pleasure. But insolently he persisted, hence, and though he wente for England, yet nothing was done to him, not so much as rebukte, for ought was heard; but returned the nexte year. Some of the worst of the company were disperst, and some of the more modest kepte the house till he should be heard from. But I have been too long aboute so unworthy a person, and bad a cause. [RELIGIOUS DIFFICULTIES] ANNO 1633 Mr. Roger Williams (a man Godly and zealous, having many precious parts, but very unsettled in judgmente) came over first to the Massachusetts, but upon some discontente left that place, and came hither (wher he was friendly entertained, according to their poore abilitie,) and exercised his gifts amongst them, and after some time was admitted a member of the church; and his teaching well approved, for the benefite whereof I still blese God, and am thankfull to him, even for his sharpest admonitions and reproufs, so farr as they agreed with truth. He So they mutually resolved to proceed, and obtained of the Govr. of Plimoth to send Captaine Standish, and some other aide with him, to take Morton by force. The which accordingly was done; but they found him to stand stifly in his defence, having made fast his dors, armed his consorts, set diverse dishes of powder and bullets 20 ready on the table; and if they had not. been over armed with drinke, more hurt might have been done. They sommaned him to yeeld, but he kept his house, and they could gett nothing but scofes and scorns from him; but at length, fearing they would doe some violence to the house, he and some of his crue came out, but not to yeeld, but to shoote, but they were so steeld with 30 this year begane to fall into some drinke as their peeces were to heavie for them; him selfe with a carbine (over charged and allmost halfe fild with powder and shote, as was after found) had thought to have shot Captaine Standish; but he stept to him, and put by his peece, and tooke him. Neither was ther any hurte done to any of either side, save that one was so drunke that he rane his owne nose upon 40 the pointe of a sword that one held before him as he entred the house; but he lost but a litle of his hott blood. Morton they brought away to Plimoth, wher he was kepte, till a ship went from the Ile of Shols for England, with which he was sente to the Counsell of New-England; and letters written to give them information of his course and cariage; and also one was sent at their 50 commone charge to informe their Honours more perticulerly, and to prosecute against him. But he foold of the messenger, after he was gone from strang opinions, and from opinion to practise; which caused some controversie betweene the church and him, and in the end some discontente on his parte, by occasion wherof he left them some thing abruptly. Yet afterwards sued for his dismission to the church of Salem, which was granted, with some caution to them concerning him, and what care they ought to have of him. But he soone fell into more things ther, both to their and the goverment's troble and disturbance. I shall not need to name perticulers; they are too well knowen to all, though for a time the church here wente under some hard censure by his occasion, from some that afterwards smarted them selves. But he is to be pitied and prayed for, and so I shall leave the matter, and desire the Lord to shew him his errors, and reduse him into the way of truth, and give him a setled judgment and 1 great ability constancie in the same. For I hope he belongs to the Lord, and that He will shew him mercie. [THE PEQUOT WAR] 1 ANNO 1637 In the fore part of this year the Pequents fell openly upon the English 10 at Conightecute," in the lower parts of the river, and slew sundry of them (as) they were at work in the fields,) both men and women, to the great terrour of the rest; and wente away in great prid and triumph, with many high threats. They allso assalted a fort at the river's mouth, though strong and well defended; and though they did not prevaile, yet it struck them with much 20 fear and astonishmente to see their bould attempts in the face of danger; which made them in all places to stand upon their gard, and to prepare for resistance, and earnestly to solissite their freinds and confederats in the Bay of Massachusets to send them speedy aide, for they looked for more forcible assaults. . . . 