USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > History of the First church in Boston, 1630-1880 > Part 9
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Warrant for his arrest was finally procured through the entry of a complaint for quite a different object. A " dissolute person in Boston, who had been pun- ished by the magistrates, strove to revenge himself by informing against them before the High Com- missioners' Court in London ; that they did not kneel at the sacrament, nor observe some other ceremonies which the law prescribed. He was told
1 Ante, Chap. I. 4.
2 Chosen ruling ekler of Boston Church October 10 (O. S.), 1633.
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JOHN COTTON.
he must put in the minister's name; he replied, 'The minister is an honest man, and never did me any wrong ;' but upon entreaty, he put in Mr. Cot- ton's name, and letters missive were immediately sent to him to summon him before the Court." The Earl of Dorset, a warm friend and devoted admirer of Cotton, at his request, made intercession in this emergency, but without success. He was forced to reply to his friend's appeal, "that if he had been guilty of drunkenness, uncleanness, or any such lesser fault, he could have obtained his pardon ; but as he was guilty of Puritanism and non-con- formity the crime was unpardonable; and therefore he advised him to flee for his safety." Soon after the warrant was issued, Cotton sent in his letter of resignation, dated May 7, 1633, to the Bishop of Lincoln, who duly accepted the same.1 According to the corporation records, the date of the accep- tance of his resignation was in July, as will appear by the following : -
" 1633, July 22. Mr. Cotton having yielded up his place of being vicar by his letters dated in the same month, which his friends; this house, have accepted, Mr. Thomas Coney (Mr. Cotton's brother-in-law) stated, that the Bishop had declared the vicarage void, and the Mayor and burgesses might, when they pleased, present some able person thereto. Mr. Anthony Tuckney was there- upon elected vicar, at a stipend of Sol. per annum."
His only object now was to avoid arrest. Before taking passage for New England he found a tem- 1 Hutchinson's Collection of Papers, 249.
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FIRST CHURCH IN BOSTON. [1633-52.
porary refuge in London, and there came in contact with several of the "temporizing sort," who endeav- ored to make him practise a feigned conformity ; but instead of yielding to the force of their argu- ments, he met their advances with such firmness as to cause them to alter their own practice.1 His conduct on that occasion showed unusual strength of character. But we must not infer, from this sin- gle instance, that Cotton was always so decided in the expression of an opinion. In his long letter to the Bishop of Lincoln, written in 1624,2 on the subject of Church ceremonies, we find no distinct avowal of his sentiments. We are left to infer that he was still in doubt as to the requirement of kneeling at the sacrament; but the statement which he made after he came to this country of his practice "many years before he left England " is decidedly opposed to this supposition. He says : " I forbore all the ceremonies alike at once, many years before I left England. The first grounds which prevailed with me to forbear one cere- mony would not allow me to practise any." He then refers to an offer from the Bishop of Lin- coln to give him liberty "upon once kneeling at sacrament with him at the next Lord's day after." But he adds, " I durst not accept his offer of liberty upon once kneeling."
The Bishop was favorably disposed towards Cot-
1 One of these converts was John Davenport, who alludes to the subject in his Life of Cotton.
2 A copy of it is given in Thompson's History of Boston (Eng.).
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JOHN COTTON.
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ton when complained of for non-conformity ; and we must conclude that his friendly attitude induced the vicar to yield somewhat to the sense of his obligation.
A modern writer 1 has given the matter his spe- cial attention, and discusses somewhat at length the position assumed by Cotton with regard to the cer- emonies of the Church. He says the vicar had an assistant at Old Boston (from 1618 to 1629 one Edward Wright; and in 1629 Anthony Tuckney), who performed all the ceremonies, including the most obnoxious ones of surplice, cross, and kneeling, without any interruption from the Puritan part of the congregation ; but that, according to Cotton Mather, though Cotton attended at public sermons, he never did at the "common prayers of the con- formable." Mather adds also the statement, that "for two years he was conformable, and for nineteen restive and dissentient."
While in concealment at London he wrote a beautiful letter to his dear wife Sarah, dated Octo- ber 3, 1632, previous to taking passage aboard the Griffin. He was some time in doubt whether to seek refuge in Holland, Barbadoes, or New England, but was finally moved to come here by letters from Winthrop on behalf of Boston Church. In order to elude the officers he had been obliged to change
1 Dr. Nicholas Hoppin, in the Church Monthly for December, 1862, and January, 1863, who in support of his position, has taken the trouble to refer the writer to Cotton Mather's Life of his grandfather, and to the statement of Cotton himself, as quoted by Thompson in his History of Boston (Eng.).
