Graveside Service for H.L. Mencken

H.L. Mencken's grave

Henry Louis Mencken left this world on January 29, 1956. Yet his memory is still kept alive by those who continue to value liberty in a world that increasingly does not.

On January 27, 2013, several people attended a brief service of remembrance at his grave in Louden Park Cemetery in Baltimore. Oleg Panczenko of the Friends of the Mencken House gave these remarks,  which I fully endorse:

Do We Still Value Liberty?

Remarks for the Mencken Grave Site Memorial ServiceLoudon Park, 2013-01-27 14:00

By Oleg Panczenko

(1,011 words)

Mencken family graves

Mr Mencken wrote that “liberty is the only genuinely valuable thing that men have invented, at least in the field of government, in a thousand years” [1] and few, at least here in America, would disagree. It is part of the mythos of the American founding that this nation was “conceived in liberty”. With this statement we immediately hit a sour note, for the phrase “conceived in liberty” famously comes from Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address which Mr Mencken described as “a mellifluous and emotional statement of the obviously not true. The men who fought for self-determination at Gettysburg were not the Federals but the Confederates.” [2]

I am not making the puerile, smugly self-righteous and snidely dismissive observation that the Founding Fathers owned slaves. That they did. They also established a system with a built-in cognitive dissonance but elaboration of this idea is a topic for another day.

In high-school civics class we were taught the childish fiction that The Constitution, and the Bill of Rights in particular, are there to limit the power of government and thus secure the liberty of the people. We were also taught that our government was a government “of the people, by the people, for the people”. But if this is so, why would we want to limit ourselves? The answer lies in the definition of government, which Mr Mencken defines as “the class of job-holders, ever bent upon oppressing the citizen to the limit of his endurance” [3]. What of the prohibitions on what government may do? Again, Mencken: “the execution of these prohibitions was put into the hands of lawyers, which is to say, into the hands of men specifically educated to discover legal excuses for dishonest, dishonorable and anti-social acts. The actual history of the Constitution, as everyone knows, has been a history of the gradual abandonment of all such impediments to governmental tyranny.” [4]

Mencken, writing in 1924, lamented that “the old rights of the free American, so carefully laid down by the Bill of Rights, are now worth nothing. Bit by bit, Congress and the State Legislatures have invaded and nullified them.” [5] He gave examples of the failure of the Federal Courts to preserve the rights of free Americans: The Espionage Act cases, the labor injunction cases, the deportation cases, the Postal Act cases, the Mann Act cases, and the Prohibition cases [6]. Some of these are no longer good law. The names of most of these rubrics are sufficient to give one an idea of what they dealt with. The Mann Act dealt with prostitution, immorality, and what we now call human trafficking, serious matters indeed, but the operative concept of “immorality”, as expressed in the act, was nebulous and made criminal certain consensual acts.

Because of such writings, and many others, Mencken today is lauded as a defender of liberty. Mencken is certainly a rich source of well-turned phrases. But was he a defender of what no one wants any more, at least in the form understood by him and his contemporaries? Americans are happy with qualified liberties, the qualification being that “liberty” is the freedom to do what I approve of and something to be trumped by other considerations if it involves another doing what I do not approve of.

But is even this notion of selective liberty still operative? Is “liberty” part of the word-noise of what passes for discourse today? That Americans complacently endure insults and indignities when they travel by air speaks louder than words.

In Mencken’s time the cases brought before the Courts which affected the “old rights of the free America” were matters of news. The newspaper reader had at least a sense of what was being considered and why it was important. There was Mencken, a man with a national audience, who could object to highly visible constrictions of liberty.

Americans today are less aware of the ongoing diminishment of their liberties even though the means of dispersing news are far superior now to the newspapers, radio and newsreels of Mencken’s time. I offer the following unextraordinary example.

How many of you have heard of the country where people have been detained and strip searched for the following offenses: driving with a noisy muffler, driving with an inoperable headlight, failing to use a turn signal, riding a bicycle without an audible bell, having outstanding parking tickets, making an improper left turn, and violation of a dog leash law?[7]

Surely a legislature has gone mad if such things are permitted! Surely such things could not happen here today! If they did happen here it would have been in a backwards time years ago and the laws permitting such things would have long ago been voided by our Supreme Court.

