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<DATE>2007-10-12</DATE>
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<NAME>Emma Leeson Huber</NAME>
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<ITEM>Added TYPEs to DIVs in order to validate. Proofed title page(s).  Checked for GROUP tags. Checked ^s. Reviewed structure. Checked division-marking material at heads and feet of divisions (HEADS, etc.). Checked for signatures. Checked placement and completeness of PBs. Checked for damage GAPs, #s, @s, --s, and UNCLEARs. Corrected 45 $s and $$word$$s etc. of 569. Converted 524 $$s to GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex". Checked spacing of foreign GAPs. Checked for EPIGRAPHs and ARGUMENTs. Checked for LBs. Checked for startqs, endqs, oes, q;s, and Qs. Checked proofsheets and made corrections found there. Checked for CLOSERs, TRAILERs, and BYLINEs. Checked for missing page GAPs. DONE.</ITEM>
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<STC T="W">G1308</STC>
<STC T="T">E360_16</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99860430</BIBNO>
<VID>112550</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P><HI>SIMPLICITIES DEFENCE</HI> again&s;t SEVEN-HEADED POLICY. OR Innocency Vindicated, being unju&s;tly Accu&s;ed, and &s;orely Cen&s;ured, by that <HI>Seven-headed Church-Government</HI> United in NEW-ENGLAND: OR That Servant &s;o Imperious in his Ma&s;ters Ab&s;ence Revived, and now thus re-acting in NEVV-ENGLAND. OR The combate of the United Colonies, not onely again&s;t &s;ome of the Natives and Subjects, but again&s;t the Authority al&s;o of the Kingdme of <HI>England,</HI> with their execution of Laws, in the name and Authority of the &s;ervant, (or of them&s;elves) and not in the Name and Authority of the Lord, or fountain of the Government. Wherein is declared an Act of a great people and Country of the <HI>Indians</HI> in tho&s;e parts, both Princes and People (unanimou&s;ly) in their voluntary Submi&s;&s;ion and Subjection unto the Protection and Government of Old England (from the Fame they hear thereof) toge|ther with the true manner and forme of it, as it appears under their own hands and &s;eals, being &s;tirred up, and provoked thereto, by the Combate and cour&s;es above-&s;aid. Throughout which Treati&s;e is &s;ecretly intermingled, that great Oppo&s;ition, which is in the goings forth of tho&s;e two grand Spirits, that are, and ever have been, extant in the World (through the &s;ons of men) from the beginning and foundation thereof.</P>
<P><HI>Jmprimatur, Aug.</HI> 3^d. 1646. Diligently peru&s;ed, approved, and Licen&s;ed to the Pre&s;&s;e, according to Order by publike Authority.</P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed by <HI>John Macock,</HI> and are to be &s;old by LUKE FAVVNE, at his &s;hop in <HI>Pauls Church-yard,</HI> at the &s;ign of the <HI>Parrot.</HI> 1646.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>&V;pon an occa&s;ionall view, of this un|expected, and much unwi&s;hed for Story.</HEAD>
<LG>
<L>THis Story's <HI>&s;trange,</HI> but altogether <HI>true:</HI></L>
<L>Old <HI>Englands</HI> Saints are <HI>bani&s;ht</HI> out of <HI>New:</HI></L>
<L>Oh Mon&s;trous <HI>Art,</HI> and <HI>cunning</HI> of the Devill,</L>
<L>What <HI>hidden</HI> paths he goes, to <HI>&s;pread,</HI> his <HI>evill!</HI></L>
<L>The <HI>Man</HI> of <HI>Sin's</HI> the <HI>&s;ame,</HI> his elde&s;t <HI>Son;</HI></L>
<L>Both have more <HI>&s;hapes,</HI> then be <HI>moats,</HI> in the Sun.</L>
<L>Hence <HI>di&s;appointed,</HI> are the mo&s;t of <HI>men;</HI></L>
<L>When trouble's <HI>pa&s;t</HI> (&s;ome thinke) they <HI>ri&s;e</HI> agen.</L>
<L>Thus it befell the&s;e <HI>Pilgrims,</HI> in that <HI>Land,</HI></L>
<L>To <HI>which</HI> they fled, from <HI>per&s;ecutions</HI> hand,</L>
<L>This <HI>Indians</HI> note, with <HI>Papi&s;ts, Iews</HI> and <HI>Turks,</HI></L>
<L>For in <HI>them all,</HI> the &s;elfe &s;ame <HI>&s;pirit</HI> works:</L>
<L>Thus is the <HI>Name</HI> of <HI>Chri&s;t, bla&s;pem'd,</HI> by the&s;e,</L>
<L>Who burthen <HI>them,</HI> to whom they promi&s;e ea&s;e.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>Oh <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> ari&s;e, and <HI>&s;pread</HI> thy <HI>glorious</HI> fame,</L>
<L>That all may <HI>know,</HI> the <HI>&s;weetne&s;&s;e</HI> of thy <HI>Name:</HI></L>
<L><HI>A&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> Affric, Europe,</HI> and <HI>America</HI></L>
<L><HI>Expect!</HI> and <HI>waite</HI> the <HI>dawnings</HI> of that <HI>day,</HI></L>
<L>That <HI>Papi&s;ts, Greeks,</HI> and we the <HI>Prote&s;tants</HI></L>
<L>Of <HI>Calvins Sect,</HI> tho&s;e too, the <HI>Lutherans,</HI></L>
<L>And <HI>they</HI> that are a <HI>&s;treine</HI> above them <HI>all,</HI></L>
<L>At <HI>Ie&s;us</HI> feet, at <HI>length</HI> may <HI>humbly</HI> fall,</L>
<L>That &s;o &s;uch <HI>Chri&s;ts,</HI> which <HI>mo&s;t</HI> in fancy <HI>make</HI></L>
<L>(Whence 'tis (Men think) that Chri&s;tendome doth <HI>&s;hake</HI>)</L>
<L><PB REF="3">May at th' <HI>appearing</HI> of the <HI>Lord</HI> depart,</L>
<L>And <HI>all</HI> may <HI>wor&s;hip</HI> him ev'n with <HI>one heart:</HI></L>
<L>That &s;o the <HI>Nations</HI> may this <HI>glory &s;ee;</HI></L>
<L>And into <HI>it,</HI> at length <HI>transformed</HI> be:</L>
<L>This to <HI>effect,</HI> can't be by <HI>&s;word</HI> of <HI>man,</HI></L>
<L>But <HI>that</HI> which to <HI>with-&s;tand,</HI> no <HI>Kingdomes</HI> can,</L>
<L>For tis the <HI>Lords</HI> owne <HI>might,</HI> the <HI>&s;word</HI> that doth,</L>
<L>Ev'n with <HI>two edges</HI> flow out of <HI>Gods</HI> mouth,</L>
<L>By which are <HI>&s;laine</HI> the <HI>wicked</HI> of each <HI>Land,</HI></L>
<L>And will &s;ure <HI>breake</HI> each Per&s;ecutors <HI>band:</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>Then <HI>England,</HI> and <HI>Yee Nations</HI> round <HI>about,</HI></L>
<L>That are now &s;o lofty, and &s;o <HI>&s;tout:</HI></L>
<L>At length <HI>downe fall</HI> to <HI>him</HI> that's <HI>Lord</HI> of you:</L>
<L>And <HI>learne</HI> with <HI>him,</HI> like <HI>meekne&s;&s;e</HI> for to <HI>&s;how:</HI></L>
<L>If you with <HI>iron Rods, Saints breake and brui&s;e.</HI></L>
<L><HI>Know</HI> then <HI>your &s;elves,</HI> that <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> you <HI>&s;o</HI> will <HI>u&s;e.</HI></L>
</LG>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>R. B.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>A Lover of peace, and one of eminent re&s;pect, viewing this Treati&s;e at the Pre&s;&s;e, kindly added this ver&s;e pre|fixed, which hath both &s;odainly, and unexpectedly drawn from my thoughts as here followeth, as a te&s;timony of my kind re&s;pects unto the party, though but a &s;tranger unto him; it may al&s;o &s;erve as an intelligencer, what was the only ground of controver&s;ie, in acting according unto, and publi&s;hing of, this Treati&s;e.</HEAD>
<LG>
<L>_THe &s;erpent with a voyce &s;o <HI>&s;lie</HI> and <HI>fine</HI></L>
<L>Con&s;ults with <HI>nature,</HI> as though he were <HI>divine,</HI></L>
<L>Whil'&s;t &s;he doth &s;eek for glory, wealth, and love</L>
<L>In things that are <HI>below,</HI> and not <HI>in that above;</HI></L>
<L>Lending <HI>an</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Hence doth ari&s;e the way of <HI>Solomons</HI> harlot, &s;et out in the way of this woman, <HI>Gen. 3. Prov.</HI> 7. who may not &s;peake in the Church, but u&s;urpeth. 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.</NOTE> <HI>ear</HI> to li&s;ten unto him,</L>
<L>The <HI>fruit looks fair,</HI> the <HI>tree</HI> &s;eems nothing grim:</L>
<L>And thence doth he, at <HI>fir&s;t begin t' ari&s;e</HI></L>
<L>Through earthly projects, for to make <HI>man wi&s;e:</HI></L>
<L>Whereas the <HI>light of heaven, GOD him&s;elf ordain'd</HI></L>
<L>To be that <HI>thing,</HI> whereby man is <HI>maintain'd</HI></L>
<L><PB REF="4">In wi&s;dom, honor, happine&s;s, and peace,</L>
<L>That doth from <HI>&s;erpent</HI> (&s;in, death, hell) relea&s;e;</L>
<L>And not <HI>conjectural,</HI> doubtful, &s;ubtil notion</L>
<L>Set forth, <HI>by art,</HI> with &s;ign of great devotion.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>Come from the <HI>Prelates</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The &s;erpents voyce tran&s;|m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ts into <HI>new England,</HI> &s;pea|king there in way of Mini|&s;try, as at the beginning.</NOTE>, your per&s;ecuting foes;</L>
<L>Our Church (<HI>as Primitive</HI>) Chri&s;t Je&s;us doth di&s;clo&s;e</L>
<L>Her <HI>Ordinances pure,</HI> a Church erected here</L>
<L>Where you may wor&s;hip, voyd of care or fear,</L>
<L>Our Land is large; Our Magi&s;tracy good;</L>
<L>Come <HI>o're</HI> to &s;ave that innocent-like blood</L>
<L>From &s;uch as are to cruelty &s;o bent,</L>
<L><HI>Our ways are meek and humble,</HI> to give all content;</L>
<L>Thus he appears, <HI>apparrelled in white</HI></L>
<L>To &s;nare in that, wherein he takes delight.</L>
<L>An earthly Kingdom, he would fain erect</L>
<L>Then <HI>spiritual honor,</HI> he mu&s;t needs reject.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>That when <HI>that,</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">In this wo|man is &s;et out the way of King <HI>Lemuels</HI> mother, that teacheth pro|phe&s;ie, <HI>Rev. 12 Prov.</HI> 31. who may pray and prophecy in the Church without u&s;ur|pation. 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11</NOTE> <HI>woman,</HI> appeareth in her glory</L>
<L><HI>With him in womb, of whom intreats all &s;tory.</HI></L>
<L>Then's he <HI>a dragon red,</HI> for to devour</L>
<L>That <HI>child,</HI> to whom is given, <HI>all the power</HI></L>
<L><HI>In heaven, and in earth,</HI> to rule as King and Lord.</L>
<L><HI>None to the &s;erpent,</HI> no, heaven cannot afford</L>
<L><HI>A place of re&s;idence,</HI> he mu&s;t thence depart</L>
<L><HI>Down to the earth,</HI> full &s;ore again&s;t his heart,</L>
<L>That he a place cannot <HI>devi&s;e to frame</HI></L>
<L>Which from the <HI>heavens</HI> may &s;eem to take its <HI>fame.</HI></L>
<L>Cruel, Raging, Carnal, now he cometh forth</L>
<L>His <HI>&s;lie, and &s;ubtil wi&s;dom,</HI> now proves nothing worth.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>This woman, <HI>now in travel,</HI> finds not <HI>time</HI></L>
<L>To li&s;ten unto him, <HI>nought but the child is mine:</HI></L>
<L>Which <HI>child in her,</HI> can nothing el&s;e confe&s;&s;e,</L>
<L>But <HI>Throne of glory</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">For the one betakes it &s;elf to heaven, the other to the wilderne&s;s.</NOTE>, and <HI>bare Wilderne&s;&s;e:</HI></L>
<L>Which <HI>twain together,</HI> give all prai&s;e to one;</L>
<L>Then fury's in the Serpent, &s;mooth policy is gone:</L>
<L>No <HI>middle place</HI> for Sathan now is found,</L>
<L>Not <HI>one with th' manehild;</HI> down he goes to ground:</L>
<L><PB REF="4">His cunning cannot now intice &s;o far,</L>
<L>But <HI>Michael,</HI> and <HI>his Angels</HI> wil make War</L>
<L>With <HI>Dragon,</HI> and with all his <HI>Angels</HI> great,</L>
<L>Yea overcome him, never &s;ound retreat.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>Mo&s;t of his skil he u&s;eth <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">He ever puts off the day of the Lord as not yet time to build the Temple, but would live in his own &s;eiled (or artificial) hou&s;e of his own framing and device.</NOTE>, he knows how</L>
<L>To talk of benefits to receive, although not now&punc;</L>
<L>And &s;o from place, and per&s;on &s;till delights to wend,</L>
<L>Where's outward peace, there's Chri&s;t, doth he pretend;</L>
<L>And if &s;o be that troubles do ari&s;e,</L>
<L>Him&s;elf he &s;aves, <HI>the &s;erpent is &s;o wi&s;e:</HI></L>
<L>No tye, <HI>to fold, nor flock,</HI> he then wil know;</L>
<L>Chri&s;t in an earthly peace, he'l have, where e're he go.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>Whereas <HI>our Lord,</HI> his voyce doth &s;ometimes teach</L>
<L>Go to <NOTE N="**" PLACE="marg">Though he de&s;ired to be with Je&s;us, yet Je&s;us under|&s;tanding his de&s;ire to be but nature (that is) to in|joy him, ac|cording to the fle&s;h, denies him that, that &s;o he might be with him ac|cording to the &s;pirit. <HI>Mat.</HI> 28. 20.</NOTE> <HI>Decapolis,</HI> and there thou &s;halt me preach</L>
<L>Unto <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">For &s;o the word <HI>Decapolis</HI> &s;ignifies ten Cities.</NOTE> ten Cities, great the number bee;</L>
<L>My Word &s;hal reach them, and <HI>I am with thee.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>For <HI>I</HI> am <HI>truth,</HI> and truth thou goe&s;t to &s;how</L>
<L><HI>Which makes thee free,</HI> my pre&s;ence thou do&s;t know</L>
<L>No place can, <HI>&s;cant thee off, then walke at large,</HI></L>
<L>Doubt not, <HI>I'm with thee&punc;</HI> doe but keepe my <HI>Charge,</HI></L>
<L>The nations &s;hall come forth at <HI>once,</HI> yea at <HI>one</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">See <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60. 21 22. and 66. 8.</NOTE> <HI>birth;</HI></L>
<L>Truth in the change of <HI>one,</HI> reneweth all the <HI>earth;</HI></L>
<L>El&s;e, were <HI>not perfect good,</HI> in every one erect,</L>
<L>Nor <HI>&s;inne were full,</HI> through th'fall that great defect,</L>
<L>If change of <HI>one</HI> were not a world renew'd,</L>
<L>What <HI>Nation then,</HI> not brought in, and &s;ubdu'd,</L>
<L>When truth is publi&s;ht, though but unto <HI>one</HI></L>
<L>Imbrac't, receiv'd? oh happy State of man,</L>
<L>All Gentile Jewels, <HI>brought in,</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">See <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 61. 6. and 60. 11. 16.</NOTE> who can want</L>
<L>The world's in darkene&s;&s;e, el&s;e could ne're be &s;cant.</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>But Hypocrites cannot this thing dige&s;t,</L>
<L>In places, times, and per&s;ons, they &s;eek wealth and re&s;t,</L>
<L>And &s;ee not how <HI>the mighty Lord above</HI></L>
<L><HI>Hath ca&s;t his skirt o're Ruth, yea fild her lap in love,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Of whom comes Chri&s;t,</HI> that world of Gods <HI>goodwill,</HI></L>
<L>What can &s;he want, that heaven or earth doth fill?</L>
<L><PB REF="5">All keepe their &s;tations, <HI>attend</HI> as they have done,</L>
<L>Neglect no <HI>homage,</HI> or &s;ervice to the <HI>Son,</HI></L>
<L>All bring their <HI>vertues,</HI> trea&s;ures, and their glory</L>
<L>Centring them all in him, a world of Princely Dowry,</L>
<L><HI>Then walke through Sea, or Land, by friends or foes</HI></L>
<L><HI>Let pri&s;ons fa&s;t, hard irons thee inclo&s;e,</HI></L>
<L>All take thy part, yea plead thy cau&s;e for thee</L>
<L>The world vents its malice, <HI>in Chri&s;ts love thou art free.</HI></L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>The Spirit of this world by the&s;e things comes to light</L>
<L>Its pomp, and glory, which ear&s;t did &s;hine &s;o bright</L>
<L>Appears gro&s;&s;e darkne&s;&s;e, unto Chri&s;tian eyes</L>
<L>Down comes its Kingdome, up goes its plaints and cryes,</L>
<L>Helpe <HI>Sword and Gun,</HI> el&s;e doth our Kingdome fall</L>
<L><HI>Court, fire,</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Books &s;o in|tituled written upon uncer|tain reports, tales, &amp; conje|ctures to cure the Church.</NOTE> <HI>Gangrena,</HI> we ta&s;t worm-wood and gall,</L>
<L>No marvell, for, Chri&s;t in his native kind</L>
<L>Set forth, declar'd unto a carnall mind,</L>
<L>Appears as odious unto &s;uch a wight</L>
<L>As &s;inne to him, in whom is found the light:</L>
<L>What &s;entence &s;hall be given then by &s;ons of men,</L>
<L>When truth appears, if power were found in them?</L>
</LG>
<LG>
<L>No power but that of darkne&s;&s;e then, let us to them a&s;cribe</L>
<L>What's in the Church's <HI>our Lords, all</HI> unto them deny'd;</L>
<L>Take heed yee Judg of <HI>Bla&s;phemies</HI> aright,</L>
<L>For Light di&s;cerns, the darkne&s;&s;e hath no &s;ight.</L>
<L><HI>If Light, and Candle&s;ticke,</HI> you know not how, t' make one</L>
<L>Su&s;pend your judgement, <HI>all your skill is gone,</HI></L>
<L>And let the Judge of all, his Circuit pa&s;&s;e apace,</L>
<L>Who comes <HI>not to de&s;troy,</HI> &s;uch is his grace,</L>
<L>And let that man his own de&s;truction be,</L>
<L>Who breaks that <HI>faith with God,</HI> cannot be peec'd by thee:</L>
<L>Cea&s;e then your pro&s;ecutions, &s;eek yee to doe good:</L>
<L>Save life in any, in <HI>Church wayes</HI> &s;pill not blood:</L>
<L>In Chri&s;t, if you con&s;ider, the <HI>Covenant</HI> of God,</L>
<L>Youle find that all compul&s;ion, is nought but that <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">A meer hun|ting of men to worry your own kind; (or rather that hind of the morning, &s;ee <HI>P&s;a&punc;</HI> 22. in the title) thir|&s;ting after the precious life. Compare <HI>G<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n.</HI> 10. 8, 9. with <HI>Jer.</HI> 16. 16.</NOTE> <HI>Nim-rod.</HI></L>
</LG>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>S. G.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE, the Earl of <HI>Warwick,</HI> Lord High Admirall of ENGLAND, and Governour in chiefe of the Engli&s;h Plantations in <HI>America,</HI> and upon the coa&s;ts thereof, and to the re&s;t of <HI>that Honourable Committee, joyned in Commi&s;&s;ion with his Excellencie, For the wel ordering, government, and &s;afety of For|rain Plantations.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>RIGHT HONORABLE,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_ACcording to the Fame we have heard of you, &s;o have we found in you, a &s;pirit of tenderne&s;&s;e and compa&s;si|on towards the oppre&s;&s;ed, which ever &s;prings from the courage and fortitude of a heart re&s;olute to &s;uppre&s;&s;e the Oppre&s;&s;or, be his power and policie what it may, whil&s;t men un&s;en&s;ible of the cau&s;e of the Needy, ever &s;tand in readi|ne&s;&s;e to &s;ide with the &s;tronge&s;t partie, and &s;o (as occa&s;ion &s;erves) to become one with the cruell, venting the &s;ame &s;pirit, which for ad|vantage can ea&s;ily transform it &s;elfe, &s;o as if
<PB REF="6">
power comply with the ju&s;t mans cau&s;e, the vi|zard of hypocri&s;ie is &s;oon put on by &s;uch, ei|ther to become dumb &amp; &s;ilent, or el&s;e to &s;peak &s;o, as may be&s;t advantage it &s;elfe, let the cau&s;e be what it will. Your wi&s;dom and noble care in tho&s;e weighty affairs committed to your tru&s;t, commands and binds us over to make a more particular and full relation (then former|ly we have done) of what hath pa&s;&s;ed betwixt &s;ome other Colonies in NEVV-ENGLAND, and our &s;elves; that if it be po&s;sible to find any lei&s;ure hours in a crowd of &s;o great im|ployments, your Honours might be plea&s;ed to take a more full view of things; in the mean time we &s;tand humbly ingaged, as we have done; and ever &s;hall in any &s;ervice, that what we are, or have, can tender to the honour and peace of our Native Countrey, or to any true|hearted well-Wi&s;her thereof; and if no other &s;ervice (we can) may be acceptable, yet of this imployment none &s;hall prevent us (whil&s;t our God gives us hearts) daily to pray for you.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your Honours mo&s;t humble Servants, the Inhabitants of <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> who&s;e names are often expre&s;&s;ed in this Narration.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="6">
<HEAD><HI>THE EPISTLE</HI> TO THE <HI>READER,</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>COURTEOUS READER.</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_DOe not thinke that we delight to lay open the in|firmitie and weakne&s;&s;e of men (except our weakne&s;&s;es and infirmities, as the Son of God &s;u&s;tained them) any further, nor to other end, but as they &s;erve to di&s;cover and lay open that one &s;pirit of the God of this world, which now works effectually in the children of di&s;|obedience, which &s;pirit in all its &s;everall wayes of operation, may be gathered up, and centred in, that &s;on of perdition, yea, in that &s;even-headed, and ten horned bea&s;t, who&s;e power and policie like unto that deluge in the old world, hath &s;o long over&s;pread the face of the earth, &s;wallowing up in death every living thing that hath its motion upon the earth, after or according to the fle&s;h.</P>
<P>Nor can any be offended ju&s;tly with us, (no not our adver&s;aries them&s;elves) for making this true <HI>Narration</HI> of things that have pa&s;&s;ed among&s;t us, of which this Treatice truly &s;peaks; For actions performed wherein men have cau&s;e to glory, the further they &s;pread, the more &s;atisfactory to the <HI>agen<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s;</HI> nor are actions of &s;uch publick nature &s;eldom performed, but to &s;uch end and purpo&s;e, for if they be good, they ought no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> only to be <HI>reall</HI> and <HI>e&s;&s;entiall</HI> in them among&s;t whom they are acted and done, but al&s;o pre&s;identi|all
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and exemplary unto others where ever the Fame of them, may come; and if they be evill, then a <HI>whori&s;h Fore-head</HI> mu&s;t needs accompany them, being done in the <HI>light of the Sun,</HI> and then can no wi&s;e man be offended, that a way-marke is ca&s;t up to give notice of &s;uch desperate, and dangerous wayes, unle&s;&s;e him&s;elfe be of the &s;ame &s;pirit, and is about, or el&s;e waits for an opportunity for the like de&s;ign.</P>
<P>Thou art intreated therefore not to looke upon this Treati&s;e, as <HI>&s;imply matter of Hi&s;tory,</HI> but as <HI>matter of my&s;terie al&s;o:</HI> For as it was acted to make manife&s;t the operations and workings of a <HI>differing &s;pirit,</HI> to that end it is publi&s;hed al&s;o: &s;o that if it be narrowly looked into, not only a &s;avour of <HI>that my&s;terie of ini|quity</HI> will appeare (which alwayes works effectually to the &s;ame end and purpo&s;e, namely, to extingui&s;h and put out the light of divine truth, Where&s;oever, or in whom&s;oveer it appears) but thou wilt find &s;ome Foot-&s;teps al&s;o <HI>of that great my&s;terie of God,</HI> who&s;e bright beams of light where ever made manife&s;t, declare the men of the world to &s;it in the &s;hadow of death. Though the <HI>my&s;terie of iniquity</HI> works not always in the &s;ame manner and firme, nay &s;el|dome any long time together, without taking <HI>a new face,</HI> and u&s;ing the art of <HI>transformation of it &s;elfe into one an other &s;hape,</HI> and herein lies the policie of Sathan, that when &s;ome time hath been &s;pent (yea it may be an age) in hopes and expectation of glorious times of peace, ea&s;e, and exaltation, from the mouths of lying Prophets, who alwayes drive <HI>the peace, power, and prin|cipality</HI> of the Kingdome of God, &s;ome certaine time before them, or at the lea&s;t before the common people (as they call them) as though they them&s;elves were the onely men, <HI>that for the pre&s;ent were admitted into the coun&s;ells and &s;ecrets of the Kingdome of God,</HI> and the people to take it upon their report, where, and when, the appearance of it &s;hall be.</P>
<P>But when the world by due proof, finds their praedictions to fail, and &s;ees troups of its ance&s;tors go down to the grave, <HI>not ha|ving the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion put into their hand,</HI> it then works effectually for a transformation, <HI>to ca&s;t its wor&s;hip of God into another form,</HI> wherin it hopes in &s;horter time for to attain him, in which &s;tate it cannot rest to wait, unle&s;&s;e it hath the &s;tronge&s;t partie,
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<HI>according to the power of the arm of fle&s;h on its &s;ide,</HI> and there|fore must of nece&s;&s;ity labour diligently as for life, to borrow a <HI>coercive</HI> power from the civil Magistrate, to be transferred, turned over, and put into their hands, whereby they may &s;ubdue others, and compell them to follow their way, and to acknowledge their wor&s;hip to be <HI>onely divine, yea the onely God of the world, for there is but one divinitie,</HI> which they have now made and &s;et up unto them&s;elves, <HI>or el&s;e</HI> that the Civil Magi&s;trate will be plea&s;ed to detain and keep his own power <HI>upon this condition (<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">inding him unto them&s;elves)</HI> that he &s;hall not fail, to bind the <HI>hands</HI> and <HI>tongues,</HI> yea and <HI>hearts</HI> al&s;o (if they can but &s;earch and know what is in them) that none &s;hall be per|mitted to intermeddle, or any way to di&s;turb them: But that they may peaceably wor&s;hip, every man in his <HI>garden, and under &s;uch a green tree, as he &s;hal choo&s;e unto him&s;elf,</HI> being fearfull of trouble and di&s;quiet, not knowing better, <HI>but that the cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t is terrible,</HI> as though the Sonne of God had not taken away the <HI>ter|ror</HI> and <HI>angry face</HI> of it, putting no le&s;&s;e di&s;paragement upon him, <HI>but as though the &s;ting were in death &s;till,</HI> being ignorant of this, <HI>how that by death he overcomes death, even untill now.</HI></P>
<P>The rea&s;on why the civil Magi&s;trate is &s;o&punc; &s;ought after, and (as I may ju&s;tly &s;ay) troubled, if not tortured, in the depopulati|on of Kingdoms, and lo&s;&s;e of true-hearted Subjects by the church, in her <HI>formalities, and perfunctory wor&s;hips,</HI> is this; a naturall heart conceives the condition of the Church of Chri&s;t, <HI>to be like a common weal</HI> or <HI>Kingdome,</HI> which cannot be well, unle&s;&s;e e|very individuall within &s;uch naturall and terrene confines, agree in one, for the well being and glory of each particular in the whole, &s;o that the humble &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion of every Subject becomes one, in that one heart and Spirit of the King, <HI>who &s;ubmits to the deniall of him&s;elf (in any thing) for the pre&s;ervation of the whole,</HI> and that one heart, courage, and magnanimity of the King, is in every individuall of the Kingdome, to go forth for the honour, peace and pre&s;ervation, <HI>of that their one Lord;</HI> and &s;o it is in the true Church rightly con&s;idered in its relation with the <HI>King of Saints,</HI> truly con&s;idered in Spirituall, and not in ter|rene re&s;pects; but that naturall &s;pirit that works in a naturall
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changeable and vani&s;hing Church, judgeth of its peace according to the con&s;ent of all within the compa&s;&s;e of &s;uch naturall bounds and terrene confines as it &s;elf re&s;ides &amp; abides in; and therefore the <HI>fal&s;e prophet</HI> is &s;aid to be the <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ail,</HI> becau&s;e which way the <HI>hono|rable pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;on</HI> looks, or the head of the place where he is (according to man) he alwayes <HI>&s;tears the body of the people, yea though it be but the body of the bea&s;t that way,</HI> that he may have &s;trength according to &s;ence on his &s;ide, <HI>not knowing how to live or wa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">k according to the power of faith;</HI> therefore mu&s;t either have all (if it be po&s;sible) or at lea&s;t the greate&s;t both for authority and number on his &s;ide; for he &s;ees not <HI>the ble&s;&s;ing of the Divine pre|&s;ence</HI> that goes with the ark of God <HI>though among many adver|&s;aries in a wilderne&s;&s;e;</HI> therefore will he take up nothing but <HI>the Tabernacle of</HI> Molech (or as the word is) <HI>beare the booth of the King,</HI> that is, what manner of hou&s;e &s;oever, authority and civil power erecteth, for wor&s;hip, he is ready to take up, and bear upon his &s;houlders, &s;o that Antichri&s;t hath as may wayes of wor|&s;hip, <HI>as there is or hath been formes of Religion in the world,</HI> and in that the &s;eed of the &s;erpent cru&s;heth the heel, (or as the word is) <HI>the print of the foot-&s;oal</HI> of Chri&s;t or &s;eed of the wo|man, for wherever the foot&s;teps of our Lord have gone, the wi&s;|dome of the &s;erpent in reforming its religion ca&s;ts it into a form, <HI>and &s;o denies the power of godline&s;&s;e,</HI> tying the Lord Ie&s;us to appeare in the very &s;ame print and character again, whereas the Saints wait for his power in what way or form he plea&s;eth to make it known and manife&s;t in, and unto them; therefore the vi&s;ions and apparitions of God in the holy Scriptures, <HI>are never twice in the &s;ame form</HI> (all circumstances con&s;idered) yea if our Saviour appear one time <HI>walking upon the Sea,</HI> as though all things mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity bear up their Lord, he appeares again under the hands of <HI>Herod, Pontius Pilate,</HI> and the Iews, <HI>thru&s;t down into the heart of the earth,</HI> as <HI>Jonah</HI> into the mid&s;t of the &s;ea, as though all things con&s;pired together to annihilate &amp; bring him to nought, and in the one and the other appeares an aptitude even in the Di&s;ciples them&s;elves to mi&s;take, and in this the world is altogether mi&s;taken, in that he walketh upon and rai&s;eth him|&s;elf up out of wayes they know not how &s;uch things can be, to make
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manife&s;t his power and authority to be that of the &s;onne of God, <HI>who rules in the mid&s;t of his enemies,</HI> and out of <HI>Egypt, Baby|lon</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Rahab is Egypt. <HI>I&s;a. 51 9. 10.</HI></NOTE> <HI>* Rahab, Pale&s;tina, Tyre and Ethiopia,</HI> is brought forth, &s;o that it may be &s;aid <HI>this man was born there, even as the truth of the Go&s;pel hath been brought forth in tho&s;e parts,</HI> which our Iewi&s;h Reformers of religion by putting Chri&s;t to death, could ne|ver have thought of or apprehended, nor will they (were it never &s;o plainly told unto them) believe it, &s;o that in this Treati&s;e you may plainly &s;ee, how the <HI>my&s;tery of iniquity</HI> already works, <HI>even in</HI> New England <HI>which thought it &s;elf the root of Reformation of all the world,</HI> even as <HI>Babylon</HI> alwayes in the entrance of her compul&s;ive contraction, artificiall and &s;elf-&s;eeking, conjecturall reformation, <HI>&s;ets her &s;elf up as a Queen, and thinks never to &s;ee widdow-hood or &s;orrow any more,</HI> if &s;he can but with all her art and learning keep the Magi&s;trates con&s;cience in bonds, to u&s;e all his power and civil policie <HI>for her wealth to get riches, and honour to Lord it over mens con&s;ciences, and peace that &s;he may &s;it in &s;afety and at re&s;t</HI> to inlarge her barns and take her plea&s;ure in the things of this life, never dreaming <HI>that even in that night of gro&s;&s;e darkne&s;&s;e her &s;oul &s;hall be &s;natched away from her,</HI> and then who&s;e &s;hall all tho&s;e things be, whereof &s;he hath framed &s;uch a &s;ervice of God to her &s;elf, that mu&s;t all leave her at death; even &s;uch as for the mo&s;t part, if not all (by her own acknowledgement) fail, <HI>and never pa&s;&s;e along with her in|to the Kingdom, and then mu&s;t &s;he either have a new God, or el&s;e find out a new way of &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion unto him,</HI> whom &s;he hath &s;eemed &s;o zealou&s;ly to &s;erve; &s;uch is that &s;pirit of the my&s;te|ry of iniquity, the goings forth wherof hath forced this Treati&s;e to come to the light and view of the world, <HI>as a warning to all Chri&s;tians,</HI> to take heed of being beguiled <HI>by a voluntary humili|ty in wor&s;hipping of Angels,</HI> me&s;&s;engers or mini&s;ters, who la|bour to make men &s;ubject to the rudiments of the world in out|ward ob&s;ervations, <HI>as touch not, ta&s;t not, handle not,</HI> rearing up a fabrick of ordinances in Divine wor&s;hip; of &s;uch things <HI>which all peri&s;h in the u&s;e, Neglecting the body which is Chri&s;t,</HI> by &s;atisfying of the wi&s;dom of the fle&s;h in the&s;e things, <HI>through which the Spirit of the Serpent multiplies it &s;elf into that three|fold</HI>
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<HI>&s;pirit which comes out of the mouth of the Dragon, and out of the mouth of the bea&s;t, and out of the mouth of the fal&s;e Prophet, imitating</HI> that Kingly, Priestly, and Propheticall &s;pirit that is by Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, beguiling the world with its un|cleanne&s;&s;e <HI>in adulterating the word of God by bringing it into carnall copulation with earthly, tran&s;itory, momentany, fa|ding and vani&s;hing things; wo is unto them becau&s;e thereof,</HI> who like unto frogs, will never appear, hold up their heads, nor utter a voyce, but where the heat and lu&s;tre of the Civil Magi|&s;trate, brings forth a plea&s;ant, fruitfull and prosperous e&s;tate and condition, in the things that onely concern this pre&s;ent life.</P>
<P>Again, if thou look narrowly into this Treati&s;e, there is a po&s;&s;ibility to perceive in it, <HI>&s;ome glimp&s;e of the light of that &s;pi|rit that openeth and unfoldeth the my&s;tery of God,</HI> especially when it taketh up any Scriptures; <HI>look diligently upon what hinge it turneth,</HI> and you &s;hall &s;ee a doore open, another way, <HI>yea a nearer &amp; &s;horter cut to the Kingdom of God, then the common mini&s;tery of this world driveth at,</HI> and think it not &s;trange if Ie&s;us appeare in &s;uch places, and at &s;uch time, where, and when, <HI>the doores are not onely &s;hut, but fa&s;t bolted unto the world,</HI> as a thing impo&s;&s;ible, that his real and &s;ub&s;tantiall (though &s;pirituall) body &s;hould come in, &s;uch a way, and &s;o unlooked for, being that <HI>in Sodom and</HI> Egypt <HI>our Lord is crucified, and put to death;</HI> yet let me advi&s;e thee, as once our Lord did, handle them, carefully and skilfully, ponder, poi&s;e, and feel the weight of them; ta&s;te, try and con&s;ider, <HI>whether the reality and &s;ub&s;tantiality of Chri&s;t be not there;</HI> &s;ure I am that if the mini&s;terie or &s;ervice of a Christian &s;pirit <HI>lay hands on them, and put it &s;elf into them,</HI> even as a graft is put into the &s;tock, it &s;hall find a plain proof, ar|gument, and demon&s;tration undenyable, <HI>of the apparition &amp; reve|lation of the Son of God, returned from death to life, never to die any more,</HI> unto whom I leave thee (in the communication of who&s;e Re&s;urrection the &s;econd death can never exerci&s;e power) with my harty wi&s;hes for al tho&s;e that have learned the truth as it is in Je&s;us, &amp; know that el&s;ewhere no truth (that is Christian) can be found, for that only abideth for ever, and is eternized in all the lineaments and whole proportion of it, and happy is be that hath &s;o learned Chri&s;t,</P>
<CLOSER>Amen.</CLOSER>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>S. G.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="part">
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<HEAD>Innocencies Defence, again&s;t a &s;even-headed <HI>CHVRCH-GOVERNMENT</HI> United in NEW-ENGLAND.</HEAD>
<P>_THe moderation of <HI>New Englands</HI> Ju&s;tice, de&s;ired to be known to all men <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">As you may &s;ee in the fol|lowing Trea|ti&s;e.</NOTE>, and what is the principall things pretended in the Execution thereof; namely, To &s;uppre&s;&s;e Hereticks, and to confirm that to be truth which the Unity of the mo&s;t Colonies hold; plainly declaring and &s;etting forth to the view of all, What is the proper bent and drift of that &s;pi|rit that diggs &s;o deep to hide its &s;in in &s;ecret, which &s;o affecteth to a&s;&s;ume titles unto it &s;elf, &amp; al&s;o to give at their plea&s;ure unto others; to make them&s;elves appear, in the eyes of men, more holy and honourable in the things of God, then others of their Brethren; commonly crying out, again&s;t that power exer|ci&s;ed among&s;t others, for no other end but to a&s;&s;ume it unto them&s;elves, to cloth the dictates of that &s;pirit therewith, whereby them&s;elves are led, and &s;o to exerci&s;e it with all zeal and wrath in the life, &s;pirit, and &s;ub&s;tance of it, only with another face or countenance &s;et upon it to deceive and beguile
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the &s;imple; Not being able to indure the aire, where Cap, Tip|pit, or upper Shirt appeareth: but can bath them&s;elves in blood and feed them&s;elves fat, by devouring the good name, e&s;tates, and lives of their brethren, who neither do, nor think harme unto them, nor re&s;ide within the compa&s;&s;e of any of their Ju|ri&s;dictions, evidently proved by a late a&s;&s;ault given (by the men of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> and other Colonies united for &s;uch a purpo&s;e) upon others of their Countrymen, Inhabitants of a tract of land called <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> &s;ituate in the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay in <HI>New-England:</HI> The truth whereof this Treati&s;e wit|ne&s;&s;eth, and the &s;ub&s;tance of all is to be &s;een under their own hand writing; as al&s;o in the writings of others, who were eye and ear-witne&s;&s;es in the Cau&s;e, and have te&s;tified under their hands the truth of it.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="narrative">
<HEAD>Here followeth a Narration of the men of <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> con|cerning the ground of tran&s;planting of them&s;elves and fa|milies, and of their fir&s;t entrance into that part of <HI>America</HI> now called <HI>New-England.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WHereas we removed our &s;elves and families out of our native Country, about ten or twelve years ago by the leave of this State, only to injoy the liberty of our con&s;ciences, in re&s;pect of our faith towards God, and for no other end, not &s;crupling any Civill Ordinance, for the education, ordering, or government of any Civil State.</P>
<P>Landing by the providence of God at <HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|chu&s;ets</HI> Bay, we found our Countrymen at great varianee in point of Religion, pro&s;ecuting it very hotly in their publique Courts unto fines and bani&s;hments, occa&s;ioning men thereby much to vent and bring forth them&s;elves; and we under&s;tan|ding that they had formerly bani&s;hed one Ma&s;ter <HI>Roger Willi|ams,</HI> a man of good report both for life and doctrine (even a|mong&s;t them&s;elves) for di&s;&s;enting from them in &s;ome points about their Church Government, and that in the extremity of winter, forcing him to betake him&s;elfe into the va&s;t wilderne&s;s to &s;it down among&s;t the Indians, in a place by their own con|fe&s;&s;ions,
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out of all their Juri&s;dictions: And at that time of our arrivall at <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> they were proceeding again&s;t one Ma&s;ter <HI>John Wheelwright,</HI> a man of like life and conver&s;ation, whom they al&s;o bani&s;hed for differing with them in point of Doctrine, the &s;umm whereof con&s;i&s;ted in this, <HI>That &s;anctification is not the fir&s;t evidence unto a Chri&s;tian of his &s;alvation;</HI> and many others manife&s;ting their thoughts about &s;uch points then con|troverted among&s;t them, were al&s;o impri&s;oned, fined, bani&s;h|ed, di&s;armed, and ca&s;t out from among&s;t them.</P>
<P>And we plainly perceiving that the &s;cope of their doctrine was bent onely to maintain that outward forme of wor&s;hip which they had erected to them&s;elves, tending only to the out|ward carriage of one man toward another, leaving tho&s;e prin|ciples of Divinity, wherein we had been in&s;tructed in our na|tive Country, tending to faith towards God in Chri&s;t: and we finding no ground nor warrant for &s;uch an order in the Church (to bind mens con&s;ciences unto) as they had e&s;tabli&s;h|ed among&s;t them; our con&s;ciences could not clo&s;e with them in &s;uch their practices, which they perceiving, denyed us the common benefit of the Country, even &s;o much as a place to re&s;ide in, and plant upon, for the maintenance and pre&s;ervati|on of our &s;elves, our wives and little ones; as al&s;o proceeded again&s;t us, as they had done to others; yea with more &s;everity, unto confinements, impri&s;onments, chains, fines, whippings, and bani&s;hment out of all their Juri&s;dictions, to wander in the wilderne&s;&s;e in extremity of winter, yea when the &s;now was up to the knee, and rivers to wade through up unto the midle, and not &s;o much as one of the Indians to be found in that ex|tremity of weather to afford us either fire, or any harbor, &s;uch as them&s;elves had; being removed into &s;wamps and thickets, where they were not to be found; in which condition, in the continuation of the weather, we lay diver&s;e nights together, having no victuals, but what we took on our backs, and our drink as the &s;now afforded unto us, whereupon we were con|&s;trained with the hazard of our lives to betake our &s;elves into a part of the Country called the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay, buying &s;e|verall parcels of Land of the Indians there inhabiting; and &s;at
<PB N="4" REF="11">
