to leaue their labours & to stand vppon their guardes day & night for feare of being exposed to barbarous Crueltie or Dutch treacherie, & the s English sending to him for a supplie of amu[ni]tion it was denied them, allthough the Indians were then very plentifullie supplied by the Dutch: The affores! Comission for the vnited Collonies being then att Boston, the Comissions for the two Westerne Collonics vizt Conneticot and Newhauen being nighest the danger much pressed the Comissioners for the Massachusets & Plimouth Collonies that some speedie Course might be taken for the preuention of it, which they of Boston & Plimouth seeminglie embraced by making a greate noise of greater preparations of raising forces to subdue the Dutch, which all turnde to nothing, but made the Dutch Gouernour more stronglie fortifie, both ffort & Cittie farre stronger then they were euer before. Maior Robert Sedegwicke being emploied with Comission & power for the subduing the s place, many of the English next adiacent to the Dutch vppon Long Isl: being well affected to the right of their nation to those ptes, many of the Dutch Lowers themselues being very willing to submit to an English gouerment being wearied with the oppressions & exactions of the Dutch Gouern Corresponding with them togeather with a greate ptie of the low land Indians who were readie to engage against the Dutch in the behalfe of the English, & daily waited for the word or order from the English. who sent for a Comission by an expresse to Boston for that purpose, which as they were enformed was denied by Captaine Leuerets meanes, and allthough the two Westerne Collonies were in a readie posture to aduance, & in all probabilitie the designe might haue bynne very easilie accomplished without the shedding of one drop of bloude; yet the execution of the said Comission was so long retarded (as supposed) by his former Compliants of the Massachusets & Plimouth Collonies y the generall peace betwixt the two nations interuened before the accomplishment of it, and that to the greate preiudice of his Ma and subiects in loosing such an opportunitie of firmelie establishing his Maiesties rights to those ptes & the greate profit that might haue redounted to his Maties subiects not only of their settlem in the best pte of all that Northerne Empire, but likewise the greate profit of the trade with the natiues, so that I may trulie say that as New Engl in the generall (for the reasons affores) were the first Cause of their populating it: so Boston & Plimouth in pticular of their fortefieing and keeping of it euer since. Mr Thomas Pell affores in Consideration of a valuable summe of money purchased a considerable Tract of lands (of the Indian natiues the right & true owners thereof nere adiacent to the sd Isl: of Manahatans) in the time of the late warre & was seised & posesst thereof & kept posession thereof in the time of the late warre, setling certaine families there, & erected the small beginning of a towne called Westminster, neuerthelesse the s Dutch Gouern' Styvesant after the conclusion of the general peace betwixt the late Vsurper Oliuer & their States, & Six moneths after his owne publique proclaiming of it in those ptes, in a hostile way and by force of Armes inuaded the lands of the sd English, surprised their psons Carrieing them prisoners to their Cittie New Amsterdam, & kept them there in prison so long vntill such time as he enforced them to subscribe to an instrum in writing to acknowledge the Hollands West Indie Company as Cheif Lords & patrons of the said lands & to submit to his gouerment vnder them & to accept & obey such Magistrates which he should from time to time Constitute ouer them, the said lands were formerlie in the yeare 1642 setled by certaine English families that were banished oute of the Massachusets the cheif whereof were Mrs Anne Hutchinson and others & that vnder the gouerm' & protectio of the Dutch, the Dutch Gouern pretending a right thereunto, but the Indians disowned that euer they had giuen or sould the Dutch Gouern' any pte or pcell of the s lands & therefore forewarned the s Mr Hutchinson to departe or else to buye & giue them satisfaction for the same, the which they delaying vppon the promise of the s Dutch Gouern! fullie to satisfie the Indians himselfe, which hee not doeing the s Indians killed the s Mrs Hutchinson with many more English that were there, burning their howses and killing their Cattle, so that allthough the s place was first setled by the blood of the English, & since lawfullie purchased as abouesaid by the Consent and willing desire of the s Indian owners for the English to settle there, yet the place is still deteined from the s? M: Tho: Pell. whom I haue often heard say that he could make it appeare by his accompts the purchase of the sd lands & what he had disbursed aboute the settlement of it, stood him in very neere 500 sterl: ties By what hath bynne formerlie written it