lous as to the reputation of their tenants, while they receive one thousand dollars' rent for houses not worth over four hundred and fifty.—Tribune, 1860. WRITERS OF NEW YORK.-The Herald in 1842 gives the following list of the newspaper men of New York : Rory McLoughlin, N. P. Willis, THE GREAT METEOR.-The largest and most remarkable meteor ever seen in New York was that which was visible just before the outbreak of the Civil War. Mr. Edgar de Peyster wrote to the Evening Post an account of the display as he viewed it : Having noticed in your last evening's edition an account of the wonderful phenomena as seen from Yorkville, I would beg leave to state that I, too, had the pleasure of witnessing that never-to-be-forgotten wonder which occurred at half-past nine yesterday morning. The view that presented itself to my vision was one of singular and most extraordinary beauty at the time. I was in Broadway, between 9th and 10th streets, when on a sudden this brilliant light flashed before my sight, causing an involuntary casting of the eyes in an upward direction, when, to my surprise, and I must say pleasure, this startling meteor presented itself; no one in my immediate vicinity seemed to notice it, and as an instance of how quickly it passed, I will state that my brother, who was with me, was unable to see any traces of it, although I called his attention immediately to the fact. At that time the sun was shining brilliantly, and the moon was to be seen visible high up in the heavens. Of course the meteor must have been of an exceedingly brilliant nature to have been visible in the daytime. From the view I obtained, and from the impression it made as regards size, I should say it was about twice as large as the moon, with a tail twenty or thirty feet in length; the color, which was the same both in the body and tail, seemed of a most beautiful liquid silver. and resembled much that of a shooting star on a clear winter's night. It seemed to fall from an easterly to southerly direction, and described a most beautiful curve. I would suggest that, instead of looking in this immediate vicinity for any traces of the meteor, would it not be more likely to expect (judging from the great height it was seen at) that it fell far out at sea instead of on land? I should think that from the total absence of all sound, such would prove the case, and I have no doubt but that some inward bound vessel will soon put us in possession of more pertinent facts. HOW THE CHURCH OF ST. NICHOLAS WAS BUILT. A Legend of New Amsterdam. BY M. L. D. FERRIS. Once on a time, old legends say, The dominie was of great renown, gown, The proudest man in the quaint Dutch town. Ay ! a famous man was the dominie, sea To preside o'er the little church near the fort, And teach the good Dutchmen the doctrines of Dort; And not long since he had taken to wife Vrou Anneke Jans, thus causing great strife, For the Dutch maidens vied his favor to gain, And laid deep plots to meet him, by chance, in Love Lane. Now Anneke Jans, to continue my yarn, Was owner of all the famous king's farm, And therefore was held as the first in When she doff'd widow's weeds for The dominie's cottage was pleasant to see, With its stoop shaded o'er by a syca more tree; Antique knocker so bright, and the half-open door, And the parlor inviting with fresh sanded floor, Then its garden so trim, tulip borders around, For the Dutch made best use of each bit of ground. From miles around the guests came to see the maid wed, And later by Anneke's dainties be fed, And burgher and Juvrouw in gala array Were fully prepared to make glad holiday. It had long been the wish of the good dominie To build a new church, for the old one, you see, Was a barn, and at one time had been a horse-mill, And to preach in it humbled the proud old man's will. Now, the dominie thought, is the very best time To start a subscription, and let each one sign, For thus can be built a worthier fane, And surely a new church will be a great gain. The director was there, in his pomp and his pride, With his worthy co-laborer, De Vries, by his side, And which, on my honor, I tell you, was good; And the truth must be told, though tradition is mum, An enormous supply of old Santa Cruz rum! The Stevensons, Schuylers, Bayards Their eyes how they twinkled! their and Van Dycks, Polhemuses, Cuylers, van Siclens, van Wycks, De Kays and van Cortlandts, the Banckers, van Brughs, De Meyers, van Rensselaers, Kierstedes, Du Trieux, Van Hornes and van Brummels, van Dusens, van Burens, The Brinkerhoffs, Bleeckers, van Dams and van Keurens, The Douws and van Breestedes, van Gaasbeecks, van Duyns, De Witts and van Geisons, van Ganse voorts, Pruyns, The Visschers, van Vechtens, and more of renown The fairest and best of the little Dutch town. The wedding was over, the twain were made one, And now had festivities fairly begun ; There was laughter and jest, which the dominie led, And the best songs were sung and the best speeches said. Soon the feast was announced, and 'twas a fine sight, 'Twould have filled any housekeeper's heart with delight. There were waffles as light as the foam of the sea, And roellachje, biscuit and very black tea, Pound, plum cake, and jumbles, and trout from the brook, And a fabulous dish of the famed olijkook, There was wine, beer. mead, punch which the dominie brewed, mirth, oh, how merry! Their breath smelt of punch, and their speech told of sherry, And the hours sped on, and the laughter grew loud, And I think I must call them a right jolly crowd. 'Twas the dominie's chance the paper to seize, And lead off the list with Herr Kieft and De Vries, And each in his turn would not be out done, And promised to donate a generous sum. So the money was raised in a very short time, For the wily host managed that each one should sign. The wedding soon over, the guests having sped, The happy old dominie went to his bed. When the guests realized on the following day How much they had pledged, they were quite loath to pay, But as hon'rable men they were bound by their word, And it never would do "to go back on the Lord." Thus the new church was built in the famous old fort, And the dominie smiled when he thought what he'd wrought; So St. Nicholas's Church, tho' teetot'lers repine, Owes its life, as you see, to the dominie's wine. OLD NEW YORK. CONTENTS FOR JANUARY, 1890. NOTES ON PRINTING, . The Press Not Free-Beginning of Newspapers-The New York DE PEYSTER, Origin of the Family--Its Removal to America-Family Tree- INDUCTION OF THE REV. WILLIAM VESEY, The First Anglican Services-Act for Settling a Ministry-Charac- A Gold Ring with Poesie-Elizabeth Clarkson's Will-Dr. John PAGE 385 395 401 417 THE OLDEN TIME, 422 John Jacob Astor-Arrival of the Count de Moustier-Visits to 440 A Boy's REMINISCENCES, Barnum's Museum-Erection of the City Hall-Burial of the Remains of Revolutionary Prisoners-The Canal Celebration-Fire in 1811. MINOR PARAGRAPHS, Fourth Destruction of the Bowery Theatre-Vauxhall Garden in 1807-Bill of the Play-First Report of the Astor Library-Proposals for Establishing a New Daily by James Gordon Bennett-Opening of Astor's Hotel-Consecration of St. Thomas's Church-Old New York Churches Turned into Secular Uses-The Five Points in 1846-City Parks in 1860. 447 No. 19 Park Place, New York. |