Biographical sketches of distinguished Jerseymen
Arnold, Samuel George, 1806-1891, ed
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The idea of the following sketches was lirst suggested ia a small circle of literary friend^ who each a-reed to contribute for the columns of the '• Empo- rium & True Ameriean," something towards rescuing from oblivion the names of those who have played a distinguished part in the councils of the state, or «;ho have, in some way, contributed to its glory or prosperity. These sketches, as they appeared in the Emporium, attracted considerable attention, aod the publication, in some form more permanent than that of the columns of a news- paper, was .0 often suggested, that it has been deemed best to venture on the experiment. Should they prove to be the means of extending the knowledge of our history among those who are just entering on the stage of life, the writers will feel that their labors have not been in vain, and with this hope they < ommit these pages to the indulgent attention of the great public. Trfnton, July, ISl"). ABRAHAM CLARK. , 1 ABRAHAM CLARK. To an American, the most important political event of modern times, is the Declaration of our National Indepen- dence ; and the names which were subscribed to that immor- tal paper, have naturally drawn around them an interest commensurate with the greatness of that event. The state of New Jersey was, at that time, represented in the National Assembly by five delegates, one of whom was a minister of the gospel, two were members of the bar, and two were cul- tivators of the earth. They were not all native Jerseymen, but this act has so thoroughly identified them with our state, that we claim their reputation as our own. Abraham Clark was one of the two farmers. He was born in Essex county, about a mile and a half from the village of Rahway, on the upper road to Elizabethtown, February 15, 1726, on the farm which he afterwards inherited, and which descended to him by regular succession from his an- cestors, who were among the first settlers of the colony. His father, Thomas Clark, was an alderman of the borough of Elizabeth, a man of respectability and standing, and gave his son, what, for the times, was considered as a good edu- cation. Abraham, at an early age, manifested an inclination for study, and devoted considerable attention to mathema- tics, of which he was particularly fond. He also turned his attention to civil law, and made himself familiar with the principles and so much of the details, as he thought neces- 10 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. i^ary in transacting the ordinary business of life. In 1748, at the age of twenty-two years, he married Miss Sarali Hetfield, who resided in the borough of Elizabeth, and by whom he had a family of children, some of whom were conspicuous actors in the war of the Revolution. Several of his sons were officers in the American army, and, falling into the hands of the enemyj were among those who suffered imprisonment in the celebrated prison ship, Jersey, where they experienced all the hardships and cruelties which at that time marked the policy of the mother country towards her offending off- spring. Thomas was a captain of artillery, and his treat- ment was particularly barbarous. He was immured in a dun- geon, and for a long time had no other food than that which was surreptitiously conveyed to him, by his companions in suffering, through the keyhole of the door. Mr. Clark, the subject of this article, was of a delicate constitution and a slender frame, so that, notwithstanding his agricultural tastes and education, he was disqualified for the laborious pursuits of the field, and was chiefly employ- ed, in the early part of his life, in surveying, conveyancing and settling estates. He was also a frequent arbiter in dis- putes, was very generally consulted by his neighbors in all cases of litigation, gave legal advice to all who desired it, without fee or reward, and by his generous labors and kindly advice, obtained the grateful appellation of the ^^ poor man's counsellor. ^^ The colonial legislature also manifested their confidence in Mr. Clark's integrity, by appointing him a commissioner for settling undivided lands, and by electing him to the office of clerk of the general assembly, which then held its sessions at Amboy. He was also intrusted with the office of sheriff, and other stations of minor importance in the county of Essex, and appears to have been, in the more tranquil times which preceded the revolution, a quiet, pious, respec- ABRAHAM CLARK. 