Smyrna times., 1895-12-04
QUAINT OLD TONES.
TWO BOOKS WHICH A NEWSPAPER
MAN FOUND IN ENGLAND.

How Pennsylvania Was Doomed In Ye
Olden Time-Its Climate, Soil ard Peo-
pie Preised-A SchOOImaster's Textbook
That Belonged to William Penn.
have before me now two little books
which have been lent to me for a few
days. and which, think, could hardly
fail to interest any Pennsylvania; so I
shall endeavor to describe them as well
as can, as most people can never see
them, both Of them being rare and one
being absolutely unique.
The first of these is a small duodecimo
of not more than 100 pages, though the
following title page might easily mis-
lead one to expect rather a larger vol
ume:
"An Historical and Geographical Ac-
count Of the Province Of PENNSYLVANIA
and Of West New Jersey In America;
the Richness Of the Soil, the Sweetness
OF the Situation, the WhOlesomeness of
the Air, the Navigable Rivers and 9th
| ers, the Prodigious Increase of Corn, the
Flourishing Condition Of the City Of
Philadelphia, With the Stately Build
ings and Other improvements There;
the Strange Creatures, as Birds, Beasts,
Fishes and Fowls, With the Several
| Sorts Of Minerals, Stones and Purging
Waters Lately Discovered; the Natives.
Aborigines, Their Language, Religion,
Laws and Customs; the First Planters,
the Dutch, Swedes and English, With
the Number Of Inhabitants; as Also
Touch Upon George Keith's New Re
ligion In His Second Change Since He
Left the Quakers; With Map Of Both
Countries. By Gabriel Thomas, Who
Resided There About Fifteen Years.
London: Printed and Sold by A. Bald
win, at the Oxon Arms, in Warwick
Lane, 1698"
He explains in the preface that, as
there never has been fair or full ac-
count Of PENNSYLVANIA, he thinks
the curious will be gratifed with an
ample description. He explains WHY
more has not been heard of it, predicts
thriving future and says he could
say much in praise of that sweet tract
of land, " but reserves it for the body of
the book.
After this comes a small folded map,
very interesting and signed Philip Lea,
London. 1t represents PENNSYLVANIA
as consisting Of only four counties
Bucks, Philadelphia, Chester and New
Castle, with Virginia on the west, West
New Jersey on the east, Maryland on
the south and Canada on the north.
Some Of the names are rather surpris-
ing. For instance, Immediately opposite
Philadelphia, on the Delaware, is a
Dutch fort, and just back Of that is a
place called Yacomanshaghkings In
our own state the chief places seem to
be Haverford, Darby, Plymouth, Ger
mantown, West Town, Radnor, New
town and Lewiston.
After the map 55 small pages are de-
voted to the description of Pennsylva-
mia, from which we learn that, though
the province is 800 miles in length by
10O in width, by far the greater part Of
1t is still in the hands of the natives.
who are supposed by most people to
have been of the Ten Scattered Tribes" "
The Dutch came and traded, the
Swedes and Firms came and settled, and
finally William Penn came and founded
Philadelphia, "a noble and beautiful
city, which contains above 2, 600 houses.
all inhabited and most of them stately
and of brick-generally three stories
high, after the mode in London.
Moreover, in this province are four
great market towns-viz, Chester, sAe
Germantown, New Castle and Lewis
town.
Among the laws-for this author
gives a synopsis of those also-perhaps
the most striking is this: Thieves of all
sorts are obliged to restore fourfold.
after they have been whipped and i'm
prisoned, according to the nature of
their crime, and if they be not Of abil-
ity to restore fourfold they must be in
servitude till tits satisfied"
L could give many more curious ex-
cerpts, but will content myself with one
before passing on to the other book:
The Christian children born here are
generally well favored and beautiful to
behold, being in the general observed to
be better natured, milder and more ten
der hearted than those born in Eng
land. 1"
The other book is still more rare. It
is called "a New Primer, or Methodical
Direction to Attain the True Spelling.
Reading and Writing of English, Where
unto Are Added Some Things Necessary
and Useful, Both For the Youth of This
Province and Likewise For Those Who
From Foreign Countries and Nations
Come to Settle Among Us. ByF. D. P.
Printed by William Bradford in New
York and sold by the Author in Pennsil-
vania
The printed book itself is curious
little schoolbook, and is so rare that it
is not mentioned by Allibone, who was
himself a Philadelphian. But this par
tlcular copy is Of especial and extraor-
dinary interest because it has been
bound up with about 80 blank pages.
upon which the author, in most clear
and beautiful manuscript, has written
some very quaint things. 1t was es-
pecially bound for William Penn, with |
his initials and the date 1901 ON the
cover, and inside is book plate bearing
the Penn arms and motto, and "Wil- |
ham Penn, Esquire, Proprietor of PEN
sylvania, 1703." 1t is worthy noting
the three different forms Of spelling the |
name OF the province used by those two
different authors and by Penn himself
(England) Cor. Pitts
FTnra IL.