[figure description] Page 086.[end figure description]

The general invitation which
William Broadbrim had given to all persons
who were de&longs;titute of a home, to come
and take &longs;helter under his roof, and the
gentle humane treatment which tho&longs;e
who accepted the invitation met with,
&longs;pread his fame abroad, and brought him
much company. His family was sometimes
compared to the Ark of Noah, because
there was &longs;carcely any kind of

[figure description] Page 087.[end figure description]

being, of whatever &longs;hape, &longs;ize, complexion,
di&longs;po&longs;ition, or language, but what might
be found there. He had al&longs;o the art to
keep them pretty well employed. Industry,
frugality, and temperance, were
the leading principles of his family; and
their thriving was in a ratio compounded
of the&longs;e three forces. Nothing was wanting
to make them as happy a family as any
in the world, but a di&longs;po&longs;ition among
them&longs;elves, to live in peace. Unluckily,
however, this de&longs;irable ble&longs;&longs;ing, on account
of the variety of their humours and
intere&longs;ts, was &longs;eldom found among them.
Ambition, jealou&longs;y, avarice, and party
&longs;pirit, had frequent out breakings, and
were with difficulty quelled. It is needless
to enter into a very particular discussion
of the grounds or effects of the&longs;e dissentions:
family quarrels are not very
entertaining either at home or abroad, unless
to &longs;uch as delight in &longs;candal. But
there was one cau&longs;e of di&longs;&longs;ention which it
would be improper not to notice, becau&longs;e

[figure description] Page 088.[end figure description]

I have already hinted at the principle
from which it proceeded. William's
aver&longs;ion to fire arms was &longs;o &longs;trong, that
he would not &longs;uffer any of his family to
mole&longs;t the wild inhabitants of the fore&longs;t,
though they were ever &longs;o mi&longs;chievous.
While the family was &longs;mall, the &longs;avage
animals who lived in the neighborhood
being well fed, were tolerably tame and
civil, but when the increa&longs;ed number of
the family had penetrated farther into the
fore&longs;t, the haunts of the natives were dissturbed,
and the &longs;traggling labourers were
&longs;ometimes &longs;urpri&longs;ed, and having nothing
to defend them&longs;elves with, fell a &longs;acrifice
to &longs;avage re&longs;entment. Remon&longs;trances
were pre&longs;ented to Mr. Broadbrim one
after another, but he always in&longs;i&longs;ted on
it that the &longs;ufferer mu&longs;t have been the
aggre&longs;&longs;or, and that “they who take the
&longs;word mu&longs;t expect to peri&longs;h by the &longs;word.”
At length the dead corp&longs;e of one of the
labourers, mangled and torn in a dreadful
manner, was brought and laid at the

[figure description] Page 089.[end figure description]

door of William's parlour[39] with a label
affixed to the brea&longs;t, on which were written
the&longs;e words, “Thou thy&longs;elf mu&longs;t be
accounted my murderer, becau&longs;e thou
did&longs;t deny me the means of defence.” At
&longs;ight of this horrid &longs;pectacle, Broadbrim
turned pale! the eye of his mind looked
inward! Nature began to plead her own
cau&longs;e within him! he gave way in &longs;ome
degree to her operations, though contrary
to his preconceived opinion, and with a
trembling hand &longs;igned a permi&longs;&longs;ion for
tho&longs;e to u&longs;e the carnal weapon,† who could
do it without &longs;cruple; and when they
a&longs;ked him for money to buy guns, powder
and ball, he gave them a certain &longs;um
to provide the nece&longs;&longs;aries of life, leaving
them to put their own con&longs;truction on the
words. By degrees his &longs;queami&longs;hne&longs;s decreased,
and though it is imagined he has
&longs;till &longs;ome remainder of it, yet nece&longs;&longs;ity has
&longs;o often overcome it, that there is not

[figure description] Page 090.[end figure description]

much &longs;aid on the &longs;ubject, unle&longs;s it be very
privately and among friends.

