USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > Plymouth > Bradford's history "of Plimoth plantation" from the original manuscript > Part 7
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Aboute this time, whilst they were perplexed with
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ye proseedings of ye Virginia Company, & ye ill news from thence aboute Mr. Blackwell & his company, and making inquirey about ye hiring & buying of shiping for their vioage, some Dutchmen made them faire offers aboute going with them. Also one Mr. Thomas Weston, a m'chant of London, came to Leyden aboute ye same time, (who was well aquainted with some of them, and a furtherer of them in their former proseedings,) have- ing much conferance wth Mr. Robinson & other of ye cheefe of them, perswaded them to goe on (as it seems) & not to medle with ye Dutch, or too much to depend on ye Virginia Company ; for if that failed, if they came to resolution, he and such marchants as were his freinds (together with their owne means) would sett them forth ; and they should make ready, and neither feare wante of shipping nor money ; for what they wanted should be provided. And, not so much for him selfe as for ye satisfing of such frends as he should procure to adventure in this bussines, they were to draw such articls of agreemente, and make such propossitions, as might ye better induce his freinds to venture. Upon which (after ye formere conclusion) articles were drawne & agreed unto, and were showne unto him, and approved by him ; and afterwards by their messenger (Mr. John Carver) sent into England, who, together with Robart Cushman, were to receive ye moneys & make provissione both for shiping & other things for ye vioage; with this charge, not to exseede their comission, but to proseed
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according to ye former articles. Also some were chossen to doe ye like for such things as were to be prepared there ; so those that weare to goe, prepared them selves with all speed, and sould of their estats and (such as were able) put in their moneys into ye commone stock, which was disposed by those appointed, for ye making of generall provissions. Aboute this time also they had heard, both by Mr. Weston and others, yt sundrie Honb1: Lords had obtained a large grante from ye king, for ye more northerly parts of that countrie, derived out of ye Virginia patente, and wholy secluded from their Govermente, and to be called by another name, viz. New-England. Unto which Mr. Weston, and ye cheefe of them, begane to incline it was [28] best for them to goe, as for other reasons, so cheefly for ye hope of present profite to be made by ye fishing that was found in yt countrie.
But as in all bussineses ye acting parte is most diffi- culte, espetially wher ye worke of many agents must concurr, so it was found in this; for some of those yt should have gone in England, fell of & would not goe ; other marchants & freinds yt had offered to ad- venture their moneys withdrew, and pretended many excuses. Some disliking they wente not to Guiana ; others againe would adventure nothing excepte they wente to Virginia. Some againe (and those that were most relied on) fell in utter dislike with Virginia, and would doe nothing if they wente thither. In ye midds
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of these distractions, they of Leyden, who had put of their estats, and laid out their moneys, were brought into a greate streight, fearing what issue these things would come too ; but at length ye generalitie was swaid to this latter opinion.
But now another difficultie arose, for Mr. Weston and some other that were for this course, either for their better advantage or rather for ye drawing on of others, as they pretended, would have some of those conditions altered yt were first agreed on at Leyden. To which ye 2. agents sent from Leyden (or at least one of them who is most charged with it) did con- sente ; seeing els yt all was like to be dashte, & ye opportunitie lost, and yt they which had put of their estats and paid in their moneys were in hazard to be undon. They presumed to conclude with ye marchants on those termes, in some things contrary to their order & comission, and without giving them notice of ye same; yea, it was conceled least it should make any furder delay; which was ye cause afterward of much trouble & contention.
It will be meete I here inserte these conditions, which are as foloweth.
Anº: 1620. July 1.
1. The adventurers & planters doe agree, that every person that goeth being aged 16. years & upward, be rated at 10}., and ten pounds to be accounted a single share.
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2. That he that goeth in person, and furnisheth him selfe out with 10". either in money or other provissions, be accounted as haveing 20ti. in stock, and in ye devission shall receive a double share.
3. The persons transported & ye adventurers shall continue their joynt stock & partnership togeather, ye space of 7. years, (excepte some unexpected impedimente doe cause ye whole company to agree otherwise,) during which time, all profits & benifits that are gott by trade, traffick, trucking, working, fish- ing, or any other means of any person or persons, remaine still in ye comone stock untill ye division.
