away. Seabreeze went upstairs and closed the door. Her husband stayed downstairs, he knew better than to bother her once she closed a door. It was a week before she came downstairs and resumed her normal activities.
Rebecca buried herself in her work. The charity associated with the Jesuit school had activities throughout Philadelphia. There was a soup kitchen downtown that had over 40 volunteers that served hundreds of meals a day. Seabreeze helped manage kitchen by supervising the volunteers, which took four to five hours a day. She was in the kitchen when the riot broke out. The poor of Philadelphia had taken to the streets to protest the lack of decent paying jobs and the constant shortages the city was experiencing. Effigies of William Penn’s three sons were being burned on tall poles in the streets. They had run the city for over eight years and had pocketed much of the money paid in fees and charges since their father’s death. There was looting as well
as businesses were broke into and whole warehouses emptied. Hans was somewhere north of the city that day buying an antique mantle piece for a good price. The seller was a gentle man farmer and had run into some bad fortune. She wished Hans was downtown to help her get home or for that matter Billy Boy. Fires were everywhere and sky darkened with the smoke of a thousand fires. She put a scarf over her mouth, but it didn’t stop her from coughing.
She finally reached her street and saw 1/3 of the homes on fire with ashes blowing in the gusty winds created by the fire storm.
Although it was winter, just past the first of the year, there was a warm feel to the air. It felt balmy like a summer’s evening, except for the winds. Every so often she would check her clothing for burning embers, since the air was full of swirling light. It would have been beautiful if it wasn’t so dangerous. She stood in front of her house watching the embers landing on the roof and wondering how long it would be before her house joined the others in being on fire. There were no signs of live inside, but decided to look inside anyway. The foyer was dark as was the sitting room and the great room. A faint red glow of the fires bathed the rooms in an eerie glow. There was no sign of Hans, she had checked every room. She started grabbing the most important items in the house and started to stack them on the side walk out front under a large blanket hopefully hiding them from would-be thieves. She was quite sweaty by the time she had most of the valuables stacked neatly under the blanket. Once the blanket was
holding almost everything worth saving, she went back for the pistols Hans kept loaded in their bedroom. There were six, all in a display case which was designed to allow quick access. Every weekend at some point he would clean the guns and put them back in place above the bed and to the left where he could snatch one or two as he rolled out of bed in the dark. They were heavier than she anticipated, and was glad when she was back to the blanket because her arms were getting tired. She grabbed one stuck it under her shawl and sat on one of chests she had brought down. The display was tucked under the edge of the blanket
for easy access. Then she waited.
Rebecca watched as others on the street whose houses were not in flames yet, also drug their valuables out the houses. All but one were women since most of the husbands were downtown at work when the riot started. She was so glad she was done as others toiled into the night. Finally Hans arrived and she could relax. He went inside to get some things he was pretty sure she had overlooked, like the special pipe he kept behind some books. Hans was inside for a long time, mostly because he was taking his time since the house hadn’t caught fire yet. He used a sheet from upstairs to load all the things in and came out looking like some kind of strange Santa Clause with toys for sooty little kids in the street.
She waited for what seemed like forever. Hans came out and she ran over to kiss him. He held her tight, they had a solid marriage, but not necessarily that openly affectionate. In their circles public affection was considered inappropriate and therefore to be avoided. She had always thought that Hans was a good match for her and was glad she had married him. As a second generation Buerer, he had inherited the family fortune that was originally made in the rock fields of Pennsylvania. He had been comfortable in his wealth, and she was drawn to the power he exuded from his position in Philadelphian society. The two of them stood there watching the fire consume home after home. He told her they would resettle outside of town where homes are much
further apart and he would just take the extra time that would be involved in such a situation. She was fine with such a decision since there were no kids and she would get a new house to decorate, hopefully mother Buerer would allow her to do it. The house was mostly the work of the mother and as the bride of Hans, her inputs were not taken seriously and besides it would mean redoing whole sections of the house to make the simplest changes.
As they stood there, one of the servants walked up to them. He asked if they needed anything and then waited for their instructions. Barton then offered them some whiskey he had with him in an old, worn flask. Hans thanked him and took a big swig not caring that Barton had sucking on the flask for quite some time judging by the smell of his breath and the unsteadiness of his walk. Barton was a bachelor so there was no family to take care of in an emergency like this so after he had had his fill of whiskey he had decided to come and see what was going on at his place of work.
Hans headed back in the house to gather up additional items now that Barton was there to help carry some of the heavier stuff. Barton was a well built man in his 30’s and Hans picked out the heavier crystal, chandeliers, antique pictures, sterling silver, and smaller statues she had left due to their weight.
