Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 9.djvu/287

 Lieut. -Gen. Sir William Pepperrell, Bart.

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��LIEUT.-GEN. SIR WILLIAM PEPPERRELL, BART.

By Daniel Rolluns.

��The subject of this sketch was born at Kittery Point, Maine, June 27, 1696. The Colony was then under the juris- diction of Massachusetts : both being subject, of course, to the Crown.

His father came from Tavistock par- ish, in the county of Devon, England. The following is the Pepperrell coat- of-arms : Arg. a chevron gu. between three pine-apples or cones-vert, with the augmentation of a canton of the sec- ond, charged with a fleur-de-lis of the first. No crest : it being an ancient coat, before crests were used.

Mr. Usher Parsons, in his admirable life of Sir William, says, " His boyhood was passed at the village school, where he learned to read, \vrite, and cipher. Under a private instructor, he was taught the art of surveying land, and of navi- gating a ship, and acquired some knowledge of geography. . . . His chirography was beautiful, which ren- dered him very useful to his father. When not more than ten years old, he assisted in writing his father's Justice Docket, in copying his letters, and keeping his accounts, and probably soon after acted as clerk in his store. . . . His education was therefore prac- tical, and imparted an early and close in- sight into human character, and brought him into the ways and means of suc- cessful trade and financiering." Still, even this instruction in the rudimentary branches was almost a liberal education for those days.

In 1 7 1 5 John WheelwTight of Wells, Lieut.-Col. William Pepperrell of Kit- tery (father of Sir William), Charles Ffrost of Kittery, and Abraham Preble

��of York were appointed judges of the court of common pleas. Sir William, while a minor, served as clerk of this court.

His father had built up a large fishing and trading business, and sometimes had over a hundred sail of ships on the Grand Banks. But we must bear in mind that the vessels which went under the dignified name of ships at that time were but little larger than fishing-craft of the present day.

It is not surprising that Sir William became a soldier ; for he was born dur- ing the troublous Indian times, and was so early accustomed to the use of arms, that he did patrol duty at the age of sixteen.

On attaining his majority, he was commissioned a justice of the peace, and also captain of a cavalry company.

The Pepperrells, father and son, were now in partnership, and had extensive business connections in Boston, which brought the latter into the best society of this city. It was then not ^nly the business centre of New England, but virtually the Colonial capital of the country. This was of great advantage to him, for by means of it he acquired the courtly manners and easy address for which he was afterwards noted. Bos- ton society yet retains many of its old characteristics.

It was as famous then for its pretty women as it is to-day ; and among the many fair ones whom Pepperrell met during his frequent visits here was the beautiful Mary Hirst, daughter of Grove Hirst, esquire, deceased, a rich mer- chant. She was a granddaughter of

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