4. That at their coming ther, they chose out such a number of fitt persons, as may furnish their ships and boats for fishing upon ye sea ; imploying the rest in their severall faculties upon ye land; as building houses, tilling, and planting ye ground, & makeing shuch comodities as shall be most usefull for yº collonie.
5. That at ye end of ye 7. years, ye capitall & profits, viz. the houses, lands, goods and chatles, be equally devided be- twixte ye adventurers, and planters ; wch done, every man shall be free from other of them of any debt or detrimente concerning this adventure.
[29] 6. Whosoever cometh to ye colonie herafter, or putteth any into ye stock, shall at the ende of ye 7. years be alowed proportionably to ye time of his so doing.
7. He that shall carie his wife & children, or servants, shall be alowed for everie person now aged 16. years & upward, a single share in ye devision, or if he provid them necessaries, a duble share, or if they be between 10. year old and 16., then 2. of them to be reconed for a person, both in trasportation and devision.
8. That such children as now goe, & are under ye age of ten years, have noe other shar in ye devision, but 50. acers of unmanured land.
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9. That such persons as die before ye 7. years be expired, their executors to have their parte or sharr at ye devision, pro- portionably to ye time of their life in ye collonie.
10. That all such persons as are of this collonie, are to have their meate, drink, apparell, and all provissions out of ye comon stock & goods of ye said collonie.
The cheefe & principall differences betwene these & the former conditions, stood in those 2. points ; that ye houses, & lands improved, espetialy gardens & home lotts should remaine undevided wholy to ye planters at ye 7. years end. 2ly, yt they should have had 2. days in a weeke for their owne private imploymente, for ye more comforte of them selves and their families, espetialy such as had families. But because letters are by some wise men counted ye best parte of histories, I shall shew their greevances hereaboute by their owne letters, in which ye passages of things will be more truly discerned.
A letter of Mr. Robinsons to John Carver.
June 14. 1620. N. Stile.
My dear freind & brother, whom with yours I alwaise re- member in my best affection, and whose wellfare I shall never cease to comend to God by my best & most earnest praires. You doe throwly understand by our generall letters ye estate of things hear, which indeed is very pitifull ; espetialy by wante of shiping, and not seeing means lickly, much less certaine, of having it provided ; though withall ther be great want of money · & means to doe needfull things. Mr. Pickering, you know before this, will not defray a peny hear ; though Robart Cush-
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man presumed of I know not how many 100}. from him, & I know not whom. Yet it seems strange yt we should be put to him to receive both his & his partners adventer, and yet Mr. Weston write unto him, yt in regard of it, he hath drawne upon him a 100". more. But ther is in this some misterie, as indeed it seems ther is in ye whole course. Besids, wheras diverse are to pay in some parts of their moneys yet behinde, they refuse to doe it, till they see shiping provided, or a course taken for it. Neither doe I thinke is ther a man hear would pay any thing, if he had againe his money in his purse. You know right well we depended on Mr. Weston alone, and upon such means as he would procure for this commone bussines ; and when we had in hand another course with ye Dutchmen, broke it of at his motion, and upon ye conditions by him shortly after propounded. He did this in his love I know, but things appeare not answerable from him hitherto. That he should have first have put in his moneys, is thought by many to have been but fitt, but yt I can well excuse, he being a marchante and haveing use of it to his benefite ; wheras others, if it had been in their hands, would have consumed it. [30] But yt he should not but have had either shipping ready before this time, or at least certaine means, and course, and ye same knowne to us for it, or have taken other order otherwise, cannot in my conscience be excused. I have heard yt when he hath been moved in the bussines, he hath put it of from him selfe, and referred it to ye others ; * and would come to Georg Morton, & enquire news of him aboute things, as if he had scarce been some accessarie unto it. Wether he hath failed of some helps from others which he expected, and so be not well able to goe through with things, or whether he hath feared least you should be ready too soone & so encrease ye charge of shiping above yt is meete, or whether he have thought by withhoulding to put
* Yowthers in the manuscript, an illegibly written word, doubtless intended for "ye others."
