USA > Massachusetts > The story of western Massachusetts, Volume I > Part 13
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The Indians have another sort of Provision out of this Corne, which they call Pondomenast-the English call it sweete Corne, which they prepare in this manner: When the Corne in the Eare is full, whiles it is yet greene it hath then a very sweete tast, this they gather
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and boyle a convenient time, and then they drie it, and put it up into Baggs or Basketts, for their store, and so use it as they have occa- sion boyleing of it againe either by it selfe, or amongst their Fish or Venison or Beavers Flesh, or such as they have, and this they account a principall Dish, either at their ordinary Meales or Feastivall times, they boyle it whole, or beaten Gross, as was formerly mentioned conserning their other Corne. These Eares while they are greene and sweete they roast before the fire, or covered with Embers, and so Eate the Corne, picking it off the roasted Eares as they Eate it, therefore at that time of the yeare, when this Corne beginneth to be thus full in the Eare, they have sufficient supply of Food, though there store be done, and their Soldiers doe then most commonly goe out against their Enemyes, because they have this supply both in their Marches if it be in places inhabited, and also in the Fields of those Enemyes against whom they make Warr, but this is observable amongst them, that they do not Cutt downe, or spoile their Enemies Corne more then they gather to Eat.
The English have found out a way to make very good Beere of this Graine which they doe either out of Bread made of it, or by Maulting of it, that way of makeing Beere, of Bread, is onely by makeing the Bread in the manner as before described, and then breake it or Cutt it into greate Lumps, as bigg as a mans Fist or bigger (for it must not be broken small) then they Mash it and proceed every way about brewing of it, as is used in Brewing Beere of Mault, adding hopps to it as to make Beere.
In makeing Mault of it to make it good there is a singular way must be used. The Maulters that make Mault of Barly have used all their skill to make Mault also of this Corne, but cannot bring it the ordinary way to such a perfecion that the whole Graine is Maulted, and tender, and Flowry, as other Mault; Nor will the Beere made of it be well Coloured, but witish, the reason that it doth not come to the perfecion of good Mault in that way of Maulting as of other Graine, is this. It is found by experience, that this Corne before it be fully changed into the nature of Mault, must sprout out both wayes a great length the length of a Finger at least, but if more its better, so as it must put out the Roote as well as the upper sprout, and that it may so do, it is necessary that it be laide upon an heape a convenient time till it doth so sprout, but if it lieth of a sufficient thickness for this purpose, it will quickly heate and moulde, if it be stirred and opened to prevent the too much heating of it, those Sprouts that are begun to shoote out . (if spread thin) cease growing, and consequently the Corne ceaseth to be promoted to that mellow- ness of Mault. If left thick till they grow any length they are so intangled one in the other and so very tender that the least stirring and opening of the heape breaketh those axells of, and every Graine that hath the sprout, so broken ceaseth to grow to any further degree towards the nature of Mault, and soone groweth mouldy if not often stirred and spread thinn. To avoid all these difficulties, and to bring every sound Graine to the full perfection of good Mault, this way was
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tried, and found a sure and perfect way to it. In a Field or Garden or any where that there is loose Earth, take away the top of that Earth two or three Inches for so great a space as may be propor- tionabie to the Quantity of Corne intended to be made into Mault, the Earth may be throwne up halfe one way, and halfe the other, for the more facility of that, and the following labour. Then upon the even Bed, or Floore of Earth where the upper part is so taken off, there lay the Corne intended to be maulted all over, that it may fully cover the Ground, then cover it over with the same Earth, that was taken thence, and then you have no more to doe, till you see all that plott of Ground like a greene Field covered over with the sprouts of the Corne, which within tenn dayes, or a Fortnight, more or less according to the time of yeare wilbe growne greene upwards, and Rooted downwards, and then there is no more to be done but to take it up and shake the Earth from it and drie it. It will by the Insnarlements of the Rootes one with another be like a Matt and hang so together that it may be raised in greate peices and the Earth shaken off from it (which is best to be done in a dry time) and then to make it very cleane, it may be washed and presently dried upon a Hill or in the Sun, or in that Countrey it selfe, spread thinn on a Chamber floore. This way every Graine that was sound, and good will grow and consequently become Mault, and no part of the Graine remains steely (as is alwayes in the other wayes of maulting it) but be mellow, and Flowry and very sweete, and the Beere that is made of this Mault wilbe of a very good browne Colour, and be a pleasant, and wholesome drinke. But because the other way of makeing Beere out of the Bread, as before sett downe, is found to be as well Coloured, and pleasant, and every way as good and very wholesome without any windy Quality, and keepeth better from Sowring then any other Beere of that Corne, therefore that way of Brewing is most in use in that Countrey, that way of Maulting being also yet little knowne."
