USA > Massachusetts > Historical collections, being a general collection of interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, &c., relating to the history and antiquities of every town in Massachusetts, with geographical descriptions > Part 2
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In 1602, a number of religious people in the north of England, called Puritans, (so called from their efforts to preserve purity in divine worship,) were so persecuted on account of their religious sentiments, that they were compelled to take measures to find refuge in a foreign land. A little band of these brethren entered into a solemn covenant with each other "to walk with God and one another, in the enjoyment of the ordinances of God, according to . the primitive pattern," whatever it might cost them. A number of ministers entered into this association, among whom was Mr. Robinson, a man of eminent piety and learning.
Mr. Robinson, and as many of his congregation as found it in
* This word was the name for an Indian tribe who lived around the vicinity of Massachusetts Bay. The word Massachusetts, according to Roger Williams; signifies, in the Indian language, Blue-Hills.
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their power, left England in the years 1607 and 160S, settled in Amsterdam, in Holland, from whence, in 1609, they removed to Leyden. Here they lived in great friendship among themselves and their neighbors, until they removed to New England. As early as 1617, Mr. Robinson's people meditated a removal to America. The reasons of their removal were, to preserve the morals of their youth, which were in danger of being corrupted by the dissolute manners of their neighbors, the Dutch; the desire of perpetuating a church which they believed to be constituted after the simple and pure model of the primitive church of Christ; and a zeal to propagate the Gospel in the regions of the new world.
These reasons having been duly considered by the church, after seeking divine direction by humiliation and prayer, they agreed to come over to America, and settle in a distinct body, under the general government of Virginia. They also agreed that their pastor, Mr. Robinson, should remain with the greater part of the church, whether they chose to remain at Leyden, or to come over to America. In 1617 they sent Mr. Robert Cushman and Mr. John Carver to England, to treat with the Virginia Company, and ascertain whether the king would grant them liberty of conscience, if they removed to their territory. The Virginia Company were very desirous to have them settle within the limits of their patent ; the king, however, would grant no public recognition of religious liberty, but promised that if they behaved peaceably he would not molest them on account of their religious sentiments. In February, 1619, Mr. Cushman and Mr. Bradford were sent to England, where, after a long attendance, they obtained of the Virginia Company a patent of the northern parts of Virginia. This patent was taken out in the name of John Wincob, a religious gentleman in the family of the Countess of Lincoln, who intended to accompany them, but was providentially detained. This patent therefore was never used, but carried, however, to Leyden, with proposals from Mr. Weston, and several other respectable mer- chants and friends, for their consideration, with a request that immediate preparations should be made for their voyage.
After a day of solemn prayer, in accordance with their custom previous to their engaging in important concerns, the congregation of Mr. Robinson concluded to remove to America. As it was not convenient for all of them to go at once, it was agreed that part of their number should go, and make preparation for the rest. After due consultation, it was determined that Mr. Robinson and the greater part of the congregation should remain at Leyden. The other part, with Mr. Brewster for their elder and teacher, agreed to be the first adventurers. A small ship, of about sixty tons, called the Speedwell, was now purchased and fitted out in Holland; another of about one hundred and eighty tons, called the May- flower, was hired at London. "All other matters being prepared, a large concourse of friends from Amsterdam and Leyden accon- panied the adventurers to the ship, which lay at Delft Haven; and the night preceding their embarkation was spent in tearful prayers,
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and in the most tender and friendly intercourse. The next day fair wind invited their departure. The parting scene is more easily felt than described. Their mutual good wishes, their affectionate and cordial embraces, and other endearing expressions of christian love and friendship, drew tears even from the stran- gers who beheld the scene. When the time arrived that they must part, they all, with their beloved pastor, fell on their knees, and -with eyes, and hands, and hearts lifted to Heaven, fervently com- mended their adventuring brethren to the Lord and his blessing. Thus, after mutual embraces, accompanied with many tears, they bid a long, and many of them a last, farewell."
