was appointed by the town to treat with the Indians; who, April 17th and 18th, with the help of Maj. Peter Bulkley and Capt. Thomas Hincksman, made a bargain that the town should pay them £31 for a deed in full. The town accepted the conditions, and agreed to bring in the money, (assessed upon the proprietors, now 50 in number,) to the Meeting House, on the 20th of May next, which was accordingly done, and the deed signed by the Indians presented to the town, who directed that it should be kept by Abraham Williams, as also the plat of the plantation made by Samuel Andrews, of which an account has already been given.

A Copy of the Indian Deed of the Plantation of Marlborough. "To all Christian people to whom these presents shall come, Greeting,

KNOW YEE, That we, the Indian inhabitants of the Plantations called Natick and Wamesit," (now part of Tewksbury,) "in the Massachusetts Colonie, in New England, namely," (the names of the grantees are written below, with the omission of Andrew Pilim or Pitimee, and John Wamesqut, and the addition of Edmund Asowonit, making the whole number 25,) "for and in consideration of the sum of thirty one pounds of lawful money of New England, which said sum, wee the said" (here the names are repeated,) "do acknowledge ourselves to have received of Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, both of the town of Marlborough, in the County of Middlesex, in New England, who, in the said payment, not only for themselves, but also as agents in behalf of all the rest of their fellow purchasers, belonging to the said town of Marlborough, and of the said sum of thirty one pounds, and of every part and parcel thereof, wee the said" (names repeated) "for ourselves, and for our heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, do freely, clearly, and wholly, exonerate, acquit, and discharge the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice and all their said fellow purchasers belonging to the said town of Marlborough, and every of them, and their heirs, executors, administrators, and every of them forever; have given, granted, bargained, sold, and by these presents, do give, grant, bargain, sell, and confirm, unto the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, and unto all their fellow purchasers, belonging to the said Town of Marlborough, and unto all and every of their several heirs and assigns forever, all that tract of land, which is contained within the bounds of the Town, Township, or Plantation, called Marlborough aforesaid, as the said bounds were laid out, plotted and represented by Mr. Samuel Andrews, of Cambridge, un

to the Court of the Massachusetts Colonie aforesaid, and by the said Court accepted and recorded, that is to say all Uplands, Meadows, Swamps, Woods, Timber, Fountains, Brooks, Rivers, Ponds, and Herbage, within the said bounds of the said Town, Township, or Plantation of Marlborough, together with all and singular the appurtenances thereof, and all manner of profits, gains, and advantages, arising upon, or from, the said tract of land, which the said Abraham Williams, or Joseph Rice, or all, or any of their fellow purchasers, belonging to the town of Marlborough aforesaid, at any time formerly had, or now have, or hereafter at any time may, or shall have; (except a certain farm, some years ago laid out unto Mr. John Alcock, deceased, which lyeth within the bounds of said town or township of Marlburrough, and is by us, the said" [names repeated] "utterly and totally exempted and excluded from this present bargain.) To have and to hold all the foremeutioned tract of land" (here the description is repeated) "to their own proper use and improvement, as is above declared, (except the farm before excepted,) to themselves, the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, and to all their said fellow purchasers, belonging to the said Marlburrough, and unto all and several their heirs and assigns forever, in a good and sure estate of inheritance, in fee simple, without any claims or demands, any obstruction, eviction, expulsion, or molestation whatsoever, from us the said" (names repeated,) "or from the heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns of us the said Indians, or either of us, or from any other person or persons whatsoever, acting by, from, or under us or them, or any of them, our said heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns. Furthermore, wee, the said" (names repeated) "do covenant and grant, with, and too, the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, and all their said fellow purchasers, belonging to said Marlburrough, that wee, the above named Indians, have been, until the conveyance and assurance made by thèse presents, the true and proper owners of all the said tract of land, lying within the bounds of the plantation or township of Marlburrough, together with all and singular the appurtenances thereof, in our own right, and to our own use, in a good absolute and firm estate of inheritance, in fee simple, and have full power, good right, and lawful authority to grant, bargain, sell, conveigh, and assure, the said tract of land, and every part and parcel thereof, with all and singular the appurtenances of the same, as is before, in these presents, mentioned; and wee, the said" (names repeated) "do warrant and assure that all the tract of

land, and all and every the appurtenances thereof, by these presents, alienated and sold, have been and are at the time of signing and sealing of this Deed of sale, utterly and totally free, and clear from any former bargains, sales, gifts, grants, leases, mortgages, judgments, executions, extents, and incumbrances whatsoever; and wee, the said" (names repeated) "for ourselves, and our heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, do, and shall, from time to time, and at all times hereafter, (as occasion shall be offered) confirm, defend, and make good, unto all intents and purposes, this whole bargain and sale aforesaid, and unto all and several their heirs and assigns forever. In witness of all which premises, wee, the said" (names repeated) "have hereunto set our hands and seals, this twelfth day of June, in the year of our Lord Christ, one thousand six hundred, eighty and four, Annoq. Regni Regis Caroli Secundi XXXVI.

