Wilmington daily commercial., 1872-12-30
ELIZABETH SHIPLEY'S DREAM.

sCRIBEs THE CITY.
The latest novel of Charles Reade's produc-
ton, The Wandering Heir, is just running
through Hd,per's Weekly. Singularly enough,
the great English romancer, who has evidently
been reading up in the Annals of our colonial
history, brings his hero and heroine, ithe latter
disguised in mans clothes, to the neighborhood
OF our own good city The former had been
kidnapped by bis uncle, in Dublin, and sold toa
ship captain az an "indentured dservant," and the
latter had run away from her guardians in Eng
land, and also bound herself by indenture.
Reade seems to regard their condition, thus
"held to service as that Of slavery, and calls
them &" slaves which we judge to be essentially
All error, since these white servants were Ger
tainly not held and presumably not treated, af-
ter the manner OF the slaves.
We proceed to make some extracts from the
story James Annesley, Qhe hero, and the
" Wandering HeirO-
began to fret and pine away and Drum
mond, who had lost one or two that way sold
him to Jedediah Surefoot a fiourlshlng planter,
near Willingtown, in Delaware. This was
beautiful place, and had an extraordinary story
which was then fresh in mems minds. William
Shipley Leicestershire man, was settled at Rid
ley with his second Wife Elizabeth Lewis, OF
Springfield in the county Chester. Sho was a
distinguished minister in the Society of Friends,
and a remarkable woman. Soon after her mar
riage she dreamed dream She was riding
through wild country, on what erIand she knew
not : and mounted lofty hill. From this hill
| burst on her eyes a landscape OF SURPRISING
| beauty wide valley green with sloplng lawns
| studded with cumps of trees and settlers cabins.
| The sun streamed golden through partial clear
| Jugs made by the axe even now It tlnkied un-
| seen and broad rivers ran. aud little brooks
snarkled silver and meandered to tho extreme
| limits of vision. She rat entranced upon her
hnrse and was speechless awhile with delight.
Then she asked her guide what country this was
| 'Elizabeth, said he, lit is thy home. .,
"Nay," said she, my earthly home is Ridley.
mot 90" said he, "This sweet place cries
then, to the will of Heaven, and come hither 30
shalt thou do much good to the place and the
people and the blessing of God shall be on tiny
| house, and ON their labors in the Lord.
Elizabeth told this dream to her husband
with all the warmth and freshness in the world
and he made this sublime answer, "We are doing
pretty well here" and the subject dropped;
Full three years afterward, Elizabeth Shipley
was invited to meeting of Friends, between
| the Delaware and Chesapeake bays.
She rode alone, and without fear, untli she
came to the Brandywine River, and then, though
| the water was low she took guide he led her
| some distance to "the old Ford" and she goo'
through, and went up the hill by 1.-THE King
| Road " AT the top OF tne NIL buo CuoShou 10
| horse, and uttered cry Of amazement and De
| light for 10 there was the Paradise OF ne
| dTeam before her, aye down to the minutest tea
| ture of the landscape and the axe that tlnkle'
| unseen. She sat like statue on her morse
| inst as she had done in her dream .,,.
After This she constantly entreated William
Shirley to ride with her and zee the lovely place
He thought it waste of time: did not peheV
, in dreams though he burst not say 3d. 30, a
last she said to him, william, settle al Is tno'
l ni,iI nv WIG
and mine will stand or fall by the place tn
Lord doth call me to. ="
The Prophecies knew her lord and master
] | he came with her directly, to see WllhnBtown
| and it struck him all OF heap. ne exam eAauiiie 1,'
o II nearer, and found it was seated between I'll
: | finger and thumb OF two rivers, one lmpetuo,us
and admirable for turning mills, the other tlaa
Q and nayigable to the sea. Why, Elizabeth,
said he, q a man might grind his corn mere VIII
one hand and ship it with tother. 49, -
30 what with her faith in Power Divine an
his in Water Power, the Shipleys settled at WI
4 lingtown, now called Wilmington, ana gave TN
= rising place a wonderful impulse. wilma
a Shipiey bought land between the strealns, al
n | set mn mill and factory Elizabeth became
shining light and drew the cream OF the Quake
thither. and even poor James Annesley prom
ed little by her virtues Tor 81
l. preached and pTactsed humanity to slave
m ALL this is entertaining enough. Much OF
ia essentially correct, as our local histona
have recorded, and Resde has evidently be
ros,liny tho work OF the late venerable Ben.
I'd min Ferris Of this city, Original SettenlentS
". he Deiatoare, in which there ls sketoh OF y
Shipley's life and circumstantlal accouns Vi
I'd | wife's vision and other details which the hhB
" | noyalist has reproduced almost in the same ID
puape strange as the association OF DehJan
Ferris and Charles Reade may appear Ihose 7
desire to read up, oD the subject, we reler 70
Pc Criminal Settlements, COPIES OF the "orA
lla very rare pages 252 et seq
pt The reriod of these occurrences was aD'
,er 1735. In that year, William Shipley came
W. " Willingtown," (for the name was not chant
till the granting of the Borough charIer so
four or five years later,) anu so9h pe1SnH ,tI4
l. OF the busiest men in town. lie nrst puilV
mi ith street market house, and headed tle pa pa
ep- who. on its account, had furious cohtroVe
of with the partsans of that on Second street ,.,
ant was the first Chief Burgess under inc ooio
the charter, elected in l74O.
in The Kings Road, as many OF our @ leaO
les know and many do not, was, IN that uay,
and great thoroughfare between the ooutlieIm lai
on Eastern colonies 1t crossed the Brshaywslnp slp
and the upper corner of the now Cemetery, ahuIoL
'igb ad nearly the COURSE Of Adams street across
And | hill From a point near 5th and Adams sure
ing | good Mrs Shpley surveyed the beauties oI
no landscape. Of which our busy city is now
hey centre. How charming tue view ~ 10" 10"
s Of of the COMMERCIAL need TO Do lolu'
that THE HERO OF THE STORY.
not james hnnesieS, ~nV ttsf name. the son
! sAH, a Lord Altman. He was born in 17l5. HIS ts g
in. and mother had separated, and upon 1ns, the
lem OF the FORMER, IiS LIS, ~ America by shil
pre- the son anu senI n;i;r1. trom Dnblin' in April
fol- Phladelphla, sainS here during his in
rea' tured service Of 12 years, the accidental m on
cry of his true character ms SoTnra he Il
tore, tse nrds No &c are all we'll known pass
,per " ~ 1870 His stav AT Wilmington, Qf he
vent aid live here,) was but small part Of his
D. detention as servant lie hVeI nss, a,s,,,v y
Iston farmer on the Lancaster road, in pennsyN
ster- A summary Of the main facts in the story :,
,pe." | lacted from the evidence in the House Oh
;., IU1fqan'R Annals on