Having a fair wind, they arrived at Southampton about the 2d of July, and found that the Mayflower had arrived at that place from London, and immediate preparations were made for embarka- tion. They divided themselves into two companies, one for each ship, and, with the approbation of the captains, each company chose a governor, and two or three assistants, to preserve order and distribute provisions. They sailed from Southampton on the 5th of August. They had not proceeded far, before the smallest ship proved so leaky, that they were obliged to return and refit. On the 21st of August, they sailed again, and proceeded about one hundred leagues, when they were obliged to return again, when the smaller ship was left behind as unfit for service. Leaving a part of the company which had embarked in the smaller vessel, the remainder went on board of the Mayflower. On the 6th of Septem- ber, they set sail from Plymouth. After a boisterous passage, they arrived at Cape Cod on the 9th of November, and the next day they anchored in the harbor which is formed by the hook of the cape. This however was not the place of their destination ; neither was it within the limits of their patent. It was their inten- tion to have been landed at the mouth of Hudson river; but it appears the Dutch, intending to plant a colony there of their own, secretly hired the master of the ship to contrive delays in England, and then to conduct them to these northern coasts, and there, under the pretence of shoals and winter, to discourage them in venturing to the place of their destination.
Finding. that they were not within the limits of their patent, and consequently not under the jurisdiction of the Virginia Company, they concluded it necessary to establish a separate government for themselves. Accordingly, before landing, having devoutly given thanks to the Almighty for their safe arrival, they formed them- selves into a body politic by a solemn contract, to which they all subscribed, and Mr. John Carver was unanimously chosen their go- vernor for the first year. The following is a copy of this contract, with the names of the signers, the number in their families, &c.
" In the name of God, Amen. We whose names are under written, the loyal sub- jects of our dread sovereign Lord King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, king, defender of the faith, &c., having undertaken, for the glory of God and advancement of the christian faith and honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do, by these presents, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God and of one another, covenant and com-
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bine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preserva- tion, and furtherance of the ends aforesaid ; and by virtue hereof do enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws and ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due subjection and obedience. In witness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names, at Cape Cod, the 11th day of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign Lord King James of England, France and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth, Anno Domini 1620."
This compact was subscribed in the following order by
No. in Family. -
No. in Family.
Mr. John Carver,t 8
No. in Family. John Howland, (of Car- ver's family,)
John Goodman, 1
Mr. William Bradford,t 2
Mr. Edward Winslow,t 5
* Edward Tilly,+
Gilbert Winslow,
1
Capt. Miles Standish, t John Alden,
2
Francis Cook, 2
Peter Brown,
1
1
* Thomas Rogers, 2
* Richard Britterige,
1
Mr. Samuel Fuller,
2
Thomas Tinker,} 3
George Soule, (of Edward
* Mr. Christopher Mar- tin,+
4
* Edward Fuller,t 3
* Richard Clarke, 1
1
* Mr. William White,t
5
Francis Eaton,+ 3
* James Chilton, +
3
* John Crackston,
2
John Billington,t 4 Leister, (both of Ste-
Mr. Richard Warren, 1
* Moses Fletcher,
1 phen Hopkins' family.)
This brief, and comprehensive, and simple instrument established a most important principle, a principle which is the foundation of all the democratic institutions of Ame- rica, and is the basis of the republic ; and, however it may be expanded and compli- cated in our various constitutions, however unequally power may be distinguished in the different branches of our various governments, has imparted to each its strongest and most striking characteristic.
Many philosophers have since appeared, who have, in labored treatises, endeavored to prove the doctrine, that the rights of man are inalienable, and nations have bled to defend and enforce them, yet in this dark age, the age of despotism and supersti- tion, when no tongue dared to assert, and no pen to write, this bold and novel doctrine, which was then as much at defiance with common opinion as with actual power, of which the monarch was then held to be the sole fountain, and the theory was univer- sal, that all popular rights were granted by the crown,-in this remote wilderness, amongst a small and unknown band of wandering outcasts, the principle that the will of the majority of the people shall govern, was first conceived, and was first practically exemplified.
