The chief debt of gratitude which the editor and Plimoth Plantation,
Inc., must acknowledge is to the owners of the letters printed here. The
late Dr. Otto Fisher, of Detroit, made the book possible by permitting
the publication of the three letters from Emmanuel Altham to Sir Edward
Altham. The Massachusetts Historical Society has kindly consented to the
reprinting of the other Altham letter. The John Carter Brown Library, of
Providence, has given permission to print the extracts from Pory’s
letters. Permission to reprint those parts of the translation of the
letter by Isaack de Rasieres covered by copyright has been granted by
Barnes & Noble, Inc.
As editor I have received assistance of various kinds which deserve a
public word of thanks—from Professor Rosalie Colie of Wesleyan
University, Professor John H. Parks of Kent State University, the New
York Historical Society, the Cleveland Public Library, and from my wife.