USA > Massachusetts > Chronicles of the first planters of the colony of Massachusetts Bay, 1623-1636 > Part 19
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" The lobster, (homarus America- nus,) the largest of all crustaceous animals, is found about all the isl- ands in Massachusetts Bay, and in every cove along the coast. Probably 200,000 are annually taken in our waters, one half of which are brought to Boston. See Gould's Report on the Invertebrate Animals of Massachusetts, pp. 330 and 360. 2 Wood, ch. 9, mentions "very large ones, some being 20 pounds in weight." The largest that has been seen of late by the Boston fish-
ermen, weighed 28 pounds. See Gould's Report, page 360.
3 See Chronicles of Plymouth, note 3 on page 164.
4 See Wood, ch. 9; Morton's New-English Canaan, book ii. ch. 7; and Gould's Report, pages 121, 135, 356, 360.
5 See Chronicles of Plymouth, note 4 on page 129.
6 At Charlestown, whither Graves had already gone. See note 2 on page 152,
251
THE AIR OF NEW-ENGLAND.
. can desire, and we may dig wells and find water CHAP. XII.
where we list.
Thus we see both land and sea abound with store 1629. of blessings for the comfortable sustenance of man's July to life in New-England. Sept.
Of the Air of New-England, with the temper and crea- tures in it.
The temper of the air1 of New-England is one spe- cial thing that commends this place. Experience doth manifest that there is hardly a more healthful place to be found in the world that agreeth better with our English bodies. Many that have been weak and sickly in Old England, by coming hither have been thoroughly healed, and grown healthful and strong. For here is an extraordinary clear and dry air, that is of a most healing nature to all such as are of a cold, melancholy, phlegmatic, rheumatic temper of body. None can more truly speak hereof by their own experience than myself. My friends that knew me can well tell how very sickly I have been, and continually in physic, being much troubled with a tormenting pain through an extraordinary weakness of my stomach, and abundance of melan- cholic humors. But since I came hither on this voyage, I thank God I have had perfect health, and freed from pain and vomiting, having a stomach to digest the hardest and coarsest fare, who before could not eat finest meat ; and whereas my stomach could only digest and did require such drink as was both
1 See Chronicles of Plymouth, pages 233, 369,
1
252
THE CLIMATE OF NEW-ENGLAND.
CHAP. strong and stale, now I can and do oftentimes drink XII. New-England water very well. And I that have not
1629. gone without a cap for many years together, neither
July to durst leave off the same, have now cast away my cap, Sept. and do wear none at all in the day time; and whereas beforetime I clothed myself with double clothes and thick waistcoats to keep me warm, even in the sum- mer time, I do now go as thin clad as any, only wearing a light stuff cassock upon my shirt, and stuff breeches of one thickness without linings. Besides, I have one of my children, that was formerly most lamentably handled with sore breaking out of both his hands and feet of the king's evil ; but since he came hither he is very well ever he was, and there is hope of perfect recovery shortly, even by the very wholesomeness of the air, altering, digesting, and drying up the cold and crude humors of the body ; and therefore I think it is a wise course for all cold complexions to come to take physic in New-Eng- land ; for a sup of New-England's air is better than a whole draught of Old England's ale.
In the summer time, in the midst of July and Au- gust, it is a good deal hotter than in Old England, and in winter January and February are much colder, as they say ; but the spring and autumn are of a middle temper.
Fowls of the air are plentiful here, and of all sorts as we have in England, as far as I can learn, and a great many of strange fowls which we know not. Whilst I was writing these things, one of our men brought home an eagle which he had killed in the wood ; they say they are good meat. Also here are many kinds of excellent hawks, both sea hawks and
253
THE FOWLS OF NEW-ENGLAND.
land hawks ; and myself walking in the woods with CHAP. another in company, sprung a partridge1 so big that XII. through the heaviness of his body could fly but a 1629. July to Sept.
little way ; they that have killed them say they are as big as our hens. Here are likewise abundance of turkeys2 often killed in the woods, far greater than our English turkeys, and exceeding fat, sweet, and fleshy ; for here they have abundance of feeding all the year long, as strawberries (in summer all places are full of them) and all manner of berries and fruits. In the winter time I have seen flocks of pigeons,3 and have eaten of them. They do fly from tree to tree, as other birds do, which our pigeons will not do in England. They are of all colors, as ours are, but their wings and tails are far longer ; and there- fore it is likely they fly swifter to escape the terrible hawks in this country. In winter time this country doth abound with wild geese, wild ducks,4 and other sea-fowl, that a great part of winter the planters have eaten nothing but roast meat of divers fowls which they have killed.