30 I shall not take upon me exactly to describe their proceedings in these things, because I expecte it will be fully done by them selves, who best know the carrage and circumstances of things; I shall therfore but touch them in generall. From Connightecute (who were most sencible of the hurt sustained, and the present danger), they sett out a partie of men, and an other partie mett them from the Bay, at the Narigan- 40 sets, who were to joyne with them. The Narigansets were ernest to be gone before the English were well rested and refreshte, espetially some of them which came last. It should seeme their desire was to come upon the enemie sudenly, and undiscovered. Ther was a barke of this place, newly put in ther, which was come from Conightecutte, who did incourage them to lay hold of the 50 Indeans' forwardnes, and to shew as 4 great forwardnes as they, for it would incorage them, and expedition might prove to their great advantage. So they went on, and so ordered their march, as the Indeans brought them to a forte of the enimies (in which most of their cheefe men were) before day. They approached the same with great silence, and surrounded it both with English and Indeans, that they might not breake out; and so assaulted them with great courage, shooting amongst them, and entered the forte with all speed; and those that first entered found sharp resistance from the enimie, who both shott at and grapled with them. Others rane into their howses, and brought out fire, and sett them on fire, which soone tooke in their matts, and standing close togeather, with the wind, all was quickly on a flame, and therby more were burnte to death then was otherwise slaine; it burnte their bowstrings, and made them unservisable. Those that scaped the fire were slaine with the sword; some hewed to peeces, others rune throw with their rapiers, so as they were quickly dispatchte, and very few escaped. It was conceived they thus destroyed about 400. at this time. It was a fearfull sight to see them thus frying in the fyer, and the streams of blood quenching the same, and horrible was the stinck and sente ther of; but the victory seemed a sweete sacrifice, and they gave the prays therof to God, who had wrought so wonderfuly for them, thus to inclose their enimise in their hands, and give them so speedy a victory over so proud and insulting an enimie. Thursday, July 1. The Mayflower and the Whale arrived safe in Charlton harbour. Their passengers were all in health, but most of their cattle dead (whereof a mare and horse of mine). Some stone horses came over in good plight. Friday, 2. The Talbot arrived there. She had lost fourteen passengers. My son, Henry Winthrop, was drowned at Salem. Saturday, 3. The Hopewell, and William and Francis, arrived. Monday, 5. The Trial arrived at Charlton, and the Charles at Salem. Tuesday, 6. The Success arrived. She had goats and lost of them, and many of her passengers were near starved, etc. Wednesday, 7. The Lion went back. to Salem. Thursday, 8. We kept a day of Thanksgiving in all the plantation. Thursday, August 18. Capt. Endecott and Gibson were married by the governour1 and Mr. Wilson. 1 John Winthrop Saturday, 20. The French ship called the Gift came into the harbour at Charlton. She had been twelve weeks at sea, and lost one passenger and twelve goats; she delivered six. Monday we kept a court. Friday, 27. We, of the congregation, kept a fast, and chose Mr. Wilson our teacher, and Mr. Nowell an elder, and 10 Mr. Gager and Mr. Aspinwall, deacons. We used imposition of hands, but with this protestation by all, that it was only as a sign of election and confirmation, not of any intent that Mr. Wilson should renounce his ministry he received in England. September 20. Mr. Gager died. 30. About two in the morning, Mr. Isaac Johnson died; his wife, the lady 20 Arbella, of the house of Lincoln, being dead about one month before. He was a holy man, and wise, and died in sweet. peace, leaving some part of his substance to the colony. The wolves killed six calves at Salem, and they killed one wolf. Thomas Mortan adjudged to be imprisoned, till he were sent into England, and his house burnt down, for his many 30 injuries offered to the Indians, and other misdemeanours. Capt. Brook, Capt. Brook, Master of the Gift, refused to carry him. Finch, of Watertown, had his wigwam burnt and all his goods. Billington executed at Plimoth for murdering one. Mr. Phillips, the minister of Watertown, and others, had their hay burnt. The wolves killed some swine at Saugus. A cow died at Plimouth, and a goat at Boston, with eating Indian corn. October 23. Mr. Rossiter, one of the assistants, died. 25. Mr. Colburn (who was chosen deacon by the congregation a week before) was invested by imposition of hands of the minister and elder. The governour, upon consideration of the inconveniences which had grown in England by drinking one to another, restrained it at his own table, and wished others to do the like, so as it grew, by little and little, to disuse. 29. The Handmaid arrived at Plimouth, having been twelve weeks at sea, and spent all her masts, and of twenty-eight cows she lost ten. She had about sixty passengers, who came all well; John Grant, master. Mr. Goffe wrote to me, that his shipping this year had utterly undone him. She brought out twenty-eight heifers, but brought but seventeen alive. November 11. The master came to Boston with Capt. Standish and two gentlemen passengers, who came to plant here, but having no testimony, we would not receive them. 10. Firmin, of Watertown, had his wigwam burnt. Divers had their hay-stacks burnt by burning the grass. 