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A08122
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A briefe relation of the discouery and plantation of Nevv England and of sundry accidents therein occurring, from the yeere of our Lord M.DC.VII. to this present M.DC.XXII. Together with the state thereof as now it standeth; the generall forme of gouernment intended; and the diuision of the whole territorie into counties, baronries, &c.
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Council for New England.
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1622
(1622)
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STC 18483; ESTC S110082
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18,282
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36
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A briefe Relation OF THE DISCOVERY AND PLANTATION OF NEW ENGLAND AND OF SVNDRY ACCIDENTS THEREIN OCCVRRING FROM the yeere of our Lord M. DC VII to this present M. DC XXII Together with the state thereof as now it standeth the generall forme of gouernment intended and the diuision of the whole Territorie into Counties Baronries c. LONDON Printed by John Haviland and are to be sold by WILLIAM BLADEN M. DC XXII TO THE PRINCE his Highnesse SIR AS you are the height of our hopes and blessednesse next after your royall Father our Lord and Soueraigne So next vnto his Maiesty are wee bound to dedicate our best endeuours to your Princely seruice And for the Subiect of this relation as your Highnesse hath beene pleased to doe it the honour by giuing it the Name of New-England and by your Highnesse most fauourable encouragement to continue the same in life and being So ought we to render an accompt of our proceedings from the root thereof vnto the present growth it hath which summarily is here done If it shall appeare naked as in truth it is wee beseech your Highnesse to receiue it so much the rather for the truths sake and with your bounty and grace to shelter it from the storms tempests of malice and enuy by which it hath been heretofore dispoyled of that goodly Ornament it might haue had by this time It is now almost able to comfort it selfe and there is no question but by the light of your countenance it will speedily grew both to serue his Maiesty with honour and profit and multiply the same seruice to your Highnesse in time to come as a tribute due for the grace it receiues by the blessings of a long peace and prosperity that our Nation enioyes vnder the Raigne of his sacred Maiestie through which we haue the easier passage to aduance the Crosse of Christ in Heathen parts and to display his banner in the head of his Armie against infernall spirits which haue so long kept those poore distressed creatures the inhabitants of those parts in bondage whose posteritie will for euer blesse the time that the issue of your royall Ancestors sprung from so Emperiall branches should be the meanes to vnite the diuided Crownes in one whereby the generous Spirits of both Nations may haue the fairer opportunity to procure their liberties If your Highnesse accept of what is past we will hope of happinesse to ensue and howsoeuer pray that all encrease of honour in this world and all heauenly blessings in the world to come may light vpon your Highness as best beâ—omes those that are Your Highnesse humble seruants The President and Councell of NEVV-ENGLAND A briefe RELATION OF THE DISCOVERY AND PLANTATION of New England ALthough it bee a course farre from the minde of vs that are vndertakers for the aduancement of the Plantation of New-England to seeke by any vaine ostentation to extoll our owne endeuours yet we cannot but striue to vindicate our reputation from the iniurious aspersions that haue beene laid vpon it by the malicious practises of some that would aduenture nothing in the beginning but would now reape the benefit of our paines and charges and yet not seeme beholding to vs and to that end they disualew what is past and by sinister informations derogate what they can from the present courie intended the rather because the good Orders appointed to bee put in execution there are likely to restraine the licentious irregularitie of other places And this hath induced vs to publish our proceedings whereunto it hath pleased God to giue a blessing as to any of indifferent iudgement may appeare by that which followeth VVHen this designe was first attempted some of the present company were therein chiefly interessed who being carefull to haue the same accomplished did send to the discouery of those Northerne parts a braue Gentleman Captaine Henry Challons with two of the Natiues of that Territory the one called Maneday the other Assecomet But his misfortunes did expose him to the power of certaine Strangers enemies to his proceedings so that by them his company were seized the ships and goods confiscated and that Voyage wholly ouerthrowne This losse vnfortunate beginning did much abate the rising courage of the first Aduenturers but immediately vpon his departure it pleased the noble Lord chiefe Iustice Sir Iohn Popham knight to send out another ship wherein Captain Thomas Haman went Commander Marti ne Prinne of Bristow Master with all necessarie supplies for the seconding of Captaine Challons and his people who arriuing at the place appointed and not finding that Captaine there after they had made some discouery and found the Coasts Hauens and Harbors answerable to our desires they returned Vpon whose relation the Lord Chiefe Iustice and wee all waxed so confide nt of the businesse that the yeere following euerie man of any worth formerly interessed in it was willing to ioyne in the charge for the sending ouer a competent number of people to lay the ground of a hopefull plantation Here upon Captaine Popham Captaine Rawley Gilbert and others were sent away with two Ships and an hundred Landmen Ordnance and other prouisions necessarie for their sustentation and defence vntill other supply might bee sent In the meane while before they could returne it pleased God to take from vs this worthy member the Lord Chiefe Iustice whose sudden death did so astonish the hearts of the most part of the Aduenturers as some grew cold and some did wholly abandon the businesse Yet Sir Francis Popham his sonne certaine of his priuate friends and other of vs omitted not the next yeare holding on our first resolution to ioyne in sending forth a new supply which was accordingly performed But the Ships arriuing there did not only bring vncomfortable newes of the death of the Lord Chiefe Iustice together with the death of Sir Iohn Gilbert the elder brother vnto Captaine Rawley Gilbert who at that time was President of that Councell But found that the old Captaine Popham was also dead who was the onely man indeed that died there that Winter wherein they indured the greater extremities for that in the depth thereof their lodgings and stores were burnt and they thereby wondrously distressed This calamitie and euill newes together with the resolution that Captaine Gilbert was forced to take for his owne returne in that hee was to suceed his brother in the inheritance of his lands in England made the whole company to resolue vpon nothing but their returne with the Ships and for that present to leaue the Countrey againe hauing in the time of their abode there notwithstanding the coldnesse of the season and the small helpe they had built a prettie Barke of their owne which serued them to good purpose as easing them in their returning The arriuall of these people heere in England was a wonderfull discouragement to all the first vndertakers in so much as there was no more speech of setling any