Thus you have heard of the Earth, Water, and Air of New-England. Now it may be you expect some- thing to be said of the Fire, proportionable to the rest of the elements.
1 This, no doubt, was the par- tridge of New-England, the pheasant of the middle and western States, (tretao umbellus.) Wood and Mor- ton both remark that they are bigger in body than the partridges of Eng- land. See Peabody's Report, page 354; Wilson's Amer. Ornithol. vi. 45; Audubon's Ornithol. Biog. i. 211; Nuttall, i. 657.
2 See Josselyn's New-England's Rarities, p. 8 ; Bonaparte's Amer. Ornithol. i. 79; Audubon, i. 1; Nuttall, i. 639 ; Peabody, p. 352.
3 See Wood, ch. 8; Wilson, v. 102; Audubon, i. 319; Nuttall, i. 629 ; Peabody's Report, p. 351. 4 Sce Chronicles of Plymouth, note 6 on page 139, and note 1 on page 140.
254
ABUNDANCE OF FUEL.
CHAP. XII. Indeed I think New-England may boast of this element more than of all the rest. For though it be 1629. here somewhat cold in the winter, yet here we have July to Sept. plenty of fire to warm us, and that a great deal cheaper than they sell billets and fagots in London ; nay, all Europe is not able to afford to make so great fires as New-England. A poor servant here, that is to possess but fifty acres of land, may afford to give more wood for timber and fire as good as the world yields, than many noblemen in England can afford to do. Here is good living for those that love good fires. And although New-England have no tallow to make candles of, yet by the abundance of the fish thereof it can afford oil for lamps. Yea, our pine trees, that are the most plentiful of all wood, doth allow us plenty of candles, which are very useful in a house ; and they are such candles as the Indians commonly use, having no other ; and they are no- thing else but the wood of the pine tree cloven in two little slices something thin, which are so full of the moisture of turpentine and pitch that they burn as clear as a torch.1 I have sent you some of them, that you may see the experience of them.
Thus of New-England's commodities. Now I will tell you of some discommodities, that are here to be found.
First, in the summer season, for these three months, June, July, and August,2 we are troubled
1 Pine-knots. "Out of these pines is gotten the candle-wood, that is so much spoken of." Wood, ch. 5.
See note 3 on page 249.
255
THE INCONVENIENCES OF THE COUNTRY.
much with little flies called mosquitoes,1 being the CHAP. XII. same they are troubled with in Lincolnshire and the fens ; and they are nothing but gnats, which, except 1629. July to Sept. they be smoked out of their houses, are troublesome in the night season.
Secondly, in the winter season, for two months' space, the earth is commonly covered with snow, which is accompanied with sharp biting frosts, some- thing more sharp than is in Old England, and there- fore are forced to make great fires.
Thirdly, this country being very full of woods and wildernesses, doth also much abound with snakes and serpents, of strange colors and huge greatness. Yea, there are some serpents, called rattlesnakes,2 that have rattles in their tails, that will not fly from a man as others will, but will fly upon him and sting him so 'mortally that he will die within a quarter of an hour after, except the party stinged have about him some of the root of an herb called snake-weed3 to bite on, and then he shall receive no harm. But yet seldom falls it out that any hurt is done by these. About three years since an Indian was stung to death by one of them ; but we heard of none since that time.
Fourthly and lastly, here wants as yet the good company of honest Christians, to bring with them horses, kine and sheep, to make use of this fruitful land. Great pity it is to see so much good ground for corn and for grass as any is under the heavens, to lie altogether unoccupied, when so many honest men and their families in Old England, through the
1 See Wood, ch. 11 ; and Harris's Report on the Insects of Massachu- ch. 5; Wood, ch. 11. etts, page 401.
2 See Josselyn, p. 38; Morton,
3 See Wood, ch. 11.
256
THE NATIVES OF NEW-ENGLAND.
CHAP. XII. populousness thereof, do make very hard shift to live one by the other.
1629. July to Sept.
Now thus you know what New-England is, as also with the commodities and discommodities thereof. Now I will show you a little of the inhabitants1 thereof, and their government.
For their governors they have kings, which they call saggamores, some greater and some lesser, ac- cording to the number of their subjects .. The greater saggamores about us cannot make above three hun- dred men, and other less saggamores have not above fifteen subjects, and others near about us but two.
