The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1869-11-26

Lecture by VIM. ?. Preston, Esq Baltimore
and its "Reminiscences.

This was the title of lecture delivered
recently at the Maryland Institute, by VIM
L. Preston, Esq, of the Baltimore bar, for
the benefit ofthe poor, under the auspices OF
st. Vincent OF Paul Society. The hall was
crowded, there being probably not less
than two thousand persons present. The
Key. Father Coskery, Rev. Thomas Foley,
and other Catholic clergymen, together
with the officers of society, were on the
platform. Mr.. Preston, in openinr, refer-
red to the charitable motives which had
brought together such an audience, gave
short history of the society under whose
auspices the lecture was delivered, sketched
briefly the life of the noble saint from
whom it takes its name, and then proceed
ed to the subject Of the evening. He COM
menced with the early history of the colo
ny OF Maryland, in 1906, when the lands
here were discovered by the celebrated
Captain John Smith, who, after entering
the capes of the Chesapeake, sailed some
200 miles up the beautiful bay, and an
chored about North Point. King Charles
first granted to Cecelius Calvert, the Sec
ond Lord Baltimore, the unsettled lands
on the Chesapeake bay lying between the
3oth and 10th degrees of north latitude,
and extending from the sea to the mouth
OF the Potomac and under this grant the
first Calverts sailed from England, and
after waiting in the West Indies, sailed
into the Potomac and settled few miles
above its mouth, naming the colony st.
Mary's. Whilst the Virginia colonists be-
came poor in digging for gold, those of
Maryland acquired riches by raising tobac-
co. So great was the desire to raise to-
bacco that the colonial legislature was
compelled to pass law by which no man
was permitted to plant the weed unless he
also planted corn. Another early law was
to the effect that no debt for wines or IL
quors could be recovered until all other
debts were paid. Within a few years to-
bacco took the place of silver and gold,
and became as much measure of value as
is the paper currency of the present time.
The lecturer remarked that it was said that
the necessity for labor in the cultivation
OF tobacco first induced the introduction
OF negro slavery into Maryland, and laws
were passed Furnishing fugitives from la
Dor necessary to its production with death,
unless pardoned by the Governor. He pro-
! ceeded at some length with the early his
tory of the Colony, giving many interest
ing details.
He followed up the history until in 1869,
under the supervision of Col. Nathaniel
Ute, the lands about North Point were
taken possession of and erected into q
county by the name of Baltimore, and
many years before the site of the present
city was thought of the lands northwest OF
the city for miles were under cultivation
In 1862 Mr.. Charles Gorsuch patented fifty
acres of land on what was then and now
called Milestone Point, where Fort
McHerry now stands. In the following
year Alexander Meuntenay took up 200
acres on the bottom land in the vicinity of
what is now known as Herring Run. In
1868, John Howard took up tract called
Timber Neck, adjacent to Mountenay' IS
land In the same year $50 acres were gran
ted to Thomas Cole, by the name of Coles
Harbor. This latter tract was part the
land on which the city of Baltimore now
stands; although at the time all these tracts
were taken up solely for agricultural pur-
poses, and to the cultivation of tobacco
they were devoted for the following sixty
! years.
At length application was made to Mr..
John Moale, who lived upon and cultiva-
ted the land above Milestone Point, at or
near what has long been known as Moale's
Point, for permission to lay out town
upon his lands. No inducements could
persuade the old gentleman to permit such
an encroachment upon the profits of his
tobacco crop, and as member ofthe Leg
islature he had influence enough to prevent
his descendants becoming millionaires
The lecturer said that but for Mr.. Moale's