Orchard Farm to Governor Endicott, would have felt bound, in
self-respect and in honor, to have protected it against any overlapping
grants subsequently made by an inferior authority. Under the
circumstances of the case, it was its duty to have held the Orchard
Farm intact, and made it up to the satisfaction of Allen and Nurse by a
grant elsewhere, or an equitable compensation in money. It owed so much
to the son of Endicott and the grand-daughter of Winthrop, the first
noble Fathers of the colony. Perhaps the court found its justification
in the phraseology of the deed of conveyance of the Bishop farm from
Governor Endicott to his son John. After reciting or referring to the
original town grant to Bishop, and the deeds from Bishop to Chickering,
and from Chickering to himself, the Governor conveys to his son John
all the houses, &c., and every part and parcel of the land "to the
utmost extent thereof, according as is expressed or included in either
of the forecited deeds, or town grant." It was maintained, and justly,
by Allen, that he held all that was conveyed to John Endicott, Jr. But
the Court had no right to encroach upon the Orchard Farm, which
had[i.90] been granted to the Governor by them prior to all deeds and
to the town grant to Bishop.
Never did that deep and sagacious observation on the mysteries of human
nature, "Men's judgments are a parcel of their fortunes," receive a
more striking or melancholy illustration than in the case of Zerubabel
Endicott. With his falling fortunes, his judgment and discretion fell
also; his mind, maddened by a sense of wrong, seemed bent upon exposing
itself to new wrongs. Having been broken down by lawsuits, that had
wasted his estate, he seemed to have acquired a blind passion for them.
Having destroyed his peace and embarrassed his affairs in attempts to
resist the adjudications of the Court, he persisted in struggling
against them. He had tried to push the Bishop grant west, over the land
of Nathaniel Putnam in that quarter. The highest tribunal had settled
it against him. But he appeared to be incapable of realizing the fact.
He sent his hired men to cut timber on that land. They worked there
some days, felled a large number of trees, and hewed them into beams
and joists for the frame of a house. One morning, returning to their
work, there was no timber to be found; logs, framework, and all, were
gone. They were carefully piled up a mile away, by the side of Putnam's
dwelling-house, who had sent two teams, one of four oxen, the other of
two oxen and a horse, with an adequate force of men, and in two
loadings had cleaned out the whole. Endicott of course sued him, and of
course was cast.
When the General Court had consented to give him[i.91] a rehearing of
the case of the Bishop farm, they expressly forbade his making any
"strip" of the land in the mean while. But with the infatuation which
seemed to possess him, and not heeding how fatally it would prejudice
his cause at the impending hearing to violate the order of the Court,
he again sent a gang of men to cut wood on the land in controversy. The
following shows the result:—
"Hugh Jones, aged 46 years, and Alexius Reinolds, aged 25 years,
testify and say, that we, these deponents, being desired by Mr.
Zerubabel Endicott to cut up some wood, for his winter firewood,
accordingly went with our teams, which had four oxen and a horse; and
there we met with several other teams of our neighbors, which were upon
the same account, that is to say, to help carry up Mr. Endicott some
wood for his winter firewood, and when we had loaded our sleds, Thomas
Preston and John Tarbell came in a violent manner, and hauled the wood
out of our sleds; and Francis Nurse, being present, demanded whose men
we were. Mr. Endicott, being present, answered, they were his men."
These witnesses testify that this "battle of the wilderness" lasted two
days,—Endicott's men cutting the wood and loading the teams, and
Nurse's men pitching it off. The altercations and conflicts that took
place between the parties during those two days may easily be imagined.
Whether there was a final, decisive pitched battle, we are not
informed. Perhaps there was. The woods rang with rough echoes, we may
be well assured. A lawsuit followed; the result could not be in doubt.
Endicott had no right there;[i.92] he was there in direct violation of
the order of Court. Nurse was in possession, had a right, and was
bound, to keep the land from being stripped.
Shortly after this, Endicott broke down, under the difficulties that
had accumulated around him. On the 24th of November, 1683, as we have
seen, he was "sick in bed." Two days before,—that is, on the 22d of
November,—he had made his will, which was presented in court on the
27th of March, 1684. He was game to the last; for this is an item of
the will:—
"Whereas my late father, by his last will, bequeathed to me his farm
called Bishop's or Chickering's farm, I do give the said farm to my
five sons, to be equally divided among them."
The will of his father had been declared invalid on that point, and
others. The whole thing had been conclusively settled for years; but he
never would recognize the fact. It is a singular instance of an
obstinacy of will completely superseding and suppressing the reason and
the judgment. He lost the perception of the actual and real, in
clinging to what he felt to be the right.
