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chase of the Indians, sent men to take possession of the place, and set up the arms of the Prince of Orange upon a tree. The Linne men sent ten or twelve men with provisions, &c., who began to build, and took down the prince's arms, and, in place thereof, an Indian had drawn an unhandsome face. The Dutch took this in high displeasure, and sent soldiers and fetched away their men, and imprisoned them a few days, and then took an oath of them [blank] and so discharged them.2 Upon this the Linne men (finding themselves too weak, and having no encouragement to expect aid from the English) ||deserted that place, and took another at the east end of the same island; and, being now about forty families, they proceeded in their plantation, and called one Mr. 3Pierson, a godly learned man, and a member of the church of Boston, to go with them, who with some seven or eight more of the company gathered (9) into a church body at Linne, (before they went,) and the whole company entered into a civil combination (with the advice of some of our magistrates) to become a corpo

ration.

Upon this occasion, the Dutch governour, one William Kyfte, (a discreet man,) wrote to our governour complaint of the English usurpations, both at Connecticut, and now also at Long Island, and of the abuse offered to the Prince's arms, &c. and thereupon excused his imprisoning our men. To which the governour returned answer, (*in Latin, his letter being in the same,*) that our

[desisted

the negotiation with Lord Stirling's agent. He has, besides, forgotten to mention the English afterwards setting down on the eastern point of the island, nearly a hundred miles from their former habitation. Thinking only of the wrongs of Connecticut, he carelessly took a very brief statement of the commissioners of the United Colonies from Hazard, II. 164. But the right appears to me to have been on the side of the Dutch.

1 Lechford, 44, says, "Lieut. Howe pulled down the Dutch arms." His name was Daniel, and he was deputy for Lynn, i think, in the courts, May and September, 1636; in April, May, September and November, 1637.

2 Wood, in his Sketch of Long Island, 9, says, in a note, " 13 May, 1640, Gov. Kieft sent Cornelius Van Ten Hoven, the secretary, the under sheriff, a sergeant and twenty-five soldiers, to Scout's Bay, to break up a settlement of the English, who had torn down the state's arms, and carved a fool's head on the tree. The party set out the 14th, and returned the 15th. They found a company of eight men, and a woman with an infant, who had erected one house, and were engaged in erecting another. The party brought six of the men to the governour. Ou examination, it appeared, that they came from Lynn, near Boston, under Andrew Forrester, a Scotchman, agent for Lord Stirling, who had returned to New Haven. After they had been examined, and signed an agreement to leave the place, they were dismissed." Andrew Forrester is an odd perversion of James Forrett.

3 Rev. Abraham Pierson, after serving these settlers at Southampton, re

desire had always been to hold peace and good correspondency with all our neighbours; and though we would not maintain any of our countrymen in any unjust action, yet we might not suffer them to be injured, &c. As for our neighbours of Connecticut, &c., he knew they were not under our government, and for those at Long Island, they went voluntarily from us, &c.

This year there came over great store of provisions, both out of England and Ireland, and but few passengers, (and those brought very little money,) which was occasioned by the store of money and quick markets, which the merchants found here the two or three years before, so as now all our money was drained from us, and cattle and all commodities grew very cheap, which enforced us at the next general court, in the 8th month, to make an order, that corn should pass in payments of new debts; Indian at 4s. the bushel; rye at 5s. and wheat at 6s.; and that, upon all executions for former debts, the creditor might take what goods he pleased, (or, if he had no goods, then his lands,) to be appraised by three men, one chosen by the creditor, one by the debtor, and the third by the marshal.1

One of the ships, which came this summer, struck upon a whale with a full gale, which put the ship a stays; the whale struck the ship on her bow, with her tail a little above water, and brake the planks and six timbers and a beam, and staved two hogsheads of vinegar.

(7.)] There was some rumour of the Indians plotting mischief against the English; and, to strengthen this, the governour of

moved, in 1644, to Branford in New Haven colony, whence he departed in 1665, it is supposed, for Newark in New Jersey. His son, of the same name, graduated at Harvard College, 1668, became the first ruler of the college at New Haven. See Trumbull, the Biographical Dictionaries, and a chapter in Mather, that contains very little.