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FIRST CHURCH IN BOSTON. [1633-52.
his name and dress, and, as we have seen, escaped only by a happy chance. His departure from Eng- land and arrival at Boston have already been alluded to. The latter place seemed to be newly baptized at his coming, and the young but spreading colony soon felt and appreciated the weight of his influence. From the time of that arrival to the date of his death he labored unceasingly for its welfare. He has left the imprint of his character on his de- scendants of to-day.
In speaking of the amount of daily labor he was accustomed to perform, a well-known writer says it is simply appalling. Besides preaching, expound- ing, exhorting, settling cases of conscience, giving counsel on public affairs, and presiding over church discipline, he engaged in the learned controversies of the day, and wrote many books which became standard authorities. As opportunity offered, he went through the Bible, expounding it for doctrines and duties. He was in the midst of repeating this task when he died. Among his numerous services to the city of Boston, the important one of helping to save the public Common will, perhaps, earn for him the deepest gratitude of posterity.1 In October, following his arrival, he established the Thursday Lecture, in continuation of that originated by him in Old Boston, which remained under the tutelage of the minister of First Church for over two cen-
1 Winthrop's Journal, Vol. I. 152. Palfrey's History of New England, Vol. I. 379. Memorial History of Boston, Vol. I. 123.
388 Readily in the ford Of Cotton
!
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turies, till finally given up at a recent date. The Election Sermon, begun in 1634, is said to have been established by him. As an expounder of the Bible - in his day the statute-book of the Common- wealth -he had no equal. But in the exercise of this function he made not the slightest show of arro- gance. The statement that to him Boston owes her name is probably erroneous, as the record shows that the name was given three years before he came, in deference, probably, to some of the distin- guished undertakers who came from Old Boston and had been concerned in its municipal affairs. His claim to be called the founder of the Boston Latin School has inferential evidence for its sup- port.1
His literary attainments were of the highest order. " He was a good Hebraist, critically versed in Greek, and wrote and spoke Latin with great facil- ity, in a pure and elegant Ciceronian style, and was a good historian. His library was great, his read- ing and learning answerable, himself a living and better library."? " His voice," we are told, "was not loud, but clear and distinct, and easily heard in the most capacious auditory."
His personal appearance is thus described : " His
1 Rev. R. C. Waterston, in Mass. Hist. Soc. Procced, Vol. XII. 388-390, makes out a very strong claim in his favor, pointing to a very significant fact, namely, that Cotton formed one of a committee in Old Boston to choose an usher. The same writer has a very interesting article on Cotton in Ibid. (1867), 460.
2 His grandson, Cotton Mather, says, " He was a most universal scholar, a living system of the liberal arts, and a walking library."
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complexion was fair, sanguine, clear ; his hair was once brown, but in his later years white as the driven snow. In his countenance was an inexpres- sible sort of majesty, which commanded respect from all that approached him. He was of medium stat- ure, and inclined to corpulency."
Cotton's views regarding the observance of church ceremonies varied, as we have seen, from time to time. There is authority 1 for the statement that there was a time, during his ministry at Old Boston, when that place was not " decidedly Puritan." It appears probable, too, that Cotton was not always a "rigid non-conformist." 2 His letter to the Bishop of Lincoln, in 1624, shows his uncertain state of mind at that period. But however much he may have varied from the ritualistic requirements of the church at home, after his arrival in this country he became a decided Congregationalist, "using free prayer and an order of worship unlike that to which he had been wonted, and adopting, in the disuse of other forms identified with prelacy, the distinctive Puritan methods of church discipline." 3
The following sentences illustrate his manner of spending Saturday evenings : -
1 Rev. G. B. Blenkin, M. A., Prebendary of Lincoln, Vicar of Boston [1874] -N. E. Hist. and Geneal. Reg. (1874), 125.
2 " It is clear that at the conclusion of Cotton's ministry in Boston the generality of the people had no conscientious scruples against conformity, even if they did not actually prefer it as the order of their worship." -- DR. HOPPIN, in Church Monthly, supra.
3 The causes which brought about this radical change are discussed in the preface to this work.
MILK FOR BABES.
DRAWN Out of the Breafts of both TESTAMENTS.
Chiefly,for the fpirituall nourifhment of Bofton Babes in either England : But may be of like ufe for any Children.
By JOHN COTTON, B. D. and Teacher to the Church of Bolton in New-England.
LONDON, Printed by ?. Coe, for Henry Overton, and are to be fold at his Shop, in Popes-head Alley. 1646.
