The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1886-05-07

w
brackets, so that the appearance of the orig.
inal may be more readily imagined by the
| reader. will certainly make an effort to
secure this old document to the society, for
framing, as think it well worth such special
preservation
Shipped by the grace of God in
\NI good order and condition by
w Thomas Phlpotl in and upon the
good ship called the St. Georgel
NO. Box whereofis Master, under God, for
2a5 Ilhds this present voyage [Larkin Ham
Gas Casks mondl and now riding at anchor
9al3 do in the river Thames. and by G cd S
lialS Bdles grace bound for Rock Run, Mary
- Bale landl; to say, [Forty-Four Parcels
20 Trunk OF Merchandise, Six Grindstones,
II Bale Twelve Iron Pots, Two Barrels. /
22a23 Cases [Markt and Numbered as . Mar
- Cask gin,l being marked and numbered
% Bdle as In the Margin, and are to be de-
~ Cask livered in the like good Order and
2S Trunk Condition, at the aforesaid port of
~ Case lRock Rum (the danger of the sea
30 Box only excepted unto MR. William
3laQ Casks Wilson, Jun, or to lhis] Assigns,
% Bale Freight for the said goods lpaid
~ Trunk here, with Primage and Average
~ Case accustomed In witness the Mas
3saa9 Trunks ter or Purser of the said ship hath
40 Cask affirmed to Lthreel Bills of Ladng,
4la43 Bales all of this Tenor and Date: the
a Trunk one of which [threel Bills being
10 Case accomplished, the other [twol to
Loose stand void. And so God send the
Grindstones good ship to her desired Port in
X iron Potts sarety. Amen. Dated in London,
2 Barrels 10th April, It'll Contents I'M
Sold by Elisabeth Fielde,, [statIoneri at the ben
and Star facing the Royal EGchdge, COrRhiH, Lon
don.
This little paper throws a flood of light
upon certain events in the early history OF
our county which had nearly vanished from
the knowledge of men. Few indeed, even of
the oldest of our citizens, retain tor perhaps
have ever had) any knowledge whatever of
them and 10 those who do know aught of
them it is but Il shadowy sort of tradition.
Such vague knowledge would, in decade or
two of years hence, be quite lost but for the
unearthing of this or some similar paper.
Had | not been armed with the original doc
ument ITSELF | should probably not have ven
tured, the other day as did, to tell certain
well'known gentleman that Rock Run, where
he was born many years ago and where he
passed the greater part of his life, once re-
ceived on its wharves cargoes from stately
ships which had loaded in the greatest cities
of the old world for without such incontro-
verllble evidence to clinch, on the spot, my
apparently insane assertion, could hardly
have expected him to give it credence. His
surprise confirmed my suspicion that he, like
myself, had never before heard of it. l, how
ever, had heard something which, in some
measure prepared me for it-Mr. Henry
Harlan, ST., of Darlington, having told me a
few years ago that John Stump, of Stafford,
once built and launched vessel at Rock
Run. Twas greatly astonished at this infor-
nation, for was almost as familiar with the
history of Rock Run as the gentleman who
was native" though it would seem not ito
the manner born"-and | could scarcely
have credited it, had it come from a less
truthful person than my informant. The
vessel in question was duly chrislened the
"Hetty," for Mr.. Harlan's mother, who was
first cousin of John Stump of Stafford. The
"Hetty" carried flour to the West Indies, her
owner being at that time probably the most
extensive flour merchant in America. She
was fast saier and her hull, masts, and as
much more of her as possible, were painted
black, to escape the notice of hostile cruis-
| ers-of what particular nation, however, if
Mr. Harlan told me, have forgotten. Nor
do recollect the exact period, or the length,
| of her career--if he informed me upon those
points The "Hetty" was built by Havre
de Grace man, aud George Stephenson, the
| latter the father or grandfather, think he
| said, of the late Col. William B. Stephenson.
l lately heard from a descendant of John
Stump OF Stafford that another vessel was
probably built at Rock Run by his enterpris-
in ancestor But as my informant in this
case did not know positively the uame of the
craft, am disposed TO think it was the
"Hetty," and that this later story is myth
The reader will be at once struck with the
antiquated pbraseology of the bill of lading,
apart even from the amount of semi devo
tional exercises so impartially distributed
through it-smuggled, as it were, into a
purely business transaction. Even worldly
minded persons of those days would
seem to have had an idea that if some men
ton of the Almighty was not worked into
the description of a cargo, in some way, at
every few lines, and the whole rounded off
at the end with an emphasized amen" the
chances were that "the good ship" together
with cargo, crew and all would go TO the
bottom.
Bel Air was probably, in "the long ago."
jealous of the enterprise and prosperity of
Rock Run, just as Havre de Grace, in the
benighted SOS, was jealous of Bel Air, as so
clearly manifested by their fierce competition
at that time, as to which should be the coun
ty seat. But although Bel Air has been left
high and "dry" and Rock Run is still "wet"
in one sense at least-(one may, | hope, fall
into these modern expressions without sus-
pcon of ironical intenU the former, since
she has stretched forth her iron arms and
grasped prosperity, will never again cast en-
vious looks towards poor little Rock Run,
and long, as she probably once did, for a
share of her foreign trade. That time has
forever gone by
Accompanying the document given above
is another, which, so far rs the mere form is
concerned, is its exact counterpart through
out-only the written filling-up of the blank
spaces being different. 1t is dated London,
May 10th, It'll" just one month earlier than
the other--"lhe good ship" is the Eden
pamed no doubt for the Lord Proprietary
and her destination is Baltimore" (which,
by the by was then In its sWaddlinp clothes.