Governor who favored their cause, and to have added some new magistrates of their side; but Mr. Winthrop carried it by near three hundred votes above any other, nor was any new Assistant chosen but Captain Robert Bridges,' who was not fit for their turn. In the two following years Mr. Dudley was declared, by the vote of the freemen, most worthy to succeed in the place of Governor, the Deputy Governor's place the same time falling to Mr. Endicot's share, Mr. Winthrop, the former Governor, being called hence March 26, 1649, about the sixty-third year of his age. Whatever were the sepulchre wherein his body was entombed, (not royal, like that of Jehoiada,) yet was he honored with the like epitaph, engraven in the minds of the people, as a worthy gentleman, who had done good in Israel, having spent not only his whole estate, (which at the first was considerable,) but his bodily strength and life, in the service of the country, not sparing, but always, as the burning torch, spending his health and wealth for the good of others. His virtues were very many and very commendable; his errors but few and very small compared with those observed in his detractors. One of the greatest note complained of in him, was his apεidia σuatos, i. e. not sparing the body; for the remedy of which his friends wished he had more literally taken notice of Paul's precept to Timothy, "drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake, and thine often infirmities," which too many of that holy Apostle's disciples, or at least pretenders so to be, are very ready to observe, neglecting all the rest. But this good gentleman, having, in those hard times of first planting the wilderness, endeavored to leave to others an unimitable pattern of temperance aud frugality, he so much overcooled his natural heat that he thereby, as it were, invited death to take seizure of his weak body before he had scarce made any entrance into old age.

See page 493.-н.

This is a most unaccountable mistake. Endicott succeeded Winthrop as Governor, and retained the office until 1654, while Dudley during the same period, until his death, July 31, 1653, was Deputy Governor.-H. This is a mistake. Winthrop was born Jan. 12, 1588, and consequently was, at his decease, 61 years, 2 months, and 14 days old. He was buried on Tuesday, April 3, 1649.-H.

CHAP. LVI.1

Various occurrents in New England, from 1646 to 1651.

IN October 1645, the General Court of the Massachusetts had made an order for ten shillings to be paid upon every butt of Spanish wine landed there. In the spring following there arrived divers English ships, which brought eight hundred butts, but the merchants having lost much by leakage, and coming to a bad market as they said, were very unwilling to pay the impost, and refused to give in an invoice of such wines as they had landed, by reason of which they were forfeited by the forementioned order. But upon their petition, the Court remitted the forfeit and half the impost, (in regard the order was made so late as they could not have notice of it in those parts from which the wines came,) but this notwithstanding, they would not submit to the order, so as the auditor (who had a charge of receiving the said impost) was forced to break open the cellar doors where their wine lay, and took out of their best wines for the impost, which by the order he might do; but that they took also as a great injury, because their best wines being gone, the sale of the rest was thereby much hindered, and the merchants threatened to get recompense some other way.

But too much indulgence in that kind opened a door of encouragement to wine merchants, who have since filled the country with that commodity, to the overflowing of luxury and other evils, whereas, had there been a greater impost laid thereon, it might have turned the stream of traffic into another channel, that might have been much more beneficial to the place. Too much oil extinguishes the light it should maintain. When this commodity began to abound in New England, it might have been truly said, as of old in the times of Constantine, Hodie venenum effusum est in ecclesiam. Once New England complained for want of traffic, but now it may be said, filia devoravit matrem.

1 LV. in the MS.-н.

Occasions of offence still continued betwixt the Dutch and those of New Haven, which began to rise to a great height of provocation on both sides, so as they were incessantly complaining of injuries on either side, which they were ready to revenge with the sword.

The inhabitants of New Haven, having purchased some land of the Indians thirty miles up into the country, toward the northwest, upon a river called Patuxet,' built a trading-house there. The Dutch Governor hearing thereof, makes a protest against it, and sent it to Mr. Eaton, claiming the place to belong to New Netherlands and lying within ten miles of the Fort of Aurania. Mr. Eaton sent an answer, allowing no right in the Dutch, but alleging their purchase, and offering to refer the case, &c. The Dutch Governor complained thereof to the Governor of the Massachusetts, and also of a speech of Mr. Whiting, (a magistrate of Connecticut,) that the English were fools for suffering the Dutch in the centre of the country. The Massachusetts Governor informed Mr. Eaton thereof, (the Commissioners being then to meet at New Haven,) and tendered to their consideration, if it would not be expedient to call Mr. Whiting to give account of those speeches, seeing the Dutch would expect satisfaction; but the sense of present injuries, which, as they apprehended, they were continually followed withal, made them backward to hearken to that intimation.

