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234

XV.

Dec.

THE PRODUCTIONS OF THE COUNTRY.

CHAP. near, but we can have them brought by the Indians when we will. All the spring-time the earth sendeth forth na1621. turally very good sallet herbs. Here are grapes,' white 11. and red, and very sweet and strong also; strawberries, gooseberries, raspas, &c. ; plums of three sorts, white1 black, and red, being almost as good as a damson; abundance of roses, white, red and damask; single, but very sweet indeed. The country wanteth only industrious men to employ; for it would grieve your hearts if, as I, you had seen so many miles together by goodly rivers uninhabited;" and withal, to consider those parts of the world wherein you live to be even greatly burthened with abundance of people. These things I thought good to let you understand, being the truth of things as near as I could experimentally take knowledge of, and that you might on our behalf give God thanks, who hath dealt so favorably with us.

Our supply of men from you came the 9th of November, 1621, putting in at Cape Cod, some eight or ten leagues from us. The Indians that dwell there

5

1 See note on page 165.
Raspas, raspberries.

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6

See note on page 165.
In the original with an error
of the press.

5 Winslow had observed this de-
solation on the banks of Taunton
river. See page 206.

The Fortune, a small vessel of 55 tons, brought over Robert Cushman and 35 persons, a part of whom no doubt were the 20 that put back in the Speedwell. See note on page 99. The Fortune sailed from London the beginning of July, but could not clear the channel till the end of August. She found all the colonists whom the Mayflower had left in April, "lusty and in good health, except six who had died; and she stays a

month ere she sails for England." Bradford and Smith, in Prince,p.198.

The Fortune brought a letter for Mr. Carver from Mr. Weston, dated London, July 6, wherein he writes, "We (the adventurers) have procured you a charter, the best we could, better than your former, and with less limitation." Judge Davis, in a note on Morton's Memorial, p. 73, says, "this intimation refers to a patent from the President and Council of New England to John Pierce and his associates, which was in trust for the company. It was probably brought in this ship, and was a few years since found among the old papers in the Land Office at Boston, by William Smith, Esq. one of the Land Committee. It bears the seals and

ARRIVAL OF THE SECOND SHIP.

235

XV.

Dec.

about were they who were owners of the corn which CHAP. we found in caves, for which we have given them full content,' and are in great league with them. They 1621. sent us word there was a ship near unto them, but 11. thought it to be a Frenchman; and indeed for ourselves we expected not a friend so soon. But when we perceived that she made for our bay, the governor commanded a great piece to be shot off, to call home such as were abroad at work. Whereupon every man, yea boy, that could handle a gun, were ready, with full resolution that, if she were an enemy, we would stand in our just defence, not fearing them. But God provided better for us than we supposed. These came all in health, not any being sick by the way, otherwise than by sea-sickness, and so continue at this time, by the blessing of God. The good-wife Ford was deliv

signatures of the Duke of Lenox, the Marquis of Hamilton, the Earl of Warwick, and of Sir Ferdinando Gorges. There is another signature so obscurely written, as to be illegible. It does not appear what use was made of this patent by the Plymouth planters; it was, not long afterwards, superseded by the second patent, surreptitiously obtained by Pierce, for his own benefit, and which, after his misfortunes, was assigned to the adventurers." Judge Davis gives an abstract of this patent in his Appendix, p. 362. I have sought for the original in vain in the archives of the State. It was never printed; and it is to be feared is now lost. The original of the third patent, granted in 1629 to William Bradford and his associates, is preserved in the office of the Register of Deeds at Plymouth. It is on parchment, signed by the Earl of Warwick, and the seal of the Plymouth Company, four inches in diameter, is appended to it. It is prefixed to the printed Laws of

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236

THE FORTUNE'S RETURN CARGO.

CHAP. ered of a son the first night she landed, and both of XV. them are very well.

1621. Dec.

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When it pleaseth God we are settled and fitted for 11. the fishing business and other trading, I doubt not but by the blessing of God the gain will give content to all. In the mean time, that we have gotten we have sent by this ship; and though it be not much, yet it will witness for us that we have not been idle, considering the smallness of our number all this summer. We hope the merchants will accept of it, and be encouraged to furnish us with things needful for further employment, which will also encourage us to put forth ourselves to the uttermost.

