The Wilmingtonian, and Delaware register., 1824-10-21
A RHODE ISLAND VILLAGE.


probably settled more than one hundred
years ago, by the hardy Johnny cake and IN
dian pudding sons of nature, is situated
fiourishing banking institution, which was
some five or six years ago Incorporated with
a capjtal of fifty thouand dollars. The vii
LACE. which is built in rough, rocky, and
sterile township, now consists of one public
house, two stories high, the keeper OF which
is the Hor. Constant Trustv, who IS also
President of the bank. and Justice OF the
Peace In one corner of the bar is located
the strong vault in which all the precious
treasures OF the bank are closely locked.
There at all hours of the day, stands the
Cashier, or the publc's humble servant, the
Landlord, President, &c. evcrlrcady at a mo-
nent's warning, to discount their neiglbor's
notes, or to fill bumper Of sling, or glass
of the pure New England Run, or real Coun,
try Gin. In addition to this tavern and
banking house, three humble dwellings,, a
grocery store, a black smiths and coopci''s
shop are all that compose this village. No
meeting house with its lofty sprc pointing
TO heaven has ever been erected--and sell
dom, if ever, is seen among them, an lpdi-
yidual clothed in the sable garb OF DIVINITY,
TO point out TO these humble villagers the
only right and narrow path which will lead
them to the realms of everlasting bliss IN
one oftha dwellings lives Squire Jennings,
who for the last fifteen or twenty years has
held the Office of Town Clerk, and who has
the honor frequently to represent his town
in the General Assembly. In another re-
sides the Grocer, who is also Selectman,
Constable, Collector of Faxes, and Hogrcevc.
These are all cultivators or rather runners
over of the soil for tillage among them is
in How state--not a farm in their society
which produces the one half which 1t might
be made to do with proper attention. In
the blacksmith's shop, the working OF the
bellows and the sound OF the hammer Is
but seldom heard, and schooner still is the
rattlety clatterty music OF the setting OF a
hoop on some musty cider cask or dry pork
barrel, sounding in the cars OF the inaahi-
tants. We have been thus particular in
describing the village to show how several
of the banks in Rhode Island are located.
Our hero, the tavern keeper, Justice OF
the peace, President of the Bank, &c. is IN
his person rough and ordinary, gross III his
manners, and to appearance second back
Woodsman. Great must be the imagination OF
stranger to ever suppose him to be the dlShi-
,ary which he really is, and not much less So
to belive him capable of being an accomplish
ed rogue. But so it happened while on one
of his excursions, in running from bank TO
bank, in imitation of the New \ ork bankers
carving home their paper, and receiving
other funds, that one of the shoes OF his horse
worked loose--he according stopped at the
Blacksmith shop in Connecticut to nave it
set, which was promptly done, and topay the
Knight of the hammar for his serviccs,h lie took
from his fob a note, a small one OH the bank
of which he was President, but which had
only been signed By the Cashier. The Black
smith received it, and after looking at it for
some time, he looked up with apparently
much wisdom, and pronounced the bill spur
ious because it had not the signature OF the
President--Ah! said President Trusty, if
that is all that is wanting, | can soon sign it.
The Blacksmith accordingly handed him
a pen, to which he put his signature. And to
further excite the suspicion off this son of Nul-
can, he carefully took from the folds of his
garments large roll of those bills, and said,
nere's three thousand dollars which | can
soon sign and have ready for market. This
was sufficient to confirm the blacksmith in
the opinion that his customer was notorious
counterfeiter, and what to do, he knew not,
but no time was to be lost the coutcrfciter
had already mounted his nag, and drove OFF
with great rapidity in the direction Tor this
place. The blacksmith ran from house to
house and AFTER SulllN.onnlb lldll d uoZcH
true and trusty friends, they met in council,
and on hearing the momentous tale, they one
and all pledged themselves to pursue the
chase, and to take if possible their culprit
and that after speeding their way fifteen or
twenty miles like hounds in pursuit Of fo,y
bounding on the turf, leaving volume OF
dust rolling high in the air, and far in the
rear they reached the city between three
and four o'clock few minutes after the pur-
sued had left.
When they alightcd, they made known
their business, and described very mnutely
their supposed counterfeiter but it 50 hap
pencd that the gentleman to whom they ad-
dressed themselves, recognised in their dcs-
crjption his old friend the real President o.
one Of the Rhode Island Banks He however
soon succeeded in convincing them of tho
correct intentions Of their fugitive, and OF hi
real character, and that their pursuit hat
been after an honest man rather than after
rogue The pursucrS, after letting thei
horses breathe while and refreshing them
selves with glass of punch, again mounted
and directed their course towards home
headed by the Lawyer and the blacksmith
under the full satisfaction, that, whom the,
thought to be a rogue, had thus far PROVED
to be the noblest work of God an homes
man, and that they had one and all faithful
ly performed the duty which they owed t
the public.-Norzuich Co.
E~o,o DyUnrk,a Don;yo,,,o