down in, and neer the place where Ma&s;ter <HI>Roger Williams</HI> was where we built hou&s;es, and be&s;towed our labors to rai&s;e up means to maintain our wives and little ones (which our Coun|trymen out of their zeal had deprived us of, and taken away from us) quietly po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ing them for the &s;pace of &s;even or eight years (&s;ome of us) no man interrupting us, but both the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|thu&s;ets,</HI> and al&s;o <HI>Plymouth</HI> confe&s;&s;ed us to be out of the con|fines of their Patents; but when they perceived tho&s;e parts to be a refuge for &s;uch as were oppre&s;&s;ed and grieved among&s;t them&s;elves, who repaired unto us for &s;helter, then they went about to bring tho&s;e parts to be under their Juri&s;dictions, by all po&s;&s;ible pretences, and &s;tretching their line for that pur|po&s;e, thinking to get &s;ome colour for their proceedings; yet fell they &s;hort of our Plantations fourteen or fifteen miles, as did evidently appear, and was by them&s;elves acknowledged, and when they &s;aw they could not accompli&s;h their ends by that project, they then in&s;inuated them&s;elves into the minds of three il-affected per&s;ons among&s;t us, that they &s;hould ac|knowledge them&s;elves to be &s;ubjects unto them, and to de|pend upon them for protection and government, whom they had formerly ca&s;t out from among&s;t them, both out of their Churches, and cen&s;ured them al&s;o in their Civil Courts for gro&s;&s;e and &s;candalous offences, as one <HI>Robert Cole</HI> whom they had cen&s;ured to were a D upon his back for a whole year, to proclaim unto all men his guiltine&s;&s;e of the &s;in of drunkene&s;&s;e, and had al&s;o ca&s;t him out of their Church, and delivered him unto Sathan &s;everall times, who before and in the times of this his &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion u&s;ually conver&s;ed with, and was conver&s;ant among&s;t the Indians on the Sabboth dayes, profe&s;&s;ing the In|dians Religion to be the &s;ame with that which the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets</HI> profe&s;&s;ed and practiced <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">This &s;peech of <HI>Robert Cole</HI> was uttered before many who can wit|ne&s;&s;e it.</NOTE>; There was al&s;o one <HI>William Ar|nald</HI> and his &s;on <HI>Benedick</HI> who &s;ubjected them&s;elves unto the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> which <HI>Arnald</HI> was a great profe&s;&s;or of Religi|on in the We&s;t of Old <HI>England;</HI> but in the time of this his &s;ubjection was known con&s;tantly to imploy him&s;elfe in &s;er|vile work upon the Sabboth day, and profe&s;&s;ed it to be his ex|cellency above that which his neighbour had attained unto;
<PB N="5" REF="11">
his &s;on <HI>Benedick</HI> con&s;tantly trading with the Indians on the Sabboth day, being a factor for them of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> being &s;upplyed with commodity from them, having toleration to &s;ell powder to the Indians, but denyed to be &s;old unto us, unle&s;&s;e we would &s;ubject our &s;elves as they had done; the&s;e pretended &s;ubjects of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> thus far fetcht, had learned this devi&s;e, that whereas &s;ome of us had &s;mall parcels of land laid out to build hou&s;es upon and plant corn, and all the re&s;t lay common undivided, as the cu&s;tome of the Coun|try for the mo&s;t part is, they would not permit us any more land to build upon or to feed our cattell, unle&s;&s;e we would keep upon that which they would confe&s;&s;e to be our proper right, and they would admit of no divi&s;ion, but by the foot or by the inch, and then we could neither have roome to &s;et a hou&s;e, but part of it would &s;tand on their land, nor put a cow to gra&s;&s;e, but immediately her bounds were broken, and then pre&s;ently mu&s;t the one be pull'd down, and the other put into the pound, to make &s;atisfaction, or till &s;atisfaction were made for both. So that by this unrea&s;onable and palpable &s;light of the&s;e pre|tended &s;ubjects, together with the power of this &s;o irregular a Government, we plainly perceive<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> a &s;nare was laid to intangle us again; not only to hinder us to provide for our families, but to bereave us again of what God, through our labour and in|du&s;try, had rai&s;ed up unto us as means to maintain our fami|lies with.</P>
<P>Now when the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> had gained the&s;e men to be in&s;truments in this manner to effect their end, then did they in&s;titute them as officers to execute their warrants among&s;t us in tho&s;e parts, upon any complaint the&s;e above named &s;ubjects &s;hould make unto them upon the grounds above mentioned, who pre&s;ently &s;ent a Warrant unto us, to command our ap|pearance at their Courts, under the hand of the Governor and divers of the a&s;&s;i&s;tants in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> threatning to u&s;e violence again&s;t us in ca&s;e we obeyed not.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="warrant">
<PB N="6" REF="12">
<HEAD>A true Copy of the fir&s;t Warrant that was &s;ent unto us from the Governor and A&s;&s;istants of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> into the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay, before we planted upon that tract of land called <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> &s;ituate upon the &s;ame Bay: The War|rant is here &s;et down <HI>verbatim,</HI> and is &s;til extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE><HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI></DATELINE> To our Neighbours of Providence.</OPENER>
<P>WHereas <HI>William Arnald</HI> of <HI>Pautuxet</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Pautuxet</HI> is a placeneer <HI>Pro|vidence,</HI> where one or two of the&s;e their &s;ubjects had built hou&s;es &amp; at their plea|&s;ure were both in <HI>Providence</HI> and al&s;o in <HI>Pautuxet,</HI> ha|ving hou&s;es &amp; land in both.</NOTE>, and <HI>Robert Cole,</HI> and others, have lately put them&s;elves and their families, lands and e&s;tates, under the protection and govern|ment of this Juri&s;diction, and have &s;ince complained to us, that you have &s;ince (upon pretence of a late purcha&s;e from the Indians) gone about to deprive them of their lawfull in|tere&s;t confirmed by four years po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, and otherwi&s;e to mole&s;t them: We thought good therefore to write to you on their behalfe, to give you notice, that they and their lands, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> being under our Juri&s;diction, we are to maintain them in their lawfull rights. If therefore you have any ju&s;t title to any thing they po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e, you may proceed again&s;t them in our Court, where you &s;hall have equall ju&s;tice: But if you &s;hall proceed to any violence, you mu&s;t not blame us, if we &s;hall take a like cour&s;e to right them.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><DATE><HI>The 28^o. of the</HI> 8^o. 1642.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Jo. Winthrop, <HI>Governor.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Tho. Dudley.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Ri. Bellingham.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Incr. Nowell.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>This Warrant being delivered unto us by their new made officer <HI>William Arnald,</HI> in the name of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> we took into &s;erious con&s;ideration, having former experience abun|dantly of their unkind and inhumane dealing with us, yea to|wards our wives and children, when our &s;elves were &s;ometimes in bani&s;hments, and &s;ometimes in pri&s;on, and irons (by them) before. We thought it meet (for the pre&s;ervation of our peace, together with that Compa&s;&s;ion we had of our wives and little ones) to leave our hou&s;es, and the re&s;t of our labors, lying neer
<PB N="7" REF="12">
unto tho&s;e their pretended &s;ubjects (whom we &s;aw malici|ou&s;ly bent) and to remove our &s;elves and families further off, from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> and &s;uch their coadjutours, being then among&s;t us: For we &s;aw that they did not only endeavor to take away our livelyhood, but intended to take away our lives al&s;o, in ca&s;e they could find a way to &s;atisfie the Country in doing of &s;uch an act and execution: For we had never accu|&s;ation brought in again&s;t us, but what ro&s;e from the Magi&s;trates and the Mini&s;ters; for we walked &s;o, as to do no man wrong, only ju&s;tified the cau&s;e of our Religion, as we had learned and received the principles thereof before we went among&s;t them; as al&s;o the laws and government of this Kingdome of <HI>England</HI> unto which we ever willingly acknowledged our &s;elves to be loyall &s;ubjects, and therefore could not &s;uffer our &s;elves to be intrenched upon by our fellow &s;ubjects, further then the laws of our King and State doth allow.</P>
<P>Now that they &s;ought the lives of &s;ome of us, at this time is evident; For <HI>Iohn Warner</HI> Citizen and Freeman of <HI>London</HI> a man well known, who afterwards was one of tho&s;e again&s;t whom they now pro&s;ecuted, having formerly had &s;ome bu&s;i|ne&s;&s;e with Ma&s;ter <HI>Winthrop</HI> the Governor of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> he asked the &s;aid <HI>Warner</HI> (living then in the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay) whether he knew one <HI>Samuel Gorton,</HI> (a man al&s;o again&s;t whom they now pro&s;ecuted) who lived al&s;o in the &s;aid Bay, but at that time <HI>Iohn Warner</HI> had not &s;een him, living a mat|ter of twenty miles one from the other: The Governor told him he was a man not fit to live upon the face of the earth; al|&s;o one of the Elders of the Church of <HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> told a Mini&s;ter<NOTE PLACE="marg">Old M. <HI>Oliver</HI></NOTE> (who reported it in the place where <HI>Gorton</HI> lived) That if they had <HI>Gorton</HI> at <HI>Boston</HI> in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> he would hardly &s;ee his own hou&s;e any more; yea one Ma&s;ter <HI>Collins,</HI> a man of excellent parts of learning, and of an unblameable life among&s;t men, being Mini&s;ter of one of the We&s;tern I&s;lands, from that report he heard of Religion, came to <HI>New-England,</HI> who married one of Mi&s;tre&s;&s;e <HI>Huchin&s;ons</HI> daughters, and being <HI>Fran|cis Huchin&s;on</HI> his brother in law, was a member of the Church at <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> who &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;idering and laying to heart the
<PB N="8" REF="13">
wayes of their Church and the carriage of his brethren con|&s;ulting with the Mini&s;ter, the two yong men could not have re&s;t in their &s;pirits till they went down to advi&s;e or debate the matter with the Church, though they were come out from them and lived on Road I&s;land in the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay, and when they came to <HI>Boston,</HI> and the Brethren were gathered together either to give or receive &s;atisfaction, when they &s;aw the arguments produced by the Mini&s;ter and his brother to weigh &s;omewhat heavy, then the &s;tronge&s;t of their Church members of <HI>Boston</HI> (namely the Governor and A&s;&s;i&s;tants) ca&s;t them in pri&s;on to regulate their opinion that differed from them, and there kept them in durance for many Moneths; but at the la&s;t, &s;etting them at liberty, yet giving out &s;ome threatning words afterwards, as though they would fetch them again; the yong men could have no re&s;t in their &s;pirits day nor night, till they were gone out further from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|chu&s;ets</HI> then that I&s;land was, yea under &s;ome forreign govern|ment where the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> could not pretend to have any thing to do; for they had heard that the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> inten|ded to take in all the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay under their Govern|ment and Juri&s;diction: Whereupon Ma&s;ter <HI>Collins</HI> came where the afore&s;aid <HI>Gorton</HI> and his Family were, namely at <HI>Providence;</HI> and &s;eriou&s;ly advi&s;ed him to go along to the <HI>Dutch</HI> Plantation or el&s;e to the <HI>Sweads;</HI> for, upon his knowledge, the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> intended, in &s;hort time, to take away his life, if he aboad in any of the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> Plantations; for he had received certain information thereof, whil'&s;t he was among&s;t them, &s;hewing great affection to move him thereunto: <HI>Gor|ton</HI> thanked him kindly for his love, being but a &s;tranger to him, but told him he could not go under a forreign Prince for pro|tection, till he &s;aw further then yet he did; knowing he had neither been fal&s;e to his King nor Country, nor to his con&s;ci|ence, in point of Religion, &s;o far as God had informed him. But Ma&s;ter <HI>Collins</HI> and his Brother, together with their Mo|ther and whole Family, for fear, removed to the <HI>Dutch</HI> Plan|tation, with divers other friends and families; who were mi&s;e|rably ma&s;&s;acred by tho&s;e barbarous Indians (both men, women
<PB N="9" REF="13">
and children) being then at war with the <HI>Dutch,</HI> who took &s;ome of the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> children (out of families of good note) as Captives, and keep and train them up among&s;t them&s;elves unto this day, having mo&s;t barbarou&s;ly and cruelly &s;lain their Parents, who had been not a little carefull to train them up in their life time, both in faith and manners. But we removing our&s;elves, as above&s;aid, into another part of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay, further from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> and where none of the <HI>Engli&s;h,</HI> nor other Nations had any thing to do, but only Indi|ans, the true natives, of whom we bought a parcell of land called <HI>Shaw-omet</HI> (as is above&s;aid) not only of <HI>Myantonomy,</HI> chiefe Sachim, or prince of tho&s;e parts of the Country; but al&s;o with the free con&s;ent of the Inhabitants of the place.</P>
<P>Now we plainly perceiving that the drift of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets,</HI> and tho&s;e joyned with them, was not only to take the whole Country of the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> Plantations into their Juri&s;di|ctions; but al&s;o to e&s;tabli&s;h what way of Religion them&s;elves thought fit, to the the taking away (not only of goods) but lives al&s;o of &s;uch as were otherwi&s;e minded: We made an|&s;wer unto the Writing&punc; they had &s;ent unto us, on this wi&s;e; which An&s;wer was made upon our removall from <HI>Moo|&s;haw&s;et</HI> (otherwi&s;e called PROVIDENCE) to <HI>Shaw|omet.</HI></P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>A true Copy of our An&s;wer to the Warrant or Writing which the men of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> &s;ent unto us, as is above noted; wherein we only take up their own expre&s;&s;ions, to &s;hew unto them the &s;pirit and power of their Religion, which they go about by the&s;e means to pre&s;erve, inlarge, and &s;hew the glory of it to the world: The An&s;wer is <HI>verbatim</HI> ex|amined by the originall Copy; only marginall Notes added to help the Reader to under&s;tand our true meaning.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Moo&s;haw&s;et, <DATE>November <HI>the 20. 1642.</HI></DATE></DATELINE> To our Neighbours of the <HI>MASSACHUSETS.</HI></OPENER>
<P>WHereas we lately received an irregular note <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Irregular becau&s; it went beyond their bounds and juri&s;dictions limited unto them.</NOTE> profe&s;|&s;ing its forme from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> with four mens
<PB N="10" REF="14">
Names &s;ub&s;cribed thereunto (as principall authors of it) of the chiefe among&s;t you, we could not ea&s;ily give credit unto the truth thereof; Not only becau&s;e the conveyers of it unto us are known to be men who&s;e con&s;tant and profe&s;&s;ed acts are wor&s;e then the counterfeitings of mens hands; but al&s;o, becau&s;e we thought that men of your parts and profe&s;&s;ion would never have pro&s;trated their wi&s;dome to &s;uch an act: But con&s;ider|ing that cau&s;le&s;&s;e emnity you have again&s;t us, the proof where|of every occa&s;ion brings forth, we cannot but conclude, That no act &s;o ill, which that ancient Mother will not bring forth her &s;eed unto; <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">That is the wi&s;dom of the fle&s;h conver|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ant about the thing<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> of God brings forth unto cruelty all them in whom it is found &s;o exer|ci&s;ed.</NOTE> For we know very well that it is the name of Chri&s;t called upon us <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Jer. 14. 9.</NOTE> which you &s;trive again&s;t, whence it is that you &s;tand on tiptoe to &s;tretch your &s;elves beyond your bounds, to &s;eek occa&s;ion again&s;t us (&s;o) as you might hide your &s;in with <HI>Adam</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">By d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;em|bling the cau&s; of their pro|ceeding a|gain&s;t us to be another th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ng then indeed it was, even as <HI>Adam</HI> laid the fault upon the woman, wher|as indeed &s;he came out of his own &s;ide &amp; was confe&s;&s;ed to be fle&s;h of his fle&s;h and bone of his bone.</NOTE> bearing the world in hand it is not your de&s;ire to contend with us, but &s;ome civill breach in our cour&s;e which you &s;eek to redre&s;&s;e; whereas neither you nor any in way of truth can find wherewith to bring us under the cen&s;ure of a di&s;orderly cour&s;e of walking among&s;t them. And as for the way of that ancient &s;pirit of accu&s;ation of the bre|thren <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Rev. 12. 10.</NOTE> we weight it not, knowing him to be a lyar (or in the ab&s;tract a lye) from the beginning <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Joh. 8. 44.</NOTE>, yea and the father of it al&s;o; which thing you cannot know though it were told unto you: whereas you &s;ay <HI>Robert Cole, William Arnald,</HI> with others, have put them&s;elves under the government and pro|tection of your Juri&s;diction, which is the occa&s;ion you have now got to contend; we wi&s;h your words were verified, that they were not el&s;ewhere to be found <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">But only among them|&s;elves, within the bounds of their own Ju|ri&s;dictions, as they affirme them to be though with|out any ground or rule of true go|vernment.</NOTE>, being nothing but the &s;hame of Religion, di&s;quiet and di&s;turbance of the places where they are; for we know neither the one nor the other, with all their a&s;&s;ociates and confederates, have power to inlarge the bounds, by King <HI>CHARLES,</HI> limited unto you. Behold therefore, in this your act, a Map of your &s;piritual e&s;tate (to u&s;e your own phra&s;e); for we know that the &s;pirituality of your Churches, is the civility of your Commonwealth, and the civi|lity of your Co~monwealth is the &s;pirituality of your Churches; the wi&s;dom of man being the whole accomple&s;en&s;e of them
<PB N="11" REF="14">
both, of which tree you delight dayly to eat <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">The tree of the know|ledg of good &amp; evil paralell'd with the wi&s;|dom of man exerci&s;ing it &s;elfe in the things of God.</NOTE> finding it fair and beautifull, to gain conformity with your maker; in the&s;e your di&s;&s;embling &s;ubjects gro&s;ly profane among&s;t us, but full of the &s;pirit of your purity: <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">That is, the &s;pirit of pain|ted hypocri&s;ie.</NOTE> when they are with you, you may remember the brand your &s;elves have &s;et on &s;ome of them, the cau&s;e whereof was never yet removed, <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">The &s;in being &s;til con|tinued in.</NOTE> though it abide not upon their backs <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">That is, the mark which was worn to proclame it to all.</NOTE>, nor yet the cau&s;e of your commit|ment of them unto Sathan (according to your Law) for if that were removed you &s;hould do them wrong in not re&s;uming your vomit into its former concoction again: <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">That is, in not receiving them into the operations of that boyling Church-fel|low&s;hip again, wherein they &s;til walked.</NOTE> Nor are we ignorant of tho&s;e di&s;gracefull termes they u&s;e and give out a|gain&s;t you behind your backs; Their &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion therefore can|not be to any other end, but to &s;atisfie their own lu&s;ts, not only conceived, but in violent motion again&s;t their Neighbours, who never offered the lea&s;t wrong unto them; only the propo|&s;ition of amity, is object &s;ufficient for the&s;e mens emnity. E|ven &s;o the pa&s;&s;ions of &s;in, which are by the law, having force in your members, <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Rom. 7. 5.</NOTE> you going about with great labour and indu&s;try to &s;atisfie them by your &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion unto the Word of God, in your fa&s;ting, and fea&s;ting, in contributing, and trea|&s;uring, in retiredne&s;&s;e for &s;tudy, and bowing of the backs of the poor, going forth in labour to maintain it, and in the &s;pirit of that hireling <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Joh. 10. 12, 13.</NOTE> rai&s;ing up your whole &s;tructure and edifice; in all which you bring forth nothing but fruit unto death: Some laboring for a price to give for the keeping of their &s;ouls in peace, and &s;afe e&s;tate and condition: <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">That is, carefully la|bor to pay wa|ges to the Mi|ni&s;ter for that end either in way of contri|bution or el&s;e.</NOTE> &s;ome to have your bodies furni&s;hed with riches honor and ea&s;e <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">That is the Mini&s;ters and Magi|&s;trates &s;tudy, teach, and execute to attain &s;uch ends.</NOTE>; and further then the Lord Je&s;us agrees with the&s;e, you mind him not; nay you renounce and reject him, and with the&s;e (according to your acceptation and practice) he holds no corre&s;pondency at all; being the con&s;ultation and operation of that his only adver&s;a|ry <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">That is the wi&s;dom of the fle&s;h exerci&s;ed in the things of God.</NOTE>; Man being that which you depend upon, and not the Lord, crying out in the way of elevation, and lauding his Mi|ni&s;ters, when in the mean time you know not what, nor who, they are; profe&s;&s;ing them under a mediate call of Chri&s;t,
<PB N="12" REF="15">
though formerly they have been called immediately by him. Hereby &s;hewing your &s;elves to be tho&s;e which de&s;troy the &s;a|cred ordinance of God; for if you make Chri&s;t to be that to day, in &s;tating of his Mini&s;ters, which he was not <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 13. 8.</NOTE> ye&s;ter|day, and that in the time of the Go&s;pel al&s;o (to &s;peak according to your law) to be found in them both; you therein affirme, he hath been that to his Mini&s;ters, which now he is not; and to make the &s;on of God to have been that which now he is not, is to make a nullity of him; Not to be at all: For he is the Lord that changeth not <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Malach. 3. 6. James 1. 17.</NOTE> no not a &s;hadow thereof is found in him: So that you plainly crucifie to your &s;elves the Lord of glory, and put him to an open &s;hame <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Heb. 6. 6.</NOTE> &s;o that as you know not how Chri&s;t conver&s;ing with his Father in heaven is found on the earth among&s;t the true wor&s;hippers, no more do you know how in his conver&s;ing with <HI>Nicodemus</HI> on the earth he concludes him&s;elfe to be in heaven <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">Job. 423. Ioh. 3. 13.</NOTE> with his Father; on this foundation hangeth the whole building of your doctrine, concerning the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t, you annihilate the Cro&s;&s;e, then the which the Saints have no other con&s;olation <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Gal. 6. 14.</NOTE> and prepare no better a place then purgatory for the honourable Fathers of our Lord <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 22. 4.</NOTE>; for ye conclude that Chri&s;t dyed in the decree and purpo&s;e of God in the time of the law, but actually only when he hanged on the Cro&s;s in the dayes of <HI>He|rod</HI> and <HI>Pontius Pilate,</HI> that he was crucified in the types and &s;hadows of the law: But in the truth and &s;ub&s;tance when he appeared born of the Virgine <HI>Mary;</HI> &s;o mu&s;t ye al&s;o conclude that the fathers under the law were only &s;aved in purpo&s;e, and decree, in types and &s;hadows, but actually and &s;ub&s;tantially only at the coming of Chri&s;t in the fle&s;h: Therefore deal plain|ly with tho&s;e that depend upon you for in&s;truction, as your an|ce&s;tors in the Papacy have done, and proclame a place of pur|gatory provided for them in the mean; without which your doctrine hath no foundation: for if you rai&s;e up a &s;hadow with|out a &s;ub&s;tance, and the &s;ub&s;tance of him that dwelleth in light <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 6. 16.</NOTE> without a &s;hadow, you play the part of wizards, or Ne|cromancers, not the part of true naturali&s;ts in the things of the Kingdome of God: So that as far as your men are <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">That is their &s;ubjects &s;o far fetcht who li|ved among us.</NOTE> from
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being honourable and loyall &s;ubjects, &s;o far are you from being voluntaries, in the day of Gods power <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 10. 3.</NOTE> and from yeelding &s;ubjection to the beauties of holine&s;&s;e; &s;uch al&s;o is your prefer|ment rule and government in the things that concern the King|dome of our God, they are infinitely beyond and out of the reach of that &s;pirit that is gone out among&s;t you, the capacity whereof can no wayes comprehend the bredth of the land of <HI>Emanuel</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">I&s;ai. 8. 8.</NOTE> nor entreth it within the vaile: <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 3. 15.</NOTE> Therefore it cannot know tho&s;e Cherubims of glory <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Heb. 9. 5:</NOTE>, neither can it hear the voice of that lively oracle, &s;peaking only from off the covering mercy &s;eat, <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Num. 7. 8, 9.</NOTE> and not el&s;ewhere to be heard; we &s;peak not but what we know, the&s;e things are not of its Ju|ri&s;diction; therefore dumm in telling Ju&s;tice; neither &s;peaks it any of that righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and glory compri&s;ed in another circuit then you were yet made lords of: Therefore long may you boa&s;t of your Juri&s;diction before you attain to <HI>Juris pru|dentia</HI> in the&s;e things, in that you tell us we offer wrong by a pretended purcha&s;e, you are as much mi&s;taken in the purcha&s;e as in the wrong; for it is right that we are about to do, neither is our purcha&s;e a pretence, but pre&s;identiall, not only in this civill re&s;pect, but may al&s;o admoni&s;h all men to take <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">eed how they depend upon fal&s;e and &s;elf-&s;eeking interpreters, when both them&s;elves, and they that have the vi&s;ion are ignorant of the contract and covenant of God <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg"><HI>Arnalds</HI> &s;on <HI>Benedick</HI> being inter|preter between the <HI>Indians</HI> a|bout us, &amp; the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> &s;eeking to get &s;ome advan|tage again&s;t us by the <HI>In|dians</HI> to blind the Country, as though they had a ju&s;t quarrel, we &s;eeing and knowing the fal&s;ity thereof, do apply the thing to their &s;piritual cour&s;e they walk in.</NOTE>: Thence it is that you teach, that the Spou&s;e of Chri&s;t, upon contract with her Lord, may conceive the &s;eed of immortality and bring forth fruit unto the Lord, when as yet the day of marriage, that great fe&s;tivity and &s;olemnization of the con&s;olations of God, is not yet come; witne&s;&s;e your prorogation thereof, if not to the de&s;cention of Chri&s;t from heaven to the earth, to raign certain years, yet to the calling of the Jews, (whom ye your &s;elves are, according to the fle&s;h) and to the de&s;truction of that man of &s;in, whom you &s;o &s;toutly maintain: What is this but to proclame to all the world that audacious &s;pirit of whoredome <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> 4. 12. &amp; 5. 4.</NOTE> profe&s;&s;ing conception, and bringing forth before the Nuptiall day, in
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that you conclude your clients right to ari&s;e out of four years po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, we have no &s;uch order, if you mean the right of conque&s;t only held in that tenure, the true owners were never yet &s;ubdued; for that is the right they expect to injoy by you. For &s;ome of them committed part of their &s;uppo&s;ed right unto us, profe&s;&s;ing it was that they might have help to injoy the re&s;t <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">As <HI>Robert Cole</HI> did, their &s;ubject now &s;ince that time &s;o made.</NOTE>: But when they &s;aw we would not be abettors unto them without, much le&s;&s;e contrary unto covenant, then they fly unto you for help, <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">The <HI>Indi|ans</HI> denying at that time a perfect &amp; full purcha&s;e of that place where the&s;e their &s;ubjects had built hou|&s;es, called <HI>Pautuxet.</HI></NOTE> their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion being a meer intru&s;i|on, as all the Natives know, and ever exclaimed again&s;t them for the &s;ame; and &s;o may our Countrymen al&s;o, who&s;e eyes are not dazled with envy, and ears open unto lyes, as we know yours are, el&s;e you had heard both &s;ides &s;peak before you had judged; but we profe&s;&s;e right held in no &s;uch intere&s;t, but according to the ground of covenant, only known in its nature in the parties twixt whom it is plight, in the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;or and the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed, with the nature of all fruit ari&s;ing from their accord and concurrency, together with their di&s;tinct, harmo|nicall, reciprocall, and joynt properties and operations of them both; &s;uch is the tenure that we hold, and maintain it before men and angels, and oppo&s;e it again&s;t men and devils; not in taking up unto our &s;elves certain offices and officers, which we can teach children to be and to performe, and from thence pre|&s;ently to conclude the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of the Kingdome, crying out our peace-offerings are upon us, this day we have payd our vows: <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Alluding to the harlot &s;po|ken of in the <HI>Proverbs</HI> who&s;e practi&s;e is &s;uch in &s;piritual things, as wel as there is a literal &s;ence of it. <HI>Prov.</HI> 7. 13. to 23.</NOTE> But that dark cloud that de&s;cended on the Taber|nacle <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Exod. 33. 9, 10. Nehem. 9. 12.</NOTE> becomes the light and glory of all I&s;rael, there being nothing acknowledged among&s;t them, but what ari&s;eth out thence; then, and then only, are the orders; as al&s;o the men of I&s;rael derived from their true fountain, <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 68. 26.</NOTE> which no tongue can confe&s;&s;e but is &s;alvation <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Rom. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">0. 10.</NOTE>, and then not el&s;e is the he|ritage of our Lord in po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">P&s;. 47. 4.</NOTE> yea even the wayle&s;&s;e wil|derne&s;&s;e knows how to afford them an habitation, which had its being before the hills and mountains were borne <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 90. 1, 2.</NOTE> which men begin to fly unto for refuge to hide them&s;elves from the
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pre&s;ence of the Lamb <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 6. 16. For there was nothing done to the&s;e men that &s;eemed to &s;helter them|&s;elves under the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets,</HI> but only opening the Word of God among&s;t them, which is the revelation of the face or pre&s;ence of the Lamb of God Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</NOTE>: This is a po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion which no man can intrude him&s;elfe into, it is onely covenanted with him through an inlightned eye and boared ear <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Pro</HI> 20. 12.</NOTE> which man per|formeth not, neither can it be received from him <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 40. 6. Gal. 1. 11, 12.</NOTE>: for we know that cloud of thick darkne&s;&s;e, that hides and covers the whole frame and fabrick of the work of God <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Alluding to the Taber|nacle which it covered, and &s;o applyed &s;pi|ritually in the way of Chri&s;t.</NOTE>&punc; to be the clearing and evidencing of every point and particular thereof, yea to us it is even that cloud of witne&s;&s;e <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">Heb. 12. 1.</NOTE> which te&s;tifies to us the like work to appear, when ever the world hath occa&s;ion to make u&s;e of us: Never doth it &s;hine but in the night, never is it dark to I&s;rael but in the day <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">P&s;. 78. 14.</NOTE> but in the one, and the o|ther, the only glory and &s;afety of all the tribes; but how, you know not, neither can you, with all your librariers, give the interpretation thereof, but have lo&s;t it in the wilderne&s;&s;e, and accordingly have made the whole way and will of our Lord, the oldne&s;&s;e of the letter <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Rom. 7. 6.</NOTE> both to your &s;elves and all that have an ear to li&s;ten unto you; thence it is, that the day of the Lord is a day of darkne&s;&s;e and gloomine&s;&s;e unto you <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Zeph. 1. 14, 15.</NOTE> but of joy and gladne&s;&s;e unto us; yea it lifts up our head only, <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Meaning Chri&s;t, &amp; not our &s;elves, to &s;et up fle&s;h. <HI>Luk.</HI> 21. 28.</NOTE> and then is our &s;alvation near, for we know the Worthies of <HI>David</HI> doubled about the bed of <HI>Solomon,</HI> which expell all fear in the night <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Cant. 3. 7, 8.</NOTE> handling the &s;word with &s;ucce&s;&s;e, making the ad|ver&s;aries nothing but meat to feed upon <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">That is, all kind of incom|brances they meet with in this life, <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> 41. 2.</NOTE>, &s;o that the time of your fear is the time of our courage and conque&s;t; for when ye fear Error, Schi&s;m, Rents, and Confu&s;ions in Church and State, then do we know the me&s;&s;enger of the Covenant, the Lord whom we &s;eek, is &s;peeding his pa&s;&s;age into his holy Temple; <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Malachi 3. 1, 2.</NOTE> For who (under the terrors of your &s;pirit) may abide his coming, he being like a refiners fire and fullers &s;ope?</P>
<P>In that you invite us unto your Courts, to fetch your equall ballanced Ju&s;tice, upon this ground, that you are become one with our adver&s;aries, and that both in what they have and what they are, and we know them to be &s;uch as profe&s;&s;e the day of the Lord an unhallowed thing <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Heb. 10. 29.</NOTE>. Now if we have our Oppo|nent to prefer his action again&s;t us, and no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;o only, but to be
<PB N="16" REF="17">
our Coun&s;ell, our Jury, and our Judge; for &s;o it mu&s;t be, if you are one with them, as you affirme, we know beforehand how our cau&s;e will be ended, and &s;ee the &s;cale of your equall Ju&s;tice turned already, before we have laid our cau&s;e therein; and cannot but admire to &s;ee you carryed &s;o contrary to your own received principles; for ye know not how to find Chri&s;t as a ruling and teaching Elder both in one per&s;on, therefore he is not compleat among you (by your own law) except in &s;e|veral per&s;ons; and you may thank tradition, el&s;e you know no more how to find a King and a Prie&s;t in him; and yet in your way of making tender of your Ju&s;tice unto us, you know how to become one with our adver&s;aries, &s;o, as if we deal with them, we deal with you; and if we have todo with you, we have to do with them al&s;o: yea further we know that the chief among&s;t you have profe&s;&s;ed we are not worthy to live; and if &s;ome of us were among&s;t you we &s;hould hardly &s;ee the place of our aboad any more.</P>
<P>Now they that have brooded upon their law to take away life, they mu&s;t much more bring it forth in taking away all means of life, witne&s;&s;e your prohibition that no powder &s;hould be &s;old unto us for our money, and that in a time when you could not think your &s;elves &s;afe in all your own &s;elfe-provi&s;ion and worldly furniture, except you di&s;armed a company of poor <HI>Indians,</HI> whom <HI>Aaron</HI> your Leviticall Sacrificer hath made naked <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">By allu|ding to that bodily naked|ne&s;s of the In|dians, whom they di&s;armed, &s;hewing that &s;piritual na|kedne&s;s which the works of the law or le|vitical Prie&s;t|hood brings men under, who ever they be that are exerci&s;ed in &s;uch wayes.</NOTE> as he doth all tho&s;e which triumph in a Calfe, though the mo&s;t co&s;tly and beautifull that the Jewels and Ear|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ings of learning (either in language or art) can po&s;&s;ibly bring forth <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Exod. 32.</NOTE>; your own amazements upon meer rumours may te|&s;tifie the truth thereof: &s;o then we are judged by your law before our cau&s;e be heard or our &s;elves brought forth under the liberties of it, which thing is well plea&s;ing to us to have our condition conformed to <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> the man of God, who was dead in <HI>Pharaos</HI> account before he was brought forth <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">For in <HI>Phara|ohs</HI> edict and <HI>Herods</HI> al&s;o they were &s;lain before they were born.</NOTE>; and &s;o it was with Chri&s;t our Lord (in the dayes of <HI>Herod</HI> al&s;o) who is our life <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Collo&s;. 3. 4.</NOTE> at which you &s;trike and makes all things,
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yea death it &s;elfe lively, and advantageous unto us <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Phil. 1. 20, 21 Rom. 8. 28.</NOTE>: we cannot but wonder that you &s;hould read the Scriptures and not find them fulfilled in and among&s;t your &s;elves, when as they appear &s;o apparently, that he that runs may read them; what think you of <HI>Herod,</HI> when the Lord had delivered <HI>Peter</HI> out of pri&s;on, and relea&s;ed him of tho&s;e bonds, and brought him from that thraldome which he had &s;o cruelly impo&s;ed upon him (to gain the favor of the Jews) and that by a power &s;u|pereminent tran&s;cending the bounds of his authority <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">That is, the authority of that wicked <HI>Herod. Act.</HI> 12. Chap. throughout.</NOTE> and by a wi&s;dome &s;urpa&s;&s;ing the depth of his coun&s;ell and policy to find out, together with the &s;ouldiers and champions, he pre&s;ently goes down to <HI>Cae&s;area,</HI> and <HI>Herod</HI> is angry with them of <HI>Tyrus</HI> and <HI>Sydon (Thumomathon] A heavy friend,</HI> or hath a &s;ecret grudge or perturbation of mind manife&s;ted in an out-reaching and circumventing policy to &s;ubdue them unto him&s;elfe that he might rule over them, finding him&s;elfe fall &s;hort of power and policy to &s;ubject the Word of God in the me&s;&s;enger of it, to &s;atisfie his own lu&s;t in his lord&s;hip over it, he pur&s;ues with all eagerne&s;&s;e to make him&s;elf a God by raign|ing over the bodies and e&s;tates of men, yea though they be but &s;uch as <HI>Tyrus</HI> and <HI>Sydon</HI> can afford unto him to make &s;ubjects of, and when they come to him with one accord to make offer of them&s;elves in yeelding to his affectionate and politicall project, he &s;itting on the Judgement &s;eat in his royall apparel, making his Oration of what power he hath to protect them, what wi&s;dome and coun&s;ell to mini&s;ter ju&s;tice and righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e unto them (which office belongs only unto the Lord); the people with a &s;hout crying out, the voice of God, and not of man, the truth and &s;ub&s;tance of which cry, is, This is the Ordinance of God and not of man, immediately the the An|gel of the Lord &s;mites him; and he that ever acknowledged him&s;elf to be a worm, and no man upon the earth <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 22: 6, 7.</NOTE> con&s;umes and eats up all his pomp and glory even as tho&s;e whom you ac|count the &s;hame and contempt of the people &s;hal through that Angel of the covenant wa&s;te, and bring to naught all tho&s;e Rhetoricall (though earthly) Orations that are made among&s;t you by your &s;o learned, &s;tudious, and experienced Clerks;
