Men and Things in Albany Two Centuries Ago, 47 



collections were gathered ostensibly for the poor, for the 

 only poor house was owned and maintained by the church. 



I can't refrain from giving an instance of the expense 

 of burying a church pauper. On the 15th of February, 

 1700, Ryseck, widow of Gerrit Swart, the last survivor of 

 the church poor at that date, died and was buried on the 

 17th, the expenses of which are copied from the deacon's 

 book. It is entered in Dutch, but I think you will be 

 content with English : Three dry boards for the coffin, 7 

 guilders 10 stuivers ; j lb. nails, Ig. 10s. ; making the 

 cofhn, 24^. ; cartage, lO-s. ; a half vat and an anker of good 

 beer^ 27^.; one gallon of rum, 21^.; 6 gall. Madeira for 

 women and men, 84^. ; sugar and spices, bg. ; 150 sugar 

 cakes, 15^. ; tobacco and pipes, 4^. 105.; digging the grave, 

 30^.; use of the pall, 12^. ; inviting to the funeral, 12^. ; 

 Mary Lookermans was paid Qg. for assistance at the burial, 

 and Marritje Lieverse for nursing 39^. Total 28%., or 

 $115.60. The expenses of maintaining this person four 

 years had been 2,229 guilders 10 stuyvers. 



It was an important duty of the deacons to collect and 

 disburse this poor fund, the accumulations of which at one 

 time amounted to nearly fifteen thousand guilders. As 

 early as 1647, three years after it was organized, the church 

 was rich enough to loan money to the patroon, and the 

 earliest record that remains in its archives is an item of a 

 loan to a woman upon a pawn of silver ware. It was the 

 province of the young deacons, as they were called, that 

 is, of the two last elected to the office, to take up the col- 

 lections. The custom was for the domine to halt in the 

 midst of his sermon, when the deacons presented them- 

 selves before the pulpit, facing the audience, with each 

 his staff having the bag and bell attached, which they 

 brought to a perpendicular position against their shoulders 



^ An anker was 10 gallons, and a half vat about 11 gallons. Good beer 

 was strong beer, ale. A guilder was nearly 40cts. and a stuyver was 

 nearly 2cts. 