CHAPTER XII
At Home in Roxbury
F INDING his Dorchester location ill-suited to his needs, Pynchon sold the northerly portion of the tract, together with the house to Thomas Newbury and the southerly part to the Reverend John Wilson, pastor of the Church at Boston. He then settled at Roxbury, and in the words of the Apostle John Eliot, he continued there until "so many removed from those parts to plant at the Connecticut, he, with others, went thither and planted at a place called Agawam. He married the widow Frances Sanford, a grave matron of the Church at Dorchester, who came with the first company in 1630. His daugh- ter, Ann, married Mr. Henry Smith, son to Mrs. Sanford by a former husband. He was a Godly, wise young man and removed to Agawam with his parents".
Frances Sanford was the widow of Tobias Sanford of Dorchester, England, who died about 1623 leaving his widow and step-son finan- cially independent. On March 30, 1630, they sailed from Plymouth, England, on the ship Mary and John, reaching Nantasket on May 30th, two weeks before the arrival of the Winthrop fleet.
In 1634 William Wood said that Roxbury was "a fair and hand- some country town, the inhabitants of it being all very rich. The town lay upon the main, so that it was well wooded and watered, having a clear, fresh brook running through the town, called Smelt brook. A quarter of a mile to the north side of the town was another river called Stony river, upon which was built a water mill. Here was good ground for corn and meadow for cattle. Up westward from the town it was somewhat rocky, whence it had the name of Roxbury. The inhabitants had fair houses, store of cattle, impaled corn fields and fruitful gardens. Here was no harbor for ships because the town was seated in the bottom of a shallow bay which was made by the neck of land on which Boston was built, so that they were forced to trans- port all their goods from the ships in boats from Boston, which was the nearest harbor".
No people enjoyed greater religious advantages than those under the enlightened ministrations of John Eliot the pastor, and Thomas Weld the teacher of the Roxbury Church. Their defense of the prin- ciples of popular freedom was an inspiration which in after years must have encouraged Pynchon in his crusade against the interference of the church in secular affairs.
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Pynchon's standing in the community is evidenced by the many public duties with which he was intrusted.
In June, 1632, he was commissioned to make inquiry and take depositions of the creditors of Josiah Plastow,-the same who, in 1631, for stealing four baskets of corn from the Indians, was ordered "to return them eight baskets, be fined £5 and thereafter to be called Josiah, and not Mr. Plastow, as formerly he used to be". Thus the Puritans guarded their wards and their dignity.
The same year he invoked the aid of the court to reconcile a personal grievance, and under its pressure "William Parks did promise that if sergeant Bateman came no more to satisfy Mr. Pynchon, what should be thought meet by two indifferent men, for three leaden weights by him lost and twelve pair of stockings which the said Bateman sold to Mr. Pynchon for good ones, but proved to be bad and moth eaten".
He was annually elected an assistant to the General Court and with one exception he attended every meeting, although, September 7, 1630, he with two others, was "fined a noble apiece for their absence after the time appointed". On August 7, 1632, he was chosen Treas- urer of the colony, holding that office until May 14, 1634. The follow- ing year, his past accounts seem to have been questioned, but an auditing committee pronounced them correct and relieved him of any suspicion of malfeasance.
In August, 1633, a cart bridge was ordered to be built over Muddy River and another over Stony River at the joint expense of Boston and Roxbury. Pynchon was one of the three appointed to oversee Roxbury's share in the work.