Their subjects, about twelve years since,2 were swept away by a great and grievous plague that was amongst them, so that there are very few left to in- habit the country.
The Indians are not able to make use of the one fourth part of the land ; neither have they any set- tled places, as towns, to dwell in; nor any ground as they challenge for their own possession, but change their habitation from place to place.
For their statures, they are a tall and strong- limbed people. 3 Their colors are tawny. They go naked, save only they are in part covered with beasts' skins on one of their shoulders, and wear something before their privities. Their hair is gen- erally black, and cut before, like our gentlewomen,
1 For the Indians of New-Eng- land, see Edward Winslow, in Chronicles of Plymouth, pp. 354- 367; Wood's New-England's Pros- pect, part ii. chaps. 1-20 ; Morton's New-English Canaan, book i. chaps.
1-20; and Daniel Gookin and Roger Williams in Mass. Hist. Coll. i. 141-226, and iii. 203-238.
In 1617. See Chronicles of Plymouth, note 3 on page 183.
257
THE NATIVES OF NEW-ENGLAND.
and one lock longer than the rest, much like to our CHAP. gentlemen, which fashion I think came from hence into England. XII. 1629. July to Sept.
For their weapons, they have bows and arrows, some of them headed with bone, and some with brass. I have sent you some of them for an example.
The men, for the most part, live idly; they do nothing but hunt and fish. Their wives set their corn, and do all their other work. They have little household stuff, as a kettle, and some other vessels like trays, spoons, dishes and baskets.
Their houses1 are very little and homely, being made with small poles pricked into the ground, and so bended and fastened at the tops, and on the sides they are matted with boughs and covered on the roof with sedge and old mats; and for their beds that they take their rest on, they have a mat.
They do generally profess to like well of our com- ing and planting here ; partly because there is abun- dance of ground that they cannot possess nor make use of, and partly because our being here will be a means both of relief to them when they want, and also a defence from their enemies,2 wherewith (I say) before this Plantation began, they were often endangered.
For their religion, they do worship two Gods, a good God and an evil God. The good God they call Tantum, and their evil God, whom they fear will do them hurt, they call Squantum.
For their dealing with us, we neither fear them
1 See Chronicles of Plymouth,
note 1 on page 144 ..
'These were the Tarrateens, or Eastern Indians, who lived on the
borders of the Penobscot. See Chronicles of Plymouth, note 5 on page 225, and the Planters' Plea, page 27.
17
E
258
CONVERSION OF THE INDIANS.
CHAP. nor trust them ; for forty of our musketeers will XII. drive five hundred of them out of the field. We use 1629. them kindly.1 They will come into our houses July to Sept. sometimes by half a dozen or half a score at a time when we are at victuals, but will ask or take nothing but what we give them.
We purpose to learn their language2 as soon as we can, which will be a means to do them good.
-
Of the present condition of the Plantation, and what it is.
When we came first to Nehum-kek, we found about half a score houses, and a fair house newly built for the Governor.3 We found also abundance
1 As they were instructed to do. See pages 159 and 176.
2 The first planters of Massachu- setts have been reproached for not attending sooner to one of the pro- fessed designs of their Plantation, the conversion of the Indians to Christianity. The reproach is un- merited. They attended to it as soon as it was possible. For a while they had to struggle with dis- ease and famine and the manifold hardships attendant upon a new set- tlement. They had also to set up a Church and a State in the wil- derness. Then came the troubles of the Antinomian controversy, and immediately upon that, broke out the Pequot war. During all this period they had no fit opportunity to en- gage in this great work, and no suitable instruments to prosecute it. As soon as these were raised up by Providence, they entered upon the work, learned the Indian languages, and preached to the natives. In 1646 the General Court of Massa- chusetts passed an Act to encourage the carrying of the Gospel to the Indians, and it was recommended to the elders to consider how it might best be done. In the same year, John Eliot, the Apostle to the In-
dians, as he has been called, preach- ed to them in their own language, and subsequently undertook the Herculean task of translating the whole Bible into the language of the Massachusetts Indians, which was printed at Cambridge in 1663, and a second edition in 1685. A. series of seven tracts, giving an ac- count of the attempts to convert the natives of New-England to Christ- ianity, from 1647 to 1655, may be seen in the Mass. Hist. Coll. xxiv. See also Daniel Gookin's Account in the same Coll. i. 169-224; Hutch- inson's Mass. i. 161 ; and Francis's Life of Eliot in Sparks's American Biography, vol. 5.