The country is the United States of America, the land of the liberty-loving. The acts listed have occurred within, say, the last ten or so years.

On April 2, 2012, the United States Supreme Court held in a 5-4 decision that “officials may strip-search individuals who have been arrested for any crime before admitting the individuals to jail, even if there is no reason to suspect that the individual is carrying contraband.” [8]

Is this a surprise? Over ninety years ago Mencken wrote: “when it comes to the mere rights of the citizen it [the Supreme Court] seems hopelessly inclined to give the prosecution the benefit of every doubt.” [9]

A survey of 855 registered voters conducted after the Court announced its decision found that 31% of voters thought that regardless of the offense, officials should have the authority to strip search anyone taken to jail even if there is no reasonable suspicion. It is heartening that of the roughly two-thirds who disagreed there was no appreciable difference between Democrats and Republicans. What is disheartening is that 31% agreed. [10]

Mr Mencken wrote that law “is necessary only when it is necessary. The rest is only insult and oppression, and the citizen is under no more obligation to submit to it than he is to submit to any other insult or oppression.” [11]

To what extent will you “submit to insult or oppression?”

Notes and References

1.) Mencken, H. L. “Why Liberty”, Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1927-01-30, part 8, p. 1.

2.) Mencken, H. L. Minority Report (1956), item 332.

3.) Mencken, H. L. “Editorial”, American Mercury 2(3):281-286 (1924-07).

4.) Ibid.

5.) “Répétition Générale”, Item 8, “On Minorities”, Smart Set 67(2):25-34 (1922-02).

6.) Mencken, H. L. “Editorial”, American Mercury 1(1):161-164, p. 163:1 (1924-02). The following suggestions for further reading are merely pointers to the huge body of writing about each set of cases. For Espionage Act cases argued before the Supreme Court see Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47, (1919), Debs v. United States, 249 U.S. 211 (1919), Abrams v. United States, 250 U.S. 616 (1919), and Social Democratic Publishing Co. v. Burleson, 255 U. S. 407 (1921); for Labor Injunction cases argued before the Supreme Court see In re Debs, 158 U.S. 564 (1895), Loewe v. Lawlor, 208 U.S. 274 (1908), and American Steel Foundries v. Tri-City Central Trades Council, 257 U.S. 184 (1921); for Deportation cases see Turner v. Williams, 194 U. S. 279 (1904), and Goldman v. United States, 245 U. S. 474 (1918); the Postal Act cases refers to prosecutions under the Comstock Postal Act of 1873; for the Mann Act cases argued before the Supreme Court see Hoke v. United States, 227 U.S. 308 (1913), Athanasaw v. United States, 227 U.S. 326 (1913), Caminetti v. United States, 242 U.S. 470 (1917); for the Prohibition cases argued before the Supreme Court see National Prohibition Cases, 253 U.S. 250 (1920).

7.) List extracted from Justice Breyer’s dissenting opinion in Florence v. Board of Chosen Freeholders of Burlington (2012). See http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/pdf/10-945.pdf.

8.) The case is Albert W. Florence v. Board of Chosen Freeholders of County of Burlington, et al. 566 U.S. ___ (2012). See http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/10-945.pdf.

9.) “Répétition Générale”, Item 8, “On Minorities”, Smart Set 67(2):25-34 (1922-02).

10.) Fairleigh Dickinson University College at Florham, PublicMind Poll, “Nation Sides with New Jersey Motorist Against Court, Automatic Strip Searches”, 2012-04-02. See http://publicmind.fdu.edu/2012/strip/final.pdf.

11.) H. L. Mencken, “Notes on Government”, Chicago Sunday Tribune, 1926-01-10, Part 8, p.1.

Dr. Dean Ahmad, Islam and Liberty at the Anne Arundel County Campaign for Liberty meeting

Earlier this month, I had an opportunity to hear Dr. Dean Ahmad of the Minaret of Freedom Institute give a talk on the relationship between Islam and Liberty. Dr. Ahmad is a Muslim and a libertarian. Anti-Muslim bigotry has been on the rise the last few years, especially on the right. This is extremely unfortunate and misguided.