1 It seems best here to give the transcript from our Records, I. 291, "Whereas many men in the plantation are in debt, and here is not money sufficient to discharge the same, though their cattle and goods should be sold for half their worth, as experience has showed upon some late executions, whereby a great part of the people in the country may be undone, and yet their debts not satisfied, though they have sufficient, upon an equal valuation, to pay all, and live comfortably upon the rest; It is therefore ordered, that upon every execution of debts past, the officer shall take land, houses, corn, cattle, fish, or other commodities, and deliver the same, in full satisfaction to the creditor, at such prices, as the same shall be valued at by three understanding and indifferent men, to be chosen, the one by the creditor, and another by the debtor, and the third by the marshal. And the creditor is at liberty to take his choice of what goods he will, and if he hath not sufficient goods to discharge it, then he is to take his house, or land, as aforesaid." Our great legal antiquary, in tracing the mode of levy on land from this peculiar law, begins in 1647, and has not gone so far back as its origin. See Dane's Gen. Abr. and Dig. of Am. Law, ch. 136,

Plimouth, a Mr. Bradford, wrote a letter to this effect: that he was informed, (and did believe it,) that the Naragansett sachem, Miantunnomoh, had sent a great present of wampom to the Mohawks to aid him against the English, and that it was accepted, and aid promised. The like news was brought by Mr. Haynes, one of the magistrates upon Connecticut, and many words were taken up from some Indians among us, which our fears interpreted the same way. The governour and council gave no great credit to these suspicions, yet they thought fit to take order, strengthening the watches in all towns, and caused them to be ordered by the military officers, (being before committed to the constables' charge,) and withal sent Capt. Jenyson with three men and an Indian interpreter to the Naragansett sachems, to know the truth of their intentions, &c. They were very kindly entertained, but they would not speak with him in the presence of his Indian interpreter, because he was a Pequod, and a servant, and their enemy, and might discover their counsels. So he made use of another interpreter. They denied all confederations with the Mohawks, &c. and professed their purpose to continue friendship with us, and not to use any hostility towards the English, except they began, &c. and promised to come to Boston (as he was desired) if Mr. Williams might come with him, (but that we had denied.) Only Janemoh, the Niantick sachem, carried himself proudly, and refused to come to us, or to yield to any thing, only he said he would not harm us, except we invaded him1.

The governour and council took from Cutshamekin the powder and shot they had bought of our people, with promise to pay for it, or restore it, &c.

This summer there came divers godly men, as they pretended, from Christophers|| with their families. The occasion was, one Mr. Collins, a young scholar, full of zeal, &c. preaching in the

||papers||

art. 14, Vol. v. 23. The morals of our people did not suffer by the short continuance of this regulation, as far as chattels are concerned. The neces sity will not justify, however, their policy.

Ancient charters and laws, p. 173, compiled by the same laborious student, has an error in the date, August, instead of October, which, no doubt, arose from the numeral of the month, 8th, being used in the record. August was the sixth month.

1 No information on the matter of this paragraph can be derived from Morton's Memorial, where we should naturally seek it, and very little from the historian of Connecticut.

2 Relative to this gentleman, no light has dawned upon me from any quarter, beyond what is contained in this narrative of the tyrannical proceedings against him, in the following year, to which it may be reasonably suspected, that his

L

island, it pleased God, divers were wrought upon by him, but he and they being persecuted,|| and their liberty restrained, they came away and brought all their substance in tobacco, which came at so dead a market, as they could not get above two pence the pound (the freight came to one penny, observe,||) nor could sell half at that rate. They arrived first at Quilipiack, (since called New Haven,) and so dispersed themselves here and there, and some returned to Ireland. Mr. Collins and one Mr. 'Hales (a young man very well conceited of himself and censorious of others) went to Aquiday, and so soon as Hales came acquainted with Mrs. Hutchinson, he was taken by her and became her disciple. Mr. Collins was entertained at Hartford to teach a school, and hearing of Mrs. Hutchinson's opinions, &c. wrote to Mr. Hales to beware of her. Mr. Hales returned him answer, and the next morning he went away, without taking leave, and being come to Mrs. Hutchinson, he was also taken with her heresies, and in great admiration of her, so as these, and other the like before, when she dwelt at Boston, gave cause of suspicion of witchcraft, for it was certainly known, that Hawkins's wife (who continued with her, and was her bosom friend) had much familiarity with the devil in England, when she dwelt at St. Ives, where divers ministers and others resorted to her and found it true.

