USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > Plymouth > Bradford's history "of Plimoth plantation" from the original manuscript > Part 12
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37
135
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
and said it wente against their consciences to work on yt day. So ye Govr tould them that if they made it mater of conscience, he would spare them till they were better informed. So he led-away ye rest and left them; but when they came home at noone from their worke, he found them in ye streete at play, openly ; some pitching ye barr, & some at stoole-ball, and shuch like sports. So he went to them, and tooke away their implements, and tould them that was against his conscience, that they should play & others worke. If they made ye keeping of it mater of devotion, let them kepe their houses, but ther should be no game- ing or revelling in ye streets. Since which time noth- ing hath been atempted that way, at least openly.
Anno 1622.
AT ye spring of ye year they had apointed ye Massa- chusets to come againe and trade with them, and be- gane now to prepare for that vioag about ye later end of. March. But upon some rumors heard, Hobamak, their Indean, tould them upon some jealocies he had, he feared they were joyned wth ye Narighansets and might betray them if they were not carefull. He inti- mated also some jealocie of Squanto, by what he gath- ered from some private whisperings betweene him and other Indeans. But [71] they resolved to proseede, and sente out their shalop with 10. of their cheefe men aboute ye begining of Aprill, and both Squanto
136
HISTORY OF
BOOK II.
& Hobamake with them, in regarde of ye jelocie be- tweene them. But they had not bene gone longe, but an Indean belonging to Squantos family came runing in seeming great fear, and tould them that many of ye Narihgansets, with Corbytant, and he thought also Massasoyte, were coming against them; and he gott away to tell them, not without danger. And being examined by ye Govr, he made as if they were at hand, and would still be looking back, as if they were at his heels. At which the Govr caused them to take armes & stand on their garde, and suppos- ing ye boat to be still within hearing (by reason it was calme) caused a warning peece or 2. to be shote of, the which yey heard and came in. But no Indeans apeared; watch was kepte all night, but nothing was
seene. Hobamak was confidente for Massasoyt, and thought all was false; yet ye Govr caused him to send his wife privatly, to see what she could observe (pre- tening other occasions), but ther was nothing found, but all was quiet. After this they proseeded on their vioge to ye Massachusets, and had good trade, and returned in saftie, blessed be God.
But by the former passages, and other things of like nature, they begane to see yt Squanto sought his owne ends, and plaid his owne game, by putting ye Indeans in fear, and drawing gifts from them to en- rich him selfe; making them beleeve he could stur up warr against whom he would, & make peece for whom
137
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
he would. Yea, he made them beleeve they kept ye plague buried in ye ground, and could send it amongs whom they would, which did much terrifie the Indeans, and made them depend more on him, and seeke more to him then to Massasoyte, which proucured him envie, and had like to have cost him his life. For after ye discovery of his practises, Massasoyt sought it both pri- vatly and openly; which caused him to stick close to ye English, & never durst goe from them till he dyed. They also made good use of ye emulation yt grue be- tweene Hobamack and him, which made them cary more squarely. And ye Govr seemed to countenance ye one, and ye Captaine ye other, by which they had better intelligence, and made them both more diligente.
[72] Now in a maner their provissions were wholy spent, and they looked hard for supply, but none came. But about ye later end of May, they spied a boat at sea, which at first they thought had beene some French- man; but it proved a shalop which came from a ship which Mr. Weston & an other had set out a fishing, at a place called Damarins-cove, 40. leagues to ye eastward of them, wher were yt year many more ships come a fishing. This boat brought 7. passengers and some letters, but no vitails, nor any hope of any. Some part of which I shall set downe.
