Great Events in the History of North and South America
by Charles A. Goodrich · English · Gutenberg #42410 · 1,722,612 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: Great Events in the History of North and South America
Author: Charles A. Goodrich
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Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GREAT EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA ***
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
GREAT EVENTS
IN
THE HISTORY
OF
NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA;
FROM THE ALLEGED
DISCOVERY OF THE CONTINENT,
BY THE NORTHMEN, IN THE TENTH CENTURY,
TO
THE PRESENT TIME;
WITH BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF EMINENT MEN CONNECTED WITH
AMERICAN HISTORY.
BY CHARLES A. GOODRICH,
AUTHOR OF "UNITED STATES' HISTORY," "LIVES OF THE SIGNERS OF THE
DECLARATION OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE," &c., &c.
ILLUSTRATED WITH UPWARDS OF TWO HUNDRED ENGRAVINGS,
CHIEFLY FROM ORIGINAL DESIGNS, BY EMINENT ARTISTS.
HARTFORD:
PUBLISHED BY HOUSE & BROWN
1851.
ENTERED, ACCORDING TO ACT OF CONGRESS, IN THE YEAR 1849, BY
CHARLES A. GOODRICH,
IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE OF THE DISTRICT COURT OF CONNECTICUT.
FOUNDRY OF
S. ANDRUS AND SON,
HARTFORD.
PRESS OF
WALTER S. WILLIAMS,
HARTFORD.
PREFACE.
The plan of the following work, whatever may be thought of its
execution, will commend itself, it is believed, to the taste and
judgment of the public. It proceeds upon the principle of _selection_,
being chiefly confined to the _Great Events_ of American History, and
which are treated of as _distinct subjects_. In these respects, the
work differs from other historical works on the same subject.
The advantages of a work thus constructed, are too obvious to need
specification. Yet, it may be remarked, that great events in history
are like great objects in nature and art. It is the bolder features of
a country--the more costly and imposing edifices of the city--the
higher and more elaborate achievements of art--upon which we delight
to dwell. In like manner, great events attract our attention and
interest our minds, because of their relations--because of the higher
qualities of mind which, perhaps, gave them birth, and the striking
and lasting changes which grow out of them. They serve as landmarks in
our drift down the stream of time. We date from them. We refer to
them. We measure between them. We compare them one with another--their
causes, progress, influences; and, in so doing, our knowledge of men
and things is advanced--our false opinions are corrected--our topics
for interesting and profitable speculation and reflection greatly
multiplied. A thorough perusal of a work thus constructed will secure,
it is believed, a more competent and permanent knowledge of the
history of a country, than some half-dozen readings of that history,
written on the ordinary plan.
The principle of selection will render the work the more valuable to
certain classes of persons--to those who, desirous of a competent
knowledge of the history of their country, have but a limited time to
devote to the study of it; to the young, whose minds are apt to become
wearied and perplexed with the number and details of minor events; and
to those who wish to refresh their recollections, without the labor
and loss of time incident to the perusal of works constructed on the
common plan. Each of these classes will find their interests consulted
in the work before them, while the general reader may profitably
proceed from the perusal of such a volume to those which describe
events and details more minutely.
In regard to what constitute the 'Great Events of American History,'
there may be some diversity of opinion. As to _his_ selection, the
author has not the vanity to suppose that it is the best that could be
made. The journey has been a long one; and surely, it were not strange,
if some events had been magnified into an undue importance; while those
of perhaps even higher consideration were neglected, either for want of
a better judgment, or for want of more serious reflection.
In the progress of the work, the author has endeavored to do justice
to the original settlers of the United States, and their immediate
descendants, by bringing into view their constant sense of their
dependence upon God. It will be seen that our forefathers were men who
feared God--who sought his blessing in all their great enterprises;
and when success crowned those enterprises, that they were ready to
acknowledge His good hand which had been with them. In seasons of
darkness, they fasted and prayed: in seasons of prosperity, they
rejoiced and gave thanks.
In these respects, our ancestors did, indeed, only their duty; but, it
may well be urged upon the rising generation, which will soon take the
management of the affairs of this already-mighty nation--and which is
growing in population, wealth, and importance, every year--to imitate
an example so just! so beautiful! so impressive!
The author has briefly to add, that the work was begun some years since;
but, until now, he has found no opportunity to complete it; nor should
he, even at this date, have had that pleasure, but for the important aid
of a highly valued literary friend, long favorably known to the public,
Rev. ROYAL ROBBINS, of Berlin, Ct., to whom, in this place, he is happy
to make his acknowledgments for valuable portions of the volume.
[Illustration]
CONTENTS.
NORTH AMERICA.--UNITED STATES.
PAGE.
INTRODUCTION, 13
I.--EARLY DISCOVERIES.
I. _Northmen._--Claims for the Northmen; Voyages of Biarne, Leif,
Thorwald, Thorfinn, Helge, and Finnboge, 19
II. _Columbus._--Birth and Education of Columbus; Unsuccessful
application to several European Courts; Patronized by
Isabella; Sails from Palos; Early Discontent of his Crew;
Expedients by which they are quieted; Discovery of Land; First
appearance of the Natives; Cuba and Hispaniola discovered;
Columbus sets sail on his Return; Incidents of the Voyage;
Marks of consideration bestowed upon him; Second Voyage;
Further Discoveries; Complaints against him; Third Voyage;
Discovery of the Continent; Persecuted by Enemies; Sent home
in Chains; Kindness of Isabella; Fourth Voyage; Return and
Death, 26
III. _Sebastian Cabot._--Discovery of the North American Continent
by Sebastian Cabot, 45
II.--EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
I. VIRGINIA, OR SOUTHERN COLONY.
Unsuccessful Attempts to settle America; Expeditions of Sir
Humphrey Gilbert; Sir Walter Raleigh; Sir Richard Grenville;
Sir John White; First Permanent Settlement at Jamestown;
Colonists early in Want; Dissensions in their Councils;
Hostility of the Indians; Capture of Captain Smith; Generous
Conduct of Pocahontas; Gloomy Condition of the Colony; Timely
arrival of Assistance; Returning Prosperity; Establishment of
a Provisional Government; Introduction of Negro Slavery; Cruel
Massacre of the Colonists, 48
II. NEW ENGLAND, OR NORTHERN SETTLEMENTS.
Plymouth; Massachusetts; Connecticut; New Haven; New Hampshire;
Rhode Island; Maine; Vermont--Character of the Early
Settlers, 61
III. MIDDLE AND SOUTHERN SETTLEMENTS.
New York; New Jersey; Delaware; Maryland; N. Carolina; S.
Carolina; Georgia; Pennsylvania, 96
III.--INDIANS: THEIR TRIBES AND WARS.
I. INDIAN TRIBES.
General Division; Tribes in the Central and Southern parts of New
England; Tribes in the Northern parts; East of Lake Erie and
South of Lake Ontario; Southern Tribes, 104
II. ORIGIN OF THE AMERICAN INDIANS.
Various Speculations on the subject; Opinions of Voltaire, of Rev.
Thos. Thorowgood, Dr. Boudinot, Roger Williams, Hubbard, Thos.
Morton, John Josselin, Cotton Mather, Dr. Mitchell, Dr.
Swinton, 109
III. VIRGINIA INDIAN WARS.
Early Troubles of the English with the Indians; Power and Cruelty
of Powhatan; his apparent Friendship for the Colonists;
Treacherous Conduct; Kindness of Pocahontas; Inhuman Conduct
of Lord De la War; Captivity of Pocahontas; Cruel Massacre of
the Whites; Opecancanough; Troubles with Totopotomoi; Anecdote
of Jack-of-the-feather, 113
IV. PLYMOUTH COLONY AND THE INDIANS.
Early Rencontre at Plymouth; Friendly Intercourse established by
means of Samoset; Kindness of Squanto; Intercourse with
Massasoit; Contemplated Massacre defeated; Caunbitant;
Hobomok, 125
V. ENGLISH AND NARRAGANSETS.
Territory of the Narragansets; Canonicus their Sachem; his mode of
Challenging the English to War; Union proposed between the
Pequods and Narragansets; how Defeated; Haughty Bearing of
Miantonimoh; Accused of a Conspiracy against the English;
Accusations repelled; Peace concluded between him and
Massachusetts; War between Uncas and Miantonimoh; the latter
captured, and delivered to the English; how disposed of;
Character of Uncas; Troubles with the Narragansets under
Ninigret; Expedition against him; its Issue, 142
VI. PEQUOD WAR.
Territory of the Pequods; their Character; Sassacus; his Hatred of
the English; Cruelties practiced towards them; War declared by
Connecticut; Expedition of Captain Mason; Surprise and
Destruction of the Fort; Further Prosecution of the War;
Consequences resulting from it, 153
VII. PHILIP'S WAR.
Causes of Philip's War; Character of Philip; General Spirit of
Hostility among the Indians; Outbreak at Swansey; Expedition
under General Savage; Expedition under Captain Church;
Perilous Situation of this latter party; Timely Arrival of
Captain Hutchinson; Second Expedition of Captain Church;
Critical Situation of Philip; Effects his Escape; Annoys the
Back Settlements of Massachusetts; Treachery of the Nipmucks;
Attack on Brookfield; Bloody Affair at Muddy Brook; Attack on
Springfield; Attack on Hatfield; Outrages at Northampton;
Large Force raised by Massachusetts, Plymouth, and
Connecticut, against the Narragansets; Philip's Fortress at
Kingston, Rhode Island; Destruction of it; Lancaster
destroyed; other Towns burned; Fatal Affair at Pawtuxet river,
Rhode Island; Stratagem of Cape Cod Indians; Attacks on
Rehoboth, Chelmsford, Sudbury, &c.; Expedition of Connecticut
troops; Conanchet captured; Long Meadow attacked; Hadley;
Fortunes of Philip on the wane; Successful Expedition at
Connecticut-river Falls; Attack on Hatfield; on Hadley;
Remarkable Interposition of a Stranger at Hadley, supposed to
be Goffe; Decline of Philip's Power; Pursued by Captain
Church; Death of Philip; Disastrous Effects of the War;
Philip's Warriors; Annawon; Reflections, 161
VIII. WAR OF WILLIAM III.
Combination of French and Indians against the Americans; Burning
of Schenectady; Cause of it; Horrors attending it; Attack upon
Salmon Falls and upon Casco; Results of Expeditions fitted out
by New York and New England; Reduction of Port Royal;
Atrocities which marked the War; Attack on Haverhill,
Massachusetts; Heroic Conduct of Mrs. Dustan; Peace, 190
IX. QUEEN ANNE'S WAR.
Principal Scenes of this War in America; Attack upon Deerfield;
Captivity and Sufferings of Rev. Mr. Williams; Other Disasters
of the War; Peace; Death of Queen Anne; Accession of George
I.; Continued Sufferings of the Colonies of Massachusetts and
New Hampshire; Peace concluded with the Indians at Boston, 200
X. WAR OF GEORGE II.
War between England and France, 1744; French take Casco; Effect of
this Declaration of War upon the Indians; Attack upon the
Great Meadows (now Putney); also, upon Ashuelot (now Keene);
Expedition against Louisburg; Particulars of it; Surrender of
it; Continuance of the War; Various places assaulted; Savage
Barbarities following the surrender of Fort Massachusetts;
Peace declared, 208
XI. FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
Declaration of War between England and France; Causes of the War;
Mode of conducting it; Various Expeditions planned; Nova
Scotia taken from the French; General Braddock's Signal
Defeat; Failure of Expeditions against Niagara and Fort
Frontenac; Expedition against Crown Point; Battle of Lake
George; Campaign of 1756; Inefficiency of Lord Loudon; Loss of
Fort Oswego; Indian Atrocities in Pennsylvania; Campaign of
1757; Massacre at Fort William Henry; Exploits of Colonel
Trye; Captain John Burke and others; Campaign of 1758; Capture
of Louisburg; Unsuccessful Expedition against Ticonderoga;
Capture of Fort Frontenac; Fort du Quesne taken; Campaign of
1759; Ticonderoga and Crown Point taken; Niagara captured;
Siege and Capture of Quebec; Death of Wolfe and Montcalm;
Final Surrender of the French Possessions in Canada to the
English; Peace of Paris, 214
IV.--REVOLUTION.
I. CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION.
Objects proposed in the Settlement of America; Forms of Government
conducive to Independence; Influence of Expenses; Colonies
obliged to defend themselves, and to defray the Expenses of
their own Wars and those of the Mother-country; British system
of Taxation commenced; Writs of Assistance; Stamp Act;
Formidable Opposition to it; Non-importation Act; Arrival of
British Forces; Boston Massacre; Destruction of the Gaspee;
Destruction of Tea; Boston Port Bill; Arrival of General Gage;
his Obnoxious Measures; Meeting of Congress; Preparations for
War; Obstinacy of the King and Parliament; Crisis arrives;
Determination of the Colonists, 238
II. EVENTS OF THE REVOLUTION.
I. _Battle of Lexington._--Cause or Occasion of the Battle;
British Detachment proceeds towards Concord; Reaches
Lexington; First Blood shed; Hancock and Adams; Captain
Wheeler and the British Officer; Stores destroyed; the British
harassed by the Americans; Retreat from Concord; Effect of
this affair upon the Country; Proceedings of the Massachusetts
Provincial Congress, 266
II. _Battle of Bunker's Hill._--American Patriotism; American and
British Forces; Fortification of Bunker's Hill; Attacked by
British Ships; Asa Pollard, the First Martyr; Preparations of
the British; Warren; Prescott's Injunction to his Troops;
British repulsed with terrible slaughter; Second Attack;
Charlestown set on fire at the same time; Second Repulse;
Putnam and Major Small; Death of Colonel Gardiner; Thrilling
Incident; Third Advance of the British; Death of Major
Pitcairn; Americans in want of Ammunition; Retreat; Death of
Warren; Respective Losses; Results of the Battle, 274
III. _Washington, Commander-in-Chief._--Effects of the Battle of
Bunker's Hill; Meeting of Congress; Appointment of a
Commander-in-Chief proposed; Difficulties in regard to a
Selection; Claims of Individuals; Interview between John and
Samuel Adams; Speech of the former; Washington Nominated;
Unanimously Confirmed; Manifesto of Congress; Public Fast, 291
IV. _Evacuation of Boston._--General Officers appointed;
Washington repairs to Cambridge; State of the Army; Great Want
of Gunpowder; Sickness in the Camp; Dorchester Heights
fortified; Proposal of the British General to attack the
American Intrenchments; Alters his plan, and evacuates Boston;
Embarkation of the British; Washington enters the city, 299
V. _Independence Declared._--Independence begun to be
contemplated; Causes which increased a desire for such an
event; Question of a Declaration of Independence enters the
Colonial Assemblies; Introduced to Congress by Richard Henry
Lee; Debated; State of Parties in respect to it; Measures
adopted to secure a favorable vote; Question taken, and
Declaration adopted; Signed; the Great Act of the Revolution;
its Influence immediately perceptible; Character of the
Signers; the Fourth of July, a time-honored and glorious day;
How it should be celebrated, 310
VI. _Attack on Sullivan's Island._--Invasion of Southern Colonies
proposed; Expedition dispatched; Charleston its first Object;
Proceedings of its Citizens; Sullivan's island Fortified;
Arrival of General Lee; his Opinion of Fort Moultrie; British
Fleet arrives; Preliminary Movements; Fort Moultrie attacked;
Remarkable Defence; Action described; Heroic Conduct of
Sergeant Jasper; Repulse of the British; Respective Losses;
Liberality of Governor Rutledge; Standards presented by Mrs.
