The Mayflower returns—Death of John Carver—William Bradford,
Governor—Trade with the Massachusetts—The first marriage—Friendship
with Massasoyt confirmed—Hobbamok—Expedition against Corbitant—The
first harvest—Arrival of Robert Cushman with 35 settlers—Fortune
returns, laden—The Narragansetts’ challenge—Christmas Day: 1621.
They now decided to send back the ship which had brought them over,
and which had remained till about this time or the beginning of
April. The reason, on their part, why she had stayed so long, was the
necessity and danger they were under. It was well towards the end of
December before she could land anything, or they were in a condition
to receive anything ashore. And after that on the 14th of January,
the house they had built for a general rendezvous accidentally caught
fire, and some of them had to go aboard the ship for shelter. Then
the sickness began to fall among them sorely, and the weather was so
bad that they could not hasten their preparations. Again the Governor
and the chief members, seeing so many fall sick and die daily,
thought it unwise to send the ship away, considering their condition
and the danger they were in from the Indians, till they could procure
some shelter; and therefore thought it better to incur further
expense for themselves and their friends, than to risk everything.
And though before, the captain and sailors had hurried the passengers
ashore, so that they could be gone; now many of the crew being
dead,—and some of the ablest of them,—and of the rest many lay sick
and weak, the captain did not dare put to sea till he saw them begin
to recover, and the heart of winter over.
The settlers, as many as were able, then began to plant their corn,
in which service Squanto stood them in good stead, showing them how
to plant it and cultivate it. He also told them that unless they got
fish to manure this exhausted old soil, it would come to nothing,
and he showed them that in the middle of April plenty of fish would
come up the brook by which they had begun to build, and taught them
how to catch it, and where to get other necessary provisions; all of
which they found true by experience. They sowed some English seed,
such as wheat and pease, but it came to no good, either because of
the badness of the seed or the lateness of the season or some other
defect.
This April, while they were busy sowing their seed, their Governor,
Mr. John Carver, one hot day, came out of the field very sick. He
complained greatly of his head and lay down, and within a few hours
his senses failed. He never spoke again, and died, a few days after.
His death was much lamented, and depressed them deeply, with good
cause. He was buried in the best manner possible, with some volleys
of shot by all that bore arms; and his wife, a weak woman, died five
or six weeks after him.
Shortly after, William Bradford was chosen governor in his stead, and
having not yet recovered from his illness, in which he had been near
the point of death, Isaac Allerton, was appointed assistant to him.
These two, by renewed election each year, continued several years
together. This I here note, once for all.
On May 12th the first marriage here took place, which, according to
the laudable custom of the Low Countries[3] in which they had lived,
it was thought proper for the magistrate to perform, as a civil
institution upon which many questions about inheritances depend, and
other things requiring their cognizance, as well as being consonant
with the scriptures (Ruth iv), and nowhere mentioned in the gospels
as a part of the minister’s duty.
Having now made some progress with their affairs at home, it was
thought advisable to send a deputation to their new friend Massasoyt,
and to bestow upon him some gratuity to bind him faster to them;
also at the same time to view the country, and see in what manner
he lived, what strength he had about him, and what was the way to
his place, if at any time they should have need. So on July 2nd
they sent Mr. Edward Winslow and Mr. Hopkins, with the aforesaid
Squanto for their guide. They gave Massasoyt a suit of clothes, and
a horseman’s coat, with some other small things, which were kindly
accepted, though they found but short commons, and came home both
weary and hungry. The Indians in those times did not have nearly so
much corn as they have had since the English supplied them with hoes,
and set them an example by their industry in preparing new ground
therewith. Massasoyt’s place was found to be forty miles off and
the soil good. But his people had died in great numbers during the
recent plague throughout these parts, about three years before the
coming of the English. Thousands of them died, until the living were
not able to bury the dead, and their skulls and bones were found in
many places lying still above ground, where their houses and dwelling
places had been,—a very sad spectacle. But they brought word that
the Narragansetts lived just on the other side of the great bay, and
were a strong, populous tribe living close together, and had not been
attacked by this wasting plague.