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Take for illu&s;tration of your e&s;tate (as above) the &s;peech of your Alderman, <HI>Oliver,</HI> in ca&s;e of committing <HI>Francis Huchin|&s;on</HI> to pri&s;on, one of your Church members wondring that Brother <HI>Winthrop</HI> would do it, before the Church had deals with him (Brother &s;aith he] why, he is thy God, man. Lend your eye yet further to paralell your practice per&s;onated in <HI>Pilate</HI> <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Ioh. 18. 28. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> 40.</NOTE> and the people, when <HI>Pilate</HI> offers Je&s;us to the people to be judged, they profe&s;&s;e they have &s;uch a law that puts no man to death, they are all for mercy and forgivene&s;&s;e when they are out of the Judgement hall; but let <HI>Pilate</HI> enter in thither, then nothing but <HI>crucifie him, crucifie him,</HI> be their accu&s;ation and witne&s;&s;es never &s;o fal&s;e; even &s;o in your deal|ings with men, in way of your Jewi&s;h brotherhood, your law is all for mercy, to redre&s;&s;e, to reforme, and for the pre&s;ervati|on both of &s;oul and body; do but enter into the common hal, then as <HI>Pilate</HI> asked, am I a Jew? &s;o do yee: do I &s;it on &s;peak here as a brother? I trow not; I am now in a higher &s;phere then that [though they be acknowledged Coheirs with Chri&s;t] can attain unto; therefore if witne&s;&s;e be brought in and oath taken, though never &s;o untrue, your con&s;ciences are purged by law, and your power mu&s;t have tribute paid unto it; &s;o far, as mens names to be branded with infamy (e&s;tates) depriving women and children of things nece&s;&s;ary, and the precious lives of men can extend them&s;elves to contribute any thing there|unto, &s;o that they profe&s;&s;ed mercy and clemency of your law to exerci&s;e cen&s;ures only for amendment of life, and recovery comes unto this i&s;&s;ue to &s;end both &s;oul and body down unto <HI>S<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">ll</HI> for ever, without redre&s;&s;e and all hope of recovery. But your hour, and the power of darkne&s;&s;e, is known what it is, either to have mens per&s;ons in admiration, becau&s;e of advan|tage <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jude</HI> 16. v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"></NOTE> or el&s;e to &s;eek all occa&s;ions again&s;t them to brand them with all manner of reproach and ignominy; but for the truth taught dayly in the Temple, you know not how to &s;tretch out your hand or exerci&s;e your mini&s;tery again&s;t it, lea&s;t it be|come leprous, and you take it back again with lo&s;&s;e, when it appears dryed and withered and wherefore rea&s;on ye among&s;t your &s;elves, &s;aying we exerci&s;e the power of our mini&s;trations
<PB N="19" REF="18">
again&s;t none but &s;uch as are Delinquents, whereby we clear the innocent, and e&s;tabli&s;h peace in our borders; (we demand) what think you of tho&s;e two witne&s;&s;es prophe&s;ying in &s;ack|cloth a thou&s;and two hundred and three<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ore dayes, <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Revel. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">: Zach: 4.</NOTE> tho&s;e two Olive trees and Candle&s;ticks &s;tanding before the God of the earth? are the&s;e guilty and vile per&s;ons out of who&s;e hands by the power of your mini&s;tery, you are delivering and relea|&s;ing the world? then indeed are your wayes ju&s;tifiable: But if the&s;e be the ju&s;t, cho&s;en, and peculiar friends of God, yea, &s;uch as without which his truth and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e are not ju|&s;tified, his wi&s;dome and holyne&s;&s;e maintained and upheld in the world, in point of &s;alvation by Chri&s;t; then are your ways wicked and to be abhorred; for in your profe&s;&s;ed cour&s;e, you are they by whom they are &s;lain and put to death, and all your glory is to keep their Corps unburied in your &s;treets, and yet you know not what you are doing, no more then you know what the&s;e witne&s;&s;es are whom you are altogether ignorant of; for your <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="5 letters">ries never <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">w them (and you &s;ee not but by their eyes) <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">That is, by what light they find in other mens works.</NOTE> for the&s;e are two, and never more, nor yet le&s;&s;e, yea ever the &s;ame, they are Olive tree<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, el&s;e no witne&s;&s;es, and al&s;o Candle&s;ticks, el&s;e both the former fail, yea, are not at all: we mu&s;t tell you what the&s;e are, el&s;e we cannot declare how ye kill them: for it is not our intent to open unto you the hou&s;e of the creatures, the &s;ilver and the gold, the &s;pices and the pre|cious ointment, no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the hou&s;e of our armor <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg"><HI>J&s;ai.</HI> 30&punc; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"></NOTE> becau&s;e ye take all as execrable, and put all to a prophane u&s;e, that cometh from us: But the&s;e two witne&s;&s;es are the life and death of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Which com|prehend his Kingdom and Prie&s;thood &s;et forth unto us in <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> the high Prie&s;t &amp; Z<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="5 letters">bel in their <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 word"> out of Babylon to re-edifie the Temple; as in <HI>Zechary</HI> the third and fourth chapters.</NOTE> or (in the true language of heaven al&s;o) the &s;trength and the weakne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t: for he was crucified through weakne&s;&s;e, but liveth by the power of God <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 13. 4<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"></NOTE>, This is the Word of the Lord in <HI>Zorob<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">bel,</HI> not by an army, nor by power (and &s;o deprives him of all &s;trength) but by a &s;pirit that the greate&s;t mountain o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> loftie&s;t hill in the world cannot &s;tand before, but becomes a plain, which with facility and ea&s;e he pa&s;&s;eth upon: thence it is that he doth not only <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ay the top, or the head &s;tone of all, but al&s;o the lowe&s;t in the foundation, and
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then onely is the voice of &s;houting heard, <HI>Grace, grace,</HI> in the hou&s;e for ever: and then doth the day of &s;mal things become the day of joy and triumph, yea of parting the rich &s;poils and prey of all the world: for then he that doth but turn and lift up his eyes, he cannot look be&s;ides that great flying book of the Cur&s;e that is gone forth over the whole earth <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Zech. 5. 1, 2, 3</NOTE> without the&s;e two witne&s;&s;es joyntly uttering them&s;elves in every par|ticular Scripture undertaken to be divulged by any, no evidence nor te&s;timony of God is given or brought in at all, but a meer refuge of lyes, for the &s;ouls of men to betake them&s;elves unto <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 28&punc; 15.</NOTE> without the&s;e two pipes of the Olive trees, emptying into the bowl of the Candle&s;ticks, no unction nor oyl at all is found in them, and that being wanting the light of the &s;anctuary is gone out, &s;o that the light appearing among&s;t you is onely the light of <HI>Baalam</HI> who&s;e eye was open, which you may read either <HI>Shethum,</HI> or <HI>Sethum</HI> <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Which &s;ig|nifies either opened or &s;hut, as in <HI>Numb.</HI> 24. 3, 4.</NOTE>, for that opening is nothing el&s;e but the &s;hutting up of the holy things of God, &s;o that in &s;eeing ye &s;ee not, <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 6. 9, 10.</NOTE> but communicate only in the light of that bea&s;t who puts the witne&s;&s;es to death <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Revel. 11. 7.</NOTE> as <HI>Baalam</HI> did in the &s;ight of that dumm bea&s;t of his, who&s;e eyes were &s;o opened as to &s;ee the Angell before him <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Num.</HI> 22. 25. 27. That is be|fore <HI>Balam,</HI> &s;o that the bea&s;t and <HI>Balam</HI> have the &s;ame light &amp; look.</NOTE>: So that while you think it is our wi&s;dome to &s;toop unto you for light we never come among&s;t you, but &s;ee our &s;elves in a regiment of gro&s;s and palpable dark|ne&s;&s;e, and di&s;cern you very plainly how you &s;crable upon the wall to find the door of <HI>L<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ts</HI> hou&s;e and cannot <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Ge<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 19. 11.</NOTE>, as al&s;o how you toil your &s;elves to climb up into the &s;heepfold another way yea &s;o many other wayes, and have no &s;ight nor di&s;cerning of the door at all, by the which who&s;oever entreth becomes a true feeder of the flock, yea none entreth in thereat but the true &s;hepherd him&s;elfe. <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Joh. 10. 1, 2, 3</NOTE> Mo&s;t impious it is to put to death two &s;uch noble witne&s;&s;es that have power to &s;hut heaven that it rain not in the dayes of their prophe&s;ying, to turn waters into blood, and to &s;mite the earth with all manner of plagues as oft as they wil <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Revel. 11. 6.</NOTE>, whom that &s;pirit that is among&s;t you kils on this wi&s;e. The life and power of the Son of God as above <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Being one of the two wit|ne&s;&s;es before noted, or his power and kingly authority.</NOTE>, which is infinite, not admitting of circum&s;cription or conte|nent,
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for the heaven of heavens cannot contain him; <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">1 Kings 8. 27 2 Chron. 2. 6.</NOTE> yet have ye not dared to gra&s;p and inviron that power in the hea|vens, and therefore have re&s;olved and concluded, that hee only rules upon the earth in the&s;e dayes, by his Deputies, Lieu|tenants, and Vi&s;egerents&punc; whereby you limit, <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 78, 41.</NOTE> and &s;o de|&s;troy the holy one of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> for, give him, that in one time or place, which afterwards, or el&s;e where yee deny unto him, and you make a nullitie of him unto your &s;elves, and in &s;o do|ing, you kill the other witne&s;&s;e, namely the death or weak|ne&s;&s;e of the Lord Je&s;us, <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">which is his Prie&s;thood, wherein he deprives him|&s;elfe of all power of man, or &s;trength of the aime of fle&s;h:</NOTE> for you mu&s;t have man to be ho|nourable, learned, wi&s;e, experienced, and of good report, el&s;e they may not rule among&s;t you; yea, and the&s;e things are of man, and by man, as, Peeres in that they only officiate &s;o, as man may di&s;anull and take it away againe, witne&s;&s;e your change of officers, con&s;tantly &s;peaking for us herein; thus have you &s;laine al&s;o, the Death, or the weakne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t, who profe&s;&s;eth him&s;elfe to be a worme and no man, <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">P&s;alme 22, 6</NOTE> the &s;hame and contempt of the people, and the&s;e faithfull and true witne&s;&s;es thus &s;laine, you mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;itie deny bu|riall, and keepe them both in your &s;treets, <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Revel. 11. 8, 9, 10</NOTE> in open view, otherwi&s;e all your pompe and glory fals to the du&s;t <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">That is, if the power of God, and the weakne&s;&s;e &amp; frailty of man &s;hould not be &s;o &s;laine, as to be &s;til kept as dead in &s;ight of all, then could not the power and glory of the creature, (as Vi&s;egerent, unto the power and glory of God in his ab|&s;ence) be &s;een &s;et up, and made known.</NOTE> whence it came, and on which it feeds, <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Gen 3, 14</NOTE> nor can you &s;end your pre&s;ents one to an other, of your acts of Ju&s;tice, power to protect; wealth, honour, and friends, wherewith you grati|fie one another: And where the&s;e are thus &s;laine, and their corps lye in open view, none of the Gentiles, peoples, tongues, and kindreds, &s;uffering their corps to be put in grave, <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Revel. 11. 8, 9, 10, 11.</NOTE> there is that great Citie which &s;piritually is called <HI>Sodom,</HI> and <HI>E|gypt,</HI> where our Lord is crucified: But after three dayes and an halfe the &s;pirit of life, from God, &s;hall enter into them, and they &s;hall &s;tand up, upon their feet, to the terrour of you all: Nor doe you thinke, that wee only inveigh again&s;t the great ones of the world, for thus doing; for wee know, that the greate&s;t of the Princes of this world, hath the very &s;ame &s;pi|rit, wherewith the ba&s;e&s;t Pea&s;ant, hath laid him&s;elfe open in the view of all the world, and the ba&s;e&s;t Pea&s;ant, hath the
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&s;ame &s;pirit, with the greate&s;t of the Princes of this world, <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ephe&s;. 2, 1, 2, 3. Rom.</HI> 3. 9. to 19.</NOTE> The&s;e wee &s;ay, are the two witne&s;&s;es, if you can receive it <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Matt. 11. 14.</NOTE> and what di&s;honour is it to trade &s;o much by meanes of witne&s;&s;es, and yet know not what a true witne&s;&s;e is, which if you did, you dur&s;t not attempt the things yee doe, whereby you ca&s;t reproach upon all the world, in that you profe&s;&s;e your &s;elves a choice people pickt out of it, and yet you goe on with &s;uch practi&s;es as you doe, maintaining them as your only glory. Our Lord gives you in charge, not to &s;weare at all, <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg"><HI>Matt.</HI> 5. 34. to 38.</NOTE> but it is your dignity to bring men to your &s;eats of Ju&s;tice, with nothing but oaths in their mouths; why doe you not ballance the Scriptures in this point? It hath beene &s;aid of old, thou &s;halt not commit Adultery, but I &s;ay unto you, hee that looketh on a Woman to lu&s;t after her, hath com|mitted Adultery with her in his heart already. <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">M<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">. 5. 27, 28.</NOTE> So al&s;o, it hath beene &s;aid of old, thou &s;halt not for&s;weare thy &s;elfe, <HI>but I &s;ay unto you, &s;weare not at all:</HI> So that if it bee Adultery to looke to lu&s;t, it is al&s;o for&s;wearing of a mans &s;elfe, to &s;weare at all; if one be Adulterie, the other is Perjury; if one be admitted in &s;ome ca&s;es, the other al&s;o; &s;o that in preaching the Toleration, nay the duty of an oath, you preach the tole|ration, yea, the dutie of adulterie it &s;elfe: So that our Lord plainely evinceth unto all mens con&s;ciences, not only the guilt, but the folly and madne&s;&s;e of the oath of man, to &s;h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">w how farre it is from inve&s;ting into place, or demon&s;trating cau&s;es. So that hee that concludeth upon honour and power, received from the oath of man, or upon knowledge, and holdne&s;&s;e to judge, in a cau&s;e from that Te&s;timonie, without the which hee could not have it, is as vaine in his thoughts, as if hee &s;hould hereupon conclude, I have now altered the frame of Heaven, which is no le&s;&s;e &s;table then the Throne of the great God, or demoli&s;hed the earth, which is as firme as his Foot-&s;toole for ever, or made a fraction in the orders of <HI>Ieru&s;alem,</HI> that choice and peculiar Citie of the great King, who&s;e in&s;titutions no mortall breath can intrench upon, or to profe&s;&s;e his authority and skill to be &s;uch, whereby hee can make a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ire of his head black or white, <HI>viz.</HI> cau&s;e his age to wax old as a garment, or re|new
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it with the Eagle at his plea&s;ure, <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103. 5</NOTE> hereby doth man in this point of &s;wearing, profe&s;&s;e his folly to be &s;uch, that he is become not onely vaine in his imaginations, but to that pride and u&s;urpation therein, as to intrude him&s;elfe into the Prero|gative Royall of his Maker, &s;o tha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> how&s;oever ye boa&s;t of the Ordinances of God, yet hee t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ls you, there is no more then yea yea, and nay nay in them; for that which is once nay is ever nay, in the ordination of Chri&s;t; and what is once yea, is ever yea with him, and according to his account (how|&s;oever man reckoneth, who&s;e accounts &s;hall be called over a|gaine) what is once the cur&s;e, is ever the cur&s;e, and that which is once the Principality and power of Chri&s;t, is ever the prin|cipalitie and power of Chri&s;t; as that which is once the prin|cipalitie and power of darkene&s;&s;e is e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">er the &s;ame, what hands &s;oever it commeth into: for manife&s;tation, mea&s;ure your Kingdome whether it be eternall, and your juri&s;diction whe|ther it be illimited, for hee hath given him the Heathen for his inheritance, and the utmo&s;t parts of the earth for his po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 2. 8.</NOTE> and a Kingdome of le&s;&s;e extent hee profe&s;&s;eth not, nor can he approve or acknowledge any that do; no more then light can approve of darkene&s;&s;e, or the Lord <HI>I<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">hovah</HI> of the lord <HI>Baal.</HI> Be wi&s;e therefore and bethinke your &s;elves, while it is called to day, harden not your hearts, <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Hebr. 3. 15</NOTE> as though you would make your &s;elves <HI>Meribba,</HI> nothing but &s;trife and contention again&s;t the Lord; rather ki&s;&s;e the So<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ne, if it be po&s;&s;ible, le&s;t his wrath kindle, and you peri&s;h from the way for ever: Oh ble&s;&s;ed onely they that hope in him, <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 2: 12.</NOTE> &s;o that hee which profe&s;&s;eth on this wi&s;e, it is yea, I am a Pa&s;tor, but it was nay; at &s;uch a time I was none at all; hee renounceth that &s;pi|rit of the true Pa&s;tor, yea, the only Feeder of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> but pro|fe&s;&s;eth that &s;pirit only that pu&s;heth the weake with the horne, and pudleth with his feet the waters where the flocke of God &s;hould drink. <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Ezekiel 34. 19, 10, 21.</NOTE> He with whom it is yea, I am a Ruler, but it was nay, when I was none, renounceth that &s;pirit of him that rules in Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">I&s;aiah 32. 1.</NOTE> profe&s;&s;ing the &s;pirit of him that rules according to the god of this world, that Prince of the power of the ayre, who is now working &s;o effectually in the
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children of di&s;obedience; <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Ephe&s;. 2. 2.</NOTE> &s;o al&s;o, he with whom it is yea, I am a Captain or chiefe &s;laughter-man: <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">As the word &s;ignifies.</NOTE> but it was nay, time was, I was none at all, renounceth that victory, and &s;laugh|ter made by the Captaine, and High Prie&s;t of our profe&s;&s;ion, <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Heb. 2. 10.</NOTE> who as he is a Lambe &s;lain from the beginning, <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Revel. 13. 8.</NOTE> his vi|ctory and &s;laughter, mu&s;t be of the &s;ame antiquity, profe&s;&s;ing him&s;elfe to be a chiefe &s;laughter-man, or &s;uperfluous Giant, made in the Hoa&s;t of the Phili&s;tims, &s;tanding in readine&s;&s;e to come out, to defie the Hoa&s;ts of the ever living God, <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">1 Sam. 17. 10.</NOTE> yea, it is evident, what&s;oever is more then yea yea, and nay nay, not &s;etting each upon his ba&s;e, whereon it &s;tandeth for ever without controule: but can remove, create, or make void of|fices&punc; and officers, at their plea&s;ure, is of that evill one, <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">1 John 3. 12.</NOTE> not of Je&s;us the Salvation of his people, <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Matt. 1. 21</NOTE> but of <HI>Shedim,</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">As the word &s;ignifies, given in the Chal|dean tongue for Devil.</NOTE> that Wa&s;ter and De&s;troyer of man-kind for ever: <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Under&s;tand the&s;e things according to the true in|tent, that is, a|ny officer that layes claime to the things of the Kingdom of God, by vertue of that, his office in that &s;ence the truth of the&s;e things &s;tand firme and good, and doth not deny or di&s;allow any humane ordinance of man in this world, &s;o it be kept in its bounds and proper place, for he that is a Captaine of the Temple, that is, exerci&s;eth force of armes, for the helpe of the hou&s;e of God, wil ever with the Prie&s;ts and &s;ouldiers, lay hands on <HI>Peter</HI> and <HI>John,</HI> to put them in hold, at the lea&s;t if they preach Chri&s;t. But <HI>Cornelius</HI> is no Captain of that kind or kindred, for he is a Gentile of <HI>Cae&s;area,</HI> and of the band called the Italian Band.</NOTE> Know there|fore, that it is the oath of God, which confirmes, and makes good his Covenant and promi&s;e to a thou&s;and generations, <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 105 9. 10</NOTE> and it is the oath of man, that is, the bond and obligation of that league and agreement made with hell and death for ever: Be ye a&s;&s;ured, it is not the Tabernacle of witne&s;&s;e, <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">I&s;ay 15. 18</NOTE> which you have among&s;t you, brought in by Je&s;us into the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of the Gentiles, <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Acts 7. 44, 45</NOTE> but it is <HI>Siccuth</HI> your King, or the Tabernacle of <HI>Molech,</HI> the Star of your God <HI>Remphan,</HI> figures that you have made to your &s;elves, <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Acts 7. 43</NOTE> which you have taken up, and are bearing &s;o &s;toutly upon your &s;houlders. Now&punc; to tell you what an oath, according to God is, that the Scriptures are delivered upon no other ground or termes of certaintie, where ever they are divulged, is a thing out of your juri&s;diction, you cannot di&s;cerne or judge of it; therefore ac|cording
<PB N="25" REF="21">
to our Word above, wee leave it as a Parable to you, as all the holy Word of our God <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">, as your conver&s;ation in all points, as in this, daily declareth; in a word when wee have to doe in your juri&s;diction, wee know what it is to &s;ubmit to the wi&s;e di&s;pen&s;ations of our God; when you have to doe a|mong&s;t us, in the liberties he hath given to us, wee doubt not but you &s;hall find him Judge among&s;t us, beyond and above a|ny cau&s;e, or thing you can propo&s;e unto us; and let that &s;uffice you, and know, that you cannot maintaine a juri&s;diction, but you mu&s;t reject all inroads upon other mens priviledges, and &s;o doe wee; in the meane time we<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;hall as wee thinke good be calling over, againe &s;ome matters you have had up, and had the handling of among&s;t you, to &s;ee what ju&s;tice or equity we find hath beene exerci&s;ed in them, and redre&s;&s;e them accordingly, for wee profe&s;&s;e right unto all me<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, and doe no violence at all, as you in your pre&s;cript threaten to doe to us, for we have lear|ned how to di&s;cipline our children or &s;ervants without offering violence unto them; even &s;o doe wee know how to deale with our deboi&s;t, rude, yea, inhumane neighbours (or if you will <HI>Nabals</HI>) without doing violence; but rather rendring unto them that which is their <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">e: Nor &s;hall we deprive a witne&s;&s;e of his mode&s;t te&s;timony, for the out-cryes and cla|mours of &s;uch a one, as ill-br<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">d apo&s;tatized <HI>Arnald,</HI> that fellonious Hogge-<HI>Killer,</HI> being the partie to be te&s;tified again&s;t, or for the oath of any intere&s;ted in the cau&s;e, <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">As they in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets</HI> had lately done, to con|demne the in|nocent, and ju&s;tifie &s;uch who otherwi&s;e had been pro|ved guilty of felonious acts, even the&s;e their new made &s;ubjects, who&s;e &s;hame they would not permit to appeare, but rather deprive &s;ufficient witne&s;&s;e of their te&s;timony, at the guilty per&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ns reque&s;t.</NOTE> nor &s;hall we be forward to come &s;o farre to find you work <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">That is to their Courts in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> to imploy them about any matters of ours living peaceably together &s;o farre remote from them, out of all their Juri&s;dictions.</NOTE> upon your reque&s;t, till we know you to beare another mind, then others of your Neighbours doe, with whom we have had to doe in this Countrey, who&s;e pretended and devi&s;ed Lawes, we have &s;tooped under to the robbing and &s;poyling of our goods, the lively-hood of our wives and children, thinking they had laboured, though groaping in great darkne&s;&s;e, to bring forth the truth in the rights and equitie of things: But finding them to be a company of gro&s;&s;e and di&s;&s;embling hypocrites, that
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under the pretence of Law, and Religion, have done nothing el&s;e but gone about to e&s;tabli&s;h them&s;elves in wayes to main|taine their owne vicious lu&s;ts, we renounce their diabolicall practice, being &s;uch as have denied in their publicke Courts, that the Lawes of our native Countrey &s;hould bee named a|mong&s;t them; yea, tho&s;e ancient Statute Lawes, ca&s;ting us into mo&s;t ba&s;e, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">a&s;ty, and in&s;ufferable places of impri&s;onment, for &s;peaking according to the language of them, in the meane while breaking open our hou&s;es in a violent way of Ho&s;tility, abu&s;ing our wives, and our little ones, to take from us the volumes wherin they are pre&s;erved, thinking thereby to keep us ignorant of the cour&s;es they are re&s;olved to runne, that &s;o the vi&s;io&s;ity of their owne wils might be a Law unto them; yea, they have indeavoured, and that in publicke expre&s;sions; that a man being accu&s;ed by them, &s;hould not have liberty to an|&s;wer for him&s;elfe in open Court: dealings of like nature wee find, in the place whereof you &s;tile us your Neighbours, on who&s;e unbridled malice, we find a higher then you putting a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> be, and yet in your account and reckoning we are the par|ties that are &s;till doing the wrong, and mu&s;t beare the guilt in your mo&s;t mature &s;entence, in whom&s;oever the &s;pot ari&s;eth, and abideth; but the God of vengeance, unto whom our cau&s;e is referred, never having our Protector, and Judge to &s;eeke, will &s;hew him&s;elfe in our deliverance out of the hands of you all; yea, all the hou&s;e of that <HI>I&s;hbo&s;heth,</HI> <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">That is, man of &s;hame.</NOTE> and <HI>Merib-bo&s;heth,</HI> <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Mouth of &s;hame.</NOTE> nor vvill he fayle us to utter and make knovvne his &s;trength vvherein vve &s;tand, to &s;erve in our age, and to mini&s;ter in our cour&s;e, today and tomorrow, and on the third day can none deprive us of perfection, <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Luke 13. 31, 32, 33, 34.</NOTE> for hee hath taught us to know what it is to walke today, and tomor|row, and the day following al&s;o, when a peri&s;hing e&s;tate cannot ri&s;e out of <HI>Ieru&s;alem,</HI> though &s;he be the only one, yea none but &s;he, that kils the Prophets, and &s;tones them that are &s;ent unto her: Behold ye that are looking after, and fore|telling &s;o much of the comming of Chri&s;t, driving the day be|fore you &s;till for certaine years; which &s;ome, you &s;ay, &s;hall attaine unto, and unto the day of death for the re&s;t, ye blind
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Guids, as your Fathers have ever done, &s;o doe ye: Behold, we &s;ay, when he appeareth, your hou&s;e which you &s;o glory in, &s;hall be left unto you de<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">e, it &s;hall be turned into no|thing but de&s;olation, and confu&s;ion, for <HI>Babel</HI> is its name, <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">That is, as the word &s;ig|nifies Confu|&s;ion.</NOTE> nor &s;hall you &s;ee him to your comfort, in the glory of his Kingdome, untill you can &s;ay (ble&s;&s;ed is he that commeth in the name of the Lord) <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 21. 5. to 10. <HI>Matt.</HI> 23. 37. 38, 39.</NOTE> when the authority and power of man, appeareth to be the building of <HI>Babel</HI> unto you, and the name and authority of God only to be that wherein the ble&s;&s;ing con&s;i&s;ts, and that in &s;uch wi&s;e al&s;o, as is nothing but a way of reproach in the eyes of all the world; that a King &s;hould ride into his chiefe Citie <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;o &s;trangly furni&s;hed upon an A&s;&s;e, borrowed, her furniture <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">id over-worne Garments, and accompanied with none but poore, meane, excommunicate per&s;ons, &s;uch as your Elders, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">cribes, Phari&s;ees, Lawyers, and all your credible per&s;ons among you make full account they are not only accur&s;ed, by, but al&s;o de&s;titute and void of all Law, when you can find <HI>Ho&s;anna</HI> in the highe&s;t, ari&s;ing out of &s;uch contempt, and &s;hame, then, and then only &s;hall you &s;ing unto him with comfort; in the meane time acknowledge your portion, which is to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ru<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> and &s;tay your &s;elves on the name of man, and in his beauty to delight and glory, which &s;hall fade as a Leafe, and like the gra&s;&s;e, &s;hall wither when it is fitting it &s;elfe for the Over; <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">I&s;ay 40. 7. 8. &amp; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 30. P&s;al. 90. 5, 6.</NOTE> &s;uch is man who&s;e breath is in his No&s;trils, <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">I&s;ay 2. 22.</NOTE> and the &s;onne of &s;orry man, in whom you have deligh<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> to tru&s;t, his power and policie brings forth nothing el&s;e, but as you &s;hall &s;ee and heart, in the Countrey from whence we are brought; we are not ignorant of tho&s;e &s;hamefull lies, and fal&s;ities gone out again&s;t us, and the daily wre&s;ting of our words, to ca&s;t contempt upon us, <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 56. 5</NOTE> thinking to bow downe our backs under ignominy, and reproach, neither of the &s;traits, and difficulties, they have ca&s;t us upon in the things that concernes this pre&s;ent life, to the taking away of the lives of many, if our God had not been &s;eene beyond and above what their thoughts could reach un|to, (as their owne confe&s;&s;ion hath witne&s;&s;ed) doing it in &s;uch a way, of painted hypocri&s;ie, and fal&s;e glo&s;&s;e, unto the eye
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of the world, that we might &s;eem unto it, &s;elfe executioners; we re&s;olve therefore to follow our imployments, &amp; to carry and be|have our &s;elves as formerly we have done, and no otherwi&s;e; for we have wronged no man, unle&s;&s;e with hard labour, to provide for our families, and &s;uffering of gro&s;&s;e, idle, and Idoll drones, to take our labours out of the mouths, and from off the backs of our little ones, to lord<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ne it over us: &s;o that if any &s;hall got about to di&s;turb, or annoy us, hence-forth in our imploy|ments, and liberties, which God hath, or &s;hal put into our hands, that can claim no intere&s;t in us but by the&s;e cour&s;es, <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Knowing our &s;elves to be free &s;ub|iects to the Laws and government of our native countrey, and not unto any government extended out of its bounds and juri&s;di|ction.</NOTE> what their bu&s;ines is, we know by proof &s;ufficient, to be nothing el&s;e but that ancient errand of <HI>Nimrod,</HI> that rebellious Hunter after the precious life, <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Ge<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> 10, 8, 9. Jer. 16. 16.</NOTE> which errand of his &s;hall be no more deli|vered unto us, in that covert cruelty, and di&s;&s;embling way of hypocri&s;ie; but in direct and open termes of tyrannie, we will not be dealt with as before (we &s;peake in the name of our God) we will not&punc; for if any &s;hall di&s;turbe us, as above, &s;e|cret Hypocrites &s;hall become open Tyrants, and their Laws appeare to be nothing el&s;e but meet lu&s;ts in the eyes of all the world: And wherefore doe you murmure among your &s;elves at this &s;aying, thinking it is not a Chri&s;tian expre&s;&s;ion? it is be|cau&s;e you are ignorant of the Gro&s;&s;e of our Lord Je&s;us, not knowing what it is; therefore it is, while you inveigh again&s;t &s;uch as &s;et up a Statue of wood and &s;tone to bow downe unto it, and are &s;o vaine as to cro&s;&s;e the ayre (to u&s;e your owne ex|pre&s;&s;ion) upon the faces of Infants, when they &s;prinkle them with water, to as great purpo&s;e, and in the meane time you preach, and &s;et up <HI>Seighnirim,</HI> for your Cro&s;&s;e, whom you fall downe unto &s;o willingly, and le&s;t you let the word pa&s;&s;e without expre&s;&s;ion of it unto all, it &s;ignifies Horrour and Feare, which is the Cro&s;&s;e you hold and teach, and by and through which you thinke to be &s;aved, which name is gi|ven by our Lord to the Devill him&s;elfe, (as our Engli&s;h tran|&s;late it, and the Lord never gives a name as an empty title, but according to the nature of the thing named, &s;o that if hee &s;peake, I have &s;aid ye are gods, <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 8 <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">, 7.</NOTE> of any be&s;ides him&s;elfe it is to declare, that they have not only the name, but the
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very nature of the god of this world, and therefore he &s;aith, they &s;hall dye even as <HI>Adam,</HI> which a&s;pired and u&s;urped the place of God, and fall al&s;o as one of the Princes, even as one of tho&s;e Princes of <HI>Midian,</HI> who&s;e cark<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;es became dung for the earth, <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 83. 9, 10, 11.</NOTE> and he that given that title unto any but the true God, that made heaven and earth, in any other &s;en&s;e, but as it declareth a flat oppo&s;ition again&s;t God, is <HI>Reacting</HI> that ancient &s;pirit of the Serpent; if you eat you &s;hall be as gods, <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><HI>Gene&s;is</HI> 3. 5. For he that a&s;&s;umeth a title unto him&s;elfe, without re|&s;pect unto Chri&s;t, in whom the whole glory therof con&s;i&s;ts &s;uch mind and di&s;po&s;ition pro&s;ecuted &amp; followed to its height, accor|ding to the ri&s;e thereof, &s;ets it &s;elfe in direct terme of oppo&s;ition again&s;t Chri&s;t and hath the &s;pirit of the god of this world.</NOTE> to judge of good and evill, for which all men are &s;et up in that kind; even &s;o while you tell the people, that by &s;or|row, compunction, and anxietie of &s;pirit, and trouble of mind, they communicate in the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t; out of which condition their comfort into flow, it is nothing el&s;e but to conclude, the Sonne of God to be <HI>Belial;</HI> yea to af|firme him to be <HI>Seighnirim</HI> him&s;elfe; this doth he receive at your hands in your Mini&s;tries, for all your fawning upon him with a ki&s;&s;e, <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Mat. 26. 4 9</NOTE> &s;o that if you will know how farre you are from communicating in the death of Chri&s;t, take it in this Parable, verily as farre as the weakne&s;&s;e of God is &s;tronger then man <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">1 Co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 1 25</NOTE>; countrey men, for wee cannot but call you &s;o, though we find your carriage to be &s;o farre wor&s;e then the&s;e <HI>Indians,</HI> we advi&s;e you to take things together, and what God hath joyned, let none dare to put a&s;under, <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Marke 10.</NOTE> &s;o that if you be a&s;hamed of the Cro&s;&s;e in Bapti&s;me, be a&s;hamed of the Bapti&s;me al&s;o, for &s;uch as the Cro&s;&s;e is, &s;uch is the Bapti&s;me: Therefore your Ance&s;tors goe beyond you, in that they joyne cro&s;&s;ing of the ayre, and &s;prinkling with the Element of wa|ter together: But wherever Bapti&s;me according to the word of Chri&s;t is, there is the Cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t al&s;o, <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Matt. 20. 2<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> 23. Luke 12. 50.</NOTE> they can no more be &s;eparated then his Scepter and Kingdom can, for where the one is, there is the other al&s;o; for as they are coin|cident, &s;o are the coaparant: So that if ever you &s;ee the Bap|ti&s;me of Chri&s;t, truly in u&s;e, and exerci&s;ed upon any, you doe as truly &s;ee that party partaking in, and communicating with the Cro&s;&s;e and Sufferings of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and to &s;ee per&s;ons in &s;uch e&s;tate, and conclude afterward they are worthy of &s;en&s;ure, yea po&s;sibly to an <HI>Athema, Maranatha,</HI>
<PB N="30" REF="24">
is nothing el&s;e but to conclude a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">all and finall falling away from the grace of God, as you Fathers have done before you, for no grace greater then the Cro&s;&s;e of our Lord Je&s;us; Behold therfore you De&s;pi&s;erst<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e vanity and abomination of all your Bapti&s;mes, how prejudiciall they are to the Cro&s;s of Chri&s;t, be a&s;hamed, and return in time, or he &s;hal be a &s;wift witne&s;s again&s;t you for ever, when your Repentance &s;hal come too late; but you think the Cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t is not but in bowing the back under every burden, and c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">inging, and crouching to the lu&s;t of every man otherwi&s;e his <HI>Shebet;</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">That is, his Scepter, Rod&punc; Staffe, or tribe</NOTE> is not fit, nor &s;uteth it with your Regiment at all, unle&s;&s;e &s;o &s;ervile, that every one may &s;erve their lu&s;ts of him, to Wealth and Honour, Friends and Allies, by &s;etting bounds and limits to the holy Word of God; &s;ome in the way of one devi&s;e, &s;ome in the way of an|other, and he that will not walke as a dumbe bea&s;t, wor&s;e then <HI>Balams</HI> A&s;&s;e, and &s;ay nothing, or el&s;e give a &s;en&s;e of the holy Writings to maintaine that devi&s;ed Plat-forme, if mercy mu&s;t be u&s;ed, not to hang and burne, yet bani&s;hment is ready wayting for them: Therefore &s;hall you know, by the Rod of his power that comes out of <HI>Sion,</HI> <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 110. 2.</NOTE> that he will be Ruler even in the mid&s;t of his Enemies.</P>
<CLOSER>By us whom you &s;tile your Neighbours of Pro|vidence, you have &s;aid it, Providence is our hold, the Neighbour-hood of the <HI>Samaritan</HI> we pro|fe&s;&s;e, and for the lookings on, and turnings a&s;ide of your Prie&s;ts and Levites, without either Uncti|on, or Compa&s;sion, all your &s;laine and woun|ded in &s;oule finding no remedy, doe plainely te&s;tifie the nature of your travels, and Neighbour|hood what it is; your &s;peech to us in generall, not u&s;ing our names, when as we know, it is parti|culars you ayme at, gives us plainely to &s;ee the word <HI>Aelem,</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">the word <HI>Aelein</HI> &s;ignifies dumbne&s;&s;e, &s;o that the Phra&s;e is, doe ye indeed, do dumb Ju&s;tice, o Congregation? and &s;o de&s;cribes &s;uch per&s;ons what they are that &s;peake not a word of Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in their acts and executions, which P&s;alme &s;hewed unto us the &s;pirit, practi&s;e and &s;ucce&s;&s;e of our Adver&s;aries.</NOTE> Revived and Living in
<PB N="31" REF="24">
you, as it &s;tands with its Coherence, in <HI>P&s;alme 58. Ver&s;e</HI> the fir&s;t, &amp;c.
<SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Iohn Wickes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Randall Houlden.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Iohn Warner.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Robert Potter.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Richard Waterman.</ITEM>
<ITEM><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The&s;e be|ing the Pur|cha&s;ers of <HI>Shawo met</HI> the <HI>Sachim, Myan|tonomy,</HI> as he &s;old it to 12. men, &s;o his price was that every man &s;hould pay 12. Fatham of Wamppum peage, that is, 144. Fatham, as our deed, which he made unt: us being extant, witne&s;&s;eth to be paid unto him.</NOTE> William Waddle.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Samuel Gorto<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Richard Carder.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Iohn Greene.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Nicholas Powar.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Francis We&s;ton.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Samp&s;on Shat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">on.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>This Writing &s;ent to the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> we have related <HI>ver|batim;</HI> only what is in the margent is added for explanation, and more ea&s;e to the Reader to under&s;tand our meaning which we &s;ent at the time when their general Court &s;at; de&s;iring that all the Country might take notice of it, doubting they were not well informed how the Magi&s;trates and Mini&s;ters had carryed them&s;elves towards us, nor upon what ground they had, or did proceed again&s;t us: But the chief of them taking the mat|ter into con&s;ideration&punc; thought good to call an A&s;&s;embly of Magi&s;trates and Mini&s;ters to con&s;ult, in way of a Synod, what cour&s;e to take uniting them&s;elves together that what was done by any of them might be the act of them all: and they peru&s;ing of our writings, framed out of them 26 particulars, or there a|bouts, which they &s;aid were bla&s;phemous, changing of phra&s;es, altering of words and &s;en&s;e, not in any one of them taking the true intent of our writings; but if they &s;pake our own words, it was to &s;uch purpo&s;e as this; as though a man would write the words of the <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> and affirm (<HI>there is no God</HI>) &s;uch words he may find written therein; but if he leave out this, <HI>That the fool hath &s;aid in his heart &s;o,</HI> he &s;poils the &s;en&s;e,
<PB N="32" REF="25">
and in &s;uch manner did they deal with our writings, and tho&s;e things they were free to divulge and make known among&s;t the people: The&s;e things concluded to be here&s;ies and bla&s;phemies before ever they heard a word of what interpretation we could give of our meaning therein: The Mini&s;ters did zealou&s;ly preach unto the people the great danger of &s;uch things, and the guilt &s;uch lay under that held them, &s;tirring the people up to labour to find &s;uch per&s;ons out and to execute death upon them, making per&s;ons &s;o execrable in the eyes of the people, whom they intimated &s;hould hold &s;uch things, yea &s;ome of them na|ming &s;ome of us in their Pulpits <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">As Mr <HI>Cobbe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI> who cryed out again&s;t <HI>Gorton</HI> that arch he|retick, who (&s;aith he) would have al men to be preachers. But if he had turned his &s;peech again&s;t <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> who wi&s;hed that al the Lords people were prophets, he had far more plainly ex|pre&s;&s;ed the bent of his &s;pirit, &amp; what manner of zeal he had.</NOTE>, that the people that had not &s;een us thought us to be wor&s;e by far in any re&s;pect then tho&s;e barbarous Indians are in the Country, which &s;ome of the Mini&s;ters have rendred unto the people as <HI>Hittites, Cana|nites, and P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">re&s;ites,</HI> urging it as a duty unto the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> to put them to death; whereupon we heard a rumor that the <HI>Ma&s;|&s;achu&s;ets</HI> was &s;ending out an Army of men to cut us off: but when they perceived we were removed further into the Countrey, and had left our Lands, Hou&s;es, and Labours, where their pretended &s;ubjects, by meanes of whom they &s;ought for &s;ome temporall occa&s;ions again&s;t us, lived, they thought it not &s;afe to come out again&s;t us, having &s;how of no|thing again&s;t us, but only our Religion; therefore &s;eeing them&s;elvs di&s;appointed in that de&s;igne, wherein their Coadju|tors, had wrought to bring them in, to make an inr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ad upon us, they then wrought by the&s;e their Agents, who traded for them with the <HI>Indians,</HI> to in&s;inuate them&s;elves into two, or three <HI>Indians</HI> among&s;t us, to become &s;ubjects to the govern|ment of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> hereby with-drawing them from their lawfull and naturall Prince, <HI>Myantonomy;</HI> and the name of the&s;e his &s;ubjects, who now became &s;ubjects to the <HI>Ma&s;|&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> were <HI>Pumhom,</HI> and <HI>Soccononocco;</HI> and when this was accompli&s;hed, then they againe &s;ent forth their war|rants unto us, as formerly to command our appearance at their Courts, in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> and that without any con|&s;ideration or delay, at the fir&s;t time of their &s;ending unto us after our removall, the Court being then &s;iting at <HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets.</HI></P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="warrant">
<PB N="33" REF="25">
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of the fir&s;t Warrant &s;ent unto us, by the Generall Court a&s;&s;embled at <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> in the Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets, after our remove all unto, and planting upon our Land at <HI>Shaw-omet, verbatim, the Warrant</HI> under their hand being &s;till extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>To our Neighbours, Ma&s;ter <HI>Samuel Gorton, Iohn Wickes, Ran|dall Houlden, Robert Potter&punc; Francis We&s;ton, Richard Carder, Iohn Warner,</HI> and <HI>William Waddle.</HI></SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>WHereas we have received upon good ground, into our Juri&s;diction, and Protection, two <HI>Indian Sachims,</HI> who&s;e names are <HI>Pumham,</HI> and <HI>Soccononoco,</HI> who have lately complained unto us of &s;ome injurious and unju&s;t dealing, to|wards them by your &s;elves; and becau&s;e we de&s;ire to doe e|quall right and ju&s;tice to all, and that all parties might be heard, we have therefore thought good to write unto you, to give you notice hereof&punc; that &s;o you might make pre&s;ent an&s;wer in the Generall Court now a&s;&s;embled at <HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> to their complaints, who are now here with us, to attend your comming: And becau&s;e &s;ome of you have been denyed the liberty of com|ming among&s;t us, and it may be, others are not willing in other re&s;pects, per&s;onally to appeare, <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">They having bani&s;hed &s;ome of us five or &s;ix years be|fore, and threatning, that if &s;ome of us were among&s;t them we &s;hould hardly &s;ee the place of our aboad any more.</NOTE> we doe therefore here|by give and grant &s;afe conduct for your free egre&s;&s;e &amp; regre&s;&s;e unto us, whereby there may be no ju&s;t excu&s;e, for with-holding you to give &s;atisfaction in this particular.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Dated <DATE>the <HI>12^t^h. 7^t^h.</HI> M^o. 1643.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Per cur. general. Incr. Nowell <HI>Secret.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>This Warrant being delivered unto us, by &s;ome of their fore|named Agents, the Engli&s;h, we pre&s;ently returned them this an&s;wer by word of mouth, by their Me&s;&s;enger, telling them, that we being &s;o far out of their juri&s;dictions, could not, neither would we acknowledge &s;ubjection unto any in the place where we were; but only the &s;tate and government of old <HI>England,</HI>
<PB N="34" REF="26">
who only had right unto us, and from whom we doubted not but in due &s;ea&s;on we &s;hould receive direction, for the well ordering of us in all civill re&s;pects; and in the meane time we lived peaceably together, de&s;iring and indevouring to doe wrong to no man, neither <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> nor <HI>Indian,</HI> ending all our differences in a neighbourly and loving way of Arbitra|tors, mutually cho&s;en among&s;t us: They receiving our an&s;wer, tooke it di&s;dainfully, as their intent was to take any we &s;ent, without our per&s;onall appearance, being re&s;olved what cour&s;e to runne concerning us; whereupon they &s;ent us another Writing immediatly from the Court, to informe us, that they were re&s;olved to come downe among&s;t us, to exerci&s;e Ju&s;tice there.</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of the Writing which they &s;ent unto us, <HI>verbatim,</HI> being &s;till extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>To <HI>Samuel Gorton, Iohn Wickes, Iohn Warner, Iohn Green, Randall Houlden, Francis We&s;ton, Robert Potter, Ri|chard Waterman, Richard Carder, Samp&s;on Shotton, Ni|cholas Power,</HI> and <HI>William Waddle.</HI></SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>WHereas upon occa&s;ion of divers injuries, offered by you to us, and the people under our juri&s;diction, both <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> and <HI>Indians,</HI> we have &s;ent to you to come to our Court, and there make an&s;wer to the particulars charged upon you, and &s;afe conduct to that end: To which you have retur|ned us no other but contemptuous and di&s;dainfull an&s;wers; and now at the la&s;t, that if we vvould &s;end to your &s;elves, that the cau&s;e might be examined, and heard among your owne Neighbours, we &s;hould then have ju&s;tice and &s;atisfaction: We have therefore, that our moderation and ju&s;tice may ap|peare to all men, agreed to conde&s;cend herein to your owne de&s;ire; and therefore intend &s;hortly to &s;end Commi&s;sioners into your parts to lay open the charges again&s;t you, and to heare your Rea&s;ons and Allegations, and thereupon to receive &s;uch &s;atisfaction from you, as &s;hall appeare in ju&s;tice to be due. We give you al&s;o to under&s;tand, that vve &s;hall &s;end a &s;ufficient
<PB N="35" REF="26">
Guard, with our Commi&s;&s;ioners, for their &s;afety again&s;t any violence, or injury; for &s;eeing you will not tru&s;t your &s;elves with us, upon our &s;afe conduct, we have no rea&s;on to tru&s;t ours with you, upon your bare courte&s;ie: But this you may re&s;t a&s;&s;ured of, that if you will make good your owne offer to us, of doing us right, our people &s;hall returne, and leave you in peace; otherwi&s;e we mu&s;t right our &s;elves, and our people, by force of Armes.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Dated <DATE>the <HI>19th.</HI> of the <HI>7^t^h.</HI> M. 1643.</DATE></DATELINE> <SIGNED>Per cur. <HI>Increa&s;e Nowell,</HI> Secret.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>The next newes wee had, immediatly upon the receipt of this Writing, (being about our nece&s;&s;ary imployments, in pro|vi&s;ion for our families) was thi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">; that one Captaine <HI>George Cooke,</HI> with a company of armed &s;ouldiers, accompanied with many <HI>Indians,</HI> having Commi&s;&s;ion from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets,</HI> either to bring us away by force of Armes, or el&s;e to put us to the &s;word; which when we heard, we partly beleeved, in regard they had given order by publicke Court, long before, that no Gun-powder &s;hould be &s;old into tho&s;e parts where we lived, but only to &s;uch as would become &s;ubjects to them, whereby the place was not only hindred of means of defence from a forraine Enemy, but al&s;o to furni&s;h their families with &s;uch provi&s;ions as the countrey <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ffords: we hearing of their approach, immediatly &s;ent a Letter to tho&s;e which we heard they &s;tiled Commi&s;&s;ioners, which proved to be the Captaine, together with his officers, de&s;iring to know their intent, and what their Commi&s;&s;ion was to doe in tho&s;e parts, &s;ignifying, that if they came to vi&s;it us in way of neighbour-hood, and friend&s;hip, to cleare any matter or cau&s;e, they &s;hould be wel|come to us&punc; but if otherwi&s;e, we wi&s;hed them not to &s;et a foot upon our Lands, in any ho&s;tile way.</P>
<LETTER>
<PB N="36" REF="27">
<HEAD>A true Copie of our Letter <HI>verbatim,</HI> &s;ent to the Commi&s;|&s;ioners, as they were upon the way comming from the Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets towards <HI>Shaw-omet.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Shaw-omet <DATE>the 28th. of September, 1643.</DATE></DATELINE>
To certaine men &s;tiled Commi&s;&s;ioners, &s;ent from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|chu&s;ets,</HI> now upon the way towards <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> who&s;e names we know not.</OPENER>
<P>WHereas you are &s;ent by the government of the <HI>Ma&s;|&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> under pretence of having things ordered among&s;t us, in way of ju&s;tice, and equity, to be di&s;tributed unto them&s;elves, (con&s;i&s;ting as they &s;ay) of <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> and <HI>In|dians,</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">That is, their united body which they &s;o much delight, and glory in, con|&s;i&s;ts by their owne confe&s;|&s;ion of &s;uch mixture of Members, as that part are Heathens by their owne report.</NOTE> and that upon this ground, that we have given them an invitation to that purpo&s;e; Know therefore our whole intent, and meaning therein, which may not beare any other interpretation in a rationall mind; that as they invited us unto them, as Clients to have our cau&s;es tryed by them, and not as Warriors to fight with them, &s;o did we, and no otherwi&s;e invite them: Mi&s;take us not therefore, neither deceive your &s;elves through their or your owne pretences; for if you come to treate with us, in ways of equity and peace (together therewith, &s;haking a Rod over our heads, in a Band of &s;oul|diers:) Be you a&s;&s;ured, we have pa&s;&s;ed our Child-hood and non|nage in that point, and are under Commi&s;&s;ion of the great God, not to be children in under&s;tanding, neither in courage&punc; but to quit our &s;elves as men; we &s;traitly charge you therefore, hereby, that you &s;et not a foot upon our Land in any ho&s;tile way, but upon your perill; and that if any blood be &s;hed, upon your owne heads &s;hall it be; and know, that if you &s;et an Ar|my of men upon any part of our Land, contrary to our ju&s;t prohibition herein, we are under command, and have our Commi&s;sion &s;ealed already, to re&s;i&s;t you unto death; for this is the Law of our God, by whom we &s;tand, written in all mens hearts, that if you &s;pread a table before us as friends, we &s;it not as men invective, envious, or male-content, not touch|ing a mor&s;ell, nor looking for you to point us unto our di&s;h, but we eat with you, by vertue of the unfained Law of relations, not only to &s;atisfie our &s;tomacks, but to increa&s;e friend&s;hip
<PB N="37" REF="27">
and love, the end of fea&s;ting: So al&s;o if you vi&s;it us, as <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">om|batants, or Warriors, by the &s;ame Law of relations, we as freely and chearfully an&s;wer you unto death; not to kill, and take away the lives of men&punc; but to increa&s;e wrath and horrour, the end of warre, in the &s;oules of all men that &s;eeke after it, where the peace of our God appeares not; and they that worke otherwi&s;e, and an&s;wer not unto this Law, they are not men of truth, but ba&s;e di&s;&s;embling Hypocrites; &s;ha|dowes, and abominable Idols, &s;et up in the forme of men.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>By us owners, and Inhabitants of <HI>Shaw-omet.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>This Letter being &s;ent unto the&s;e Commi&s;&s;ioners &s;o &s;tiled by them, though as yet unknowne unto us, by the hand of one <HI>Iohn Pei&s;e,</HI> who lived among&s;t them in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets,</HI> who having a Father in Law among&s;t us, was willing to come and declare unto his Father, out of his tender|ne&s;&s;e towards him, of the n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">rne&s;&s;e of the &s;ouldiers ap|proach, and as neare as he could, the end of their comming, to per&s;wade his &s;aid Father to e&s;cape for his life.</P>
<P>And when the Captaine, and the re&s;t of the Commi&s;&s;ioners had read our Letter, they returned us this an&s;wer (by the &s;ame Me&s;&s;enger) namely that they de&s;ired to &s;peake with us, to &s;ee if they could convert us to be of their minds, (bringing a Mini&s;ter with them, to accompli&s;h their ends in &s;uch de&s;igns) which if they could not, then they would account of us, as men <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">itted for the &s;laughter, and with all convenient &s;peed, would addre&s;&s;e them&s;elves for our di&s;patch in the ruine of us, and of our families.</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of the an&s;wer made by the Com|mi&s;&s;ioners, unto our Letter, <HI>verbatim,</HI> under their hands&punc; which is &s;till extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>To our friend <HI>John Pei&s;e.</HI> Having con&s;idered of the Writing you brought to us the la&s;t night, our thoughts concerning it, are as followeth.</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>FIr&s;t it is our great de&s;ire, that we might &s;peake with them, concerning the particulars, which we were &s;ent to them
<PB N="38" REF="28">
about; <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">This Letter doth plainly declare, the proper intent of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|chu&s;ets</HI> in &s;en|ding out this band of &s;oul|diers again&s;t us, namely in the fal&s;ifying of our faith to God, to &s;ub|ject our &s;elves unto them, (who never named the lea&s;t word un|to us, as though they came again&s;t us in the name of the King, and State of old <HI>England,</HI> but in the name of the government of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI>) or el&s;e to pay the tribute of our Lives unto them, in the utter ruine of our wives and children, which the&s;e men having recei|ved in Commi&s;&s;ion, together with in&s;tru|ction how to accompli&s;h and effect the &s;ame, from tho&s;e that &s;ent them, count it their glory to reveal, and make manife&s;t the &s;ame, which the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> had &s;o long gone about to hide, under the colour of &s;ome civil mi&s;carriage in our cour&s;e of walking towards men, in regard them&s;elves had profe&s;&s;ed, to remove into tho&s;e parts meerly for the liberty of con&s;cience, which now they &s;o zealou&s;ly deny unto their neighbours.</NOTE> certainly per&s;wading our &s;elves, that we &s;hall be able through the Lords helpe to convince &s;ome of them, at lea&s;t of the evill of their way, and cau&s;e them to divert their cour&s;e, that &s;o doing they may pre&s;erve their lives and liberties, which otherwi&s;e mu&s;t nece&s;&s;arily leade to eternall ruine of them and theirs; for however, through an evill &s;pirit, that hath po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed &s;ome one, or two of them, others are drawne into &s;uch de&s;perate evils, as is mon&s;trous to thinke of; yet ha|ving better coun&s;ell, we hope they will be brought to &s;ee their weakne&s;&s;e, and repent of it, that &s;o we might returne, and leave them and theirs in peace, which is our great de&s;ire, and the contrary mo&s;t grievous; but if there be no way of tur|ning them, we then &s;hall looke upon them, as men prepared for &s;laughter, and accordingly &s;hall addre&s;&s;e our &s;elves, with all convenient &s;peed, not doubting of the Lords pre&s;ence with us, being cleare in the way we are in: This being our minds, we intreate you to acquaint them with it &s;peedily; and if they &s;hall, who have &s;et their names to their book, doe come to us, and &s;peake with us, we &s;hall give them leave to returne without hurt.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your Friends and Commi&s;sioners &s;ent by the government of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI>-Bay into the&s;e parts.
<LIST>
<ITEM>George Cooke.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Edward Iohn&s;on.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Humfrey Athart<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>The returne of this an&s;wer from the Commi&s;sioners, as a|bove, affrighted our wives &amp; children, forcing them to betake
<PB N="39" REF="28">
them&s;elves, &s;ome into the Woods among the <HI>Indians,</HI> &s;uffe|ring &s;uch hard-&s;hip, as occa&s;ioned the death of divers of them, <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">As the wife of <HI>Jo. Green,</HI> as al&s;o the wife of <HI>Robert Potter,</HI> other women mi&s;carrying to the lo&s;&s;e of their children. So al&s;o <HI>Francis We&s;ton,</HI> through cold and hard&s;hip in pri&s;on, fell into a con|&s;umption, and in &s;hort time after dyed of it.</NOTE> and others going to take water, to depart to other plan|tations for &s;uccour, the &s;ouldiers approached before they could take boat, who pre&s;ented their Muskets at women great with child, forcing them and their children to runne deep into the water, to get into the boat for feare of them <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">The wife of <HI>S. Gorton,</HI> and &s;ome of her children, &s;he being ready to lie downe in child bed, was &s;o dealt with by the &s;ouldi|ers, the boat ha&s;ting off for feare, if one of her &s;onnes could not have &s;wimmed, had been left be|hind her, &s;o was glad to betake him&s;elfe to the water, though young to recover the Boat.</NOTE>; we beta|king our &s;elves to one of our hou&s;es, for our defence, they pre&s;ently appeared in &s;ight; <HI>S. Gorton</HI> being out of the hou&s;e to convey his Wife (who was great with child) towards the water-&s;ide for her e&s;cape, e&s;pied them about Musket-&s;hot from the hou&s;e, the way which they came being full of wood; they were not &s;ooner di&s;cerned but he called unto them, to keepe without the di&s;tance of Musket-&s;hot, calling to his friends in the hou&s;e al&s;o to &s;tand to their Armes, for a band of &s;ouldiers con&s;i&s;ting of <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> and <HI>Indians</HI> were in &s;ight; &s;o committing his Wife to &s;ome of <HI>Providence,</HI> which came along with them to convey her to the boat, betooke him&s;elfe to the hou&s;e with the re&s;t. The&s;e our loving neighbours, inha|biting neere unto us in that Towne where Ma&s;ter <HI>Williams</HI> &s;ate downe, being deeply affected with the proceedings of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> comming downe unto us along with them, to be eye and eare witne&s;&s;es how things were carried at our meeting; who in&s;tantly urged the Captaine, and officers for a parley, who denyed to yeeld o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> grant any &s;uch thing, but profe&s;&s;ed they would fall upon us pre&s;ently, unle&s;&s;e it might be private betwixt them&s;elves and us, and none el&s;e to heare it, profe&s;sing to make di&s;patch of us in one quarter of an hours worke, <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">They had &s;o animated, and incouraged the &s;ouldiers, yea, &s;o incen&s;ed them again&s;t us, that they were loth to entertaine &s;peech or parley, though they &s;ay in their la&s;t wri|ting they came to examine ca&s;es of right and wrong which could not appeare with|out parley, nay &s;ome of their &s;ouldiers, picked out to be at the parley, profe&s;&s;ed to &s;ome of us, when they came to vi&s;it us as we lay in bolts and irons among&s;t them, comming in the night, not daring to &s;ee us in the day, profe&s;&s;ed in the&s;e words; When we came fir&s;t to the ground we were ma<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ight, and to fal upon you without &s;peech or parley, but after we &s;aw you, and heard you &s;peake, many of us had rather have been on your &s;ide, then for the cau&s;e we came, and the Captaine &s;eeing &s;ome of us di&s;couraged to fight, would not permit us to di&s;cour&s;e with any of <HI>Providence</HI> men, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;t they &s;hould &s;peake on your behalfe; and this we know, that &s;ome that did &s;ignifie unto them any &s;mall thing concerning the equity of our cau&s;e the Cap|taine &s;eized on them for pri&s;oners, and kept them in bonds, during the time of their aboad there, and much adoe to relea&s;e them, that they had not taken them downe into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> to undergoe further puni&s;hments.</NOTE> which we under&s;tanding refu&s;ed to enter into
<PB N="40" REF="29">
parley, unle&s;&s;e our &s;aid neighbours of <HI>Providence</HI> might be pre|&s;ent to witne&s;&s;e the pa&s;&s;ages of it; but at the la&s;t after much affectionate urging, they yeelded to a parley; and foure of <HI>Providence</HI> men to be cho&s;en out as witne&s;&s;es, which we freely con&s;ented unto the mutuall choyce of them, and accordingly we met together; and we demanding of them the end of their comming, they pretended we had done &s;ome wrong unto certaine of their &s;ubjects, as al&s;o that we held bla&s;phemous errours, which we mu&s;t either repent of, or goe downe to the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> to be tryed at their Courts, or el&s;e they had Com|mi&s;&s;ion to put us to the &s;word, and to pay them&s;elves out of our goods, for their charges in comming thither; to which we made an&s;wer, we could not yeeld thereunto, that they that were our profe&s;&s;ed adver&s;aries &s;hould be our Judges, we being &s;o farre out of all their juri&s;dictions; but freely tendred our appeale to the honourable State of <HI>England,</HI> in any thing that could be objected again&s;t us, which they peremptorily refu&s;ed: We then offered to put our ca&s;e to arbitration, by in|different men, mutually cho&s;en in the countrey, ingaging our goods, our lands, &amp; our per&s;ons, to make full &s;atisfaction for any thing that could be brought in, or appeare again&s;t us; which Propo&s;itions &s;eemed &s;o rea&s;onable, not only in the eyes of the witne&s;&s;es, but al&s;o to the Captain and the re&s;t, that there was a truce agreed upon, untill &s;uch time as a Me&s;&s;enger being di&s;patcht into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> might returne with the an|&s;wer of the Governour, and A&s;&s;i&s;tants, during the time of which truce, they broke open our hou&s;es, and our desks, ta|king away our Writings, killed our Cattle for them&s;elves and the <HI>Indians,</HI> whom they brought with them, to live upon
<PB N="41" REF="29">
taking the bedding, with other nece&s;&s;aries in our hou&s;es, for the &s;ouldiers to lie upon, and make u&s;e of, not only at that time, but afterwards in their trenches, during the time of their league, a&s;&s;aulting &s;ome of our friends, both men, women, and children, who only came to &s;ee us, in that &s;ad time of extre|mitie, hearing there was a truce concluded for a &s;ea&s;on, indea|vouring to cut them off, upon the water, (being in a &s;mall ve&s;|&s;ell) by &s;hooting halfe a &s;core or a dozin Muskets at them, be|fore they could get out of their reach, which they very narrow|ly e&s;caped; during the time of this truce, the men of <HI>Providence</HI> (unknowne unto us) &s;ent a Letter to the Government of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> to informe them how things had been carried at our meeting, whereof they were eye and eare witne&s;&s;es.</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>A true Copie of the Letter &s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> by the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> cho&s;en to be witne&s;&s;es&punc; of all pa&s;&s;ages in way of our parley, to the Governour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> in way of mediati|on for peace, to prevent Countrey-men from &s;pilling one an others blood, it is here &s;et downe <HI>verbatim,</HI> according to the originall Copie &s;till extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Providence <DATE><HI>the</HI> 2. of the 8t. <HI>M</HI>^o. 1643. <HI>&s;o called.</HI></DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>WOrthy Sir, let it not &s;eeme ab&s;urd, that we who&s;e names are here under written, pre&s;ent you with the&s;e in&s;uing lines; we lately hearing read a Copie of your writing, directed to <HI>Samuel Gorton,</HI> and that company, as al&s;o &s;ome of us being reque&s;ted by our neighbour <HI>Cole</HI> (your &s;ubject) and (all reque&s;ted by <HI>Samuel Gorton,</HI> and his company, to heare and &s;ee) the truth of proceedings on both &s;ides, our con&s;cien|ces per&s;wading us, that the&s;e de&s;ires were rea&s;onable, and for ought we know, might be a meanes (if God &s;o wrought) to prevent the &s;hedding of blood; the&s;e things we &s;ay con&s;ide|red, may (as before) cau&s;e our boldne&s;&s;e. We therefore being filled with griefe at &s;uch a &s;pectacle, that the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> &s;hould &s;hed Engli&s;h blood, doe de&s;ire to acquaint you with what we did ob&s;erve, during that re&s;pite, that was conde&s;cended to, for
<PB N="42" REF="30">
a treatie; therefore to proceed, after your Commi&s;sion read, <HI>S. G.</HI> his company did de&s;ire to know in what particulars, you did demand &s;atisfaction; the propo&s;itions being declared were foure.</P>
<P>Fr&s;t to get them off the <HI>Indians</HI> ground, which your Com|mi&s;sioners &s;aid, they had but intruded.</P>
<P>Secondly, for &s;atisfaction about a Booke, wherein your Commi&s;sioners &s;aid, were gro&s;&s;e things penned.</P>
<P>Thirdly, for &s;atisfaction for wrong done, both to <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> and <HI>Indians,</HI> under your &s;ubjection.</P>
<P>Fourthly, for charges, which your Commi&s;sioners &s;aid, they had cau&s;ed by forcing this Army.</P>
<P>Vnto the fir&s;t they an&s;wered, that the ground was theirs, and they were the true owners, and that by the &s;ame right that you did clayme it, it being long before &s;ubjected to the <HI>Nan|hygan&s;et Sachim,</HI> and purcha&s;ed by them of <HI>Myantonomy,</HI> and (to take away all colour of claime) of <HI>Pumham</HI> al&s;o, and they having quiet po&s;&s;e&s;sion of the &s;ame&punc; untill this trouble; and therefore did conceive you had wronged them, by bringing an Army, to force them from their ground; your Commi&s;sioners pleaded, it was your right, by the <HI>Indians</HI> &s;ubjecting to you, and thereupon were very re&s;olute to take them off by force; which they que&s;tioned not but immediatly to performe; the other as re&s;olute, con&s;idering, they &s;aid they had bought it, and vowed to &s;tand upon their lawfull defence, though to the la&s;t drop of their blood, the re&s;olution on both &s;ides being &s;o hot, that we thought immediatly the Battle would have began; they did then appeale to the highe&s;t Court in old <HI>England,</HI> for the tryall of their right, which when your Commi&s;sioners refu&s;ed, they did againe offer to put it to the tryall of indiffe|rent Judges in this Countrey, which were parties of neither &s;ide, and counted it unrea&s;onable, that force &s;hould be offered before the cau&s;e were tryed, which they judged you could not doe, being parties in the cau&s;e, and promi&s;ed to &s;tand to the determination of tho&s;e Judges, to the utmo&s;t of their e&s;tates and per&s;ons.</P>
<P>Secondly, being demanded by your Commi&s;sioners, &s;atisfa|ctioin
<PB N="43" REF="30">
for the Book, wherein they declared gro&s;&s;e things were penned, they an&s;wered, that they would put it, as the former, to be judged by indifferent Judges, both the terms, &amp; &s;atisfaction.</P>
<P>To the third, for &s;atisfaction for wrong done, both to <HI>In|dians</HI> and <HI>Engli&s;h;</HI> they an&s;wered, they would give full &s;a|tisfaction.</P>
<P>Concerning the fourth, wherein was great expence and charges required; they an&s;wered likewi&s;e, as in the former, that they would pay and give to the utmo&s;t &s;atisfaction, if the Arbitrators judged, that they were the cau&s;e of ray&s;ing it, and would as fully and freely &s;ubmit&punc; as to eat and drinke: The&s;e being in &s;hort the heads, we leave the more ample relation to your Commi&s;sioners; Sir &s;o faire Propo&s;itions offered, we hope will worke your affections to the utmo&s;t end, of preven|ting blood-&s;pilling: Nay, we hope, if it be but upon the point of honour, rather that you will be lo&s;ers, then take the utmo&s;t; the ca&s;e we cannot but <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e &s;adly affected with, know|ing it will be di&s;honourable to the Lord, if tho&s;e who pro|fe&s;&s;e them&s;elves Chri&s;tians, &s;hould not take the be&s;t means for peace; we hope you will not in the lea&s;t mea&s;ure take it un|kindly for any hint unto you; neither that you will de&s;pi&s;e <HI>Abigals</HI> coun&s;ell, for <HI>Nabals</HI> churli&s;hne&s;&s;e; let the Lord &s;mite them, and his hand be upon them, if they &s;inne again&s;t him; <HI>If one man &s;inne again&s;t another, the Iudge &s;hall judge him, but if a man &s;inne again&s;t the Lord, who &s;hall intreat for him? 1 Sam.</HI> 2. 25. Now their Propo&s;ition is for man to judge, as that fir&s;t part of the alleadged Scripture doth declare; &s;ome of their wives and children (if <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> mornfull Spectacle might move you) doe begge for a &s;erious con&s;ideration of their hu&s;|bands, and fathers Propo&s;itions; which if not hearkned unto, were like in mans eye to be left mi&s;erable; we would they were able to write their owne griefe, which now in pitie we have re&s;pect unto: Oh, how grievous would it be (we hope to you) if one man &s;hould be &s;laine&punc; con&s;idering the greate&s;t Monarch in the world cannot make a man; e&s;pecially grievous, &s;eeing they offer termes of peace: Sir, vve knovv not hovv to end, nor vvhat to &s;ay, vve mu&s;t abruptly leave de&s;iring your
<PB N="44" REF="31">
wi&s;doms to cover on<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> defects with love, and an&s;wer for us, if any &s;hall challenge us, 2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2. 7.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Chad. Browne. </ITEM>
<ITEM>Thomas Olney.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Field,</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Wickenden.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED>

</CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of a Letter written by the Go|vernour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> in an&s;wer to the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> of their Letter written unto him, in way of mediation for peace, which is here &s;et downe <HI>verbatim,</HI> the Letter being extant under his owne hand.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Neighbours of <HI>Providence,</HI></SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>I Have received a Letter &s;ub&s;cribed by four of you, whom I hear are not of the confederacie with <HI>Gorton, Holden,</HI> and the re&s;t of that company, wherin as Mediators you intercede be|tween them &amp; us, in the differences now between us; the return of the Me&s;&s;enger is &s;o ha&s;ty, that I cannot make a full an&s;wer to every thing you have mentioned in your Letter; only you may re&s;t &s;atisfied with this, that the Commi&s;&s;ion, and in&s;tru|ctions given to the Commi&s;&s;ioners now at <HI>Providence,</HI> was not ra&s;hly and incon&s;iderately drawn up; but by the mature ad|vi&s;e of the wi&s;e&s;t and godlie&s;t among&s;t us&punc; a&s;&s;embled in a ge|nerall Court, which I have not power to rever&s;e or alter; and for the ju&s;tne&s;&s;e of the Courts proceedings therein, you may doe well to take further notice, that be&s;ides the Title of Land, between the <HI>Indians,</HI> and the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> there, there are twelve of the <HI>Engli&s;h,</HI> that have &s;ub&s;cribed their names, to horrible and dete&s;table bla&s;phemies, again&s;t God, and all Ma|gi&s;tracie, who are rather to be judged as Bla&s;phemers&punc; (e&s;peci|ally if they per&s;i&s;t therein) rather then that they &s;hould delude us, by winning time, under the pretence of Arbitration; I doubtnot, but you well know, that we have often &s;ent to them, to plead their title to the Land, and to make an&s;wer for their Bla&s;phemies, and that we lately &s;ent them &s;afe Conducts for their comming, and returning, <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Which was only words expre&s;&s;ed in their paper formerly &s;ent unto us&punc;</NOTE> for all which we have received from them, nothing but &s;corns, con|tempt, and revilings in the wor&s;t expre&s;&s;ions they could
<PB N="45" REF="31">
ca&s;t them into; &s;o that the promi&s;e of protection made by us, to <HI>Pumham, &amp;c.</HI> the vindication of Gods honour, and many rea&s;ons concerning our &s;afety, have nece&s;&s;arily put us upon this cour&s;e with them; notwith&s;tanding which, if any of them will in peaceable manner, repaire unto us, under the conduct of our Commi&s;sioners, no violence &s;hall be offered to them, by our &s;ouldiers there&punc; and our ju&s;tice here; but if they refu&s;e, and offer violence&punc; let the hurt they receive be upon their owne heads; further (which I had forgotten) where you &s;ay their offer of arbitration is faire, you may doe well to be better informed, and to know that the botome of it is ea&s;ily &s;ounded, which is to win time, to di&s;courage the <HI>Indians,</HI> <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Fearing le&s;t the true and naturall Prince of the&s;e their In|dian &s;ubjects &s;hould &s;hew them their folly in this their &s;ubje|ction, and to win them a|gain unto him&s;elfe, and thereby leave them without this colour and pretence to worke out their own ends upon us.</NOTE> under our &s;ubjection, and to give them time, and oppor|tunity, to &s;tir up (as much as in them lieth) the other <HI>In|dians</HI> again&s;t <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Behold here their guilt, in that they had unju&s;tly drawn by in&s;inuation the Indians from their lawfull Prince, as al&s;o that &s;ubtill wrong they did to us, &s;ugge&s;ting &s;ecretly unto the people, as though there were feare of &s;ome combination between the Indians and us, to &s;tir up &s;ouldiers by that means to come out again&s;t us.</NOTE> us; for to whom would they referre their matters? to your &s;elves whom we know not, but have ju&s;t cau&s;e to feare, in re&s;pect of your vicinitie unto them, and your now mediation for them; and to tho&s;e of <HI>Road</HI>-Iland, divers of whom we know too well, to referre any matters unto; <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Behold how the&s;e men can evade all faire Propo&s;itions to pro&s;e|cute, and bring forth their own &s;pirit; yea, even to the death of their countrey men, if it be but by ca&s;ting a&s;per&s;ions upon tho&s;e that hold not ju&s;t length and breadth in religion with them.</NOTE> the be&s;t office you can performe unto them, is to per&s;wade them to attend their owne &s;afety, by yeelding to the lawfull demand of our Commi&s;&s;ioners, from which as I &s;aid before I cannot vary. So I re&s;t</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your loving Neighbour, Io: Winthrope.</SIGNED> <DATELINE>Bo&s;ton <DATE>8. 3, 1643.</DATE></DATELINE>

</CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>Now after the enterchange of the&s;e Letters, between the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> and the Governour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> which
<PB N="46" REF="32">
we at the pre&s;ent were ignorant of, when certaine dayes were expired, the Me&s;&s;engers &s;ent by the Commi&s;&s;ioners into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> to acquaint them with our Propo&s;itions, returned, which we perceived by their &s;hooting off of Guns at his com|ming: And the fir&s;t thing we di&s;cerned in them, they &s;ent out and gathered all our Cattle together, and tooke them into their owne cu&s;tody, &s;ending two &s;ouldiers unto us to give us no|tice, that the time of truce was expired, and that our Propo|&s;itions could in no cau&s;e be accepted or imbraced by the <HI>Ma&s;|&s;achu&s;ets&punc;</HI> we then de&s;iring to &s;peake with the Captain and the officers, they utterly denyed to have any &s;peech with us; but immediatly intrenched them&s;elves, and the &s;ame day gave fire upon us; whereupon to &s;hew our allegeance to the State of old <HI>England,</HI> we hung out the Engli&s;h colours, which they perceiving &s;hot the more violently again&s;t us&punc; &s;hooting the co|lours many times, through and through: Now when the Me&s;&s;enger from the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> returned, comming through the Towne of <HI>Providence&punc;</HI> two of the men of <HI>Providence</HI> came along to <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> to &s;ee how things were carried, and what the newes was at his returne; and however the Commi&s;|&s;ioners would not &s;peake with us; yet the men of <HI>Providence</HI> went unto them, &amp; had &s;peech with them&punc; whom they warned to come no more unto us, upon their perill, for they were re|&s;olved of their cour&s;e; therefore who ever came neer unto us, they would take them for their enemies: For when the Go|vernour and A&s;si&s;tants of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> perceived that the Commi&s;sioners had declared their errand unto us in plainer termes then, then they intended it &s;hould have beene; they thought to make the hou&s;e we were in our grave, was the be&s;t vvay to vindicate the moderation of their equall Ju&s;tice to|vvards us, as plainly appeared by their practi&s;e, and cour&s;e held concerning us.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="testimony">
<PB N="47" REF="32">
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copy of the te&s;timony of the two men of <HI>PROVIDENCE</HI> who came to <HI>SHAVV-OMET</HI> at the return of the Me&s;&s;enger out of the <HI>MASSACHU|SETS verbatim,</HI> extant under their own hands.</HEAD>
<P>WE te&s;tifie that upon the return of the An&s;wer, from the Bay, the Captain refu&s;ed the former offer of appeale to <HI>England,</HI> or Arbitration in the Country, with the &s;aid <HI>Samuel Gorton</HI> and his company, but immediately di&s;&s;olved the truce, and the &s;ame day proceeded to give fire upon them.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Richard Scot</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Harri&s;&s;e.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>And &s;o continued for divers days together in their fierce a&s;&s;alt, the Sabbath approaching, we imagining they would not have continued their a&s;&s;alt upon that day, and were very con|fident that they would go about no &s;uch work upon the night before the Sabbath; being we knew well that they held the Sabbath begins in the evening going before, and that they had no le&s;&s;e ground for it then Ma&s;ter <HI>Cottons</HI> judgment; as al&s;o that it was one of their laws that the breach of the Sabbath is to be puni&s;hed with death. Now what they may judge the killing of their Countrymen cau&s;le&s;ly upon that day is, whe|ther to keep or break the Sabbath, we leave to all men to judge.</P>
<P>But contrary to our expectation, early in the morning, having prepared their fire-works, they attempted to burn the hou&s;e wherein we were, &s;econding their fire with the di&s;charge of above four hundred &s;hot again&s;t us, according to the Souldiers account, who afterwards told us how many &s;hots they had made that morning, according to the emptying of their band<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">|l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ers; all which time they told us Captain <HI>Cook</HI> &s;tood behind &s;uch a great white oaktree, whom we heard incouraging his &s;ouldiers to come on with courage, thinking him&s;elf in &s;afety, and &s;o he was, for we di&s;charged not a Gun that morning, nor
<PB N="48" REF="33">
of al the time of their &s;iege, but onlytwo in the nighttime at ran|dom, to &s;car them from working their trenches neer unto us; for we had concluded to take away the lives of none of our Countrymen, unle&s;&s;e they offered to enter violently upon us, which we only <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">itted our &s;elves to prevent &s;uch a&s;&s;alt, or el&s;e that we were forced out upon them by the firing of our hou&s;e; only we perceived our words to be &s;hot good enough to keep them aloof. For we called cheerfully upon the Captain to come on and bring up his men; for he &s;hould find vs very cheerfull &s;pirits to deal with, and that we would make him as good a Sabbath days breakfa&s;t as ever he had in his life; our care was only to quench the fire which they had laid to the wall before we were aware; But we &s;aw the wind took the flame &s;o from the wal that it kindled not upon the hou&s;e&punc; vvhen the day began to break Captain <HI>Cook</HI> called to the &s;ouldiers to go on with a fre&s;h a&s;&s;alt; but we heard &s;ome of his Souldiers deny to come on again, being the fire took not; and the day beginning to be light they thought we might &s;hoot from the hou&s;e at &s;ome certainty; we called on the Captain to animate his &s;oldiers, for we under&s;tood (we told him) his charret wheels began to drive very heavy, and were in danger to fall off, and that was all the violence we offered to our Countrymen in this their &s;o eager an a&s;&s;alt, though we heard the Captain in the beginning of it, give &s;trict charge to the &s;ouldiers that they &s;hould not let one e&s;cape alive, but to put all to the &s;word, thinking the fire would have taken, and &s;o we have been a prey for them: But however we di&s;charged not a peece again&s;t them, being loth to &s;pill the blood of our Countrymen, though to the hazard of our own lives, yet were we well provided and could ea&s;ily have done them much hurt; only &s;tood upon our defence &s;o, as they dur&s;t not make entry upon us: afterwhich a&s;&s;alt they &s;ent back into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> for more ayd: But in the mean time another parley was procured wherein we con&s;ented to go down into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> upon Compo&s;ition to prevent the &s;pilling of blood, which we could no longer refrain in the defence of our &s;elves, they having approached &s;o neer unto us; The condition whereof was this, that we