Every association and sentiment of his soul had been shocked by the
wrongs he had suffered. He could not walk over his fields, or look from
his windows, without feeling that a property which his father had given
to his brother had, in a manner that he knew would have been as odious
to that father as it was to him, passed into the hands of strangers,
and been used as a wedge on which everybody had conspired to deal
blows,[i.93] driving it into the centre of his patrimonial acres,
splitting and rending them through and through. He brooded over the
thought, until, whenever his mind was turned to it, his reason was
dethroned, his heart broken, and under its weight he fell into his
grave.
An argument addressed by him to the court and jury, in one of the
innumerable trials of the Bishop-farm case, is among the papers on
file. It appears to be a verbatim report of the speech as it was
delivered at the time, and proves him to have been a man of talents. It
is courteous, gentlemanly, and, I might say, scholarly in its diction
and style, skilful in its statements, and forcible in its arguments.
In all the earlier trials, the juries uniformly gave verdicts in favor
of Endicott; but Allen carried the cases up to the General Court, which
exercised a final and unrestrained jurisdiction in all matters referred
to it. It usually appointed committees or commissioners to examine such
questions, accepted their reports, and made them binding. Lands were
thus disposed of without the agency, and against the decisions, of
juries. In his arguments addressed to the General Court, Zerubabel
Endicott protested against this jurisdiction, by which his lands were
taken from him "by a committee, in an arbitrary way, being neither
bound nor sworn by law or evidence." He boldly denounced it.
"To be disseized of my inheritance; to be judged by three or four
committee-men, who are neither bound to law nor evidence,—who are, or
may be, mutable in their apprehensions,[i.94] doing one thing to-day,
and soon again undoing what they did,—I conceive, to be judged in such
an arbitrary way is repugnant to the fundamental law of England
contained in Magna Charta, chap. 29, which says no freeman shall be
disseized of his freehold but by the lawful judgment of his peers,—that
is to say, by due process of law; which was also confirmed by the
Petition of Right, by Act of Parliament, _tertio Caroli I_. And also
such arbitrary jurisdiction was exploded in putting down the
Star-Chamber Court; and the excessive fines imposed upon all such
actings. See 'English Liberties,' as also the fourth and sixth articles
against the Earl of Strafford in Baker's 'Chronicle,' folio 518."
He closes one of his remonstrances thus:—
"The humble request of your petitioner to the Hon. Gen. Court, that, as
an Englishman,—as a freeman of this jurisdiction; as descended from him
who, in his time, sought the welfare of this commonwealth,—I may have
the benefit and protection of the wholesome laws established in this
jurisdiction: that, in my extreme wrong, I may have liberty to seek
relief in a way of law, and may not, contrary to Magna Charta, be
disseized of my freehold by the arbitrary act of two or three
committee-men; the fundamental law of England knowing no such
constitution, abhorring such administrations: and that the Hon. Court
would release your petitioner from the injurious effects of the said
committee's act, and explode so pernicious a precedent."
Zerubabel Endicott was an imprudent and obstinate man, but had the
traits of a generous, ardent, and noble character. He was a physician
by profession. His second wife—the widow, as has been stated, of Rev.
Antipas Newman, of Wenham, and daughter of[i.95] John Winthrop, Jr.,
governor of Connecticut—survived him. Although he left five sons, the
name, at one time, was borne by a single descendant only, a lad of
seven years of age,—Samuel, a grandson of Zerubabel. On him it hung
suspended, but he saved it. From that boy, those who bear the name in
New England have been derived. We rejoice to believe that they will
preserve it, and keep its honor bright.
Winthrop was recognized as the great leader in the early history of the
Colony. He had a combination of qualities that marked him as a wise and
good man, and gave him precedence. The eminent dignity of his character
was admired and revered by all. No one was more ready to admit this
than Endicott. Never were men placed towards each other in relations
more severely testing their magnanimity, and none ever bore the test
more perfectly. But Endicott was, after all, the most complete
representative man of that generation. He was thoroughly identified
with the people, participating in their virtues and in their defects.
He was a strict religionist, a sturdy Puritan, a firm administrator of
the law; at the same time, there are indications that he was of a
genial spirit. He was personally brave, and officially intrepid. His
administration of the government required nerve, and he had it.
Sometimes the ardor of his temperament put him for a moment off his
guard; but he was quick to acknowledge his error. He was true to the
people, who never faltered in their fidelity to him. The author of
"Wonder-working Providence" de[i.96]scribed him as "a fit instrument to
begin the wilderness worke, of courage bold undaunted, yet sociable and
of a cheerful spirit." I have presented some instances of his kind and
pleasant relations with his workmen and neighbors. His name will ever
be held in honored remembrance in this vicinity, where his useful
enterprise was appreciated; and his descendants in our day, and to the
present time, have contributed to the prosperity and the adornment of
the community.