About the latter end of this month one John Billington lost himself
in the woods, and wandered up and down for about five days, living
on berries and what he could find. At length he came across an
Indian plantation, twenty miles to the south, called Manamet. They
conveyed him further off to Nauset, among the Indians who had set
upon the landing party when they were coasting and whilst their ship
lay at the Cape, as before noted. But the Governor caused him to be
enquired for among the Indians, and at length Massasoyt sent word
where he was, and the Governor sent a shallop for him, and had him
delivered. The Indians there also came and made their peace and full
satisfaction was given by the settlers to those whose corn they had
found and taken when they were at Cape Cod.
Thus their peace and acquaintance was pretty well established with
the natives about them. Another Indian, called Hobbamok came to live
with them, a fine strong man, of some account amongst the Indians for
his valour and qualities. He remained very faithful to the English
till he died. He and Squanto having gone upon business among the
Indians, a Sachem called Corbitant, allied to Massasoyt, but never a
good friend to the English to this day, met with them at an Indian
town called Namassakett, fourteen miles west of this, and whether out
of envy of them or malice to the English began to quarrel with them,
and threatened to stab Hobbamok; but he, being a strong man, cleared
himself of him, and came running away, all sweating, and told the
Governor what had befallen him, and that he feared they had killed
Squanto, for they threatened them both, for no other reason than
that they were friends to the English and serviceable to them. The
Governor taking counsel, it was decided not to pass it over, for if
they allowed their friends and messengers to be harmed, none would
associate with them or give them intelligence or do them service
afterwards; and next thing the Indians would fall upon them, too. So
it was resolved to send the Captain and fourteen men, well armed, and
to go and fall upon them in the night; and if they found that Squanto
was killed, to cut off Corbitant’s head, but not to hurt any but
those who had a hand in it. Hobbamok was asked if he would go and be
their guide, and bring them there before day. He said he would, and
could show them the house where Corbitant lived, and which he was.
They set forth on the 14th of August, and surrounded the house; and
the Captain, giving orders to let none escape, entered to search for
him. But he had gone away that day; so they missed him, but learned
that Squanto was alive, and that Corbitant had only threatened to
kill him, and made as if to stab him, but did not. So they withheld
their punishment, and did no more harm; and the people came trembling
and brought them the best provisions they had, when they had been
acquainted by Hobbamok with their purpose. Three Indians, badly
wounded, broke out of the house, and tried to pass through the guard.
These they brought back with them, and had their wounds dressed and
cured, and then sent them home. After this they had many greetings
from various Sachems and much firmer peace. Even the Indians of the
Island of Capawack sent to declare friendship; and Corbitant himself
used the mediation of Massasoyt to make his peace, but was shy to
come near them for a long time after.
After this, on the 18th September, they sent out their shallop with
ten men and Squanto as guide and interpreter to the Massachusetts, to
explore the bay and trade with the natives, which they accomplished,
and were kindly received. The Indians were much afraid of the
Tarantines, a tribe to the eastward, who used to come at harvest
time and take away their corn, and often kill some of them. They
returned in safety, and brought home a good quantity of beaver, and
reported on the place, wishing they could have settled there. But
it seems that the Lord, Who assigns to all men the bounds of their
habitations, had appointed it for another use. And thus they found
the Lord to be with them in all their ways, and to bless their
outgoings and incomings, for which let His holy name have the praise
forever, to all posterity.
They began now to gather in the small harvest they had, and to
prepare their houses for the winter, being well recovered in health
and strength, and plentifully provisioned; for while some had been
thus employed in affairs away from home, others were occupied in
fishing for cod, bass, and other fish, of which they caught a good
quantity, every family having their portion. All the summer there was
no want. And now, as winter approached, wild fowl began to arrive, of
which there were plenty when they came here first, though afterwards
they became more scarce. As well as wild fowl, they got abundance of
wild turkeys, besides venison, etc. Each person had about a peck of
meal a week, or now, since harvest, Indian corn in that proportion;
and afterwards many wrote at length about their plenty to their
friends in England,—not feigned but true reports.
In November, about 12 months after their arrival, there came a small
ship unexpectedly, bringing Mr. Cushman (so much spoken of before),
and with him 35 persons to remain and live in the plantation; at
which they rejoiced not a little. And the new arrivals, when they
came ashore and found all well, and saw plenty of victuals in every
house, were no less glad. Most of them were healthy young men,
many of them wild enough, who had little considered what they were
undertaking,—till they reached the harbour of Cape Cod, and there
saw nothing but a naked and barren place. They then began to wonder
what would become of them, should the people be dead or cut off by
the Indians. So, hearing what some of the sailors were saying, they
began to plot to seize the sails, lest the ship should go, and leave
them there. But the captain, hearing of it gave them good words, and
told them that if any misfortune should have befallen the people
here, he thought he had food enough to take them to Virginia, and
whilst he had a bit, they should have their share, which satisfied
them. So they were all landed; but they brought not so much as
biscuit-cake, or any other victuals with them, nor any bedding,
except some poor things they had in their cabins; nor pot nor pan to
cook any food in; nor many clothes, for many of them had sold their
coats and cloaks at Plymouth on their way out. But some burching-lane
suits were sent over in the ship, out of which they were supplied.