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us upon straits, thinking yt therby Mr. Brewer and Mr. Picker- ing would be drawne by importunitie to doe more, or what other misterie is in it, we know not; but sure we are yt things are not answerable to such an occasion. Mr. Weston maks himselfe mery with our endeavors about buying a ship, but we have done nothing in this but with good reason, as I am perswaded, nor yet that I know in any thing els, save in those tow; ye one, that we imployed Robart Cushman, who is known (though a good man, & of spetiall abilities in his kind, yet) most unfitt to deale for other men, by reason of his singularitie, and too great indifferancie for any conditions, and for (to speak truly) that * we have had nothing from him but termes & pre- sumptions. The other, yt we have so much relyed, by implicite faith as it were, upon generalities, without seeing ye perticuler course & means for so waghtie an affaire set down unto us. For shiping, Mr. Weston, it should seeme, is set upon hireing, which yet I wish he may presently effecte ; but I see litle hope of help from hence if so it be. Of Mr. Brewer you know what to expecte. I doe not thinke Mr. Pickering will ingage, ex- cepte in ye course of buying, in former letters specified. Aboute ye conditions, you have our reasons for our judgments of what is agreed. And let this spetially be borne in minde, yt the greatest parte of ye Collonie is like to be imployed constantly, not upon dressing ther perticuler land & building houses, but upon fish- ing, trading, &c. So as ye land & house will be but a trifell for advantage to ye adventurers, and yet the devission of it a great discouragmente to ye planters, who would with singuler care make it comfortable with borowed houres from their sleep. The same consideration of comone imploymente constantly by the most is a good reason not to have ye 2. daies in a weeke denyed ye few planters for private use, which yet is subordinate to comone good. Consider also how much unfite that you & your liks must serve a new prentishipe of 7. years, and not a
* This word is enclosed in brackets in the manuscript.
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daies freedome from taske. Send me word what persons are to goe, who of usefull faculties, & how many, & perticulerly of every thing. I know you wante not a minde. I am sorie you have not been at London all this while, but ye provissions could not wante you. Time will suffer me to write no more ; fare you & yours well allways in ye Lord, in whom I rest.
Yours to use,
JOHN ROBINSON.
An other letter from sundrie of them at ye same time.
[31] To their loving freinds John Carver and Robart Cush- man, these, &c.
Good bretheren, after salutations, &c. We received diverse letters at ye coming of Mr. Nash & our pilott, which is a great incouragmente unto us, and for whom we hop after times will minister occasion of praising God; and indeed had you not sente him, many would have been ready to fainte and goe backe. Partly in respecte of ye new conditions which have bene taken up by you, which all men are against, and partly in regard of our owne inabillitie to doe any one of those many waightie bussineses you referr to us here. For ye former wherof, wheras Robart Cushman desirs reasons for our dislike, promising therupon to alter ye same, or els saing we should - thinke he hath no brains, we desire him to exercise them therin, refering him to our pastors former reasons, and them to ye censure of ye godly wise. But our desires are that you will not entangle your selvs and us in any such unreasonable courses as those are, viz. yt the marchants should have ye halfe of mens houses and lands at ye dividente ; and that persons should be deprived of ye 2. days in a weeke agreed upon, yea every momente of time for their owne perticuler; by reason wherof we cannot conceive why any should carie servants for their own help and comfort; for that we can require no more of them then all men one of another. This we have only by
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relation from Mr. Nash, & not from any writing of your owne, & therfore hope you have not proceeded farr in so great a thing without us. But requiring you not to exseed the bounds of your comission, which was to proceed upon ye things or con- ditions agred upon and expressed in writing (at your going over about it), we leave it, not without marveling, that your selfe, as you write, knowing how smale a thing troubleth our consultations, and how few, as you fear, understands the busnes aright, should trouble us with such matters as these are, &c.
Salute Mr. Weston from us, in whom we hope we are not deceived ; we pray you make known our estate unto him, and if you thinke good shew him our letters, at least tell him (yt under God) we much relie upon him & put our confidence in him ; and, as your selves well know, that if he had not been an adventurer with us, we had not taken it in hand; presuming that if he had not seene means to accomplish it, he would not have begune it; so we hope in our extremitie he will so farr help us as our expectation be no way made frustrate concern- ing him. Since therfore, good brethren, we have plainly opened ye state of things with us in this matter, you will, &c. Thus beseeching ye Allmightie, who is allsufficiente to raise us out of this depth of dificulties, to assiste us herein ; raising such means by his providence and fatherly care for us, his pore children & servants, as we may with comforte behould ye hand of our God for good towards us in this our bussines, which we undertake in his name & fear, we take leave & remaine
Your perplexed, yet hopfull bretheren,
June 10. New Stille, Anº: 1620. S. F. E. W. W. B. J. A .*
* In Governor Bradford's Collection of Letters, these subscribers are thus wrote out at length : SAMUEL FULLER, WILLIAM BRADFORD, ISAAC ALLERTON, ED. WINSLOW. - Prince.