11 table and useful citizen, who enjoyed the general confidence of the people. When the controv'ersy with Great Britain arose, Mr. Clark was ill the full vigor of his intellect and usefulness, and able to give weight and strength to the cause which he might espouse. All his interests were with the royal party, but his feelings and his judgment inclined him at once to the popu- lar side, and no one, who knew the probity of his char- acter, would expect Abraham Clark to yield his duty to mere personal interests. He stood forth at once, and took a promi- nent part against the oppressive claims of parliament, and threw all the weight of his influence and the energies of his mind into the contest. Mr. Clark was a busy agitator, and a principal actor in all the measures of resistance which preceded the Declaration of Independence. He spoke freely on the subject of Ameri- can wrongs among his friends, assisted in fermenting the j)opular feeling in public assemblies, and was an active and working member of the committee of safety. This long course of patriotic and disinterested services naturally turned towards him the attention of the prominent patriots of that day, and, on the 21st of June, 1776, he was appointed by the colonial convention, then assembled at Burlington, a delegate to the continental congress. The colony of New Jersey had taken an early stand against the aggressions of the British government. In July, 1774, the people assembled in township meetings and elect- ed delegates to a colonial convention, which had been called (or the purpose of choosing delegates to the continental con- gress. At these primary meetings, resolutions were very generally passed, strongly censuring the tyrannical measures of the British government, in taxing the colonies without ;tllowing them a representation in parliament, and, especi- ally, in closing the port of Boston — and a second convention 12 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. met in Trenton, in 1775, which took measures for raising- military companies in the several townships, and imposed a tax for their support. Gov. Franklin was importuned to call the legislature to- gether, in order that the representatives might give these measures the sanction of law, and to adopt others for the further security of the colony, but he refused ; and the con- vention (the Provincial Congress as it was then called) took upon itself most of the authorities of the regular legislative assembly. Mr. Clark received his appointment as delegate to congress from this informal body. His colleagues were Richard Stockton, John Hart, Francis Hopkinson and Dr. John Witherspoon. The august body of which he had now become a member, was sitting, at the time. of his election, in the old Carpenter's Hall, in the city of Philadelphia, and thither he immediately repaired. The subject of declaring the colonies independent of Great Britain had already been introduced, and he co-operated cordially with those who advocated this important and decisive measure, and, a few days after, placed his hand to the instrument as one who was willing to pledge life, fortune and honor , in sustaining the just rights of his country. As a member of the continental congress, Mr, Clark was dis- tinguished for his zeal in the cause of American liberty and his attention and application to the pubhc business. He was ap- pointed on several important committees, and gave to his new and more extended duties all the industry, ability and perseverance which had marked his conduct in a more humble sphere. In the following November, he was re-appointed by the legislature, which had, during the interim, been regularly constituted, under the state constitution, which was adopted on the 2d of July; and he was annually returned until 1783, with the exception of a single year. Mr. Clark, in assisting to conduct the public business, soon dis- ABRAHAM CLARK. 13 covered that the articles under which the several states Were confederated, were grossly defective in many essential particu- lars ; and when the army w'as disbanded and the machinery of the government was left to depend on its own intrinsic merits, these defects exhibited themselves in a still more glaring light, and attracted the general attention of our most prominent statesmen, Mr. Clark was among the first to advocate a convention whose duty it should be to organize a more efficient system of govern- ment, and when the convention was finally called, in 1787, he was constituted a member, but was prevented by ill health from attending its sittings. The other delegates from New Jersey w^ere William Livingston, David Brearley, William Patterson, William C. Houston, and John Nielson. When the new constitution w^as published and presented to the states for their adoption, he oppo- sed it, but was fortunately overruled by his state. Subsequently, when the amendments were engrafted upon it, he withdrew his objections and gave it his hearty sanction. In 1787 he was again appointed to a seat in the continental congress, and continued a member until that body was dissolved by the new order, under the federal constitution. Mr. Clark was a candidate for a seat in the first congress under the new constitution, but was defeated. In the interim of his services in the national council he was generally a member of the state legislature. Here he had been conspicuous in procuring the passage of a bill, which curtailed, to some extent, the fees of lawyers, and which was characterized by the members of the bar as "Clark''s law.