<PB N="49" REF="33">
&s;hould goe along with them, as free men, and neighbours, as though &s;uch pa&s;&s;ages had never been betwixt us, which the Captain and his Company con&s;enting unto, beat up the Drum, and gathered his &s;ouldiers together, &s;eeming joyfull that things were &s;o concluded; whereupon the Captaine de&s;ired to &s;ee our hou&s;e, which reque&s;t we lovingly imbraced, think|ing he intended to refre&s;h him &s;elfe and his &s;ouldiers with &s;uch provi&s;ions as we had, before we &s;et upon our journey towards the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets;</HI> but no &s;ooner was he come into the hou&s;e, but contrary to the Articles of out agreement, he &s;eized upon our Armes, u&s;ing us as captives, and pre&s;ently carried us a|way, not &s;uffering us to di&s;po&s;e of any of our goods, that were in or about our hou&s;es, having not &s;o much as a &s;ervant left behind, and &s;o left them all as pillage to the <HI>Indians,</HI> <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Which they had promi&s;ed to do as they came on the way to|wards us to incourage the <HI>Indians</HI> to come with them again&s;t us, in the hea|ring of &s;ome of our friends&punc;</NOTE> the Captain giving charge unto the &s;ouldiers, that if any of us &s;pake a word in our journey, to give any of them di&s;|content, that they &s;hould pre&s;ently knock us downe, and if they &s;aw any of us &s;tep a&s;ide, out of the place de&s;igned unto us, that they &s;hould run us through, and he would beare them out, in that their action: And withall they drove away our cattle into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> dividing and di&s;po&s;ing of them among&s;t them&s;elves; only &s;ome of them they had di&s;po&s;ed of to &s;uch of their &s;ubjects, as lived near unto us, who had been in&s;truments and a&s;&s;i&s;tants unto them, to bring about and ef|fect this worke. The number of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">attle which they took from us was foure-&s;core head, or thereabouts, be&s;ides Swine and Goats, which they, and the <HI>Indians,</HI> lived upon during the time of their &s;iege, al&s;o breaking violently into our hou&s;es, taking away our corne with other provi&s;ions provided for our Families to live upon.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="testimony">
<PB N="50" REF="34">
<HEAD>Here followeth an other Te&s;timony, of divers of the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> given under their hands, &s;et downe here <HI>ver|batim,</HI> for the clearing of the&s;e matters, which writing is extant.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Providence <DATE>this pre&s;ent <HI>Ianuary</HI> the 30. ^t^h. 1644.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>We who&s;e names are here under written, Inhabitants of the town of <HI>Providence</HI> in the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et-</HI> Bay in <HI>New-England,</HI> being reque&s;ted by <HI>Samuel Gorton, Randal Houlden&punc; John Wickes,</HI> and <HI>John Warner,</HI> with divers others of our coun|trey men, to te&s;tifie what we know concerning their late &s;uffe|rings, from the Bay of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> we take our &s;elves bound in con&s;cience, to an&s;wer their reque&s;t, and in a word of truth, impartially to witne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>FIr&s;t, that our&punc; Countrey-men afore&s;aid, were peaceably po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed of a Plantation, at <HI>Shaw-omet,</HI> among&s;t the Na|tives, &s;ome ten or a dozen miles beyond this Towne of <HI>Pro|vidence.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, that the Bay of <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> &s;ent up through this Towne of <HI>Providence,</HI> one Captain <HI>Cooke,</HI> and his company, in warlike manner, who actually a&s;&s;aulted, and be&s;ieged our fore&s;aid Countrey-men, who &s;tood upon their own defence.</P>
<P>Thirdly, that the wives and children, of our fore-&s;aid Coun|trey-men upon the&s;e ho&s;tile cour&s;es were affrighted and &s;catte|red in great extremities, and divers &s;ince are dead.</P>
<P>Fourthly, the &s;aid Captaine <HI>Cooke</HI> and his company, carried captive our fore-&s;aid Countrey-men through this Towne of <HI>Providence,</HI> to the Bay of <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets.</HI></P>
<P>Fifthly, Their goods, cattle, hou&s;es, and plantations were &s;eized upon, by the fore-&s;aid Captain, and his company; their cattle were part killed by the &s;ouldiers, and the re&s;t by Agents
<PB N="51" REF="34">
from the Bay di&s;po&s;ed of, and driven away to the &s;aid Bay of <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets.</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Richard Scot.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Harris.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Field.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Stutley Wa&s;tcote.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Hugh Bewit.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Thomas Harris.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Barrowes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Io&s;hua Win&s;&s;or.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Iohn Field.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Thomas Angel.</ITEM>
<ITEM>William Reighnalds.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Adam Goodwin.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>Now as we pa&s;&s;ed along on the way to the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> which was about three-&s;core, or three-&s;core and ten miles, in the common account of men, from our Plantation at <HI>Shaw|omet,</HI> after they were come into the Townes within their own juri&s;dictions, in &s;ome Townes their Mini&s;ter which the &s;oul|diers brought along with them again&s;t us, gathered the people together, in the open &s;treet went to prayers, that the people might take notice, what they had done, was done in a holy manner, and in the name of the Lord; and when they came to <HI>Dorche&s;ter,</HI> there being many people gathered together, with divers of their Mini&s;ters, as Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotton,</HI> and Ma&s;ter <HI>Ma|ther,</HI> &amp;c. there they placed us at their plea&s;ure, as they thought fit to have us &s;tand; and made vollies of &s;hot over our heads in &s;igne of victory, [z] and when we were come to <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>x A</HI> great tri|umph for a whole coun|trey, to carry away eleven men (and that upon faire compo&s;ition al&s;o, if they had kept touch with us; for one of us, that is <HI>Samp&s;on Shotton,</HI> was dead before by hard&s;hip, which &s;ome of their &s;pirit had put him upon) and but ten of us that handled arms.</NOTE> and brought before the Governours doore, the &s;ouldiers pla|cing them&s;elves and us, as they thought fit, and orderly; the Governour comming forth, walking throughout, all the company of &s;ouldiers ble&s;&s;ed them; the word which he u&s;ed as he &s;till pa&s;&s;ed along was this, God ble&s;&s;e you, and pro&s;per you: God ble&s;&s;e and pro&s;per you; <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">We thought he did it to imitate <HI>Melchi&s;edeck,</HI> comming out to ble&s;&s;e <HI>Abraham,</HI> when he came from the &s;laughter of the Kings, in the re&s;cue of <HI>Lot,</HI> he did it &s;o gravelyand &s;olemnly, only the Captain wanted the &s;pirit of <HI>Abraham</HI> for all his good &s;ucce&s;&s;e, yet we thought he was not uncapable to communicate, in that prayer or ble&s;&s;ing of the Governour; for his errand to us was, to utter and exerci&s;s the &s;pirit of the government in his Commi&s;sion made manife&s;t&punc;</NOTE> when this was done, we were brought into the Governors Hall, before the Governor, Mr. <HI>Iohn Winthrope,</HI> unto whom we complained, how the Captain had
<PB N="52" REF="35">
u&s;ed us, contrary to our Articles; but he told us, what ever the Captain might expre&s;&s;e unto us, his intent was to have us as captives, and their captives now we were; and unto the common Goale we mu&s;t goe, without either Baile or Main|prize, where we continued untill the Court &s;ate, and the Countrey comming in on every &s;ide, to under&s;tand the cau&s;e, why they had &s;o proceeded again&s;t us; and they labouring to give the countrey &s;atisfaction, rehear&s;ed in the ears of the people, divers gro&s;&s;e opinions, which they had compiled to|gether, out of our writing, which we abhorred: As that we &s;hould deny the humane nature of Chri&s;t, which they gathe|red from this, that we profe&s;&s;ed his death to be effectuall to the Fathers, before the time of his incarnation in the wombe of the Virgin; al&s;o that we denyed all the Churches of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, becau&s;e we could not joyne with them in that way of Church order which they had e&s;tabli&s;hed among&s;t them; Againe, that we denyed all the holy Ordinances of Chri&s;t, becau&s;e we could not joyn with them in their way of admi|ni&s;tration; as al&s;o, that we denyed all civill Magi&s;tracie, be|cau&s;e we could not yeeld to their authority, to be exerci&s;ed in tho&s;e parts where we lived, (that place being above foure and twenty miles out of their bounds) which we &s;hould not once have que&s;tioned, if we had beene within the compa&s;&s;e of their juri&s;dictions, as it well appeared by our carriage, all the time we were among&s;t them, as al&s;o by our &s;undry appeals unto this &s;tate, which have been denyed unto us; yea, and &s;ince that great favour granted, and given unto that people of <HI>Provi|dence</HI> plantations, in a late Charter of civill government, from this State, our humble re&s;pects unto al &s;uch authority, hath been made manife&s;t to all men: not only in our unanimous and joy|full imbracing of it, but al&s;o &s;ome of us by the generall vote of the whole Colonie, have been cho&s;en into the place of Judi|cature, for the orderly execution of the authority of the Char|ter; yea, &s;ome of us that are now here pre&s;ent, at the publi|cation hereof: Now when we de&s;ired liberty to &s;peak in the Court, to an&s;wer to &s;uch things as were alleaged, and read in the ears of the people, &s;uch as is above, with divers more to the
<PB N="53" REF="35">
number of about &s;ix and twenty, all drawn from our writing formerly mentioned in this Treati&s;e, we denyed that we either held, or had writ any &s;uch thing&punc; and de&s;ired our writing might be read in open Court, that it might appear what was in it, which was denyed unto us; only their charges mu&s;t ap|peare, by the affirmation of the Bench; for no other man nor woman appeared to te&s;tifie a word again&s;t us; and when wee continued to deny the con&s;tructions they had given of our wri|tings, and ab&s;tracted from them, denying them to be ours, we were commanded &s;ilence; Ma&s;ter <HI>Thomas Dudley,</HI> one of the Bench, &s;tanding up, charging us to be &s;ilent, and told us if we were not, they would lay irons upon our legs, and upon our hands, and al&s;o upon our necks; whereupon the Court for that time was di&s;&s;olved, no man objecting again&s;t us in the lea&s;t, in any wrong or injury betwixt man and man; neither at that time, nor in any time of all our tryall among&s;t them. After which they brought us forth divers times before their Court, which then &s;ate more privately in a Chamber, the door being kept very carefully, that none &s;hould enter, but only whom they thought fit to permit, their Court then con&s;i&s;ting of about a dozin Magi&s;trates, and about fortie Deputies cho|&s;en out of &s;everall Towns, as were thought fit, and many of their Mini&s;ters u&s;ually pre&s;ent with them to a&s;&s;i&s;t in the worke; they then que&s;tioned, and examined us apart&punc; to the uttermo&s;t they could, to get &s;ome matter again&s;t us from our owne mouths, and al&s;o u&s;ually &s;ending their Agents as Elders, <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Old M. <HI>Ward</HI> once Lectu|rer at S. <HI>Micha|el</HI> in <HI>Corne-hill,</HI> London, came to the pri&s;on window, and called to him one of our &s;ociety, name|ly <HI>Richard Carder</HI> who had once lived near together in <HI>E&s;&s;ex,</HI> Mr&punc; <HI>Ward</HI> &s;eemed to be much affected, being a man knows how to put him&s;elfe into pa&s;&s;ion, de&s;i|red the &s;aid <HI>Richard,</HI> that if he had done or &s;aid any thing that he could with good con&s;cience renounce, he de&s;ired him to recant it, and he hoped the Cour would be very mercifull&punc; and &s;aith he, it &s;hal be no di&s;paragement unto you, for here is our Reverend Elder, Mr. <HI>Cotton</HI> who ordinarily preacheth that publickly one year, that the next year he publickly repent&punc; of, and &s;hews him&s;elfe very &s;orrowful for it to the Congrega|tion, &s;o that (&s;aith he) it wil be no di&s;grace for you to recant in &s;uch a ca&s;e.</NOTE> and Members of their Churches, <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">V&s;ually comming to us into the pri&s;on, many of them together; As al&s;o, when we were put apart in the time of our examination, one of the Members of the Church of <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> telling &s;ome of us in his own hou&s;e, that he was per&s;waded, that we did not wor&s;hip the true God; for, &s;aith he then, he would not have permitted you to be brought down from your own Plantation among&s;t us; for (&s;aith he) I am per&s;waded, that our Churches &s;hal not be over-come by any people that &s;hould come out again&s;t them; his wife &s;tanding by, being an ingenuous wo|man, made an&s;wer to our content, before we could &s;peak; Husband (&s;aith &s;he) pray doe not b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">a&s;t before the victory be known, it may be the Battle is not yet ended.</NOTE> unto us in pri&s;on,
<PB N="54" REF="36">
frequently putting que&s;tions unto us to get occa&s;ion again&s;t us; thus continuing for the &s;pace of two or three weeks together, during which time Ma&s;ter <HI>Wil&s;on</HI> ordinarily in his Sermons, pre&s;&s;ed the Magi&s;trates and the people to take away our lives, from that text of the King of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> letting <HI>Benhadad</HI> goe, ap|plying it unto them; that if they let us e&s;cape with life, their life &s;hould then goe for our life, and their people for our peo|ple, urging them from that of <HI>Samuel</HI> and <HI>Agag,</HI> to hew and cut us in peeces; Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotton</HI> al&s;o in his Sermons, incouraged the people in the lawfulne&s;&s;e of their dealings with us, from that in the <HI>Revelations,</HI> where it is &s;aid, the Kingdoms of this world are the Kingdoms of the Lord, and his Chri&s;ts, whence he ob&s;erved, that they being the Kingdom of Chri&s;t, they were bound to goe out again&s;t all people, to &s;ubdue all &s;uch unto them&s;elves as are weaker then they; otherwi&s;e they might &s;tay at home within them&s;elves, and &s;erve God with all their hearts; but they could not &s;erve him with all their might, unle&s;&s;e they went out to &s;ubdue others, and &s;o would be guil|ty of the breach of that command, <HI>viz. Thou &s;halt &s;erve the Lord thy God with all thy &s;trength.</HI> Now after our many con|&s;ultations, and debating of matters with the Magi&s;trates and Mini&s;ters, not only in the Court, &s;ometimes one of us an&s;we|ring and declaring of his mind, only in matters of Religion a whole day together, yea part by Candle-light, be&s;ides all their more private conferences in the pri&s;on, and at other hou|&s;es, where we vvere put apart, in cu&s;tody one from an ano|ther in the time of our examination: at the la&s;t the Court &s;ent for <HI>S. Gorton,</HI> out of pri&s;on, to appeare before them; and when he came before them, the Governour told him, he heard there was exception taken, that there &s;hould be a rumour, that it was for &s;ome civill things they had &s;o proceeded again&s;t us, and yet no man appeared to object the lea&s;t again&s;t us, in any civill re|&s;pect; unto which the Governour him&s;elfe gave an&s;vver (not expecting an an&s;vver from <HI>Gorton</HI>) that they had &s;et their &s;ubjects the <HI>Indians</HI> in their own Land, and that was all they looked after in that re&s;pect, but they never que&s;tioned in pub|licke, whether it was right or wrong, to take it from us, only
<PB N="55" REF="36">
had privately called one of us, which was one of the Inter|preters, at the buying of it, and the <HI>Indians</HI> their &s;ubjects to|gether, to &s;ee what could be &s;aid in it, and found the <HI>Indians</HI> by their own confe&s;&s;ion, to make things &s;o clear on our behalfe, that they thought it not fit to bring it into publick &s;canning of the matter.</P>
<P>The Governour then told <HI>Gorton,</HI> he was now to an&s;wer &s;ome things that &s;hould be propounded unto him upon his life, for it was upon his life that now he was to an&s;wer; unto which <HI>Gorton</HI> made an&s;wer, that he was to &s;hew unto them all dutifull &s;ubjection that might be, being under the govern|ment of their juri&s;diction, as he had done &s;ince his comming among&s;t them, to give them their due honour and re&s;pect to the utmo&s;t, which he could not doe but as he looked upon them with relation unto the State of old <HI>England;</HI> by vertue of which power, they &s;ate there, as executioners of ju&s;tice, un|le&s;&s;e he looked at them, and carried him&s;elfe towards them, as they had re&s;pect unto that State, (from whom what power they had was derived) el&s;e he could not give them their due ho|nour and re&s;pect; for it could no way appeare to be &s;uch, but as it was derived from that noble State of old <HI>England;</HI> and therefore, however he had according to what they had deman|ded, for the clearing of any thing, been free to an&s;wer unto them: So now if it was his life that they would now put him upon, he did as freely, and in the pre&s;ence of them all, appeale to the State of old <HI>England</HI> for his tryall in that point, by vertue of which State only he conceived they &s;ate there as Mini&s;ters of ju&s;tice; and therefore might not deny unto him his ju&s;t appeale (under&s;tanding that the deniall of an appeale, mu&s;t either pre&s;uppo&s;e a &s;uperiority in them that deny it, or an equality at the lea&s;t, with the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tate appealed unto) unto which the Governour made an&s;wer&punc; as al&s;o Ma&s;ter <HI>Iohn Indi|cote,</HI> deputy Governour, and bad <HI>Gorton</HI> never dream, or think of any &s;uch thing, for no appeale &s;hould be granted unto him.</P>
<P>Now the Mini&s;ters and Magi&s;trates, having weighed better our Writings, our Examinations in Court, an&s;wers to que&s;tions
<PB N="56" REF="37">
more privately, with any thing, &s;poken in the pri&s;on among&s;t our &s;elves, which daily ear was lent unto, or our carriage and demeanure in any re&s;pect; they had now &s;ummed up, and drawn all into four que&s;tions, which were now to be an&s;we|red in ca&s;e of life and death.</P>
<LIST>
<HEAD>The Que&s;tions were the&s;e that here follow, not a word vary|ing in any one of them.</HEAD>
<ITEM>1. Q. Whether the Fathers, who dyed before Chri&s;t was born of the <HI>Virgin Mary,</HI> were ju&s;tified and &s;aved only by the blood which he &s;hed, and the death which he &s;uffered after his incarnation.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. Q. Whether the only price of our Redemption, were not the death of Chri&s;t upon the Cro&s;&s;e, with the re&s;t of his &s;ufferings, and obediences in the time of his life here after he was borne of the <HI>Virgin Mary.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>3. Q. Who is that God whom he thinks we &s;erve.</ITEM>
<ITEM>4. Q. What he means, when he &s;aith, <HI>We wor&s;hip the Star of our God Remphan, Chion, Molech.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>To the&s;e four que&s;tions the Court told <HI>Gorton</HI> he mu&s;t an|&s;wer &s;peedily upon life and death, and that under his hand writing; he told them he was not willing to an&s;wer in any thing but as before he had done; they told him he mu&s;t give in &s;peedy an&s;wer under his hand writing; he asked what time he mu&s;t have for the an&s;wer of them; they told him a quarter of an houre; he told them he could an&s;wer them in &s;o &s;hort a time, but he knew not whether it could give them &s;atisfaction; for it was as much as for a man <HI>to de&s;cribe Ie&s;us Chri&s;t what he is,</HI> and the way of <HI>Autichri&s;t al&s;o,</HI> which might be done in few words; but not to be clear to every man; for a man may de&s;cribe the whole world in the&s;e words; <HI>in the beginning God created heaven and earth, and the earth was without forme and void, and darkene&s;&s;e was upon the face of the deep, and the &s;pi|rit of God moved upon the face of the waters;</HI> all the whole worke of creation is in this ma&s;&s;e or heape; but to &s;et out the
<PB N="57" REF="37">
glory and beauty that comes out of this, needs many Phra&s;es to expre&s;&s;e it; even &s;o it is in the de&s;cription of <HI>the Son of God, Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, borne of the Virgin,</HI> it may be done in few words; but to lay out the <HI>nature, benefit, and glory of it,</HI> no &s;mal&s;peech, or time can &s;erve to expre&s;&s;e: and therefore de&s;ired in word (as before he had manife&s;ted his mind unto them) &s;o he might give that pre&s;ent an&s;wer which God gave unto him in this point al&s;o; but they told him it mu&s;t be done in writing, and &s;o commanded the Go<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ler to convey him to an other room to di&s;patch the &s;ame; but as he was going out from them, they called unto him, and told him he &s;hould have the liberty of halfe an hours time to performe i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> in; when he was come into an other room, pen, inke and paper being brought unto him, as he was going to write, word was &s;ent from the Court, that if it was brought in, on the &s;econd day in the morning, it &s;hould &s;uffice, for the Court con&s;idering of it, that many of them had farre home, and it being the day of Preparation for the Sabbath (for it was now Saturday in the afternoon) and they thought not fit to &s;it any longer; &s;o <HI>Gorton</HI> was conveyed a|gaine into the Pri&s;on to the re&s;t of his friends; who continued cheerfully together, all the Sabbath day, as they had done be|fore in the Pri&s;on; only &s;ome part of tho&s;e dayes, they brought us forth unto their Congregations, to hear their Sermons, of <HI>occido</HI> and <HI>occidio,</HI> which was ment not to be dige&s;ted, but only by the heart or &s;tomacke of an <HI>O&s;trich:</HI> But upon the Mun|day morning, <HI>Gorton</HI> tooke pen and inke, and writ in an&s;wer to every one of the four que&s;tions given unto him, as here followeth.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="answers">
<PB N="58" REF="38">
<HEAD>This is a true Copie of an&s;wers, given to the Court of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> to the four que&s;tions, which they required to be an&s;wered in writing upon life, and death, in ca&s;e of Bla&s;phemy, which we were charged with, and &s;entence &s;o farre pa&s;&s;ed, as to take away our lives by the &s;word, in ca&s;e of not di&s;clayming of our Religion, or erroneous opinions, as they were plea&s;ed to call them; the an&s;wers are truly &s;et down, <HI>verbatim.</HI></HEAD>
<P>TO the fir&s;t que&s;tion we an&s;wer affirmatively (only a&s;&s;u|ming the l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">berty of our explanation) namely, <HI>The Fathers who dyed before Chri&s;t was borne of the Virgin</HI> Mary, <HI>were ju|&s;tified and &s;aved, only by the blood which he &s;hed, and the death which he &s;uffered,</HI> <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Note, that in this an&s;wer there is a word added to their que&s;tion, which was done of purpo&s;e (knowing how they looked) to regulate them, it if were po&s;&s;ible, as it was declared unto them, in the fir&s;t reading of the an&s;wer, how they fell &s;hort in it, which they yeelded unto; they &s;ay, the death which he &s;uffered (after) his incarnation, the an&s;wer &s;aith (In) and after his in|carnation. For to &s;peake of the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t, after his incarnation, without re&s;pect unto that which was before, we may as well &s;pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ke of his &s;ufferings before his incarnation, without re&s;pect to that which is after; for the Cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t is not, but with re&s;pect, both to humane nature and divine, and we cannot know the two natures in Chri&s;t, what they are di&s;tinctly in them&s;elves, to give each its proper due, and what they are joyntly united in one, no otherwi&s;e, but as they are con&s;idered in the very act of Incarnation, in which appears the Sufferer, and that which is &s;uffered, the Sufferer is the Son of God made man, the creator becoms a creature; the thing &s;uffered, is to be made a cur&s;e, that is to be made &s;uch a thing as is in it &s;elfe, by nature accur&s;ed, and &s;o Chri&s;t&punc; was made a cur&s;e&punc; the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t then, and the &s;hedding of his blood (as he is known after the &s;pirit) are properly in that one act of his incarnation, which is the pro|per act of the humiliation of the Son of God, &s;o that to &s;pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">k of his &s;ufferings after <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">is incarnation, you may as well &s;peake of his &s;ufferings before his incarnation, for it is no &s;uffering of Chri&s;t, but with re&s;pect, both to the one, and the other, and only in the act of incarnation they are made one; and to &s;peake of the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t vi&s;ibly, in his humane nature, in the dayes of <HI>Herod,</HI> to be the proper &s;ufferings of the Son of God, any further, but as a true doctrine (as in all other holy Writ) to teach what that &s;uffering is, in the act of his incarnation, you may as well &s;peak of &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t invi&s;ibly, before that act of his incarnation, for the Cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t is not, but with re&s;pect, both to divine and humane nature; nor can it be &s;aid to be in time, no more then it may be &s;aid to be before al time; for the humiliation of the Son of God, ad|mits not of any bounds or limi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s, for then were it not of infinit value; and if not of infi|nit value and vertue, then not the humiliation of the Son of God, nor could it be &s;aid to be the blood of God, as the Apo&s;tle cals it; &s;o that as he him&s;elfe is not, but as the fir&s;t and the la&s;t become one, even &s;o his &s;ufferings are not, but in that one act, of the cur&s;e and ble&s;&s;ing, being made one. This being premi&s;ed which&punc; was &s;ignified unto them by word of mouth, the an&s;wer runs clear, to under&s;tand Chri&s;t according to the &s;pirit, other|wi&s;e a man may carnalize the an&s;wer unto him&s;elfe as he knows Chri&s;t after the fle&s;h, as the world doth the whole word of God, &s;o al&s;o the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> is to be under&s;tood as <HI>Abraham</HI> him&s;elfe is; <HI>Abraham</HI> is the Father of Chri&s;t, as in the Genealogy it ap|pears; &s;o &s;aith <HI>David</HI> in the per&s;on of Chri&s;t, our Fathers tru&s;ted in thee, meaning <HI>Abra|ham</HI> for one, and Chri&s;t al&s;o is the Father of <HI>Abraham,</HI> therefore hee is called the e|verla&s;ting father; and Chri&s;t him&s;elfe &s;aith, before <HI>Abraham</HI> was I am, &s;uch al&s;o is the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> it produceth and brings forth the Son of God, and the Son of God produceth and brings forth it; &s;o is it with the Virgin, &s;he is the mother that gives form, and being to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, he al&s;o gives form and being unto her; therefore &s;he cals him her Lord and Saviour; the woman brings forth the man, a Virgin conceives and bears a Son; the man brings forth the woman, made of a rib, out of his innocent &s;ide; &s;o that the man is not without the woman, nor the woman without the man in the Lord; the&s;e two being &s;eparated, the Contract is broken, the Devorce is made, and not being rightly uni|ted, the word is adulterated, we are in our &s;in. The my&s;terie of this an&s;wer then lies in this, (which Phara&s;ies under&s;tand not, if Chri&s;t be the Virgin <HI>Maries</HI> Son, conceived in her womb, and born of her, how doth the Virgin <HI>Mary</HI> in&punc; &s;pirit call him her Lord God, and Saviour?</NOTE> in <HI>and after his Incarnation</HI> (that is
<PB N="59" REF="38">
on this wi&s;e; that the guilt and &s;tain of man is not, but with re&s;pect unto the holy word of God, the di&s;obedience where|of, <HI>by eating the forbidden fruit, breeds an infinit di&s;tance, be|tween God and his owne worke, without the lea&s;t defect or blame to be found or imputed unto the Word of God,</HI> but the &s;ole de|fect and blame is in the creature, <HI>even in man him&s;elfe,</HI> yet could he in no ca&s;e be &s;o mi&s;erable, but with re&s;pect unto the holy Word; even &s;o the ju&s;tification and &s;alvation of the Fathers, was by the holy word of God, <HI>not but with re&s;pect and relation unto the &s;eed of</HI> Abraham, <HI>and the Son of</HI> David, (<HI>conceived and borne of the Virgin</HI> Mary) <HI>in whom they were ju&s;tified and &s;aved,</HI> and yet no vertue nor power, ari&s;ing out of any thing that is humane; m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n therefore is a &s;inner of in|finit guilt, with re&s;pect unto that word, which was be|fore all time, and no fault to be found in the Word at all; the word of God is a Saviour of infinit value, with re&s;pect unto the &s;eed of the Virgin <HI>Mary,</HI> borne, &s;uffering, dying, and ri&s;ing againe in the fulne&s;&s;e of time, and yet no vertue in that &s;eed at all, <HI>unto whom all the Prophets bear witne&s;&s;e,</HI> having an eye unto him in all their holy Writings, and the faith of the Fathers comprehending Chri&s;t, both in the one, and in the other re&s;pect, <HI>were ju&s;tified and &s;aved by him alone,</HI> his death being reall and actuall unto faith, God having the &s;ame coexi&s;tance
<PB N="60" REF="39">
with the creature in all ages, though the creature cannot have the &s;ame with him but in time.</P>
<P><HI>To the &s;econd Question depending upon, or rather involved in the former we an&s;wer.</HI></P>
<P>Mans rejection of the Word of God, being his &s;inne and &s;eparation from God, is the only forfeiture of him&s;elfe, <HI>which could not be, but with re&s;pect unto the word of eternity;</HI> even &s;o Gods Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e revealed by taking man into unitie with him&s;elfe, <HI>is the only price of our Redemption,</HI> with re&s;pect un|to the death of Chri&s;t upon the Cro&s;&s;e, with the re&s;t of his &s;ufferings, and obedience, from the time of his Incarnation, in the womb of the Virgin <HI>Mary,</HI> to his a&s;cention into Heaven, without which there is no price of our Redemption.</P>
<P>To the third Que&s;tion, who we thinke that God is, that men &s;erve, that are not of the faith above &s;aid: we an&s;wer that all mens hearts are awed (by the true God) to bow in wor|&s;hip: therefore when the Apo&s;tle looking upon the in&s;cripti|on upon the Altar at <HI>Athens,</HI> it is &s;aid, <HI>he beheld their devo|tion</HI> (or as the word is) <HI>the God which they wor&s;hipped, though ignorantly,</HI> yet it was he only <HI>that he declared unto them:</HI> So the Apo&s;tle <HI>Iames, thou beleeve&s;t, that there is one God, thou doe&s;t well, the Devils al&s;o beleeve and tremble.</HI></P>
<P>The fourth Que&s;tion therfore is the explanation of the third, namely what we mean <HI>by Molech, and the Star of that God Remphan:</HI> to which we an&s;wer, that the Scripture alluded unto, * makes difference between tho&s;e Gain-&s;ayers of the<NOTE PLACE="marg">Act. 7. 43.</NOTE> Fathers <HI>which fell in the Wilderne&s;&s;e,</HI> and tho&s;e of the true &s;eed, <HI>that gave faithfull Te&s;timony unto the Oracle of God;</HI> the Rebels of the &s;ons of <HI>Levy,</HI> would not take up, <HI>nor beare the Arke of God,</HI> as their duty was, <HI>nor give the light and lu&s;tre of a Star in the Tabernacle,</HI> when it was pitched (<HI>for the &s;even Stars are the &s;even Angels:</HI>) But as they had the power of a worldly Ruler, or Governour to defend them in their worke, and to &s;ubdue all that were not of their mind under them: therefore <HI>they tooke up the Tabernacle of</HI> Mo|lech, <HI>or bore the Booth of the King, and gave the light of Rem|phan</HI> (alluding unto <HI>Rapha,</HI> who in <HI>Davids</HI> dayes had four &s;onnes, were mighty Gyants, warring only by the &s;trength <HI>of</HI>
<PB N="61" REF="39">
<HI>the Arme of fle&s;h</HI>) &s;o that they would not give Te&s;timony un|to the holy way of God; <HI>but as they had a King &s;et over them,</HI> be&s;ides <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> to defend them, <HI>when as a greater then</HI> Mo&s;es <HI>was there: And in this they turned backe in their hearts, unto Aegypt,</HI> looking unto the way of <HI>Pharaoh,</HI> that would &s;ub|due all that were not of his own way, and be a defence unto his <HI>wi&s;e men in what ever they wrought;</HI> but the faithfull &s;eed of <HI>Abraham, had the Tabernacle of witne&s;&s;e, or witne&s;&s;ed unto the Tabernacle,</HI> even in the Wilderne&s;&s;e, where there was no worldly Governour to defend them, but all came out again&s;t them, <HI>Ammon</HI> and <HI>Amaleck, Balack, Ogg,</HI> and <HI>Sihon,</HI> and the re&s;t; in the which condition <HI>Stephen perceived him&s;elfe,</HI> when he witne&s;&s;ed unto the word of truth, in alleadging that place of the Prophet *.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Amos 5. 26.</NOTE></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Samuel Gorton.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>Upon the fini&s;hing of the&s;e an&s;wers on the Munday morning, the Court &s;ent for <HI>S. Gorton</HI> to come before them; and when he was come, the Governor asked him, whether he had brought in his an&s;vver to the que&s;tions propounded unto him (at their la&s;t &s;itting) in writing, he an&s;wered he had brought them; then the Governor asked him, whether he had put his hand unto them, he an&s;wered he had not, not thinking it would be required, el&s;e he had done it; the Governour called for pen and inke, and cau&s;ed him to put his hand unto them, and then deman|ded them of him, <HI>Gorton</HI> de&s;ired he might have liberty&punc; to read them fir&s;t in the Court, that he might pronounce the Phra&s;es and words according to the true meaning, and intent, having had experience of wrong done, in reading (in way of pro|nunciation of things not plainly) before, to the giving of true intelligence to the hearers, when the an&s;wers were read in the audience of the Court, the Court pau&s;ed, and no man &s;aid any thing unto them, only bade <HI>Gorton</HI> with-draw, which being done, they hade &s;ome con&s;ulta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ion among them&s;elvs, and &s;hortly after called for <HI>Gorton</HI> to be brought in again: Ma&s;ter <HI>Salting&s;tone</HI> found fault, that it was written in the an&s;wer, what is the Star of (<HI>that)</HI> God <HI>Remphan,</HI> whereas it was in the writing (<HI>your, God Remphan) Gorton</HI> an&s;wered, the Phra&s;e was only changed for mode&s;ty; for indeed (&s;aith he) it is the
<PB N="62" REF="40">
phra&s;e of the Apo&s;tle, <HI>your God Remphan,</HI> and &s;o it re&s;ted to clear that &s;cruple. The Governour told <HI>Gorton,</HI> that they were one with him, in tho&s;e an&s;wers; for they held as he did; <HI>Gorton</HI> an&s;wered he was very glad of it, for he loved not differences and divi&s;ions among&s;t men: the Governour then asked him whether he would retract the writing that was formerly written unto them; <HI>Gorton</HI> an&s;wered, that no|thing was written before, but would &s;uit and agree, with the&s;e an&s;wers; &s;o that if there was cau&s;e to retract one, there was cau&s;e to retract all; the Governour &s;aid, no the&s;e an&s;wers they could agree with him in; but not in the former writing; whereupon Ma&s;ter <HI>Dudley</HI> &s;tood up, &s;eeming to be much mo|ved, and &s;aid he would never con&s;ent to it whil&s;t he lived, that they were one with him in tho&s;e an&s;wers; the Gover|nour then asked <HI>Gorton what Faith was:</HI> to which he an&s;we|red, that was nothing that concerned what they had for|merly written, and that he and the re&s;t had only underta|ken to an&s;wer to any thing that was in their writing: the Go|vernour told him, he was bound, and ought to be ready to give an an&s;wer to any that &s;hould aske him a que&s;tion of the hope that is in him; <HI>Gorton</HI> made an&s;wer, that the difinition which the Apo&s;tle gives of faith, was &s;ufficient, as he thought to give any man &s;atisfaction; he asked him what that was, he told him it was this; <HI>that faith is the</HI> hypo&s;ta&s;is <HI>or &s;ub&s;i&s;tance of things that are hoped for, and the evidence (or argument demon&s;trative) of things that are not &s;een, nor demon&s;trated at all;</HI> the Gover|nour told him that was true, but he could &s;ay more of faith then &s;o; <HI>Gorton</HI> told him, it gave him &s;atisfaction, and be|ing an other point then they had had to deale about, &s;ince their comming among&s;t them, and being no que&s;tion produ|ced from former writings, de&s;ired to be &s;pared from any fur|ther an&s;wer then the plain words of the Apo&s;tle; whereup|on Ma&s;ter <HI>Broad&s;treet</HI> made an&s;wer, that he thought it was not fit to put him upon any new que&s;tions, unle&s;&s;e he were free to &s;peake unto them, and &s;o they di&s;mi&s;&s;ed him from the Court to the Pri&s;on againe.</P>
<P>Shortly after this, there was a day appointed, wherein wee
<PB N="63" REF="40">
were to receive our &s;entence from the Court, which was to be given in the afternoon, and in the forenoon Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotton</HI> preached, having gathered up the minds of the people, in what they had ob&s;erved, and perceiving the people took notice, that in what we di&s;&s;ented from them, was out of tenderne&s;&s;e of con&s;cience, and were ready to render a rea&s;on and ground for what we held and practi&s;ed, &amp; divers &s;uch like things; to which he an&s;wered, that if we had done i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> out of ignorance, then there had been hopes of regaining us&punc; but if out of tendern<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;e of con&s;cience, and able to render rea&s;on for what wee did (<HI>and other things of like nature) then were we ripened for death,</HI> urging them to agree together, and con&s;ent in one thing, that &s;o it might be, <HI>el&s;e would not the Angels carry their &s;oules to heaven;</HI> for he was then &s;peaking of the office of the Angels in that point; and when by all their <HI>examinations</HI> in Court, <HI>Inturgatories</HI> put upon us in Pri&s;on, and publicke <HI>preaching,</HI> they could find nothing again&s;t us, for the tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ing of any of their Lawes, <HI>they then proceeded to cast a lot for our lives,</HI> putting it to the major vote of the Court, <HI>whether we &s;hould live or die,</HI> which was &s;o ordered by the providence of God, <HI>that the number of two votes carried it on our &s;ide;</HI> and whereas both by Law, Equitie, and act of Providence, they ought to have &s;et us forthwith at liberty, yet notwith&s;tanding they proceeded further to cen&s;ure; namely, <HI>confined us to &s;everall Towns, and to wear bolts and irons, and to worke for our livings, though it was i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the extremity of winter, and not to &s;peak of any of tho&s;e things which they had dealt with us about, and all this during the plea&s;ure of the Court, and that upon pain of death.</HI></P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sentence">
<PB N="64" REF="41">
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of the cen&s;ure, and of the charg as it was given unto us in writing by the Court, being extant, and here &s;et down <HI>verbatim,</HI> as it was given to <HI>Samuel Gorton,</HI> the re&s;t being the &s;ame, but onely the change of the names.</HEAD>
<OPENER>For <HI>Samuel Gorton.</HI></OPENER>
<P>IT is ordered that <HI>Samuel Gorton</HI> &s;hal be confined to <HI>Charl&s;|towne,</HI> there to be &s;et on worke, and to wear &s;uch bolts or irons, as may hinder his e&s;cape, and &s;o to continue during the plea&s;ure of the Court; provided, that if he &s;hall break his &s;aid confinement, or &s;hall in the meane time, either by &s;peech or writing, publi&s;h, declare, or maintaine any of the bla&s;phe|mous or abominable here&s;ies, wherewith he hath been char|ged by the generall Court, contained in either of the two <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Whereas they name two books written unto them, there was an other writing &s;ent unto them by us, but it was no ground of any of their proceedings again&s;t us, therefore we thought it not <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">it to bring it into this trea|ti&s;e; for they had concluded upon, what they would doe unto us, and were gone out for execution before that writing came un|to them for it onely met the &s;ouldiers on the way towards us, with Commi&s;&s;ion to put us to the &s;word; we &s;hall de&s;ire to publi&s;h it by it &s;elfe; for we are willing to have it known, and we made an&s;wer to any thing in it, they could &s;eem to object, when wee were among&s;t them. The <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> promi&s;ed the people, that however they might not hear our writings read then among them, yet they &s;hould &s;ee them &s;hortly in print, but they put us to the labour and co&s;t of it; el&s;e they cannot be content to have them lie buried, but render them, and their dealings with us, in all places wher they come, to be other things then indeed they are.</NOTE> books &s;ent unto us by him, or by <HI>Randall Houlden:</HI> or &s;hall reproach, or reprove the Churches of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t in the&s;e united Colonies, or the civill government, or the publicke Ordinances of God therein (unle&s;&s;e it be by an|&s;wer to &s;ome que&s;tion propounded to him, or conference with any Elder, or with any other licen&s;ed to &s;peak with him privately, under the hand of one of the A&s;&s;i&s;tants) that imme|diatly upon accu&s;ation of any &s;uch writing, or &s;peech, he &s;hall by &s;uch A&s;&s;i&s;tant, to whom &s;uch accu&s;ation &s;hall be brought, be committed to pri&s;on, till the next Court of A&s;si|&s;tants, then and there to be tryed by a Jury, whether <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">th &s;o &s;poken or written, and upon his conviction thereof, &s;hall be condemned to death, and executed.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Dated <DATE>the 3^o. of the 9^o. Moneth, 1643.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Per. cur. Increa&s;e Nowell, <HI>Secret.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="charge">
<PB N="65" REF="41">
<HEAD>A Copie of the Charge.</HEAD>
<P><HI>SAmuel Gorton,</HI> being convict as a bla&s;phemous enemy to the true Religion of our Lord <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;us Chri&s;t, and all his holy Ordinances, and al&s;o to all civill authority among the people of God, and particularly in this <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ri&s;diction, as appeareth by writings and &s;peeches.</P>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>This charge being laid upon us&punc; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t the Ba<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters"> before we heard of the cen&s;ure (though they came as above in writing to us:) the Governour asked us, <HI>whether we bowed under it, and whe|ther we would retract;</HI> we an&s;wered and told them (<HI>as in the pre&s;ence of God</HI>) that the charge <HI>neither bowed nor touched us at all,</HI> for we were free, and fa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">e from being guilty of any &s;uch things, and for our r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tracti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n, we told them <HI>we came not there to deny our Religion, in any <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">oint of it, but to te&s;tifie and bear witne&s;&s;e unto it;</HI> then did they reade our cen&s;ure, for our confinement, as i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> above &s;aid&punc; and when the bolts and chains were made ready, they put them upon us, in the pri&s;on at <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> that &s;o we might travell in them to the &s;everall Towns to which we w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">re confined, &s;ome of us having fif|teen miles, and &s;ome thirty to goe from <HI>Bo&s;ton;</HI> only we were to &s;tay till Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotten</HI> his Lecture day, and then were all brought to the Congregation in th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t our iron furniture, for the credit of the Sanctuary, which had &s;et the &s;word on work to &s;uch good purpo&s;e, and after that were with all &s;peed &s;ent a|way; yea, &s;ome of us among the people that went from the Lecture, that &s;o we might be a &s;pectacle unto them.</P>