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A letter of Robart Cushmans to them.
Brethern, I understand by letters & passagess yt have come to me, that ther are great discontents, & dislike of my proceed- ings amongst you. Sorie I am to hear it, yet contente to beare it, as not doubting but yt partly by writing, and more princi- pally by word when we shall come together, I shall satisfie any reasonable man. I have been perswaded [32] by some, espetialy this bearer, to come and clear things unto you ; but as things now stand I canot be absente one day, excepte I should hazard all ye viage. Neither conceive I any great good would come of it. Take then, brethern, this as a step to give you contente. First, for your dislike of ye alteration of one clause in ye conditions, if you conceive it right, ther can be no blame lye on me at all. For ye articles first brought over by John Carver were never seene of any of ye adventurers hear, excepte Mr. Weston, neither did any of them like them because of that clause ; nor Mr. Weston him selfe, after he had well considered it. But as at ye first ther was 500". withdrawne by ST. Georg Farrer and his brother upon that dislike, so all ye rest would have withdrawne (Mr. Weston excepted) if we had not altered yt clause. Now whilst we at Leyden conclude upon points, as we did, we reckoned without our host, which was not my falte. Besids, I shewed you by a letter ye equitie of yt condition, & our inconveniences, which might be sett against all Mr. Rob: inconveniences, that without ye alteration of yt clause, we could neither have means to gett thither, nor supplie wherby to subsiste when we were ther. Yet notwithstanding all those reasons, which were not mine, but other mens wiser then my selfe, without answer to any one of them, here cometh over many quirimonies, and complaints against me, of lording it over my brethern, and making conditions fitter for theeves & bondslaves then honest men, and that of my owne head I did what I list. And at last a paper of reasons, framed against
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yt clause in ye conditions, which as yey were delivered me open, so my answer is open to you all. And first, as they are no other but inconveniences, such as a man might frame 20. as great on ye other side, and yet prove nor disprove nothing by them, so they misse & mistake both ye very ground of ye article and nature of ye project. For, first, it is said, that if ther had been no divission of houses & lands, it had been better for ye poore. True, and yt showeth ye inequalities of ye condition ; we should more respecte him yt ventureth both his money and his person, then him yt ventureth but his person only.
2. Consider wheraboute we are, not giveing almes, but furnishing a store house ; no one shall be porer then another for 7. years, and if any be rich, none can be pore. At ye least, we must not in such bussines crie, Pore, pore, mercie, mercie. Charitie hath it life in wraks, not in venturs ; you are by this most in a hopefull pitie of makeing, therfore complaine not be- fore you have need.
3. This will hinder ye building of good and faire houses, contrarie to ye advise of pollitiks. A. So we would have it; our purpose is to build for ye presente such houses as, if need be, we may with litle greefe set a fire, and rune away by the lighte ; our riches shall not be in pompe, but in strenght ; if God send us riches, we will imploye them to provid more men, ships, munition, &c. You may see it amongst the best pollitiks, that a comonwele is readier to ebe then to flow, when once fine. houses and gay cloaths come up.
4. The Govet may prevente excess in building. A. But if it be on all men beforehand resolved on, to build mean houses, ye Gover laboure is spared.
5. All men are not of one condition. A. If by condition you mean wealth, you are mistaken ; if you mean by condi- tion, qualities, then I say he that is not contente his neighbour shall have as good a house, fare, means, &c. as him selfe, is not of a good qualitie. 21y. Such retired persons, as have an
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eie only to them selves, are fitter to come wher catching is, then closing ; and are fitter to live alone, then in any societie, either civill or religious.
6. It will be of litle value, scarce worth 5ª. A. True, it may be not worth halfe 5#i. [33] If then so smale a thing will content them, why strive we thus aboute it, and give them occasion to suspecte us to be worldly & covetous? I will not say what I have heard since these complaints came first over.