Three hours later, in the early morning hours they were done with hauling things to the sidewalk. Hans was tired and Barton was almost asleep. No volunteer firemen came, they were too busy putting out fires in their own neighborhoods. These streets were exclusively the wealthy and privileged and they were not the sort to volunteer to fight fires. Those whose homes were on fire stood and watched as their special things went up in smoke. Seabreeze went around consoling those she knew and said she was sorry for their loss to those she didn’t. That was one of the things Hans loved about her. He had been immediately taken with her spirit. He knew she had been a teacher in the Carolinas and there was something mysterious about the death of her first husband in some Indian war. He never heard any of the details, and frankly he wasn’t that concerned about the man. He always thought that it was fate that brought the two of them together. He loved her so much and for so many reasons, not the least of which was her intelligence. She fit into his social circles easily with her people skills in combination with one of the greatest knowledge bases in the colonies having had access to volumes of writings not accessible by most people. So, no matter what topic was being discussed, in a circle of mixed company or men or women she was well versed in the topic and carried her share of the conversation without dominating it.
They were both glad that Elizabeth was safely tucked away in Paris in a nunnery, now that the riots were started in Philadelphia.
Little did they know her precious daughter had been attacked and Klondike taken from her by force. Or for that matter, Bill and Big
Bear weren’t even with her to protect her from any unforeseen circumstances. Members of the extended family were still complaining about the amount of money Hans had committed to secure the services of one of the most notorious Indians in the history of the colonies. Big Bear was reportedly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of natives and countless Frenchmen, English and colonists. The politics of the region changed noticeably with his departure.
Rebecca was interested in all things so when she heard that a Mohawk warrior was hired to safeguard her daughter she went to the library of the Jesuits to learn about the Mohawks. They called themselves Kaniengehaga, ‘people of the place of the flint’. The
Mohawk have three clans: turtle, wolf, and bears. From the Jesuit Relation for 1660 she found that the Mohawk in a 60 year period were at the top and the bottom of the ladder of success. By 1610 the Mohawk were overthrown so completely, they appeared extinct. About this time the Dutch arrived attracted by the beaver skins. To increase the volume of skins for the Dutch, they supplied the Mohawks with firearms. It worked, the furs multiplied, unfortunately so did the violence against neighboring tribes. By 1660 between the Hurons to the north and the Mohawks 500 warriors controlled 600 leagues of territory and lived in 4 wretched villages. From 1603 to 1623 the Dutch, Hurons, Machicans, and Minquaes raided and killed countless Mohawks. In 1626
the Dutch commander of Ft Orange (Albany) and six men with the Mohegan lead an expedition to invade the Mohawk country. They were defeated by a party of Mohawk with only bows and arrows. The Mohawks cooked and ate the commander. As the Dutch bought up land the Mohawk and the Mohegan became allies.
In 1641 Ahatsistari, a noted Huron chief, with only 50 companions, attacked and defeated 300 Iroquois, largely Mohawk, taking
prisoners. A year later Mohawk captured Father Isaac Joques, along with two French companions and Huron allies. They tortured the Frenchmen and Hurons. The Dutch helped Father Joques escape in 1642. In 1646 Father Joques went back to convert the Mohawk. That year the crops failed and there was an epidemic both blamed on the Father. He was adopted by the Wolf clan of the Mohawk, but the Bear clan who were only cousins of the Wolf clan, were determined to kill the Father as a sorcerer. After accepting an invitation to the Bear clan lodge for supper, he was killed, his head stuck on a pole and hung on the palisade while the body was thrown into the river. A contemporary of Father Joques wrote that the Mohawk, when unfortunate in war, would
sacrifice a bear to the god of war, Aireskuoni. They promised the war god that they will roast their prisoners on a slow fire for several days until dead then eat them up. Chiefs ate head and hearts, leaving all other body parts for the rest of the tribe.
Rebecca’s daughter was being guarded by one of the most ferocious warriors the Mohawks had known. In the tribal phratry, the tribe was represented in the federal council by 9 chiefs, 3 from each clan. These chiefships were known by specific names, which were conferred with the office. The three titles were Tekarihoken, Satekarihwate, and Haienhwatha( which later was Anglicized into Hiawatha). It was the Hiawatha official title that Big Bear inherited from his father Great Bear and passed down to his son Little Bear that fought along side Joseph Brant(Thayendanegea-which means “he places two bets”). She wondered about the sanity of sending a warrior to guard her young daughter but resisted the urge to argue with the family since Bill would be there also.
The morning brought wind and snow. Hans and Rebecca were wrapped up in blankets with the fireplace going and they were sitting in the window where they could watch their things. The blanket blew and flapped in the wind, exposing the valuables below occasionally. Both were too tired to drag all the stuff back in the house, now that the fear of the house burning to the ground was over. Hans poured himself some brandy and Seabreeze her usual Burgundy. They sat quietly looking out over a scene of destruction. The snow was gray from the soot that had fallen during the night and the sky was dark brown. Even the freshly falling snow looked dingy.