other plantation in those parts for a long time after only Sir Francis Popham hauing the Ships and prouision which remained of the company and supplying what was necessary for his purpose sent diuers times to the coasts for trade and fishing of whose losse or gaines himselfe is best able to giue account Our people abandoning the plantation in this sort as you haue heard the Frenchmen immediately tooke the opportunitie to settle themselues within our limits which being heard of by those of Virginia that discreetly tooke to their consideration the inconueniences that might arise by suffering them to harbour there they dispatched Sir Samuel Argall with commission to displace them which hee performed with much discretion iudgement valour and dexteritie For hauing seized their Forts which they had built at Mount Mansell Saint Croix and Port Reall he carryed away their Ordnance hee also surprised their Ship Cattle and other prouisions which hee transported to the Collonie in Virginia to their great benefit And hereby he hath made a way for the present hopefull plantation to bee made in Noua-Scotia which we heare his Maiestie hath lately granted to Sir William Alexander Knight one of his Maiesties most honourable Councell of the Kingdome of Scotland to bee held of the said Crowne and that not without some of our priuities as by approbation vnder writing may and doth appeare Whereby it is manifest that wee are so farre from making a Monopoly of all those lands belonging to that coast as hath beene scandalously by some obiected That we wish that many would vndertake the like In this Interim there were of vs who apprehenedd better hopes of good that might ensue by this attempt being thereunto perswaded both by the relations of our people that had indured the many difficulties whereunto such actions are subiected chiefly in the Winter season and likewise by the informations giuen them by certaine of the Natiues that had beene kept a long time in their hands wherefore we resolued once more to trie the veritie thereof and to see if possibly we might finde something that might induce a fresh resolution to prosecute a worke so pious and so honourable And thereupon they dispatched Captaine Hobson of the I le of Wight together with Captaine Herley Master Iohn Matthew Master Sturton with two Saluages the one called Epenow the other Manawet with commission and directions fit for them to obserue and follow the better to bring to passe what was expected But as in all humane affaires there is nothing more certaine then the vncertaintie thereof so fell it out in this for a little before such time as they arriued vpon the coast with the foresaid Sauages who were Naturalls of those parts it happened there had beene one Hunt a worthlesse fellow of our Nation set out by certaine Merchants for loue of gaine who not content with the commoditie he had by the fish and peaceable trade he found among the Sauages after hee Irad made his dispatch and was ready to set sayle more sauage-like then they seized vpon the poore innocent creatures that in confidence of his honestie had put themselues into his hands And stowing them vnder hatches to the number of twenty foure carried them into the Straights where hee sought to sell them for flaues and sold as many as he could get money for But when it was vnderstood from whence they were brought the Friers of those parts tooke the rest from them and kept them to be instructed in the Christian Faith and so disappointed this vnworthy fellow of the hopes of gaine he conceiued to make by this new diuellish proiect This being knowne by our two Saluages formerly spoken of they presently contracted such an hatred against our whole Nation as they immediatly studied how to be reuenged and contriued with their friends the best meanes to bring it to passe but Manawet dying in a short time after the Ships arriuall there and the other obseruing the good order and strong guard our people kept studied only how to free himselfe out of our hands and thereupon laid the plot very orderly and indeed effected his purpose although with so great hazard to himselfe and friends that laboured his rescue that Captaine Hobson and his whole company imagined he had beene slaine And though in the recouery of his body they wounded the Master of our Ship and diuers other of our company yet was not their designe without the slaughter of some of their people and the hurts of other compassed as appeared afterward Hereupon Captaine Hobson and his companie conceiuing the end of their attempt to bee frustrate resolued without more adoe to returne and so those hopes that charge and voyage was lost also for they brought home nothing but the newes of their euill successe of the vnfortunate cause thereof and of a warre now new begunne betweene the inhabitants of those parts and vs. A miserable comfort for so weake meanes as were now left to pursue the conclusion of so tedious an enterprise While this was a working wee found the meanes to send out Captainer Iohn Smith from Plymouth in a ship together with Master Darmer and diuers others with him to lay the foundation of a new Plantation and to try the fishing of that Coast and to seeke to settle a trade with the Natiues But such was his misfortune as being scarce free of our owne Coast he had his masts shaken ouer boord by stormes and tempasts his ship wonderfully distressed and in that extremity forced to come backe againe so as the season of the yeere being almost spent we were of necessitie enforced to furnish him with another ship and taking out the prouision of the first dispatched him away againe who comming to the height of the Westerne Islands was chased by a French Pirate and by him made prisoner although his ship in the night escaped away and returned home with the losse of much of her prouision and the ouerthrow of that voyage to the ruine of that poore Gentleman Captaine Smith who was detained prisoner by them and forced to suffer many extremities before hee got free of his troubles Notwithstanding these disasters it pleased God so to worke for our incouragement againe as hee sent into our hands Tasquantum one of those Saluages that formerly had beene betrayed by this vnworthy Hunt before named by whose meanes there was hope conceiued to worke a peace betweene vs and his friends they being the principall inhabitants of that coast where the fire was kindled But this Saluage Tasquantum being at that time in the New-found land with Captain Mason Gouernour there for the vndertakers of that Plantation Master Darmer who was there also and sometimes before imployed as we haue said by vs together with Captaine Iohn Smith found the meanes to giue vs intelligence of him and his opinion of the good vse that might be made of his imployment with the readinesse of Captaine Mason to further any of our attempts that way either