It is not unlikely, that hostile feelings towards the Nurses, which
contributed afterwards to serious results, may have been engendered in
this long-continued land quarrel. There is evidence that no such
feeling existed on the part of the Endicotts: but there were many
others interested; for, by testimony at the trials and in outside
discussions, the whole community had become more or less implicated in
the strife. The Nurses, as holding the ground and having to bear the
brunt of defending it in all cases of intrusion, had a difficult
position, and may have made some enemies. At any rate, this controversy
was one of the means of stirring up animosities in the neighborhood;
and an account of it has been deemed necessary, as contributing to
indicate the elements of the awful convulsions which soon afterwards
desolated Salem Village.
When we reach the story, for which this account of the farms of the
village and the population that grew up on them is a preparative, we
shall come back to the Townsend-Bishop grant, and to the house, still
standing, that he built and dwelt in, upon it. It may be[i.97] well to
pause, and view its interesting history prior to 1692. While occupied
by its original owner, the "mansion," or "cottage," was the scene of
social intercourse among the choicest spirits of the earliest age of
New England. Here Bishop, and, after him, Chickering, entertained their
friends. Here the fine family of Richard Ingersoll was brought up. Here
Governor Endicott projected plans for opening the country; and the road
that passes its entrance-gate was laid out by him. To this same house,
young John Endicott brought his youthful Boston bride. Here she came
again, fifteen years afterwards, as the bride of the learned and
distinguished James Allen, to show him the farm which, received as a
"marriage gift" from her former husband, she had brought as a "marriage
gift" to him. Here the same Allen, in less than six years afterwards,
brought still another bride. In all these various, and some of them
rather rapid, changes, it was, no doubt, often the resort of
distinguished guests, and the place of meeting of many pleasant
companies. During the protracted years of litigation for its
possession, frequent consultations were held within it; and now, for
twelve years, it had been the home of a happy, harmonious, and
prosperous family, exemplifying the industry, energy, and enterprise of
a New England household. A new chapter was destined, as we shall see,
to be opened in its singular and diversified history. But we must
return to the enumeration of the original landholders of the
village.[i.98]
George Corwin came to Salem in 1638. He had large tracts of land in
various places. He lived, a part of his time, on his farm in the
village; is found to have taken an active part in the proceedings of
the people, particularly in military affairs; and was captain of a
company of cavalry. His great mercantile transactions probably led him
to have his residence mostly in the town, first on a lot on Washington
Street, near the corner of Norman Street, where his grandson the
sheriff lived in 1692. In 1660, he bought of Ann, the relict of
Nicholas Woodbury, a lot on Essex Street, next east of the Browne
Block, with a front of about one hundred and fifty feet. Here he built
a fine mansion, in which he lived the remainder of his days. He died
Jan. 6, 1685, leaving an estate inventoried at £5,964. 10_s._ 7_d._,—a
large fortune for those times. His portrait is preserved by his
descendants, one of whom, the late George A. Ward, describes his dress
as represented in the picture: "A wrought flowing neckcloth, a sash
covered with lace, a coat with short cuffs and reaching half-way
between the wrist and elbow; the skirts in plaits below; an octagon
ring and cane." The last two articles are still preserved. His
inventory mentions "a silver-laced cloth coat, a velvet ditto, a satin
waistcoat embroidered with gold, a trooping scarf and silver hat-band,
golden-topped and embroidered, and a silver-headed cane." His farms in
the vicinity contained fifteen hundred acres. His connections were
distinguished, and his descendants have included many eminent persons.
The name, by male[i.99] descent, disappeared for a time in this part of
the country; but in the last generation it was restored in the female
descent by an act of the Legislature, and is honorably borne by one of
our most respectable families, who inherit his blood, and cherish the
memorials which time has spared of their first American ancestor.
William Hathorne appears on the church records as early as 1636. He
died in June, 1681, seventy-four years of age. No one in our annals
fills a larger space. As soldier commanding important and difficult
expeditions, as counsel in cases before the courts, as judge on the
bench, and in innumerable other positions requiring talent and
intelligence, he was constantly called to serve the public. He was
distinguished as a public speaker, and is the only person, I believe,
of that period, whose reputation as an orator has come down to us. He
was an Assistant, that is, in the upper branch of the Legislature,
seventeen years. He was a deputy twenty years. When the deputies, who
before sat with the assistants, were separated into a distinct body,
and the House of Representatives thus came into existence, in 1644,
Hathorne was their first Speaker. He occupied the chair, with
intermediate services on the floor from time to time, until raised to
the other House. He was an inhabitant of Salem Village, having his farm
there, and a dwelling-house, in which he resided when his legislative,
military, and other official duties permitted. His son John, who
succeeded him in all his public honors, also lived on his own farm in
the village[i.100] a great part of the time. The name is indelibly
stamped on the hills and meadows of the region, as it was in the civil
history of that age, and has been in the elegant literature of the
present.
