we were waiting for Casparus, we embraced the
opportunity to examine his place again, which pleased us in all
respects, and was objectionable only because it lay on the road, and
was therefore resorted to by every one, and especially by these
miserable Quakers. He returned home in the afternoon, and was glad to
find us. We spoke to him in relation to a certain tract of land which
we wished to look at, and Ephraim and his father had told us of; and
when we heard what it was, it was a part of Bohemia, which we had
already tolerably well looked at on our way to Maryland, being that
which lies on the creeks and river, and which, on our return and twice
losing the way, lay higher up in the woods; but we reserved the
privilege in case we should winter on the South River, of riding over
it thoroughly on horseback, with him and his brother Ephraim.[250] For
the present, time compelled us to see if we could not yet reach the
Manathans for the winter; and we were the more induced to the attempt
because a servant of Ephraim had arrived this evening by water in a
boat, and would be ready to return with it to Newcastle early in the
morning. We therefore excused ourselves and let the subject rest. We
heard here that his father Augustine Hermans was very sick and at the
point of death, and that Miss Margaret had gone there to attend upon
him in that condition.

[Footnote 250: It was upon the piece of land here alluded to that the
colony of the Labadists was afterward planted. See p. 112, note 2,
_supra_.]

_15th, Friday._ It was flood tide early this morning, and our servant
slept a little too long, for it was not far from high water when he
appeared. We hurried, however, into the boat and pushed on as hard as
we could, but the flood stopped running, when we were about half way.
We continued on rowing, and as the day advanced we caught a favorable
wind from the west and spread the sail. The wind gradually increasing
brought us to Newcastle about eight o'clock among our kind friends
again, where we were welcome anew. We were hardly ashore before the
wind, changing from the west to the northwest, brought with it such a
storm and rain that, if we had still been on the water, we should
have been in great peril, and if we had been at Kasparus's we should
not have been able to proceed in such weather. We here again so
clearly perceived the providence of the Lord over us, that our hearts
were constrained to ascend to Him, and praise him fo