Hobgoblin Hall [pp. 161-163]

162 HOB C OBLIN HALL. [AUGUST 9,
face, as clearly as if the year of the reign of
George II., in which it was erected, had been
sculptured above the entrance - door. No
modern iconoclast had reared a hideous mansard roof above it; no axe had yet been laid
at the root of the stately elms, that stood,
like forest giants as they were, along the
splendid old drive.
The grounds, once laid out in correct
taste, were separated from the highway by a
brick wall. From the gate-way, flanked by
tall wooden columns, a broad avenue, bordered with box, led straight up to the house,
situated at some seventy paces back from the
road. The space between was embellished
with shrubbery, fruit and shade trees. To
the right, as you looked toward the mansion,
was the drive-way, on each side of which
stood a massive stone gate-post, itself as
antique and imposing as any thing about the
establishment.
Imagine a very large, three-story brick
house, sheathed entirely in wood, except at
one end, and having, as was customary in
houses of a much later date, the upper tier of
windows smaller than those underneath. The
spaces below the windows of the east front,
toward which I was looking, were filled in
with panels, so that from ground to cornice
the windows rose in the form of columns.
The reason which prompted the builder to
make the west front by far the most ornamental, does not readily appear, but certain
it was that the mansion, in defiance of the
homely maxim, "Put your best foot foremost," had very cavalierly turned its back
upon the street, as if it would ignore what
was passing in the outer world.
Sufficient unto himself, no doubt, with his
gardens, his slaves, and his rich wines, was
the old Antigua merchant, Isaac Royall, who
came, in 1737, from his tropical home, to
rear, what was a palace for his day, in ancient Charlestown. Isaac Royall the first, the
author of this paradise, soon died, and was
succeeded by Isaac the second, who inherited
the five hundred acres, "turf and twig," the
mansion, chattels, and possessions of his sire.
The carriage drive terminated in a courtyard at the back of the mansion, paved with
round beach-stones, through the interstices
of which the grass grew thickly. On the
right of the drive were the stables, while
beyond the house were the slave -quarters,
fronting the court-yard, which was thus inclosed upon three of its sides. The twostory brick building occupied by the negroes
is still remaining, the last visible relic of
slavery in New England. The deep fireplace
where the blacks prepared their food is still
there, and the roll of slaves has certainly
been called in sight of Bunker Hill, though
never, I believe, on its summit.
On the fourth side of the court-yard was
a brick wall, similar to that already mentioned, and which opened by an arched gateway into another beautiful garden, in which
some of the old box - trees and clumps of
lilacs were still to be seen. A graveled walk
conducted to the farther end of the garden,
where an artificial mound with two terraces
had been raised, and upon which a summerhouse was placed. A figure of Mercury, minus]
wings and arms, poised itself on the summit.
The garden front of the house overlooked this
inclosure, evidently the favorite resort of the
family. The summer-house, a veritable curiosity, displayed much beauty of design, with
its panels, its fluted Ionic pilasters, and its
bell-shaped roof. An artist made the plan
for this little structure, so delightfully ruinous and picturesque. A trap - door in the
floor disclosed a cellar, formerly used for the
storage of ice. Beauty and utility were here
combined.
Royall's mansion was modeled after that
of a nobleman at Antigua. Every thing was
in perfect keeping; every thing bore the impress of a cultivated taste and a full purse.
Mounting the steps of his coach, the owner
rolled away to attend the meeting of the
Great and General Court at Boston, paid
visits to his neighbor Temple, at Ten Hills,
or his sister Vassall, at Cambridge. Here,
too, came George Erving and Sir William
Pepperell, to woo the West-Indian nabob's
daughters; and greatly I mistake if the walls
of the dilapidated summer-house could not
whisper of many a love-tryst held therein; it
was the very place for a tender declaration.
But one day Isaac Royall ordered his coach,
and went to Boston to dine. He never came
back.
While he was sipping his madeira, the
news of the battle of Lexington burst upon
the town. The hurry and fright of that day
were too much for the poor old gentleman.