Mr. Carver, in my last leters by ye Fortune, in whom Mr. Cushman wente, and who I hope is with you, for we daly
138
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
expecte ye shipe back againe. She departed hence, ye begin- ing of July, with 35. persons, though not over well provided with necesaries, by reason of ye parsemonie of ye adventurers .* I have solisited them to send you a supply of men and provis- sions before shee come. They all answer they will doe great maters, when they hear good news. Nothing before; so faith- full, constant, & carefull of your good, are your olde & honest freinds, that if they hear not from you, they are like to send you no supplie, &c. I am now to relate ye occasion of send- ing this ship, hoping if you give credite to my words, you will have a more favourable opinion of it, then some hear, wherof Pickering is one, who taxed me to mind my owne ends, which is in part true, &c. Mr. Beachamp and my selfe bought this litle ship, and have set her out, partly, if it may be, to uphold t ye plantation, as well to doe others good as our selves; and partly to gett up what we are formerly out; though we are otherwise censured, &c. This is ye occasion we have sent this ship and these passengers, on our owne accounte ; whom we desire you will frendly entertaine & supply with shuch neces- aries as you cane spare, and they wante, &c. And among other things we pray you lend or sell them some seed corne, and if you have ye salt remaining of ye last year, that y" will let them have it for their presente use, and we will either pay you for it, or give you more when we have set our salt-pan to worke, which we desire may be set up in one of ye litle ilands in your bay, &c. And because we intende, if God plase, [73] (and ye generallitie doe it not,) to send within a month another shipe, who, having discharged her passengers, shal goe to Vir- ginia, &c. And it may be we shall send a small ship to abide with you on ye coast, which I conceive may be a great help to ye plantation. To ye end our desire may be effected, which, I assure my selfe, will be also for your good, we pray you give them entertainmente in your houses ye time they shall be with
* Adventures in the manuscript.
+ I know not wch way.
139
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
you, that they may lose no time, but may presently goe in hand to fell trees & cleave them, to ye end lading may be ready and our ship stay not.
Some of ye adventurers have sent you hearwith all some directions for your furtherance in ye comone bussines, who are like those St. James speaks of, yt bid their brother eat, and warme him, but give him nothing; so they bid you make salt, and uphold ye plantation, but send you no means wher- withall to doe it, &c. By ye next we purpose to send more people on our owne accounte, and to take a patente; that if your peopl should be as unhumane as some of ye adventurers, not to admite us to dwell with them, which were extreme barba- risme, and which will never enter into my head to thinke you have any shuch Pickerings amongst you. Yet to satisfie our passengers I must of force doe it; and for some other reasons not necessary to be writen, &c. I find ye generall so backward, and your freinds at Leyden so could, that I fear you must stand on your leggs, and trust (as they say) to God and your selves. Subscribed, your loving freind,
Jan : 12. 1621.
THO : WESTON.
Sundry other things I pass over, being tedious & impertinent.
All this was but could comfort to fill their hungrie bellies, and a slender performance of his former late promiss ; and as litle did it either fill or warme them, as those ye Apostle James spake of, by him before mentioned. And well might it make them remember what ye psalmist saith, Psa. 118. 8. It is better to trust in the Lord, then to have confidence in man. And Psa. 146. Put not you trust in princes (much less in ye
140
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
marchants) nor in ye sone of man, for ther is no help in them. v. 5. Blesed is he that hath ye God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in ye Lord his God. And as they were now fayled of suply by him and others in this their greatest neede and wants, which was caused by him and ye rest, who put so great a company of men upon them, as ye former company were, without any food, and came at shuch a time as they must live almost a whole year before any could [74] be raised, excepte they had sente some; so, upon ye pointe they never had any supply of vitales more afterwards (but what the Lord gave them otherwise) ; for all ye company sent at any time was allways too short for those people yt came with it.
Ther came allso by ye same ship other leters, but of later date, one from Mr. Weston, an other from a parte of ye adventurers, as foloweth.
Mr. Carver, since my last, to ye end we might ye more readily proceed to help ye generall, at a meeting of some of ye prin- cipall adventurers, a proposition was put forth, & alowed by all presente (save Pickering), to adventure each man ye third parte of what he formerly had done. And ther are some other yt folow his example, and will adventure no furder. In regard wherof ye greater part of ye adventurers being willing to uphold ye bussines, finding it no reason that those yt are willing should uphold ye bussines of those that are unwilling, whose back- wardnes doth discourage those that are forward, and hinder other new-adventurers from coming in, we having well con- sidered therof, have resolved, according to an article in ye
141
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
agreemente, (that it may be lawfull by a generall consente of ye adventurers & planters, upon just occasion, to breake of their joynte stock,) to breake it of ; and doe pray you to ratifie, and confirme ye same on your parts. Which being done, we shall ye more willingly goe forward for ye upholding of you with all things necesarie. But in any case you must agree to ye artickls, and send it by ye first under your hands & seals. So I end
Your loving freind,
THO : WESTON. Jan : 17. 1621.