The pilgrims, from their notions of primitive Christianity, the force of circumstan- ces, and that pure moral feeling which is the offspring of true religion, discovered a truth in the science of government which had been concealed for ages. On the bleak shore of a barren wilderness, in the midst of desolation, with the blast of winter howling around them, and surrounded with dangers in their most awful and appali- ing forms, the pilgrims of Leyden laid the foundation of American liberty .- Baylies, vol. i. p. 29.
Government being thus established, their next object was to find a convenient place for a settlement. On the same day sixteen men, well armed, with a few others, were sent on shore to fetch wood and make discoveries. They returned at night without having found any person or habitation. On the 15th of November, Miles Standish, and sixteen armed men, in searching for a place for set- tlement, saw five or six Indians, whom they followed for several
+ Those with this mark brought their wives.
* Those who died before the end of the next March are distinguished by an aste- risk.
ra
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* Mr. William Mullins,t 5 * John Turner, 3
Richard Gardiner, * John Allerton,
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* John Tilly,+ 3
* Edward Margeson, 1
Mr. William Brewster,+ 6 Mr. Isaac Allerton, t 6
Mr. Stephen Hopkins,t 8 4
* Degory Priest, 1
* Thomas Williams, 1
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* John Ridgdale,t 2 Winslow's family)
(Besides a son born in Cape Cod harbor, and named Peregrine )
* Thomas English, 1 in we Edward Dotey, Edward th kes the
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miles, until night; but, not overtaking them, were obliged to lodge in the woods. The next day they discovered heaps, one of which they dug open; but finding within implements of war, they con- cluded these were Indian graves. In different heaps of sand they also found baskets of corn, a quantity of which they took away, to the amount of about ten bushels. This was a fortunate disco- very; it gave them seed for a future harvest, and probably saved the infant colony from famine. They made diligent inquiry for the owners of the corn, whom they found, and afterwards paid them to their entire satisfaction. Before the end of November, Peregrine White, the son of William and Susanna White, was born, being the first child of European parents born in New England.
On the sixth of December, the shallop was sent out with seve- ral of the principal men, Carver, Bradford, Winslow, Standish, and others, and eight or ten seamen, to sail around the bay in search of a place for a settlement. The next day the company divided; and some travelled on the shore, whilst the others coasted in the shallop. On the morning of the eighth, those on the shore were surprised by a party of Indians, who shot their arrows at them; they however instantly fled upon the discharge of the mus- kets of the English. On the night of the ninth, being Saturday, they reached a small island, (since called Clark's Island). They reposed themselves, and on the next day on this spot they kept the Christian Sabbath. The day following, December 11th, O. S., they sounded the harbor, and found it "fit for shipping." A part of their number landed and went some distance into the country. They also examined the land near the shore, and found it had been planted with Indian corn two or three years before. A beau- tiful brook was near, and a number of springs of pure water; and judging this to be a good place for a settlement, they returned with the welcome intelligence to the ship. This day has since been considered as the day on which the Pilgrim Fathers landed on the Rock of Plymouth. The day which has been annually cele- brated in commemoration of this momentous event, is the twenty- second of December, N. S., which has been supposed to correspond with the eleventh, O. S.
On Saturday the 23d, they began to cut timber and provide materials for building. This business found them employment, when the weather would permit, till about the 19th of February. The whole company, consisting of one hundred and one souls, were divided into nineteen families, who each built their own house or hut ; they all, however, engaged in building a storehouse twenty feet square for common use. From the time of their arrival on the coast, till the day of their permanent landing, the weather was often stormy and severe. The men who were employed in exploring the coast, were exposed to great hardships from watchings and fastings, wet and cold. During the month of December, six of their number died, and many others sickened of grievous colds, of which they never recovered. On the Lord's day, December 31st, they attend-
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ed public worship for the first time on shore, and named the place Plymouth; partly because the harbor was so named by Capt. Smith, who visited this coast in 1614, and partly from gratitude for the kind treatment they had received from Christian friends at Plymouth, the last port in England which they had left.