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" The Sabbath he kept most conscientiously from even- ing to evening ; and it is supposed to be from his example that the custom prevailed so extensively in New England of 'resting according to the commandment' at the going down of Saturday's sun. When that evening arrived he made a larger exposition at family prayer than at other times. Then the children and servants were thoroughly exercised in the catechism, probably using such as were of his own preparation; one of which, called 'Milk for Babes,' 1 was used for feeding the minds of the New Eng- land children for many years after his death. Another, called ' Meat for Strong Men,' became their diet at a ma- turer age, 'and nourished them up in the words of faith and of good doctrine.' The catechising over, there fol- lowed prayer, and the singing of a psalm. Mr. Cotton then withdrew to his study, and its devotions, till the hour of repose." 2
In 1651 Cotton preached the second Artillery Election Sermon.
Towards the close of his life Cotton had a brief correspondence with Oliver Cromwell. It appears " that the Parliament, that Oliver among and be- fore them, had taken solemn anxious thought con- cerning Propagating of the Gospel in New Eng- land ; and among other measures passed an act to that end. It is probably in special reference to this that Cotton has been addressing Oliver, -founding too on their general relationship as Soldier of the Gospel and Priest of the Gospel, high brother and humble one; appointed, both of them, to fight for
1 Sec titlepage of Cotton's "Milk for Babes," heliotyped from the origi- nal of a copy in Dr. Deane's possession.
2 McClure's Life of Cotton, 263.
38 FIRST CHURCH IN BOSTON. [1633-52. it to the death, each with such weapons as were given him."
The following is the reply of the Lord Pro- tector : 1 -
For my esteemed Friend, Mr. Cotton, Pastor of the Church at Boston in New England : These.
[LONDON], 2d October, 1651.
WORTHY SIR, AND MY CHRISTIAN FRIEND, -- I re- ceived yours a few days since. It was welcome to me because signed by you, whom I love and honor in the Lord: but more [so] to see some of the same grounds of our Actings stirring in you that are in us, to quiet us in our work, and support us therein. Which hath had great difficulty in Scotland; by reason we have had to do with some who were, I very think, Godly, but through weak- ness and the subtlety of Satan, [were] involved against the Interests of the Lord and His People.
With what tenderness we have proceeded with such, and that in sincerity, our Papers (which I suppose you have seen) will in part manifest; and I give you some comfortable assurance of [the same]. The Lord hath marvellously appeared even against them. And now, again, when all the power was devolved into the Scottish King and the Malignant Party, -- they invading England, the Lord rained upon them such snares as the Enclosed will show.
Only the Narrative is short in this, That of their whole Army, when the Narrative was framed, not five men were returned.
Surely, sir, the. Lord is greatly to be feared and to be praised ! We need your prayers in this as much as ever. How shall we behave ourselves after such mercies? What
1 Oliver Cromwell's Letters and Speeches, CXXV. The original is found among the Ayscough MSS., No. 4156, folio 70, British Museum.
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is the Lord a-doing? What Prophecies are now fulfilling? Who is a God like ours? To know His will, to do His will, are both of Him.
I took this liberty from business, to salute you thus in a word.
Truly I am ready to serve you and the rest of your Brethren and Churches with you. I am a poor, weak crea- ture, and not worthy the name of a worm; yet accepted to serve the Lord and His People. Indeed, my dear Friend, between you and me, you know not me, - my weakness, my inordinate passions, my unskilfulness, and every-way unfitness to my work. Yet, yet the Lord, who will have mercy on whom He will, does as you see ! Pray for me. Salute all Christian friends, though unknown.
I rest your affectionate friend to serve you,
OLIVER CROMWELL.
Cotton's death, on the 23d December, 1652, was said to have been caused by exposure to the wet, in crossing the ferry from Cambridge, after preaching to the students. He was buried in what has since been called the Cotton tomb, in the Chapel Burying Ground.1 With the exception of Winthrop, no one was a greater loss to the town than Cotton. The colonists depended upon him for guidance, both in
1 The First Church Tomb, commonly called the Cotton Tomb (although there are two of that name), in King's Chapel Burying Ground, is marked by a broad slate stone, on which are the following inscriptions: " Here Lye Intombed the Bodyes of the Famous Reverend and Learned Pas- tors of the First Church of CHRIST in Boston, viz. : Mr. John Cotton, aged 67 years, Decd Decembr the 23d, 1652. Mr. John Davenport, aged 72 years, Decd March the 15th, 1670. Mr. John Oxenbridge, aged 66 years, Decd December the 28, 1674. Mr. Thomas Bridge, aged 58 years, Decd Sep- tember the 26, 1715." This tomb formerly belonged to Elder Oliver. - Memorial History of Boston, Vol. 1. 555. The same ground also contains the dust of John Winthrop, Isaac Johnson, John Norton, and William Emerson, the last minister of the church who was there buried.
