His agonie was very great, and his joyful laugh soon turned to grievous
gioaning. Ye women in ye scaffolds became much distressed for him. We did
our utmost to stay ye anguish of Mr. Gerrish, but could make out little
till Mr. Rogers who knoweth somewhat of anatomy did bid ye sufferer to sit
down on ye floor, which being done Mr. Rogers took ye head atween his legs,
turning ye face as much upward as possible and then gave a powerful blow
and then sudden press which brot ye jaws into working order. But Mr.
Geirish did not gape or laugh much more on that occasion, neither did he
talk much for that matter.
"No other weighty mishap occurred save that one of ye Salem delegates, in
boastfully essaying to crack a walnut atween his teeth did crack, instead
of ye nut, a most usefull double tooth and was thereby forced to appear at
ye evening with a bandaged face."
This ended this most amusing chapter of disasters to the ministers, though
the banquet was diversified by interrupting crows from invading roosters,
fierce and undignified counter-attacks with nuts and apples by the
clergymen, a few mortifyingly "mawdlin songs and much roistering laughter,"
and the account ends, "so noble and savoury a banquet was never before
spread in this noble town, God be praised." What a picture of the good old
times! Different times make different manners; the early Puritan ministers
did not, as a rule, drink to excess, any more than do our modern clergymen;
but it is not strange that though they were of Puritan blood and belief,
they should have fallen into the universal custom of the day, and should
have "gone to their graves full of years, honor, simplicity, and rum.
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