3

March 19, 1646, one Captain Dobson, in a ship of eighty ton, double manned, and fitted for a man of war, was set forth from Boston to trade to the eastward. Their testimonial was for the Gulph of Canada, but being taken with foul weather, whereby they lost their boat, they put into harbor, at Cape Sables, and there shooting off five or six pieces of ordnance, the Indians came aboard them, and traded some skins. Monsieur D'Aulney was as list of hearing as the Indians, and sent away twenty men, (being not above thirty miles from Port Royal,) who lurking in the woods for their advantage, Providence now offered them a very fair one, for the ship having bought a shallop of the Indians, and being under sail

1 It should be Pautucket. Sav. Win. ii. 268.-H. 2 Winthrop.-H.

VOL. VI. SECOND SERIES.

19

3 William Whiting.

therein, in the mouth of the harbor, the wind came about southerly with such violence as forced them to an anchor; but at last, having lost all their anchors, they were forced ashore, yet without danger of shipwreck; whereupon the merchant, master, and most of the company went ashore, leaving but six men aboard, and carried no weapons with them, which the French perceiving, they came upon them and bound them, and carried the master to the ship side, and compelled them to command the men aboard to deliver her up to the French; who being possessed of the ship carried her to Port Royal, leaving some of their company to conduct the rest by land. When they came there, they were all imprisoned and examined apart upon oath, and having confessed they had traded, &c., the ship and cargo (being worth in all a £1000) was kept as confiscate, and the men, being put into two old shallops, were sent home, where they arrived May 6, 1647. The merchants complained to the Court for redress, and the Court thought it not safe nor expedient for them to begin a war with the French; nor could they charge any manifest wrong upon D'Aulney, seeing they had told him, that if any of theirs should trade within his liberties, they should do it at their own peril; and though they judged it an injury to restrain the Indians, (a free people,) and others from trade, yet it being a common practice of all civil nations, his seizure of their ship would be accounted lawful, and their letters of reprisal unjust; and besides, there appeared an overruling Providence in it, otherwise he could not have seized a ship so well fitted for defence, nor would wise men have lost her so pitifully, if they had not been strangely infatuated.

October 20, 1648, came Sone§ Mr. Harrison, pastor of the Church in Virginia, (the foundation of which was laid by the ministers sent thither from New England about the year 1642,) at that time increased to the number of one hundred and eighteen persons, as was reported, and many more were said to be inclining towards them; but Sir William Berkley, the Governor there, raised up persecution against them, and had banished their elder, Mr. Durand, and the said Mr. Harrison was enjoined to depart the country by the | them

third ship at the furthest, which caused him to come at this time to New England, to advise about the matter, whether they were not called to remove, and what place they could find convenient to remove unto. As to the first, seeing many were found well affected towards them, which gave hopes of a more plentiful harvest at hand, they were advised not to be hasty to remove, so long as they could stay upon any reasonable terms. For the place to remove unto, mention was made of a place lately propounded to them by one Captain Sayle,' who had not long before been in England, where he had procured an ordinance of Parliament for the planting of the Bahama Islands, (now called Eleutheria,) situate in the mouth of the Gulph of Florida, and wanting means to carry it on, he prevailed with divers Parliament men and others of London to undertake it, who drew up a covenant with articles, for all to engage in that would enter into the design. The first article was for liberty of conscience, wherein they provided that the civil magistrate should take no cognizance of matters of religion, (there being not a word of professing religion or maintaining any worship of God at all.) The Captain also had his commission for Governor, but for three years only, and that they should be subordinate to such orders and directions as from time to time they should receive from the Company in England, &c. Upon these terms they furnished him with all provisions and necessaries for the design, and some few persons embarked with him and sailed to the Summer Islands, where they took in Mr. Copeland,❜ elder of the church, of near eighty years of age, and so many others as made the number seventy persons in the ship; but in the way to Eleutheria, one Captain Butler made use of his liberty, not to worship God in any distinct mode by himself, but to disturb them that did with his music, thinking that playing on his viol was as acceptable to God as the praying of the rest; with which disturbance he made a faction that caused them to remove to another island, where their ship was lost with all their goods and provisions, so as they were forced to lie in the

1 Captain William Sayle.-H.

Mr. Patrick Copeland "a godly man," says Winthrop.-H.