The National tribune., 1908-07-09
CREEKS IN NEW ENGLAND.

was made up of descendants of English,
Scotch-Irish and Irish, almost wholly
Presbyterians, Congregationalists and
Baptists. whose forefathers had lief;
Great Britain because of the persecu-
tions of the Episcopal Church and who
had little love or regard for the father
land. which only seemed to them ma
chine of oppression. This is what
made the New England Colonies the
stronghold of the Revolution and al
most unanimous in their demand for
independence. The other sections of
the country had large Episcopal Gle
ment, and this was particularly true of
the country Immediately around New
York and the tidewater regions of the
South. In the mountains of the South
there was much the same element as
in New England, strongly recruited hy
the Presbyterians and other dissenters
who had left Great Britain after the
suppression of the rebellion in 1745,
when the Episcopalians became par
ticularly arrogant and vindictive.
began to lose its distinctive American
ism. When the great cotton factories
were first started they secured all their
labor from the girls of the surround
ing country, and one of the prettiest
sights to be seen, and which is well re-
membereG by the older Inhabitants,
were the exhibitions of the neat, trim,
intelligent Yankee girl factory opera
tives who turned out in a body on
great public occasions.
The rich lands of the West were too
strong a temptation for the New Eng
landers, and as the Erie Canal was fol-
lowed by railroads opening up the West
there was an exodus of Yankees to Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota,
which left thousands of abandoned
farms and deserted homes. The places
of the Yankee girls in the factories
were taken by the Irish until Massa-
chusetts threatened to become a New
Ireland.
Soon the quick, Industrious, ambi-
tious Irish found that there were better
opportunities for them in this country
than work as mill hands and they gave
place to Canadian French. These came
of thousands, and at one time it was
estimated that there was over 5000
"habitants" working in the New Eng
land mills and thousands of them have
taken up the abandoned farms. At
one time there were dreams of making
a New France by the conversion of
New England into French territory and
the union" with Quebec. Now it. ap-
pears that the Inhabitants" like the
Irish, are finding better opportunities
and their places are being taken by
Greeks. Already it is said there are
Z 900 Greeks in Lowell with similar
colonies in Boston, Lynn, Lawrence,
Springfield Worcester,
Biddeford, New Bedford, Fall River,
Taunton, Woburn and other places.
These are reported to be very good
workers and quite thrifty citizens. The
first delegation came about 20 years
ago from Sparta, and at first followed
fruit and candy selling on push carts
and shoe shining. They made money
at it, but found they could make more
money in the mills, where they proved
apt workmen. The men found the
country good and sent back for their
wives and sweethearts, also transmit
ting the news of what promised land
they had found. They are said to be
joyous people. who work
hard and, then have their. fun in social
enjoyment in the evening in the coffee
houses. They do not take to liquor
drinking, but their places of meeting
are where they brew a peculiar strong
black coffee. which they drink in con-
quantities, and also soumaea,
q white, frothy cream of almonds. The
coffee house keeper has something of
the same position among them that the
saloon keeper has among the Irish and
Germans. He is their banker and polit-
icai director and is useful to the new
corners in acquainting them with the
laws and customs of The country.
So far, the women seem to be under
the spell of the Eastern seclusion, and
tho a great many of them work in the
mills they hurry back from their toll
to their dark. secluded homes, where
they remain until it is time to go to
work again. An effort has been made
to introduce schools among them, and
it has met with fair success.
So far, the immigrants seem mostly
They are all devoted Greek Catholics
and are building churches frequently
directly across the street from some
Roman Catholic edifce. The priests
the Bishop of Athens are marked fig
ures on the street with their imposing
black robes and their long black beard
and hair. Already American freedom
them and there are members of the
church who want to put themselves on
the same plane as other Christians with
their ministers wearing everyday
clothes and beard and hair of the
fashionable length. This feeling has
grown so strong that there have been
secessions from some of the churches
with the modernists erecting churches
of their own and securing priests whose
ideas harmonic.
The Protestant churches are doing
effective missionary work among them.