^' This at once brought against him the influ- ence of this active and industrious class of citizens. In congress he had also manifested a regard for the most rigid economy, and in carrying out his views, had opposed a proposition for commu- ting the pay of officers. The officers consequently became his decided opponents. He had, besides, opposed the adoption of the new constitution, which made him obnoxious to another, and still larger class of citizens, and the result was, that for once during 14 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. his long political life, he was left in the minority and lost his election. But Mr. Clark had, by no means, forfeited the confidence of his native state. In the winter of 1789-'90, he was appointed a commissioner to settle the accounts of the state with the general governmentj and, at the following election, was returned to the second congress, and continued to be re-elected until he volun- tarily withdrew from public life, at the expiration of the session in June, 1794. His health, never very good, had been much impaired by hii» application to the public business, and, exhausted by his toils and the infirmities incident to his advanced life, he returned to his humble home, to spend the remainder of his days in quiet retiro ment. His career was, however, drawing to its close. Tn the following autumn, while engaged about his farm, he received what is commonly called "a stroke of the sun," and in two hours after, he breathed his last, being at the time, in the 69th year nt his age. Mr. Clark, during his life, had bestowed numerous benefactions on the church at Rahway, and his remains were carried thither for interment, OA^er them is inscribed the following record : " In memory of Abraliam Clark, Esq., who died Sept 15th, 1794, in the C^th year of liis ago. Firm and decided as a patriot; zealous and faithful as a public servant, he loved his country and adhered to her cause in the darkest hours of iier struggle against oppression." The long public career of Mr. Clark is a sufficient testimony to the confidence reposed in him by the people of his native state, and his high standing as a patriot and statesman. In private life lie w^as reserved and sedate, preferring retirement to company, and always absorbed, apparently, in the affairs of the public. He was, however, a kind husband and parent, and a devoted christian. His biographer tells us — and the acts of his life confirm the statement — that the distinguishing trait in his character was pa- triotism. His integrity, sound judgment and devotion to the great ABRAHAM CLARK. 15 interests of his country, fully justify the high confidence reposed in him by his patriotic countiymen. It is recorded of him, that although his sons were prisoners, and in the hands of an enemy distinguished for injustice, he asked no special interference in their favor, and when the barbarous treatment which they received, in common with others, came to his knowledge, he only proposed the system of retaliation, which being adopted, had the effect to mitigate their sufferings until the period of regular exchange arrived. As a member of the old congress — of the state legislature, and a representative of New Jersey under the new constitution, he was distinguished more for his usefulness than his brilliancy, though he often entered vv-armly into the debates of those exciting times. His long career made him perfectly familiar with the public business and gave him great prominence and influence. In the last congress of which he was a member, he exerted his influence and talents in support of Mr. Madison's resolutions rela- ting to the commerce of the United States, and was considered one of their most powerful advocates, Mr. Clark was of a slender form, medium height, grave and thoughtful in his bearing, and extremely temperate in his maimer of living. In public atiairs he had the reputation of being a rigid economist, but in his private relations was liberal and phil- anthropic. His circmnstances were limited, his desires moderate, and being unambitious of wealth, he devoted himself Math undi- vided energy to the good and glory of his country. He was a plain, pious, unambitious man, and in public and private life pre- sents an example of excellence which the American farmer will ever be proud to cherish. G. JOHN mXHERSPOON. JOHN WITHERSPOON. Rev. Dr. Witherepoon was appointed a member of the conti- nental congress at the same time and under the same circumstan- ces as Mr. Clark. He was not a native Jerseyman, and besides, was attached to a profession which is frequently thought to exclude men from the honors and burdens of state affairs. But the good Doctor had taken up the cause of the colonies with so much ardor and enthusiasm, and was enabled to bring to it such a weight of influence and talent, as to give him, not only the full confidence of his adopted state, but to make his selection a matter of state policy. John Witherspoon, whose name is so thoroughly identified with the honor and prosperity of New Jersey, was born in the parish of Yester, near Edinburg, Scotland, on the 5th day of February, 1722. He was lineally descended from the Rev. John Knox, the great Scotch reformer, and his father was also a minister of the church of Scotland. At an early age he manifested a strong inclination for reading and study, and industriously