niEFACE. V 



do duty for miles of meadow and a meandering stream 

 that flowed for leagues through a wilderness of waste- 

 land before lost in the Lenape-wihittuck — now Dela- 

 ware River — so they called the little river Mechen- 

 tschiholens-sipu, Big Bird Creek. Perhaps, in a suc- 

 ceeding chapter, why it was so called, to what big bird 

 the Indians referred, may be made plain. 



It was about IGSO when the earliest settlers in the 

 lower portion of the Crosswicks valley began their fre- 

 quent journeys to and from the only grist-mill in tlie 

 neighborhood, and they adopted as their route a certain 

 circuitous path which experience proved to be the least 

 fatiguing to man and beast. For a time no wagons were 

 used, and Stacy's mill on the Assunpink was reached 

 only on horseback or on foot. Finally, when the land 

 was " taken up," this path was officially recognized as 

 a public highway, widened to accommodate carts, and 

 rudely bridged wherever it crossed a brook. From 

 creek to creek the cleared fields were few and small, 

 and there were but three log-houses. All else was an 

 unbroken forest. 



To-day every rod of that ancient highway is enclosed, 

 and forms part either of the busy town or of the long 

 line of fertile fields between the site of that old mill and 

 the tortuous, tree-clad valley of Crossweeksung. ISTot a 

 vestige of the old road remains ; not a way-side tree is 

 standing ; probably not a person is living who ever trav- 

 elled it. Except to a few mousers of old records, the 

 fact that another than the present turnpike ever led 

 from valley to valley is quite unknown. 



But when this ancient highvv^ay was the only one lead- 

 ing from Crosswicks to Stacy's mill — " a most brave 

 place, whatever envy or evil spies may speak of it " — 



