Social Life in Lancaster Borough By ELIZABETH CLARKE KIEFFER It was Benjamin Rush writing in 1789 on the "Manners and Customs of the German Inhabitants of Pennsylvania," 1 who called attention to the fact that the description given by Tacitus of the German Village of the first cen- tury A.D

' own meet- ing for the purpose of forming a "Mechanics Society of the City and County of Lancaster." 5 The society, organized the same year and incorporated in 1831, had, when summarized from the elaborate verbosity of its charter, the very progressive purpose of improving the status of the mechanic

was a distinguished theologian, an editor of no small ability, a very popular preacher and public speaker, mentioned with respect in many of the histories of religion in his 1 Published in "History of First Reformed Church," W. Stuart Cramer, ed. Lancaster, 1904. 2 Linn Harbaugh "Life of the Rev