improved the liberal advantages which his father gave him. At the age of fourteen, he entered the Edinburg University, and through his whole course of studies, which were directed with a view to the sacred profession, maintained a high standing and gave evi- dence of those strong intellectual powers for which he was after- wards so much distinguished. At the age of twenty-one he left the university, when he was licensed to preach the gospel and became the assistant of his fath- er at Yester, but soon after accepted an invitation from the parish 20 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. of Beith, in the west of Scotland, where he w^as ordained and set- tled. After residing here a few years, usefully employed in his labor of love, his high and increasing reputation as a preacher induced the congregation at Paisley, near Glasgow, to ask for his removal thither, and, in this wider sphere of usefulness he con- tinued until he was called to the "New World." During his residence i^t Beith, he was singularly enough, in- volved in some of the disagreeable consequences of the war which was then raging in Scotland, between the houses of Stuart and Hanover. The Pretender, as Charles was called, had made hiimself master of the town of Stirhng early in January, 1746, and proceeded in his designs against the castle. Gen. Hawley, the commander of the English forces in Scotland, was dispatched to its relief with a powerful array. The Pretender marched out to meet him, and the two armies met on the 16th of January, at Falkirk, where the English general was totally routed. The curiosity of the young minister induced him to seek a posi- tion where he could witness the conflict between the contending armies, and in the sweep made by the victors, he was picked up, and thrown, with other prisoners, into the castle of Doune. He was confined in a large upper room, next below the battlements, and had for his companions, five members of the Edinburg compa- ny of volimteers and two citizens of Aberdeen, charged with being spies. The quarters of the captives were not particularly agreeable, and as a part of them, at least, had a fair prospect of being hanged, there was not wanting a sufficient motive for prompting them to effect their escape. The sentinel had allowed them to pass freely up to the battlements, which were seventy feet from the ground, and their plan was to descend from this terrific height by means of a rope constructed of strips torn from the bed blankets which had been allowed them by their jailor. Mr. Witherspoon assisted them in their preparations, but when the plan was about to be carried into effect, had not fully deter- JOHN WITHERSPOON. 21 mined whether to avail himself of it or not. The order in which they were to descend was decided by lot, he being left, at his own request, out of the arrangement. The first four passed down in safety. The fifth man was very large and his descent too much hurried. Just as he reached the ground the rope broke, some thirty feet above him, but he received no injury. The accident was immediately communicated to those remaining on the battle- ments, but Thomas Barrow, whose turn came next, was so anxious to effect his escape, as to be altogether regardless of consequences, and throwing himself upon the rope, slid down to the end and thence fell to the ground, breaking several ribs and dislocating his ankle. His companions bore him away, how^ever, and they all succeeded in effecting their escape to the Vulture sloop of war, then lying in the Frith of Forth. Mr. Witherspoon and one of his companions, named Macvicar, w^ere still left on the battlements. They drew up the rope and taking it back to their cell, lengthened it and patched it up the best way that they were able, and returning, Macvicar attempted to follow his companions. He went down very well till he reached a part of the rope so large that he could not easily grasp it, when, letting go his hold, he fell, and was so much injured that he soon after died. These several warnings decided Mr. Witherspoon not to make the attempt and, returning to his room, he patiently awaited his liberation, which was effected as soon as the circum- stances could be investigated. Dr. Witherspoon, during his residence at Paisley, continued to acquire standing and influence, and obtained a high reputation as a scholar and preacher. He was frequently importuned to remove to other fields of labor, and was successively invited to Dublin, Ireland ; Rotterdam, Holland; and Dundee in his own country, but all these calls he steadily resisted. At that time there was a strong bond of union between the Scottish churches and their sister churches of America, and a constant intercourse was kept up between them. Hence it was 22 DISTINGUISHED JEKSEYMEN. that the high reputation of the learned and pious pastor of the congregation at Paisley, found its way to the British colonies in America. His learning, talents and piety, were so well understood and so highly appreciated by the distinguished men of this coun- tiy that, on the death of President Finley in 1766, he was unani- mously elected by the trustees, President of the