congratulations of the witnesses, the sounds from the library suddenly ceased. Madame Van Rensselaer was waking. It is not difficult to be l)rave before or after a crisis. The thing that is really hard is to display moral heroism at the \'ery moment of sur|)rise or danger. Tf Van Rensselaer had had time to consider this he would, no doubt, have stayed and faced the situation, but as it was, no one ])aused to consider. Out of a back window they fled, the bride and the bridegroom, the witnesses and the domine -- even Van Rensselaer

5^6 The Hudson River

perc himself. In a panic they escaped, Hke boys from an orchard when they hear the gardener coming, and never halted till they were out of sight from that side of the house; then the domine tried to look dignified again, the witnesses smoothed down their ruffled ])lumage, the uncle slapped his nephew and new-made sonin-law on the l:)ack and swore that never had there been such a wedding in Albany before, while the bride did not know whether to laugh or cry. The generations of the Van Rensselaers have lured us on, to the neglect of the little city that was incorporated in 1686, after the claims laid by the patroon had been finally settled by formal sale of his feudal rights to Governor Dongan. Phili]) Schuyler, the head of another ancient family, was the first mayor of the future capital of New York. Under the Dongan charter the limits of the city were included in an area of one mile upon the river and three and a half miles westward. It was not only the centre of social life and the metropolis of trade, but also the home of religious authority. When the Dutch church was organised there in 1640, it was the only one on the northern part of the river that had a regular ministry, and until after 1700 there was no settled domine north of Esopus except the pastors at Albany and Schenectady.