Another leter was write from part of ye company of ye adventurers to the same purpose, and subscribed with 9. of their names, wherof Mr. Westons & Mr. Beachamphs were tow. Thes things seemed strang unto them, seeing this unconstancie & shuffling; it made them to thinke ther was some misterie in ye matter. And therfore ye Govr concealed these letters from ye publick, only imparted them to some trustie freinds for advice, who concluded with him, that this tended to disband & scater them (in regard of their straits) ; and if Mr. Weston & others, who seemed to rune in a perticuler way, should come over with shiping so provided as his letters did intimate, they most would fall to him, to ye prejudice of them selves & ye rest of the adventurers,* their freinds, from whom as yet they heard nothing. And it was doubted whether he had not sente [75] over shuch a company in ye former
* Adventures in the manuscript.
142
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
ship, for shuch an end. Yet they tooke compassion of those 7. men which this ship, which fished to ye eastward, had kept till planting time was over, and so could set no corne; and allso wanting vitals, (for yey turned them off wthout any, and indeed wanted for them selves,) neither was their salt-pan come, so as yey could not performe any of those things which Mr. Weston had apointed, and might have starved if ye plantation had not succoured them; who, in their wants, gave them as good as any of their owne. The ship wente to Virginia, wher they sould both ship & fish, of which (it was conceived) Mr. Weston had a very slender accounte.
After this came another of his ships, and brought letters dated ye 10. of Aprill, from Mr. Weston, as followeth.
Mr. Bradford, these, &c. The Fortune is arived, of whose good news touching your estate & proceeings, I am very glad to hear. And how soever he was robed on ye way by ye French- men, yet I hope your loss will not be great, for ye conceite of so great a returne doth much animate ye adventurers, so yt I hope some matter of importance will be done by them, &c. As for my selfe, I have sould my adventure & debts unto them, so as I am quit * of you, & you of me, for that matter, &c. Now though I have nothing to pretend as an adventurer amongst you, yet I will advise you a litle for your good, if you can apprehend it. I perceive & know as well as another, ye dispositions of your adventurers, whom ye hope of gaine hath
* See how his promiss is fulfild.
143
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
drawne on to this they have done; and yet I fear yt hope will not draw them much furder. Besids, most of them are against ye sending of them of Leyden, for whose cause this bussines was first begune, and some of ye most religious (as MT. Greene by name) excepts against them. So yt my advice is (you may follow it if you please) that you forthwith break of your joynte stock, which you have warente to doe, both in law & conscience, for ye most parte of ye adventurers have given way unto it by a former letter. And ye means you have ther, which I hope will be to some purpose by ye trade of this spring, may, with ye help of some freinds hear, bear ye charge of trasporting those of Leyden ; and when they are with you I make no question but by Gods help you will be able to sub- sist of your selves. But I shall leave you to your discretion.
I desired diverce of ye adventurers, as MT. Peirce, Mr. Greene, & others, if they had any thing to send you, either vitails or leters, to send them by these ships; and marvelling they sent not so much as a letter, I asked our passengers what leters they had, and with some dificultie one of them tould me he had one, which was delivered him with [76] great charge of secrecie ; and for more securitie, to buy a paire of new-shoes, & sow it betweene ye soles for fear of intercepting. I, taking ye leter, wondering what mistrie might be in it, broke it open, and found this treacherous letter subscribed by ye hands of Mr. Pickering & Mr. Greene. Wich leter had it come to your hands without answer, might have caused ye hurt, if not ye ruine, of us all. For assuredly if you had followed their instructions, and shewed us that unkindness which they advise you unto, to hold us in distruste as enimise, &c., it might have been an occa- sion to have set us togeather by ye eares, to ye distruction of us all. For I doe beleeve that in shuch a case, they knowing what bussines hath been betweene us, not only my brother, but others also, would have been violent, and heady against you, &c. I mente to have setled ye people I before and now send,
144
HISTORY OF
BOOK II.
with or near you, as well for their as your more securitie and defence, as help on all occasions. But I find ye adventurers so jealous & suspitious, that I have altered my resolution, & given order to my brother & those with him, to doe as they and him selfe shall find fitte. Thus, &c.
Your loving freind,
THO : WESTON. Aprill 10. 1621.
Some part of Mr Pickerings letter before mentioned.
To M'. Bradford & M. Brewster, &c.