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State and Church matters. He was emphatically what is called a political preacher, and governed by the Bible.
By his will, dated " 30th of 9 : 1652," he gave "to the Church of Boston a silver vessel, to be vsed amongst the other communion plate."
" In 1857 the Chapel of the Cathedral in Boston (Eng.) was restored, having been allowed to decay ; and the occasion was made one of interest, as con- nected with the name of John Cotton." The local paper of that place thus noticed it : 1 -
" It has long been a cause of surprise to many of the citizens of the United States, especially of Massachusetts, who visited in Boston (Eng.), that no memorial of Mr. Cotton was to be found in the church; and several of these visitors expressed a desire to contribute towards the erection of onc.
" It was suggested, in 1854, that the chapel, now re- stored and reopened, would be a very desirable locality in which to place a memorial of Mr. Cotton; and a corre- spondence was opened with an eminent citizen (Hon. Edward Everett) of Boston, Mass., on the subject, which resulted in a very liberal and ample subscription to carry out the desired object, several of the subscribers being descendants of Mr. Cotton in the female line. The work of reparation was commenced in 1856, and has been com- plete and thorough. The chapel thus restored is about
1 Many of the following extracts and letters are copied from a MS. Genealogy of the Cotton Family in England and America, collected and arranged by the late William Gray Brooks of Boston, a descendant of Cot- ton, and now in the possession of his son, the Rev. Phillips Brooks. Dr. Chauncy once said that "the famous Cotton had more learning and under- standing than all that descended from him." We of a later generation at least will find no difficulty in qualifying that statement.
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40 feet long by 18 broad. It was in a state of dilapidation, - the tracery of its very beautiful windows was sadly mutilated ; the floor broken up and irregular; the roof in a very dangerous condition; the outer walls perished and decayed in a great measure, and the inner ones disfigured."
" The chapel was entirely repaired; and the eastern arch now contains a beautiful brass tablet, covered by a Latin inscription from Mr. Everett. The entire amount given by citizens of Massachusetts was £673 2s. 4d."
" A grand celebration of the event took place July 21, 1857, when the chapel was again opened, and is now known as the 'Cotton Chapel.'" 1
The following is a copy of the inscription by the Hon. Edward Everett in memory of Cotton : -
" In perpetuam JOHANNIS COTTONI memoriam Hujus ecclesia multos per annos Regnantibus Jacobo et Carolo Vicarii, Gravis, diserti, docti, laboriosi ; Deinpropter res sacras in patria misere turbatas,
Novis sedibus in novo orbe quæsitis,
Ecclesia primaria Bostonia Nov-Anglorum Nomen hoc venerabile
In Cottoni honorem deducentis, V'sque ad finem vita summa laude Summâque in rebus tam humanis quam divinis auctoritate Pastoris et doctoris ;
Annis ccxxv post migrationem ejus peractis, Prognati ejns civesque Bostonienses Americani A fratribus Anglicis ad hoc pium munus provocati, Ne viri eximii nomen Utriusque orbis desiderii et decoris Diutius a templo nobili exularet, In qua per tot annos oracula divina Diligenter docte sancteque enuntiavisset,
1 A list of subscribers to the "Cotton fund ", is given in N. E. ITist. and Gencal. Reg. (1874), 15.
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FIRST CHURCH IN BOSTON. [1633-52.
Hoc sacellum restaurandum et hanc tabulam ponendam Anno salutis recuperata CIO. ICCC. LV. Libenter grate curaverunt." 1
During the short residence of Henry Vane in Boston he lived with Cotton, and made an addition to the house, which he left to the teacher on his departure. This house stood on the lot now occu- pied by Tremont Row, and near the southeast cor- ner of the entrance to Pemberton Square. The ancient structure was standing, and called the oldest house in Boston, until swept away by the march of improvement in 1835. The rear part retained its old-fashioned appearance to the very last, having small casements and. diamond panes in leaden sashes, the latter being hung on hinges and opening outwards.
In the " Book of Possessions " is recorded : -
" Mr. John Cotton, 1 house and garden and about half an acre of land with an acre adjoining, bounded with Sud- bury (now Tremont Row) cast, Bendall north, the Centurie hill west, and Mr. Bellingham south. This situation was long called ' Cotton's Hill.'