Elliot; Death of Jasper, 322
VII. _Military Reverses: Loss of New York._--British take
possession of Staten Island; Strongly reinforced; State of the
American Army; New York and Brooklyn occupied; Battle of
Brooklyn; Americans repulsed; Long Island abandoned;
Remarkable retreat; Gloomy State of the American Army;
Washington retreats to Harlem; Movements of the British;
Washington retires to White Plains; Loss of Fort Washington;
American Army pursued; Retreats successively to New Brunswick,
Princeton, and Trenton; thence to the Pennsylvania side of the
Delaware; British go into Winter-quarters; Capture of General
Lee; Prevalent Spirit of Despondency, 338
VIII. _Returning Prosperity: Battles of Trenton and
Princeton._--Reliance of the Patriots upon God for Success;
Public Fast recommended by Congress; Offensive Operations
decided upon; Battle of Trenton; Washington victorious; Battle
of Princeton; British repulsed; American Army at Morristown;
British at Brunswick; Prospects brightening, 344
IX. _Occupation of Philadelphia._--Position of the Armies; British
remove to New York; Sail for the Chesapeake; Advance towards
Philadelphia; American Army also move towards the same place;
Meet at Brandywine; Battle; Americans repulsed; British enter
Philadelphia; Congress retire to Lancaster; Battle of
Germantown; Americans retreat; Ineffectual Attempts to force
the British to evacuate Philadelphia, 353
X. _Surrender of Burgoyne._--British Project for securing the
command of the Hudson between New York and Albany; Intrusted
to Generals Howe and Burgoyne; the latter leaves Canada with a
strong Force; Invests and takes Crown Point and Ticonderoga;
Affair of Skenesborough; Fort Edward abandoned; Retreat of
Americans to Stillwater; Battle of Bennington; General Gates
supersedes General Schuyler; Critical position of Burgoyne; he
advances upon Saratoga; Battle; Battle of Stillwater; Burgoyne
retreats, pursued by Gates; Capitulates; Public
Rejoicings, 360
XI. _Progress of the War._--State of affairs in England; Treaty
with France; Movements in the British Parliament; Overtures to
Congress; Rejection of them; Battle of Monmouth; Disastrous
Retreat of General Lee; Fortunate Interposition of Washington;
his Rebuke of Lee; Tremendous Battle; Sufferings of the
Armies; Renewal of the Contest; Midnight Retreat of the
British army; Subsequent Trial and Dismission of General
Lee, 378
XII. _Treachery of Arnold._--The Vulture in the Hudson; Midnight
Adventure; Benedict Arnold; Repairs to Cambridge; Expedition
to Canada; Created a Brigadier-general; Grounds of Complaint;
Honorable Conduct in Connecticut; Appointed to the command at
Philadelphia; Charges preferred against him; Reprimanded by
Washington; Plots against his Country; Correspondence with Sir
H. Clinton; Appointed to the command of West Point; Interview
with Andre; Capture of Andre; Arrival of Washington; Escape of
Arnold; Developments of his Traitorous Intentions; Trial and
Condemnation of Andre; Subsequent Incidents in the life of
Arnold, 391
XIII. _Concluding Scenes of the Revolution._--Theatre of War
changed to the South; Siege of Savannah; Battle of Camden;
Battle of Cowpens; Retreat; Subsequent Movements; Battles of
Guilford, Kohkirk's Hill, Ninety-Six, and Eutaw Springs;
Yorktown; Treaty of Peace; Cessation of Hostilities; Army
disbanded; Departure of the British; Final Interview between
Washington and his Officers; Resigns his Commission; Retires
to Mount Vernon, 415
XIV. _Naval Operations._--State of the Naval Affairs of the
Colonies at the commencement of the Revolution; First Naval
Engagement; Measures adopted by Congress to provide a Naval
Armament; Naval Officers appointed; Vessels built; Flag
adopted; Success of American Privateering; Distinguished Naval
Officers; Character of Naval Commanders; Particular
Engagements:--Randolph and Yarmouth; Raleigh and Druid;
Sub-marine Warfare, Le Bon Homme Richard and Serapis; Trumbull
and Watt; Alliance, Atalanta, and Trepassey; Congress and
Savage, 450
XV. _Eminent Foreigners connected with the Revolution._--George
III. King of England; General Burgoyne, Sir Henry Clinton,
Colonel Barre, Charles Townshend, Lord Cornwallis, William
Pitt, Marquis of Bute, George Grenville, Duke of Grafton, Lord
North, Colonel Tarleton, Sir Peter Parker, Sir William
Meadows, Sir Guy Carlton, General Gage, Marquis of Rockingham,
Edmund Burke, Kosciusko, Pulaski, Baron de Kalb, Baron
Steuben, Count Rochambeau, Count D'Estaing, 488
V.--FEDERAL CONSTITUTION.
Original Governments of the Colonies; Union between them; Plan
proposed by Dr. Franklin; First Congress; Congress of '74;
Confederation; Defects of it; Convention of States proposed by
Virginia; Commissioners from five States meet at Annapolis;
Powers too limited to act; Recommend a General Convention of
States; Delegates appointed; Convention meets at Philadelphia;
Decides to form a new Constitution; Draft prepared, discussed,
and adopted; Speech of Doctor Franklin; Constitution signed;
Adopted by the several States; Amendments; States admitted
since the adoption; Remarks on the Constitution, 520
VI.--GEORGE WASHINGTON, PRESIDENT.
A System of Revenue; Regulation of Departments; Amendments of the
Constitution; Establishment of a Judiciary; Assumption of
Debts; Removal of the Seat of Government; National Bank;
Indian War; Re-election of Washington; Difficulties with
France; Insurrection in Pennsylvania; Jay's Treaty; Election
of Mr. Adams; Farewell Address, 542
VII.--JOHN ADAMS, PRESIDENT.
Difficulties with France; Treaty with that Power; Death of
Washington; Removal of the Seat of Government; Election of Mr.
Jefferson, 571
VIII.--THOMAS JEFFERSON, PRESIDENT.
Purchase of Louisiana; War with Tripoli; Murder of Hamilton;
Re-election of Jefferson; Conspiracy and Trial of Burr; Attack
on the Chesapeake; British Orders in Council; Milan Decree;
Embargo; Election of Mr. Madison; Difficulties between France
and England, 590
IX.--JAMES MADISON, PRESIDENT.
Battle of Tippecanoe; Early Session of Congress; Declaration of
War; Surrender of Hull; Capture of the Gurriere; Battle of
Queenstown; Capture of the Frolic; of the Macedonian; of the
Java; Battle of Frenchtown; Capture of the Peacock;
Re-election of Mr. Madison; Capture of York; Siege of Fort
Meigs; Capture of the Argus; Perry's Victory; Battle of the
Thames; Creek War; Battle of Chippewa and Bridgewater; Capture
of Washington City; Engagement on Lake Champlain; Battle of
New Orleans; Treaty of Ghent; Close of Mr. Madison's
Administration, 611
X.--JAMES MONROE, PRESIDENT.
Tour of the President; Admission of Missouri; Provision for
Indigent Officers, &c.; Re-election of Mr. Monroe; Seminole
War; Revision of the Tariff; Visit of Lafayette; Review of Mr.
Monroe's Administration; Election of Mr. Adams, 658
XI.--JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, PRESIDENT.
Controversy respecting the Creeks; Proposed Mission to Panama;
Internal Improvements; Fiftieth Anniversary of Independence;
"American System;" Election of General Jackson, 673
XII.--ANDREW JACKSON, PRESIDENT.
Condition of the Country; Georgia and the Cherokees; Public Lands;
National Bank; Internal Improvements; Indian Hostilities;
Discontents in South Carolina; Re-election of Andrew Jackson;
Removal of the Deposites; Death of Lafayette; Deposite Act;
Seminole War; Treasury Circular; Election of Mr. Van Buren;
Character of Jackson's Administration, 683
XIII.--MARTIN VAN BUREN, PRESIDENT.
Measures respecting Banks; Treasury Circular; Continuance of
Florida War; Internal Improvements; Public Expenses;
Difficulties in Maine; Border Troubles; Changes of Public
Opinion; Character of the Administration; Election of William
H. Harrison, 701
XIV.--WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, PRESIDENT, 713
XV.--JOHN TYLER, PRESIDENT.
Extra Session of Congress; Relations with Great Britain;
Settlement of the North-eastern Boundary; Difficulties in
Rhode Island; Modification of the Tariff; Bunker's Hill
Monument; Treaties; Annexation of Texas; Presidential Canvass;
Character of Mr. Tyler's Administration, 715
XVI.--JAMES K. POLK, PRESIDENT.
Decease of General Jackson; Admission of Texas; Division of
Oregon; Mexican War; Siege of Fort Brown; Battle of Palo Alto;
Battle of Resaca de la Palma; Fall of Monterey; Battle of
Buena Vista; Capture of Vera Cruz; Cerro Gordo; Progress of
the Army; Occupation of Mexico; Treaty; California and its
Gold; Election of General Taylor, 725
XVII.--ZACHARY TAYLOR, PRESIDENT. 755
BRITISH AMERICA, 757
I. CANADA.
Discovery; Settlement; Capture of Quebec; Death of Champlain;
Religious Enterprises; War made by the Iroquois; Accessions to
the Colony; Progress of the Colony; Attempts of the English to
Conquer Canada; Condition of Canada in 1721 and 1722; General
Prosperity of the Colony; Refusal to join in the War of
American Independence; Consequences of American Independence
to Canada; Territorial Divisions and Constitution; Dissensions
after the close of the War of 1812; Disturbances and
Insurrections, 759
II. NOVA SCOTIA.
Limits; Conquest by the English; Settlement; Annexation to the
British Crown; Policy of England in relation to the Country;
Situation of the English Settlers; English Treatment of the
Acadians; State of the Province during the Wars of the United
States; Results of the War of 1812, 781
III. NEW BRUNSWICK.
Extent; Physical Aspect and Soil; Settlement and Progress; Signal
Calamity, 787
IV. PRINCE EDWARD'S ISLAND.
Location, Surface, and Climate; Early Settlers; Change of
Possession; Plans of Colonization; Character of late
Governors; Inhabitants, 790
V. NEWFOUNDLAND.
Location and Importance; Discovery and Settlement; French
Hostilities; Renewal of War; Change of Administration; Present
Condition, 793
VI. HUDSON'S BAY TERRITORY.
Extent; Discovery; Settlement; Contests with France; Present
State, 797
RUSSIAN AMERICA, 800
MEXICO.
Discovery; Condition, anterior to the Spanish Conquest; Invasion
by Cortez; Arrival of Cortez in the Mexican Capital;
Abdication of Montezuma; Retreat of Cortez, and Return; Fall
of the City and Empire; Fate of Cortez; Extent of New Spain;
Introduction of the Catholic Religion; Native Spanish
Population, under the Colonial Government; Classes of the
Inhabitants; Causes of the First Mexican Revolution;
Commencement of the Revolution; Continuation of the War by the
Patriot Chiefs; Decline of the Revolution; Invasion by Mina;
Revolution under Iturbide; Adoption of the Federal
Constitution; Prosperity of the years 1825 and 1826; Election
of President in 1828; Usurpation of Bustamente; Defence of the
Federal Constitution; Santa Anna's Proceedings; Establishment
of a Central Republic; Attempts against the Central
Government; Revolution of 1841; Overthrow of Santa Anna's
Government, 802
GUATEMALA.
Locality; Extent; Physical Character; Discovery and Conquest;
Independence of the Country, 830
SOUTH AMERICA.
I. NEW GRENADA.
Extent and Physical Features; Revolution of 1811; Formation of a
Constitution; Liberation of Quito; Crisis of 1828; Separation
of New Grenada, Venezuela, and Equator; State of the
Government since the Separation, 833
II. VENEZUELA.
Name, Physical Features, &c.; Discovery; State of the Country
under the Spanish Dominion; Termination of the Spanish
Dominion; Condition since, 837
III. EQUATOR.
Name, Extent, and Physical Character; Classes of the Inhabitants;
Subversion of the Spanish Authority; Condition since the
Spanish Rule, 841
IV. PERU.
Locality, Extent, and Physical Character; Condition at the time of
its Invasion by the Spaniards; Conquest by Pizarro; Condition
of the Country after the Conquest; Insurrection; Revolutionary
Movement; Declaration of Independence; Condition after the
Expulsion of the Spaniards, 845
V. BOLIVIA.
Name, Extent, and Physical Character; Overthrow of the Spanish
Power; Proclamation of Independence; Choice of Rulers under
the New Constitution; Present Condition, 855
VI. CHILI.
Extent, Physical Features, and Climate; Conquest by Almagro;
Revolution in the beginning of the Present Century; Final
Establishment of Independence; Subsequent Condition, 858
VII. BUENOS AYRES.
Name, &c.; Inhabitants, or Classes of People; Discovery and
Settlement; First Insurrection against the Government of
Spain; Progress and Changes of the New Government; Present
Condition of the Government, 863
VIII. URUGUAY.
Locality and Extent; Name and History; Constitution, 868
IX. BRAZIL.
Situation, Extent, &c.; Discovery and Settlement; Policy of the
Portuguese Government; Removal of the Portuguese Court to
Brazil; Constitution and Government, 870
X. PARAGUAY.
Situation, Extent, &c.; Insurrection and attempt at Revolution in
the latter part of the Eighteenth Century; Establishment of
Independence, and Despotic Government, 875
WEST INDIES.
Situation, Extent, &c.; Inhabitants; Political Divisions, 879
I. BRITISH WEST INDIES.
Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbadoes, Bahamas, St. Christopher, Bermudas,
and St. Vincent, 881
II. SPANISH WEST INDIES.
Cuba and Porto Rico, 885
III. FRENCH WEST INDIES.
Martinique and Guadaloupe, 887
IV. DUTCH WEST INDIES.
Curacoa, St. Eustatius, St. Martin, and Saba, 888
V. DANISH WEST INDIES.
St. Croix, St. John, and St. Thomas, 888
VI. INDEPENDENT ISLAND OF HAYTI.
Formerly called St. Domingo and Hispaniola, 888
APPENDIX.
XVII. ZACHARY TAYLOR. (_Continued from page_ 756.)
Proceedings in Congress; Death of Mr. Calhoun; Invasion of Cuba;
Convention with Great Britain; Death of Gen. Taylor, 902
XVIII. MILLARD FILLMORE, PRESIDENT.
Assumes the Government; Compromise Bill; Adjournment of
Congress, 911
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE.
Time stopping in his Course, &c. 13
Tailpiece--Discovery of Newfoundland, 18
Columbus and Cabot, 19
Northmen leaving Iceland, 21
Discovery of Labrador, 22
Incident in the Camp of the Northmen, 24
Columbus, 26
Columbus before Ferdinand and Isabella, 30
Columbus sets sail, 32
First Sight of Land, 36
Columbus and Natives of Cuba, 38
Columbus casting a Barrel into the Sea, 39
Tailpiece--Prairie Scene, 44
Tailpiece--Columbus at Hispaniola, 47
Early Settlements, 48
Early Settlers trading with the Natives, 50
Captain Smith saved from death, 55
Landing of the Pilgrims, 66
Visit of Samoset to the English, 67
Interview with Massasoit, 68
Boston founded, 73
Settlers emigrating to Connecticut, 76
Hooker addressing the Soldiers, 79
Gallup finds Oldham murdered, 80
Portsmouth founded, 84
Tailpiece--Indian Council, 95
Surrendering of New Amsterdam, 97
Charles II. signing Charter for Penn, 101
Tailpiece--The Maple, 103
Indian Wars, 104
Tailpiece--Indian War Dance, 108
Tailpiece--Savage Barbarities, 112
Smith selling Blue Beads to Powhatan, 115
Pocahontas disclosing a Plot, 118
Opecancanough borne to a Massacre, 121
Tailpiece--Ship before the wind, 124
New England Indian Wars, 125
Governor Winslow's Visit to Massasoit, 134
Governor Bradford and the Snake-skin, 143
Captain Atherton threatens Ninigret, 149
Captain Mason attacking the Pequod Fort, 156
Tailpiece--Camanche Wigwam, 160
Philip's War, 161
Flight of Philip from Mount Hope, 163
Captain Church and his Men hemmed in, 164
Attack on Brookfield, 166
Battle of Muddy Brook, 168
Swamp Fight, 172
Indian Stratagem, 176
Fight near Sudbury, 177
Indians attacked at Connecticut-river Falls, 180
Defence of Hadley, 182
Philip's Escape, 184
Death of Philip, 185
Capture of Anawon, 188
Burning of Schenectady, 191
Mrs. Dustan saving her Children, 196
Escape of Mrs. Dustan, 197
Tailpiece--Round Tower at Rhode Island, 199
Capture of Mr. Williams, 202
Reduction of Louisburg, 211
Tailpiece--Boston Harbor discovered, 213
Braddock's Defeat, 219
Battle of Lake George, 222
Destruction of Kittaning, 224
Destruction of the village of St. Francis, 230
View of Quebec, 231
Death of Wolfe, 235
Tailpiece--Peruvian Canoe, &c. 237
The Revolution, 238
Otis in the Council-chamber, 246
Procession at Boston, 249
Attack on the Governor's House, 250
Burning of the Effigy of Governor Colden, 251
Arrival of the First Man-of-war at Boston, 253
Boston Massacre, 255
Burning of the Gaspee, 257
Destruction of Tea, 259
Patrick Henry, 262
Tailpiece--Falls of St. Anthony, 265
Events of the Revolution, 266
Battle of Lexington, 268
Captain Wheeler and the British Officer, 269
Retreat of the British from Concord, 271
Tailpiece--Source of the Passaic, 273
President Langdon at Prayer, 276
Death of Pollard, 277
General Putnam, 278
Interview between Warren and Putnam, 279
Putnam saves the life of Major Small, 284
Death of Colonel Gardiner, 286
Tailpiece--View of Boston, 290
Messengers spreading news, &c. 291
Tailpiece--Penn laying out Philadelphia, 298
Evacuation of Boston, 299
House at Cambridge occupied by Washington, 300
Fortifying Dorchester Heights, 305
Putnam reading Declaration of Independence, 310
John Hancock, 317
Sergeant Jasper re-planting the Flag, 328
Tailpiece--The Cotton-plant, 332
Battle of Trenton, 347
Tailpiece--Cortez landing at St. Juan d'Ulloa, 352
General Wayne, 355
Marquis Lafayette, 356
Tailpiece--Franklin in Council, 359
Destruction of Gallies, 363
Burgoyne's Advance, 366
Burgoyne's Retreat, 372
Tailpiece--View on the Hudson, 377
American Commissioners and Louis XVI. 379
Tailpiece--The Genius of Liberty, &c. 390
The Sloop-of-war Vulture, 391
Arnold's Expedition through the Wilderness, 393
General Lincoln, 394
Death of General Wooster, 396
Arnold and the British Soldier, 397
General Arnold, 398
Major Andre, 401
Interview of Arnold and Wife, 409
Tailpiece--Capture of Major Andre, 414
Jasper on the Ramparts, 419
Death of De Kalb, 425
Charge of Colonel Washington, 428
Battle of Yorktown, 440
Washington taking leave of the Army, 444
Washington embarking at Whitehall, 446
Tailpiece--American Flag, 449
Naval Operations, 450
First Naval Engagement of the Revolution, 452
Silas Deane, 454
Randolph and Yarmouth, 463
Raleigh and Druid, 465
Jones setting fire to Ships at Whitehaven, 470
Paul Jones, 472
Le Bon Homme Richard and Serapis, 473
Sinking of the Bon Homme Richard, 479
Tailpiece--Ship on her Beam-ends, 487
Sir Henry Clinton, 494
Colonel Barre, 495
Lord Chatham, 500
Charles James Fox, 503
George Grenville, 506
Sir Guy Carlton, 511
Edmund Burke, 513
Tailpiece--Lugger near Shore, 519
Governments, 520
Franklin, 534
Tailpiece--Natural Bridge, 541
George Washington, 542
Inauguration of Washington, 547
John Adams, 571
Tailpiece--New York, from the East river, 589
Thomas Jefferson, 590
Tailpiece--Basket of Flowers, 610
James Madison, 611
Tippecanoe, 615
Constitution and Java, 629
Perry's Victory, 638
Battle of the Thames, 639
Creek Chiefs surrendering to Gen. Jackson, 641
Battle of New Orleans, 652
James Monroe, 656
Reception of Monroe, 658
Attack on Lieutenant Scott's Boats, 663
Taking the Fort at Pensacola, 665
Landing of Lafayette at New York, 668
Lafayette laying Corner-stone, &c. 669
Lafayette at Washington's Tomb, 670
John Q. Adams, 673
Removal of the Creek Indians, 676
Tailpiece--Agricultural Emblem, 682
Andrew Jackson, 683
Martin Van Buren, 701
Burning of the Caroline, 709
William Henry Harrison, 713
John Tyler, 715
James K. Polk, 725
Surprise of Captain Thornton and his Party, 732
Charge of Captain May, 736
American Army in Vera Cruz, 744
Colonel Harney at Cerro Gordo, 746
Battle of Churubusco, 748
Army crossing the National Bridge, 751
Zachary Taylor, 755
British America, 757
Tailpiece--Indians Hunting in Skins, 758
Champlain's Interview with the Algonquins, 760
Extermination of the Hurons, 764
Death of Wolfe, 771
Tailpiece--Tampico, 780
Nova Scotia, 781
Destruction of the Acadians, 785
Newfoundland, 793
Tailpiece--Vessels in the Offing, 796
Tailpiece--Icebergs, 799
Tailpiece--Winter in Lapland, 801
Mexico, 802
Marina acting as Interpreter, 805
Cortez burning his Ships, 806
Meeting of Cortez and Montezuma, 807
Montezuma on his Throne, 808
Death of Montezuma, 809
Noche Triste, 811
Texans flying to Arms, 827
Guatemala, 830
Alvarado marching on Guatemala, 832
New Grenada, 833
Venezuela, 837
Equator, 841
Tailpiece--Peruvian Peasants, 844
Peru, 845
Hualpa discovers the Mine of Potosi, 846
Manco Capac and his Wife, 847
Valverde addressing Atahualpa, 848
Pizarro in Cusco, 850
Bolivia, 855
Tailpiece--Mexican Women making Bread, 857
Chili, 858
Almagro marching against Chili, 859
Tailpiece--Araucanian Men and Women, 862
Buenos Ayres, 863
Uruguay, 868
Brazil, 870
Alvarez Cabral discovers Brazil, 872
Paraguay, 875
West Indies, 879
Millard Fillmore, 911
[Illustration]
INTRODUCTION
[Illustration: Time stopping in his course to read the Inscription
carved by the Muse of History.]