During the time of which we have
been &longs;peaking, Mr. John Bull had undergone
another &longs;ickne&longs;s,[40] not &longs;o long nor &longs;o
violent as the former, but much more
beneficial in its effects. His new physicians
had admini&longs;tered medicines which
compo&longs;ed his nerves; he eat, drank, and
&longs;lept more regularly; and he was advi&longs;ed
to marry again, for his former wife had
died of a con&longs;umption a little before this
&longs;ickne&longs;s came on. By the&longs;e means his
vigour was renewed, but &longs;till his whimsical
di&longs;po&longs;ition remained, and broke out
on &longs;everal occa&longs;ions. When he viewed
his exten&longs;ive fore&longs;t, now planted and
thriving, under the hone&longs;t hand of industry,
he thought within him&longs;elf that &longs;till
greater advantages might be derived from
that territory. There was yet a part of it
un&longs;ettled between the plantation of Charles
Indigo, and the dominions of Lord Strut;

[figure description] Page 091.[end figure description]

and Bull thought it a pity to let &longs;o much
remain a wilderne&longs;s. The other plantations
had been made by di&longs;contented servants
and needy adventurers, who, struggling
with hard&longs;hips, a &longs;teady perseverance
had &longs;urmounted many difficulties,
and obtained a comfortable living.
“Now, &longs;aid Bull, if the&longs;e fellows have
done &longs;o well, and got &longs;o far aforehand,
without having any capital of their own
to begin with, what cannot be done by the
force of my great capital? If they have
performed &longs;uch wonders, what greater
wonders may be brought into view by my
own exertions, with all the advantages
which it is in my power to command?
To it, boys, I vow I'll have a farm of my
own that &longs;hall beat you all!”—Having
hit upon this project, his brains immediately
became pregnant with ideas; but
according to the rule which he had lately
pre&longs;cribed to him&longs;elf, he communicated
the matter to his wife. This good lady
was not free from an ambitious turn of

[figure description] Page 092.[end figure description]

mind. She was extremely fond of having
it thought that &longs;he had great influence
over her hu&longs;band, and would &longs;ometimes
gratify his humour at the expen&longs;e of her
own judgment, rather than not keep up
this idea. His expectations from his new
project were very &longs;anguine. The land
on which he had ca&longs;t his eye was enough
for a large farm; it had a &longs;outhern exposure,
it was warm, rich and fertile in
&longs;ome parts, and in others boggy or &longs;andy.
He had conver&longs;ed with &longs;ome foreigners,
who told him that it was proper for the
cultivation of wine and &longs;ilk, and he imagined
that if he could but add the&longs;e articles
to the li&longs;t of his own productions,
there would be a great &longs;aving in the family.
Mrs. Bull too was plea&longs;ed with the
idea of having her &longs;ilk gowns and ribbands
of her own growth, and with the expectation
of having the vaults filled with wine,
made on her own plantation; for the&longs;e and
other good rea&longs;ons, her thereunto moving,
madam gave her con&longs;ent to the proj

[figure description] Page 093.[end figure description]

ect. The per&longs;on appointed to carry it
into execution was George Tru&longs;ty,[41] a sensible
well bred merchant, but one who had
only &longs;peculated in the &longs;cience of agriculture,
and knew nothing of it by experience.
Having collected a number of poor
people who were out of employment, he
&longs;ent them to the &longs;pot, with &longs;trict orders to
work fix days in &longs;even, to keep their tools
free from ru&longs;t, and their fire arms in readiness
for their defence. Whatever they
&longs;hould earn was to be their own as long as
they lived, and after their death their possessions
were to de&longs;cend to their &longs;ons, and
in default of male i&longs;&longs;ue to revert to the orriginal
grantor. They were not allowed
to u&longs;e black cattle in the labour of the
field; and were expre&longs;sly forbidden to
drink grog. Their bu&longs;ine&longs;s was to cultivate
vines and mulberry trees, and to
manufacture wine and &longs;ilk. Upon this
project another was grafted by the very
&longs;agacious Doctor Squintum, who cho&longs;e this
new plantation as the mo&longs;t convenient

[figure description] Page 094.[end figure description]

&longs;pot in the world for a charity &longs;chool,
where Orphans might receive the be&longs;t education
and be fitted to be the pillars of
church and &longs;tate.

