The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1874-05-07


I. to dust, ashes to ashes" &c-the bereayed
husband, or father in other cases the Off
ciating clergyman, expressed to the bear
| ers and pall-bearerS thanks for the kindly
service they had rendered. and the pro-
cession returned in the same order to the
house Arriving there, the relatives hay
ING passed in, the pall-bearers and bear
ers were invited by the master to a room
| where refreshments in the form of wine
and, sometimes, other kinds OF liquor
| were provided for them; all partook and
| then separated There was no excess u
| simple glass sufficed there was no merri-
ment, but every thing was conducted with
the solemnity BETTING the occasion
This custom continued until public
sentiment adverse to the use OF intoXicat-
| ing liquors on any occasion was awaken
| ed, and then this came to be looked upon
as "a custom more honored in the breach
than the Observance In these days it
would be so in conflict with the conven-
tionalities of society that it would hardly
| be tolerated Let us not be too harsh in
condemnation of our fathers in this par
ticular In the days when it was regarded
right, almost religious duty, to drink
k'standing and in silence" to the Memory
4
Revolution it was but another phase of
the same sentiment to drink to the memory
Of the departed friend and neghbor. At
the funeral of a small child no bier was
used, and there were no pall-bearerS. a
white handkerchief was tied around each
end of the little coffin and it was carried
to the grave by four boys, a few years
older than the deceased, two walking on
each side, each taking hold of one side of
the handkerchiets.
1t became apparent early in this year,
1872, that a war with Great Britain was
inevitable. On the fourth day of April
Congress laid an embargo tor ninety days
| con all vessels in the halbors of the United
States; this was followed by declara-
ton on the eighteenth Of June following
that .'war exists between Great Britain
and the United States" Intelligence of
the event reached here by due course of
mail on the same day that the frame of
the house now occupied by Hon. II. c.
johnson was raised The blow was not
unanticipated but it fell with stunning
effect on the good people here. A panic
pervaded the community; almost every
| possible evil was predicted, and the opin-
ION freely expressed that it would soon be-
come necessary for all living on the coast
| of Maine to abandon their possessions and
remove beyond reach of the enemy. TAX
ing into consideration the fact that the
prosperity OF the place was so entirely de-
pendent on navigation and commerce it is
not strange that the prospect for the i'm
mediate future was any thing but bright !;
Notwithstanding it was a war undertaken
| for Free trade and sailors rights
The alusion to the raising of the frame
of Mr.. Johnson's house furnishes the fit
ting occasion for calling to mind another
custom Of ''ye olden times 1t was regard
ed then Just as much out of the question
to raise a frame as it was to 90 through
having time without rum both were occa-
sons when the use of that article for me
chanical purposes was considered indis-
pensable If the building to be raised was
a small one, gallon of ''Old Whteface"
answered the purpose, at a pinch. If it
was two-story dwelling house the guam
tty was duplicated; unless the raising
was in time of drouth when still larger
quantity was required If the owner was
reputed to be wealthy or the building was
of public character, it was always found
necessary to substitute for 'NNhiteface" a
mixture called g rum-punch0 Half a
house, ell and barn; nothing less than a
barrel full, per diem, would raise meet
ing-house; as late as 1918 it required two
barrels-full to raise the Unitarian meeting
house; the compiler had to use two pail
flls to raise his barn; but that was in a
very dry season.
After the frame was raised it was the
custom to ''name it, as the performance
was styled Two of the parties engaged
would bestride the ridge-pole, one at each
end One of them would say
Here is fine frame,
Without any name,
| And what shall We call it.
To which the other would reply in equally
poetical language, but without answering
the main question. After passing numer-
Gus questions and answers of the same
character the frame would be named y
Three cheers We're then given, a parting
cup taken, and that was the end of the
ceremony In the raising of a frame all
services were rendered gratuitously. The
approved recipe for the mixture above re-
terred to was One sour, Two sweet,
Four strong. Eight weak the art of com
pounding it is now, probably one of the
Lost Arts"
Soon after war was declared the brig
Illumination, built here the year preced-
ing, the major part of her owned by par
ties residing here, commanded by Capt
Robert Patterson and manned by crew
the most of whom belonged in Belfast
was captured by a British trigate. sent to
Halifax and condemned Her officers
were liberated in few days and sent
], home on a cartel-ship; her crew remain
ed in prison about four months and were
then exchanged She was on her voyage
from Liverpool to New Orleans, was
spoken by the frigate and the inquiry
| made if war had been declared between
Great Britain and the United States; the
master OF the brig replied, of course, that
he had not heard of any such declaration
The trlgate LETT, but soon after fell in with
a British merchantmen who reported that
she had been fired into by an American
cruiser; of course the trigate ''bout ship
and captured the illumination. Such was
the story told, for the accuracy of which
the compiler does not assume to youch.
This event, involving as it did the total
loss OF property belonging to parties re-
siding here, served to impress the minds
OF all more deeply with sense of the UNI
certain tenure by which they held what
remained to them Shipping deteriorated
in value at least fifty per cent; vessels
were hauled up and stripped. The hazard
attending foreign voyages put an end to
all enterprise in that direction; even the
coasting business, light as it had become,
was still farther checked by the presence
OF British privateers lowering on our coast
The sloops Mary and Washington, both
owned here. were captured and burned,
and another brig, principally owned here,
laden with spars and beet, was captured
early in 1918, sent to Halifax and condemn
ed. Extravagant prices We're demand.
ed for most articles Of foreign production