If it be remarkable that the Western Continent should have remained
unknown for so many centuries to civilized man, it is, perhaps, still
more remarkable that since its discovery and settlement, it should
have become the theatre of so many signal transactions, and have
advanced so rapidly to its present civil, religious, and political
importance. The history of every portion of it is interesting and
instructive; but more especially that portion occupied by the people
of the United States. A great work is in progress throughout the
entire continent; but the importance of the American Republic, with
which our fortunes are more immediately connected, is becoming
apparent with each revolving year. While, therefore, we propose to
make an historical survey of the several countries both of North and
South America, we shall dwell with greater particularity upon the
events which have signalized our own republican America. If not from
her present population, which, though increasing by a wonderful
progression, is still, in point of numbers, inferior to many other
nations; yet, from her wealth, her enterprise, her commercial and
political relations, she is entitled to rank among the most powerful
and influential nations on the globe. The eyes of the civilized world
are upon her; and with wonder, if not with jealousy, do they mark her
rapid and surprising advancement.
The _history_ of such a people must be full of interest. By what means
has her national elevation been maintained? But a little more than two
centuries have elapsed, since the first settlers planted themselves at
Jamestown, in Virginia, and the Pilgrim Fathers landed on Plymouth
Rock. They were then a feeble band. Before them lay a howling
wilderness. An inhospitable and intractable race rose up to oppose and
harass them. The means of living were stinted and uncertain. Famine
pressed upon them, and weakened them. The winters were cold and
piercing. Their habitations were rude and unprotective. Disease added
its sufferings and sorrows, and death hurried many of the few to an
untimely grave. Yet, amidst accumulated calamity, they gathered
strength and courage. Accessions from the mother-country were made to
their numbers. Other and distant stations were occupied. The forest
fell before them. Towns and villages rose in the wilderness, and
solitary places became glad. Savage tribes--after years of terror,
massacre, and bloodshed--retired, leaving the colonists to the
peaceful occupancy of the land, in all its length and breadth.
But they were still a dependant people--subject to the laws,
exactions, and oppressions of a proud and arbitrary foreign
government. That government, jealous of their growing importance,
adopted measures to check their aspirations, and to extend and
perpetuate the prerogatives of the crown. But it was impossible that a
people, sprung from the loins of fathers whose courage and enterprise
had been matured by years of conflict, should be either crushed, or
long thwarted in their plans. Oppressions served rather to strengthen
them; threats prompted to resolution, and served to inspire
confidence. And, at length, they arose to the assertion and
maintenance of their rights. They entered the field; and for years,
with all the fortunes of war apparently against them, they grappled
successfully with the colossal power of the British empire--thwarted
her counsels--conquered her armies--established their independence.
But a little more than seventy years has America been free from the
British yoke; yet, in that brief period, her advancement has
outstripped all the predictions of the most sanguine statesmen. With
but three millions of people, she entered the Revolutionary contest;
she now numbers more than twenty millions. Instead of thirteen
colonies, she embraces thirty free and independent states. Meanwhile,
she has continued to gather national strength and national importance.
Her wealth is rolling up, while her moral power is becoming the
admiration of the world.
These attainments, too, she has made amid convulsions and revolutions,
which have shaken the proudest empires, and spread desolation over
some of the fairest portions of the globe. On every side are the
evidences of her advancement. Genius and industry are creating and
rolling forward with amazing power and rapidity the means of national
wealth and aggrandizement. An enterprising, ardent, restless
population are spreading over our western wilds, and our cities are
now the creations almost of a day.
But by what means has this national elevation and prosperity been
attained? Shall we ascribe them to the wise, sagacious, and patriotic
men, who guided our councils and led our armies? Shall we offer our
homage and gratitude to WASHINGTON, FRANKLIN, ADAMS, OTIS, HENRY,
JEFFERSON, and a multitude of others, who periled fortune, liberty,
life itself, to achieve our independence, and lay the foundation of
our country's glory?
Let us do them honor; and a nation's honor and gratitude will be
accorded to them, so long as the recorded history of their noble
achievements shall last.
Theirs is no vulgar sepulchre: green sods
Are all their monument; and, yet, it tells
A nobler history than pillar'd pile,
Or the eternal pyramid. They need
No statue, nor inscription, to reveal
Their greatness.
But, while merited honor is paid to the sages and heroes of the
Revolution, and to the Pilgrim Fathers of an earlier age, let not the
hand of Providence be overlooked or disregarded.
On this point, the Puritans have left a noble example to their
posterity. The supplication of the smiles and blessings of a
superintending Providence preceded and accompanied all their plans and
all their enterprises. "God was their king; and they regarded him as
truly and literally so, as if he had dwelt in a visible palace in the
midst of their state. They were his devoted, resolute, humble
subjects; they undertook nothing which they did not beg of him to
prosper; they accomplished nothing without rendering to him the
praise; they suffered nothing without carrying up their sorrows to his
throne; they ate nothing which they did not implore him to bless." Nor
were the actors in the Revolutionary struggle insensible to the
necessity of the Divine blessing upon their counsels and efforts.
Washington, as well at the head of his army as in the retirement of
his closet, or amid some secluded spot in the field, looked up for the
blessing of the God of battles. That also was a beautiful recognition
of a superintending Providence, which Franklin made in the Convention,
which, subsequent to the Revolution, framed the Constitution. "I have
lived, sir, a long time," said he; "and the longer I live, the more
convincing proof I see of this truth, that _God governs in the affairs
of men_. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his
notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?"
Let it be remembered by the American people--by men who fill her
councils--by historians who write her history--by the young, who are
coming up to the possession of the rich inheritance, that whatever human
agencies were employed in the discovery, settlement, independence, and
prosperity of these states, the "good hand of God has been over and
around us," and has given to us this goodly land, with its religious
institutions--its free government--its unwonted prosperity.
Let not the historian, who writes--especially if he writes for the
_young_--be thought to travel out of his appropriate sphere, in an
effort to imbue the rising generation with somewhat of the religious
spirit of the fathers--to lead them to recognise the Divine government,
in respect to nations as well as individuals--to impress upon them that
sentiment of the "Father of his country," as just as impressive, viz:
"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity,
religion and morality are indispensable supports."
"When the children of the Pilgrims forget that Being who was the
Pilgrims guide and deliverer"--should they ever be so faulty and
unfortunate--when the descendants of the Puritans cease to
acknowledge, and obey, and love that Being, for whose service the
Puritans forsook all that men chiefly love, enduring scorn and
reproach, exile and poverty, and finding at last a superabundant
reward; when the sons of a religious and holy ancestry fall away from
its high communion, and join themselves to the assemblies of the
profane, they have forfeited the dear blessings of their inheritance;
and they deserve to be cast out from this fair land, without even a
wilderness for their refuge. No! let us still keep the ark of God in
the midst of us; let us adopt the prayer of the wise monarch of
Israel: "The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers; let
him not leave us nor forsake us; that he may incline our hearts unto
him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments and his
statutes and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers."
Such a regard for God--his laws--his institutions, and his service, is
obligatory upon the present generation, aside from those blessings which
may be justly anticipated as the reward of such reverence and obedience.
It is due to the memory of the Pilgrim Fathers. Never can we so worthily
and appropriately honor them, as to cherish the pious sentiments which
they cherished, and perpetuate the civil and religious institutions
which they founded.--It is due to the generation of our Revolutionary
era, which, impressed with a sense of the value of the inheritance
transmitted to them, periled life and fortune that they might transmit
that inheritance in all its fullness and in all its richness to their
posterity. We are the children of patriot heroes, who prayed and then
fought, and fought and then prayed.--It is due to ourselves, as we would
secure the admiration and gratitude of the generations which are to
follow us.--It is due to those generations which, by the blessing of
God, are to spread over and occupy the vast territory which now
constitutes the American republic.
Those generations! I see them rising and spreading abroad, as future
years roll on! What shall be their character--their regard for civil
and religious liberty--their peace, order, happiness, and prosperity,
may depend upon the example which we set, and the principles which we
inculcate. We are living and acting not only for the present, but for
the future. We are making impressions for all time to come. If, then,
our history for the future shall be as our history past--filled up
with divine blessings, and signal providential interpositions--if the
noble work begun, centuries since, is to go on--if the "fullest
liberty and the purest religion" are to prevail as time rolls on--if
this vast continent is to be inhabited by enlightened and happy
millions--we, who are now on the stage of action, must imitate the
example of that pilgrim band, which first landed on Plymouth Rock.
Under the influence of such an example transmitted from generation to
generation, we may hope that our beloved country will ultimately
become, if she is not already,
"The queen of the world, and the child of the skies."
Impressed with the importance of such sentiments himself, the author
will make no apology for offering them as, in his own view, an
appropriate introduction to a work chiefly designed for the benefit of
the rising generation.
[Illustration]
PART I.
UNITED STATES.
I.--EARLY DISCOVERIES.
[Illustration]
I. NORTHMEN. Claims for the Northmen--Voyage of
Biarné--Leif--Thorwald--Thorfinn--Helge and Finnboge.
II. COLUMBUS. Birth and Education of Columbus--Unsuccessful
application to several European Courts--Patronized by
Isabella--Sails from Palos--Early Discontent of his
crew--Expedients by which they are quieted--Discovery of
Land--First appearance of the Natives--Cuba and Hispaniola
discovered--Columbus sets sail on his return--Incidents of the
voyage--Marks of consideration bestowed upon him--Second
Voyage--Further Discoveries--Complaints against him--Third
Voyage--Discovery of the Continent--Persecuted by
Enemies--sent home in Chains--Kindness of Isabella--Fourth
Voyage--Return and Death.
III. SEBASTIAN CABOT. Discovery of the North American Continent by
Sebastian Cabot.
I. NORTHMEN.
No event, in the history of modern ages, surpasses in interest the
discovery of the American Continent. It has scarcely any parallel,
indeed, in the annals of the world; whether we consider the difficulty
of the undertaking or the magnitude of its consequences. Without any
serious question, the honor of the discovery belongs solely to
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS. Mankind, hitherto, have so awarded it, and
posterity will doubtless confirm the judgment. As, however, a claim to
a prior discovery by the _Northmen_ has been brought forward in recent
times, it becomes the impartiality of history to notice it, and to
give such an account of the circumstances on which the claim is
founded, as they may appear to deserve. Whether or not, at the
distance of some four or five centuries, the trans-Atlantic continent
had been discovered by the Scandinavian voyagers, the merits of the
great Italian are far from being affected by the fact.
[Illustration: Northmen leaving Iceland.]
The prominent incidents in this alleged ante-Columbian discovery, it
seems, are given on the authority of certain Icelandic manuscripts, the
genuineness, and even the existence of which, have formerly been doubted
by many; but which, there is now reason to suppose, are entitled to
credence. The general story may be received as probable. In the details,
there is often something too vague, if not too extraordinary, to entitle
it to any historical importance. The adventurous spirit, and even the
naval skill of the Northmen, are not a matter of doubt with any who are
acquainted with the history of the times to which reference is here
made. The seas and the coasts of Europe were the scenes of their
exploits--their piracies, their battles, or their colonization.
According to the Icelandic statements, Eric the Red, in 986, emigrated
from Iceland to Greenland, and formed there a settlement. Among his
companions was Herjulf Bardson, who fixed his residence at a place which
was called after him, Herjulfsness. Herjulf had a son, whose name was
Biarné, who, with his father, was engaged in trading between Iceland and
Norway. Biarné was absent on a trading voyage, when his father
accompanied Eric, on the emigration of the latter to Greenland. The son
returning to Iceland in a few months, and finding that Herjulf was
absent, sailed in pursuit of him. In the course of the sail, having been
enveloped in the fogs, he was carried to some unknown distance; but
after the fogs were dispersed, land was seen. As, however, it did not
answer the description given respecting Greenland, the party did not
steer for it. During a sail of several days, they came in sight of land
at two different times in succession; and at last, tacking about, and
carried by brisk and favorable winds in a north-west direction, they
reached the coast of Greenland. This tradition of Biarné's voyage,
allowing it to be authentic, would seem to indicate that he was carried
far down on the coast of America, and passed on his return the shores of
_Newfoundland_ and _Labrador_.
[Illustration: Discovery of Labrador.]
In consequence of this adventure, and the interest which the account
of it excited, a voyage of exploration was projected, and at length
put into effect. It was conducted by Leif, a son of Eric the Red, an
adventurous rover, who selected a company as adventurous as himself,
among whom was a German named Tyrker. It was in the year 1000 that the
voyage was made. After finding a shore in a direction similar to that
in which Biarné took, they landed, calling the region _Helluland_,
which was most probably _Labrador_. It was an iceberg-lined shore,
without grass or verdure. From this spot they put out to sea, and,
steering south, they came to another coast, low like the first, but
covered with thick wood, except the portion immediately skirting the
sea, which consisted of white sand. It was probably _Nova Scotia_,
named by them, however, _Markland_, or _Woodland_. They pursued their
voyage for two days, under the favor of a north-east wind, when they
discovered land for the third time. Here they disembarked on a part of
the coast, which was sheltered by an island. The face of the country
was found to be undulating, covered with wood, and bearing a growth of
fine fruits and berries. Taking to their vessel again, they proceeded
west in search of a harbor, which they were so fortunate as to find.
