The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1878-09-07


and the dark lantern and spy glass were no
doubt intended to be used in repcling their
attacks
The next minister mentioned in the
records of the Parish was the Rev. James
Crawford, of whose history but little is
known, only that he stopped for six weeks
with Edward LaddimoIe and that the yes
Try allowed Laddimore 100 pounds of to-
bacco for boarding him. In lie, he was
incumbent of South Sassafras Parish,
where lac died in l1l3.
The number of taxables in the parish
this year 1924 was So, and the amount Of
tobacco raised for ecclesiastical purposes
was Is 80 pounds.
The cougregatio continued to occupy
the old meeting house, which may have
been the meeting house erected by the
I.abadistS but they seem to have been con
tinually repairing it, and in 1896 the vestry
concluded that it was absolutely necessary
to purchase some land in 4 more convenient
location and build a church thereon. They
accordingly purchased 100 acres of William
Ward for 1000 pounds of tobacco and
agreed with Casparus Herman Ia build
church Of brick or stone 2IX:iJ feet, The
walls of which were IL be two feet thick AT
the foundation and eighteen inches above:
walls to bc twelve feet high: to have four
windows, a folding door, six feet wide, &c.,
for Is, 600 pounds Of tobacco. Still there
was no minister III the parish, but in 1897
the vestry ordered that Robert Cook be
allowed 500 pounds of tobacco for the
commodation and funeral charges of one
Mr.. William Davis, certain minister
Of the gospel, who, having newly come to
tender his services 10 us, was taken sick
and died.
This year 1897 the taxables had in
creased to $40. \ year had now passed
away and still the church was not built and
tie vestry questioned Casparus Herman
why lie had not fulfilled his contract, to
which he replied First, that the building
of the court house took longer than he ex-
pected: secondly, that he was prevented by
unreasonable weather and losing \ sloop
load of material; and thirdly, being a dele
gate to the General Assembly he had to
attend TO public concerns, by order of his
Excellency, the Governor. This year the
vcstry purchased 200 acres Of land as
glebe, for 1850 pounds Of tobacco, so that
ii now had 900 acres of glebe land.
This year. the Rev. Richard Sewell, who
had been sent to Maryland by the Right
Rev. Henry Compton, Lord Bishop of Lon
don, was appointed or presented to the two
parishes of North and South Sassafras by
Thomas Nicholson, governor of the pro-
vince. The last General Assembly had
provided for paying the expenses of clergy
men coming over to the province, and the
treasurer Of the Eastern Shore was ordered
to pay Mr.. Sewell SEQ for that purpose.
In 1898. the taxables were 500, yielding
-, 100 pounds Of tobacco. At the March
session of the General Assembly, Mr..
Scwcll had preached before it, and it was
customary for the General Assembly TO
make an appropriation to pay for such ser
vice, but on this occasion the Lower House
refused TO do this, and when asked by the
other House the cause of this refusal, they
replied that Mr.. Sewell did not give that
satisfaction to the country that was ex-
pcc;ed of him. The other House, and HIS
Excellency, the Governor, thought they
were as good Judges of the merits of the
case as the Lower House, and said that he
ought TO lie paid.
There had been some talk of building
chapel Of Ease, 4 year or two before this
time ClG9s and the vestry this year agreed
for the building of one by the Elk river,
To be of wood, twenty feet square and ten
feet in height to have two windows, pull
pit and reading desk, large door, &c, and
were To pay for the building of it, 2,6O0
pounds Of tobacco. They purchased an
acre OF land on which to place it. from
There is no doubt that this chapel, if il
WAS ever built. was upon st. Johns Manor,
in Elk Neck, for the records of the county
show that the next year Peter Clawson
SOFA u INJURED acres Oh IaHu "ulCu 10 Ut
scrbed rs being part of st. Johns Manor,
on the west side of Elk river, and the land
is described as lying upon Church Greek,
which, no doubt, was SO called because the
chapel was near to it. If the land that
was bought upon which to build the chapel
had been on the other side of the Elk
river, tho vestry must necessarily have
bought it from Casparus Herman, for no
other person owned any land there. In
lG9s, Herman having died without build
ing the church, the yestry agreed with
Matthias HendrickSou and James Smith
son for the building OF church about the
same size of the one Herman was to have
built for $1,000 pounds of tobacco. In
1899, the taxables OF the parish amounted
t. 30
In 1901, the inhabitants of North Elk
and bohemia hundreds presented petit
tion 10 the Upper House of Assembly, com.
planning that Mr. Sewell had neglected
them, and the matter was referred to Col.
John Thompson, but there is TO record of
his report. The parish, at this time, was
quite large, embracing the territory ill.,
cluded by the present boundaries of the
county and the reverend gentleman had
married the preceding year. So it is no
wonder that he failed to visit the northern
part of the county, which George Talbot
twenty years before, had called that
desert and frontier corner of the province, =
and which was probably but little improved
at the time of which we write. In 1908,
the church floor, gallery, &c, were agreed
to he made for SEQ sterling and 1000
pounds of tobacco, being equal to about
$22J. In 1904, it was ordered that eight
gallons of rum be paid for, it having been
used for drains in the morning while the
workmen were building the church. The
people of that day used rum, and for many
years afterwards it was customary to allow
in the levy for gallon or two Of rum and
some sugar 10 sweeten it upon the occasion
of pauper's funeral, the expense of which