But notwith&longs;tanding the &longs;ums which
Bull &longs;o freely lavi&longs;hed out of his bags for
the &longs;upport of the vine and mulberry
plantations; and notwith&longs;tanding the collections
which Squintum made among
his numerous devotees, the&longs;e projects
were either &longs;o impracticable in them&longs;elves,
or &longs;o ill conducted in the execution, that
neither of them an&longs;wered the expectations
of the projectors. For want of black cattle,
the &longs;oil could not be properly tilled;
and for want of grog, the labourers fainted
at their work; the right of inheritance
being limited to the male line, women
and girls were not fond of living there,
and the men could not well live without
them; land, cattle, women and grog,
were to be had el&longs;ewhere, and who would
be confined to &longs;uch a place? The land,

[figure description] Page 095.[end figure description]

too, was claimed by Lord Strut, who
&longs;ent them writs of ejectment. As to the
Charity &longs;chool, it was, on trial, found
that the co&longs;t was more than the profit,
and the building which had &longs;wallowed up
thou&longs;ands of charity money, was finally
con&longs;umed by fire. Poor George Tru&longs;ty
was di&longs;couraged, and begged Mr. Bull
to take the plantation into his own hands;
however, Bull continued to &longs;upply him
with ca&longs;h, and he kept making attempts.
Alterations were made in the terms of settlement,
the re&longs;trictions were removed,
cattle and grog were allowed, Lord Strut
was ou&longs;ted, and po&longs;&longs;e&longs;&longs;ion held; the
&longs;wamps were drained; rice and indigo
were cultivated in&longs;tead of &longs;ilk and wine;
and upon the whole, con&longs;iderable improvements
were made, though at &longs;uch a
va&longs;t expen&longs;e, that Mr. Bull never &longs;aw any
adequate returns.

The ill &longs;ucce&longs;s of this adventure did
not deter him from another project. He

[figure description] Page 096.[end figure description]

was extremely fond of Trout,[42] and thought
if he could have them regularly catched
and brought to his table, he &longs;hould exceed
all his neighbours in delicate living;
and now and then be able to &longs;end a me&longs;s
to his particular friends. Lord Peter's
family too, he thought, would be glad to
buy them, as they were very u&longs;eful in the
long lents, and frequent meagre days observed
by them. There was a part of the
fore&longs;t on the north-ea&longs;t quarter, which
was very conveniently &longs;ituated for this
employment.† It had been occupied by
Alexander Scotus, a purblind fellow,
who had &longs;traggled thither no one
could tell how; and it was matter of
doubt whether he derived his right from
Bull, or Lewis; for both of them laid
claim to the land, and their claims had
not been fairly decided in law. To make
&longs;ure of the matter, Mr. Bull, by advice of
his wife, &longs;ent a waggon to bring off the
family of Scotus, whom he di&longs;tributed a

[figure description] Page 097.[end figure description]

mong the other families of his tenants;
and in their room &longs;ent thither[43] a parcel
of naked, half &longs;tarved people, who could
live no where el&longs;e, and &longs;upported them
for &longs;everal years with provi&longs;ions, furnished
them with &longs;kiffs, lines, hooks and other
implements to carry on the fi&longs;hery;
but every trout which they catched, co&longs;t
him ten times as much as if he had bought
it in the common market; nor could
he, after all, get half what he wanted for
his own con&longs;umption. His trout fi&longs;hery,
and his mulberry plantation, rendered him
the laughing &longs;tock of his neighbours,
nor could he ever gain even the intere&longs;t
of the money he had laid out upon them;
while the fore&longs;ters who had &longs;ettled at their
own expen&longs;e, grew rich and became respectable.
He had indeed, the benefit of
their trade, which kept his journeymen
at work, and obliged him to enlarge their
number; for the fore&longs;ters had a re&longs;pect

[figure description] Page 098.[end figure description]

for their old ma&longs;ter and landlord, and
when they had any thing to &longs;ell, they always
let him have the refu&longs;al of it, and
bought all their goods of him. But
though he called him&longs;elf their father, and
his wife their mother, yet he began to abate
of his parental affection for them;
and rather looked on them with a jealous
eye, as if they were aiming to deprive him
of his claim and &longs;et up for independence.
Had he been contented with the profits of
their trade, as was certainly his intere&longs;t,
they might have remained his tenants to
this day; but ambition, avarice, jealou&longs;y
and choler, inflamed by bad coun&longs;ellors,
have wrought &longs;uch a &longs;eparation, that it
is thought Mr. Bull will go mourning all
the remainder of his days, and his grey
hairs will be brought down with &longs;orrow
to the grave.

eaf005.n39

[39] State hou&longs;e, 1755.

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