It was at the mouth of a river proceeding from a lake. They first made
the river and then the lake; in the latter they cast anchor. In this
spot they erected huts in which to pass the winter. When thus
established, Leif made a division of his company into two parties, for
the purpose, on the one hand, of watching the settlement, and, on the
other, of exploring the country.
In performing the latter service it happened, on one occasion, that the
German Tyrker, above named, failed to return at night. After much
anxiety and search, he was discovered, having found during his
wanderings a region which afforded an abundance of grapes. The country,
from this incident, was named _Vinland_ or _Wineland_. From the mention
which they made of the rising and the setting of the sun, at the
shortest day, it has been inferred that the island was _Nantucket_, and
the region called Vinland embraced the coast of _Massachusetts_ and
_Rhode Island_. They returned to Greenland the following season.
Thorwald, a brother of Leif, next undertook to make a voyage, to the
newly discovered land beyond the ocean. This was in 1002. We need not
mention the particulars, but may state generally that the adventurers
continued in Vinland till the year 1004, and that the expedition
terminated unfortunately in the death of Thorwald. He was killed in a
skirmish with certain Esquimaux, with whom the party came in contact in
three several boats. Before breathing his last, he gave directions as to
the spot where they should inter him. The rest returned to Greenland.
Following this adventure, the third son of Eric, named Thornstein,
embarked with his wife Gudrida, in search of the body of Thorwald. But
he never reached the country. He was eventually driven back to
Greenland, where he died.
The next expedition seems to have been a project to colonize the
country. The vessels were three in number, on board of which one hundred
and forty men embarked, who took with them all kinds of live stock. The
leaders on this occasion were Thorfinn, who married the widow of
Thornstein, Biarné Grimolfson, and Thorhall Gamlason. The enterprise
appears to have been attended with a measure of success. They erected
their tents, and fortified them in the best manner they were able, as a
protection against the natives. An incident of some interest is
mentioned as having occurred in their trade with the latter. These were
eager for arms, but as they were not suffered to become an article of
barter, one of the natives seized an axe, and, in order to test its
efficacy, struck a companion with it, who was killed on the spot. The
affair shocked them exceedingly; but in the midst of the confusion, the
axe having been seized by one who appeared to be a chief, was critically
inspected for a while, and then violently cast into the sea.
[Illustration: An Incident in the Camp of the Northmen.]
The period of their continuance in Vinland was three years. They found
it a beautiful country, while residing in it. Thorfinn had a son born to
him, whom he named Snorre, the first child of European descent born on
this continent, the ancestor of many distinguished personages now
living. Among them is the noted sculptor Thorwaldsen. Thorfinn and a
part of his company returned at length to Iceland. The remainder still
continued in Vinland, where they were afterwards joined by an expedition
led by two brothers, Helge and Finnboge, from Greenland. But this latter
enterprise ended tragically, a large number of the colonists having been
killed in a quarrel, which a wicked female adventurer in the expedition
had excited. A few other voyages to Vinland, either accidental or
designed, were made by the Northmen during the eleventh and twelfth
centuries, some of them connected with attempts to propagate
Christianity among the natives, but no interesting results are spoken
of, and the whole project of colonizing the new region seems to have
been not only abandoned, but to have passed from the minds of men. On
the supposition that the records are true, which in general may be
admitted, the colony could not have had a long continuance, and it is
certain that no remains of it have ever appeared, unless some
questionable accounts of the Jesuists, or the more questionable
inscriptions on Dighton-rock. It was not until the era of Columbus that
the world was awakened to the enterprise, or even to the thought of
discovering land beyond the Western ocean. Whether he knew or did not
know, respecting the adventures of the Scandinavians in those northern
seas, it is hardly to be supposed that he could have the remotest
conception that the country they called Vinland was the same as the
Indies, which he proposed to reach by sailing due west. The honor, first
of his theory, and then of his achievement, is therefore, in no degree
diminished, by the facts above narrated, so far as they may be believed
to be facts. He after all stands prëeminent among men, as the discoverer
of the new world. It was certainly, at that period, new to European
knowledge and adventure.
II. COLUMBUS.
[Illustration: Columbus.]
It is not ascertained in what year the birth of this illustrious
individual occurred. Some authorities have placed it in 1446, others
have removed it back eight or ten years farther. As he died in 1506,
and was said by Bernaldez, one of his cotemporaries and intimates, to
have departed "in a good old age of seventy, a little more or
less,"[1] it would seem, abating the vagueness of the expression, that
about 1436 was the period. The place of his birth also has been a
subject of controversy, but the evidence is decidedly in favor of
Genoa. His parentage was humble, though probably of honorable descent.
It is generally believed that his father exercised the craft of a
wool-carder or weaver. Christopher was the eldest of four children,
having two brothers, Bartholomew and Diego, and one sister, who was
obscurely connected in life. In his early youth he was instructed at
Pavia, a place then celebrated for education, and is said there to
have acquired that taste for mathematical studies in which he
afterwards excelled. Of geographical science he was particularly
enamored, as it became also to be the favorite study of an adventurous
age. It doubtless gave a direction, in some measure, to the course
which Columbus pursued in life. At the early age of fourteen years, he
began to follow the seas, and after continuing this profession for
more than sixteen years, he proceeded to Portugal, the country of
maritime enterprise at that era. Hither the adventurous spirits of
Europe repaired, where they sought their fortunes in this department
of business. Columbus mingled in the exciting scenes of the country
and the times. Sailing from thence, he continued to make voyages to
the various then known parts of the world, and while on shore, he
occupied his time in the construction and sale of maps and charts.
Thus furnished with all the nautical science of the times, and with a
large fund of experience, he was prepared to enter upon those
speculations, respecting the possibility of lands lying beyond the
western waters, the result of which, when put into practice, proved to
be so auspicious to the interests of mankind. What will not a single
thought, when pursued as it may be, sometimes effect! In our hero, it
brought to light the existence of a new world. His single object
appeared to be, to find the eastern shores of Asia, or some unknown
tract, by sailing due west.
How far that idea was original with him, it is not very material to
ascertain. If not the first individual to conceive it, he was the
first to carry it into execution. That land existed beyond the
Atlantic, was a conjecture merely of the ancients. Seneca comes the
nearest to a direct intimation, though as a poetic fancy it claims no
serious consideration. As the idea is given by Frenau, he says:
"The time shall come when numerous years are past,
The ocean shall dissolve the band of things,
And an extended region rise at last:
And Typhis shall disclose the mighty land,
Far, far away, where none have roamed before:
Nor shall the world's remotest region be
Gibraltar's rock, or Thule's savage shore,"
Ferdinand Columbus informs us, that his father's conviction of the
existence of land in the west was founded on--1, natural reason, or
the deductions of science; 2, authority of writers, amounting,
however, to vague surmises; 3, testimony of sea-faring persons, or
rather popular rumors of land, described in western voyages, embracing
such relics as appeared to be wafted from over the Atlantic to Europe.
What particular intimations he may have received, either from authors
or sailors, do not appear; since, in his voyage to Iceland, no mention
is made of his having learned the story of the Scandinavian voyages to
the northern portion of America. It is possible, however, that he may
have been informed of them; and the reason why no mention was made by
him was, as M. Humboldt conjectures, that he had no conception that
the land discovered by the Northmen had any connection with the region
of which he was in pursuit. The traditions which he may have met with,
and the speculations of the times, were realized in his view. So
strong was the conviction which had been wrought in his mind, from
whatever cause, he was willing to jeopard life and fortune to put it
to the test of experiment.
With this grand object before him, he first submitted his theory of a
western route to the Indies, to John the Second, king of Portugal. He
met with no countenance from this quarter. His project, in its
vastness, was in advance of the comprehension of the age. John was not
unwilling clandestinely to avail himself of information communicated
to him by Columbus, but he would enter into no stipulation to aid him
in the enterprise. Leaving the court of Lisbon in disgust, in the
latter part of 1484, Columbus repaired to the Spanish sovereigns,
Ferdinand and Isabella. The time of the application was peculiarly
unfavorable, as the nation was then in the midst of the Moorish war,
and needed for its prosecution all the pecuniary resources of the
state. The persons of influence also in the court, were destitute of
those enlarged views, which are essential to a just appreciation of
the scheme that fired the great mind of Columbus. With these causes of
discouragement, and the submission of his proposal on the part of the
sovereigns to a council chiefly of ecclesiastics, he had little reason
to expect a favorable issue. After waiting years in the most agitating
suspense and doubt (for the council would come to no decision), he was
preparing to abandon the suit. Pressing the court for a definite
answer at that juncture, they at last gave him to understand, that his
scheme was "vain, impracticable, and resting on grounds too weak to
merit the support of the government." In deep despondency he quitted
the court, and took his way to the south, as if in desperation, to
seek other patronage in other quarters.
From the period of his application to the Spanish court, to that at
which we are now arrived in his history, it would seem that he made
several attempts to interest other distinguished personages in his
scheme, particularly the citizens of his native Genoa; but the early
authorities so disagree among themselves, that the chronology of his
movements, previously to his first voyage, cannot be determined with
precision. It is certain, however, that while in the act of leaving
Spain, probably for the court of the French king, from whom he had
received a letter of encouragement, he was purposely detained by a
friend, Juan Perez, (who had formerly been a confessor of Isabella,)
for the purpose of trying the effect of another application to the
Spanish sovereigns. This measure, seconded by the influence of several
distinguished individuals, and occurring just at the triumphant
termination of the Moorish war, had well nigh proved successful at
once; but Columbus was again doomed to disappointment. The single
obstacle in the way now, was not the disinclination of Ferdinand and
Isabella, but what were deemed the extravagant demands of Columbus
himself. He would not consent to engage in the undertaking, except on
the condition that he and his heirs should receive the title of
admiral and viceroy over all lands discovered by him, with one-tenth
of the profits. This demand was the means of breaking up the
negotiations, and that at the moment when he seemed to be on the point
of realizing the visions which he had fondly indulged, through long
years of vexation, trouble, and disappointment. That he would consent
to dash those bright visions, rather than surrender one of the rewards
due to his service, is, in the language of our Prescott, "the most
remarkable exhibition in his whole life, of that proud, unyielding
spirit which sustained him through so many years of trial, and enabled
him to achieve his great enterprise, in the face of every obstacle
which man and nature had opposed to it."
[Illustration: Columbus before Ferdinand and Isabella.]
Columbus again having turned his back from the scene of the
negotiations, had proceeded only a few leagues distant, when he was
recalled by the royal message. The queen in the meanwhile had yielded
to the dictates of her own noble and generous nature, having been
convinced of the importance of the enterprise, by the powerful
representations of the friends of our hero. She said at once in
answer, "I will assume the undertaking for my own crown of Castile,
and will pledge my private jewels to raise the necessary funds, if the
means in the treasury should be found inadequate." The money, however,
was furnished by the receiver of the revenues of Arragon, and
subsequently refunded at the instance of Ferdinand.[2] The conditions
on which Columbus had insisted, in the event of discovery, were
finally granted. He was constituted by the united sovereigns, their
admiral, viceroy, and governor-general, of all such countries as he
should discover in the Western ocean. He was to be entitled to
one-tenth of the products and profits, within the limits of his
discoveries. These, with other privileges of a like kind, not
necessary to name here, were settled on him and his heirs for ever.
Thus possessing the royal sanction, Columbus immediately entered upon
the arrangements required to prosecute the voyage. Isabella urged it
forward to the extent of her power. Delay, however, unavoidably
occurred, on account of the opposition or indifference of the local
magistrates and the people where the equipment was to be made. This
obstacle was at length removed, by stern edicts on the part of the
government and by the energy of Columbus. The fleet consisted of three
vessels, one furnished by himself, through the assistance of his
friends, and was to sail from the little port of Palos in Andalusia.
Two of the vessels were caravels--that is, light vessels without
decks--the other was of a larger burden, though not amounting even to
an hundred tons. How such craft could survive the waves and storms of
the Atlantic, is one of the marvelous circumstances of the
undertaking. The number of men received on board amounted to one
hundred and twenty. The preparations having been finished, the
undaunted navigator set sail on the morning of the 3d of August, 1492,
having first with his whole crew partaken of the sacrament.
[Illustration: Columbus sets sail.]
He soon directed his course to the Canary islands, in consequence of the
condition of one of the vessels, called the Pinta, whose rudder had been
found to be unfit for service. This, after a detention of more than
three weeks, was repaired, and they then, on the 6th of September,
proceeded on their voyage. On the fourth day, land ceased to be in
sight, and now the fearful reality of their condition pressed upon the
minds of the sailors with overpowering weight. They had been pressed
into the service, and from the beginning were averse to the enterprise.
Columbus had reason, therefore, to expect the open manifestation of
discontent, if not insubordination and mutiny. The first exhibition of
their feelings, upon losing sight of land, was that of alarm and terror.
Many of them shed tears, and broke out into loud lamentations--all
before them seemed to be mystery, danger, and death. It was by no means
easy to quell their fears, and it required all the address of the
admiral to effect it. Their minds were, in a degree, soothed for that
time by the promises of land and riches, which he addressed to their
wants or their cupidity. Every unusual incident, however, on the
voyage, was calculated to awaken their gloomy and distressing
apprehensions, such as the sight of a part of a mast, when they had
sailed some one hundred and fifty leagues, and the variation of the
needles. The former presented to their imagination the probable wreck of
their own frail barks. The variation of the needle created surprise even
in the mind of the admiral, but to his crew the circumstance seemed
perfectly terrific. They felt as if the very laws of nature were
undergoing a change, and the compass was about to lose its virtues and
its power, as a guide over the waste of waters. Columbus, however, by
ascribing the variation of the needle to the change of the polar-star
itself, satisfied the minds of his pilots, inasmuch as they entertained
a high opinion of his knowledge of astronomy. The distance at which they
were every day carried from their homes, was a source of accumulating
uneasiness. Every sort of superstitious fear was indulged in. One while,
the prevalence of winds from the east, excited their apprehensions that
a return to Spain was impracticable. At another time, the slight
south-west breezes and frequent calms, causing the ocean to seem like a
lake of dead water, made them feel that they were in strange regions,
where nature was out of course, and all was different from that to which
they had been accustomed. Here they thought they might be left to
perish, on stagnant and boundless waters. Now, they seemed to themselves
to be in danger of falling on concealed rocks and treacherous
quicksands--then, of being inextricably entangled in vast masses of
seaweed which lay in their path. Although Columbus had contrived to keep
his men ignorant of the real distance they had come, yet the length of
time could but tell them that they must be far, very far from country
and home, and that their ever going on to the west, would at length
place the east too remote from them to hope ever reaching it. They had
been occasionally cheered with what were deemed indications of their
proximity to land, such as the flying of birds about their fleet, the
patches of weeds and herbs covering the surface of the water, and a
certain cloudiness in the distant horizon, such as hangs over land; but
these had proved fallacious; and the higher hope was raised by such
appearances, the deeper was its fall when the appearances passed away.
This state of things led to murmurs and discontent, and at one time, the
crew were on the point of combining in open and desperate rebellion. The
power which the great admiral possessed over the minds of men, was never
more signalized, than in putting down this spirit of insubordination and
mutiny. He was perfectly aware of their intentions, but preserved a
serene and steady countenance. He seemed intuitively to understand in
what way to address himself to the different portions of his company.
Some, he soothed with gentle words. Of others, he stimulated the pride
or avarice, by the offers of honors and rewards. The most refractory he
openly menaced with condign punishment, should they make the slightest
attempt at impeding the voyage.
After the experience of long-continued calms, the wind sprang up in a
favorable direction, and they were enabled efficiently to prosecute
their voyage. This was on the 25th of September, and the vessels
sailing quite near to each other, a frequent interchange of
conversation took place on the subject most interesting to them--their
probable position as to land. In the midst of it, a shout from the
Pinta was heard on board the Santa Maria, the admiral's ship, "Land,
land!"--the signal pointing to the south-west. Columbus, who had found
cause on other occasions to dissent from the opinions of his men, gave
way, in this instance, to the joyful feelings which were at once
excited in their bosoms: but it proved, at length, that what appeared
to be land, was nothing more than an evening cloud of a peculiar kind.
Thus were their hopes dashed, and nothing remained for them but to
press onward. Fain would the crew have turned back upon their course,
but the commander was sternly resolute on realizing his magnificent
project, and pressed forward still deeper into mid-ocean.