7. Our freinds with us yt adventure mind not their owne profite, as did ye old adventurers. A. Then they are better then we, who for a litle matter of profite are readie to draw back, and it is more apparente brethern looke too it, that make profite your maine end ; repente of this, els goe not least you be like Jonas to Tarshis. 2ly. Though some of them mind not their profite, yet others doe mind it; and why not as well as we? venturs are made by all sorts of men, and we must labour to give them all contente, if we can.
8. It will break ye course of comunitie, as may be showed by many reasons. A. That is but said, and I say againe, it will best foster comunion, as may be showed by many reasons.
9. Great profite is like to be made by trucking, fishing, &c. A. As it is better for them, so for us ; for halfe is ours, besids our living still upon it, and if such profite in yt way come, our labour shall be ye less on ye land, and our houses and lands must & will be of less value.
10. Our hazard is greater then theirs. A. True, but doe they put us upon it? doe they urge or egg us? hath not ye motion & resolution been always in our selves? doe they any more then in seeing us resolute if we had means, help us to means upon equall termes & conditions? If we will not goe, they are content to keep their moneys. Thus I have pointed at a way to loose those knots, which I hope you will consider seriously, and let me have no more stirre about them.
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Now furder, I hear a noise of slavish conditions by me made ; but surly this is all that I have altered, and reasons I have sent you. If you mean it of ye 2. days in a week for perticuler, as some insinuate, you are deceived ; you may have 3. days in a week for me if you will. And when I have spoken to ye ad- venturers of times of working, they have said they hope we are men of discretion & conscience, and so fitte to be trusted our selves with that. But indeed ye ground of our proceedings at Leyden was mistaken, and so here is nothing but tottering every day, &c.
As for them of Amsterdam I had thought they would as soone have gone to Rome as with us; for our libertie is to them as ratts bane, and their riggour as bad to us as ye Spanish Inquision. If any practise of mine discourage them, let them yet draw back ; I will undertake they shall have their money againe presently paid hear. Or if the company thinke me to be ye Jonas, let them cast me of before we goe ; I shall be con- tent to stay with good will, having but ye cloaths on my back ; only let us have quietnes, and no more of these clamors ; full litle did I expecte these things which are now come to pass, &c. Yours, R. CUSHMAN.
But whether this letter of his ever came to their hands at Leyden I well know not; I rather thinke it was staied by Mr. Carver & kept by him, forgiving offence. But this which follows was ther received ; both which I thought pertenent to recite.
Another of his to ye aforesaid, June 11. 1620 .*
Salutations, &c. I received your ler. yesterday, by John Turner, with another ye same day from Amsterdam by Mr.
* June 11. O. S. is Lord's day, and therefore 't is likely the date of this letter should be June 10, the same with the date of the letter following. - Prince.
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W. savouring of ye place whenc it came. And indeed the many discouragements I find her, together with ye demurrs and retirings ther, had made me to say, I would give up my accounts to John Carver, & at his comeing aquainte him fully with all courses, and so leave it quite, with only ye pore cloaths on my back. But gathering up my selfe by further considera- tion, [34] I resolved yet to make one triall more, and to aquainte Mr. Weston with ye fainted state of our bussines ; and though he hath been much discontented at some thing amongst us of late, which hath made him often say, that save for his promise, he would not meadle at all with ye bussines any more, yet considering how farr we were plunged into maters, & how it stood both on our credits & undoing, at ye last he gathered up him selfe a litle more, & coming to me 2. hours after, he tould me he would not yet leave it. And so advising together we resolved to hire a ship, and have tooke liking of one till Monday, about 60. laste, for a greater we cannot gett, excepte it be tow great ; but a fine ship it is. And seeing our neer freinds ther are so streite lased, we hope to assure her without troubling them any further; and if ye ship fale too small, it fitteth well yt such as stumble at strawes allready, may rest them ther a while, least worse blocks come in ye way ere 7. years be ended. If you had beaten this bussines so throuly a month agoe, and write to us as now you doe, we could thus have done much more conveniently. But it is as it is ; I hope our freinds ther, if they be quitted of ye ship hire, will be in- dusced to venture ye more. All y+ I now require is yt salt and netts may ther be boughte, and for all ye rest we will here pro- vid it; yet if that will not be, let them but stand for it a month or tow, and we will take order to pay it all. Let Mr. Reinholds tarie ther, and bring ye ship to Southampton. We have hired another pilote here, one Mr. Clarke, who went last year to Virginia with a ship of kine.
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