College of New Jersey, located at Princeton, and Richard Stockton, a member of the board then in England, was desired to see him and urge his acceptance of the office. Mr. Stockton was not able immediately to visit the Doctor, but the appointment of the trustees was duly transmitted to him and was under consideration for some time. But the reluctance of Mrs. Witherspoon to leave the home of her youth and to dissolve forever the social and domestic ties which bound her strongly to the land of her birth, together with some embarrassments of a pecuniary kind, at length determined him to decline the invitar tion, and a letter to that effect was communicated to the trustees, who thereupon elected to the vacant place. Dr. Samuel Blair, the Vice President of the college. Subsequently, Mr. Stockton, in his tour to North Britain, visited Glasgow and Paisley, and was, for some time, the guest of Dr. Witherspoon. Mr. Stockton was in high favor among the distin- guished men of Great Britain, and his representations had so much weight with the Doctor and his family, that he finally con- sented to yield to the solicitations of his American friends. He was also visited by the celebrated Dr. Rush, who urged his acceptance, and whose friends claim for him the honor of changing his determination. Mr. Stockton informed the board of Trustees that the difficulties in the way of the Doctor's acceptance were now removed, and that, on a re-election, he would immediately pro- ceed to New Jersey and take charge of the institution. On the receipt of this intelligence, Mr. Blair voluntarily declined to ac- cept the office to which he had been elected, and Dr. Witherspoon was unanimously chosen. He immediately repaired to Prince- JOHN WITHERSPOON. 23 ton, where he arrived, with his family, in the early part of August, 1768, and on the 17th of the same month was duly inaugurated. In resolving to come to America, Dr. Witherspoon not only separated himself from all his early associations — his relatives, friends and church, but he also forfeited high prospects of wealth and distinction. We are told by his biographer, that not long before he left Holland, and while in a state of suspense on the subject of emigration, a gentleman possessed of a large property, a bachelor and a relative, agreed to make him his heir, on the con- dition that he should remain in Scotland. But the Doctor, after looking over all the ground, was fully persuaded that Providence had indicated his course, and like a true christian, he suffered neither the allurements of wealth, nor the persuasions of friends, nor the ties of blood, to interfere with what seemed to be so plainly his duty. The college, from its foundation at Elizabethtown in 1746, had been struggling with difficulties, and the repeated shocks which it had received in the death of five presidents during the twenty-two years of its existence, its removal from place to place, and the heavy expenses incurred by the erection of the Hall after its final location at Princeton, had all contributed still further to embarrass its finances, so that the bankruptcy of the institution was seriously apprehended. The acceptance of Dr. Witherspoon inspired the friends of the college with new confidence, and his subsequent administration of its affairs, fully justified their hopes. The high reputation which he had acquired in his own country, then regarded with peculiar veneration by the colonies, enabled him to wield a strong influ- ence in its favor, and his personal efforts, which were extended from Massachusetts to Virginia, soon placed the institution in a flourishing condition. Before taking his final departure from Scotland, he had visited London and Holland, and had received large presents of books for the institution. He had, at the same time, informed himself 24 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. respecting the latest improvements in education and government, by which means he was enabled to introduce many salutary re- forms ; and his piety, erudition, discretion and knowledge of the world, made him popular both as an instructor and presiding officer, and caused the college to rise rapidly in public favor. But while thus successfully engaged in the prosecution of his important labors, the storm of the revolution broke over the country, diverting its energies into other channels and unsettling all the business avocations of the people. The number of students soon began to fall off, and when New Jersey became the theatre of contending armies, the college was completely broken up, its shades deserted, and its spacious buildings occupied alternately by the British and American forces. During the progress of the events which led to the final rupture, Dr. Witherspoon had not been a silent or indifferent spectator ; but, casting aside his foreign prejudices and embracing with facility those republican principles which were so congenial to the frame work of his mind, he at once identified himself with the land of his adoption, and through all the stages of the contest, maintained the views and participated in the councils of those who adhered to the rights of British freemen against