Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1904-09-22

jersey QuakerS. Among those VINO Saileu
up the Delaware river on the 'Flie-boat
Martha one day in 1877, seeking freedom
to worship God according to the dictates of
their consciences was William Black. He
was a Quaker and he sought the refuge
from almost continual persecution in his
native England when a little band OF his
co-reiigionists had secured on the Jersey
shors OF the river ten years before, when
they founded Burlington. Going inland
land, which he proceeded to cultivate.
From that day to this there has always
been a farmer in the family, and to-day a
part of the land which William Black took
up on 1877, near Mount Holly, is titled by
his lineal descendant, Charles G.
When the war of the revolution broke
out Williams grandson, John, was in pos
session of the farm He was staunch
patriot and was the general commanding
the militia OF that section of the colony.
That militia was never regularly in the
army and all the active service it saw was
occasional skirmishes with foraging parties
of the British 1t was sort of home
guard, which came together for the defense
of their households at the first appearance
of danger and then when the peril was
over they went back to their sowing and
their reaping This John Black was col
lector of Burlington county for number
of years He kept the county's funds in a
strong box under his bed and when at
stated intervals he took the money to
Trenton to be deposited in the bank he was
accompanied on his journey by an armed
guard, which made brave showing as it
rode through the country. Another John
Black, grandfather of Charles, was for SO
years president of what is now the Farmers
National Bank of Mt. Holly.
MR.. BLACKS ANCESTORS.
John Black was a public-spirited man
and when in the early seventies the pro-
position to lease the United Railroads Of
New Jersey to the Pennsylvania company
was made he fought the lease unsuecess-
fully in the courts of that state. He was
a son of John, who married Mary Ann
Clarke, daughter of Charles and Rachel
Clarke, of Princeton. The Clarkes were
also Quakers and it was on the farm of
Rachael Clarke's grandfather that the bat
tie of Princeton was fought When Gen.
Mercer of the American forces was wound
ed in this memorable fight he was taken
to the house on the Clarke farm and nursed
by members of that family. The old
Quaker meeting house is now standing
where it did when the battle was fought
and still bears the marks Of bullets which
struck it as the fight ragged around the
venerable little building.
Members of the Clarke family are buried
in the old Stoney Brook Quaker burying
ground, and among them lies the remains
of Richard Stockton, one of the signers
of the declaration of independence. Miss
Elizabeth Clarke and Mrs William Paxson,
who lives at Princeton, are the last sur
vivors of those who have control Of the old
Stoney Brook burying ground.
WHERE HE WAS BORN.
John Black took his bride to the old
''wigwam" farm near Mt. Holly, part of
the land taken up by his ancestor, William
Black, when he came to this country in
1877, and there, July 2sth, 1858, was born
the boy who was named Charles Clarke for
his maternal grandfather. Young Charles
spent his early boyhood on his fathers
farm, attending the district school, and
when at home helping with the usual chores
about the place. The teacher of the school
was an Englishman named William J
Kelly, man of some eccentricity and ex-
cellent classical attainments. The former
brought upon Charles Black many birch
ing and the latter fitted him for college.
Master Kelly was an inyeterate smoker
and would often suspend the school exer-
cises while he stepped outside the door and
INDUCED in pipe. On these occasions he
would place the school in charge Of a
monitor and leave strict injunction that
things must be as quiet and as orderly as
though he were there. His disappearance
through the door, nevertheless. was the
signal for the greatest disorder the pupils
were capable of, which only ceased at the
first sound Of the pedagogue's return.
Kelly's first question would be, ''How has
the order been ?'' and when the monitor
replied, Excellent, sir,n his only COM
ment would be to seize the worst offender
and birch him soundly. He never made a
mistake and it was some time before the
scholars discovered that be never went out
of earshot, but always concealed himself
near the door in position where he could
see all that was going on in the school
room