My dear love remembred unto you all, &c. The company hath bought out Mr. Weston, and are very glad they are freed of him, he being judged a man yt thought him selfe above ye generall, and not expresing so much ye fear of God as was meete in a man to whom shuch trust should have been reposed in a matter of so great importance. I am sparing to be so plaine as indeed is clear against him; but a few words to ye wise.
Mr. Weston will not permitte leters to be sent in his ships, nor any thing for your good or ours, of which ther is some reason in respecte of him selfe, &c. His brother Andrew, whom he doth send as principall in one of these ships, is a heady yong man, & violente, and set against you ther, & ye company hear ; ploting with Mr. Weston their owne ends, which tend to your & our undooing in respecte of our estates ther, and prevention of our good ends. For by credible testimoney we are informed his purpose is to come to your colonie, pre- tending he comes for and from ye adventurers, and will seeke to gett what you have in readynes [77] into his ships, as if they came from ye company, & possessing all, will be so much profite to him selfe. And further to informe them selves what spetiall places or things you have discovered, to ye end that they may supres & deprive you, &c.
145
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
The Lord, who is ye watchman of Israll & slepeth not, pre- serve you & deliver you from unreasonable men. I am sorie that ther is cause to admonish you of these things concerning this man ; so I leave you to God, who bless and multiply you into thousands, to the advancemente of ye glorious gospell of our Lord Jesus. Amen. Fare well.
Your loving freinds, EDWARD PICKERING. WILLIAM GREENE.
I pray conceale both ye writing & deliverie of this leter, but make the best use of it. We hope to sete forth a ship our selves with in this month.
The heads of his answer.
Mr. Bradford, this is ye leter yt I wrote unto you of, which to answer in every perticuler is needles & tedious. My owne conscience & all our people can and I thinke will testifie, yt my end in sending ye ship Sparrow was your good, &c. Now I will not deney but ther are many of our people rude fellows, as these men terme them ; yet I presume they will be governed by such as I set over them. And I hope not only to be able to reclaime them from yt profanenes that may scandalise ye vioage, but by degrees to draw them to God, &c. I am so farr from sending rude fellows to deprive you either by fraude or violence of what is yours, as I have charged ye mr. of ye ship Sparrow, not only to leave with you 2000. of bread, but also a good quantitie of fish,* &c. But I will leave it to you to consider what evill this leter would or might have done, had it come to your hands & taken ye effecte ye other desired.
Now if you be of ye mind yt these men are, deale plainly with us, & we will seeke our residence els-wher. If you
* But ye [he] left not his own men a bite of bread.
146
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
are as freindly as we have thought you to be, give us ye entertainment of freinds, and we will take nothing from you, neither meat, drinke, nor lodging, but what we will, in one kind or other, pay you for, &c. I shall leave in ye coun- trie a litle ship (if God send her safe thither) with mariners & fisher-men to stay ther, who shall coast, & trad with ye savages, & ye old plantation. It may be we shall be as helpfull to you, as you will be to us. I thinke I shall see you ye next spring ; and so I comend you to ye protection of God, who ever keep you.
Your loving freind, THO : WESTON.
[78] Thus all ther hops in regard of Mr. Weston were layed in ye dust, and all his promised helpe turned into an empttie advice, which they apprehended was nether lawfull nor profitable for them to follow. And they were not only thus left destitute of help in their extreme wants, haveing neither vitails, nor any thing to trade with, but others prepared & ready to glean up what ye cuntrie might have afforded for their releefe. As for those harsh censures & susspitions in- timated in ye former and following leters, they desired to judg as charitably and wisly of them as they could, waighing them in ye ballance of love and reason; and though they (in parte) came from godly & loveing freinds, yet they conceived many things might arise from over deepe jealocie and fear, together with un- meete provocations, though they well saw Mr. Weston pursued his owne ends, and was imbittered in spirite.
147
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.]
For after the receit of ye former leters, the Gov" re- ceived one from Mr. Cushman, who went home in ye ship, and was allway intimate with Mr. Weston, (as former passages declare), and it was much marveled that nothing was heard from him, all this while. But it should seeme it was ye difficulty of sending, for this leter was directed as ye leter of a wife to her husband, who was here, and brought by him to ye Gov. It was as followeth.