the aggressions of British power. The whig citizens of New Jersey who knew his influence and were proud of his reputation, sought to secure his services in the public councils, and sent him to the state convention which convened at Burlington on the 10th of June, 1776, where as a member of committees and a scholar who wielded a ready pen, he soon gave evidence of the same ability in conducting the pub- lic basiness which he had before exhibited as a professor and divine. On the 21st of the same month he was chosen one of the delegates to that august body, the continental congress— the heart through which the life blood of the nation pulsated, alid which gave union and energy to the efforts of those who were struggling in the great cause of human rights. JOHN WITHERSPOON. 2.0 The delegates from New Jersey were not unprepared for the crisis, which, it was foreseen, was about to arise. The contin- gency of a final separation from Great Britain had been discussed in the convention by which the delegates were appointed, and they were instructed to unite with the delegates from the other colonies, in declaring the country independent if a measure so strong and decided was found to be necessary for the preservation of their rights. Dr. Witherspoon took his seat, therefore, with a full knowledge of his position, and was one of the most ardent of those who ad- vocated a complete and immediate separation from the mother country. It is related of him, that when a distinguished member pleaded for delay and urged that we were not yet ripe for so bold a measure, he replied : " In my opinion, sir, we are not only ripa but rotting.^' He was annually re-appointed to congress till his final retire- ment in 1782, with the exception of the year 1780, when the affairs of the college so imperiously demanded his attention, that he was induced to decline the appointment. He resumed his seat, however, the following year, and continued to devote his attention to national affairs with an assiduity and ardor unsur- passed by any member in that body of distinguished patriots. Although the state appointed supernumerary delegates, with the view of relieving the toils and burdens of the regular members, yet the Doctor seldom or never availed himself of this relief, but steadily continued to perform for himself the arduous duties re- quired by his position, and attended in his seat with great punc- tuality during the whole period of his annual appointments. He was always firm in the most gloomy periods of the war, and had that peculiar quality of great minds, which enabled him to manifest the greatest power and confidence when surrounded with the most embarrassing circumstances. But, although, thus earnestly devoted to the service of the country, he never forgot that he was a sworn servant to the Most 4 26 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. High. He neither laid aside the robes by which his order was distinguished, nor the duties of the christian minister, but cordiall) embraced every proper opportunity to preach the Word of Life. Nor did he forget what he owed to the college over which he presided, but continued, even among his nightly vigils and daily toils to cherish it " as the apple of his eye," and to advocate its interests and advance its prosperity. As a member of congress he was remarkable for his diligence and attention to the duties of his station, and was constantly em- ployed on the most laborious committees. He was a member of the secret committee ; a member of the committee appointed to confer with Gen. Washington in relation to recruiting the regi- ments whose terms of service had expired; he was on the com- mittee which prepared the nervous and eloquent appeal to the public during the gloom and despondency which preceded the battle of Trenton ; he was a member of the board of war ; he was on the committee which prepared the manifesto respecting the American prisoners ; he was a leading member of the committee of finance, and most strenuously opposed the different issues of paper money, which caused so much embarrassment and distress, and which he characterized as "a great and deliberate breach of the public faith ;'-' he was on the committee to devise means for procuring supplies for the army, and steadily withstood the ex- pensive mode at first adopted, of doing the business by commission instead of contract; he was on the committee appointed by con- gress for investigating the difficulties on the New Hampshire grants, (Vermont,) and which at one time, threatened a civil war ; and in all the important movements of congress he appears to have borne a conspicuous part. It is remarked of him, that during his long political course, whenever he differed from his compeers as to the policy to be pursued, or the means most proper to pro- duce any desired result, subsequent events have fully vindicated the accm-acy of his judgment and the soundness of his views. On the subject of the currency, Dr. Witherspoon was -what JOHN WITHEKSPOON. 