William Trask was one of what are called the "First Planters." He came
over before Endicott, had his residence on Salem Farms, was a most
energetic, enterprising, and useful citizen, and filled a great variety
of public stations. He brought large tracts of land under culture,
planted orchards, and established mills at the head of tide-water on
the North River. He was the military leader of the first age of the
plantations in this neighborhood, was captain of the train-band from
the beginning, and, by his gallantry and energy in action, commanded
the applause of his contemporaries. For his services in the Pequot
Expedition, the General Court gave him and his associates large grants
of land. His obsequies were celebrated, on the 16th of May, 1666, with
great military parade; and the people of the town and the whole
surrounding country followed his honored remains to the grave.
Richard Davenport came to Salem in 1631. His first residence was in the
town; but soon he was led to the Farms. In 1636, he received a grant of
eighty acres; in 1638, of two hundred and twenty acres; and, in 1642,
eighty acres more, to be divided between him and Captain Lothrop.
Besides these, he received several smaller grants of meadow and salt
marsh. Such grants were made only with the view of having[i.101] them
duly improved; and it cannot be doubted that he was zealously engaged
in agricultural operations. His town residence was on a lot reaching
from Essex Street to the North River. Its front extended from the
grounds now the site of the North Church to North Street. His house
stood at some distance back from Essex Street. This estate was sold by
his administrators, in 1674, to Jonathan Corwin, whose family occupied
it until a very recent period. He left the town in 1643, and
subsequently lived in what was afterwards Salem Village, until the
public service called him away. He sold some of his estates, but
retained others, on the Farms and in the town, to the time of his
death. He continued the superintendence of his country estate, which
seems to have been his family home, to the last. His military career
gave him early distinction, and closed only with his life. In 1634, the
General Court chose him "Ensign to Capt. Trask." He was concerned with
Endicott in cutting out the cross from the king's colors. The following
is from the record of a meeting of the court, Nov. 7, 1634: "It is
ordered that Ensign Davenport shall be sent for by warrant, with
command to bring his colors with him to the next court, as also any
other that hath defaced the said colors." Davenport did not seem
anxious to cover up his agency in this matter; for, when he offered his
next child to baptism, he signified to the assembly that he was
determined to commemorate and perpetuate the memory of the transaction,
by having her christened "True[i.102] Cross." It was necessary to make
a show of punishing Endicott and Davenport on this occasion, to prevent
trouble from the home government. Soon after, we find the General Court
heaping honors upon Davenport, and finally, in 1639, making him a grant
of one hundred and fifty acres of land, specially noticing his services
in the Pequot War, which appear to have elicited general applause. In
some desperate encounters with the savages, seventeen arrows were shot
"into his coat of mail," and he was wounded in unprotected parts of his
person. He was twice deputy to the General Court. In 1644, the General
Court organized an elaborate system of external defence, the whole
based upon Castle Island, now Fort Independence, in Boston Harbor. From
that point, hostile invasion by a naval force was to be repelled. Every
vessel, on entering, was to report to the castle, be examined and
subject to the orders of the commandant. It became the military
headquarters of the colony, the protection and oversight of whose
commerce were intrusted to the officer in command. This was the highest
military station and trust in the gift of the Government. It was
assigned to Richard Davenport; and he held it for twenty-one years, to
the moment of his death. The country reposed in confidence upon his
watchful fidelity. He put and kept the castle in an efficient
condition. In 1659, as evidence of their satisfaction and approval of
his official conduct, the General Court made him a grant of five
hundred acres of land laid out in Lancaster. On the 15th of July, 1665,
he was killed by[i.103] lightning, at his post. The records of the
General Court speak of "the solemn stroke of thunder that took away
Captain Davenport." The whole country mourned the loss of the veteran
soldier; and the Court granted his family an additional tract of one
hundred acres of land on the Merrimac River. He was in his sixtieth
year at the time of his death. Of the company required to be raised in
Salem for the Block-Island Expedition, in 1636, the three commissioned
officers were furnished from the Farms,—Trask, Davenport, and Read.
They were soldiers by nature and instinct, and to the end. The volleys
of devoted, faithful, and mourning comrades were fired over their
graves, with no great interval of time. United in early service,
separated by the course of their lives, they were united again in
death.