<P>In which condition we continued a whole winter &s;ea&s;on; in which time their Mini&s;ters &s;tirred up the people in their pub|lick Sermons <HI>to fami&s;h us to death,</HI> out of that place of the Prophet <HI>Zephany, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 10. 11. This &s;hall they have for their pride, becau&s;e they have reproached, and magnified them&s;elves again&s;t the people of the Lord of Ho&s;ts; the Lord will be terri|ble unto them, for he will fami&s;h all the Gods of the earth, and men &s;hall wor&s;hip him, every one from his place, even all the I&s;les of the Heathen. Samuel Gorton</HI> having intelligence, from
<PB N="66" REF="42">
<HI>Boston,</HI> to <HI>Charles</HI>-Town, to which he was confined&punc; that Ma|&s;ter <HI>Cotton</HI> preached from that text in the prophecie of <HI>Zepha|ny,</HI> and how he applyed the doctrine from it to have all ne|ce&s;&s;aries with-held from him, telling &s;ome eminent members of the Church, that i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> they either went unto us, to vi&s;it us, or &s;ent unto us, to mini&s;ter to our wants, the cur&s;e of God would abide both on them and their po&s;terity, for &s;o doing; the &s;aid <HI>Gorton</HI> hearing of the&s;e things, writ a Letter to the ruling El|der in <HI>Charles-Towne,</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">We had li|berty to &s;peak or write to El|ders, or &s;uch as the Magi|&s;trates lycen|&s;ed to &s;peake with us, in way of que|&s;tion, whom they tho<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ght were fi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">te&s;t to in&s;n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">e us, &s;o that this wri|ting is but a que&s;tion, only it hath a large preface.</NOTE> a Copie whereof (<HI>verbatim</HI>) here followeth, which was con&s;ulted upon, by the Mini&s;ters im|mediatly, together with the Governour, as intelligence was brought unto him, but never an&s;wer given unto it, neither by word nor writing.</P>
<LETTER>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Charles-towne, <DATE>Ianuary <HI>the 12. 1643.</HI></DATE></DATELINE><SALUTE>Mr. <HI>Green</HI></SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>FOr as much as we know that the Ruler of the Congregati|on hath power to give utterance, and to authori&s;e &s;peech unto edification, <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 6. ii. <HI>Mat.</HI> 28. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, 19. 20.</NOTE> and that none ought to hinder, where ever or whom&s;oever he permits or giveth Lycen&s;e unto, <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Act. 4. 18 19. 20:</NOTE> and in as much as we al&s;o profe&s;&s;e, that there is one thing that is needfull, and who&s;oever &s;hall make choi&s;e of that, it &s;hall never be taken away from him <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Luk. 10. 41. 42</NOTE>, which is to hear the words of Chri&s;t. Neither are we ignorant, that none are truly &s;en&s;ible, o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> know the nece&s;&s;ity, u&s;e, and benefit of <HI>hearing the word of Chri&s;t,</HI> but only &s;uch as are &s;en&s;ible, and &s;ee the nece&s;&s;itie; (yea, and that in the &s;ame &s;ubject) <HI>of &s;peaking and delivering the words of Chri&s;t</HI> <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 16.</NOTE>, for the heart of every Saint is equally ballan|ced with the&s;e two; the &s;ame nece&s;sitie he finds <HI>to &s;peak,</HI> he al&s;o finds to <HI>heare;</HI> the &s;ame nece&s;sity he finds to <HI>heare,</HI> he finds to <HI>&s;peake al&s;o the word of God,</HI> for <HI>faith is in hearing, and hearing is in &s;peaking the word of God</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Rom. 10. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">7.</NOTE>;] if we deny either of the&s;e unto a Chri&s;tian, we deny him the power of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">aith, which doth con&s;i&s;t in them both; nay, if he want a tongue to &s;peake, or an eare to heare (and that equally, the one as the other) we de|ny him to be <HI>compleat in Chri&s;t</HI> <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">2. Cor. 4. 13. Collo&s;. 2. 10.</NOTE>,] who as he had <HI>an ear open to the voice of the Father in all things</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 40. 6.</NOTE>,] &s;o had he <HI>a tongue</HI>
<PB N="67" REF="42">
<HI>to divulge and declare them unto th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> world;</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Ioh. 17. 6. 26</NOTE> even &s;o <HI>with the heart man beleeves unto righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Rom. 10. 10.</NOTE> that is, gives credit to that which he hears, to be in another, <HI>and with the mouth confe&s;&s;ion is made to &s;alvation,</HI> <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Rom. 10, 9 10.</NOTE> that is, preacheth, or profe&s;&s;eth <HI>that which God hat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> made him to be by faith,</HI> <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 116. 10.</NOTE> <HI>therefore if thou &s;halt confe&s;&s;e with thy mo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">th the Lord Je|&s;us, and beleeve in thine heart that God rai&s;ed him up from the dead, thou &s;halt be &s;aved</HI> <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Rom, 10. 9</NOTE>,] nor a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> I ignorant of the minds of the people, (among&s;t whom I now &s;o journe, <HI>and am a &s;tranger as all my Fathers have bee<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">)</HI> <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">P&s;al, 39. 12.</NOTE> Hovv earne&s;t they are I &s;hould get my bread vvith <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="4 letters">ile vvorke, or el&s;e to have <HI>hunger and famine to cleave unto my bonds,</HI> vvhich they pro|fe&s;&s;e them&s;elves to be very clearly in&s;tructed in, though in times pa&s;t it hath been thought &s;ufficient work for a man to be exerci&s;ed in (at one time) to lie in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">etters and irons among&s;t &s;trangers, <HI>though wife and children were not deprived of all ne|ce&s;&s;aries at home.</HI> Nor doe I doub<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, but they may find a time to alter their judgement (it may <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e before they are aware) <HI>e&s;pecially if the Bride-groom be at the door</HI> <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 25. 6 10.</NOTE>,] and it is well known, that I have not been acc<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">omed to any &s;ervile worke in any part of my life till now of l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">e in <HI>New-England,</HI> where through the kindne&s;&s;e of my countrey men, in taking from my family the things of this life, (which God had be&s;towed on us) I have been nece&s;&s;itated thereunto&punc; which I am &s;o upbraided with in this place.</P>
<P>But it is not grievous unto me, while&s;t they cannot but &s;ee in it <HI>(if God have not blinded th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ir eyes</HI>) the vanity of tho&s;e Idol &s;hepherds of the Church of Rome <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Where&s;oever the doctrine, &s;pirit, &amp; pow|er of it doth appear.</NOTE>, who cannot &s;peak unto the people, but in a way of &s;o much &s;tudy and ea&s;e; nor had I ever de&s;ire, to be &s;et up in the world, through gatherings and contributions of the people&punc; <HI>Therefore have the&s;e hands mini&s;tred to my nece&s;&s;ities</HI> <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Cor. 4. 11, 12. Acts 20. 34.</NOTE>. But however I have been exerci|&s;ed <HI>about the bread that peri&s;heth</HI> <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Joh. 6. 27.</NOTE>&punc; yet hath it not been but with re&s;pect <HI>unto that which endureth unto everla&s;ting life</HI> <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">Joh. 6. 33. 36. 5<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE>, which I have endeavoured <HI>to bre<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"></HI> <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Acts 20. 7.</NOTE>, and faithfully to impart unto my wife, children, and &s;ervants, and to any that had an ear open to li&s;ten unto <HI>that whol<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ome word of life</HI> <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg"><HI>Joh.</HI> 6&punc; 63, 68</NOTE>, which
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hath made all other travells or lo&s;&s;es, whatever, to be light and ea&s;ie unto me (as at this day) <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Mat. 11. 28 <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">9, 30.</NOTE>, <HI>which I profe&s;&s;e to be the only errant I have to do in this world:</HI> and however <HI>we do preach the Gospel, yet have we nothing to rejoyce in</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9 16</NOTE> <HI>or to glory and prai&s;e our &s;elves for,</HI> to lift up our &s;elves above our Brethren: <HI>for ne|ce&s;&s;ity is laid upon me</HI> <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Ibid.</NOTE>; That is, I am in want, and &s;tand in need of all things; <HI>and woe is me if I preach not the Go&s;pel:</HI> That is, if I receive not this grace from Chri&s;t, as wel as any other: for the &s;ame nece&s;&s;ity I have of any other grace, I have of this grace al&s;o: <HI>For of his fulne&s;&s;e we all receive, and grace for grace</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">John 1. 16.</NOTE>, for <HI>the graces of God are a bundle of life in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">1 Sam 25. 29 Cant. 1. 13.</NOTE>: So as, that if I reject, or neglect, or put off any one of them to another, as no priviledge or prerogative of mine, I do the like to all: <HI>For his &s;eamle&s;&s;e coat may not be divided, but all goeth by lot or portion the &s;ame way</HI> <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Math&punc; 27. 35</NOTE>: And in like man|ner I am de&s;titute of this, I am de&s;titute of all other grace, that proceeds from him: <HI>For if I preach the Go&s;pel willingly, I have a reward</HI> <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 17.</NOTE>: That is, if I do it out of any ability, skil, or wi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> of my own, gotten and acquired by any pains or indu|&s;try, as men attain to arts, and trades, wherein they are to be preferred before, and above others, <HI>then I have a reward:</HI> that is, &s;omething is to be attributed and contributed to me for the &s;ame, then go I about to deprive my Lord of his right, <HI>&s;hewing my &s;elf an unfaithful &s;teward</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Luke <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">6. 1.</NOTE>&punc; <HI>for where an hundreth is due to him, I bid write fifty, that I may take the re&s;t my &s;elf to live upon</HI> <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Luke 16. 4, 5, 6, 7.</NOTE>; for even as I propound my own de&s;erts, demerits, and eminency unto a people&punc; <HI>&s;o do I propound the unde&s;erving estate and condition of my Lord;</HI> proclaming his ba&s;ene&s;&s;e whil'&s;t I &s;et forth my pains and good-wil in &s;o doing, <HI>but if I do it again&s;t my wil</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc; 17&punc;</NOTE>: That is, if it be contrary to the mind and wil of all men, <HI>to undergo the cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t, to preach the Gospel in nece&s;&s;ities, reproaches, hard labors, and per&s;ecuti|ons</HI> <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">2 Cor, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">3, to 28.</NOTE>, <HI>then is the di&s;pen&s;ation committed unto me</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 17</NOTE>: that is, the right of all admini&s;trations <HI>(wrapped up in that fountain of di&s;pen&s;ing, the Gospel)</HI> do of right &s;olely belong unto him, and not unto me in any ca&s;e, <HI>yea, it is the wil and power of another</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Rom. 1. 16.</NOTE> <HI>and not my own,</HI> unto whom the prai&s;e and glory of right be|longeth and wholy appertaineth <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 105. 1.</NOTE>, and not unto the wil, abi|lity,
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or skil of any man what&s;oever <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Iames 1. 18. Iohn 1. 13.</NOTE>: and hence it is <HI>that the Cro&s;&s;e is ea&s;ie unto us</HI> <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Math. 11. 28 29.</NOTE>, becau&s;e we know that he, as truly, and totally taketh our reproaches and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ard&s;hips <HI>upon him&s;elfe</HI> <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Math. 8. 17</NOTE>, <HI>which are only due unto us:</HI> as he committeth the di&s;pen&s;ation of his grace and glory unto us: that is none of ours, but only due and belongs unto him&s;elf, &s;o t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">at <HI>we remember him that &s;uffered &s;uch gain&s;ayings of &s;inners, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">a&s;t we &s;hould be weary and faint in our mind</HI> <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Heb. 12. 3.</NOTE>: yea further, <HI>there is a nece&s;&s;ity of preaching the Go&s;pel upon every &s;oul:</HI> for as there is not any <HI>that can be|leeve, for another, unto righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e</HI> <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Rom. 10. 10.</NOTE>, the party being de&s;ti|tute of that grace him&s;elf, &s;o there i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> not any <HI>that can preach or confe&s;&s;e for another unto &s;alvation</HI> <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Ibid.</NOTE>, the party him&s;elf being de|&s;titute of that grace of <HI>confe&s;&s;ion or preaching:</HI> Indeed the Saints communicate in the&s;e graces one with an other, as all of them being <HI>heirs and inheritors of the &s;ame grace i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> Chri&s;t</HI> <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Rom 8. 17.</NOTE>, but one cannot perform any office for another&punc; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s for &s;uch as are de&s;titute <HI>of the &s;ame grace and office them&s;elve&punc;</HI> <NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 12. 2</NOTE>: for that were <HI>in&s;tead of a girdle arent</HI> <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 3. 24.</NOTE>: Therefore the preaching of the Go&s;pel <HI>is the di&s;covering of what men are in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us,</HI> and not only what they may or &s;hal be <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">1 Iohn 4. 17</NOTE>, al&s;o <HI>what men are under&punc; the wrath of God that abides upon them, being out of Chri&s;t</HI> <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Iohn 3. 36.</NOTE> and not only what they &s;hal be: So that every Chri&s;tian having received this <HI>(as an ingrafted word</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Iames 1. 21</NOTE> <HI>growing up together with it)</HI> that is, <HI>that I may be mutually edified and comforted by the communica|cation of your faith &amp; mine</HI> <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">om. 1. 11 12.</NOTE>, he grows up in this al&s;o, namely, <HI>that I may be mutually edified and comforted by the communica|tion of your preaching and mine,</HI> for i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the day of the Lord <HI>which is the day of &s;alvation, and behold no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the accepted time, behold now the day of &s;alvation</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 6. 2.</NOTE> <HI>wherein we give no offence,</HI> or lay not any &s;tumbling block before our brethren <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 6. 3</NOTE>; we villifie not that &s;acrifice <HI>once offered up for all</HI> <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Heb. 9. 26. 27.</NOTE>. <HI>That our mini&s;tery may not be reprehended</HI> <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 6. 3.</NOTE>. Or that our mini&s;tery be not <HI>blemi&s;hed,</HI> for &s;o <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">he word is (<HI>momo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI>) that is we can acknowledge no &s;acrifice, but onely that <HI>which is without <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ither &s;uperfluity or de|fect; and in that day the feeble&s;t i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> Ieru&s;alem, is as</HI> Davi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Zech. 12. 8</NOTE>; <HI>A King</HI> <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 2. 6.</NOTE>, <HI>a leader</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 78. 70. 72&punc; 73.</NOTE>, <HI>a valiant warri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">r,</HI> <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">2 Sam. 18. 3. 1 Sam. 18. 7</NOTE> <HI>a &s;weet finger in I&s;ra|el</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Sam. 23. 1.</NOTE>, <HI>and the hou&s;e of</HI> David <HI>as God,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">r as the <HI>mighties</HI> (for the <HI>word is</HI> plurall) <HI>yea as the angel of th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> Lord before them;</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Zech. 12. 8</NOTE> every
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one is as the angel or me&s;&s;enger of the Lord, <HI>before the re&s;t of the congregation,</HI> or as the angel of the Lord before (him) as the word will al&s;o beare, that is to &s;ay, as the me&s;&s;enger of the Lord, like unto his &s;ervant <HI>Iohn, to prepare or make ready his way before him</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Mal. 3. 1. Mat. 11. 10.</NOTE> forthe me&s;&s;enger of the Lord, and he onely knows how to bring down <HI>the highe&s;t mountain, and how to lift up the lowe&s;t valley, and that only is a high way for the Royalty of our King to pa&s;&s;e upon</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Luk. 1. 17. Luk. 3. 5. 6.</NOTE> <HI>in the wilderne&s;&s;e.</HI> And this is a glory that the world cannot <HI>receive,</HI> neither can it <HI>give it</HI> <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Iohn 14. 17. 27. Iohn 16. 22.</NOTE>: and it is our rejoycing that we borrow nothing from the world, nor &s;tand in need of any thing it hath, to make the Go&s;pel of God glorious, <HI>for it were better for us to die, then that any man &s;hould make our rejoycing vain, or emptie</HI> <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 15.</NOTE>. For it were not full in Chri&s;t, if we borrowed any thing of the world, <HI>which were death to us to think of; what is our rejoycing then, or our reward,</HI> when as the whole world affordeth nothing at all unto us? ve|rily this <HI>that when we preach the Go&s;pel, we make it free,</HI> <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 18.</NOTE> <HI>which could not be, if it laid claim to any thing the world hath in the publication of it &s;elf;</HI> for then by the Law of relations, <HI>the world might lay claim unto, and challenge &s;omething from (it) which were to bring the Go&s;pel into bondage,</HI> But as the Lord Je|&s;us wrought that great work of reconcilia<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ion <HI>freely,</HI> &s;o as the world could challenge nothing of it at his hands at all, &s;o is that word of reconciliation, <HI>to whom&s;oever it is committed</HI> <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 5. 18. 2 Cor. 11. 7. 8 9.</NOTE>, <HI>publi&s;hed freely, &s;o as the world can challenge nothing of them at all</HI> <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Mat. 10. 8. 1 Cor. 9. 1. 1 Cor. 7. 23. 1 Cor. 9 19</NOTE>; So that <HI>the &s;ervant of the Lord is free from all men, though he makes him&s;elf &s;ervant unto all, that he might gain the more.</HI> &s; Thence it is <HI>that he abu&s;eth not his authority in the Go&s;pel but keeps his power un&s;potted</HI> <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 18.</NOTE>, when the world can require no|thing at his hands; hereby &s;hewing al&s;o the tran&s;cendencie of that kingdome, wherein his authority is exerci&s;ed, beyond the kingdoms of this world which mu&s;t borrow one of an|other, el&s;e cannot any be glorious <HI>in the height of glory</HI> concern|ing the things of this life; therefore had <HI>Solomon</HI> him&s;elf <HI>Gold, Silver, Ivory, apes, and peacocks, brought from other nations to augment his glory</HI> <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Kin. 10. 22. 2 Chr.</HI> 9. 21&punc;</NOTE>, <HI>But he that is greater then</HI> Solomon <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Mat. 12. 22.</NOTE> <HI>beau|tifieth him&s;elf with none of the things of this life</HI> <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Mat. 8. 20 I&s;a. 52. 14.</NOTE>, <HI>though he had</HI>
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<HI>right to them all,</HI> <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Rom. 4. 13 14. Gal. 4. 7.</NOTE> that &s;o he might make it manife&s;t <HI>that his Kingdome is not of this world;</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Iohn 18. 36</NOTE> therefore gives charge unto his di&s;ciples, that <HI>as they had freely received, &s;o they &s;hould freely give:</HI> <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Mat. 10. 8</NOTE> for by how much we injoyn people to contribute unto us for preaching the Go&s;pell, by &s;o <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ch we proclaim, <HI>that we have given unto God for what we have received of him,</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Iob. 35. 7. 8</NOTE> <HI>and teach others: &s;o to do&punc;</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 5. 19.</NOTE> namely to bring &s;ome preparations, ope|ration, or fitne&s;&s;e <HI>to receive his grace&punc;</HI> which is as far from man to attain unto, <HI>as it was to prepare and fit him&s;elf for his creation at the fir&s;t,</HI> <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Gen. 2. 7.</NOTE> &s;o that the benevolence of the Saints in commu|nicating of the things of this life, <HI>is <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o part of the glory or beau|tifying of the hou&s;e of God;</HI> for then a wicked man might adde &s;omewhat thereunto, no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;hall the glory in the lea&s;t mea&s;ure be dimini&s;hed, <HI>when the&s;e things &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">all have an end.</HI> But it is a declaration of their vilification of the things of this pre&s;ent life, as things of no account or reckoning, when they come into competition with the well being of the Saints; and as the&s;e things <HI>are con&s;umed, and turned into <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;hes, upon that golden altar,</HI> <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Levit. 9. 24.</NOTE> <HI>&s;o doth there a&s;cend up a perfumatory &s;acrifice of &s;weet &s;avour unto the Lord,</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Phil. 4. 18</NOTE> <HI>for according to our vilification of the things of this life, &s;o is our valuation of the Lord Ie&s;us, who is either all or none at all in our e&s;timation and account,</HI> and if he be all <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Col. 3. 11. Ephe&s;. 1. 23.</NOTE>, <HI>then he that gathereth much of the things according unto man hath nothing over,</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 8. 15.</NOTE> or above him that hath the lea&s;t, and <HI>he that gathereth little hath no la<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">k</HI> <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 8. 15.</NOTE> or falls &s;hort of him that hath the mo&s;t, for the one, and the other <HI>con&s;ume them in the act of the pre&s;ent &s;upply of their nece&s;sity,</HI> knowing that if they keep them, in making any accoun<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> reckoning of them, for the time to come, <HI>they pre&s;ently putrifie and corrupt</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Exod. 16. 19. 20.</NOTE>. Learn this parable therefore, <HI>that there is <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">hat in the heavenly Manna that the rebells may eat in the wilderne&s;s and die eternally</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">John 6. 5. 8</NOTE>, as wel as that <HI>which who&s;oever <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">eth &s;ha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> never die, but live for ever</HI> <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">John 6. 58.</NOTE>, yea there is <HI>a &s;eed to be &s;own in giving away to another,</HI> as well as food to receive <HI>for the nouri&s;hing of our &s;elves; and he that &s;ows &s;paringly in that &s;hall reap &s;paringly</HI> <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 9. 56</NOTE>, yea he that knows not <HI>how to mini&s;ter carnall things, cannot have Spirituall things mini&s;tred unto him</HI> <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Rom. 15. 27.</NOTE>, no m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> man can keep <HI>his</HI>
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<HI>&s;inne,</HI> and have the <HI>righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t al&s;o.</HI> <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 14. 15. 16.</NOTE> Tho&s;e onely therefore that in giving and receiving know how to per|form all in the &s;ame act&punc; <HI>as the woman in casting her two mites into the trea&s;ury,</HI> <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Luk 21. 2. 3 4.</NOTE> <HI>and out of deep povertie can &s;ee the abound|ing of the riches of liberality</HI> <NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">2. <HI>Cor.</HI> 8. 2.</NOTE>; Such can perform an acceptable &s;ervice to the Lord; but &s;uch as onely exerci&s;e them&s;elves <HI>in piece mealing of the things of God, and the things of man,</HI> to &s;erve at times and turns, <HI>for advantage,</HI> and re&s;erve the re&s;t, this is <HI>as the cutting off of a dogs head, or the offering of &s;wines blood in the hou&s;e of God</HI> <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">6. 3.</NOTE> how ever el&s;e where they may be done without any &s;uch abomination, the Saints therefore depend not upon neither de&s;ire the worlds benevolence, knowing wel <HI>what their mercies are in the winding up,</HI> <NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Prov. 12 10.</NOTE> nor can they expect from them ought el&s;e, <HI>but bonds, impri&s;onments,</HI> <NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Acts 20. 22. 23.</NOTE> <HI>and &s;poyling of their goods</HI> <NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Heb. 10. 34.</NOTE>(which through the &s;ecret &s;upplies their ma&s;ter makes unto them) <HI>they &s;uffer joyfully,</HI> <NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 43. 2.</NOTE> not looking for &s;o much <HI>as a &s;hoe latchet from the King of Sodom to enrich them&s;elves with all</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Gen. 14. 21. 22. 23.</NOTE> knowing that <HI>the ble&s;sing of the Lord upon their inde|vours</HI> <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Prov. 10. 22.</NOTE> <HI>&s;hall yield &s;ufficient to convey them through this valley of</HI> Bac<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">P&s;al 8<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 5. 6.</NOTE> which indevours, God directeth unto times and &s;ea&s;ons to u&s;e according to &s;trength, and con&s;titution, <HI>without any to lay tasks upon them,</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg"><HI>Exod.</HI> 5. 6. to 14.</NOTE> even as <HI>he teacheth the husbandman when to throw in the cummin, and the fitches</HI> <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 28. 23. 24. 25. 26.</NOTE>, though they know (not|with&s;tanding) <HI>what it is to have power, not to work, and to lead about a wife, that is a &s;i&s;ter as well as others.</HI> <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 9. 3. 4. 5. 6.</NOTE> But I am longer in my introduction, then I did intend, my Que&s;tion therefore in &s;hort is this, namely whether I may have liberty to &s;peak and expre&s;&s;e the word of the Lord in the publick congregation freely without interruption, either on the Lords day, or the or|dinary Lecture, now whil&s;t I am kept from my family, and friends, with whom I have been formerly exerci&s;ed: <HI>for &s;eeing our dayes as a &s;hadow decline,</HI> <NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 102. 11.</NOTE> <HI>and we are pre&s;ently withered as gra&s;&s;e,</HI> <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 102. 4.</NOTE> <HI>when in a moment we go hence, and are no more</HI> <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 39. 5. 13:</NOTE>: We are earne&s;t therefore to expre&s;&s;e <HI>the word of life that fadeth not, nor waxeth old as doth a garment,</HI> <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">P&s;al&punc; 1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">2 25. 26 27.</NOTE> <HI>that Gods memoriall may abide with our po&s;terity</HI> <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 102. 12</NOTE> <HI>when we are gone the way of all the earth,</HI> <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">1 Kings 2. 1. 2.</NOTE> and that you &s;hall not need to feare my touching upon
<PB N="73" REF="45">
any of tho&s;e things which it &s;eems <HI>are to lie &s;ealed as in the grave for the pre&s;ent,</HI> <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Mat. 27. 65. 66.</NOTE> I &s;hall tell you vvhat Scripture urgeth my heart for the pre&s;ent to impart, <HI>of God lead not into another,</HI> <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Dan. 6. 16. 17.</NOTE> before the opportunity be attained, <HI>for we cannot trea&s;ure up to bring forth at our plea&s;ure unto profit,</HI> no more then vve can <HI>fetch down at our plea&s;ure for our &s;upply,</HI> but onely as our God performeth, both the one and the other, <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Iohn 14. 26.</NOTE> for vve depend not upon <HI>Baal O both as Saul did,</HI> <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">1 Sam 28. 7.</NOTE> but upon <HI>the Lord Iehovah as David did.</HI><NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 36. 9.</NOTE> The Scripture intended is the founding of the fifth trumpet, <HI>Revel.</HI> 9, out of vvhich I <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;ire (as God &s;hall a&s;&s;i&s;t) to open and declare the&s;e points follovving.</P>
<P>1 <HI>What the &s;ound of the trumpet is, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> who the angel is, 3 why the</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Point. 1.</NOTE> <HI>fifth.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What that &s;tarre is that falls from heaven to the earth,</HI> 2<NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 2.</NOTE> <HI>what the fall of it is, 3 how it falls from heaven unto the earth.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What the key of the bottomle&s;&s;e pit is. 2 To whom it is given</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 3.</NOTE> 3 <HI>The manner how it is given. 4 How the pit is opened. 5 How it can be &s;aid to be bottomle&s;&s;e, &s;eeing nothing can be without banks and bottome but the Lord him&s;elf.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>what the &s;moke of the bottomle&s;&s;e pit is. 2 The cau&s;e and</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 4.</NOTE> <HI>manner of its ri&s;e, even as the &s;moke of a great furnace.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What the Sunne and the aire are&punc; 2 How they are darkened by the &s;moke of the pit.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 5.</NOTE></P>
<P>1 <HI>What tho&s;e locu&s;ts are that come ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> of the &s;moke. 2 The nature of their power, as the &s;corpions of the earth have power, 3 how this</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 6.</NOTE> <HI>power is given unto them, &s;eeing that all power is of God.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What the injunctions are, that are laid upon the locu&s;ts.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 7.</NOTE> 2 <HI>The ri&s;e of tho&s;e injunctions: 3 The exerci&s;e of them: 4 The extent of them.</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What the nature and property of the locu&s;ts are, declared by</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 8.</NOTE> <HI>the &s;everall formes a&s;cribed unto them, furniture, ornaments, and their carriage in them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>What their King is, as he is de&s;cribed, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> by his office a&s;&s;igned,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 9.</NOTE> 2 <HI>by his titles given unto him. 3 How <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e is a King, &s;eeing the lo|custs are &s;aid to have no King over them&punc;</HI></P>
<P>1 <HI>What that woe is, that i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;aid to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e past, and how it can be</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 10.</NOTE>
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<HI>&s;aid to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e pa&s;t, &s;eeing there is ever wo to the wicked. 2 What the two woes are, which are to come, and how they can be &s;aid to come hereafter, &s;eeng the wrath of God abides upon him already, that believes not.</HI></P>
<P>Thus you have my que&s;tion, both with its introduction and Sequel, and I attend your an&s;wer, which I hope will not one|ly be &s;peedy in re&s;pect of time, but &s;peeches al&s;o in regard of matter, to the &s;atisfying and fulfilling of my de&s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">es,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>Per me</HI> Samuel Gorton.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>Now during the time of our confinement, being di&s;per&s;ed abroad into &s;everall towns in the countrey, the people came to be informed of the truth of proceedings, whereupon <HI>they were much un&s;atisfied with what they had done again&s;t us,</HI> which be|ing perceived, they called a generall Court, and without any appearance, or que&s;tioning any of us, concluded upon our re|lea&s;e &s;ending us a writing of it, together with a further bani&s;h|ment, not onely out of all their own juri&s;dictions, but al&s;o that we &s;hould not come in, nor near <HI>Providence,</HI> nor our own plantations at <HI>Shawomet,</HI> with other parts thereto adjoyning, out of all which places we were to depart within the &s;pace of fourteen dayes, and that upon pain of death, which were places out of all their juri&s;dictions, as Ma&s;ter <HI>Iohn Indicote</HI> (at that time deputy Governor) confe&s;&s;ed, &s;tanding up in pub|lick Court, and profe&s;&s;ed <HI>that God had &s;tirred them up to go out of their own Iuri&s;dictions, to fetch us from our own places un|to them.</HI></P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="commutation of sentence">
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of our relea&s;e and bani&s;hment, &s;ent to us from the Generall Court, &s;et down <HI>verbatim,</HI> and is extant under their hands.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>At a Generall Court at <HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> <DATE>the 7^t^h of the fir&s;t moneth 1643 or 1644.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>IT is ordered that <HI>Samuel Gorton</HI> and the re&s;t of that com|pany, who now &s;tand confined, &s;hall be &s;et at liberty, provi|ded that if they or any of them, &s;hall after fourteen dayes after &s;uch inlargement, come within any part of our Juri&s;diction,
<PB N="75" REF="46">
either in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> or in, or near <HI>Providence,</HI> or any of the Lands of <HI>Pumhom,</HI> or <HI>Soccononocco</HI>* or el&s;ewhere, within<NOTE PLACE="marg">The&s;e were there two In|dian &s;ubjects lately enti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ed to renounce their own Prince, there&punc; by to finde a way to &s;ub|ject us unto their own wills, or el&s;e to execute death upon.</NOTE> our Juri&s;diction, then &s;uch per&s;on, or per&s;ons, &s;h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ll be appre|hended where&s;oever they may be taken, and &s;hall &s;uffer death by cour&s;e of Law; provided al<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o thus during all their contiu|ance in our bounds inhabiting for the &s;aid time of fourteene dayes, they &s;hall be &s;till bound, to the re&s;t of the Articles o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> their former confinement, upon the penalty therein expre&s;&s;ed</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Per C<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">. <HI>Increa&s;e Nowel</HI> Secret.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>When this order of the Court wa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> pre&s;ented to <HI>Samuel Gor|ton,</HI> by the Con&s;table of <HI>Charles</HI> town, bringing a Smith with him, to file off his bolts, he told the Con&s;table <HI>he was not wil|ling to part with his irons on the&s;e termes,</HI> but expected other news in fairer termes of relea&s;e, then were therein expre&s;&s;ed, de&s;iring him to go to Ma&s;ter <HI>Nowel</HI> who lived in that town, and declare &s;o much unto him. In &s;hort time, the Con&s;table returned, bringing divers of the chief men in the town with him, <HI>and commanded the Smith to fall to work to file off his bolts,</HI> who did accordingly, and &s;o took them from him, lea|ving the &s;aid <HI>Gorton</HI> either to walk abroad, on &s;uch conditions, or el&s;e to &s;tay at his perill.</P>
<P>Now two or three dayes after our relea&s;e, Some of us being returned to <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> de&s;iring to &s;tay for the re&s;t of our friends, that we might return together, accompanying each other in our journey, <HI>the people &s;hewing them&s;elves joyfull to &s;ee us at liberty,</HI> and entertaining us kindly into their hou&s;es, which the Governor perceiving pre&s;ently &s;ent out his warrant, with &s;trict charge to depart from the town, within the &s;pace of two hours, (it being about ten of the clock in the forenoon when the war|rant came unto us) otherwi&s;e further penalty &s;hould be laid upon us.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="warrant">
<PB N="76" REF="47">
<HEAD>This is a true copie of the Governors warrant extant &s;till un|der his hand, word for word.</HEAD>
<OPENER>To the Mar&s;hall or his deputie,</OPENER>
<P>I Am informed that <HI>Samuel Gorton,</HI> and his company are now abiding in the town, and go to divers hou&s;es, giving of|fence thereby, and cau&s;e of &s;u&s;picion, of attempting to &s;educe &s;ome of our people; you are therefore to command them to de|part ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> of the town, b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">fore noon this day, upon pain of being apprehended and futher proceeded with, according to their de&s;ervings.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><DATE>(i) 10.&mdash;43.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Iohn Winthrop&punc; Governour.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>Now although by the Generall Court, we had fourteen dayes allowed u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">o us to inhabit within their Juri&s;dictions, <HI>not limit|ed to any place, nor excluded from any place for the &s;pace of &s;o long time</HI> yet notwith&s;tanding upon notice given unto us by this warrant we pre&s;ently departed the town* though upon a &s;udden<NOTE PLACE="marg">As we pa&s;&s;ed along the way a matter of three&punc; or foure miles from Bo&s;ton, we cam<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> to &s;ome&punc; Indian wig. wammes, the Sachim being the prime Sa|chim, that lives neare them, and fa|miliar among them, we came into his wig|wam acciden|tally, and he having taken notice of us among&s;t them how we had been dealt with, as &s;oon as we came in, called &s;ome of us by our names) his name being <HI>C<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;hanakin,</HI> we a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ked him whether Captain <HI>Cook</HI> were a good Captain, he an&s;wered I cannot tell, but Indians account of tho&s;e as good Captains, when a few dare &s;tand out again&s;t many.</NOTE> when we were unprovided for victuals &amp; other provi&s;ions for our journy, &amp; being there was no place inhabited by the <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> near the place where our wives and children were &s;cattered, out of which they had not expelled us, but onely a little I&s;land, cal|led <HI>Road I&s;land,</HI> &s;ituate in the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> Bay, upon which we arrived, within the time limited unto us, but the night before we came to <HI>Road I&s;land</HI> we lodged at <HI>Shawomet in our own hou&s;es there,</HI> and con&s;idering of the act of their court in our expelling and bani&s;hment out of tho&s;e parts, we ob&s;erved that they had not expre&s;&s;ed our land at <HI>Shawomet,</HI> but onely named the lands of <HI>Pumhom&punc;</HI> and <HI>Soccononocco,</HI> (the Indians whom they claimed as Subjects) we thought good therefore to write unto them for a further explanation of the Courts act&punc; that &s;o we might under&s;tand their true intent being very unwilling
<PB N="77" REF="47">
to di&s;cover their dealings towards us in &s;eeking redre&s;&s;e, if we could but &s;ee a way, that through our hard labours, our wives and little ones might find a way to &s;ub&s;i&s;t&punc;</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of the Letter &s;ent unto the Go|vernour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets, verbatim,</HI> as it is &s;till ex|tant under the hands of the witne&s;&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, which were taken, le&s;t they &s;hould put us off, and not make an&s;wer to our letter.</HEAD>
<OPENER><DATELINE>Shawomet, <DATE>March <HI>the</HI> 26. 1644.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>THe order of your Court la&s;t held, made concerning us, being darke and ob&s;cure, which be&s;eems not a mat|ter of that concernment, which you h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ve now entred upon, and made &s;ome &s;hort progre&s;&s;e therein; the i&s;&s;ues whereof are pre&s;&s;ing on unto perfection, who&s;e arri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">all is waited for, <HI>with that hope that never makes a&s;hamed,</HI> we may not therefore for|beare <HI>To require an explanation of what you intend, by the Lands of</HI> Pumhom <HI>and</HI> Soccononocco, <HI>for we know none they have, or ever had within your juri&s;diction;</HI> if you &s;hould there|fore, &s;o farre forget your &s;elfe, as to intend thereby <HI>our Land lawfully bought, and now in our po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, and inhabited by us, called</HI> Shaw-omet, <HI>together with other parts near adjoyning:</HI> Give us your minds, and meaning in plaine terms, under your hands: And whereas you conclude, for &s;uch our lawfull a|boad, and re&s;idence, to pro&s;ecute again&s;t us by cour&s;e of Law unto death; we re&s;olve upon your an&s;wer, with all expedi|tion, to wage Law with you, and try to the uttermo&s;t, <HI>What right or intere&s;t you can &s;hew to lay claime, either to our Lands or our Lives;</HI> and &s;hall take it as your own Act, urging us and con&s;training us thereunto, to look<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> after our right, in the havock and &s;poyls, you have already made among us, which otherwi&s;e God hath taught us, <HI>to &s;uffer joyfully the robbing and &s;poyling of our goods,</HI> if you did not nece&s;sitate us to look af|ter recompence from you: We expect your an&s;wer by this Bearer, and in ca&s;e you returne it not &s;peedily, we conclude your order of Court to intend no &s;uch thing, as to drive us
<PB N="78" REF="48">
from our lawfull po&s;&s;e&s;sions, as above-&s;aid, but that you u&s;ed &s;uch te<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">mes, as &s;car-crows, imagining you had children to deale with, or as a &s;tarting hole to evade part of that danger that may in&s;ue: nor can you put us off for an&s;wer, till the Court &s;it againe, being a generall Act, and you but one; now to an&s;wer, for we know you may better open unto us the in<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">nt of the Court for our &s;atisfaction, then you could expell us out of any part of your juri&s;diction, before the time &s;et by the Court, contrary to the liberty it had given unto us.</P>
<CLOSER>By the order or government of <HI>Shaw-omet, </HI><SIGNED><HI>John Warner,</HI> Secretary.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
<CLOSER> Sufficient witne&s;&s;e be|ing taken of our plaine and man-like dea|ling with you herein.