I am happy that Dr. Ahmad is out fighting both against religious intolerance and in support of freedom.

In case you couldn't attend, here is his presentation:

 Rudwan Abu-rumman, Dean Ahmad, and William Cooke

Maryland Folklore - book review

Maryland, as readers of this blog know, has a rich history involving strange stories, characters, legends, and locations. It should come as no surprise that writers would seek to collect these tales and put them together in book form for the masses. One writer, George G. Carey, did this and did it well in his book, Maryland Folklore.

 

Published in 1989 by Tidewater Publishers, cheap copies of the book can be purchased online or sometimes found in used bookstores. I picked up my copy from Back Creek Books in Annapolis.

 

Carey, who was once Maryland’s State Folklorist, had previously written two books, Maryland Folklore and Folklife and Maryland Folk Legends and Folk Songs. At the request of his publisher, he updated both and combined them into this book.

 

Divided into six chapters, the author writes first about Folktales and Tall Tales, then Legends, Folk Heroes and Local Characters, Urban Legends, Shorter Forms, and finally about Material Culture. Each chapter is then broken down into different sections.

 

The first chapter on Folktales and Tall Tales is broken down into sections on Storytelling and Storytellers and then into Folk Narratives.

 

Carey wrote about the history of storytellers and about some individual storytellers from Maryland such as Captain Alex Kellam from Smith Island. Kellam was a waterman turned insurance salesman. He would hang out around local bars in Crisfield to tell stories and tall tales. “He often acted out his stories with facial grimaces, hand gestures, dialectical innovations, onomatopoetic sounds, voice alterations. He laced his yarns with jingles and rhymes, and would from time to time break into song.” Carey was so impressed with Kellam that he brought him to speak to undergraduates at Yale when he was teaching a course there in 1982.

 

In his Folk Narratives section, Carey wrote about several tall tales and stories that were told in the area. Some were fairly amusing with good punch lines. Others, less so. But Carey’s job as a folklorist is not to only preserve the amusing or good stories, but all that were being told.

 

The second chapter on Legends, Folk Heroes, and Local Characters is perhaps the most interesting part of the book. It is broken-up into sections on Places and Events, the Devil, Witchcraft, and Treasure Legends.

 

In the places section, Carey wrote about typical legends of bloody prints being left at places where people died, especially if they had been murdered. The stains could never be permanently removed. Ghosts also stalked houses were terrible events were said to have taken place. For example, he wrote that “[a] home in Midland afforded a much more gruesome tale. On Paradise Street there, a young husband took a butcher knife and killed his wife and children before he turned it on himself. As late as 1950, people in the area swore that a figure appeared night after night in the doorway of the room where the murders took place. The figure always carried a knife and his features seemed demonically possessed. Inexplicable screams also issued from the residence and startled nearby neighbors." Whether or not such a house exists or did exist or if anyone was murdered there, I have not yet been able to determine, but plan to work on finding out.

 

The section on the Devil dealt mainly with tales of people from Maryland who were said to have sold their souls for material gain. One such person was a man from Crisfield named Skidmore who not only prospered greatly, but was able to work magic against his enemies.

As the author of Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland, I was most interested in Carey’s section on Witchcraft. Carey explained how social outcasts, especially if they were women, could come to be seen by society as being witches. He used this to explain the popular legend of Moll Dyer from St. Mary's County. Carey also told the story of a "typical" witch, this one from Crisfield, "Old Aunt Hanna". She threatened to put spells on people if they angered her. Another alleged witch, Henny Furr, was a black woman who lived in Mount Vernon on the lower Eastern Shore. She bewitched dogs that went onto her property, poisoned people, and engaged in other disturbing behavior until she met with a mysterious end. Carey also wrote about the methods that people used to protect themselves from witches.

The Treasure Legends section addressed the various stories about buried treasure, especially around the Chesapeake. It was thought that Captain Kidd may have buried treasure at any number of locations around the bay. Many others buried their fortunes as well. Sometimes a ghost would haunt the treasure to keep others away. These ghosts must be effective at their jobs because no large treasures are known to have been recovered in the area.