It is a necessary explanation of the character of this extraordinary
man, that he appeared all along to view himself under the immediate
guardianship of Heaven, in this solemn enterprise. He consequently
felt few or none of the misgivings which so strongly affected his
associates. For several days longer they continued on, till on the 1st
of October, they had advanced more than seven hundred leagues since
the Canary islands were left behind. Again the murmurs of the crew
were renewed, but, in this instance, became soon hushed by increasing
tokens of their nearness to land. Indeed, so sanguine were they on the
subject, that on the 7th of October, on board of the Nina, land was
again announced. But it proved a delusion, and all except Columbus
were ready to abandon hope. At the end of three days more, they saw
the sun, after renewed appearances betokening their neighborhood to
land, go down upon a shoreless horizon. At this time the turbulence of
the crew became clamorous--they insisted upon turning homeward, and
abandoning the voyage as a forlorn hope. The commander now, after
trying to pacify them by kind words and large promises, and trying in
vain, arose in the majesty of his undaunted heart, and gave them to
understand that all murmuring would be fruitless, and that, with God's
blessing, he would accomplish the purpose for which his sovereigns had
sent him on a voyage of discovery. Fortunately, at this juncture, when
the conduct of Columbus had become nearly desperate, the indications
of neighboring land could not be mistaken. Besides fresh weed, the
limb of a tree, a reed, and a small board, they picked up an
artificially carved staff. Soon despondency and rebellion gave way to
hope, and, throughout the day, every person on board of the little
fleet was on the watch for the long-wished-for land.
[Illustration: First sight of land from Columbus' ship.]
The following evening was a time of intense anxiety to Columbus. He
could but infer that he was near to the goal of his adventures and his
hopes. But was it so indeed? That was the question, and it must now be
soon decided. Would the night reveal it to him? Would its discoveries
settle for ever the truth of his theory, and bring to him the immortal
honor which he sought, as the end of all his toil and suffering? Taking
his station in a conspicuous part of his vessel, he maintained an
intense and unremitting watch. A few hours only had transpired, when
suddenly he thought he beheld a light glimmering at a great distance.
One and another was called to examine the appearance, in order to
confirm the commander in his impression, if indeed it was correct. They
gave their opinion in the affirmative. Soon, however, the light
disappeared, and few attached any importance to it, except Columbus.
They pursued their course until two in the morning, when from the Pinta,
which generally sailed ahead, the thundering signal was heard, the order
being that a gun should be fired as soon as land hove in sight. It was
indeed land at this time. It lay before them, now dimly seen, about two
leagues distant. The joy which Columbus and his crew felt at the sight,
surpasses the power of description. It is difficult, even for the
imagination, to conceive the emotions of such a man, in whose
temperament a wonderful enthusiasm and unbounded aspiration prevailed,
at the moment of so sublime a discovery. Utterance was given to his
intense feelings by tears, and prayers, and thanksgivings.
It was on the morning of Friday, 12th of October, 1492, that Columbus
first saw the new world. A beautiful, fragrant, verdure-crowned island
lay before him, and evidently populous, for the inhabitants were seen
darting, in great numbers, through the woods to the shore. That
greenhouse appearance, which the regions within the tropics are known
generally to assume, together with the purity and blandness of the
atmosphere, struck the senses of the voyagers, as though it had been
Eden itself. They could give vent to their feelings only in tears of
gratitude--in prayers and praises to God, who had conducted them to
such happy destinies. Having made the necessary preparations, Columbus
landed with his crew on the delightful shore, in an ecstasy of joy and
devotion, taking possession of the whole region in the name of his
sovereigns, and calling the island _San Salvador_. It proved to be one
of what has since been known as the Bahama islands.
The conduct and appearance of the natives were such as to show that
the Spaniards had no reason to fear their hostility or treachery.
Simple, harmless, naked, and unarmed, they seemed rather to be at the
mercy of their visitors. Equally timid and curious, they were at first
shy; but being encouraged to approach the strangers, they at length
became entirely familiar with them, and received presents with
expressions of the highest delight. The new comers to their shores
were thought to have dropped from the skies, and the articles bestowed
were received as celestial presents. All was a scene of wonder and
amazement indeed to both parties.
As Columbus supposed himself to have landed on an island at the
extremity of India, he gave to the natives the general appellation of
Indians, by which, as a distinct race, they have ever since been known.
[Illustration: Interview of Columbus with the Natives of Cuba.]
After having noticed the features of the new-found island
sufficiently, and learned what he was able from the natives in respect
to other lands or islands, and particularly in respect to the gold
they might contain, he explored the archipelago around, touched at
several of the groups, and finally discovered the larger and more
distant islands of Cuba and Hispaniola. Many interesting adventures
occurred during his sojourn among these islands, in his intercourse
with the natives, upon which we cannot enlarge. Suffice it to say,
that he succeeded according to his wishes in conciliating the
affections of the people, and in the extent of his discoveries for the
first voyage, but found a less amount of gold than he expected, and
was unfortunate in the shipwreck of the Santa Maria, the principal
vessel. His trials, also, with several of his subordinates in office,
were severe; as, on more than one occasion, they proved unfaithful to
his interests and disobedient to his commands.
[Illustration: Columbus casting a barrel into the sea.]
It was on the 4th of January, 1493, that Columbus set sail for Spain.
He left a part of his men in the island of Hispaniola (Hayti, in the
language of the original inhabitants), to occupy a fort he had built
near a harbor, which he had named _La Navidad_. While coasting on the
eastern side of the island, he met the Pinta, which had for a time,
under its disaffected captain, deserted from him. Joined by this
vessel again, they proceeded homeward on their voyage; but they met
with tempests, which their frail barks were little able to encounter.
The Pinta, being separated from the Nina, was supposed to have been
lost; but this proved to have be a mistake, as she reached Spain
nearly at the same time with the other caravel. At the time of their
greatest extremity, when all hope of safety had departed, Columbus,
anxious that the knowledge of his discovery might be communicated to
the world, wrote a brief account of his voyage; and having properly
secured it in a barrel, committed the latter to the ocean, in the hope
that it might afterwards be found, should he and his crew never see
land again.[3] But they were mercifully preserved, as the storm at
length subsided, and, within a few days, they reached the island of
St. Mary's, one of the Azores.
While he was at that island, where he had sought a refuge for his
wearied men and his own over-tasked body and mind, he encountered a
species of persecution most disgraceful to civilized society. It was
the result of the mean malignity of the Portuguese, who were piqued
that the honor of the discovery should not have been secured for
themselves, and was manifested by the imprisonment of a portion of his
crew, and other vexatious treatment. At length, regaining his men, he
set sail for home; but, meeting with tempestuous weather, he was
forced to take shelter in the Tagus. Here astonishment and envy seemed
to be equally excited by the knowledge of his discoveries; and, could
certain courtiers of the monarch have had their own way, the great
adventurer would have been stricken down by the hand of the assassin.
So black a deed of treacherous villany had been advised. The king,
however, treated him with generosity, and Columbus being dismissed
with safety, soon found himself entering the harbor of Palos, just
seven months and eleven days since his departure from that port.
His arrival in Spain excited the most lively feelings of astonishment,
joy, and gratitude. The nation was swayed by one common sentiment of
admiration of the man and his exploits. Ferdinand and Isabella, who
seemed to derive so much glory from his success, most of all
participated in this sentiment. He was the universal theme, and most
amply was he indemnified by the honors now bestowed upon him, and the
enthusiasm with which he was every where welcomed, for all the neglect
and contumely he had previously suffered, as a supposed insane or
fanatical projector. His progress through Spain was like the triumphal
march of a conqueror. But it is impossible, within the limited compass
of this narrative, to present any thing like an adequate idea of the
sensation which was produced throughout the nation and Europe at
large, by the events that had thus transpired, or to enumerate the
hundredth part of the marks of consideration, which "the observed of
all observers" received from prince and peasant--from the learned and
ignorant. The government confirmed anew to him all the dignities,
privileges, and emoluments for which he had before stipulated, and
others were added to them. But to Columbus, the most satisfactory
consideration accorded to him by his sovereigns at this time, was the
request to attempt a second voyage of discovery. For this, the
preparations were on a scale commensurate to the object in view.
The complement of the fleet amounted to fifteen hundred souls. Among
these were many who enlisted from love of adventure or glory, including
several persons of rank, hidalgos, and members of the royal household.
The squadron consisted of seventeen vessels, three of which were of one
hundred tons burden each. With a navy of this size, so strongly
contrasting with that of his former voyage, he took his departure from
the Bay of Cadiz on the 25th of September, 1493. He sailed on a course
somewhat south of west, instead of due west as before, and after being
upon the sea one month and seven days, he came to a lofty island, to
which he gave the name of Dominica, from having discovered it on Sunday.
The liveliest joy was felt by the numerous company, and devout thanks
were returned to God for their prosperous voyage.
Sad reverses, however, awaited the great commander during this voyage
of discovery. The garrison which he had left on the island of
Hispaniola had disappeared, and the natives seemed less favorably
disposed towards the white man than at first--a change which probably
accounts for the fate of the garrison. Columbus, indeed, added other
islands to the list of those before known, planted stations here and
there on the principal island above named, and showed his usual
unequaled energy and skill in the conduct of the expedition. But, as
he could not be every where at once, his absence from a place was the
sure signal of misrule and insubordination among that class of
adventurers who had never been accustomed to subjection or labor. His
cautious and conciliating policy in the treatment of the natives was
abandoned, where he could not be present to enforce it, and, the
consequence was, that they were aroused to resentment, on account of
the injuries inflicted upon them. The treatment of the female natives,
on the part of the colonists, was of that scandalous character
calculated to produce continual broils and collisions. Eventually, a
fierce warlike spirit was excited among portions of this naturally
gentle and timid people; but they proved to be unequal to the
civilized man, with the superior arms and discipline of the latter, in
hostile encounter, and were driven before him as the leaves of autumn
before a storm. There was such a war of extermination, that, in less
than four years after the Spaniards had set foot on the island of
Hispaniola, one-third of its population, amounting probably to
several hundred thousand, was destroyed.
Complaints were made by the colonists against the administration of
Columbus, so that eventually he felt the necessity of returning home
to vindicate his proceedings. Ferdinand and Isabella, however, took no
part with the malcontents against him. They treated him with marked
distinction; but it was evident that with the novelty of his
discoveries, the enthusiasm of the nation had passed away. It was
generally felt to be a losing concern. The actual returns of gold and
other products of the new world were so scanty, as to bear no
proportion to the outlays.
A third expedition was projected, and after various hindrances, arising
from the difficulty of meeting the expense, and the apathy of the
public, Columbus took his departure from the port of St. Lucas, May 30,
1498. Proceeding in a still more southerly direction than before, on the
1st of August following, he succeeded in reaching _terra firma_. He thus
entitled himself to the glory of discovering the great southern
continent, for which he had before prepared the way.
It is not necessary to detail the events of this expedition, except to
say, that it proved a source of untold evil and suffering to the
veteran navigator. After his arrival at Hispaniola, he was involved in
inextricable difficulties with the colonists, the final result of
which was, that he was sent home in chains. This shocking indignity
was the unauthorized act of a commissioner, named Boadilla, sent out
by the government to adjust the differences that had taken place. The
king and queen of Spain thus became unwittingly the cause of his
disgrace. This was too much for the kind and generous feelings of the
queen in particular. Columbus was soothed by the assurances of her
sympathy and sorrow for his trials. "When he beheld the emotion of his
royal mistress, and listened to her consolatory language, it was too
much for his loyal and generous heart; and, throwing himself on his
knees, he gave vent to his feelings, and sobbed aloud."[4] As an
indication of the continued confidence of the king and queen in his
fidelity, wisdom, and nautical skill, they proposed to him a fourth
voyage. To this he assented, with some reluctance at first; but,
cheered by their assurances, he quitted the port of Cadiz on the 9th
of March, 1502, with a small squadron of four caravels. This was his
last voyage, and more disastrous than any which preceded it. Among
other misfortunes, he was wrecked on the island of Jamaica, where he
was permitted to linger more than a year, through the malice of
Ovando, the new governor of St. Domingo. On his return, the 7th of
November, 1504, after a most perilous and tedious voyage, he was
destined to feel the heaviest stroke of all, in the death of his most
constant and liberal supporter, the queen; and, with her death, to
fail of that public justice which he had looked for as the crown of
all his labors, hardships, and sacrifices. The king, always wary and
distrustful, though he treated Columbus with high public
consideration, seems to have regarded him "in the unwelcome light of a
creditor, whose demands were never to be disavowed, and too large to
be satisfied." The great discoverer lived only a year and a half after
his return; and, though poorly compensated by the king in his last
days, he bore his trials with patience, and died on the 5th of May,
1506, in the most Christian spirit of resignation.
[Illustration]
FOOTNOTES:
[1] History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, by Wm. H. Prescott.
[2] History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, by
Washington Irving.
[3] It gives an interesting view of the depth of Columbus' solicitude
and grief, as well as of the peculiar spirit by which he was actuated in
his great enterprise, to learn the following from his own pen, in a
letter to his sovereign: "I could have supported this evil fortune with
less grief, had my person alone been in jeopardy, since I am debtor for
my life to the Supreme Creator, and have at other times been within a
step of death. But it was a cause of infinite sorrow and trouble to
think, that after having been illuminated from on high with faith and
certainty to undertake this enterprise; after having victoriously
achieved it, and when on the point of convincing my opponents and
securing to your highness great glory and vast increase of dominion, it
should please the Divine Majesty to defeat all by my death. It would
have been more supportable also, had I not been accompanied by others,
who had been drawn on by my persuasions, and who in their distress
cursed not only the hour of their coming, but the fear inspired by my
words, which prevented their turning back as they had at various times
determined. Above all, my grief was doubled when I thought of my two
sons, whom I had left in school at Cordova, destitute in a strange land,
without any testimony of the services rendered by their father, which,
if known, might have inclined your highness to befriend them. And
although, on the one hand, I was comforted by a faith, that the Deity
would not permit a work of such great exaltation to his church, wrought
through so many troubles and contradictions, to remain imperfect; yet,
on the other hand, I reflected on my sins, for which he might intend, as
a punishment, that I should be deprived of the glory which would redound
to me in this world." It is ever to be kept in mind, that Columbus had
the most exalted ideas of the effect of his discoveries on the extension
of Christianity. Connected with this pious motive, was the questionable
one of consecrating the wealth hence to be derived to the rescue of the
holy sepulchre, a project which he had contemplated. This faith or
enthusiasm runs through the whole tissue of his strange and chequered
life.
[4] Prescott's History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella.
III. SEBASTIAN CABOT.
Although the evidence of history establishes the claim of Columbus, as
the first discoverer of the new world, including in that term the West
Indian archipelago, yet there were other meritorious voyagers, who
extended the knowledge of these new regions, thus laid open to mankind.
Others there were, who, stimulated by his success, and following his
steps, enlarged the boundaries of geographical science even beyond the
actual discoveries of Columbus. Among these voyagers was the admirable
Sebastian Cabot, whose merits have never been fully acknowledged as they
deserved to be, having been overlooked, in a measure, through the
greater admiration bestowed on his predecessor. He belonged to a family
distinguished for their spirit of adventure, as his father before him
was an eminent navigator, and he was associated with two brothers,
apparently possessing the same love of a sea-faring life. The father of
Sebastian was an Italian, but the son was born in Bristol, England, in
1477. The family was fitted out with five ships, for the purpose of
discovery, by the English government, who granted a patent, under date
of March 6th, 1496, to John Cabot, the father, as leader of the
expedition. He was, however, rather the overseer or adviser of the
concern, than the leader. The real conductor of it was Sebastian, who,
through his modesty, failed to secure for himself that consideration
from the world which was his due.
His object, like that of Columbus, was to find a passage to India; but
not in the direction which the latter took. The idea which possessed the
mind of Cabot was, that India might be reached by sailing _north-west_.
He left Bristol in the spring of 1497, and on the 24th of June, in
pursuing his course, he came unexpectedly, and to his disappointment, in
sight of land, and was thus impeded as to his progress in that
direction. It was the North American continent which he had approached.
The land seen was the coast of Labrador, as also an island that
received the name of St. John's island, from the day on which it was
discovered. Cabot has recorded, in all simplicity, how the affair
happened. He supposed himself to be on the direct route to India, "but,
after certayne dayes," said he, "I found that the land ranne towards the
north, which was to mee a great displeasure." St. John's island he
describes as "full of white bears, and stagges far greater than the
English." From this point he steered his course towards the bay since
called Hudson's bay; but, after several days' sailing, he yielded to the
discontent of the crew, and returned to England.
Cabot conducted a second expedition, which sailed from Bristol in
1498. He reached Labrador again, where he left a portion of his crew,
in order to commence a colony, while he proceeded on his voyage. But
success did not reward his attempt, and, on his return to Labrador, he
found the colonists, from the sufferings they had experienced in that
cold and sterile region, clamorous for a return. He accordingly
submitted to their demands, and, laying his course to the south as far
as the Cape of Florida, he rëcrossed the ocean. The notes which he
took of his voyage have unhappily been lost.
In 1517 he was again employed, in an expedition from England; but though
he penetrated to about the sixty-seventh degree of north latitude, and
entered Hudson's bay, giving names to various places in the vicinity, he
was compelled to return, through the cowardice of an officer high in
command, Sir Thomas Pert, and the disaffection of the crew. They had not
the spirit to encounter the rigor and privations of the climate.