Now because I expect your coming unto us, with other of our friends, whose company we much desire, I thought good to advertise you of a few things needful. Be careful to have a very good bread-room to put your biscuits in. Let your cask for beer and water be iron-bound, for the first tire, if not more. Let not your

De La Noye (or Delano) was, ac-
cording to Winslow, in his Brief
Narrative, "born of French pa-
rents," and Simonson (or Sim-
mons) was a "child of one that
was in communion with the Dutch
church at Leyden." The widow
Foord brought three children, Wil-
liam, Martha, and John. For a
further account of some of these,
and the other early settlers, see
Farmer's Genealogical Register,
Mitchell's Family Register, ap-
pended to his Hist. of Bridgewater,
and Deane's Family Sketches, in
his Hist. of Scituate.

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French, carried into France, kept there fifteen days, and robbed of all she had worth taking; then the people and ship are released, and get to London Feb. 17." Bradford, in Prince, p. 199. Smith, in his New England's Trials, printed in 1622, says she was laden with three hogsheads of beaver skins, clapboard, wainscot, walnut, and some sassafras.

"Upon her departure, the governor and his assistant dispose the late comers into several families, find their provisions will now scarce hold out six months at half allowance, and therefore put them to it, which they bear patiently." Bradford, in Prince, p. 199.

2

George Morton, to whom I suppose this letter was written, came out in the next ship, the Ann.

THINGS NEEDFUL FOR THE COLONY.

237

XV.

Dec.

11.

meat be dry-salted; none can better do it than the CHAP. sailors. Let your meal be so hard trod in your cask that you shall need an adz or hatchet to work it out 1621. with. Trust not too much on us for corn at this time, for by reason of this last company that came, depending wholly upon us, we shall have little enough till harvest. Be careful to come by some of your meal to spend by the way; it will much refresh you. Build your cabins as open as you can, and bring good store of clothes and bedding with you. Bring every man a musket or fowling-piece. Let your piece be long in the barrel, and fear not the weight of it, for most of our shooting is from stands. Bring juice of lemons, and take it fasting; it is of good use. For hot waters, aniseed water is the best; but use it sparingly. If you bring any thing for comfort in the country, butter or sallet oil, or both, is very good. Our Indian corn, even the coarsest, maketh as pleasant meat as rice; therefore spare that, unless to spend by the way. Bring paper and linseed oil for your windows,' with

Oiled paper to keep out the snow-storms of a New England winter! This serves to give us some idea of the exposures and hardships of the first colonists. It is an indication of progress in domestic comfort when we find Higginson in 1629 writing from Salem to his friends in England, "Be sure to furnish yourselves with glass for windows." See Hutchinson's Collection of Papers, p. 50.

Glass windows were first introduced into England in 1180. They were so rare in the reign of Edward III. that Chaucer, in describing his chamber, mentions particularly

that

"with glass "Were all the windows well y-glazed."

Even in the time of Henry VIII.
they were considered a luxury, and
yeomen and farmers were perfectly
contented with windows of lattice.
In the days of Queen Elizabeth
they were unknown except in a
few lordly mansions, and in them
they were regarded as movable
furniture. When the dukes of
Northumberland left Alnwick cas-
tle to come to London for the win-
ter, the few glass windows, which
formed one of the luxuries of the
castle, were carefully taken out
and laid away, perhaps carried to
London to adorn the city residence.
See Anderson's Hist. of Commerce,
i. 90, ed. 1764; Ellis's Specimens
of the Early English Poets, i. 221,
323; Hallam's Middle Ages, ii.
294; Northumberland Household

238

POWDER AND SHOT.

XV.

CHAP. cotton yarn for your lamps. Let your shot be most for big fowls, and bring store of powder and shot. I 1621. forbear further to write for the present, hoping to see

Dec.

11. you by the next return. So I take my leave, com

mending you to the Lord for a safe conduct unto us, resting in him,

Your loving friend,

E. W.'

Plymouth, in New England, this 11th of December, 1621.

Book, Preface, p. 16; E. Everett's 'Edward Winslow, of whom
Address before the Merc. Lib. As- some account will be given here-
soc. p. 19.
after.

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