The chapter on Folk Heroes and Local Characters is about amusing local people of old, such as "Lickin' Bill" from the lower Eastern Shore. Bill earned his name because he tended to lick various things around town with his tongue. A large man who never lost a wresting match or game of strength, he was also known for being a devout Methodist and for his wit. An inability to get his clothing properly tailored resulted in the humorous scene of him "going to church with his pants legs just below his knees and his coat sleeves up to his elbows." Other tales are told about other amusing characters, most of whom must no longer be living and who would have been mostly lost to history, but for this book. 

Carey's chapter on Urban Legends starts off with some general stories about mishaps with fast food, trips to Mexico, escaped killers, and other tales that are not necessarily connected to Maryland, but are said to have also taken place here (and lots of other places). Black Aggie from Druid Ridge Cemetery in Baltimore is covered in some detail by the author. For a few decades in the 20th century, this ominous-looking statue invoked fear in the hearts of many. Children and college students would constantly trespass onto the grounds of the cemetery to sit on her lap, if they had the nerve, until it was removed from the grounds in 1967. The book's author would not have been aware of this, but for anyone seeking her, Black Aggie currently sits in the courtyard of the Federal Circuit Library, which is located here. Although there is no security to the courtyard, I'm fairly certain it is not a good idea to jump onto Aggie's lap. The US Marshalls inside might have some sort of a problem with that.

Carey's chapter on Shorter Forms is broken into sections on Traditional Speech and Names, Proverbs and Proverbial Speech, Riddles and Tongue Twisters, Children's Games and Traditions, Folk Belief, and Folk Magic. Many of the speech patterns and sayings have continued to today and some didn't seem especially connected to Maryland, such as the saying "as easy as pie." The sections on Folk Belief and Folk Magic could probably have been merged with the section on witchcraft in the previous chapter as the subjects are essentially the same.

Finally, Carey's chapter on Material Culture is divided into sections on Folklife, Foodways, Screen Painting, Rug Weaving, and Boatbuilding. Most of this book is focused on the eastern and western parts of Maryland, but the section on Screen Painting is exclusively about Baltimore City. Screen Painting became a popular form of art in Baltimore in the early 20th century. Although declining in popularity the last few decades, there is an organization dedicated to the art. Screen Painting may be on the way to making a comeback.

Maryland Folklore is a amusing book about Maryland's lost or forgotten art, culture, history, and beliefs. I recommend trying to find a copy.

Update on where you can buy Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland

My book, Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland is available now at several new places. Here is the full list, at this time.

Annapolis:

The Annapolis Bookstore on Maryland Ave.
The Annapolis Cigar Company on Main St.
Back Creek Books on West St.

Baltimore:

Atomic Books in Hampden.

Boonsboro:

Turn the Page Bookstore on Main St.

Kensington:

Kensington Row Bookshop on Howard Ave.

Leonardtown:

Fenwick Street Used Books and Music on Fenwick St.

Oxford:

Mystery Loves Company on S. Morris St.

 St. Mary's City:

Historic St. Mary's City Museum Shop

All copies should be signed and available for about $10.

You can also still purchase the book (unsigned) from Amazon and other online booksellers.

 

Tudor Hall, Leonardtown, St. Mary's County, Maryland

Currently owned and occupied by the The St. Mary's County Historical Society, Tudor Hall is located in Leonardtown, not far from the Circuit Courthouse.

The history of the mansion begins in 1742 when Abraham Barnes purchased the land and built a small house on the property. The current dwelling was probably built sometime after 1817 when the property was sold to Phillip Key of the famous Key family. The property was purchased by the historical society in 1984.

I cannot say that there is anything terribly interesting about the place. It appears to be well preserved and/or restored and feels like what a 19th century mansion probably would feel like (with modern conveniences such as indoor lighting and air conditioning).

It is free to visit. The staff of the historical society are helpful and might even tell you a few ghost stories about the mansion. If you are looking to do research on Maryland's early history or if you just happen to be in the area and are looking to see something interesting, Tudor Hall is worth a visit.

It is open Wednesday through Friday: 9:00am - 4.00pm.