He seems to have had some early connection with the militia of that era, for on September 3, 1664, "sergeant Perkins was chosen ensign of the company at Roxbury and Mr. Pynchon was desired to give him possession thereof". In March, 1635, he was made one of a commission of eleven, deputed to direct the military affairs of the colony.
At the same time he was "intrusted to receive such ordinances, goods and accounts as were sent in the ship Griffin by Mr. Keane, as part of Dr. Wilson's gift to the plantation".
In March, 1635, it was required that "the goods and chattels of Mrs. Ann Looman be inventoried by three or four of the freemen of Roxbury, and Mr. Pynchon was desired to appoint the men that should do it".
The soil of Roxbury proving true to its name, he contended that it should not be taxed on the same basis as the fertile meadows of other towns, and in 1635 he flatly refused to pay his assessment and invited the authorities to proceed against him. Notice of his defiance being brought to the attention of the Court, he was fined £5, which in turn he refused to pay. In the end his contentions were sustained by a majority of the Court and the fine was remitted.
During all these years he never lost sight of the objective which brought him to New England,-the fur trade,-though his efforts were
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constantly made burdensome by petty regulations effected at the instance of jealous competitors. As early as November 9, 1630, the regulations controlling the price of beaver skins were cancelled and it was "thereafter left free for every man to make the best profit and improvement of it that he could". The following year an attempt was made to monopolize the trade, whereupon, June 14, 1631, "upon the reading of certain articles concerning a general trade of beaver agreed upon by Captain Endicott and divers others, it was ordered that the persons interested therein should hold a meeting before the next court, at such time and place as Captain Endicott should appoint, to decide such differences as were betwixt them and for such as they could not end, to bring them to the next court to be determined".
On June 5, 1632, a tax of twelve pence was levied on every pound of beaver passing through the trader's hands, but as this entailed onerous details of accounting, Pynchon proposed that he pay a flat £25 a year, and on October 3, 1632, his proposition was accepted. This arrangement was continued until the spring of 1635 when the possibilities for securing furs had become so meager that the yearly payment was reduced to £20. Even the previous year furs had become so scarce that the Indians, lacking guns, which the law prohibited their using, were unable to furnish enough skins to supply the require- ments of the traders. To meet the emergency, Pynchon joined with Thomas Mayhew in application to the court for special dispensation permitting them to furnish guns and ammunition to certain trusted Indians in their employ and the necessary permission was granted. Immediate protest resulted in a fine of £10 being levied on the offenders; half to be paid by Pynchon and Mayhew and half by the deputies who gave the offensive permit. Payment of the fine was, however, jointly and severally refused and eventually it was remitted.
This action was characteristic of the man. Three times had he been fined by the court. Each time he had refused payment and each time his action had been endorsed, after investigation of the circum- stances surrounding the alleged offenses. In this latter instance he was protesting against class discrimination. While the employment of Indians as servants and the supplying to them of guns were both prohibited, these restrictions had been waived in the case of both Governor Winthrop and his son. When Pynchon desired equal privi- leges, he took them, not in defiance of the law, but by permission of the authorities and he refused to be made the sufferer of the action of those who failed to recognize the equal rights which he came to America to acquire. He recognized the authority of the General Court precisely as he admitted the sovereign rights of his king, but, as with the king so with the courts, he insisted that it was an unjust law that discriminated in favor of a class.
Through all these years the dream of the Great Lake persisted and when it was determined that the Merrimack did not lead from such a source, the thoughts of many turned toward the Connecticut.
In April, 1631, "Wahginnacut, an Indian of the river Connecticut came to Boston with John Sagamore and Jack Straw, an Indian who
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-
Rivistezy the R August Vory . & mrs mithian. Parishion the fumm of
roundos fé Pis àcintura
vous itImitarme ni Malta-
or fim fimma Irrifior I can assonlaw of
25 informes is in to accetti di te lim
portionartis to & and move Ris shritrigo chance De monolules agritde Noper Say Paraffin
10mn
Rec'd the 29th of August, 1629 of Mr. William P incheon the Summe of twenty five poundes for his adventure towards Londons Plantation in Matta- chusetts Bay In New England in America for wch Summ a Division of Lands and an adventure of Stocke is to be allotted to him as to every of the adventurers proportionable to each man his underwritings shall be concluded and agreed upon. I say Rec'd the Summ of.
to 25
pr. Mee. George Harwood, Trer.