3 See page 240. According to the deposition of Richard Bracken- bury, (who came over with Endicott in 1628,) taken in 1681, when he was eighty years old, the house here mentioned was built of the materials of another house erected at Cape Ann by Conant and his associates. It is said that some of its timbers are contained in a house now stand- ing in Salem, at the corner of Court and Church streets. See note 2 on page 30, and Felt's Annals of Sa- lem, i. 122.
259
CONDITION OF THE PLANTATION.
of corn planted by them, very good and well liking. CHAP. XII. And we brought with us about two hundred passen- - ~ gers and planters more, which, by common consent of the old planters, were all combined together into 1629. July to Sept.
one body politic, under the same Governor.
There are in all of us, both old and new planters, about three hundred, whereof two hundred of them are settled at Nehum-kek, now called Salem, and the rest have planted themselves at Masathulets Bay,1 beginning to build a town2 there, which we do call Cherton or Charles town.
We that are settled at Salem make what haste we can to build houses, so that within a short time we shall have a fair town.
We have great ordnance,3 wherewith we doubt not but we shall fortify ourselves in a short time to keep out a potent adversary. But that which is our great- est comfort and means of defence above all others, is that we have here the true religion and holy ordi- nances of Almighty God taught amongst us.4 Thanks be to God, we have here plenty of preaching, and dil- igent catechising, with strict and careful exercise, and good and commendable orders to bring our people into a Christian conversation with whom we have to do withal. And thus we doubt not but God will be with us ; and if God be with us, who can be against us ? viii. 31. Rom.
Here ends Master Higgeson's Relation of New- England.
1 According to the Instructions of the Company. See page 150.
2 It was laid out by Graves, the engineer. Sce note 2 on page 152. Winthrop, i. 29, 30, 39, 46, 127, calls it Charlton.
3 See pages 45, 50, 157.
4 The church of Salem was formed August 6th, and the pastor, and teacher, and ruling elder, were or- dained the same day. See Morton's Memorial, p. 146, and Prince's An- nals, p. 263.
1
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1
1
260
MORE COLONISTS EXPECTED.
CHAP. Some brief Collections out of a Letter1 that Mr. Hig- XII. ginson sent to his friends at Leicester.
1629.
Sept.
There are certainly expected here the next spring the coming of sixty families out of Dorsetshire,2 who have by letters signified so much to the Governor, to desire him to appoint them places of habitations, they bringing their ministers with them. Also many families are expected out of Lincolnshire,3 and a minister with them, and a great company of godly Christians out of London.
Such of you as come from Leicester,4 I would counsel you to come quickly, and that for two rea- sons. First, if you linger too long, the passages of Jordan, through the malice of Sathan, may be stop- ped, that you cannot come if you would.5 Secondly, those that come first speed best here, and have the
1 " A letter then from New-Eng- land, and for a considerable time after, was venerated as a sacred script, or as the writing of some holy prophet ; 'twas carried many miles, where divers came to hear it." Scottow's Narrative, p. 17.
2 These were the west-country people, Warham and Maverick, Ludlow and Rossiter, of whom we shall hear more presently from Ro- ger Clap, who came with them. 3 These were the Boston people, with whom Cotton was expected to come. See note 3 on page 48.
4 His former place of residence in England. See page 65.
5. These obstructions to emigra- tion were soon interposed. In 1633, Cotton, Hooker and Stone with great difficulty eluded the vigilance of the pursuivants, and escaped from the country. In 1635, Richard Mather was obliged to keep close till the vessel was fairly at sea; and Tho-
mas Shepard embarked under. the assumed name of his elder brother John, a husbandman. In April, 1637, a Proclamation was issued "to restrain the disorderly transporting of his Majesty's subjects to the Col- onies without leave." It command- ed that " no license should be given them, without a certificate that they had taken the oaths of Supremacy and Allegiance, and had conformed to the discipline of the Church of England." And in May, 1638, a fresh Proclamation was published, " commanding owners and masters of vessels, that they do not fit out any with passengers and provisions to New-England, without license from the Commissioners of Plantations." See Chalmers's Annals, i. 161; Rushworth's Collections, ii. 409; Rymer's Fœdera, xx. 143, 223 ; Savage's Winthrop, i. 109; and Mass. Hist. Coll. xxviii. 268.