27. Three of the governour's servants were from this day to the 1 of December abroad in his skiff among the islands, in bitter frost and snow, being kept from home by the N. W. wind, and without victuals. At length they gat to Mount Wollaston, and left their boat there, and came home by land. Laus Deo. December 6. The governour and most of the assistants, and others, met at Roxbury, and there agreed to build a town fortified upon the neck between that and Boston, and a committee was appointed to consider of all things requisite, etc. 14. The committee met at Roxbury, and upon further consideration, for 40 reasons, it was concluded, that we could not have a town in the place aforesaid: 1. Because men would be forced to keep two families. 2. There was no running water; and if there were any springs, they would not suffice the town. 3. The most part of the people had built already, and would not be able to build again. So we agreed to meet at Watertown that day sen'night, and in 50 the meantime other places should be viewed. Capt. Neal and three other gentlemen came hither to us. He came in the bark Warwick, this summer, to Pasca taqua, sent as governour there for Sir Ferdinando Gorges and others. 21. We met again at Watertown, and there, upon view of a place a mile beneath the town, all agreed it a fit place for a fortified town, and we took time to consider further about it. 24. Till this time there was (for the most part) fair, open weather, with Being come on shore they kindled a fire, but, having no hatchet, they could get little wood, and were forced to lie in the open air all night, being extremely cold. In the morning two of their company went towards Plimouth (supposing it had been within seven or eight miles, whereas it was near fifty miles from them). By the way they gentle frosts in the night; but this day 10 met with two Indian squaws, who, the wind came N. W., very strong, and some snow withal, but so cold as some had their fingers frozen, and in danger to be lost. Three of the governour's servants, coming in a shallop from Mistick, were driven by the wind upon Noddle's Island, and forced to stay there all that night, without fire or food; yet, through God's mercy, they came safe to Boston next day, but the 20 fingers of two of them were blistered with cold, and one swooned when he came to the fire. 26. The rivers were frozen up, and they of Charlton could not come to the sermon at Boston till the afternoon at high water. Many of our cows and goats were forced to be still abroad for want of houses. coming home, told their husbands that they had met two Englishmen. They thinking (as it was) that they had been shipwrecked, made after them, and brought them back to their wigwam, and entertained them kindly. And one. of them went with them the next day to Plimouth, and the other went to find. out their boat and the rest of their company, which were seven miles off; and having found them, he holp them what he could, and returned to his wigwam, and fetched a hatchet, and built them a wigwam and covered it, and gat them. wood (for they were so weak and frozen, as they could not stir). And Garrett died about two days after his landing; and the ground being so frozen as they could not dig his 30 grave, the Indian hewed a hole about half a yard deep with his hatchet; and having laid the corpse in it, he laid over it a great heap of wood to keep it from the wolves. By this time the Governour of Plimouth had sent three men to them with provisions; who being come, and not able to launch their boat (which with the strong N. W. wind was driven 28. Richard Garrett, a shoemaker of Boston, and one of the congregation there, with one of his daughters, a young maid, and four others, went towards Plimouth in a shallop, against the advice of his friends; and about the Gurnett's Nose the wind overblew so much at N. W. as they were forced to come to a killock at twenty fathom; but their boat drave and shaked out the 40 up to the high water mark,) the Indian stone, and they were put to sea, and the boat took in much water, which did freeze so hard as they could not free. her. So they gave themselves for lost, and, commending themselves to God, they disposed themselves to die; but one of their company espying land near Cape Cod, they made shift to hoist up part of their sail, and by God's special providence were carried through the 50 rocks to the shore, where some gat on land; but some had their legs frozen into the ice, so as they were forced to be cut out. returned to Plimouth and fetched three more. But before they came, they had launched their boat, and with a fair southerly wind were gotten to Plimouth, where another of their company died, his flesh being mortified with the frost. And the two who went towards Plimouth died also, one of them being not able to get thither, and the other had his feet so frozen as he died of it after. The girl escaped best, and one Harwood, a godly man of the congregation of Boston, lay long under the surgeon's |