William Pynchon's Stock Certificate, 1629, and Transcript
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had lived in England and had served Sir Walter Raleigh, and was now turned Indian again. He was very desirous to have some English plant in his country and offered to find them corn and eighty skins of beaver yearly. He said that his country was very fertile and wished that there might be two men sent with him to see it. The Governor entertained them at dinner but would send none with them. He discovered later that the Indian was a very treacherous man and at war with the Pekoath. His country was not above five days journey from Boston by land".
In the summer of 1633 "John Oldham and three with him, went overland to the Connecticut to trade. The sachem used them kindly and gave them some beaver. They brought back some hemp which grew there in abundance and was much better than the English. He accounted it to be one hundred and sixty miles. He lodged at Indian towns all the way".
That same year the Dutch fortified a compound at what was later known as Dutch Point in Hartford. This was called the House of Good Hope, which is a reminder that it was the Dutch, who, nineteen years later, named the Cape of Good Hope.
Those Dutch people were a kindly folk, abounding with a spirit of neighborly helpfulness and good will. When the Pilgrims came to Plymouth they gave them the benefit of their own experience in trad- ing with the Indians and supplied them with wampum for that pur- pose. Noting the sandy, sterile soil that the English were forced to contend with, they urged them to remove to the fertile alluvial meadows of the Connecticut valley, which they offered to share with them. When the Puritans came to Boston, they were included in the invitation.
The real interest of the Dutch in the valley was to secure the fur trade and having no agricultural interests there, offered to share with the English. Partly through fear of hostile natives the Boston people declined, but those of Plymouth proceeded alone. Stowing the frame of a house and other necessities aboard a barque, they sailed up the Connecticut, and defying the Dutch, passed the House of Good Hope and at the present Windsor, they erected and fortified a house where they could intercept the natives coming down the river with their furs.
In October, 1633, Governor Winthrop's barque, Blessing of the Bay, which. late in August, "was sent to the Connecticut and those parts to trade, returned home". They reported that the Connecticut "runs so far northward that it runs within a day's journey of a part of the Merrimac, and runs thence north-west so near the Great Lake as allows the Indians to pass their canoes into it overland".
To the affront offered the Dutch by the establishment of the Ply- mouth trading house at Windsor, they replied with diplomacy rather than force. Farther north, perhaps by the Agawam, a thousand Indians lived in a stockaded village, of whom Governor Bradford of Plymouth relates an incident. Shorn of its archaic form it reads as follows:
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"There was a community of savages who lived in the country, a great way from the Plymouth trading house at Windsor, who were enemies to those Indians who lived about Windsor and of whom the Windsor Indians stood in some fear, they being a war-like people. About a thousand of them had enclosed themselves in a strongly palisaded fort. Three or four Dutchmen went up in the beginning of the winter of 1633-34 to live with them in order to get their trade and persuade them from sending their furs to the English and to make friends with them so that in the spring they would bring all their furs to the House of Good Hope. But the enterprise failed, for it pleased God to visit those Indians with a great sickness and, such was the mortality that of the thousand, over nine hundred and fifty of them died and many of them did rot above ground for want of burial and the Dutchmen almost starved before they could get away, being isolated by the snow and ice. But about February they got away after many difficulties and reached the Windsor trading house where they were kindly received, but after resting for several days, they finally reached home."
Here Bradford's story ends and here the matter rested for two hundred and fifty years, but recently, when the site of the palisaded fort of the Indians by the Agawam was excavated, the sequel was told, for there were found scores of tobacco pipes with tiny bowls, known as "Fairy pipes", each bearing initials which have been iden- tified with those of known Dutch pipe makers of that era.
Whatever may have been the nature of the disease, it was most contagious and affected the entire valley.
On January 20, 1634, one "Hall with two others who went to the Connecticut November 3d, returned to Boston, having lost themselves and endured much misery. They reported that the small pox had gone as far as any Indian plantation was known to the west and many natives dead from it, by reason of which they could have no trade".