27 would, in this day, be termed a radical. He strenuously opposed the different issues of paper money, and urged the propriety of making loans and establishing funds for the payment of the inter- est, and enforced his views in several speeches of great clearness and power. Afterwards, at the instance, it is said, of some who had opposed his views on this question in congress, he published his essay on the nature, value and uses of money, which is one of the most clear and judicious articles extant on that subject. In the deliberations for forming the original articles of confed- eration. Dr. Witherspoon took an active part, and steadily main- tained the necessity of a compact union, in order to impart vigor and success to the measures of the government. He complained much of the jealousy and ambition of the individual states, which prevented them from entrusting the general government with powers adequate to the common interest ; regarded the original compact as essentially defective ; remonstrated against its weak- ness and inefficiency, and although its adoption was hailed with general joy, lived to see his predictions respecting it but too fully realized. The temporary retirement of Dr. Witherspoon from congress at the close of the year 1779, was for the purpose of attempting a re-organization of the college. The preliminary steps had been taken at the meeting of the board of trustees in April, 1778 ; but such was the unsettled state of the country^ and the condition of the college buildings, that little appears to have been done. In- deed, the college property was little less than a heap of ruins. Prior to the battle of Princeton, Nassau Hall was used by the British troops as their barracks, and at the time of the battle it was siezed upon by two regiments of Hessians, who knocked out the windows by way of converting it into a fort for their defence. They retreated, however, on the approach of the Americans, but one of the balls fired on the occasion shattered the heavy stone- work of the hall, and another entered one of the chapel windows, and singularly enough, tore from its frame the picture of George 28 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. IL, since most appropriately replaced by that of the great Wash- ington. After the battle the hall was used as a hospital for a number of months, and it continued to be occupied in one way or another by the government troops up to the year 1781. The extent of the devastation can now hardly be realized. The build- ing was torn to pieces, stripped of every thing valuable, the floors broken up, the fences and every particle of wood that could be cut away from the building, removed and burned, the ornaments of the prayer hall and library, the philosophical apparatus, the orrery, &c., all carried away or destroyed. Without credit or funds it was impossible at once to bring this chaos to a state of regularity and order. Still it was desira- ble that the course of instniction should proceed, and as the atten- tion of Dr. Witherspoon was chiefly directed to the concerns of the republic, the immediate duty of re-commencing it was com- mitted to the Vice President, Dr. Samuel Smith, who had married Dr. Witherspoon's daughter, and who afterwards succeeded him in the presidency. The college rose slowly from its low estate, and met with another disaster in 1782, when all that was left, after the plunderings of the troops, was destroyed by fire, leaving nothing but the walls of the edifice standing. So late as 1783, only the second and third stories had been so far repaired that parts of them could be used. The lower and fourth stories were sti|l in ruins. In Dec. 1779, Dr. W^ resigned his house on the college grounds to vice president Smith, and removed to his own residence, which he called Tusculum, about a mile from Princeton, where he devoted the time which he could spare from public duties to the pursuits of agriculture, of which he was particularly fond. His name, however, continued to give weight and character to the institution, and he lived to see it regain and surpass its former standing and prosperity. He appears to have suffered considerably from the ravages of the war, in common with his neighbors, and in one of his letters. JOHN WITHERSPOON. 29 announcing to a friend his removal to Tusculum, says : — " You know I was alwaj^s fond of being a scientific farmer. That dis- position has not lost, but gathered strength since my being in America. In this respect I received a dreadful stroke indeed, from the English when they were here, ■ they having seized and mostly destroyed my whole stock, and committed such ravages that we are not yet fully recovered from it." After the commencement in 1783, Drs. Witherspoon, Rodgers and Jones, vrere appointed by the board of trustees, to wait on Gen. Washington, who was present at the commencement, and solicit him to sit for his picture to Mr. C. W. Peale ; and it was ordered in the resolution from which they derived their appoint- ment, " that his portrait when finished be placed in the hall of the college, in the room of the picture of the late king of Great Britain, which was torn away by a ball from the American ar- tillery in the battle of Princeton." The picture was accordingly taken, and in its old, royal frame, still graces the college walls. At