Notwithstanding these and his subsequent services for his country, he
was suffered in the end to fall into poverty and neglect. His life was
filled with adventures and changes. For several years he was employed
in the service of the king of Spain, and during one of the expeditions
on which he was sent from that country, he made the important
discovery of the Rio de la Plata. He occasionally returned to
England, and at length made it his resting-place. Gloom overshadowed
his latter days. His pension, at the accession of Mary, was suspended
for two years, and, though restored, it was diminished the one-half.
He survived to a great age, being over eighty years, dying as is
supposed in London, but _when_ no record shows. Not the slightest
memorial points out the place of his sepulture.
It is quite certain that the date of Cabot's discovery of the Western
continent is more than one year anterior to that of Columbus, the
latter having reached the southern portion of it August 1st, 1498,
while Cabot reached the northern portion June 24th, 1497. Amerigo
Vespucci, who has carried away the honor of giving name to the
continent, did not reach it until nearly two years after the English
adventurer. But Columbus, in his first voyage, having ascertained the
existence of regions beyond the Atlantic, became in effect the
earliest and real discoverer. Except for his sublime theory and
adventurous experiment, the age, probably, would not have furnished a
Sebastian Cabot or an Amerigo Vespucci.
[Illustration]
II.--EARLY SETTLEMENTS.
[Illustration]
I. VIRGINIA, OR SOUTHERN COLONY.
UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO SETTLE AMERICA--Expeditions of Sir Humphrey
Gilbert--Sir Walter Raleigh--Sir Richard Grenville--Sir John
White-First permanent settlement at Jamestown--Colonists early
in want--Dissensions in their Councils--Hostility of the
Indians--Capture of Captain Smith--Generous conduct of
Pocahontas--Gloomy condition of the Colony--Timely arrival of
assistance--Returning prosperity--Establishment of a Provisional
government--Introduction of Negro Slavery--Cruel Massacre of the
Colonists.
When the new world, as America has since been familiarly called, was
opened to the enterprise and cupidity of Europeans, it became an
object to effect settlements in it from time to time. Accordingly,
during a period of more than one hundred years from the discovery of
San Salvador by Columbus, attempts were made for this purpose, either
by adventurers in search of other discoveries, or by expeditions
fitted out to occupy regions already known. So far, however, as the
northern portion of the continent was concerned, these attempts proved
entirely without success. There was no want of excitement and effort
at this remarkable era, on the part of _individuals_. The strange
story of the voyages of Columbus awakened the spirit of adventure in
Europe, as it was never felt before. Vessel after vessel, and fleet
after fleet, were despatched to the new-discovered continent, but the
object in view was rather to find gold than a home; and even where the
latter was sought, the preparations were either inadequate, or the
undertaking was indifferently contrived and managed. Sebastian Cabot,
who discovered Newfoundland; James Cartier, who first entered the Gulf
of St. Lawrence; Ferdinand de Soto, who first ascertained the
existence of the Mississippi; Sir Walter Raleigh, among the earliest
adventurers to Virginia, and Bartholomew Gosnold, to whom Cape Cod was
first known, and all of whom attempted settlements for a longer or
shorter period, were unsuccessful, and disappointed in the end. The
English were not thoroughly engaged in the business of colonizing
America, until the latter part of the sixteenth century, when several
successive attempts were made to settle Virginia. The first expedition
was conducted by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, who failed in his object,
having never reached Virginia; and being shipwrecked, perished with
all his crew on the return voyage to England. In 1584, the enterprise
was confided to the auspices of Sir Walter Raleigh, who, in the spring
of that year, despatched two small barks, under the command severally
of Amidas and Barlow. After going much farther south than was
necessary, and experiencing the sickness incident to the season, they
proceeded northerly till they made a harbor, taking possession of the
adjoining land, "for the queen's most excellent majestie," and in a
short time afterward came to the island of Roanoke. Nothing was
effected by this voyage, except a little trafficking with the natives,
and the favorable account which was given of the country, upon the
return of the expedition. In the third expedition, which was conducted
by Sir Richard Grenville, under Sir Walter, in 1585, a company was
landed on Roanoke, consisting of one hundred and eight persons, who,
upon the return of the ship, were left to settle the country. But
being reduced to extremities for want of sustenance, and by the
hostility of the Indians, they all returned to England the next year
with Sir Francis Drake. In the mean while, 1585, Sir Walter Raleigh
and his associates made a voyage to Virginia, taking supplies for the
colony; but after spending some time in the country, and not finding
the colonists, they returned to England.
[Illustration: Early Settlers trading with the Natives.]
In the earlier attempts at settlement, after the spirit of conquest and
adventure had been somewhat satiated, the object in view, so far as the
English were engaged in it, was the acquisition of tributary provinces,
and the wealth which they would bring to the parent states. In this line
of policy, England but followed the example of Spain and Portugal, yet
with far less energy, and with no manner of success. The signal failures
that were experienced turned attention, at length, to more sober and
rational projects--to regular colonization and commerce. But the
success, even here, was quite indifferent for several years. Mercenary
views obtained the precedence. That moral heroism, which submits to any
extremity of toil and self-denial for the objects of religious faith,
could not be summoned to the support of these merely secular adventures.
So far as colonization was calculated upon as a source of wealth
directly, it did not feel the influence of a self-sustaining motive. It
needed, as will soon be seen, other views of colonization, to render the
scheme completely successful, in regions remote from tropical riches and
luxuries. What more might have been done to insure success, had the
kings and princes of Europe been at leisure to prosecute the object with
the means in their power, is not now to be ascertained. It is clear,
from the history of the times, that they could ill afford the necessary
leisure, in consequence of the multiplicity and weight of their own
individual concerns. Wars, negociations, schemes of policy, and the
adjustment of ecclesiastical relations, occupied the rulers of England
and France, as also Germany and nearly all the continent, almost
exclusively through the sixteenth century. Of that which was achieved in
the way of discovery and temporary settlement, in the northern portion
of the American continent, much was left to individual enterprise and
resources; and the universal failure of permanent colonization was
almost the unavoidable result, connected, indeed, with the mercenary
motive and bad management with which it was prosecuted.
The first settlement of a permanent character, effected by the English
in North America, was at _Jamestown_, in Virginia, in 1607. To that
portion of the continent, as has been just detailed, more numerous and
vigorous efforts at settlement had been directed than to any other on
the coast, and with what results has also appeared. No one can read
the account of these early and unfortunate attempts to settle our
country, without deeply lamenting the fate of those brave adventurers
who were engaged in them. In the Virginia enterprise, religion and its
blessings were not the direct moving influences on the minds of the
adventurers; but they were a gallant and public spirited class of the
English people, and many of them of the better orders of society.
Their failure, however, did not check the spirit of enterprise; a
settlement was determined on, and it was providentially effected.
Under the sanction of a grant from King James, of the southern equal
half of the territory lying between the thirty-fourth and forty-fifth
degrees of latitude, an association was constituted, called the London
Company, who undertook the colonization of their portion of the
country. This was called the _Southern Colony_. The expedition
consisted of three small vessels, under the command of Captain
Christopher Newport, a man of great nautical experience. Neither they
who were designed for the magistracy, nor the code of laws, could be
known until the arrival of the fleet in Virginia, when the sealed
orders, committed to the commander, might be broken. It would seem,
from the early accounts, that a portion of the emigrants were but
little influenced by the considerations of religion or propriety, from
the disorders that occurred during the voyage; but their pious
preacher, Mr. Hunt, at length, "with the water of patience and his
godly exhortations (but chiefly by his true-devoted examples) quenched
these flames of envy and dissension."
In searching for Roanoke, they were driven by a storm to a different
part of the coast; the first land they made being a cape, which they
called Cape Henry. Thus discovering and sailing up the Chesapeake bay,
they came, at length, to a place suited to their purpose. Here they
commenced in earnest their great work of settlement, calling the place
_Jamestown_, in honor of King James. According to directions, the box
containing the orders was opened, and the names of Bartholomew
Gosnold, John Smith, Edward Wingfield, Christopher Newport, John
Radcliffe, John Martin, and George Kendall, were found as constituting
the council. These were to choose a president from among themselves,
for a year, who, with the council, should conduct and govern the
colony. Mr. Wingfield was elected president, while one of the most
distinguished of them, Captain John Smith, on account of suspicions
entertained respecting his ambitious views, was excluded, for a time,
from the council. The plan of government was, that matters of moment
were to be examined by a jury, but determined by the major part of the
council, in which the president had two votes.
While erecting accommodations for themselves, and during the absence of
a portion of the men on discoveries in the country, they were molested
by the savages, with some small loss, and were in danger of total
extirpation, "had it not chanced that a crosse-barre, shot from the
ships, stroke down a bough from a tree amongst them (the savages), that
caused them to retire." These, it seems, on other occasions, after
troubling the planters, "by the nimbleness of their heeles, escaped."
What with labor by day, and watching by night--with felling trees, and
planting the ground--with resisting hostile attacks, rëloading ships,
and effecting governmental business--the settlers found their hands and
their hearts fully, and often painfully, occupied. Several weeks were
spent in this manner, and after adjusting their disputes, and receiving
Smith into the council, with a handsome remuneration for the wrong he
had received, they all partook of the Holy Communion, the savages at the
same time desiring peace with them. On the 15th of June, 1607, Captain
Newport returned to England with the intelligence of their success,
leaving in Virginia one hundred emigrants.
The departure of Newport was the signal for want, and an increase of
their difficulties. While the vessels were with them, provisions, at
some rate, were to be had; but after they left, "there remained
neither taverne, beere-house, nor place of reliefe, but the common
kettell. Had we beene as free from all shine as gluttony and
drunkenness, we might have been cannonized for saints--we might truly
call it (the damaged grain) so much bran than corne, our drink was
water, our lodgings castles in the air: with this lodging and diet,
our extreme toil, in bearing and planting pallisadoes, so strained and
bruised us, and our continual labor, in the extremity of the heat, had
so weakened us, as were cause sufficient to have made us miserable in
our native country, or any other place in the world."[5] This was
truly a hard lot--through the summer they lived on the products of the
sea. During that time, they buried fifty of their number. At the
point, however, of their greatest scarcity, they were happily supplied
with fruit and provisions by the Indians.
Their difficulties were greatly increased by the perverseness or
incapacity of several of their council. In this body, changes and
deposals took place from time to time, until the management of every
thing abroad, fell into the hands of Captain Smith. Of this
extraordinary man, much might be related, were there space; but we can
pursue only the course of events as they occurred in the settlement of
this country. In the mean while, by his energy and example in labor,
"himselfe alwayes bearing the greatest taske for his own share," he
set the men effectually to work in providing for themselves
comfortable lodgings. This done, the necessity of procuring a more
permanent supply of provisions, and of receiving the friendship of the
natives, or subjecting them to the power of the colonists, engaged him
for a period in the most daring projects. In this, he passed through a
wonderful vicissitude of fortune--the colony in the mean while
sustaining a precarious existence, by means of the dissensions that
prevailed, the hostility of the Indians, and the sickness that wasted
the whites. On one occasion, while exploring the country, after he
left his boat, and was proceeding in company with two Englishmen, and
a savage for his guide, he was beset with two hundred savages. The
Englishmen were killed; the savage he tied to his arm with his garter,
using him as a buckler. Smith was soon wounded and taken prisoner; but
not until he had killed three of the Indians. The fear inspired by his
bravery checked their advance, till he sunk to the middle in a miry
spot which was in his way, as he retreated backward. Even then they
dared not come near him, till, being nearly dead with cold, he threw
away his arms. Upon being taken, he presented to their king a round
ivory compass, which was the means of saving him from instant death.
Just as they were preparing to pierce him with their arrows, the
chief, lifting the compass, they all laid down their bows and arrows,
at the same time releasing him from his pitiable situation.
[Illustration: Smith saved from Death.]
At length he was brought to Powhatan, their emperor. It soon became
evident that they were preparing to put him to death after their
peculiarly fantastic and barbarous ceremonies. A long consultation was
held, and the conclusion was, "two great stones were brought before
Powhatan, then as many as could lay hands on him dragged him to them,
and thereon laid his head; and being ready with their clubs to beate
out his brains, _Pocahontas_, the king's dearest daughter, when no
entreaty could prevail, got his head into her armes, and laid her owne
upon his, to save him from death: whereat the emperor was contented he
should live."
Friendship with the whites soon followed this event. Smith was taken
to Jamestown by his guides, and contracts were made with the Indians
by means of presents, which secured a portion of their territory to
the English. Every few days, Pocahontas with her attendants brought to
Captain Smith provisions in such quantity as to save the lives of the
colonists.
This condition of things could not always last: the support thus
received could be but precarious at the best; and it happened favorably
that, for a period, the spirits and courage of the small band of
emigrants were sustained by the arrival of two ships from England, laden
with supplies, and bringing a complement of men. They arrived indeed at
different times, having been separated by stormy weather. In consequence
of these arrivals, and one other before the end of the year 1608, the
number of colonists amounted to nearly three hundred.
In 1609, a new charter was granted to the London company, with enlarged
privileges, as well as more definite limits, and with the addition of
five hundred adventurers. Sir Thomas West, Lord De la War, was now
appointed governor for life; Sir Thomas Gates, his lieutenant; Sir
George Somers, admiral; and other high officers were appointed for life.
By the new charter, the right of absolute property was vested in the
company; the crown to receive one-fifth of all ore of gold and silver
found there for all manner of services. The governor, though unable
himself immediately to leave England, lost no time in fitting out a
fleet for Virginia. Of the nine ships constituting the expedition, eight
arrived in season at Jamestown. The other, having Sir Thomas, the
admiral, on board, was wrecked on the Bermudas; and it was not until
they could fit up craft to convey them to Virginia, that they reached
Jamestown, which was in the spring of the following year. This disaster
and delay seemed to be highly providential in the end, as the colonists
were rëunited with one hundred and fifty men, and a full supply of
provisions, at a time when they had been reduced to the greatest
extremities. Captain Smith, disabled by a severe accidental wound, had
returned to England. In consequence of his departure, the settlement had
been thrown into great confusion. Complaints, disputes, and
insubordination ensued; the savages became hostile, and often imbrued
their hands in the blood of the whites; and finally, starvation followed
in the train of the other calamities. Roots, herbs, acorns, walnuts,
starch, the skins of horses, and even human flesh, were devoured in
order to support life. In a few days more, had not relief been brought
to them, the whole colony would probably have perished.
On the arrival of Sir Thomas, the affairs of the settlement seemed so
desperate, that it was determined to return with the miserable remnant
to England. In putting the plan into execution, and just as they were
leaving the mouth of the river, the long-boat of Lord De la War was
descried. As he had three ships well furnished with provisions, the
colonists were persuaded to return, and renew their efforts to settle
the country. This was on the 9th of June, 1610, and proved to be the
crisis of the colony. It was now, in the providence of God, destined
to live. Improvements began to be made--forts were erected--and the
former idleness and misrule of the people in a great measure
disappeared. In the spring of the succeeding year, however, the health
of Lord De la War became seriously affected, and he consequently
returned to England. The administration was then committed to Sir
Thomas Dale for a short period. He acquitted himself well in it,
though he had some difficulty with the colonists, who had not all been
reduced to the requisite order and submission. The government passed
into the hands of Sir Thomas Gates, upon his arrival at Jamestown, in
August, 1611. He came over with a fleet of six ships, and three
hundred men, bringing with him kine and other cattle, munitions of
war, and a large supply of provisions.
Being thus strengthened, the English extended their domain from time
to time. In the course of the present year, they built a town, which
they called Henrico, in honor of Prince Henry, and in the subsequent
year, they seized a place called Apamatuck, on account of some injury
they had received from its inhabitants. Here they built a town, which
they called the _New Bermudas_. About this period, a Captain Argal,
sailing up the Patawomeakee, secured Pocahontas by stratagem; the
consequence of which was, her acquaintance with an English gentleman,
named John Rolfe, and her marriage to him, together with peace between
the whites and Powhatan.
The plan of providing for the colony was now changed. Instead of
feeding out of the common store, and laboring jointly together, the
people were allowed to hold each a lot of his own, with a sufficient
time to cultivate it. This change produced the most beneficial
results, as it prevented the idleness and inefficiency which are apt
to attend a common-stock social establishment, and multiplied, in a
ten-fold degree, the amount of their provisions. The experiment having
been so propitious, the original plan of a community of labor and
supply was finally abandoned. The government of the colony at this
time was again in the hands of Sir Thomas Dale; the former governor,
Sir Thomas Gates, having returned to England in the spring of 1614.
Governor Dale continued about two years, superintending satisfactorily
the affairs of the colony, and, having chosen Captain George Yeardley
to be deputy-governor, he returned to England, accompanied by
Pocahontas and her husband. Pocahontas became a Christian and a
mother; and it may be added, that her descendants, in a subsequent
age, inherited her lands in Virginia, and that some of the first
families of that state trace from her their lineage.