The colonists, on the 9th of January 1621, proceeded to the erection of their town, which they built in two rows of houses for greater security. On the 14th, their common storehouse took fire from a spark that fell on its thatched roof, and was entirely consumed; but providentially, by the timely exertions of the peo- ple, the contents of the building, so necessary for their support, were preserved. On the 17th of February they met for settling military orders, and Miles Standish was chosen their captain. 'The settlers suffered extremely this month by sickness and death, and no less than seventeen of their number died. Their sufferings were much increased by the want of well persons to take care of the sick; there being at one time no more than six or seven in tolerable health. In March, 1621, fifty-five only survived of the one hundred and one who came in the Mayflower.
On the 16th of March, an Indian came into Plymouth alone, and surprised the inhabitants by calling out in broken English, " Welcome, Englishmen ! Welcome, Englishmen!" He was the first of the natives who visited them ; his name was Samoset, and was a Sagamore who had come from Monhiggon, (a place now in the limits of Maine, ) where he had learned something of the English tongue from the captains of the fishing vessels who resorted thither. He informed the Plymouth people that the place where they were seated was called by the Indians Patuxet ; that all the inhabitants died of an extraordinary plague about four years since; and that there was neither man, woman nor child remaining. No natives, therefore, were dispossessed of their land to make room for the English, excepting by the providence of God, before their arrival.
Samoset was treated with hospitality by the settlers, and was disposed to preserve an intercourse with them; and on his third visit brought Squanto, one of the natives who had been basely carried off by Capt. Hunt in 1614, and afterwards lived in England. These Indians informed the English that Massasoit, the greatest king of the neighboring tribes, was near, with a train of sixty men. The meeting between him and the English was conducted with considerable formality and parade. They entered into a friendly treaty, wherein they agreed to avoid injuries on both sides, to punish offenders, to restore stolen goods, to assist each other in all justifiable wars, to promote peace among their neighbors, &c. Massasoit and his successors for fifty years invio- lably observed this treaty. The prudent and upright conduct of the Plymouth settlers towards their neighbors, the Indians, secured their friendship and alliance. On the 13th of September, 1621, no. less than nine sachems declared allegiance to king James, and Massasoit, with many sachems under him, subscribed a writing acknowledging the king of England as their sovereign.
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The first marriage in the colony was solemnized on May 12tlı, 1621, between Mr. Edward Winslow and Mrs. Susanna White. The first duel in New England was fought on the 18th of June, between two servants, both of whom were wounded. For this disgraceful offence, they were formally tried before the whole com- pany, and sentenced to have "their heads and feet tied together, and so to be twenty-four hours without meat or drink." Such, however, was the painfulness of their situation, and their piteous entreaties to be released, that, upon promise of better behavior in future, they were soon released by the governor. The colonists planted twenty acres with corn, of which they had a good crop. They were instructed in the manner of planting by Squanto; but were unsuccessful in their first trial with English grain, by reason, as is supposed, of the lateness of the season, and bad quality of the seed. Governor Carver was taken sick on the fifth of April, while engaged in planting corn, and died in a few days. His death was greatly lamented, as he was a man of great piety, humility, and benevolence. He possessed a considerable estate, the greater part of which he expended for the good of the colony. Soon after his death, Mr. William Bradford was chosen governor, and by renewed elections continued in office for several years.
On the 3d of November, 1620, king James signed a patent incor- porating the Duke of Lenox, the Marquises of Buckingham and Hamilton, the Earls of Arundel and Warwick, Sir Ferdinando Gorges, with thirty-four others, and their successors, styling them "The Council established at Plymouth, in the county of Devon, for planting, ruling, ordering, and governing of New Eng- land in America." To this council he granted that part of Ame- rica which lies between the fortieth and forty-eighth degrees of north latitude. This patent was the great civil basis of all the grants and patents by which New England was afterwards divided. The Plymouth Council retained the power vested in them by the crown until the year 1635, when they resigned their charter. Previous to this, however, the council had made several grants of land to adventurers who proposed to settle in New England. They granted New Hampshire to Capt. John Mason in 1621-the Province of Maine to Sir R. Gorges in 1622-and Massachusetts Bay to Sir Henry Roswell and five others in 162S.