This summer here arrived one Mr. Thomas 2Gorge, a young

marriage of a daughter of Mrs. Hutchinson was as strong an inducement, as the letter written by him, then made ground of complaint. His unfortunate death, in 1643, was of course viewed as a judicial punishment, like that of those on whom the tower of Siloam fell.

1 I have been as unsuccessful in seeking information about this person, as about the scholar whom he seduced from Hartford.

2 For his labours the province of Maine is under high obligation to Thomas Gorges, who resided three years, not about two, as Belk. Biog. I. 385, has it, in that part of our country. Hutchinson, Coll. 114, where is preserved a letter to our Winthrop of 28 June, 1643, calls him son of Sir Ferdinando, but the charter from the patentee names him cousin. He writes, in that letter, he supposes he shall soon go for England in a ship then lying there, but seems not cer⚫ tain. After that, nothing is heard of him, except his grant, on 14 July following, of the township of Wells, 1 Hist. Coll. III. 138. His commission to be of the council of Maine, and secretary of that board, dated 10 March, 1639, that is 1640, N. S. immediately before he came over, is copied from the York Records into Sullivan's Maine Apx. VI. It recites, that in September last his kinsman had given a commission, which Sullivan prints next, as if, because bearing date 2 September, 1639, it were subsequent, though really six months earlier. Similar errours are often committed by writers of more care than that distinguished gentleman, through failure of recollecting the ancient computation, persevered in by English protestants of that and four succeeding ages refusing to adopt the Gregorian style.

gentleman of the inns of court, a kinsman to Sir Ferdinand Gorge, and sent by him with commission for the government of his province of Somersetshire. He was sober and well disposed; he staid a few days at Boston, and was very careful to take advice of our magistrates how to manage his affairs, &c. When he came to Acomenticus, *now called Bristol*, he found all out of order, for Mr. Burdett ruled all, and had let loose the reins of liberty to his lusts, that he grew very notorious for his pride and adultery; and the neighbours now finding Mr. Gorge well inclined to reform things, they complained of him, and produced such foul matters against him, as he was laid hold on, and bound to appear at their court at Sacoe: but he dealt so with some other of the commissioners, that, when the court came, Mr. 1Vines and two more stood for him, but Mr. Gorge having the greater party on his side, and the jury finding him guilty of adultery and other crimes, with much labour and difficulty he was fined (under £30.) He appealed unto England, but Mr. Gorge would not admit his appeal, but seized some of his cattle, &c. Upon this Mr. Burdett went into England, but when he came there he found the state so changed, as his hopes were frustrated, and he, after taking part with the cavaliers, was committed to prison.2

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One Baker, master's mate of the ship, [blank] being in drink, used some reproachful words of the queen.3 The governour and

1 Richard Vines, Esquire, had been employed by the famous Sir F. Gorges, according to Belknap, a long time before the settlement at Plimouth; and from the continuance of his office in Maine, we may be confident, he deserved the approbation of his superiors. He lived at Winter harbour, near the Saco. Sullivan 218, 224. Power to him and six others to be of the council was given by the commission, mentioned in the last note, which may be seen in Haz. I. 458: when Gorges was added, there were eight. So that Vines and two others standing for Burdett, five would have been against him. Sullivan says, that, on account of his adherence to the king, it was inconvenient for Vines to remain in America after 1645. But in that year he was chosen deputy governour, that is, I presume, chief magistrate, of the Province, for the proprietory governour was in England. Two letters from him, of 19 July, 1647, and 29 April, 1648, to our Gov. Winthrop, preserved in Hutch. Coll. 222, 3, show he was well settled at Barbados, and, besides the profit of bis plantation, gained by the practice of medicine. By them his regard for our country appears too great to permit us to suppose him to have been a high royalist.

2 A strange error is found in Sullivan, 238. Of York he says, we do not find that they ever had a preacher there under the government of Gorges. In the year 1660, one Burdett, who had been expelled from Exeter, for misdemeanours, became a preacher, &c." Yet on the next page he copies from our au. thor's text the whole preceding paragraph with its date. The circumstances, under which his history was composed, were very adverse to accuracy, and the author was constantly engaged in more important labours.

3 Had his reproaches been uttered against our magistrates or churches, per