which they dined together at Thomas Ferree’s tavern at the “Sign of the Black Bear,”[15] or at the “Sign of the Green Tree.”[16] St. John the Evangelist’s day was observed with no less circumstance. In the morning the officers of the lodge were installed. Addresses of a semi-religious or philosophic character, eulogistic of masonry, were delivered by competent members or visitors. This ceremony was followed in the afternoon by a dinner either at some tavern or at the home of a member. Dinners seemed to be a concomitant part of all masonic ceremonies. By the time that the last quarter of the eighteenth century was well under way, the hunters and trappers had left for more prolific hunting grounds. The Indian traders with their lax morals[17] had disappeared forever in the direction of the setting sun, along with the Indians with whom they bartered. If any traders remained, they conformed to the precepts of a higher civilization. Only a scattered few of the red men continued to dwell in the hills surrounding the village, or along the rivers, eking out a scant livelihood by selling game in the town.[18] A different moral atmosphere appeared: schools of a permanent character were established; the German church conducted a school which was taught by the pastor. Secular books were now in the households of the more intelligent; a few of the wealthier families had small libraries, and books were sold in the town. On August 26, 1786, Wilson and Wallace advertised “testaments, Bibles, spelling books, and primers” for sale.[19] Copies of the Philadelphia and Baltimore newspapers were brought by travellers, and received by private arrangement. In July, 1786, John Scull and Joseph Hall, two young men of more than ordinary daring, came from Philadelphia and established a weekly newspaper called the _Pittsburgh Gazette_, which was the first newspaper published in the country west of the Alleghany Mountains. The partnership lasted only a few months, Hall dying on November 10, 1786, at the early age of twenty-two years;[20] and in the following month, John Boyd, also of Philadelphia, purchased Hall’s interest and became the partner of Scull.[21] For many years money was scarcely seen in Pittsburgh in commercial transactions, everything being consummated in trade. A few months after its establishment, the _Pittsburgh Gazette_ gave notice to all persons residing in the country that it would receive country produce in payment of subscriptions to the paper.[22]