The plantation was glad of this addition of strength, but could have
wished that many of them had been of better class, and all of them
better furnished with provisions; but that could not now be helped.
In this ship Mr. Weston sent a long letter to Mr. Carver, the late
Governor, now deceased, full of complaints and expostulations about
the former troubles at Southampton, and keeping the ship so long in
the country, and returning her without lading, etc.,—most of which
for brevity I omit. The rest is as follows.
_Mr. Weston in England to Mr. John Carver at New Plymouth_:
I never dared acquaint the adventurers with the alterations in the
conditions first agreed on between us, which I have since been very
glad of, for I am well assured that had they known as much as I do,
they would not have ventured a halfpenny of what was necessary for
this ship. That you sent no lading back with the ship is strange,
and very properly resented. I know your weakness was the cause
of it; and I believe more weakness of judgment than weakness of
hands. A quarter of the time you spent in discoursing, arguing,
and consulting, would have done much more; but that is past....
If you mean, bona fide, to perform the conditions agreed upon, do
us the favour to copy them out fair, and subscribe them with the
names of your principal members and likewise give us account, as
particularly as you can, how our money was laid out. Then I shall
be able to give them some satisfaction, while I am now forced
to put them off with good words. And consider that the life of
this business depends on the lading of this ship. If you do so
satisfactorily, so that I may recoup the great sums I disbursed for
the former voyage, and must do for this one, I promise you I will
never forsake this enterprise, though all the other adventurers
should do so.
We have procured you a charter, the best we could, which is better
than the former, and with less limitations. As for anything else
that is worth writing, Mr. Cushman can inform you. I pray write
instantly for Mr. Robinson to come to you. And so, praying God to
bless you with all graces necessary both for this life and that to
come, I rest,
Your very loving friend,
THOS. WESTON.
_London, July 6th, 1621._
This ship, called the Fortune, was speedily despatched, laden with
good clapboard, as full as she could stow, and two hogsheads of
beaver and otter skins, which they had traded in exchange for a few
trifling commodities brought with them at first, being otherwise
altogether unprovided for trading; nor was there a man among them who
had ever seen a beaver skin till they came out, and were instructed
by Squanto. The freight was estimated to be worth nearly £500. Mr.
Cushman returned with the ship, as Mr. Weston and the rest had
commissioned him, for their better information. And neither he
nor the settlers doubted that they would receive speedy supplies,
considering that, owing to Mr. Cushman’s persuasion, and to letters
which they received from the congregation at Leyden, urging them to
do so, they agreed to the aforesaid conditions, and signed them.
But it proved otherwise, for Mr. Weston, who had made that large
promise in his letter, that if all the rest should drop out, he would
never quit the business, but would stick to them if they signed the
conditions and sent some lading on the ship,—and of this Mr. Cushman
was equally confident, confirming it by Mr. Weston’s own words and
serious protestations to himself before he left,—all this, I say,
proved but wind, for he was the first and only man that forsook them,
and that before he had so much as heard of the return of the ship, or
knew what had been done. So vain is confidence in man! But of this,
more in its place.
A letter in answer to that written by Mr. Weston to Mr. Carver was
sent from the Governor, of which so much as is pertinent to the thing
in hand I will insert here:
_Governor Bradford at New Plymouth to Mr. Weston in England_:
Sir,
Your long letter written to Mr. Carver, and dated July 6th, 1621,
I received on November 10th, wherein, after the apology made for
yourself, you lay many imputations upon him and us all. Touching
him, he is now departed this life, and is at rest in the Lord from
all these troubles and incumbrances with which we yet strive. He
needs not my apology; for his care and pains were so great for
the common good, both ours and yours, that, as it is thought, he
thereby oppressed himself and shortened his days; of whose loss we
cannot sufficiently complain. At great expense in this adventure I
confess you have been, and many losses may sustain; but the loss
of his and many other industrious men’s lives cannot be valued at
any price. Of the one there may be hope of recovery, but the other
no recompense can make good. However, I will not confine myself to
general statements, but will deal with your particular charges.