Coming up the walk was one of the maids, Rebecca, a 17 year old Indian girl, that had found favor with Seabreeze because of her
interest in all things. So, besides her name, there was a bond between them from studying the history of the area. Her Indian name was Matoaka, after her great-great-great-great grandmother who was better known as Pocahontas, which means “Little Wanton” playful, frolicsome little girl. She went by Rebecca because that was what Pocahontas was christened when she was 17, later marrying John Rolfe in 1614. She still answered to Mato since she just recently started going by Rebecca. Mato and Seabreeze spent many an evening talking about the history of the local tribes. Hans would be in his study working with customs paperwork and ships manifestos of shipments of rock and granite. He never understood Rebecca’s fascination with the Indians,
but thought she could specialize in whatever she wished.
As Mato sat down next to them and looked out the window, her profile was so classically one of the Northeastern tribes, Rebecca
began to daydream in the lazy morning light. She pictured Mato’s ancestors sitting around a campfire in the 1300s. Back then they were called the Shenks Ferry Indian tribe. This widely dispersed tribe was driven off by the Susquehannocks, an Iroquois-speaking tribe from the north around 1500. Susquehanna comes from Sasqueahanough per an Algonquian interpreter means “People at the Falls” or “People of the Muddy River”. The Susquehannocks separate from other tribes and settle the Lower Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay around 1600. They are a matriarchal, they traced their descendents through the mothers, and married men lived with their wives’ families. The tribe was alert, well organized, and warlike, that was likely the only tribe that had good relations with all the Europeans at one time or the other. By the time Capt. John Smith explored Chesapeake Bay in 1608, the Susquehannocks controlled New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. He said they were giants. He claimed that he measured a calf of a warrior than was 27 inches around. When Etienne Brule, a French explorer, said to be the first white man in York County found Jesuit religious artifacts, pointing to Isaac Jogues, a priest already baptizing dying Indians and infants. 1632 King Charles I deeds Maryland to Lord Baltimore and Pennsylvania to William Penn for repayment of an earlier loan. 1655 John Hanson Steelman first settles Philadelphia area. He becomes the first trader and interpreter east of the Susquehanna. In 1675 the Iroquois defeat the Susquehannocks, weakened by smallpox epidemics and alcohol. Later they form with the Seneca Indians and others and become known as the Conestogas. The conestoga wagons had their origin in Europe but were credited to the Pennsylvannia Dutch that were really German since people mispronounced the German word for German, Deutsch.
Historically the Susquehannocks had always been allies with the Huron and enemies of the Iroqois. During the late 1600s they also lost hundreds of warriors fighting the Delaware to the east, the Mohawk to the north, and the Powhatan to the south, which brings us to Pocahontas, Mato’s ancestor.
Pocahontas was a princess, the daughter of Powhatan, the powerful chief of the Algonquian Indians of Virginia. She was born Matoaka in 1595 to one of the many wives of Powhatan. In 1607 Capt. Smith was captured and forced to stretch out on two flat rocks with warriors standing over him with clubs, and just as they were about to crush him, a little 10 year old Indian girl ran out and put her head on top of John’s and asked his life be spared. Actually, this mock “execution and salvation” ceremony was traditional with the Indians and Pocahontas’ actions were probably one part of the ritual. Either way they became friends and his reported death in 1609 was devastating to her. A year later she married Kocoum, an Indian “private Captayne.” Captain Samual Argall kidnapped her for ransom, returning her in 1613 to Henrico, a new settlement where she began her education in the
Christian Faith. There she met John Rolfe and married him nine months later. Sir Thomas Dale sailed to London to secure additional funds for Virginia and took Pocahontas, her husband and their son Thomas as well as several other Algonquian Indians. She was presented to King James I and the best of London society, including Captain John Smith. She was overcome seeing her friend and called him father. He objected but she told him he would always be her father. After seven months Rolfe decided to return to Virginia, but without Pocahontas who was sick with pneumonia or tuberculosis. She died in her husbands arms, saying, “All must die, ‘Tis enough that the child liveth.” She was buried in a churchyard in Gravesend, England at 22 years of age.
Mato came from Thomas Rolfe’s linage and was proud of her blood line to Pocahontas. Seabreeze often thought they looked alike from pictures of Pocahontas taken in London. Thomas had married an Indian and their children stayed in Indian villages and married inside the Algonquian tribe.
Various members of the Buerer family would ask Hans why Rebecca spent so much time with the Indian maid. He never responded to such inquiries since there was no way to win. If he agreed with them he would be siding with them, if he justified her actions it would lead to more bickering.
Han looked out the window and told Rebecca that they were going to move out of Philadelphia for the country. She said that that
sounded wonderful and of course I can have Mato as my personal attendant-right. Hans said that would fine and the decision was done.
TO BE CONTINUED!