The various reports must have appealed to Pynchon as consti- tuting a rather reliable fund of information and made the Great Lake seem very real. The path seemed at last to be getting definitely established and he pondered over it,-
"Till a voice as bad as conscience, rang interminable changes
On one everlasting whisper day and night repeated-so; Something hidden. Go and find it. Go and look behind the ranges- Something lost behind the ranges. Lost and waiting for you. Go."
Without exception, the reports from the Connecticut had been most alluring and when the fear of hostile natives thus settled itself, various plans to occupy the valley became manifest.
In May, 1634, "leave was granted to the inhabitants of New Town (Cambridge) to seek out some convenient place for themselves, with promise that it should be confirmed unto them", but when it appeared that they planned to remove to the Connecticut, the action was rescinded.
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However, by May, 1635, pressure on the General Court became too strong to withstand and the inhabitants of both Watertown and Roxbury were given permission "to remove themselves to any place they should think meet, not to prejudice any other plantation, pro- vided they continued under the same government".
From the trading house at Windsor, Jonathan Brewster wrote to his superiors on July 6, 1635: "The Massachusetts men are coming almost daily, some by water and some by land, who are not yet deter- mined where to settle. The first company had well nigh starved for want of victuals had it not been for this house, I being forced to supply twelve men for nine days. Those which came last I enter- tained the best we could, helping them with canoes and guides. Also I gave their goods house room according to their earnest request and Mr. Pynchon's letter in their behalf, which I send you here enclosed".
With the Indians disposed of by the epidemic, the English fears were quieted and they moved in, in numbers. Saybrook, Wethersfield, Hartford, Windsor and Springfield were promptly established with no consideration for the Dutch. The Pilgrims has out-smarted their Dutch friends, but it remained for those of Boston to double-cross the whole combination. By sheer weight of numbers, those Puritan opportunists drove out not only the Dutch at Hartford, but also their own English compatriots at Windsor and usurped the lands that had been bought from the Indians. In October, 1635, "about sixty men, women and little children went by land towards the Connecticut, with their cows, horses and swine and after a tedious and difficult journey, arrived safe there" and settled at Windsor. Meager accommodation compelled the return of thirteen of them to Boston, where they arrived November 26th. "They had been ten days upon the journey, and had lost one of their company drowned in the ice by the way, and would all have starved, but that they lighted upon an Indian wigwam".
Shortly after the closing of the Court session at Newtowne (Cambridge), on August 5, 1635, Pynchon set sail for the Connecticut in one or more shallops laden with material for a house, together with the mechanism for a corn mill and other requisites for the preliminary work of establishing a new settlement, as well as for his prospective trading activities.
Consideration of the recorded facts make such conclusions inevitable.
From that time in 1630 when he was fined for absence from Court, he was in constant attendance at Court sessions until the autumn of 1635. Except during the winter, these meetings were held monthly, so that during that period he had no opportunity for extensive exploration except in seasons when travel, either overland or by river, was prohibited by ice and snow. Permission to migrate was granted him in May, 1635, and his first absence from Court was in the autumn of that year.
That he had at Springfield "two great shallops which were requisite for the first planting", is shown by the adventurers' agree- ment of May, 1636. The phrase "requisite for the first planting"
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as there used, did not refer to agricultural activities, but was an expression of the period, when a colony was known as a plantation and a colonizer was a planter. Reduced to modern terms, that passage would read,-"two large sailing vessels which were required for the pioneer work of colonization". A shallop was too pretentious a craft to have been built with limited facilities, from green wood, in a primitive wilderness, and must of necessity have been brought in from the outside.
Early seventeenth century mariners were familiar with a single masted craft carrying a mainsail and a jib. Having no keel or center- board, it relied on leeboards such as are used on sailing canoes. They were a sort of ship's tender, used for landing on shelving beaches and exploring shallow waters. The French called them chaloupes. This became Anglicized as shallops and today has become sloops. The Dutch designation, although spelled s-l-o-e-p, is pronounced almost the same as the English word "sloop".
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