Beloved S": I hartily salute you, with trust of your health, and many thanks for your love. By Gods providence we got well home ye 17. of Feb. Being robbed by ye French- men by ye way, and carried by them into France, and were kepte ther 15. days, and lost all yt we had that was worth taking; but thanks be to God, we escaped with our lives & ship. I see not yt it worketh any discouragment hear. I purpose by Gods grace to see you shortly, I hope in June nexte, or before. In ye mean space know these things, and I pray you be advertised a litle. Mr. Weston hath quite broken of from our company, through some discontents yt arose betwext him and some of our adventurers, & hath sould all his adventurs, & hath now sent 3. smale ships for his perticuler plantation. The greatest wherof, being 100. tune, Mr. Reynolds goeth m'. and he with ye rest purposeth to come him selfe; for what end I know not.
The people which they cary are no men for us, wherfore I pray you entertaine them not, neither exchainge man for man with them, excepte it be some of your worst. He hath taken a patente for him selfe. If they offerr to buy any thing of you, let it be shuch as you can spare, and let them give ye worth of it. If they borrow any thing of you,
148
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
let them leave a good pawne, &c. It is like he [78*] will plant to ye southward of ye Cape, for William Trevore hath lavishly tould but what he knew or imagined of Capewack, Mohiggen, & ye Narigansets. I fear these people will hardly deale so well with ye savages as they should. I pray you therfore signifie to Squanto, that they are a distincte body from us, and we have nothing to doe with them, neither must be blamed for their falts, much less can warrente their fidelitie. We are aboute to recover our losses in France. Our freinds at Leyden are well, and will come to you as many as can this time. I hope all will turne to ye best, wherfore I pray you be not discouraged, but gather up your selfe to goe thorow these dificulties cherfully & with courage in yt place wherin God hath sett you, untill ye day of re- freshing come. And ye Lord God of sea & land bring us comfortably together againe, if it may stand with his glorie. Yours, ROBART CUSHMAN.
On ye other sid of ye leafe, in ye same leter, came these few lines from Mr. John Peirce, in whose name the patente was taken, and of whom more will follow, to be spoken in its place.
Worthy S': I desire you to take into consideration that which is writen on ye other side, and not any way to damnifie your owne collony, whos strength is but weaknes, and may therby be more infeebled. And for ye leters of association, by ye next ship we send, I hope you shall re- ceive satisfaction ; in ye mean time whom you admite I will approve. But as for M'. Weston's company, I thinke them so base in condition (for ye most parte) as in all apearance
* The number is repeated in the Ms.
149
PLYMOUTH PLANTATION.
1622.7
not fitt for an honest mans company. I wish they prove other wise. My purpose is not to enlarge my selfe, but cease in these few lins, and so rest
Your loving freind, JOHN PEIRCE.
All these things they pondred and well considered, yet concluded to give his men frendly entertainmente ; partly in regard of Mr. Weston him selfe, considering what he had been unto them, & done for them, & to some, more espetially ; and partly in compassion to ye people, who were now come into a willdernes, (as them selves were,) and were by ye ship to be pres- ently put a shore, (for she was to cary other passen- gers to Virginia, who lay at great charge,) and they were alltogether unacquainted & knew not what to doe. So as they had received his former company of 7. men, and vitailed them as their owne hitherto, so they also received these (being aboute 60. lusty men), and gave [79] housing for them selves and their goods ; and many being sicke, they had ye best means ye place could aford them. They stayed hear ye most parte of ye somer till ye ship came back againe from Virginia. Then, by his direction, or those whom he set over them, they removed into ye Massachusset Bay, he having got a patente for some part ther, (by light of ther former discovery in leters sent home). Yet they left all ther sicke folke hear till they were setled and housed. ] But of ther victails they had not
150
HISTORY OF
[BOOK II.
any, though they were in great wante, nor any thing els in recompence of any courtecie done them; neither did they desire it, for they saw they were an unruly company, and had no good govermente over them, and by disorder would soone fall into wants if Mr. Wes- ton came not ye sooner amongst them; and therfore, to prevente all after occasion, would have nothing of them.
Amids these streigths, and ye desertion of those from whom they had hoped for supply, and when famine begane now to pinch them sore, they not know- ing what to doe, the Lord, (who never fails his,) pre- sents them with an occasion, beyond all expectation. This boat which came from ye eastward brought them a letter from a stranger, of whose name they had never heard before, being a captaine of a ship come ther a fishing. This leter was as followeth. Being thus inscribed.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.