Oxford, Maryland

Mystery Loves Company, Oxford

I have been contacting bookstores across the State to let them know about my book, Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland. So far, Back Creek Books in Annapolis and Fenwick Street Books in Leonardtown have agreed to carry copies. Last week, Mystery Loves Company in Oxford also asked for a few copies. So, I got into my car, turned on my GPS, and drove out there.

Although I had looked on a map, I was surprised that my GPS took me to the Oxford-Bellevue Ferry in Bellevue. My initial reaction on seeing this was 'funny, I don't remember Oxford being an island on the map'. I purchased a ticket with a check and was bemused when asked if I wanted a return ticket. Did they think that I wanted to stay there and never leave? I thought. Of course, shortly thereafter I discovered what I had previously thought. Oxford was not an island, but the ferry was a "short cut". Although when you consider wait time, the ferry probably isn't much shorter. It is only a few extra miles to go by land. But it was sort of nice and I remembered being on this ferry many years ago with my parents. It was likely the same boat. I wouldn't take the ferry again to drop off books (it was $18 round trip), but it was sort of interesting.

Oxford is a nice little town. It was founded in 1683. In 1694, it and what would become Annapolis, were named the only official ports of entry for commerce in the then province. It was a prosperous port town, sending tobacco all over the world.

There are several places to eat in and around the town. I stopped at the Robert Morris Inn which bills itself as "America's Oldest Inn". They alleged that it started operations in 1710. I actually ate at the connected Salter's Tavern, which is for more casual dinning. The service was okay. The food was decent, but sort of overpriced. They only had two beers on tap and they too were overpriced. Other than that, I can't complain. If one wanted a cheaper and better meal, one could find a WaWa or Royal Farms up the street somewhere. But at these places you are paying for the history and atmosphere as much as anything. It seemed to have plenty of that. I'm sure there is probably a ghost story or two associated with the establishment as well. If not, then someone should invent one.

The streets of Oxford were pleasant to look at and enjoyable to walk. There was a small museum that might also be worth a visit and other small corners to explore. But after half a day, it would probably become rather boring to the average tourist. I would recommend a visit to the town, if it is not too much out of your way. And if you do visit, stop by the local bookstore to buy a few things, including a signed copy of my book.

Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland

Witch trials took place in early Maryland. Few people are aware of this fact or of the other legends, myths, or lore associated with witchcraft in the Free State. My new book, Witch Trials, Legends, and Lore of Maryland, reveals this fascinating history.

Available through Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes and Noble, and other online book sellers.

It is also available as a Kindle Ebook (free to Amazon Prime members right now), it will be available in other electronic formats later in the year.

You may also purchase copies at Back Creek Books in Annapolis, the Annapolis Cigar Company, Fenwick Books in Leonardtown, or directly through the books website - Marylandwitches.com.

Chesapeake City, Cecil County, Maryland

Located on the eastern shore part of Cecil County, Chesapeake City's history is deeply linked to the building of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal.

Named Chesapeake City in 1839, the town grew to its peek population in 1849. Today the city is rather small, but it is pleasant enough and worth a visit.

There is a museum dedicated to the canal. There are various bed and breakfast type places, small shops, and restaurants, including the Bayard House.

According to the bartender at the Bayard House, the city was founded by Irish immigrants who had built the canal. St. Patrick's Day was exceptionally busy at their bar. I visited there two days later, however, and the place was empty around lunchtime, the explanation given that the regulars were still recovering.

At the downstairs bar, the food was sufficient, the beer was not unreasonably priced (if you consider the typical prices today not unreasonable), and the staff was friendly and helpful. The view of the canal was also good. I would have no objection to returning and would not discourage others from eating or drinking there.

There is a large bridge over the canal that separates the two parts of the city. There are steps near the free parking lot to walk up the bridge. The bartender at the Bayard said he once walked over it, but swore he would never do it again as it unnerved him. After drinking some beer, I decided to give it a try.

Walking up the old stairs was a bit scary. Once on top there was a sidewalk for pedestrians. The bridge shook a little as cars, and especially trucks, drove by and parts of the bridge looked old and rusty, but I survived unharmed. Below are some pictures from this experience:

 

You might not want to step on this.