A true Copie of a Letter &s;ent to the Government, and Gover|nour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> the day and year above &s;aid: In witne&s;&s;e of, or in pre&s;ence of
<SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM>Ralph Earle.</ITEM>
<ITEM>John Anthony.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here Followeth a true Copie of the Governours an&s;wer to our Letter above-&s;aid, &s;et downe here <HI>verbatim,</HI> and is extant under his own hand.</HEAD>
<OPENER><HI>To</HI> Samuel Gorton, John Warner, <HI>and the re&s;t of that company.</HI></OPENER>
<P>FOr &s;atisfaction of what you require, by your writing of <HI>March,</HI> 26, 1644. This is to let you know, that the ex|pre&s;&s;ion and intent of the order of our la&s;t generall Court, con|cerning your comming within any part of our juri&s;diction, doth comprehend all the Lands of <HI>Pumhom,</HI> and <HI>Soccononocco,</HI> and in the &s;ame are included the Lands which you pretended to have purcha&s;ed, upon part whereof you had built &s;ome hou&s;es, (be the place called <HI>Shaw-omet</HI> or otherwi&s;e) &s;o as you are not to come there upon perill of your lives. This I te&s;tifie to you&punc;</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><HI>Bo&s;ton</HI> <DATE>2. (i) 1644</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Iohn Winthrope.</SIGNED><POSTSCRIPT>
<P><PB N="79" REF="48">You mu&s;t know withall, that the C<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">urt did not intend their order &s;hould be a &s;car-crow (as you <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">) for you will find it reall, and effectuall, if you &s;hall tr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">&s;gre&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> it&punc;</P>
</POSTSCRIPT></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P><HI>Thus far the</HI> Governors <HI>Letter, written with his own hand.</HI></P>
<P>Now upon our comming to <HI>Road-Iland,</HI> the Indians of that great Countrey of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">earing of our return without the lo&s;&s;e of our lives, they won<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">red, having ob&s;er|ved the cau&s;ele&s;&s;e cruelty they had offe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">d unto us, &s;ome of them being within the hearing of the &s;ho<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> of the Guns, whil&s;t they lay intrenched again&s;t us, as al&s;o <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ow we were u&s;ed in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> and the con&s;tant report, whil&s;t we lay a|mong&s;t them, that &s;ome of our lives &s;hould be taken away, or el&s;e kept as &s;laves &s;o long as we lived; con&s;idering the&s;e and the like things they marvelled much at our deliverance and relea&s;e, from among&s;t them: Now our countrey men having given out formerly, among&s;t the <HI>Indians,</HI> that <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> were not Engli&s;h men, to encourage them again&s;t us (b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">au&s;e the awe of the Engli&s;h, hath been much upon them) <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">nd being they could not father the name of any Sectary, or Sect upon us, but we could clearly demon&s;trate, we were no &s;uch <HI>opi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ionated per&s;ons,</HI> they then called us <HI>Gortoneans,</HI> and told the <HI>Indians</HI> we were &s;uch kind of men, not Engli&s;h: now the <HI>Indians</HI> calling the Eng|li&s;h in their language <HI>Watta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">onoges,</HI> they now called us <HI>Gor|tonoges,</HI> and being they had heard a rumour of great war to be in <HI>Old-England,</HI> and that it was a land &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> furni&s;hed with mul|titudes of people, they pre&s;ently framed unto them&s;elves a cau&s;e of our deliveranc<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, im<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">gining that there were two kinds of people in <HI>Old-England,</HI> the one calle<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> by the name of Eng|li&s;h men, and the other <HI>Gortonoges;</HI> and concluded that the <HI>Gortonoges</HI> were a mightier people <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">he<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the Engli&s;h, whom they call <HI>Wattaconoges;</HI> and therefore the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> thought it not &s;afe to take away our liv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s, b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">cau&s;e how ever there were but a few of us in <HI>New-England,</HI> in compari&s;on of tho&s;e that came out again&s;t us, yet that g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">at people, that were in <HI>Old-England</HI> would come over, and p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t them to death, that
<PB N="80" REF="49">
&s;hould take away our lives from us, without a ju&s;t cau&s;e.</P>
<P>Whereupon the <HI>Sachims</HI> of the <HI>Nanbygan&s;et</HI> con&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">lting to|gether, pre&s;ently &s;ent Me&s;&s;engers unto us, to come and &s;peake with them, and being they were tho&s;e of whom wee had bought our Land (which now the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> had taken away from us,) <HI>as all that inhabite upon that Bay have done</HI>) they being very importunate to have us to come over to &s;peak with them, we not knowing what the occa&s;ion was, yeelded unto their reque&s;t, a matter of halfe a dozin, or &s;even of us took boat to goe over the <HI>Bay</HI> to them, they &s;eeing the ve&s;&s;ell come&punc; newes was brought to the <HI>Sachim,</HI> who &s;ent aband of lu&s;ty well armed men, who met us, as &s;oon as we were come to Land, to conduct us to old <HI>Sachim Conaunicus his hou&s;e,</HI> mul|titudes of <HI>Indians,</HI> as we pa&s;&s;ed along, coming forth, and &s;eem|ed joyfull, which we taking notice of, (neither the one nor the other being u&s;uall among&s;t them) &s;ome of us began to be a little jealous&punc; that the Agents of the <HI>M&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> who li|ved near unto us, had gone about to betray us into their hands, upon &s;ome fal&s;e &s;ugge&s;tion concerning the death of their <HI>Sa|chim Myantonomy,</HI> who lo&s;t his life immediatly before the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> came again&s;t us; and however he was &s;uddenly &s;l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ine by an <HI>Indian</HI> coming behind him, as he marched upon the way, yet there were Engli&s;h pre&s;ent at the doing of the act, which we were a little jealous, the above-&s;aid Agents might have &s;ugge&s;ted, that we might be con&s;enting thereunto, which all the <HI>Indians</HI> tooke for a mo&s;t injurious act, not onely becau&s;e he was &s;o famous a Prince among&s;t them, but al&s;o how ever he was taken in a &s;tratagem of warre by the <HI>Indians, yet a great ran&s;ome was paid for his Redemption, and his life ta|ken away al&s;o,</HI> and they are very con&s;ciencious, to recompen&s;e the &s;hedding of blood, <HI>(e&s;pecially of &s;uch per&s;onages) with blood againe:</HI> But when wee were come to the old <HI>Sachims</HI> hou&s;e, we were courteou&s;ly entertained, and from thence con|ducted to the hou&s;e of <HI>Sachim Pe&s;&s;ecus,</HI> Brother, and &s;ucce&s;|&s;or in government to the late <HI>Myantonomy,</HI> when we were there, divers <HI>Sachims,</HI> and their chiefe Coun&s;ellors, took us a|&s;ide to con&s;ult with us, and asked what we intended to doe,
<PB N="81" REF="49">
or how we could live, &s;eeing the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> had not onely taken <HI>our e&s;tates from us in goods and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">hattels, but al&s;o our hou&s;es, lands and labours, where we &s;hould rai&s;e more, for the pre&s;ervation of our Families,</HI> and with<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ll, told us that their condition, might (in great mea&s;ure) he paraleld with ours, el&s;e they would willingly have done any thing for our helpe, in regard that our Land was bought of the<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, <HI>and we had faith|fully paid them for it, according to our co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tract:</HI> But they told us, they had not only lo&s;t their <HI>Sachim,</HI> &s;o beloved among&s;t them, and &s;uch an in&s;trument of their publick good; but had al&s;o utterly impoveri&s;hed them&s;elves, by paying &s;uch a ran|&s;ome for his life, (as they then made u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> an account of) not|with&s;tanding, his life taken away, and that detaine al&s;o; we made an&s;wer unto them, that for our p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ts, we were not di&s;|couraged, in any thing that had b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">faln<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> us, for we were &s;ub|jects to &s;uch a noble State in <HI>Old-England,</HI> that however we were farre off from our King and Stat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, yet we doubted not but in due time, we &s;hould have redre&s;&s;e&punc; and in the mean time we were re&s;olved, to undergoe it with patience, and in what way we could, labor with our hands, for the pre&s;ervation of our wives and children: the an&s;wer that they made unto us was this, That they thought we belonged to a better Ma&s;ter then the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> did: whereupon, de&s;iring our &s;tay, they called a generall A&s;&s;embly, to make known th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ir minds, and to &s;ee the minds of their people, and with j<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">y<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t and unanimous con|&s;ent, concluded to become &s;ubjects to the State and Govern|ment of <HI>Old-England,</HI> in ca&s;e they might be accepted of; we told them, we could promi&s;e them nothing, nor take any in|gagements upon us, not knowing the minds of that Honou|rable State; but if they would volunt<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">rily make tender of them&s;elves, as they them&s;elves thought&punc; meet, we would en|deavour to convey it &s;afely (in ca&s;e we went over about our own occa&s;ions) and bring them word what was the plea&s;ure of the State therein; whereupon they cho&s;e four of us, as Commi&s;sioners in tru&s;t for the &s;afe cu&s;tody, and conveyance of their Act and Deed unto the State of <HI>Old-England.</HI></P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="document">
<PB N="82" REF="50">
<HEAD>The Act and Deed of the voluntary and free &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion of the chiefe <HI>Sachim,</HI> and the re&s;t of the Princes, with the whole people of the <HI>N<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ygan&s;ets,</HI> unto the government and protection of that Honourable State of Old-England, &s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> down here <HI>verbatim,</HI> the Deed it &s;elfe being extant.</HEAD>
<P>KNOW ALL MEN, Colonies, Peoples and Nations, unto whom the fame hereof &s;hall come; that we the chiefe <HI>Sachims,</HI> Princes or Governours of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> (in that part of <HI>America,</HI> now called <HI>New-England</HI>) together with the joynt and unanimous con&s;ent of all our people and &s;ubjects, inhabitants thereof, do upon &s;erious con&s;ideration, mature and deliberate advi&s;e and Coun&s;ell, great and weighty grounds and rea&s;ons moving us thereunto, vvhereof one mo&s;t effectuall unto us, is, That noble fame vve have heard of THAT GREAT AND MIGHTY PRINCE, <HI>CHARLES,</HI> KING OF GREAT BRITAIN, in that honorable and Princely care he hath of all his &s;ervants, and true and loyall &s;ubjects; the con&s;ideration vvhereof moveth &amp; bendeth our hearts vvith one con&s;ent, freely, voluntarily, and mo&s;t humbly, to &s;ub|mit, &s;ubject, and give over our &s;elves, Peoples, Lands, Rights, Inheritances, and Po&s;&s;e&s;sions what&s;oever, in our &s;elves and our heires, &s;ucc<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;sively for ever, unto the protection, care, and government of that WORTHY AND ROYALL PRINCE, <HI>CHARLES&punc;</HI> KING OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, his Heirs and Suc|ce&s;&s;ors for ever, to be ruled and governed according to tho&s;e ancient and honourable Lawes, and cu&s;toms e&s;tabli&s;hed in that &s;o renovvned Realme and Kingdome of <HI>Old-England;</HI> vve doe therefore by the&s;e Pre&s;ents confe&s;&s;e, and mo&s;t vvillingly, and &s;ubmi&s;sively acknovvledge our &s;elves to be the humble, loving, and obedient &s;ervants, and &s;ubjects of His Maje&s;ty to be ru|led,
<PB N="83" REF="50">
ordered, and di&s;po&s;ed of, in our &s;el<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">es and ours, accor|ding to his Princely vvi&s;dom, coun&s;el, a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">d l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">vves of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">hat ho|nourable State of <HI>Old-England,</HI> UPON CONDITION OF HIS MAIESTIE<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> ROY<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">E PROTEC|TION, and righting of us in what wrong is, or may be done unto us, according to his honourable Lavves and cu&s;toms, exerci&s;ed among&s;t his &s;ubjects, in their pre&s;ervation and &s;afety, and in the defeating, and overthrow of h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">, and their enemies; not that we find our &s;elves nece&s;sitated hereunto, in re&s;pect of our relation, or occa&s;ion we have or may have with any of the natives in the&s;e parts, knowing our &s;elves &s;ufficient de|fence, and able to judge in any matter o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> cau&s;e in that re&s;pect, but have ju&s;t cau&s;e of jealou&s;ie and &s;u&s;picion, of &s;ome of His Maje&s;ties pretended &s;ubjects: Therefore our de&s;ire is to have our matters and cau&s;es heard, and tried according to his ju&s;t and equal Laws in that way, and order His Highne&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e &s;hal plea&s;e to appoint; NOR CAN WE Y<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">D OVER OUR SELVES UNTO ANY, THAT ARE SUB|IECTS THEMSELVES IN ANY CASE, having our&s;elvs bin the chiefe <HI>Sachims,</HI> or Princes &s;ucce&s;sively, of the countrey, time out of mind, and for our pre&s;ent, &amp; lawful enact|ing hereof, being &s;o farre remote from His Maje&s;tie, we have by joynt con&s;ent made choy&s;e of four of his loyall and loving Subjects, our tru&s;ty and well beloved friends, <HI>Samuel Gorton, Iohn Wickes, Randall Ho<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">lden,</HI> and <HI>Ioh<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> Warner,</HI> whom we have deputed, and made our lawfull A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">rnies, or Commi&s;sio|ners, not only for the acting and performing of this our Deed, in the behalfe of His Highne&s;&s;e: but al&s;o for the &s;afe cu&s;tody, carefull conveyance, and declar<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tion <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ereof unto his grace, being done upon the Lands of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t a Court or Generall A&s;&s;embly called and a&s;&s;emble<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> together of purpo&s;e, for the publick enacting, and manife&s;t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ion hereof: And for the further confirmation, and e&s;tabli&s;hing of this our Act and Deed, we the above-&s;aid <HI>Sachims,</HI> or Princes, have accor|ding to that commendable cu&s;tome of Engli&s;h-men, &s;ub&s;cri|bed our names, and &s;et our Seales hereunto, as &s;o many Te|&s;timonies of our faith and truth, our love and loyaltie to that
<PB N="84" REF="51">
our dread Soveraigne, and that according to the Engli&s;h mens account. </P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Dated <DATE>the nineteenth day of <HI>Aprill,</HI> One thou&s;and &s;ix hundred forty foure.</DATE></DATELINE> <SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Pe&s;&s;icus</HI> his Marke, Chiefe <HI>Sachim</HI> and Succe&s;&s;or of that late decea&s;ed <HI>My|antonomy.</HI>
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Marke of that Ancient <HI>Conaunicus,</HI> Protector of that late decea&s;ed <HI>Myanto|nomy,</HI> during the time of his nonage.
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Marke of <HI>Mixan,</HI> &s;on and heir of that above-&s;aid <HI>Conaunicus.</HI>
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
</LIST><LIST>
<HEAD>Indians</HEAD>
<ITEM>Witne&s;&s;ed by two of the chiefe Coun&s;ellors to <HI>Sachim Pe&s;&s;icus.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">wa&s;ho<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;e</HI> his Mark
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Tomanick</HI> his Mark
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
</LIST>
Sealed and delivered in the pre&s;ence of the&s;e per&s;ons<LIST>
<HEAD>Engli&s;h</HEAD>
<ITEM>Chri&s;topher Helme.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Robert Potter.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Richard C<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">rder.</ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<LETTER>
<PB N="85" REF="51">
<HEAD>Here followeth a Copie of a Letter &s;ent to the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets&punc;</HI> by the <HI>Sachi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ns</HI> of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;ets</HI> (&s;hortly after their &s;ubjection to the State and Government of <HI>Old-England</HI>) they being &s;ent unto by the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> to make their appearance at their Generall Cour<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n approaching.</HEAD>
<P>We under&s;tand your de&s;ire is, that we &s;hould come downe into the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> at the time of your Court now approa|ching; our occa&s;ions at this time are v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">y great, and the more, becau&s;e of the lo&s;&s;e (in that m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">nner) of our late decea&s;ed bro|ther, upon which occa&s;ion, if we &s;hould not &s;tirre our &s;elves, to give Te&s;timony of our faithfulne&s;&s;e unto the cau&s;e, of that our &s;o unju&s;t deprivation of &s;uch an in&s;trument, as he was among&s;t us, for our common good, we &s;hould feare his blood would lie upon our &s;elves; &s;o that we de&s;ire of you, being wee take you for a wi&s;e people, to let us know your rea&s;ons why you &s;eeme to advi&s;e us as you doe, not to g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e out again&s;t our &s;o in|humane, and cruell adver&s;ary, who too<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e &s;o great a ran&s;ome to relea&s;e him&punc; and his life al&s;o, when that was done. Our Bro|ther was willing to &s;tirre much abroad to conver&s;e with men; and wee &s;ee a &s;ad event at the la&s;t the<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">eupon: Take it not ill therefore, though we re&s;olve to keepe at home (unle&s;&s;e &s;ome great nece&s;sitie call us out) and &s;o at t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">is time doe not repaire unto you, according to your reque&s;t: And the rather becau&s;e we have &s;ubjected our &s;elves, our Land<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> and Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions, with all the right and inheritances of us and our people, either by conque&s;t&punc; voluntary &s;ubjection, or otherwi&s;e, unto that fa|mous and honourable government, of that Royall King <HI>Charles,</HI> and that State of <HI>Old-England,</HI> to be ordered and go|verned according to the Laws and Cu&s;toms thereof; not doubting of the continuance of tha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> former love that hath been betwixt you and us, but rather to have it increa&s;ed here|by, <HI>being &s;ubjects now, (and that with joynt and voluntary con&s;ent) unto the &s;ame King and State your &s;elves are:</HI> So that if any &s;mall thing of difference &s;hould fall out betwixt
<PB N="86" REF="52">
us, only the &s;ending of a Me&s;&s;enger may bring it to right a|gaine; but if any great matter &s;hould fall (<HI>which we hope and de&s;ire will not, nor may not</HI>) then neither your &s;elves nor we are to be Judges, but both of us are to have recour&s;e, and re|paire <HI>unto that honourable and ju&s;t Government;</HI> and for the pa&s;&s;age of u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> or our men, to and againe among&s;t you, about ours or their own occa&s;ions, to have comer&s;e with you, we de&s;ire and hope they &s;hall have no wor&s;e dealing or entertain|ment then formerly we have had among&s;t you, and do re&s;olve accordingly to give no wor&s;e re&s;pect to you or yours, then for|merly you have found among&s;t us, according to the condition and manner of our countrey.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><HI>Nanhygan&s;et this pre&s;ent,</HI> <DATE>May the 24. 1644.</DATE></DATELINE> <SIGNED><LIST>
<ITEM><HI>PESSICVS</HI> his Marke.
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>CONAVNICVS</HI> his Marke.
<FIGURE>
</FIGURE></ITEM>
</LIST></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>Now before the a&s;&s;embling of the next generall Court, in regard the <HI>Indians</HI> had expre&s;&s;ed them&s;elves as above we heard, there were feares and jealou&s;ies rai&s;ed up in the minds of the people, of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets, and other of their united Colo|nies,</HI> as though there was &s;ome danger of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;ets</HI> comming again&s;t them to doe &s;ome hurt unto them: So that when we heard their Court was a&s;&s;embled, we writ unto them, a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> follows.</P>
<LETTER>
<PB N="87" REF="52">
<HEAD>A true Copie of a Letter &s;ent to the <HI>M<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">chu&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ts,</HI> at a gene|rall Court held &s;hortly after the &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion of the peo|ple of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;ets,</HI> unto the State of <HI>Old-Eng|land,</HI> by the Commi&s;&s;ioners put in tru&s;t, for the further publication of their &s;olemne Act.</HEAD>
<P>THe&s;e are to let you under&s;tand, <HI>tha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;ince you expelled us out of your Coa&s;ts,</HI> the <HI>Sachims</HI> of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> have &s;ent for certaine men of the Kings Maje&s;ties &s;ubjects, and upon advi&s;ed Coun&s;ell among&s;t them&s;elves (a generall A&s;&s;embly be|ing called of purpo&s;e for that end) they have joyntly volunta|rily, and with unanimous con&s;ent, &s;ubmitted and &s;ubjected them&s;elves, with their Lands and Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions inherited by line|all di&s;cent, voluntary &s;ubjection, right of Conque&s;t, purcha&s;e or otherwi&s;e, what ever lands or priviledges appertain and be|long unto them, unto that honourab<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e and famous Prince <HI>Charles,</HI> King of Great <HI>Britain,</HI> and <HI>Ireland,</HI> in that renow|ned State and Government of <HI>Old-England,</HI> to be ruled and ordered, according to tho&s;e honourable Laws and Cu&s;toms, in them&s;elves and their Succe&s;&s;ors for eve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, which is performed and done, <HI>in that &s;olemn, durable, and commendable cu&s;tome of Record, under divers and &s;everall han<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> and &s;eals, witne&s;&s;ed &s;ufficiently, both by the Natives and Engli&s;h, &s;olemnly delive|red and received on His Maje&s;ties behalfe&punc; holding corre&s;ponden|cie with the Laws and Cu&s;toms of th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> honourable State of</HI> Old-England <HI>in all points:</HI> We thought good therefore to give notice hereof, at your generall Court now a&s;&s;embled, that it may &s;erve to informe your &s;elves, and all your united Colonies, of the performance of this Act done, without any further pains or trouble, that &s;o not our &s;elves only, that are eye and ear wit|ne&s;&s;es hereof (but you al&s;o) may follow our occa&s;ions and im|ployments, without any extraordinar&punc; care, or feare of the people above-&s;aid, to offer to make a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">y in-road, or give any a&s;&s;ault upon us: <HI>But with that indigni<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">y offered and done unto</HI>
<PB N="88" REF="53">
<HI>their Soveraign, which cannot be borne, nor put up, without a &s;harpe and Princely revenge;</HI> nor may we upon the like pe|nalty, offer to di&s;turbe them in their bounds and territories, in their ordinary and accu&s;tomed imployments among them|&s;elves, or with any of their neighbouring Natives, <HI>who&s;e grounds of proceed cau&s;es and occa&s;ions are better known unto them&s;elves, then we can be able to judge of.</HI> But if either you or we find any thing among&s;t them too grievous to be borne; they not making any violent a&s;&s;ault upon us&punc; we know whi|ther, and to whom we are to repaire, and have recour&s;e for re|dre&s;&s;e, <HI>as we tender our allegeance and &s;ubjection unto our King and State,</HI> unto which they are become fellow &s;ubjects with our &s;elves; and therefore of nece&s;&s;ity his Maje&s;ties Princely care mu&s;t reach unto them. Furthermore, that it may appeare, that our dealings towards you, and all men, have been, and &s;hall prove ju&s;t, and true, <HI>whatever your dealings may, or have manife&s;ted them&s;elves to be towards us:</HI> Know therefore, that being abroad of late about our occa&s;ions, we fell to be where one of the <HI>Sachims</HI> of that great people of the <HI>Maukquogges was, with &s;ome of his men,</HI> whom we perceive are the mo&s;t fierce and warlike people in the countrey, or continent where we are, furni&s;hed with 3700. guns, men expert in the u&s;e of them, plenty of powder and &s;hot, with furniture for their bo|dies in time of warre, for their &s;afety, which other Natives have not; we under&s;tand that of late they have &s;lain a hundred French, with many Indians, which were in league with the French, putting many of them to cruell tortures, and have but lo&s;t two of their own men; the&s;e being as we under&s;tand deeply affected with the <HI>Nanhygan&s;ets&punc;</HI> in the lo&s;&s;e of their late <HI>Sachim,</HI> unju&s;t detaining al&s;o of &s;o great a ran&s;ome, gi|ven and received for his life&punc; and el&s;e, are re&s;olved (that if any people offer to a&s;&s;ault them in their accu&s;tomed cour&s;es a|mong&s;t the Natives, or &s;eeking after their ancient rights and priviledges, not offering wrong to any of His Maje&s;ties &s;ub|jects, nor violating their &s;ubjection to that <HI>Noble State,</HI> which they &s;eem to re&s;pect, and much to adore) to wage warre with them unto the uttermo&s;t, which it &s;eems is the very &s;pirit of
<PB N="89" REF="53">
that people to be exerci&s;ed that way, which as we de&s;ire to make u&s;e of it our &s;elves, &s;o doe we hereby give no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ice to you al&s;o, to make the be&s;t u&s;e of it unto your &s;elves in all your Co|lonies united.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><DATE>June the <HI>20^t^h,</HI> 1644.</DATE></DATELINE>
By <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> the true and lawfull owners of <HI>Shaw-omet.</HI>
<SIGNED>John Warner <HI>Secret.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>The&s;e things being done, we re&s;idin<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> upon <HI>Aquethneck&punc;</HI> alias, <HI>Road-Iland,</HI> hiring hou&s;es and grounds to plan<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> upon, for the pre&s;ervation of our Families: The Governour of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets</HI> perceiving that we &s;till aboad among the Eng|li&s;h, and were not gone to the Dutch as others formerly did, he then writ a Letter privately to &s;ome in the Iland, <HI>whom he thought they had intere&s;t in,</HI> being he continued a Member of their Church, however removed from them, telling him, that if he and others (who were in like relation unto them) <HI>could worke the people of the Iland to deliver <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">p into their hands again (at lea&s;t &s;ome of us) it would not only be acceptable unto the Court then &s;itting, but unto mo&s;t of the people in generall;</HI> the people of the Iland having notice of this Letter, <HI>did alto|gether di&s;like and dete&s;t any &s;uch cour&s;e to be held with us,</HI> knowing very well what they had already done, and how cau&s;ele&s;ly; So that we abode &s;till upon <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">he Iland, and follow|ed our imployments, untill &s;uch time as there appeared a|mong&s;t us a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">harter of civill government, granted by the State of <HI>Old England,</HI> for the orderly&punc; quiet, and peaceable go|vernment of the people inhabiting in tho&s;e parts of the coun|trey, <HI>called Providence Plantations, in the Nanhygan&s;et Bay,</HI> which Charter being joyfully imbraced&punc; and with all expedi|tion, an orderly and joynt cour&s;e was h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">d for the inve&s;ting of the people into the power and liberties thereof unanimou&s;ly, for the exerci&s;e of the authority, in the execution of Lawes, for the good and quiet of the people, which thing gave great incouragement unto the Planters, to goe on in their imploy|ments, hoping to enjoy their lawfull <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ghts and priviledges without di&s;turbance, which the <HI>Ma&s;&s;ac<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">u&s;ets,</HI> together with
<PB N="90" REF="54">
<HI>Plymouth</HI> under&s;tanding, they go about by all means to di&s;|courage the people, by their endeavouring to weaken, and in|valid the authority of the Charter, in the eyes of the coun|trey, intrenching upon tho&s;e places, to fru&s;trate and make void the Charter, as by maintaining their <HI>Co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">djutors,</HI> as afore&s;aid in oppo&s;ing of us, giving them order to &s;et up writs upon our hou&s;es, where formerly we lived, prohibiting all men for en|termedling with tho&s;e Hou&s;es, Lands, Peoples, either <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> or <HI>Indians</HI> (which they call their own people) without their con&s;ent and approbation in tho&s;e parts, which all plainly fall within the confines of the fore-named Charter, and far out of all their juri&s;dictions.</P>
<Q><TEXT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="warrant">
<HEAD>Here followeth a true Copie of a Warrant &s;et upon our hou|&s;es at <HI>Shaw-omet</HI> verbatim, being extant, which was done after the Charter appeared among&s;t us.</HEAD>
<P>WHereas we under&s;tand that &s;ome of our countrey men about <HI>Providence,</HI> or tho&s;e parts, doe intend to &s;it down upon our Lands at <HI>Show-omet,</HI> or tho&s;e parts: This is therefore to give notice to any &s;uch, that they forbear, without licen&s;e from us, to attempt the &s;ame, or to meddle with any of our people there, either <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> or <HI>Indians;</HI> for let them be a&s;&s;u|red, that we re&s;olve to maintain our ju&s;t rights.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Given at the Court at <HI>Bo&s;ton,</HI> <DATE>the <HI>16th.</HI> of the <HI>8th.</HI> M^o, Ann. 1644.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>By me <HI>Increa&s;e Nowell,</HI> Secret.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT></Q>
<P>After this they cea&s;ed not to &s;end out their Warrants among&s;t us, after the Charter was e&s;tabli&s;hed among&s;t us, &s;ending di|vers, and &s;erving them upon the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> expre&s;ly commanding their appearance at their Courts in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;a|chu&s;ets&punc;</HI></P>
<LETTER>
<PB N="91" REF="54">
<HEAD>A Copie of one of their Warrants to the men of <HI>Providence</HI> here followeth<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> word for word, and is extant under their hand.</HEAD>
<OPENER><HI>To the Executors of</HI> Franci<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> We&s;ton.</OPENER>
<P>YOu are required to take notice of an Attachment again&s;t the Lands of <HI>Francis We&s;ton,</HI> &s;o as to bind you to be re|&s;pon&s;all, at the next Court at <HI>Be&s;ton,</HI> to an&s;wer the complaint<NOTE PLACE="marg">One of their now coyned &s;ubjects among&s;t us.</NOTE> of <HI>William Arnald,</HI> * for withholding a debt of thirty &s;hil|lings due to him, and hereof not to faile at your perill.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Dated <DATE>the 5. (4) 1645.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Per cur. <HI>William Aspinwall.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>And as they thus goe beyond their bounds, not only to in|trench upon the liberties and labours of their countrey men, (<HI>but al&s;o upon that authority transferred upon that people by the State of Old-England, for the quiet and peaceable ordering and government of them&s;elves</HI>) not only in <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">rovidence</HI> and <HI>Shaw|omet,</HI> but like wi&s;e upon <HI>Road-Iland,</HI> both in <HI>Port&s;mouth,</HI> and <HI>Newport,</HI> &s;pecified in the Charter; the Colonie of <HI>Plimouth</HI> joyned in league with the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> to &s;uch ends and pur|po&s;es, &s;ent their Me&s;&s;engers to <HI>Road-Iland, as namely, one Ma|&s;ter</HI> John Brown, <HI>an A&s;&s;i&s;tant in government among&s;t them there,</HI> who went from hou&s;e to hou&s;e (b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">th in <HI>Port&s;mouth</HI> and <HI>Newport</HI>) di&s;couraging the people for yeelding any obedience unto the authority of the Charter, giving them warning (<HI>as from the Court of</HI> Plimouth) <HI>not to &s;u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">mit unto any govern|ment that was e&s;tabli&s;hed by vertue of a late pretended Charter,</HI> (as he very pre&s;umptuou&s;ly called it) <HI>nor unto any other autho|ritie, or government, but only &s;uch as was allowed and approved of by them,</HI> although formerly they have many times confe&s;&s;ed and acknowledged both by Word and Writing, that it was out of <HI>their Juri&s;dictions&punc;</HI> without which ac|knowledgement, the people would never have adventured to lay out their e&s;tates, and to have planted them&s;elves and fami|lies in tho&s;e parts, <HI>&s;ome of them having too great and co&s;tly experience of</HI> Plimouths <HI>dealings with their countrey men, to be</HI>
<PB N="92" REF="55">
<HI>&s;uch as may be fitly&punc; paraleld with the dealings of the</HI> Ma&s;&s;achu|&s;ets, <HI>and their practi&s;e &s;pringing from the &s;ame &s;pirit, hath brought them into league and band,</HI> when they were clearly ma|nife&s;ted each to other, who before at the time of their fir&s;t Neighbour-hood there, they were at a di&s;tance, and &s;tood aloof, one from the other, <HI>as each thinking I am holier then thou,</HI> the men of <HI>Plimouth,</HI> comming thither from <HI>Am&s;terdam,</HI> and the other out of <HI>hot per&s;ecutions</HI> of the Bi&s;hops in <HI>Old England.</HI></P>
<P>Now that the&s;e men doe not onely intrench cau&s;ele&s;ly upon their countrey-men, but al&s;o upon the poore <HI>Indians,</HI> inhabiting in tho&s;e parts, it is very plaine by their pro|ceedings again&s;t that people of the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et&punc;</HI> who&s;e countrey fals within the confines of the Charter, which people only going about to right them&s;elves upon &s;uch <HI>Indi|ans</HI> as they conceive have mightily wronged them in taking away <HI>the life of their Prince, after &s;o great a ran&s;ome given, and received for his re&s;cue;</HI> this they make their occa&s;ion to go out again&s;t them to cut them off, and &s;o to take their countrey into their own juri&s;diction; whereas the <HI>Indians,</HI> of our know|ledge hold them&s;elves bound, to revenge the blood of their Prince, it being &s;o unlawfully (in their eyes) taken away; nay, they are not quiet in them&s;elves, unle&s;&s;e they doe revenge it, or el&s;e &s;pill their own, in their endeavours thereafter; in the mean time they are in a continued act of mourning, as we know, for the &s;pace of one whole year, and an halfe, they mourned con|tinually, not only by blacking their faces, in token thereof; <HI>but every day their mourning women, morning and evening upon their knees, with lamentations, and many tears along time toge|ther,</HI> as our &s;elves have been eye-witne&s;&s;es, when we have had occa&s;ions among&s;t them, and in hou&s;es that were more publick, where the wife and children of the di&s;ea&s;ed Prince were, <HI>there did a man continue a &s;peech (during the time of the womens praying, &s;ighing and lamenting with abundance of tears</HI>) declaring what their lo&s;&s;e was in being deprived of &s;uch a Sachim, and how wrongfully it was done by the ene|my, as al&s;o how they were all of them ingaged to revenge his blood, <HI>el&s;e would it &s;o lie upon their own heads, as to bring more</HI>
<PB N="93" REF="55">
<HI>mi&s;eries, and evils upon them:</HI> Now for this their proceed|ing again&s;t their adver&s;ary the <HI>Indian,</HI> that thus deprived them of their Sachim, and &s;o wrongfully <HI>(as they conceive) the Ma&s;|&s;achu&s;ets, and Plimouth have offered to goe out again&s;t the people of the</HI> Nanhygan&s;et, <HI>to cut them off by the &s;word,</HI> &s;ending word to <HI>Providence</HI> Plantations, that if they &s;hould &s;tand as Neuters, and not goe out with them in th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> worke, they would make plunder of them: So Captain <HI>Stan<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">i&s;h</HI> &s;ent word in the name of <HI>Plymouth</HI> (now &s;ince we cam<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> out of tho&s;e parts) unto the men of <HI>Providence,</HI> as wee are credibly informed by Letters from divers hands, as al&s;o by word of mouth from per&s;ons of good note, who were in the countrey there pre|&s;ent among&s;t them, when the&s;e things were done, informing us of many pa&s;&s;ages, of the proceedings of the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> and <HI>Plymouth,</HI> both towards the people of <HI>Providence</HI> Plan|tations, as al&s;o the <HI>Indians</HI> of that countrey of the <HI>Nanhygan|&s;ets;</HI> only one Letter that concernes the <HI>I<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">dians,</HI> wee de&s;ire to &s;et down, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o give further intelligence t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the Reader of the&s;e mens dealings, who &s;eemed &s;o meelt, and &s;o mild in their native countrey, <HI>Old&punc; England,</HI> in the time of their aboad there, <HI>as though they could not heave a h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">nd, or wag a tongue again&s;t any thing but a Bi&s;hops Ceremony,</HI> that being onely of|fen&s;ive unto them.</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true copie of a letter &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">nt unto us &s;ince our coming from tho&s;e parts of <HI>America</HI> called <HI>New England.</HI></HEAD>
<P>WE are all in health at this pre&s;ent and chearfull, (the greate&s;t want is your company) <HI>though men generally more invective then ever,</HI> the Bay had provided an Army to go again&s;t the <HI>Nanhygan&s;ets,</HI> had they not been prevented in the very <HI>interim thus,</HI> Captain <HI>Harding</HI> informed the Court of the difficulty of the enterpri&s;e upon which the Court employed him, &amp; Mr. <HI>Wylbour,</HI> to go to <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> and take <HI>Benedick</HI> <NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">One of their afore&s;aid &s;ub|ects or agents dwelling in <HI>Providence.</HI></NOTE> to interpret; when they came to <HI>Benedick</HI> he refu&s;ed to go without a hundred men in arms, onely to po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e them with danger, <HI>to effect his bloody plot,</HI> upon whi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">h Mr. <HI>Williams</HI> being &s;ent for to <HI>Nanhygan&s;et,</HI> and al&s;o my <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ell, to inquire of us, <HI>what</HI>
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<HI>the minds of the&s;e mad people were to kill men for nothing;</HI> upon which I went to <HI>Providence</HI> ^a, thinking to go with Ma&s;ter <HI>Wil|liams,</HI> but, when I came there, he was gon, with the Captai<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &amp; Ma&s;ter <HI>Wylbour,</HI> upon <HI>Benedicks</HI> refu&s;all; I &s;tayed their return, and their agreement was to have <HI>Pe&s;&s;ecus</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Chief Sa|chimof the <HI>Nanhygan&s;et</HI> </NOTE> go into the Bay, and Ma&s;ter <HI>Williams</HI> was nece&s;&s;itated to put him&s;elf Ho&s;tage till his return; this news coming into the Bay did &s;o vex the Mini&s;ters, that Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotton</HI> preached upon it, <HI>that it being &s;o wicked an act to take Ma&s;ter</HI> Williams <HI>with them, being one ca&s;t out of the Church, It was all one as to ask coun&s;ell of a witch, and that tho&s;e that did it, were worthy to die;</HI> upon which Ma&s;ter <HI>Wylbour</HI> was ready to die, for feare he &s;hould be hanged; &s;o then the Indians went down, <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">nd they compelled them to cea&s;e warres with</HI> Unkas <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"> That is, the the Indian who &s;lew their Sachim <HI>My|antonomy,</HI> when he had received a ran&s;om for his life. </NOTE> <HI>and to pay them five hundred pounds for charges of Court, and provi&s;ion for Souldiers</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">The Court called to con&s;ult how to cut them off, and Souldiers they had rai|&s;ed up for that purpo&s;e. </NOTE>, <HI>and to leave foure of the chief Sachims children, till the money be paid, and to leave foure of his chief men till the chil|dren came, and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> promi&s;e them not to &s;ell any land&punc; without their con&s;ent:</HI> <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Thus to get intere&s;t in their land, ei|ther to people it with whom they plea&s;e, or el&s;e to get oc|ca&s;ion to go out again&s;t them again.</NOTE> this being done they came home again, and &s;ent a man <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ell me what was done, telling me that if the Lords in <HI>England</HI> help them not, they are like to &s;uffer at pre|&s;ent, ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;till they &s;ay they are not afraid of them, but onely giv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> them their demands, rather then to war, before the Lords hear of i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, that all may &s;ee they mean no hurt to <HI>Engli&s;h,</HI> but will &s;ubmit to the Lawes of <HI>England,</HI> concluding it is but <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ent&punc; it will come home with advantage both to their wi&s;|dome and profit. <HI>Pe&s;&s;ecus</HI> hath been often with me to de&s;ire me to inform you of the&s;e things with great de&s;ire to &s;ee you again. Thus in ha&s;te I re&s;t.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your ever loving friend J. W.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><DATE><HI>This</HI> 20^t^h <HI>of</HI> November 1645.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
<P>Thus have we given a true report&punc; and made a faithfull re|lation, as briefly as we could, of what pa&s;&s;ages have fallen out betwixt the people of <HI>Providence</HI> plantations, and the re&s;t of our countreymen inhabiting about them, which we have &s;en|&s;ibly fel<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, and our families are now pre&s;&s;ed under, laying it unto
<PB N="95" REF="56">