may euidentlie appeare that the Dutch haue entruded into his Mate rights in the very best pte of all that large northerne Empire & haue from time to time encroached more & more thereuppon by their force & pollicie & seuerall wayes abused and wronged his Mais subiects, of those ptes after their first settlem's there fineding (sic) so gainfull & beneficiall trade with the Indian natiues allthough Contrarie to the wills & desires of the s natiues, who euer since most comonlie once in two yeares killed some of the Dutch in destation & dislike of them for taking their lands away, so that after the great massacre of the Dutch when their Gouern" was at Deleware, and his base submission by begging a stilstand or Cessation of Armes from the s Indians, an intelligent Indian discoursing with some English aboute the opportunitie they then had lost by their asistance to haue rooted oute the Dutch & to be reuenged for wrongs done them and setling the gouerm and lands vppon themselues, asked this question; I wonder what for men you englishmen are, the ptie desired to knowe a reason of his question, to whom hee very readilie replied; Wee of the Indian nation loue and feare your nation; your nation feare the Dutch, and the Dutch are affraid of vs, vpbraiding our nation with Cowardice vntill such time hee was satisfied by telling him our hands were tied vpp by the peace that was made in Europe; so that to myne owne knowledge as the Indians haue oftentimes denied to sell their lands to the Dutch so they are desirous of the English to settle amongst them, & for that end I am very Confident would be very ready to asist the English against the Dutch with a Considerable ptie of them, if euer occasion should require. : In septemb. 1659. a fort belonging to the Dutch, lyinge about 80 miles aboue Manhatas beinge some weekes belegured by some thousands of Indians, their Corne burnt, and many slayne, and they not able to relieue it, They requested S Henery Mody to raise a foote Company for theire assistance, weh he did, and wth the Countenance of them, they entered the fort and sett vp the English Coulors, wch the Dutch keepe to this day, to be supposed to make vse of on the like occasion. One M Abraham Sheares who caryed the Colours is now heare and can giue a fuller relation. And now by letters from New England we are informed, the Indians, are on the same termes as formerly. Endorsed in Lord Clarendon's hand-writing-" Concerninge the New Netherlandes, or Manahatan," and in another hand, " During La Clarendon's Ministry." II. THE CASE STATED, AS IT RELATES TO YE DESIRE OF HAVING ONE GENERALL COLLECTION TOWARDS CARRYING ON YE WORCKE OF PROPAGACON OF YE GOSPELL AMONGST YE INDIANS. Some English being formerly planted amongst ye Barbarous Indians in America, apprehended it a duty incumbent on them, not only to endeavour y Civilizing of those Natives, but as much as in them lay after some Commerce wth them, yo pswading of them to forsake their accustomed paganish Charmes & sorceries, & other their Satanicall Delutions, and instead thereof to acquaint yem wth ye knowledge of ye only true God in Christ, and wth his everlasting Gospell. By the blessing of almighty God vpon weh indeavours, & smale beginnings, many remarkeable instances & testimonyes were had & given of the Gospell made knowne amongst them, by enlightning their mindes & turning them from y° miserable darknes, by wch they were kept in Captivity, to serve ye living God in ye Gospell of his sonne. The Knowledg of soe glorious a worke soe hopefully begun comeing into England, stirred vp divers about yo yeare 1648. to move ye Lords & Comons yt then were, not only to Constitute a Corporacón for yo managem1 of y' service, but to grant Liberty for one generall Contribucon throughout England & Wales, for incouragem1 of fitt instrums, and pvisions requisite, for civilizing & employeing of ye Natives, and for what might bee necessary for carrying on soe good a worke, the desires & motives of w-ch persons being granted, divers sumes were raised, & by meanes thereof y° worke hath had a verie considerable pgresse, in having y° Gospell preached to yo Indians in their owne Language, the new Testam' a few chapters whereof were only done at first, being now throughout printed in their owne Language, and many Natives brought over to imbrace ye true Christian Religion. His Ma' considering ye Consequence of soe glorious a worke, hath lately erected a Corporacōn to carry on and pfect this worke, who at yer first entrance cheifely by meanes of Collonel Bedingfeild, for ye space of neare two yeares past, interrupting their possession, and receiving y° pfitts of Lands purchased of him wth y greatest parte of ye Moneyes received by the former Collections doe finde their charges have of late much exceeded their incumbs, and their Revenue much to smale at present, to enable them to carry on soe chargeable, as well as charitable a worke. And therefore doe humbly |