an Renewal of the treaty anciently made with Massasoit. them, and proffered his brother, upon the Court's demand, as an hostage to be secured until the Court could have more certainty of the truth of his defence." His offer of a hostage was declined; "it was concluded by the Court and him mutually, that the cient covenant betwixt his predecessors and them should be continued"; and he, with five subordinate sachems, signed an instrument by which he acknowledged himself to be a subject of the King of England, and promised faithfully to observe the engagements contracted by his father and brother; to abstain from "needlessly or unjustly provoking or raising war with any of the natives"; and to "endeavor in all things to carry peaceably and inoffensively towards the English." At the same time, the Court agreed on their part to afford to Philip and his people "such friendly assistance, by advice and otherwise, as they justly might"; and to "require the English at all times. to carry friendly towards them."1 Philip hostile de 1667. June 5 Five years passed away quietly. At the end of that time, an Indian of Philip's tribe came to the Court at Plymouth with a charge against charged with him of having "expressed himself, in the pres- signs. ence of several of his men, importing his readiness to comply with French or Dutch against the English, and so not only to recover their lands. sold to the English, but enrich themselves with their goods." When questioned, Philip said that this was a calumny of Ninigret,3 the Niantic Sachem. Both chiefs 1 Plym. Rec., IV. 25, 26. 2 In 1665, Philip having come to Plymouth to buy a horse, the Court gave him one. (Ibid., 93.) 8 A portrait of this chief was painted for Governor Winthrop of Connecticut. A copy was in the possession of the late Mr. Grenville Winthrop, and an engraving from it is inserted in Drake's VOL. III. 13 History of Boston (p. 215). The face is not unpleasing. I believe there is no other authentic portrait of an historical Indian. That of Philip in the second edition of Church's "Entertaining Passages" is a hideous fancy-piece, engraved by a journeyman of Paul Revere, the iron-master, not a century ago. were then cited to appear before two commissioners, who were escorted by a party of horse to Rehoboth, the place appointed for the scrutiny. The Pokanoket tale-bearer, when confronted with his chief, "freely and boldly" persisted in the charge, with specifications of "time, place, and several persons, which, with divers other circumstances from other Indians and English, made the matter appear very probably true, at least as to some agitation." Philip still protested that he was guiltless, and that the story was a fabrication of his Niantic rival. At the same time he justified the Court in demanding security from him in such circumstances, and offered to surrender his arms. The offer was accepted, and further investigation was postponed to the next Court.1 Friendly relations restored. July 2. To the next Court he renewed his protestations of "innocency and faithfulness to the English" with great fulness and fervor, "pleading how irrational a thing it was that he should desert his long experienced friends, the English; . expressing his great confidence that he had in that ancient league with the English, which he hoped they would still continue; professing that their withdrawing their wonted favor was little less than a death to him, gladding his enemies, grieving and weakening his friends; and so left himself and case to the Court; who, taking it into serious consideration, not willing to desert him and let him sink, though there was great probability that his tongue had been running out, yet not having such due proof as was meet, judged it better to keep a watchful eye, and still to continue. terms of love and amity with him, unless something further did manifestly appear, and he to bear part of the charge." In the sequel it was agreed, that, if nothing appeared against him, he should, as formerly, 1 Plym. Rec., IV. 151, 164-166. be considered and treated as a friend; "that he should bear forty pound of the charge of the expedition"; that he should come to the Court whenever summoned on future occasions; and that, whenever he should be able to prove the conspiracy which he alleged to have been made against him, the Court would "give him the best advice they could, that he might have some due reparation." The arms which had been surren dered by him and his men were then restored. Philip April 10. 1671. Nearly four years more had passed,1 when a new alarm spread among the settlements of Plymouth, and somehow Massachusetts interposed her good offices. came to Taunton, and there, in the presence of three Boston men, who had perhaps been mutually chosen as umpires, he, with four of his sachems, signed an instrument declaring that he had, "through his indiscretion and the naughtiness of his heart, violated and broken his covenant with his friends by taking up arms with evil intent against them, and that groundlessly"; that he desired "solemnly to renew his covenant with his ancient friends, . . . . . whom he had now and at all times found kind to him"; and that he "freely engaged to resign up unto the government of New Plymouth all his English arms, to be kept by them for their security, so long as they should see reason." 