Yeardley applied himself to the cultivation of tobacco, and was highly
successful in an attack on the savages, who refused to pay their annual
tribute of corn. He continued in the colony about a year, when, by an
appointment made in England, the government devolved on Captain Argal,
before named. Argal found Jamestown in a bad condition; the dwellings,
which were slight structures, had mostly disappeared, and the public
works neglected or in decay, and "the colonie dispersed all about,
planting _Tobacco_." A reformation to some extent was effected. At this
period, 1617, more colonists arrived; but it would seem, from a remark
in a narrative of that date, that the number of the higher classes of
society exceeded their wants; "for, in Virginia, a plaine souldier, that
can use a pickaxe and spade, is better than five knights, although they
were knights that could break a lance; for men of great place, not
inured to those encounters, when they finde things not suitable, grow
many times so discontented, they forget themselves, and oft become so
carelesse, that a discontented melancholy brings them to much sorrow,
and to others, much miserie." When it was ascertained that great
multitudes were preparing, in England, to be sent, the colonists, in a
communication to the council, entreated that provisions might be
forwarded as well as people, and gave the company to understand, "what
they did suffer for want of skilful husbandmen and meanes to set their
plough on worke, having as good land as any man can desire."
In the year 1619, the settlements of Virginia were favored with the
establishment of a provincial legislature, which was constituted of
delegates chosen by themselves, as they were divided into eleven
corporations. The first meeting of the legislature was on the 19th of
June, having been convoked by the governor-general of the colony. This
was a great and desirable change from the sort of vassalage in which
they had previously lived. This general assembly debated and decided
all matters that were deemed essential to the welfare of the colony. A
great addition was made to the number of the colonists the two
following years, among whom were one hundred and fifty young women, of
good character, designed as the future wives of the colonists. During
the summer of 1620, a Dutch armed ship arrived at the colony, and sold
them twenty negroes, at which period the system of slave holding, with
its attendant crimes and evils, commenced in this country.
The year 1621 was rendered memorable by the arrival of Sir Francis
Wyatt, who brought with him, from the London company, a more perfect
constitution and form of government, than the colony had previously
enjoyed, although the general representative character of its
government had been established in 1619. The following year was
rendered still more memorable by the massacre of a large number of
whites, through the treachery of the Indians. The instigator and
executor of this tragedy was the successor of Powhatan, named
Opecancanough. He had enlisted the savages in all the vicinity in the
infernal plot. The colonists, in the security of friendship and good
understanding, which had existed between them and that people, were
wholly off their guard, and unprepared for the blow. It was inflicted
simultaneously, at a time agreed upon, and three hundred and
forty-seven men, women, and children, were at once butchered, in
several and separate places. It had been universal, but for the
providence of God. A converted Indian, coming to the knowledge of the
plot the night before its execution, disclosed it to the whites in
season to save the greater number of settlements. The Indians, in
their turn, now suffered the vengeance of the colonists, who felt
authorized to procure the means of future security against similar
acts of treachery. The emigrations had been so numerous, through the
few preceding years, that the colonists, at this time, amounted to
several thousands. Thus the people, with various fortune, and after
incredible hardships, had placed their colony on a firm basis, having
learned many useful lessons from their own errors, imprudence, or
sufferings. And such was the beginning of the American republic in its
southern portion, nearly two hundred and fifty years ago.
FOOTNOTE:
[5] Smith's History of Virginia.
II. NEW ENGLAND, OR NORTHERN SETTLEMENTS.
PLYMOUTH--Massachusetts--Connecticut--New Haven--New
Hampshire--Rhode Island--Maine--Vermont--Character of the
Early Settlers.
The settlement of _New England_ commenced at Plymouth in 1620. This
part of the continent between Penobscot and Cape Cod, had been
carefully explored in 1614, by Captain Smith. He says, respecting it:
"Of all the foure parts of the world I have yet seen not inhabited,
could I have but means to transport a colony, I would rather live here
than any where; and if it did not maintaine itselfe, were we but once
indifferently well fitted, let us starve." Such was the opinion early
formed of the desirableness of this region for colonization. Charles,
Prince of Wales, was pleased to call it New England, on account of the
favorable impression he received respecting it, from Smith's chart and
description. This country was settled by a class of people very
different, in many respects, from that which emigrated to the southern
colony. The latter, for the most part, as has been seen, were mere
adventurers, having in view the improvement of their secular
interests, or the _eclat_ of successful enterprise. The colonists of
New England sought chiefly the boon of religious freedom for
themselves and their descendants, and through it the advancement of
the Christian church in the world--a boon of which they had been
deprived in their native land. The ground of this disfranchisement,
was their non-conformity to the established English church, or
separation from it. Having, while members of that church, devised and
sought a greater purity in its worship without success, they at length
separated themselves from it, and formed a distinct worshiping
community. For thus professing to follow the _pure_ word of God, in
opposition to traditions and human devices, they were in derision
termed _Puritans_. In the progress of their religious views, and of
the persecuting spirit of the government, they passed from mere
puritanism, or efforts at greater purity in worship and in manners,
to non-conformity, and from non-conformity to dissent. From
difficulties in regard to the ritual of the church, they proceeded to
doctrines. The Puritans and the universities denied a portion of the
Apostles' Creed, so called: "advocated the sanctity of the Sabbath and
the opinions of Calvin; his institutions being read in their schools,
while the Episcopal party took the opposite side, and espoused the
system of Arminius." Both under Elizabeth and James, conformity was
insisted on. The latter declared, "I will have one doctrine, one
discipline, one religion, in substance and ceremony. I will make them
conform, or I will hurry them out of the land, or else worse." And he
did hurry out of the land many of those who had become obnoxious to
him; while the others were more cruelly hindered from leaving the
country, to suffer from contempt, poverty, or a lingering death in
imprisonment. Their attempts to escape were frequently frustrated, and
it was not without great vexation and loss, that portions of this
persecuted people exiled themselves from their native country. Their
first place of refuge was Holland, where religious toleration had been
established by law. The leader of the emigrants, on this occasion, was
the able and pious Mr. John Robinson, who has since been considered as
the father of that portion of the Puritans who were the founders of
New England. They successively left England, as many as found it in
their power, in the year 1606, and the two following years. Their
first place of residence was Amsterdam; but in 1609 they removed to
Leyden, with a view to avoid some difficulties that were felt or
foreseen in the former place. Here they were received with kindness,
and continued several years in a flourishing condition, under the
faithful labors of their pastor. In the mean while, notwithstanding
their general prospects, there were causes in operation which rendered
a change of location, in their case, extremely desirable. These were
the unhealthiness of the low countries where they lived; the hard
labors to which they were subjected; the dissipated manners of the
Hollanders, especially their lax observance of the Lord's day; the
apprehension of war at the conclusion of the truce between Spain and
Holland, which was then near at hand; the fear lest their young men
would enter into the military and naval service; the tendency of their
little community to become absorbed and lost in a foreign nation; the
natural and pious desire of perpetuating a church, which they believed
to be constituted after the simple and pure model of the primitive
church of Christ, and a commendable zeal to propagate the Gospel in
the regions of the new world.[6]
In this situation, they turned their attention towards America. Here
they hoped to engage in their original occupation of agriculture, and
not merely to enjoy toleration, but to form a society founded on their
favorite plan of ecclesiastical order. With this object in view, they
first applied to the Virginia company for a patent, who zealously
espoused their cause, but who were unable to obtain from the king a
toleration, under his seal, in religious liberty, though he promised
to wink at their heresy, provided they should conduct themselves
peaceably. The company granted them permission to make a settlement
near the mouth of the Hudson river. They had previously, in the want
of adequate capital of their own for the founding of a plantation,
been enabled to interest several London merchants in their scheme.
These agreed to advance the necessary sums, to be rëpaid out of the
avails of their industry. In this way, the emigrants were enabled to
purchase the Speedwell, a ship of sixty tons, and to hire in England
the Mayflower, a ship of one hundred and eighty tons, for the intended
expedition. The Mayflower alone came, as the smaller vessel proved to
be in a leaky condition, and, after two several trials, she was
dismissed, as unfit for the service. The Mayflower took her departure
on the 6th of September, and, after a boisterous passage, they
discovered the land of Cape Cod on the 9th of November, at the break
of day. The number of pilgrims, who had embarked, was one hundred and
one, not all who had proposed to come; for the disasters that attended
their setting out, had "winowed their number of the cowardly and the
lukewarm." Their pastor, Mr. Robinson, did not leave Leyden, according
to an original agreement, that only a part of their company should go
to America to make provision for the rest.
The pilgrim voyagers found themselves on a bleak and inhospitable coast,
and much farther to the northward than they intended to go. In agreement
with their wishes, an attempt was made, by the master of the ship, to
proceed to the Hudson. But either finding, or affecting to believe the
passage to be dangerous, he readily seized on the fears which had been
excited, probably by himself, to return to the cape, with a view to make
a landing there. It afterwards appeared that he had been bribed by the
Dutch, who intended to keep possession of the Hudson river, to carry the
adventurers quite to the northward of their place of destination. They
arrived in Cape Cod harbor on the 11th of November, "and, being brought
safe to land, they fell upon their knees, and blessed the God of heaven,
who had brought them over the vast and furious ocean, and delivered them
from many perils and miseries." At this time, "it was thought meet for
their more orderly carrying on their affairs, and accordingly by mutual
consent they entered into a solemn combination, as a body politic, to
submit to such government and governors, laws and ordinances, as should
by general consent from time to time be made choice of and assented
unto."[7] Forty-one persons signed this compact. It contained the
essential principles of a free government, such as have since been
embodied in the institutions of republican America. John Carver was
immediately chosen their governor, "a man godly and well-approved among
them."
Severe were the trials which awaited this small and lone band of
pilgrims. The necessity of selecting a more commodious place for
living was obvious, and, in the efforts which were made for this
purpose, several of them well nigh perished. The excursions of an
adventurous band of men, on several occasions, were extremely
hazardous; and, though generally at the places where they landed, no
Indians were found, yet, in one instance, they came in contact with
the latter, and a hostile collision took place between them. By the
kind providence of God, however, they were preserved. During one of
their excursions into the country, they found a quantity of corn,
which they took, with the intention of remunerating the owners, which
intention they were afterwards happily enabled to fulfil. This was a
providential discovery, which supplied their present wants, and served
as seed for a future harvest. An entire month was occupied with these
explorations. At last, they found a tract where they concluded to
consummate their enterprise. Having sounded the harbor in front, they
ascertained it to be fit for shipping. Going on shore, they explored
the adjacent land, where they saw various corn-fields and brooks. They
then returned to the ship, with the agreeable intelligence that they
had found a place convenient for settlement. This was on Monday, the
11th of December, answering to the 22nd day, new style, the day now
celebrated in commemoration of the landing of the pilgrims at
_Plymouth_. The company had kept the Christian Sabbath, the day
before, on an island in the harbor. The ship arrived at the
newly-discovered port on the 16th. Several days were spent in
disembarking, and it was not until the 25th that they began to build
the first house. This was a structure for common use, to receive them
and their goods. The undertaking, however, was preceded by united
prayer for Divine guidance. The building having been completed, they
began to erect "some cottages for habitation, as time would admit, and
also consulted of laws and order, both for their civil and military
government, as the necessity of their present condition did require.
But that which was sad and lamentable, in two or three months half
their company died, especially in January and February, being the
depth of winter, wanting houses and other comforts, being infected
with the scurvy and other diseases, which their long voyage and their
incommodate condition brought upon them."[8] Their reduction, by
sickness, would have rendered them an easy prey to the Indians; but
the providence of God had so ordered it, that but few of this fierce
people existed, at that period, in the neighborhood of the settlers,
and those few were kept back from inflicting any injury, by the dread
which had almost supernaturally, so to speak, been inspired in their
hearts. The paucity of the Indians has been accounted for, from a
wasting sickness, of an extraordinary character, which had visited the
region some few years before.
[Illustration: Landing of the Pilgrims.]
Some time in March of 1621, an agreeable and unexpected occurrence took
place at the rendezvous of the whites. It was a visit of an Indian
sagamore, named Samoset, with professions of friendship for them, and
satisfaction at their arrival in the country. His kind greeting to them
was, "Welcome, Englishmen! Welcome, Englishmen!" He spoke in broken
English, which he had learned from English fishermen on the eastern
coast. This was an event of great consequence to the settlers, as they
learned from him many things in respect to the region around, and the
Indians that inhabited it. He came to the English settlement again, with
some other natives, and advised the emigrants of the coming of the great
sachem, named Massasoit. In a short time this chief made his appearance,
in company with his principal associates, particularly an Indian named
Squanto, who proved to be of signal service to the whites. He had
learned the English language, in consequence of having been carried to
England by an English adventurer. Mutual fear and distrust took place
between the parties, as Massasoit came in sight on the hill which
overlooked the place. After they each had taken proper precautions
against surprise, through the agency of Squanto they came together, and
the result of the interview was a league of peace, which was kept
inviolate more than fifty years.
[Illustration: Visit of Samoset to the English.]
The visit was not much prolonged. "Samoset and Squanto stayed all
night with us, and the king and all his men lay all night in the wood,
not above half an English mile from us, and all their wives and women
with them. They said that within eight or nine days they would come
and set corn on the other side of the brook, and dwell there all
summer, which is hard by us. That night we kept good watch, but there
was no appearance of danger."[9] The plantation at Plymouth enjoyed
the benefit of Squanto's presence with them, after the departure of
the others. He was a native or resident of the place, and almost the
only one that was left; and being acquainted with every part of it,
his information was made highly useful to the colonists. They learned
from him the method of cultivating corn, and where to take their fish,
and procure their commodities. He continued among them until the day
of his death. In the spring of 1621, Mr. Carver was confirmed as
governor for the succeeding year, but his death occurred soon
afterwards. Mr. William Bradford was chosen his successor, and Mr.
Israel Allerton his assistant. The intercourse of the colonists with
the Indians continued to be of a friendly character, the former
having, during the summer, made several excursions into the country
around, particularly one to Shawmut (Boston), where they had an
interview with Obbatinnua, one of the parties to the submission signed
a short time before at Plymouth. He renewed his submission, receiving,
at the same time, a promise of defence against his enemies.
[Illustration: Interview with Massasoit.]
The small number of the colonists was increased before the end of the
year by an accession of thirty-five persons, among whom was a very
active and pious agent, Mr. Robert Cushman. He became eminently useful
to the plantation. Upon the departure of the ship conveying this
latter company, the colony received a threatening token from the
Narraganset tribe of Indians--a circumstance which induced them to
fortify their little settlement as well as they were able, and to keep
a constant guard by day and by night. Happily, no attempts at that
time were made to disturb their peace. This event occurred in the year
1622. In the following year, a vigorous and successful attempt, under
the brave Captain Miles Standish, was made to defeat a conspiracy
formed by the Massachusetts tribe, with several others, against a
recent English settlement at Wessagusset (Weymouth). This settlement
had been formed under Mr. Thos. Weston on his own account, and
consisted of sixty men. The slaughter of several of the conspirators
so terrified the Indian tribes concerned in the conspiracy, that they
fled from their homes into swamps and desert places, where many of
them perished. This generous service, on the part of the Plymouth
colony, towards a neighboring plantation, redounded greatly to their
credit, especially as the latter were merely a company of
adventurers, and had been guilty of injustice towards the Indians.
The present year proved to be a year of suffering, in consequence of
the scarcity of food. The following affecting account is given by
Bradford: "But by the time our corn is planted, our victuals are
spent, not knowing at night where to have a bit in the morning; we
have neither bread nor corn for three or four months together, yet
bear our wants with cheerfulness, and rest on Providence. Having but
one boat left, we divide the men into several companies, six or seven
in each, who take their turns to go out with a net, and fish, and
return not till they get some, though they be five or six days out;
knowing there is nothing at home, and to return empty would be a great
discouragement. When they stay long, or get but little, the rest go a
digging shellfish, and thus we live the summer; only sending one or
two to range the woods for deer, they get now and then one, which we
divide among the company; and in the winter are helped with fowl and
ground-nuts."[10] It is recorded that, after a drought of six weeks,
the government set apart a solemn day of humiliation and prayer, which
was almost immediately followed by a copious supply of rain. In the
language of the chronicles of the times, it is thus spoken of: "Though
in the morning, when we assembled together, the heavens were as clear,
and the drought as like to continue as it ever was, yet (our exercise
continuing some eight or nine hours) before our departure, the weather
was overcast, the clouds gathered together on all sides, and, in the
morning, distilled such soft, sweet, and moderate showers of rain,
continuing some fourteen days, and mixed with such seasonable weather,
as it was hard to say, whether our withered corn or drooping
affections were most quickened or revived, such was the bounty and
goodness of our God." Soon after, in grateful acknowledgment of the
blessing, a day of public thanksgiving was observed. This, by a
judicious historian, (Thomas Robbins, D. D.) is believed to be the
origin of the annual thanksgiving of New England.
Towards the close of the summer, two ships arrived at Plymouth,
bringing sixty emigrants, some of them the wives and children of such
as were already in the colony. Those who came in the first three
ships--the Mayflower, the Fortune, and the Ann--are distinctively
called the old comers, or the _forefathers_. In 1624, Plymouth
contained thirty-two dwellings and about one hundred and eighty
inhabitants. Bradford was rëelected governor, and four assistants to
him were also chosen. To each person and his family an acre of land
was given in perpetuity. The first neat cattle in New England were
brought over this year by Edward Winslow. The colonists had at that
time no small trouble with several of the new comers, particularly
with one John Lyford, a minister, and another by the name of Oldham,
who were disposed to act in opposition to the laws and order of the
colony. The persons above mentioned, however, soon perished, Oldham
having first become apparently a penitent.