Other pictures from that I took of Chesapeake City can be found here.

H.L. Mencken House, Baltimore

A three story row home.

Born in Baltimore in 1880, Henry Louis, or H.L., Mencken rose to become a prominent journalist, critic, reviewer, and social commentator (among other things) in his day. A prolific writer, he authored several books and countless essays, articles, and letters. It is fair to call Mencken a libertarian. He was influenced by many great minds, including my favorite philosopher, Herbert Spencer.

Many today are unaware of who Mencken was and how he and his ideas influenced his world and the world we live in today. The Mission of the Friends of the H.L. Mencken House is to educate "the public about the life and legacy of H. L. Mencken." To this end they are interested in purchasing, or at least permanently leasing, Mencken's house to establish a museum to teach others about Mencken, his life, ideas, and times.


The Mencken House, where H.L. lived all but 8 years of his life, and where he died, is only opened today for private tours and special events. I had the opportunity to visit the house during one of those events.

Located at 1524 Hollins Street in the Union Square area of Baltimore, the neighborhood could use some work. I spotted at least one drug deal while driving away. I would advise against leaving out any valuables. But it is safe enough, especially during the daytime and especially if you park near the house. Parking is generally not a problem.

The house is more empty than it would have been when Mencken lived there, but, they try to give a feel, based on old photographs of it, of what it would have looked like then.

The house was properly decorated for the Christmas season. Although Mencken was a famous agnostic who had no interest in religion, he, unlike so many professional atheists today, enjoyed the cultural aspect of the Christmas holiday. In his youth especially, Christmas was an important day for him and his family.

An original chair from the Victorian period was preserved for the house. Other items that belong in the house are apparently in storage elsewhere. Hopefully they will be returned to the house.

On the second floor, if you visit on the right day, the ghost of H.L. Mencken himself, still thinking it is the past, will greet you and talk about his life, views, work, and times. Also, if you would like H.L. to come to your event or party that can be arranged as well.

The garden in the back of the house is worth exploring as well. Original artwork in the walls is still present. View some samples of that below:

H.L. Mencken was an amazing individual who fought, though his words, for the rights of all people, even when that was unpopular. Below are some of my favorite quotes and links to books by and about Mencken. Those interested in learning more about him and his ideas as well as saving the Mencken House should join the Friends of the H.L. Mencken House and also visit the house.

Favorite Mencken quotes:

"The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all."

"Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard."

"The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable, and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he is not romantic personally he is very apt to spread discontent among those who are."

"Every time the papers print another account of a Prohibionist agent murdering a man who resists him or searching some woman's underwear or raiding a Vanderbilt yacht or blackmailing a Legislature or committing some other such inordinate and anti social act they simply make a thousand more votes for Prohibition. It is precisely that sort of entertainment that makes Prohibition popular with the boobery. It is precisely because it is unjust imbecile arbitrary and tyrannical that they are so hot for it. The incidental violation of even the inferior man's liberty is not sufficient to empty him of delight in the chase. The victims reported in the newspapers are commonly his superiors he thus gets the immemorial democratic satisfaction out of their discomfiture. Besides he has no great rage for liberty himself. He is always willing to surrender it at demand. The most popular man under a democracy is not the most democratic man but the most despotic man. The common folk delight in the exactions of such a man. They like him to boss them. Their natural gait is the goose step."

H.L. Mencken books on Amazon

William Bladen's Grave, Annapolis. Maryland's last witch prosecutor

Grave of William Bladen

William Bladen, an important early Maryland official is buried at St. Anne's Episcopal Church, in Annapolis on Church Circle. There are only a few graves in the actual church yard, (the larger graveyard that they own is nearby). Who was this person and why was he considered important? 


According to Side-lights on Maryland history: with sketches of early Maryland families by Hester Dorsey Richardson:

Honorable William Bladen came to Maryland in 1690, at the early age of nineteen years. That he was possessed of eminent ability is very certain from the fact that he at once became active in public affairs. Two years after his arrival, when but twenty-one years old, the House of Burgesses awarded him 1600 pounds of tobacco for his services as clerk. Later in the same year young Bladen was allowed in the levy 4000 pounds of tobacco for transscribing copies of the laws, and in 1693 he, with Captain John Davis and William Aisquith, was appointed deputy to apprehend, seize and take into custody Colonel Peter Sayer and Thomas Smith, of Talbot County, for conspiracy.