1 In this interval, Philip was suspected by Connecticut and Plymouth of having some treacherous dealings with Ninigret, Sachem of the Niantics. (R. I. Rec., II. 275; comp. 193, 198, 267, 269; Conn. Rec., II. 548.) But Ninigret cleared both himself and Philip from the charge. Ninigret's former transactions with the English appear to have satisfied him of the expediency of a peaceable behavior. At all events, in the war now coming on he took no part against them. 2 In this month, a sharp correspondence took place between Governor Prince and Daniel Gookin, the superintendent of the Praying Indians. (See above, Vol. II. p. 338.) Gookin thought that Prince had been pressing hard on the Indians. Prince feared that Gookin had countenanced them in being troublesome. (Mass. Hist. Coll., VI. 198–201.) 3 Hubbard, Narrative, &c., 11, 12; Mather, Relation, &c., 73. "The settlement and issue of that controversy symptoms of The Court of Elections met at Plymouth two months Renewed after the treaty at Taunton, and found condisaffection. tinued cause for solicitude. Philip had "failed June 5. greatly in performance thereof, by secret conveying away and carrying home several guns that might and should have been then delivered"; by neglecting to give the stipulated orders to his people; and by endeavoring to make Plymouth "odious to the neighbor Colony by false reports, complaints, and sug gestions." On the discovery of his bad faith and other misdemeanors, the Court declared his arms to be for feited, and proceeded to distribute them among June 5. the towns. The Court at the same time took engagements of friendship and fidelity from several chiefs and others dwelling on and near Cape Cod; and they nominated eight persons to be associated with the Magistrates as a "Council of War."1 Aug. 23. 66 The missing arins Philip continued contumacious. were not brought in, nor was any excuse made for the neglect. He gave offence by "insolent carriages and expressions," and by "entertaining of many strange Indians, which might portend danger." The Council of War determined it to be necessary to require him to make his personal appearance to make his purgation," and, "in case of his refusal, . . . . . to endeavor his reducement by force." But first, as the business "concerned all the English plantations, it was determined to state the case to the neighbor Colonies of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island; and if by their weighty advice to the contrary they were not diverted from their present determinations, to signify unto them, that, if they looked upon themselves concerned to en obtained and made principally by the mediation and interposed advice and council of the other two Confederate Colonies." (Records, &c., in Hazard, II. 532.) Perhaps, however, the "set tlement" referred to in this quotation is that of September, and not of April, 1671. 1 Plym. Rec., V. 63, 66, 67, 70-73. gage in the case against a common enemy, it should be well accepted as a neighborly kindness, which they would hold themselves obliged to repay when Providence might so dispose that they had opportunity."1 Sept. 13 At the time appointed by the Council, "Philip, the Sachem, appeared not, but instead thereof repaired to the Massachusetts, and made complaint to divers of the gentlemen in place there." The effect of his representations was such, that the persons whose ear he had obtained wrote to Plymouth in his behalf. "They resented not his offence so deeply"; and "they doubted whether the covenants and engagements that Philip and his predecessors had plighted would plainly import that he had subjected himself and people and country any further than as in a friendly and neighborly correspondency." At the same time they offered their assistance to Plymouth in bringing about a friendly settlement of the quarrel." Sept. 24. The proposal was accepted; and General Leverett, Mr. Danforth, and Captain Davis of Massachusetts, came to Plymouth, where, with Winthrop of Connecticut, who had joined them, they "had a fair and deliberate hearing of the controversy." The result was that "the gentlemen forenamed, taking notice of the premises, having fully heard what the said Philip could say for himself, having free liberty so to do without interruption, adjudged that he had done a great deal of wrong and injury respecting the premises, and also abused them by carrying lies and false stories unto them; and they persuaded him to make acknowledgment of his fault, and to seek for reconciliation. Such had been the wrong and damage that he had 1 Ibid., 76. The reader will remember that at this time there was no Con federacy. 2 Ibid., 77. |