In 1622, Mr. Weston, a merchant of London, having procured for himself a patent for a tract of land in Massachusetts Bay, sent two ships, with fifty or sixty men, at his own charge, to settle a plantation. This company attempted a settlement at Weymouth, but, "being a set of rude, profane fellows, regardless of justice, provoked the Indians by stealing their corn, and other abuses, to become their enemies, and occasioned much trouble, both to them- selves and the Plymouth settlers." 'The Indians soon entered into a conspiracy to destroy the settlement, which they would have effected, had it not been for the interposition of their Plymouth friends.
The Plymouth settlers having received information that the
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sachem Massasoit was sick and apparently near death, and that a Dutch ship was driven ashore near his house, the governor sent Edward Winslow and John Hambden to visit him, and speak with the Dutch. Having Hobamack for their guide, they reached the residence of Massasoit, whom they found extremely ill, but, by the timely assistance of Mr. Winslow, he recovered. 'The following is an account of this journey as narrated by Mr. Winslow.
" The next day, (March 1623) about one of the clock, we came to a ferry in Con- batant's country, where, upon discharge of my piece, divers Indians came to us, from a house not far off. There they told us that Massassowat was dead, and that day buried ; and that the Dutch would be gone before we could get thither, having hove off their ship already. This news struck us blank; but especially Hobbamock, who desired we might return with all speed. I told him I would first think of it, consider- ing now that, he being dead, Conbatant was the most like to succeed him, and that we were not above three miles from Mattapuyst, his dwelling place. Although he were but a hollow-hearted friend toward us, I thought no time so fit as this to enter into more friendly terms with him, and the rest of the sachems thereabout; hoping, through the blessing of God, it would be a means, in that unsettled state, to settle their affections towards us; and though it were somewhat dangerous, in respect of our personal safety, because myself and Hobbamock had been employed upon a ser- vice against him, which he might now fitly revenge; yet, esteeming it the best means, leaving the event to God in his mercy, I resolved to put it in practice, if mas- ter Hamden and Hobbamock durst attempt it with me; whom I found willing to that or any other course might tend to the general good. So we went towards Mattapuyst.
"In the way, Hobbamock, manifesting a troubled spirit, brake forth into these speeches : 'Neen womasu Sagimus, neen womasu Sagimus, &c., -- My loving sachem, my loving sachem ! Many have I known, but never any like thee.' And, turning to ine, he said whilst I lived I should never see his like amongst the Indians; saying he was no liar; he was not bloody and cruel, like other Indians. In anger and pas- sion he was soon reclaimed ; easy to be reconciled towards such as had offended him ; ruled by reason in such measure as he would not scorn the advice of mean men ; and that he governed his men better with few strokes than others did with many ; truly loving where he loved ; yea, he feared we had not a faithful friend left among the Indians ; showing how he ofttimes restrained their malice, &c .; continuing a long speech, with such signs of lamentation and unfeigned sorrow, as it would have made the hardest heart relent.
"At length we came to Mattapuyst, and went to the sachimo comaco, for so they called the sachem's place though they call an ordinary house witeo ; but Conbatant, the sachem, was not at home, but at Puckanokick, which was some five or six miles off. The squa sachem, for so they call the sachem's wife, gave us friendly entertainment. Here we inquired again concerning Massassowat : they thought him dead, but knew no certainty. Whereupon I hired one to go, with all expedition, to Puckanokick, that we might know the certainty thereof, and withal to acquaint Conbatant with our there being. About half an hour before sun-setting the messenger returned, and told us that he was not yet dead, though there was no hope we should find him living. Upon this we were much revived, and set forward with all speed, though it was late within night ere we got thither. About two of the clock, that afternoon, the Dutchmen departed ; so that in that respect our journey was frustrate.
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