"June 11th and 12th, 1684. the Indians, there appeared in ers and subscribers to this deed, being twenty five (there are twen

At a Court held at Natick among
Court, and before me, all the seal-

ty six signatures) persons in number, and freely acknowledged this writing to be their act and deed."

"As Attests, DANIEL GOOKIN, Sen'r Assistant." "This Deed entered in the Register at Cambridge. Lib. 9. page 293-299. 7. 2. 85. By THO DANFORTH, R."

:

It will be seen from the above signatures, that, besides the two Indian witnesses, John Magus and Daniel Takawompait, four others, viz. Andrew Pitimee, James Speen, Simon Betogkom, and Thomas Waban, wrote their own names. Daniel Takawompait, or Tokkohwompait, was a pastor of the church in Natick, in 1693, ordained by the Rev. and holy man of God, JOHN ELIOT. He is said to have been a person of great knowledge.* Thomas Waban was probably a son of old Waban, the first Indian convert in Massachusetts, and one who supported a consistent christian character till his death, which happened in 1674, at the age of 70. Maj. Gen. Daniel Gookin, before whom the deed was acknowledged, was the friend and fellow laborer of Eliot, an enlightened, virtuous, and benevolent magistrate. He belonged to Cambridge,

where he died in 1687, aged 75.

Two others, whose names are affixed to this instrument, viz. John Speen, and John Awoosamug, are mentioned in the account of Dochester. The former of whom, it appears, was for some time a teacher, till he became addicted to intemperance, when he was laid aside. The latter, though he had been propounded to join the church, had been excluded on account of his quick and passionate temper, but discovered marks of penitence during his last sickness, which satisfied the scruples of his brethren.

The Indian Plantation of Ockoocangansett,§ or Marlborough. Some time previous to the commencement of the English Plantation, as appears from the following order of the General Court, the Indians had a grant of a township in that place.

"In reference to the case between Mr. Eliot, in behalf of the Indians of Oguonikongquamesit, and Sudbury men: the Courte finding that the Indians had a graunt of a township in the place before * See 1 Hist. Col. X. 134. †1 Hist. Col. V. 263. 1 Hist. Col. IX. 198. I have given the name as it is uniformly written in the earliest records of Marlborough. Hutchinson, quoting from Eliot, who visited the place in 1670, writes it Ogguonikongquamesut; Gookin, who wrote in 1674, Okommakamesit. The word has since been corrupted into Agoganggomisset. This name, it should be considered, was at first appropriated to the Indian Plantation, while the English Plantation, before its incorporation in 1660, was called Whipsuppenicke. Both plantations were, however, in 1674, called by the same name by Daniel Gookin.

the English, the Courte determines and orders, that Mr. Edward Jackson, Mr. Tho. Danforth, Mr. Ephraim Child and Capt. Lusher,* or any three of them, as a committee, shall with the first convenient opportunity, if it may be before winter, lay out a township in the said place, of 6000 acres, to the Indians in which, at least, shall bee three or four hundred acres of meadow; and in case there be enough left for a convenient township for the Sudbury men, to lay it out to them; the grant of Mr. Alcock's (842 acres granted in 1655) confirmed by the last Court out of both excepted and reserved, and the Indians to have the Hill on which they are, and the rest of the land to be laid out adjoining to it as may be convenient to both plantations."

The Hill mentioned in this order, had been improved for many years by the Indians, probably long before the arrival of the English, as a planting field. It was afterwards, in 1677, as appears from the following instrument, conveyed to Daniel Gookin, Esq.

"Know all men by these presents that we old Nequain, Robin called old Robin, Benjamin Wuttanamit, James called Great James, John Nasquamit, Sarah the widow of Peter Nasquament, in behalf of her child Moses David, next heir to my father and to my uncle Josiah Harding, deceased, without issue, Assoask the widow of Josiah Nowell, in behalf of my children, Sarah Conomog, sole exexutrix to my late husband, Conomog, Elizabeth, the only daughter and heir of Solomon, deceased," [Solomon had been the teacher of the Indians of Marlborough,] "James Spene, in behalf of my wife, being all of us, true proprietors, possessors and improvers of the Indian lands called Whipsufferage, alias Okonkonomesit, adjoining to Marlborough in the colony of Massachusetts in New England for divers considerations us thereunto moving, especially the love and duty we owe to our honored magistrate, Daniel Gookin, of Cambridge, Esq. who hath been a ruler to us above 20 years, do hereby freely and absolutely give, grant and confirm, unto him the said Daniel Gookin, Esq. and his heirs forever, one parcel of land heretofore broken up, and being planted by us and our predecessors, called by the name of Okonkonomesit Hill, situate, lying and being on the south side of our township and plantation, near Marlborough, containing about one hundred acres, more or less, (also ten acres in Fort Meadow, and ten in Long Meadow,) with free

*These three, Danforth, Child, and Lusher, were respectively deputies to the General Court from Cambridge, Watertown, and Dedham, in 1657. + Records of the General Court for the year 1658-9.