Diary of Hiram Harvey Hurlburt Jr - Chapter 20

A part of the Diary of Hiram Harvey Hurlburt Jr

I think it was in August 1850. I went to New York to get stock to deliver at places up the river, and had to wait until the English Packet "sail-ship" should arrive. So I canvassed what they called then Upper New York. I boarded at the Pacific Hotel, it was kept by a man named Flower. Three dollars a week. This Hotel was near City Hall Park.

I was coming down Broadway on East side walk, at that time it was called the fifty cent side, the other side was called the dollar side, as properly would rent for double prince, on account of the sun shining to take off snow and wet. When I reached Walker Street at the corner, a man came from that street and met a man just back of me, they had just one word, when one out with his revolver fired, ball went apparently near my head, they both kept firing. It seemed to me in one minute there were more than one hundred around me closed up, two or three policeman. I did not want to be arrested as a witness, so I just crawled over the legs of the man shot down on my hands and knees through the mob and got out. My. white pants were soiled. On getting to hotel, I told Flower how I got out of a muss, my pants showed the hard usage. Flower said I was lucky that I did not get shot. And if a person is supposed to be a witness of such an affra he is arrested, and if he can't get bail, he is jailed until after trial, so your time would be practically lost. Your fees only thirty five cents a day besides board. At present a witness gets some advance from that price.

One of these men died, the other was thought to be crippled for life. When I arrived at Kingston on this trip a curious thing occurred.

The first visit I made this city I found board with William Davidson a justice of the peace for Ulster County. He lived in a stone house and his father on the opposite side of the street lived in one of a similar appearance.

These two houses in the Revolutionary War were called "forts," and was at the time I was there in 1850, but all the old people. These houses had been in the Davidson family for a long time. The old gentleman was about eighty years old. He appeared to make a living by keeping a small counter on the same side of the street of his house. The room could not be over eight by twelve feet, just room for his counter, and for his customers to get to the front of it and pass each other. He had to sell some pies and furnished nice boiled eggs with home made crackers. Any one would suppose his income would just support him and his aged wife.

The old gentleman has another son besides this William who lived in Troy, N.Y.

This son in Troy while I was there in July come down to see his parents and he had his boy with him a lad I think he was fourteen years old, and when his father went back to Troy, he left him with his grandparents to make a longer visit. After staying a week or so the boy returned to Troy. He has not been home more than a day or two, before he purchased something, and paid a Spanish doubloon for it. The man he let have the money was suspicious of the boy at once, and went to the father about its then the lad was called to explain about it. He owned right up. His grandparents has told him that some day the place might be his; and he thought when he found the money he had a right to it. He had been looking around in the celler, and he had dug down in one place and found this "crock" what we call a stone jar that would hold two gallons, made much heavier than modern ware.

The grandfather not going to the crock often had not missed any money. The son Troy took what the boy had, mostly doubloons, most one hundred dollars and came down to Kingston. I don't know how they fixed it.

The justice William Davidson where I boarded was a chess player, always seemed to be ready to play if I dropped in to his office. He asked me to play a game and as we played, got his game all snarled up; his habit was in such an emergency to tap his forehead with his finger, saying, "Six from four you can't." Then went on and told wha I have written above. "He claimed he and his brother knew nothing of this money but father had been saving all his life time. Why father owns this office." It was close to his lunch room. "And makes me pay promptly the rent, and owns where I live, and the rent must be met on time" He concluded. "That he and his brother had took a little specie and carried to New York for safe keeping at fathers request."

It got out somehow what the boy did in his grandfathers cellar, and when I was in Westbrooks office Westbrook made the remark. "He would venture to say, that there were a good many families in Kingston, that has more specie, that they could lather hands on, than one could find in a bank. Westbrook was of a Dutch family, as well as Davidson and they the Dutch are supposed to be of very thrifty habits.

One day, some of the last of my visits there, Westbrook came to me, I was copying some law papers that day for him. Says he: "Hurlburt. Stop here in the office two years, and I will have you admitted to the bar in Albany when the two years are up." But I told him honestly I could not. For father had gone to California and I had promised father to go back him when my year was up, and see to things, for I was the oldest in my father's family. Westbrook put his hand on my shoulder and said "You do as your father wants you should." In a few minutes he said, "Well, I will ask you to my sister's wedding," giving date. This was the finest collection of people I suppose I ever met. I have never seen such a display of jewelry, in every conceivable fashion, before or since, Champlin said, It is reported that there are bracelets, necklaces and rings here that are more than a thousand years old.

These happenings to me when I was feeling sore and sad over my fortune cheered me a good deal. Time has a great deal to do with disappointments if you will only let it.