He was afraid to return home. Percy and
Smith had seen the roads bristling with armed
men. So Isaac Royall found himself shut up
in Boston, with open rebellion at the towngates. Knowing the troubles to be imminent,
he had intended to set sail for Antigua, but
had too long delayed. He now took passage
for Halifax; and finally, when Howe, with his
long train of refugees, arrived from Boston,
he departed for England, and there died, sighing for his beautiful home in America, and
endeavoring to the last, though unsuccessfully, to avert the forfeiture of his estate.
Peace be with him, for an inoffensive,
well-meaning, but shockingly-timid old Tory!
He would fain have lived in amity with all
men, ay, and with his king too; but the crisis
engulfed him even as his valor forsook him.
His fears counseled him to run, and he obeyed.
But he is not forgotten. His large-hearted
benevolence showed itself in many bequests
to that country from which he was an alien
only in name. The Royall Professorship of
Law, at Harvard, was founded by his bounty.
He has a town (Royalston), in Massachusetts,
named for him, and is remembered with affection in the place of his former abode.
After having rambled through the grounds,
and examined the surroundings of the mansion that had challenged my curiosity, I returned to the house, prepared to inspect the
interior.
Without lingering in the hall of entrance
further than to mark the elaborately-carved
balusters and the paneled wainscot, I passed
into the suite of apartments at the right hand,
the reception - rooms proper of the house.
These rooms were separated by an arch, in
which sliding doors were concealed; and from
floor to ceiling the walls were paneled in wood,
the panels being of single pieces, some of them
a
a yard in breadth. In the rear of the apartments, and opening to the north, were two
alcoves, each flanked by fluted pilasters, on
which rested an arch enriched with mouldings
and carved ornaments. Each recess had a
window-seat, where the ladies of the household sat with their needle-work, or, it may be,
enjoyed a delicious tite-d-tgte with their beaux,
when, in winter, the windows were sealed up
from the cold northwest winds. The cornice
formed an appropriate finish to this really
elegant salon.
On the right of the docr I entered was a
sideboard, which old-time hospitality required
should be always garnished with decanters of
old wines or a huge bowl of punch. The
proprietor first filled himself a glass from the
silver ladle, and drank to the health of his
guest, who was then expected to pay the same
courtesy to his host. In those days men
drank their pint of Antigua, and carried it
off too, with no dread of any enemy but the
gout, nor feared to present themselves before
ladies with the aroma of good xeres or madeira upon them. But we have fallen upon
sadly degenerate, weak-headed times, when
the young men of to-day cannot make a brace
of New-Year's calls without an unsteady gait
and tell-tale tongue.
The second floor was furnished with four
chambers, all opening on a spacious and airy
hall. Of these, the northwest room only demands special description. It had alcoves,
similar to those already mentioned in the
apartment below; but, instead of panels on
the walls, it was finished above the wainscot
with a covering of leather, on which were
painted, in gorgeous colors, flowers, birds,
and Chinese characters. On this side, the
original windows, with the small glass and
heavy frames, were seen. Every pane had
rattled at the fierce cannonade of March,
1775.
After inspecting the kitchen, with its enormous brick oven, still in perfect repair, and
its iron chimney-back, with the Royall arms
embossed upon it, I thought of the name which
stands at the head of this article, and inquired of the lady who had kindly attended
me through the house if she had ever been
disturbed by strange visions or frightful
dreams. She looked at me doubtfully, but
replied in the negative. "They were all good
people, you know, who dwelt here in by-gone
times," she said.
But my pleasant guide was probably not
aware, as I believe few are, that her house
had once sheltered that prince of egotists,
that soldier "full of strange oaths," whom
the world, ever ready to condemn, now calls
the traitor-General Charles Lee; the man
who aimed to supplant Washington, whose
life only stood between him and the object
of his desires; the man with the huge nose,
satirical mouth, and restless eyes, who sat
his horse like a fox-hunter, and wore his uniform with a cynical contempt for common
opinion.
Lee arrives with Washington at the camp
at Cambridge. He first forms one of the
family of the commander-in-chief, but his
well-authenticated slovenliness makes him no,
welcome guest there. He was the antipode:
of Washington, who was himself the person
HOB G OBLI'N HALL.
162
[AUGUST 9,