261
MORE CATTLE WANTED.
privilege of choosing choice places of habitations. CHAP. Little children of five years old may, by setting corn XII. one month, be able to get their own maintenance 1629. . abundantly. O what a good work might you that Sept. are rich do for your poor brethren, to help them with your purses only to convey them hither with their children and families, where they may live as well, both for soul and body, as any where in the world. Besides, they will recompense the cost by helping to build houses and plant your ground for a time ; which shall be difficult work at the first, ex- cept you have the help of many hands. Mr. John- son,1 out of Lincolnshire, and many others, have helped our godly Christians hither, to be employ- ed in their work for a while, and then to live of themselves.
We have here about forty goats that give milk, and as many milch kine. We have six or seven mares and a horse, and do every day expect the coming of half a score mares more, and thirty kine,2 by two ships3 that are to follow us. They that come let them bring mares, kine and sheep, as many as they can. Ireland is the best place to provide sheep, and lies in the way. Bring none that are in lamb, nor mares in foal, for they are in more danger to perish at sea. Of all trades, carpenters are most needful ; therefore bring as many as you can.
It were a wise course for those that are of abilities to join together and buy a ship for the voyage, and other merchandise ; for the Governor would that
1 Isaac Johnson, of whom more hereafter.
3 The Four Sisters and the May- flower. See page 216.
2 See note 2 on page 216.
262
TRANSPORTATION EXPENSIVE.
CHAP. any man may employ his stock in what merchandises XII. he please, excepting only beaver skins, which the
1629. company of merchants reserve to themselves, and Sept. the managing of the public stock.1 If any be of the mind to buy a ship, my cousin Nowell's2 counsel would be good. Also one Mr. [ ],3 a very godly man and the master of the ship we went in, and like- wise one Mr. Graves,4 the master's mate, dwelling in Wapping, may herein stand you in stead. The pay- ment of the transportation of things is wondrous dear, as £5 a man, and £10 a horse, and commonly £3 for every ton of goods ; so that a little more than will pay for the passage will purchase the possession of a ship for all together.
No man hath or can have a house built for him here unless he comes himself, or else sends servants before to do it for him. It was an error that I now perceive both myself and others did conceive, by
-
1 See pages 114 and 148.
Increase Nowell, who was one of the patentees mentioned in the Charter, and whose name occurs so often in the Company's Records, was one of the Assistants from the beginning till his death, and a very active and efficient member of the Company. He came over with Gov. Winthrop, and settled at Charles- town, of which place he was the first town-clerk, and one of the se- lectmen for nineteen years. was also chosen a ruling elder of Wilson's Church, but soon resigned that place on the ground of its being incompatible with the office of a civil magistrate. For six years, from 1644 to 1649, he was Secretary of the Colony, which he faithfully serv- ed. He died poor, Nov. 1, 1655, leaving a widow, Parnel, and five children, Samuel, Mehetable, In- crease, Mary, and Alexander, of
whom the first and the last gradu- ated at Harvard College in 1653 and 1664. See Savage's Winthrop, i. 31; Budington's Hist. of the First Church in Charlestown, pp. 31, 190; Prince's Annals, p. 334.
3 This name, which the copyist could not decipher, was Beecher, Thomas. See note 4 on page 219.
4 This Graves was, the next year, mate of the Arbella, the flag-ship of Winthrop's fleet, was afterwards He commander of a vessel, and is men- tioned by Winthrop, under date of June 3, 1635, as one " who had come every year for these seven years." He is probably the person who was made a rear-admiral by Cromwell for capturing a Dutch pri- vateer, and is not to be confounded with Graves, the engineer, mention- ed on pp. 56 and 152. See Sav- age's Winthrop, i. 8, 161.
263
A YEAR'S PROVISIONS TO BE BROUGHT.
not rightly understanding the merchants' meaning. CHAP. For we thought that all that put in their money into ~ 1629. Sept.
XII. the common stock should have a house built for them, besides such a portion of land ; but it was not so. They shall · indeed have so much land allotted to them when they come to take possession of it and make use of it ; but if they will have houses, they must build them. Indeed, we that are ministers, and all the rest that were entertained and sent over and maintained by the rest of the Company, as their ser- vants, for such a time in such employments, all such are to have houses built them of the Company's charge,1 and no others, nor otherwise. They that put money into the stock, as they do a good work to help forward so worthy a Plantation, so all the gain they are like to have is according to the increase of the stock at three2 years' end by the trade of bea- ver, besides the lands, which they shall enjoy when they will.
All that come must have victuals with them for a twelvemonth. I mean they must have meal, oatmeal, and such like sustenance of food, till they can get increase of corn by their own labor. For otherwise, so many may come without provision at the first, as that our small beginnings may not be sufficient to maintain them.
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