both Sides continues still hilly and rugged and what Wheat is growing, looks much thrown out and gullied — more Houses & Improvements shew themselves along the Sopus Shore and Opposite being an old settled Country — our Vessel came to Anchor a little above the Walkill about 60 Miles from Albany. We went on shore to Two stone Farm Houses on Beekman Manor in the County of Duch- ess, the Men were absent & the Women and children could speak no other Language than Low Dutch, our Skipper was Interpreter. One of these Tenants for Life or a very Long Term or for Lives (uncertain which) pays 20 Bushels of Wheat in Kind for 97 Acres of cleared Land & Liberty to get Wood for necessary Uses any where in the Manor — 12 Eggs sold here for six pence. Butter i4d per pound and 2 shad cost 6d. One Woman was very neat & the Iron Hoops of her Pails scowered bright, the Houses are mean. We saw one Piece of good Meadow which is scarce here away, the Wheat was very much thrown out, the Aspect of the Farms rough and hilly like all the rest and the Soil a stiff clay. One Woman had Twelve good counte- nanced Boys and Girls all clad in Homespun both Linen and Woolen, here was a Two wheeled Plow drawn by 3 horses abreast, a Scythe with a short, crooked Handle and a Kind of Hook both Digitized by Microsoft® A Voyage up the Hudson in 1769 351 •used to cut down Grain, for the Sickle is not much known in Albany County or in this Part of Duchess. 9th We arose in the Morng. opposite to a large Brick House on the East Side belonging to Mr. Livingston's Father to Robert R. Livingston the Judge, in the Lower Manor of Livingston. Albany County now on either Hand, & sloping Hills here and there covered with Grain like all the rest we we have seen, much thrown out by the Frost of last Winter. Landing on the West Shore we found a Number of People fishing with a Sein, they caught plenty of Shad and Herring and use Canoes altogether having long, neat and strong Ropes made by the People them- selves of Elm Bark. Here we saw the first Indian a Mohicon named Hans clad in no other Garment than a shattered Blanket, he lives near the KaatsKill & had a Scunk Skin for his Tobacco Pouch, the Tavern of this Place is most wretched — Trees are out in Leaf, Cattle and Sheep, nothing different from ours, are now feeding on the Grass which seems to be nearly as forward as with us when we left Burlington, the Trees quite as forward & the White Pine is common. One Shad taken with the rest had a Lamprey Eel about 7 Inches long fastened to his Back, I was informed hereby a person concerned in measuring it that the Distance from KaatsKill Landing to Schoharie is ^2-^ Miles reckoned to Capt. Eckerson's House, a good Waggon Road and Produce brot. down daily from thence to Cherry Valley half a Day's Journey, that People are now laying out a New Road from SopusKill to Schoharie which is supposed to be about 32^ Miles, Sopus Creek is about 1 1 Miles below KatsKill Creek and a Mile below where we now landed, they say that 7 or 8 Sloops belong to Sopus — the Fish are the same in Hudsons River above the salt Water as in the Delaware — the Skipper bought a Parcel of Fish here cheap, these Fishermen draw their Nets oftener than ours not stopping between the Draughts. At 3 ocloc we passed by the German Camp a small Village so called having Two Churches, situated on the East Side of the River, upon a rising Ground which shews the Place to Advantage, some Dis- tance further on the same Side of the River we sailed by the Upper Manor House of Livingston, a Quantity of low cripple Land may be seen on the opposite Side & this reaches 4 miles Digitized by Microsoft® 352 The Hudson River to the KaatsKill called 36 Miles from Albany off the Mouth of this Creek we have a View of the large House built by John / Dyer the Person who made the Road from hence to Schoharie at the Expensce of ;£4oo, if common Report may be credited — Two Sloops belong to KaatsKill, a little beyond the Mouth whereof lies the large Island of Vastic — there is a House on the North Side of the Creek and another with several Saw Mills on the South Side but no Town as we expected. Sloops go no fur- ther