"In his will, proved Jan. 27, 1652/3, he says: 'And because the south part of my house, which Sir Henry Vane built while he sojourned with me, he by a deed gaue it at his departure to my son Seaborne, I do therefore leaue it unto him as by right, &c. - He also mentions his wife's house and garden in the market place in Boston (England). - If his wife and children die without heirs, or if they shall transplant themselves from hence into Old England, then my will is, and I give the farm at Muddy
1 N. E. Hist. and Geneal. Reg. (1874), 15.
A
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River 1 (now Brookline), one half to the College and one half to the Church.' This farm included the two estates now or recently in possession of John Kendrick and Moses Andrew. Besides his son Seaborne, he left devisees, Sarah, wife of Richard Mather, Mariah, wife of Increase Mather, and John Cotton, who in 1664 confirmed this de- vise to Seaborne, and he sells the part to John Hull, the instrument of sale, on parchment, being in possession of N. I. Bowditch, Esq., of this city. Mr. Hull, who was mint master of the Colony, afterwards purchased the other rights. He died in 1683, and the division in 1684 em- braced the lands in Boston known as 'Cotton's Hill,' commonly so called. These premises afterwards de- scended to Mr. Hull's only daughter, Hannah, wife of Samuel Sewall.
" The west line of Cotton's estate extended back as far as the estate now occupied by the Mt. Vernon Church (Rev. Samuel E. Herrick's) in Ashburton Street. Its north line ran 630 feet in a straight course to Tremont Row, including all the central portion of what is now Pem- berton Square. This estate, after the death of Samuel Sewall in 1729, descended to his daughter Judith, who married William Cooper, and after her death the premises were conveyed to William Vassall in 1758. In 1790 Pat- rick Jaffrey became owner; he married Madam Haley. It was afterwards owned by Jonathan Mason, and finally by Gardner Greene in 1803.
1 " 14th 1om, 1635. At a publick meeting of ye Inhabitants of Boston, It is agreed yt Mr Wa Coleburn, Mr Wm Aspinwall, Mr Jno. Sanford, Wm Balstone & Richard Wright, or four of them, shall lay out at Muddy River, a sufficient Allottment for a farm for or Teacher, M' John Cotton.
" 1º gth mo, 1636. At a Meeting of ye Select men of Boston, It was agreed y' or Teacher, Mr John Cotton, shal have unto his Lott at Muddy River, all ye ground Lying between ye two Brooks, next to William Cole- mans allottment there, & so to y' other end, unto ye shortest over cutt be- youd ye Ilill, towards ye Norwest." See Notes in the fly-leaves of the Maria Cotton Bible, infra.
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" His whole estate, which he enjoined should be ap- praised at a fair value, amounted to £2,843 19s. 3d." 1
The following epitaph on Cotton is said to have been composed by B. Woodbridge (H. C., 1642) : --
" A Living, Breathing Bible ; Tables where Both Covenants, at Large, engraven were ; Gospel and Law, in's Heart, had each its Column; His Head an Index to the Sacred Volume ; His very Name a Title Page ; and next, His Life a Commentary on the Text. O, What a Monument of Glorious Worth, When, in a New Edition, he comes forth, Without Errata's, may we think he 'l be In Leaves and Covers of Eternity ! " 2
" Twenty-one of the descendants of John Cotton in the male line (besides the many through male or female of the Mather blood, and many granddaughters and other females ) had been in 1818 graduated at Harvard, of whom two thirds were clergymen.
" His widow married Richard Mather; she deceased May 27, 1676."
The marriage settlement of Richard Mather and Sarah Cotton is on record in the Probate Office, Boston, dated July 28, 1654 : -
" Mr. Richard Mather, Pastor to the Church of Dorches- ter, was marryed to Mrs. Sarah Cotton, Widdow, 26: 6: 56, by John Endicott, Gov'." - Original Record.
The old record book of births and deaths in Bos- ton gives the following : -
1 W. G. Brooks's MS. Genealogy of Cotton. 2 Sibley, Harvard Graduates, Vol. I. 27.
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JOHN COTTON. 45
" Scaborne, sonne of John Cotton and Sarah his wife, was borne 12" (6), 1633 (married, first, Dorothy Brad- street ; second, Prudence Crosby).
" Sarahiah, daughter of John Cotton and Sarah his wife, was borne 12" (7), 1635 (died Jan. 20, 1649-50; betrothed to Jona Mitchell).
" Elizabeth, daughter of John Cotton and Sarah his wife, was borne 9" (10), 1637 (baptized Dec. 10, 1637; married Jeremiah Eggerton, died Aug. 31, 1656).
"John, sonne of John Cotton and Sarah his wife, was borne 15" (1), 1639 (married Joanna Rossiter).
" Mariah, daughter of John Cotton and Sarah his wife, was borne 16" (12), 1641 (married Rev. Increase Mather)." 1
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