heart, and &s;eriou&s;ly taking it into con<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">deration, hath not onely occa&s;ioned, but nece&s;&s;itated &s;ome of u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> to be here at this pre&s;ent with the con&s;ent of many others, according to our bou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">den duty, and allegeance, to pre&s;ent the truth hereof to this State.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE><HI>LONDON</HI> <DATE>the 14th of <HI>Ia<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ary</HI> 1645.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="part">
<P>Here cometh a letter to hand, was wri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ten in th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> time of our confinement, &amp; lying in bolts, &amp; irons in the <HI>Ma&s;&s;achu&s;ets,</HI> oc|ca&s;ioned by one of our wives, &s;he hearing doctrine delivered (in that part of the countrey where &s;he was d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">iven with her chil|dren) que&s;tioning the truth of it, writ to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">er hu&s;band to de&s;ire his thoughts of it; i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> was gathered from <HI>Mat.</HI> 24. 29. &amp; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">lluding al&s;o to <HI>Hob.</HI> 12. 26. 27. for the explication of it, the &s;ub&s;tance of the doctrine was, that &s;uch a time of reformation, &amp; re&s;tau|ration of the church of God, here on eart<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc; was coming, the glo|ry vvhereof &s;hould darken the Sun and Moon, &amp; cau&s;e the &s;tars to fall from heaven, that is, &s;aith he, make the Apo&s;tles doctrine &amp; order of the Churches in tho&s;e dayes to appeare as darknes in compari&s;on of that light vvhich &s;hould now appeare, &s;hew|ing al&s;o, that the mini&s;tery of the Apo&s;tles vvas that vvhich might &amp; &s;hould be removed, that a more excellent glory might be brought in, and remain, concluding that the mini&s;tery of the Apo&s;tles, was but a mini&s;tery of witne&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, but one &s;hould here|after appeare having the pre&s;ence and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ality of that which they but onely witne&s;&s;ed, and gave te&s;timony unto.</P>
<LETTER>
<HEAD>Here followeth a true copy of the an&s;wer given unto the things propounded as above, in way of &s;atisfaction, how we are to think of &s;uch kind of doctrine, which the world is &s;o taken up with, and &s;ee<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s to stand in &s;uch ex|pectation and hopes of.</HEAD>
<P>COncerning that point you wri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> fr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">m <HI>Mat.</HI> the 24 29. as al&s;o <HI>Heb.</HI> the 12. 26&punc; 27. N<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">, <HI>that the Apo&s;tles mini&s;tery, was a mini&s;tery of witne&s;&s;e,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">dily grant; <HI>but</HI>
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<HI>that it was no more then a mini&s;tery of witne&s;&s;e, we utterly de|ny,</HI> for it had not onely <HI>witne&s;&s;e, but judgement al&s;o of condem|nation and ab&s;olution in it,</HI> therefore the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>God &s;hall judge you according to my Go&s;pel;</HI> for the Apo&s;tles are not, but through the Spirit of the Sonne, <HI>who is that faith|full and true witne&s;&s;e,</HI> yea, <HI>and the judge of all, al&s;o;</HI> and higher then his mini&s;tration <HI>(who comes out of the bo&s;ome of the Fa|ther) we look nor nor ever de&s;ire to go,</HI> Therefore we onely con|fe&s;&s;e him, <HI>who is, and who was, and who is to come,</HI> and there|fore reject &s;uch a Go&s;pell as profe&s;&s;eth <HI>&s;uch per&s;ons, times, and mini&s;trations pa&s;t,</HI> as never &s;hall come again, and <HI>&s;uch per&s;ons, times and mini&s;trations to come as yet never were,</HI> as a cunning device and &s;leight of Sathan to beguile the &s;oules of men, <HI>either to &s;tand in expectation of things to come&punc; or el&s;e in admiration of things pa&s;t,</HI> whiles in the mean time they are kept void of faith, <HI>which gives being unto the things, yea even at the pre&s;ent time;</HI> otherwi&s;e it is but to know per&s;ons and things after the fle&s;h, <HI>but henceforth know we no man after the fle&s;h, no though we have known Christ Ie&s;us after the fle&s;h, yet henceforth know we him no more.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And for the Sun being darkened,</HI> to be the mini&s;tery of the Apo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tles becoming dark in re&s;pect of a greater light appear|ing, <HI>we may in no ca&s;e allow;</HI> for the Sunne there &s;poken of, is <HI>that Sunne of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> a greater then which &s;hall never appear, <HI>but when the cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t</HI> (&s;poken of in that Chap|ter) is evidently &s;et forth, and declared to be that which in|deed it is; <HI>then is that &s;unne of Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, that is light in it &s;elf, turned into darkne&s;&s;e, in all the men of the world,</HI> even as the Saints, <HI>which are darkne&s;&s;e in them&s;elves, become light in the Lord;</HI> for as the wicked <HI>turn the truth of God into a lie,</HI> which is truth in it &s;elf, and ever will be, &s;o they transform <HI>the light of the Lord into darkne&s;&s;e, which in it &s;elf is light and can never be darkne&s;&s;e:</HI> the Moon al&s;o, who&s;e time is to appeare, and her place <HI>to have dominion in the night,</HI> &s;hall not give her light&punc; &s;he &s;hall fail in her office to &s;hine, waxe, waine, and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o &s;et bounds to times and &s;ea&s;ons, that is, <HI>the wicked &s;hall &s;ee them&s;elves deprived of all hope to attain to a change,</HI>
<PB N="97" REF="57">
<HI>time or &s;ea&s;on, which &s;hall alter their wofull condition, or re|move the wrath of the Lord from them,</HI> yea in their looking back to the changes of their life before, wherein they have thought them&s;elves &s;o well exerci&s;ed&punc; <HI>the Moon in that re&s;pect &s;hall be turned into blood</HI> (as <HI>Ioel</HI> &s;peaks in the &s;ame ca&s;e) all times &s;hall affor<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> them no hing el&s;e but to &s;ee how they have been practi&s;ing <HI>the &s;hedding of that innocent blood, even from the blood of Abe&punc;, whom his brother &s;lew <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">n the field,</HI> where they were exerci&s;ed in ordinary imployments, in the things of this life, <HI>unto the blood of</HI> Zacharias <HI>&s;laine (between) or in the middle of the temple and the altar, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">en in the very height of their wor&s;hip and ordinances, &s;o much &s;tood for at this day.</HI> No|thing but &s;uch manner of light, or &s;uch a time or &s;ea&s;on (&s;hall that light of heaven) the times and changes which they have pa&s;&s;ed through afford unto them&punc; <HI>ye<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the &s;tarres &s;hall fall from heaven,</HI> even cea&s;e to afford their various glories and lights, yea <HI>that day starre &s;hall never give notice of that day &s;pringing from on high to vi&s;it them, or the ri&s;e of that Sunne of righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e, with healing under his wings,</HI> nor &s;hall their &s;everall o|perations, and vertues yield any refre&s;hment unto the&s;e terrene &amp; &s;ublunary things, that is, all tho&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">everall glories, and vari|ous vertues and operations that are in <HI>that bright morning &s;tar the Lord Ie&s;us, and in tho&s;e &s;even &s;ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">rres which he holds in his right hand,</HI> they &s;hall all fall off, and lo&s;e th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ir lu&s;tre, light, and influence, in and towards <HI>the earthly &s;onnes of Adam,</HI> as though they had never been; for as <HI>t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e rejoycing of the lamp of the righteous is a putting out and ce&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">tion of all &s;inne and &s;or|row,</HI> even &s;o <HI>the putting out of the candle of the wicked, is a ce&s;&s;a|tion, and utter de<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">oli&s;hing of all the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ertues and excellencies of Chri&s;t unto them, as though they were not at all,</HI> nay more then &s;o, <HI>for as the &s;inne and mi&s;eries which non are by nature &s;ubject unto, are made througe the wi&s;dome of God, a meanes whereby we &s;ee the height and depth, yea all the dimen&s;ions of the love of God do appear unto us,</HI> &s;o are the excellencies that are in Je&s;us Chri&s;t, made (through the wi&s;dom of that &s;erpent) <HI>means of torture &amp; torment to the wicked for <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ver,</HI> even as the excellen|cies of the&s;e vi&s;ible heaven<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>would be a greater torture to man to</HI>
<PB N="98" REF="58">
<HI>lo&s;e them then if he had never &s;een or enjoyed them;</HI> and thence it is, <HI>that the powers of heaven are &s;haken</HI> or the dominions of heaven; for every thing in the heavens hath its <HI>Lord&s;hip,</HI> the Sunne <HI>hath dominion of the day,</HI> the Moone and the &s;tarres; <HI>the dominion of the night;</HI> the Su<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ne hath <HI>Lord&s;hip</HI> in &s;hining, when the Moon hides her face; but not in &s;etting bounds to times and &s;ea&s;ons; for the Moon hath <HI>Lord&s;hip in that,</HI> but not in affording vertue and influence <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o herbs &amp; plants, for <HI>the stars have power and dominion in that,</HI> yea every <HI>&s;tarre hath its particular pow|er and vertue,</HI> yet can they not water the earth. The clouds <HI>have their dominion in that,</HI> yet cannot they &s;erve man to breathe in; <HI>the aire bath dominion in that;</HI> &s;o it is <HI>in the heavenly powers of our Lord Chri&s;t,</HI> what&s;oever is in him <HI>hath its dominion,</HI> &s;o as all the re&s;t have not their glorie without it, &s;o that what&s;oe|ver is declared in the Kingdome of heaven <HI>it is the fir&s;t and the chief, and all the re&s;t do &s;erve to make up all its power or chief<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ie,</HI> &s;o <HI>as all the Elders ca&s;t down their crownes before <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t;</HI> all the excellencies that are in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, <HI>as love, wi&s;dom, righteou&s;nes, holines power &amp; glory,</HI> all things in him <HI>have do|minion and power,</HI> &amp; all the&s;e heavenly powers what&s;oever <HI>are &s;haken,</HI> that is removed out of their places, not to appeare in them any more, for <HI>the place wherein God declared his image at the first, in the beginning was man;</HI> but when the cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t is truly declared, then are all the&s;e <HI>heavenly powers &s;ha|ken out of man,</HI> yea, <HI>removed out of that proper place given un|to them in the beginning;</HI> therfore it is &s;aid, <HI>immediately after the&s;e tribulations,</HI> or immediately with the&s;e tribulations, (as the word wil al&s;o beare) that is, <HI>the preaching of the cro&s;&s;e and th&s;e things are in&s;eparable;</HI> no marvell therefore, that when e|ver the cro&s;&s;e is preached, <HI>the champions of that man of &s;inne come out again&s;t it, &s;triving to retain their god;</HI> for <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">s it would be to nature in things of this life to &s;ee all <HI>chief powers and hea|venly bodies &s;o &s;haken, as to remove them out of their place for ever;</HI> the very thoughts whereof are di&s;mal to the mind of man; &s;o, &amp; infinitely more is it to the &s;oul of a man to have <HI>the excel|lencies &amp; noble powers and dominions of God removed out of his heart where he placed them in the act of his fir&s;t creation, are</HI> &s;o
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that the exellencies of Chri&s;t, <HI>are ever &s;haking and ever removing out of their place in the wicked,</HI> that the heig<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> of their torment may ever appear and remain: for the&s;e things are &s;haken and removed in them, through the wi&s;dom of the Serpent, <HI>that tho&s;e things that cannot be &s;haken,</HI> namely, <HI>the wrath and ven|geance of God may remain;</HI> even &s;o it is in the godly, their &s;ins and mi&s;eries <HI>are ever &s;haking and removing out of their proper place, that tho&s;e things that cannot be &s;haken,</HI> namely, <HI>the grace and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t may rema<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> for ever;</HI> therefore the voice o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> the Go&s;pel <HI>&s;hakes both heave<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> and earth,</HI> in that place alluded unto in your letter <HI>Hebr.</HI> 12&punc; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">6. 27. alluding both <HI>to Mount Sinai, and Mount Sion,</HI> &s;o th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> the word <HI>yet once more</HI> declares a double removall, yea, <HI>and that of things that are made;</HI> for <HI>man was made in the image of God,</HI> yet the wi&s;dome of the Serpent removed this image, that mans righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e which is nothing <HI>but abomination in the &s;ight of God, might e|ver remain,</HI> So al&s;o <HI>Christ was made &s;in,</HI> but the wi&s;dome of God <HI>removed this &s;in in the very act of his being made &s;o</HI> that the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God <HI>might remain and abide for ever;</HI> and then, and then onely <HI>&s;hall or doth appear the &s;igne, or the mira|cle or wonder of the &s;onne of man in h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">aven, in tho&s;e clouds of, witne&s;&s;e&punc; or in that cloud of witne&s;&s;es with power and great glory&punc; &s;o as all earthly kindreds &s;hall mourn and wail before him, Even &s;o</HI> Ame<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">&punc; Now the &s;igne or wonder of the Son of man is this, that God made him a wo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ld of life at the f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">&s;t, <HI>for he breathed into his face, the breath of lifes,</HI> (as the word i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">) <HI>for the life of all the world was in him;</HI> and yet thi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> world of life is become nothing el&s;e but a world of death in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">e wicked, <HI>and no life of God found in them at all;</HI> &s;o is that &s;on of man in the &s;econd <HI>Adam made a world of &s;inne and death,</HI> and yet this world of &s;inne and death is become <HI>a world of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and life unto the godly, and no &s;in nor unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of man found in them, for never was guile <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ound in his <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">outh, Even &s;o. Amen,</HI> and this is the &s;igne or miracle of the Son of man, which the world knowes not of, and therefore <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">th &s;o many empty con|j<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ctures what it may be thought to be, g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">g up into Heaven
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after it: when as it is come down unto us, and they know it not. <HI>Rom</HI> 10. 7. 8.</P>
<P>Thus have I given you my thoughts as brief as I could con|cerning what you propounded unto me, and ble&s;&s;e the Lord that you mini&s;tred occa&s;ion to look into the text. <HI>However we are &s;et apart as a forlorn people in the eyes of, &amp; by the world,</HI> yet doubt I not, but our God hath &s;ingled us out for other ends and u&s;es, <HI>who hath put us into the I&s;le of</HI> P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">mos, <HI>or among the nati|on of the dead, or deadly,</HI> (as the word &s;ignifies) <HI>to reveal un|to us the great mysteries of his Kingdome, that we may declare unto tho&s;e that now be h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">re, how to have their hope in God, &amp; that it may be told unto our childrens children that noble work that he hath wrought for us in our Lord Chri&s;t, who is over all, God ble&s;&s;ed for ever</HI></P>
<CLOSER>Amen.</CLOSER>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your loving hu&s;band in bonds, and yet free, Samuel Gorton.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</LETTER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="postscript">
<PB N="101" REF="59">
<HEAD>A Post &s;cript.</HEAD>
<P>DIvers Letters were written to friends in an&s;wer to que&s;tions, and re&s;olution of Scripture<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, which now are not at hand; otherwi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">e we are very free to pub|li&s;h them to be &s;een of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">l, that the wi&s;e hearted might iudge of what our &s;pirits and practi&s;es relli&s;h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">d, and how they were imployed in the time of our durance among&s;t the&s;e men, that were &s;o eagerly minded to make us bla&s;phe|mers, that &s;o they might take away our lives, as a part of the glory, and beautification of their Religion.</P>
<P>Only we de&s;ire the Readers p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ins to take a view of one other Letter, in an&s;wer to a friend, who &s;eemed to be troubled about that Scripture, in <HI>Iohn 6. 53. ver&s;e,</HI> what the meaning of it might be, de&s;iring re&s;olution thereit, &s;ince we arived in <HI>Eng|land.</HI></P>
<P>The words are the&s;e.</P>
<Q>Then Ie&s;us &s;aid unto them, verily, verily, I &s;ay unto you, ex|cept ye eat the fle&s;h of the &s;onne of man, and drinke his blood, ye have no life in you.</Q>
<P>IN the&s;e words con&s;ider, fir&s;t the occa&s;ion of them. Se|condly, the &s;umme of them, and thirdly the parts.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t for the &s;umme, it is a divine &s;entence exclu&s;ive, of all men, from the life and &s;pirit of God, &s;ave only &s;uch <HI>as doe eat the fle&s;h of the &s;onne of man, and drinke his blood.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, the parts of them for order &s;ake are foure. Fir&s;t the occa&s;ion of this &s;entence, in the&s;e words, <HI>then Je&s;us &s;aid unto them;</HI> &s;econdly, the confirmation of this &s;entence, laid down in the&s;e words, <HI>verily, verily;</HI> thirdly, the manner of the &s;entence, contained in the&s;e words, <HI>I &s;ay unto you,</HI> fourth|ly,
<PB N="102" REF="60">
the &s;entence it &s;elfe, excluding all from the life of God, &s;uch only excepted <HI>as doe eat the fle&s;h of the &s;onne of man, and drinke his blood.</HI></P>
<P>For the fir&s;t, which is the occa&s;ion of this divine &s;entence; that is, the rea&s;onings within them&s;elves, which the Jewes had in the operations of their naturall hearts, upon the delive|ring of this manner of doctrine unto them, <HI>even by the &s;onne of God him&s;elfe,</HI> implyed in this word (<HI>Then</HI>) looking back upon the ver&s;e immediatly going before, from which Chri&s;t takes occa&s;ion to utter this &s;entence; whence we ob&s;erve, <HI>That the word of God takes occa&s;ion, to utter and make it &s;elfe manife&s;t, even from the naturall rea&s;onings, and argumentati|ons framed in mens minds;</HI> though they are not the cau&s;e, yet they are the occa&s;ion of the manife&s;tation of it, even <HI>as the truth, righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, power, and authority that is in God,</HI> breed|eth occa&s;ionally, <HI>feare, terrour, jealou&s;ie, and wrath, in mens hearts and minds,</HI> though the&s;e excellencies that are in God, are no proper cau&s;e hereof, but onely an occa&s;ion, without which they would not be; For <HI>if there were no Iudge, the Ma|lefactor would not have terrour;</HI> even &s;o, the very naturall rea|&s;onings of mens hearts, are the occa&s;ions of the manife&s;tation of the word of God in us, but no proper cau&s;e of it, for the cau&s;e is only in God him&s;elfe; but without &s;uch rea&s;onings, and <HI>Characteri&s;ticall impre&s;&s;ions in mans mind,</HI> the word of God could never have been <HI>implanted, written, or tran&s;lated in us whereby we come to have the argumentations, and conclu&s;i|ons of &s;onnes of God, and not &s;imply, or meerly of creatures in our minds,</HI> being once inlightned by him <HI>who is God, and the Father of lights, where ever it appeareth:</HI> So that the &s;oule of man is of farre greater &s;ublimitie, and naturall excellencie in its creation, then any other creature under heaven ever had vouch&s;afed unto it; <HI>So that there is an utter impo&s;&s;ibility that any creature &s;hould receive the impre&s;&s;ions of God, but man a|lone.</HI></P>
<P>This is a large field to walk in, for according to the variety of the rea&s;onings of the mind of man by nature, which is &s;et forth in all tho&s;e wayes, wherein men have walked, and ma|nife&s;ted
<PB N="103" REF="60">
them&s;elves in this pre&s;ent world, <HI>&s;uch it that won|derfull Epi&s;tle of Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, in the various writing and ex|pre&s;&s;ion of it in the &s;ouls, hearts, and lives of the Saints that are in light through Ie&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> in&s;tance in one for all, the &s;pi|rit of a naturall father rea&s;ons thus, <HI>if my child ask bread</HI> (to &s;upply nature in the &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of hunger) <HI>I cannot put a &s;tone into his mouth, (that were cruelty)</HI> but bread; if &s;o be that I have it or can procure it; <HI>if the child ack fi&s;h,</HI> the father cannot put <HI>a &s;erpent into his bo&s;ome</HI> to bide and &s;ting him, but &s;ome|what to cure and refre&s;h him, if he have it. Now do but change this argument into the way of Chri&s;t, <HI>and let God be the father, and my &s;elf the child,</HI> and then is God, not man, the father; the bread heavenly and not from the earth; the wri|ting, rea&s;oning or argument, divine and eternall, not humane and temporary; and &s;o the rea&s;nings and dictates of our &s;pi|rits are tran&s;lated into <HI>the arguments and dictates of the Spirit of God,</HI> and the arguments and dictates of the Spirit of God are tran&s;lated <HI>into a mind and &s;pirit that &s;peaks the very &s;ame things naturally in it &s;elf,</HI> though onely in a way of death, through its naturall ignorance, <HI>that now it &s;peaketh in that way of life, through that light and knowledge that is in the Lord;</HI> and thus, <HI>Chri&s;t by &s;inne condemnes &s;in in the fle&s;h:</HI> for by tho&s;e rea|&s;onings wherewith we ju&s;tifie our &s;elves naturally, <HI>through that ignorance that naturally is in us,</HI> by the very &s;ame argu|ments and rea&s;onings we condemn our &s;elves, and ju&s;tifie the Lord, <HI>through that light and knowledge we have in him by Ie&s;us Chri&s;t.</HI></P>
<P>2 The &s;econd thing to be ob&s;erved, is the certainty of this &s;entence laid down in the form o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> an oath, <HI>verily, verily,</HI> that is, <HI>&s;o it is</HI> or <HI>&s;o it &s;hall be,</HI> as if he &s;hould &s;ay <HI>Amen, A|men,</HI> &s;o it is and &s;o it &s;hall be <HI>without alteration or change,</HI> and in that the word is doubled, it is for the certainty of the thing, <HI>as Io&s;eph &s;aid of Pharaohs dreame,</HI> and of no le&s;&s;e cer|tainty is all true expo&s;ition and interpretation of holy Scrip|ture, whatever men may dream as <HI>Pharaoh did and knew not the meaning of it,</HI> and &s;peak at uncertainties&punc; not being re&s;ol|ved whether things may come to pa&s;&s;e now or then, or fall out
<PB N="104" REF="61">
to be thus, or &s;o in the things of God; for the &s;ame &s;pirit of truth and certainty, that gives the Prophe&s;ie, Proverbe, Para|ble, and advi&s;e, that records the Hi&s;tory, or gives &s;entence di|vine, mu&s;t al&s;o interpret, expound, and declare the meaning thereof; el&s;e is the Booke &s;hut and &s;ealed up unto us; great fol|ly therefore to conclude of certaintie of Scripture, and of no infallibility in the interpretation thereof; For no more then we know the truth of an interpretation, no more doe we know the truth and certainty of any Hi&s;tory, Prophe&s;ie, Proverbe, or Parable, which is propounded unto us, but take things up|on repo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">t, as we doe other Chronologies of this world, <HI>having only the traditions of men for the ground of our wor&s;hip of God.</HI></P>
<P>The third thing, is the manner of pronunciation of the &s;en|tence, <HI>I &s;ay unto you,</HI> or as the word is, <HI>I &s;ay (in) you;</HI> the word u&s;ed here, tran&s;lated <HI>(I &s;ay)</HI> &s;ignifies &s;uch a &s;aying <HI>as a Iudge &s;peaks upon the Bench, when he gives &s;entence in a cau&s;e, upon due proofe and evidence, which &s;tands fa&s;t in Law, being irrevocable;</HI> &s;uch is the &s;aying and &s;peech of Chri&s;t, <HI>the truth whereof can never be altered;</HI> and whereas he &s;aith, <HI>I &s;ay unto you,</HI> or as the word is, <HI>I &s;ay (in) you,</HI> it &s;ignifies that what ever the Saints utter in point of Religion, it is, and mu&s;t be, the voice of the Sonne of God, and not of them&s;elves; &s;o that as he &s;uffereth in them, el&s;e can hee have no death at all, and then no Saviour; even &s;o he &s;peaks in them, or el&s;e hath no voice, nor language at all; and there|fore without them, no Revealer of the will of his Father; for where Chri&s;t is &s;ilent, there can be no Revelation&punc; there|fore is he the word, or expre&s;&s;ion of the Father; and what he &s;aith of him, he &s;aith it in them: therefore he &s;aith, <HI>I &s;ay in you,</HI> as in that very Epi&s;tle, or writing, <HI>wherein I expre&s;&s;e my &s;elfe in the Father unto the world, for my Father and I are one.</HI></P>
<P>The fourth thing to be ob&s;erved, is the &s;entence it &s;elfe, ex|cluding all from the life of God, &s;uch only excepted <HI>at doe eat the fle&s;h of the &s;onne of man, and drinke his blood;</HI> wherein ob&s;erve five things briefly, fir&s;t why he is called <HI>the Sonne</HI> o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">
<PB N="105" REF="61">
<HI>man,</HI> <MILESTONE N="2"> &s;econdly, what is meant <HI>by his fle&s;h and blood</HI> in this place; <MILESTONE N="3"> thirdly, what we are to under&s;tand by <HI>eating and drinking;</HI> <MILESTONE N="4"> fourthly, what is meant <HI>by life</HI> in this place; and <MILESTONE N="5"> fifthly how we are to under&s;tand, that exception or limitation, &s;eeing <HI>That of our &s;elves we are n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> able to thinke a good thought,</HI> how can we then performe &s;uch a weighty worthy, and unknown action, that is no le&s;&s;e <HI>then life it &s;elfe,</HI> in the do|ing of it.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1"><HI>For the fir&s;t,</HI> viz. why he is called the Sonne of man?</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> Not only, nor properly, becau&s;e <HI>he had a &s;oule and a body as all men have,</HI> which indeed was good in the creation, and &s;o <HI>man is called the &s;onne of God:</HI> But he is called <HI>the &s;on of man,</HI> becau&s;e he is &s;o produced and brought forth, as none can be, but &s;uch as proceed of man alone: Nor can he be a <HI>Saviour,</HI> but in way of &s;uch production and &s;on-&s;hip, for Chri&s;t in re&s;pect of his death (<HI>with<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">ut which no Saviour</HI>) is brought forth and produced no other way, <HI>but only in, and by man;</HI> for there is no death to be heard of in God, nor can he bring forth or produce of him&s;elfe, any thing that is deadly, for <HI>he is that Fountaine of life; yea, life it &s;elfe, in the ab&s;tract;</HI> nor can it be proper, or competible <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">o the Sonne of God, to be brought forth in his death, in any, No, nor in all other creatures in the world, but only in man; for as no other crea|ture in the creation was made in the Image of God, but man alone, &s;o no other creature in regard of degeneration, can beare the Image of death and hell b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters"> man alone: Therefore it is that Chri&s;t is &s;aid, <HI>to de&s;cend into the lower-mo&s;t parts of the earth for our redemption, or in our redemption, which is wrought in us, or in our nature only;</HI> Therefore he &s;aith, <HI>thou wilt not leave my &s;oule in hell, neither wilt thou &s;uffer thine holy one to &s;ee corruption;</HI> therefore of nece&s;&s;itie mu&s;t he be brought forth, in re&s;pect of his death by man alone.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2"> The &s;econd thing to be ob&s;erved, i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, What is meant by  <HI>fle&s;h and blood?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> By fle&s;h in Scripture, &s;ometimes is meant, that which our Lord, or any of his were never nouri&s;hed, nor in the lea&s;t refre&s;hed by, and that is the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">me of fle&s;h, which is
<PB N="106" REF="62">
a cur&s;e to all them that &s;trengthen them&s;elvs by it in the things of God; for in that &s;en&s;e, <HI>&s;hall fle&s;h and blood never inherit the Kingdome of God;</HI> nay adde further, in that &s;ence it is true, <HI>That if you live after the fle&s;h, it is death,</HI> which is to live accor|ding to the wi&s;dome, skill, &s;trength, &s;tudy, and fore-ca&s;t, a|bout the things of God, that a creature (meerly as he is a crea|ture) is able to produce and bring forth, which is to live ac|cording to the wealth, power, and honour of the creature; who&s;e goodline&s;&s;e is as the flower of gra&s;&s;e that withereth, con|&s;umeth, and is brought to nought; for the be&s;t thing that is in it (which is his wi&s;dom) <HI>is emnitie with God, for it is not &s;ubject to the Law of God, neither indeed can be.</HI> But &s;econd|ly, we are to under&s;tand by fle&s;h, that weakne&s;&s;e, frailty, and imbecillity of man, when he is deprived, and laid wa&s;te in him&s;elfe, of all created glory, which is only then; <HI>when the &s;pirit of the Lord blowes, or breathes upon him;</HI> and &s;o becoms nothing in him&s;elfe but weakne&s;&s;e and infirmity: And in this &s;en&s;e the Prophet &s;aith; <HI>Now the Aegyptians are men, and not God, their Hor&s;es fle&s;h, and not &s;pirit:</HI> So &s;aith the P&s;al|mi&s;t in the &s;ame &s;ence, <HI>my fle&s;h al&s;o re&s;teth in hope,</HI> that is my weakne&s;&s;e, and <HI>tired out condition, hath re&s;t,</HI> and &s;trength in an other, though not in my &s;elfe; <HI>for hope that is &s;een is no hope,</HI> &s;o that my nature affords no &s;uch thing, but only that nature to which I am <HI>united:</HI> And in an other place, <HI>Thou art a God that heareth prayers, and unto thee &s;hall all fle&s;h come,</HI> that is&punc; thou art &s;trength, and able to &s;upply abundantly in all things, for thou art God, and we bring nothing but weakne&s;&s;e and in|firmitie unto thee, <HI>for unto thee nothing but fle&s;h comes;</HI> and &s;o the Sonne of God is truly &s;aid, <HI>to be made fle&s;h,</HI> that is weak and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">rayle, in regard of our nature which he tooke, or (as a conti|nued act) takes upon him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>Againe, by blood is here meant <HI>the life, spirit, and power of the Sonne of God,</HI> as he de&s;cends from the Father, even as the vigour, life and &s;pirit of the creature runs in the blood, in the heat thereof: &s;uch is the life, &s;pirit, power, vertue, and vigor of the &s;onne of man, as he is of the life, de&s;cent, and power of the Father from above, and &s;o is God ble&s;&s;ed for ever <HI>Amen;</HI> and in this &s;ence is blood taken by our Apo&s;tle, where he &s;aith, <HI>This</HI>
<PB N="107" REF="62">
<HI>is he that came by water and blood,</HI> that is, <HI>by weakne&s;&s;e and &s;trength, not by water only, but by water and blood;</HI> that is, not by weakne&s;&s;e only, but by weakne&s;&s;e and &s;trength, that is, weakne&s;&s;e in us, or in our nature, but power in God, or in that nature divine; &s;o is he &s;aid in the like &s;en&s;e, <HI>to be cruci|fied in the fle&s;h, but quickned in the spirit;</HI> and &s;o is it al&s;o &s;aid, <HI>That what the Law could not doe, i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> that it was weake concer|ning the fle&s;h, yet the Sonne of God taking upon him that &s;imili|tude, and by &s;inne condemned &s;inne in the fle&s;h, that the righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e of the Law might be fulfilled in us,</HI> that is, even as he became fle&s;h in us, &s;o doe we become &s;pirit, and life in him, <HI>which is the fulfilling and perfection of the Law.</HI></P>
<P>The third thing ob&s;erved is, what it is <HI>to eat this fle&s;h, and to drinke this blood?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> Is that as it is in the body of a man naturally in that re&s;pect, even &s;o al&s;o it is in that my&s;ticall body of Chri&s;t &s;piritually; for if a man &s;hould eat, or communicate in (as the meaning is) only in food for the body, and not take in moy&s;ture, or drinke, for the dige&s;tion thereof, it is the de|&s;truction of the body, becau&s;e moy&s;ture, as well as heat, mu&s;t be maintained, tho&s;e being the two <HI>Radicall humours;</HI> el&s;e doth the Lampe goe out, and is extinct; yea, meate without moy&s;ture doth &s;uffocate, and choak the &s;pirits, to the &s;urfet|ting of the body, and &s;o becomes the over-throw of it, which otherwi&s;e would maintaine and uphold it. Againe, if wee &s;hould take in only drinke, without meat, upon which it ope|rateth, and worketh, then doth the moy&s;ture pre&s;ently over|flow to the quenching of the heat, and &s;o breedeth either &s;ome drop&s;ie in the body, to the &s;inking and overthrow of it in that way, or el&s;e it <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">umeth up into the head, and breeds madne&s;&s;e, and giddine&s;&s;e in the brain, unto all fooli&s;h, wanton, and la&s;|civious wickedne&s;&s;e: Even &s;o it is in that my&s;ticall body of Chri&s;t: And hence it is &s;aid (<HI>by an <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">legant allu&s;ion</HI>) to eating and drinking naturally) <HI>that we eat the fle&s;h of the &s;onne of man, and drinke his blood;</HI> that is, if we <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters"> or communicate with that weakne&s;&s;e and frailty which i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> naturally in man, and which the Sonne of God a&s;&s;umed and tooke into unity with
<PB N="108" REF="63">
him&s;elfe, without alike drinking in, or communication with, that <HI>spirit and life wherein he vi&s;its us, and comes into our na|ture from on high (even out of the bo&s;ome of the Father)</HI> then doe we &s;urfeit, &amp; &s;uffocate the &s;pirit, and die in our &s;elves, and in our &s;innes; and &s;o al&s;o, <HI>if we neglect that weakne&s;&s;e that is in us</HI> (as though no &s;uch thing were) and dream of a high and &s;pirituall e&s;tate, <HI>which doth not ari&s;e out of, and is the re&s;ult,</HI> (through the wi&s;dom of God) of that weakne&s;&s;e that is in us, then doe we either &s;inke in our folly, and become &s;otti&s;h in the things of God, being drunke up only with the things of this naturall life, el&s;e are we puffed up, and become giddy in our &s;elves, thinking we know &s;omething, <HI>when as indeed we know nothing as we ought to know,</HI> but are meerly, <HI>and vainly puft up in a carnall, aspiring, proud, vaine-glorious, and fle&s;hly mind.</HI> So that to eat the fle&s;h, and drinke the blood of the Son of man, is to communicate in the things that are of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, both as he is God, and as he is man, and to hold the unity of &s;trength and weakne&s;&s;e; that is, how he is made weak in taking our nature, and &s;o carries and bears our infirmities a|way for ever (he being that &s;cape-Goat, who&s;e office it is &s;o to doe:) And al&s;o, how our nature is, thereby made &s;trong and mighty, througth that &s;trength of the Sonne of God, in whom we find no infirmity, but are furni&s;hed with his power everla&s;tingly, &s;o that death which is naturally in us (as we are the &s;onnes of men) <HI>is &s;wallowed up of that victory and life,</HI> which is in him, <HI>as he is that victorious, and eternall Sonne of God,</HI> and without a &s;utable corre&s;pondent, and hermonious feeding of the&s;e two, <HI>as in one individuall &s;ub&s;i&s;tance,</HI> we can|not have life in us, no more then our bodies can be &s;u&s;tained by meat without drinke, or by drinke only without meat: and <MILESTONE N="4"> that is the fourth particular, <HI>el&s;e we cannot have life in us,</HI> that is, <HI>we can have no life, spirit, or breathings of the Sonne of that living God in us:</HI> For <HI>as the body without the &s;oule is dead, &s;o al&s;o the &s;oule without the life, and &s;pirit of the Lord Ie&s;us is dead,</HI> and as the body lives not without meat and drink, heate and moy&s;ture, &s;o the &s;oule lives not without communicating alike&punc; <HI>in this &s;trength and weakne&s;&s;e,</HI> or <HI>in this life and death,</HI>
<PB N="109" REF="63">
<HI>which is in the Sonne of God, who dies concerning the fle&s;h, but is quickned in the spirit,</HI> and the &s;pirit of God proceeds ever from the&s;e two, when ever it uttereth it &s;elfe, <HI>in that lively Oracle or &s;peech from off the covering Mercy-&s;eat, it is ever from between the&s;e two Cherubims,</HI> and never &s;peaks evident|ly, <HI>what perillous times are in the la&s;t dayes,</HI> but only as it pro|ceeds from the&s;e twain, that is, from a dying unto the fle&s;h; and a being quickned in, and living unto the &s;pirit, by which <HI>life, spirit, or breath it ever preacheth, from the dayes of</HI> Noah, <HI>even untill now,</HI> both in our &s;elves, and by our &s;elves to others; for as it is a Maxim, that the &s;pirit proceedeth both from the Fa|ther and the Son; &s;o is it here, for the <HI>fle&s;h,</HI> or infirmity of Chri&s;t is the <HI>Father,</HI> &amp; the &s;pirit or power is the <HI>Son,</HI> as he is brought forth in that way of his death, without which he had never been a Saviour, and the <HI>Spirit</HI> or power is the <HI>Father,</HI> and the fle&s;h is the <HI>Son,</HI> in as much as he brings forth life in this death, without which he had never been as he is <HI>man,</HI> in re&s;pect of that <HI>life, by which hee liveth the life of God, never to dye any more,</HI> &s;o have we eating and drinking made one in that way <HI>of the faith of the Son of God,</HI> without which we cannot live the life of that <HI>Saint or holy one of I&s;rael.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE N="5"> The fifth particular in this point is, how it can be &s;aid,  <HI>that we eat this fle&s;h of the Son of man, and drink his blood;</HI> in which con&s;ider two things, fir&s;t who are meant in that he &s;peaks plu|rally, except <HI>ye eat,</HI> &amp;c. Secondly, how we can be &s;aid to eat and drink in &s;uch a high nature, &s;eeing <HI>that we of our &s;elves cannot thinke a good thought,</HI> much le&s;&s;e performe &s;uch an act as this.</P>
<P>For the fir&s;t, who are meant in that he &s;peaks in the &s;econd per&s;on plurall, <HI>Ye.</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> It is not properly to be under&s;tood, as being meant <HI>of man and man,</HI> no not as of Saint and Saint, but of one Saint <HI>as he con&s;i&s;ts of a two-fold nature,</HI> according to that faith of the Sonne of God; &s;o is it, <HI>Yee,</HI> that is, every one that is in Chri&s;t, and &s;o <HI>through tho&s;e precious promi&s;es, or gracious Covenant, is made partaker of that nature divine;</HI> ye<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">, who ever is one <HI>of tho&s;e children that have fle&s;h and blood, of which the Sonne</HI>
<PB N="110" REF="64">
<HI>of God al&s;o tooke part with them,</HI> namely, they <HI>that are parta|kers of tho&s;e two natures by faith,</HI> that are in Je&s;us Chri&s;t, to every one of tho&s;e this is &s;poken, as to &s;uch as are eaters, and drinkers in this ca&s;e; for Chri&s;t as he is God, feeds upon no|thing but our infirmities; that is, &s;trengthens him&s;elfe in point of our &s;alvation, with nothing but our frailties and imperfecti|ons, and &s;o of weak becoms &s;trong, yea of an abject, the Lord of all, <HI>For he in no ca&s;e taketh hold on Angels,</HI> that is, of any power or excellency in the creature to deliver us thereby, <HI>but only on the &s;eed of Abraham</HI> (a Pilgrim and &s;tranger in the Land) <HI>he taketh hold;</HI> that is, on our weakne&s;&s;es, and imperfe|ctions, and out of them he brings his owne power and &s;trength and other food the Sonne of God never tooke into unitie, nor dige&s;ted, to gather &s;trength unto him&s;elfe by. Againe, as he is man he <HI>drinketh the blood,</HI> that is, takes in, or receives that <HI>blood, life, &s;pirit, and power of God, whereby he is inabled to doe all things, according to the purpo&s;e of his will,</HI> and other drinke he never drunke, as he is man; for our poor nature is of that <HI>va&s;t emptine&s;&s;e,</HI> that nothing but <HI>the fulne&s;&s;e and power of an in|finit and al-&s;ufficient God, can po&s;&s;ibly &s;upply and perfect it,</HI> and &s;o there is a compleat eating and drinking, which is that full &s;a|tisfaction and nouri&s;hment, that can be found in none, <HI>&s;ave only in the Sonne of God him&s;elfe,</HI> for it is a weakne&s;&s;e of that nature and latitude, that nothing can &s;upply and make up but God him&s;elfe; and it is a power of that fulne&s;&s;e and perfection that can take nothing into unitie with it &s;elfe that may be thought to adde any thing (no not in the lea&s;t) unto that &s;trength and vigour that is in God; for then it were not an Almighty power of God that &s;aves us.</P>
<P>And &s;o it is (<HI>We</HI>) that eat and drinke, that is, <HI>We,</HI> humane nature and divine; for <HI>in eating,</HI> the word eats up, and con|&s;umes our infirmities, and &s;o there is a plurality in the act, not only of natures in that one act, but of eating al&s;o in &s;undry kinds and wayes; for as our infirmities are multiplyed, and that aptitude that is in us to fall, &s;uch is the multiplication of that re&s;toration which is in that good word of God; it is (<HI>We</HI>) al&s;o in drinking, that is, our <HI>va&s;t emptine&s;&s;e,</HI> drinks and takes
<PB N="111" REF="64">
in that fulne&s;&s;e, power, and &s;pirit that is in the word of God, in which we are expre&s;&s;ed and made manife&s;t to be the &s;onnes and daughters of God, and in that mutuall eating and drinking our life, &s;trength, and comfort doth con&s;i&s;t.</P>
<P>The fifth particular, how it is &s;aid (<HI>that we doe eat</HI>) that are not able to doe any thing; alike an&s;wer is to be given to this as to the former, when he &s;aith, <HI>Yee,</HI> he means not only divers men, but he meaneth every one as con&s;idered, in him, who is not only of man, but al&s;o of God; &s;o that if we &s;peak of man &s;eparated from the Word of God (which hath &s;ufficient power in it &s;elfe) we mi&s;&s;e of the meaning, and of the mind of God, and &s;o of that communion or eating that is in the faith of Je&s;us Chri&s;t; and if we &s;peak of God divided and &s;eparated from man, we commit the like errour, and are in the &s;ame default; but we mu&s;t hold and maintain the unity of them both, in that way of faith in the Sonne of man, then is there power and ability, both to eat and to drink, even as there is power and ability in the Heavens and the earth, united in their operations, to bring forth fruit plentifully, which worke cannot be done, if either of them were &s;et apart, and &s;eparated one from the other: So that the word of God is made &s;trong through our weakne&s;&s;e, that &s;o it may appeare and make manife&s;t it &s;elfe: and our weakne&s;&s;e appears, and is ac|knowledged through that word of God, that &s;o all may be gi|ven unto God, and he may be all in all; &s;o that it is (<HI>Yee</HI>) as man con&s;idered, in and with the power and &s;pirit of God, in which he is inabled to doe all things, and not (<HI>Yee</HI>) as con&s;ide|red one man, in and with an other, for &s;o all fle&s;h is gra&s;&s;e, &s;urely in that re&s;pect the people is vanity.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>S. G.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