the time of this commencement, congress was holding its sessions in the college hall, having adjourned from Philadelphia on account of the mutinous disposition manifested by a part of the Pennsylvania forces, which had just been disbanded. That august body attended the commencement, which was held on the last Wednesday in September, and Gen. Washington, whose business with congress called him to Princeton, sat on the stage. On that day Rev. Ashbel Green, since one of the presidents of the college, graduated, and on him fell the honor of delivering the valedictory. At the close of his speech he turned towards the commander-in-chief, and congratulated him in a feeling and eloquent episode, on the happy termination of his toils, and thanked him in behalf of the officers and students of the college, for the important services which he had rendered to the country. We are told that this incident produced a thrilling ell'ect on the audience, and was by no means offensive to the honored and successful chief, who before his departure, presented to the trustees, 30 DISTINGUISHED JERSEYMEN. through the committee of which Dr. Witherspoon was chairman, the sum of fifty guineas. In the year 1781, Dr. Witherspoon resumed his seat in con- gress, but it soon became evident that the great contest for liberty was drawing to a close, and as age and infirmities were creeping on him, he felt himself at liberty to withdraw from the public councils of the nation, which he did at the close of 1782. He was, however, permitted to enjoy the retired quiet of Tusculum for a short period only. In 1783, he was induced, contrary to his own judgment, to cross the ocean, and revisit the land of his • birth, for the purpose of obtaining funds to advance the interests of the college. He embarked in December, and in the sixtieth year of his age, braved the dangers of the ocean and the prejudices which his public career had engendered against him, to aid the cause of education in his adopted country. The result fully justified his anticipations. The rebellious con- duct of the colonies, the long war which ensued and which had ended in severing us forever from the parent country, had so em- bittered the feelings of the English against the United States, that he was enabled to procure little more than enough to defray his necessary expenses. He returned previous to the commence- ment in 1784, and, from this time, withdrew in a great measure from all public concerns, except those which related to his minis- terial oflRce, or the supervisorship of the college. He was, however, elected to the state convention which assembled at Trenton, Dec. 11, 1787, for the purpose of acting on the new federal constitution, and had the honor of being one of the signers of that instrmnent on the part of the State of New Jersey. " Bodily infirmities began, at length, to fall heavily upon him. For more than two years previous to his death, he was afflicted with the loss of sight, which contributed to hasten the progress of his other disorders. He bore his sufferings with exemplary patience, and even cheerfulness; ner would his active mind, and unabated desire of usefulness, permit him, even in this situation, JOHN WITHERSPOON. 31 to desist from his ministry or his duties in the college, so far as health and strength would permit. During his blindness, he was frequently led into the pulpit, both at home and abroad, and always acquitted himself with his usual accuracy, and not unfrequently with more than his usual solemnity and animation." He died at Tusculum, in November, 1794, having reached the seventy-third year of his age, and went to his eternal reward *' full of days and full of honors." His dust reposes in the grave yard at Princeton, and over it is a stone, bearing in latin the following chronicle of his usefulness, virtues and public services : " Beneath this marble lie interred, the mortal remains of John Witheespoon, D. D., L. L. D., a venerable and beloved President of the College of New Jersey. He was born in the parish of Ycster, in Scotland, on the fifth of February, 1722, 0. S., and was liberally educated in the University cf Edinburg. Invested with holy orders in the year 1743, he faithfully performed the duties of his pastoral charge, duiinz five and twenty years, first at Beith, and afterwards at Paisley. Elected president ot Nassau Hall, he assumed the duties of that otiice on the thirteenth of August, J768, with the elevaled expectations of the public. Excellinji in every mental gift, he was a man cf pre-eminent piety and virtue, and deeply veised in the various branches of literature and the libeial aris. A giave and solemn preacher, his sermons abound in the most excellent doctrines and precepts for the conduct of life, and in the most luciJ expositions of the Sacred Scriptures. Afl'able. pleasant, and courteous, in familiar conversation, he was eminently disiincuished ia the concerns and deliberations of the Church, and endowed with the greatest prudence in the management and instruction of youth. He exalted the reputation of the college among foreigners, and greatly promoted the advancement of its literary character and lasie. 