You greatly blame us for keeping the ship so long in the country,
and then sending her away empty. She lay five weeks at Cape Cod,
whilst with many a weary step, after a long journey and the
endurance of many a hard brunt we sought out in the depth of winter
a place of habitation. Then we set about, as well as we could, to
provide shelter for ourselves and our goods upon which task many
of our arms and legs can tell us to this day that we were not
negligent! But it pleased God to visit us then with death daily,
and with a disease so disastrous that the living were scarcely
able to bury the dead, and the healthy not in any measure to tend
the sick. And now to be so greatly blamed for not freighting the
ship touches us near and discourages us much. But you say you
know we shall plead weakness; and do you think we had not cause?
Yes, you tell us you believe it—but that it was more weakness of
judgment than of hands! Our weakness herein is great, we confess;
therefore we will bear this rebuke patiently, with the rest, till
God send us wiser men. But those who told you we spent so much
time in discoursing and consulting, etc., their hearts can tell
their tongues they lie. They care not, so that they salve their own
sores, how they wound others. Indeed it is our calamity that we
are, beyond expectation, yoked with some ill-disposed people, who,
while they do no good themselves, corrupt and abuse others.
The rest of the letter stated that they had subscribed to the
conditions according to his desire, and sent him the previous
accounts very exactly; also how the ship was laden, and in what
condition their affairs stood; that the arrival of the new people
would bring famine upon them unavoidably, if they did not receive
supplies, in time,—as Mr. Cushman could more fully inform him and the
rest of the adventurers. Also that, seeing he was not satisfied in
all his demands, he hoped offences would be forgotten, and he would
remember his promise, etc.
After the departure of this ship, which did not stay above fourteen
days, the Governor and his assistant having disposed the new arrivals
among several families as best they could, took an exact account
of all their provisions in store, and proportioned the same to the
number of persons, and found that it would not hold out above six
months at half allowance, and hardly that. They could not well give
less this winter, till fish came in again. So they were presently put
on half allowance, one as well as another. It became irksome, but
they bore it patiently, hoping to receive fresh supplies.
Soon after this ship’s departure, the great Narragansett tribe, in a
braving manner, sent a messenger to them with a bundle of arrows tied
about with a great snake skin, which their interpreters told them was
a threatening challenge. Upon which the Governor, with the advice
of the others, sent them a round answer, that if they would rather
have war than peace, they might begin when they would; they had done
them no wrong, neither did they fear them, nor would they find them
unprepared. They sent the snake skin back by another messenger with
bullets in it; but they would not receive it, and returned it again.
These things I need merely mention, because they are fully dealt with
in print by Mr. Winslow, at the request of some friends. The reason
was probably their own ambition, thinking, since the death of so many
of the Indians, to domineer and lord it over the rest, and that the
English would be a bar in their way, Massasoyt having taken shelter
already under their wings.
But this made the settlers more careful to look to themselves. They
agreed to enclose their dwellings in a good strong stockade and make
flankers in convenient places, with gates to shut. These they locked
every night, and a watch was kept, and when need required there were
also outposts in the day-time. The colonists, at the Captain’s and
Governor’s advice, were divided into four squadrons, and every one
had his quarter appointed, to which to repair at any sudden alarm;
and in case of fire, a company with muskets was appointed as a guard,
to prevent Indian treachery, whilst the others quenched it. This
was accomplished very cheerfully, and the town was enclosed by the
beginning of March, every family having a pretty garden plot.
Herewith I shall end this year—except to recall one more incident,
rather amusing than serious. On Christmas Day, the Governor called
the people out to work as usual; but most of the new company excused
themselves, and said it went against their consciences to work on
that day. So the Governor told them, if they made it a matter of
conscience, he would spare them till they were better informed. So
he went with the rest, and left them; but on returning from work at
noon he found them at play in the street, some pitching the bar, some
at stool-ball, and such like sports. So he went to them and took away
their games, and told them that it was against his conscience that
they should play and others work. If they made the keeping of the
day a matter of devotion, let them remain in their houses; but there
should be no gaming and revelling in the streets. Since then, nothing
has been attempted in that way, at least openly.