For a while Honorable William Bladen seemed to have rivaled the modern clubwoman in his many offices. In 1695 we find him clerk of the House of Burgesses; on December 12, 1696, he made oath that he was then clerk of the House of Burgesses, clerk of St. Marie's County and clerk of general indictments in Prince George's County, while just one year later he gave bond for £500 as Collector of the Port and district of Annapolis, with Charles Carroll and Edward Dorsey as his sureties.

St. Anne's Episcopal Church

In 1698 he was Surveyor and Deputy Collector of the port; the next year or two Naval Officer and Surveyor of the Port.

In 1701 Nathaniel Blackistone, Royal Governor of Maryland, appointed Honorable William Bladen Secretary of the Province. On May 8, 1702, he was commissioned Attorney-General and in 1704 he was Clerk of the Council.

In addition to his civil offices William Bladen was a vestryman of old St. Anne's Church, Annapolis. In the year 1708 Queen Anne appointed Honorable William Bladen one of the first Aldermen for the City of Annapolis. But this high and important Colonial official upon his arrival in Maryland had lived first in St. Mary's County on St. Elizabeth's Manor, an estate of 2000 acres, originally patented to Thomas Cornwaleys in the year 1639. It was in St. Mary's that he met, wooed and won young Anne Van Swearingen, daughter of the notable Gerret Van Swearingen, of St. Mary's County, a native of Holland and said to have been of noble lineage.

The removal of the capital from the City of St. Mary's to the Port of Annapolis accounts for the change of residence of many Colonial families whose representatives figured in official life, and this it was, no doubt, that resulted in Honorable William Bladen's removal from St. Mary's County. His name is associated with the important work of compiling the first laws of Maryland into one volume.

What is left out of this account is a review of his performance as Attorney General, one of the many positions that he held. C. Ashley Ellefson in the book, William Bladen of Annapolis, 1673?-1718:"the most capable in all Respects" or "Blockhead Booby"? painted a far more cynical picture of Bladen as a scheming public official who would do anything to get and hold onto power. Ellefson pointed out that as prosecutor Bladen only received convictions in less than half of the cases that he took to trial. And while that was probably better than my average as a prosecutor in Baltimore City, it was low considering that criminal defendants had less of an ability to get a fair trial in those days. Ellefson wrote about this:

Bladen’s high proportion of failures might be evidence not only of incompetence but also of simple cynicism. Criminal prosecutions and punishments in eighteenth-century Maryland were designed as deterrents — warnings to others to behave themselves as authority demanded —, and the prosecution of an innocent person was as good a warning as the prosecution of a guilty person was. 

Actually the prosecution of an innocent person might provide an even better warning than the prosecution of a guilty person would. The person who watches the prosecution of a defendant whose guilt appears to be clear might conclude that if he does not break any laws he will be safe, while watching the prosecution of an innocent person might lead him to conclude that he had better not draw attention to
himself in any way by deviating from the strictest conformity.

One additional fact about Bladen, that may interest readers, is that as Attorney General he brought the last (capital) witchcraft case to trial in the Provincial Court in Annapolis (then Maryland's highest trial court). Virtue Violl, from Talbot County, was charged with using witchcraft against a neighbor, Elinor Moore, and causing her to lose the use of her tongue. Violl was indicated, transported to Annapolis, and put on trial. She was acquitted by a jury. What is most strange about this case is that it took place in 1712, when most educated people would have ceased to believe in the power of witches to do harm. Did Bladen actually believe that Violl was in fact a witch? Did he care about the truth of the accusation? Or did he simply prosecute her, as Ellefson suggests, as a warning to others?

Hooper sleeping

History's final judgment on William Bladen may still be out. But while visiting the site, my dog, a greyhound named Herr Hooper, made his own judgment. Upon seeing the grave he promptly walked up to it and, despite my protests, urinated on it.