The congregation of the Puritans at Leyden was broken up on the death
of their pastor, Mr. Robinson, in 1627. They desired to remove to New
England, but only a part of them were enabled to come. The others
settled in Amsterdam. Mr. Robinson had hoped to emigrate, but the
expense of the undertaking could not well be met, and his death now
preventing, only his wife and children came with the portion of the
congregation that crossed the water. His place in the colony was
supplied by Mr. William Brewster, a ruling elder in the church, and a
man every way qualified as a spiritual guide of the people.
The foundation of the colony of MASSACHUSETTS was laid in the year
1628. It was styled the _Colony of Massachusetts bay_, the territory
of which had been purchased by the Plymouth company--by Sir Henry
Roswell, Sir John Young, and several others. The patent included all
that part of New England lying between three miles to the northward
of Merrimack river, and three miles to the southward of Charles river,
extending in length from the Atlantic ocean to the South sea. The
leader of the expedition was Mr. John Endicot, whose character may be
summed up by saying, that he was a fit person to found that noble
commonwealth. He came with one hundred emigrants, and was appointed
governor of the colony. Mr. White, an eminent minister, was one of the
company. Three years previously, a small company of adventurers had
emigrated to a place in the Massachusetts bay, afterwards called Mount
Wollaston, after the name of their leader; but, having no religious
object in view, they fell into shameful irregularities. Upon the
arrival of Endicot, however, a check was put on these proceedings, and
their leader, Morton, was finally sent to England. These pious
non-conformists under Endicot, like the Plymouth colonists, sought a
refuge from oppression in their religious concerns, and desired to
build up a community on the true principles of Christianity. They
located themselves at Numkeag, (Salem,) where the first permanent town
in Massachusetts was constituted. In the following year, they were
joined by about two hundred others from England, making in the whole
three hundred; of which number one hundred removed the same year, and
settled themselves, with the consent of Governor Endicot, at Mishawam,
now Charlestown. At this period, on the petition of the Massachusetts
company, King Charles by charter confirmed the patent of the
Massachusetts colony. By this instrument, they were empowered to elect
a governor, deputy governor, and eighteen assistants, out of the
freemen of said company, by the greater part of the company. The first
governor, under this renewed charter, was Matthew Cradock. The company
being desirous of establishing their plantation in the order of the
Gospel, engaged two eminent divines, Mr. Higginson and Mr. Skelton, to
go out for the spiritual service of the colony. Soon after their
arrival at Salem, they were placed over the church there with all due
solemnity, the one as teacher, the other as pastor. These excellent
men, however, lived but a short period, sharing largely, as they did,
in the sickness and suffering that diminished the strength and
shortened the lives of a large number of their people.
[Illustration: Boston founded.]
Among the many persons of distinction who left England the ensuing
year, on account of the stringent measures of the government in regard
to affairs both of church and state, are found the names of Isaac
Johnson, John Winthrop, Thomas Dudley, and Sir Richard Saltonstall.
These gentlemen, by their persuasions, were the means of having the
charter and government of the company transferred to New England. They
left with fifteen hundred other persons, in a fleet of seventeen sail,
Winthrop having been chosen governor under the new order of things.
They arrived in safety, eleven ships at one time, and six at another;
and before the conclusion of the season, commenced settlements in
several places; which, at present, constitute some of the fairest
towns of New England. Governor Winthrop, and a portion of the company,
laid the foundation of Boston. Several most highly esteemed ministers
accompanied the expedition just spoken of; Mr. Wilson, Mr. Warham, and
others. These were placed over the several churches that soon began to
be formed in this vicinity. The first general court of Massachusetts,
was held in Boston this year, on the 19th of October, at which time
many of the planters attended, and were made freemen of the colony.
The winters of 1630 and 1631, were very fatal to the Massachusetts
colony. Frost and sickness carried off a number, and famine at length
threatened the suffering survivors. They were, however, providentially
relieved by the arrival of a ship from England with provisions, the
day previously to a public fast, which had been appointed on account
of the alarming state of things. This circumstance turned the intended
fast into a general thanksgiving. The colony continued to increase by
fresh accessions of emigrants till the year 1640, up to which time, it
is computed that four thousand families had arrived in New England.
From this small beginning have arisen the population, power, wealth,
piety, and freedom of the New England states.
In the year 1633, the Plymouth colony suffered from a pestilential
disease, which not only thinned their number, but, extending to the
neighboring territory, swept off many of the Indians. In the same
year, arrived those lights of the New England church, Mr. John Cotton,
Mr. Thomas Hooker, and Mr. Samuel Stone, and that model of a
magistrate, Mr. William Collier, whose services, to the Plymouth
colony, were so considerable. Generally, the emigrants of this period
were actuated by the same spirit of opposition to tyranny in church
and state, and of love to the institutions of Christianity, which had
characterized their predecessors. The men placed at the head of the
new colonies were, universally, men of sterling worth of character.
The first settlers of CONNECTICUT came from the eastern shore of
Massachusetts. They were a portion of the emigrants who constituted
the colonies of Plymouth and Massachusetts bay. The emigration from
England continuing to be large, and likely to increase from year to
year, more room was wanted, and especially locations where the soil
was rich and could be easily cultivated, became an object of desire.
This consideration, and, probably, others pertaining to their
tranquillity and increase as churches, had influence on the resolution
to seat themselves again in the wilderness. It had happened, as early
as the year 1631, that their attention was directed to the beautiful
and rich tract of land, on the Connecticut river, by Wahcuimacut, a
sachem living upon the river. He made a journey to Plymouth and
Boston, with a view to enlist the governors of those colonies in the
project of making settlements in his country. The proposition was not
formally accepted, but the governor of Plymouth was sufficiently
interested in it to make a voyage to the coast, in which excursion he
discovered the river and the adjacent territory; thus precluding the
title of the Dutch to any part of it, as they had neither
"trading-house, nor any pretence to a foot of land there."[11] The
subject of settling Connecticut was not lost sight of during one or
two subsequent years; but, occasionally, vessels were sent from
Plymouth to the river, for the purposes of trade, and, in one
instance, several men, from Dorchester, traveled through the
wilderness thither for the same object, as also to view the country.
[Illustration: The Settlers emigrating to Connecticut.]
In 1633, when the Plymouth colony had determined to commence the work
of settlement, they commissioned William Holmes, and a chosen company
with him, to proceed to Connecticut. They took with them the frame of
a house, which they set up in Windsor. They achieved their object,
notwithstanding the threatened opposition of the Dutch at Hartford,
where the latter, after learning that the Plymouth people intended to
settle on the river, had erected a slight fort. The Plymouth people,
also, were successful in defending their trading-house subsequently,
both against the Dutch and the Indians. The Dutch erected a
trading-house at Hartford the same year, the house at Windsor having
preceded it, perhaps, by a few months. The actual settlement of the
region, however, was deferred for a time, from the fact of divided
opinions on the subject in the Massachusetts court. No vote could be
obtained in favor of the project. In the mean time, individuals were
determined to prosecute the enterprise, and a number of the people of
Watertown came, in 1634, to Connecticut. They erected a few huts at
Pyquag (Wethersfield), in which they contrived to pass the winter. In
the spring of 1635, the general court of Massachusetts bay assented to
the plan of emigration to Connecticut, and, accordingly, preparations
were made in several places. The Watertown people gradually removed,
and added to their settlement at Wethersfield. Mr. Warham, one of the
ministers of Dorchester, accompanied by a great part of the church,
settled at Mattaneang (Windsor). A company from Newtown began a
plantation, between those two settlements, at Suchiang (Hartford). In
the course of the year, a large body of settlers, sixty in number,
came together--men, women, and children, with their horses, cattle,
and swine. It being somewhat late in the season, and their journey
proving to be long and difficult, winter came upon them before they
were prepared. They were but indifferently sheltered, and their food
was scanty--a large portion of their furniture and provisions, having
been put on board of several small vessels, never reached them. The
vessels were lost, and some lives with them. A part of their domestic
animals they were obliged to leave on the other side of the river.
Famine and its fearful effects were now to be encountered. It was
impossible for all to stay where they were. Some, attempted to return
to the east through the wilderness; others, went down to the mouth of
the river, in order to meet their provisions, and, being disappointed,
were obliged, finally, to embark on board of a vessel for Boston. In
both instances they suffered greatly, but were providentially
preserved to arrive at their former home. The portion of the settlers
who remained were subjected to much distress. The resources of hunting
and food from the Indians being exhausted, they had recourse to
acorns, malt, and grains for subsistence. Large numbers of their
cattle perished. Their condition was indeed most trying and perilous,
in their solitude and separation from others, at the mercy alike of
the elements of nature, and the power of savage foes. But their God,
in whom they trusted, carried them through in safety.
The Connecticut planters held courts of their own, though they were
settled under the general government of the Massachusetts. These
courts consisted of two principal men from each town, joined sometimes
by committees of three additional persons, as occasion might require.
The first court was held at Hartford, April 26th, 1636. At this season
of the year, both those who had left Connecticut in the winter and
many others proceeded to take up their residence on the river. At
length, about the beginning of June, a company of an hundred men,
women, and children, under Messrs. Hooker and Stone, took their
departure from Cambridge, and traveled to Hartford through the
pathless wilderness that lay between the two places. Over mountains,
through ravines, swamps, thickets, and rivers, they made their way,
submitting to incredible fatigue and many privations. These trials, to
a portion of the new comers, must have been peculiarly severe, as they
were a class of society who, having enjoyed all the comforts and
elegancies of life, knew little of hardship and danger.
The year preceding, a fort was erected at the mouth of the river,
called Saybrook fort, in honor of Lords Say and Brooks, to whom, with
several others, a commission had been given to begin a plantation at
Connecticut. This was effected under the auspices of John Winthrop, a
son of the governor of Massachusetts. Winthrop's commission interfered
with the settlement commenced by the Massachusetts colonists, but the
latter were left in the quiet enjoyment of their possessions. The
number of persons in the three towns of Hartford, Windsor, and
Wethersfield, was about eight hundred at the close of the year 1636.
The succeeding year was signalized for the critical condition of the
settlement. There was a great want of provisions and of the implements
of husbandry, and every article bore a high price. The year was also
filled with the incidents of warfare. In the feebleness of its
infancy, the little colony was called to contend with one of the most
warlike tribes of Indians that ever inhabited New England. And never
were heroism and fortitude displayed in a more marked degree, or
animated by a loftier spirit of patriotism and piety. The particulars
need not be here rehearsed. Suffice it to say, they completely
triumphed over their savage foe, the Pequots, under their brave
leader, Captain John Mason. They went forth to battle, under the
sanction and rites of religion, to save themselves, their wives, and
children, and the Church of Christ in the wilderness, from utter
extinction. The holy ardor of Hooker, in his incomparable address to
the soldiers, filled their minds with an unwavering confidence in God.
Seventy-seven brave men saved Connecticut, and destroyed the most
terrible Indian nation in New England.
[Illustration: Hooker addressing the Soldiers.]
This necessity of warfare they would gladly have avoided, for the
condition of the settlement required all their energies and efforts at
home. They could neither hunt, fish, nor cultivate their fields, nor
travel the shortest distance, while an insidious and cruel foe was
hovering around them. They felt that he must be crippled or destroyed,
or that their entire settlement would be cut off by piecemeal. The
natives embraced every opportunity of committing depredations on the
lives and property of the whites. A picture of the kind of life which
was passed in those times of savage treachery and English daring, is
given in the following detail of incidents, which occurred on the
water immediately previous to the Pequot war:
[Illustration: Gallop finds Oldham murdered.]
"John Oldham, who had been fairly trading at Connecticut, was murdered
near Block island. He had with him only two boys and two Narraganset
Indians. These were taken and carried off. One John Gallop, as he was
going from Connecticut to Boston, discovered Mr. Oldham's vessel full
of Indians, and he saw a canoe full of Indians on board, go from her
laden with goods. Suspecting that they had murdered Mr. Oldham, he
hailed them, but received no answer. Gallop was a bold man, and though
he had with him but one man and two boys, he immediately bore down
upon them, and fired duck-shot so thick among them, that he soon
cleared the deck. The Indians all got under the hatches. He then stood
off; and, running down upon her quarter with a brisk gale, nearly
overset them, and so frighted the Indians, that six of them leaped
into the sea, and were drowned. He then steered off again; and,
running down upon her a second time, bored her with his anchor, and
raked her fore and aft with his shot. But the Indians kept themselves
so close, he got loose from her; and, running down a third time upon
the vessel, he gave her such a shock, that five more leaped overboard,
and perished, as the former had done. He then boarded the vessel, and
took two of the Indians, and bound them. Two or three others, armed
with swords, in a little room below, could not be driven from their
retreat. Mr. Oldham's corse was found on board, the head split and
the body mangled in a barbarous manner. He was a Dorchester man, one
of Mr. Warham's congregation. In these circumstances, Gallop, fearing
that the Indians whom he had taken might get loose, especially if they
were kept together, and having no place where he could keep them
apart, threw one of them overboard. Gallop and his company then, as
decently as circumstances would permit, put the corse into the sea.
They stripped the vessel, and took the rigging and the goods which had
not been carried off on board their own. She was taken in tow, with a
view to carry her in; but the night coming on and the wind rising,
Gallop was obliged to let her go adrift, and she was lost."
At the termination of the Pequot war, there was a great scarcity of
provisions in Connecticut, and fearful apprehensions were felt on the
part of the settlers. With all their efforts, they had not been able
to raise a sufficiency of provisions, and these became at length very
costly. Corn rose to the extraordinary price of twelve shillings by
the bushel. The debt contracted by the war was paid with difficulty.
Nothing saved the colony from a famine but a providential supply of
corn, which they were enabled to purchase from the natives, at an
Indian settlement called Pocomptock (Deerfield).
The first constitution of Connecticut was adopted January 15, 1639, by
the free planters of the three towns of Windsor, Hartford, and
Wethersfield, who convened at Hartford for the purpose. It was an
admirably contrived instrument, providing for the freedom and
liberties of themselves and their posterity. Some fifty years ago,
Doctor Trumbull remarked, respecting it, that it was "one of the most
free and happy institutions of civil government which has ever been
formed. The formation of it at so early a period, when the light of
liberty was wholly darkened in most parts of the earth, and the rights
of men so little understood in others, does great honor to their
ability, integrity, and love to mankind. To posterity, indeed, it
exhibited a most benevolent regard. It has continued with little
alteration to the present time."
The NEW HAVEN colony was settled in the spirit that influenced the
comers to the other parts of New England, and eminently so. The
establishment of the Church of God on its true basis, and the
enjoyment of civil and religious liberty, was the object of the
emigrants; and they proceeded to secure the fair inheritance by the
wisest counsels and the most efficient action. The company who first
constituted the settlement, was a rare assemblage of choice spirits.
Among them were John Davenport, a distinguished minister in London,
and Theophilus Eaton and Edward Hopkins, wealthy merchants of the same
city, and eminent for their abilities and integrity. They with their
associates arrived at Boston in the summer of 1637, and would have
been gladly retained in the Massachusetts colony, had they consented.
Strong inducements were held out to them to fix their residence there,
but they wanted more room than they could find in the vicinity of
Boston for themselves and the large number of friends whom they
expected to follow them. Their principal reason, however, for
migrating elsewhere, as suggested by the historian of Connecticut, was
probably "the desire of being at the head of a new government,
modeled, both in civil and religious matters, agreeably to their own
apprehensions. It had been an observation of Mr. Davenport, that
whenever a reformation had been effected in the church, in any part of
the world, it had rested where it had been left by the reformers: it
could not be advanced another step. He was embarked in a design of
forming a civil and religious constitution, as near as possible to
scripture precept and example." Their strict views, it seems, could
not be fully met elsewhere.
Mr. Davenport and his company, on the 30th of March, 1638, sailed from
Boston to Quinnipiac (New Haven), and arrived at the desired spot at
about the middle of April. A portion of their company, with Eaton at
their head, had made a journey to Connecticut during the preceding
autumn, to explore the lands and harbors on the sea-coast; and having
fixed upon Quinnipiac as the best place for a settlement, erected a hut
there, in which a few men passed the winter. The first Sabbath which Mr.
Davenport spent in the wilderness, was on the 18th of April, 1638, when
he preached a discourse on the _Temptations of the Wilderness_. In a
short time, at the close of a day of fasting and prayer, they entered
into what they called a plantation covenant, in which they solemnly
engaged, in their civil ordinances as well as religion, they would be
governed by the rules of scripture. At different times, and in separate
contracts, they purchased their lands of the Indians, by the payment of
such articles as were satisfactory to the latter. As the New Haven
adventurers were the most opulent company which came into New England,
they were disposed and able to lay the foundation of a first-rate
colony--the proofs of which are visible, in part, in the elegant city
which became its capital. The foundations of the civil and religious
polity of the colony were laid on the 4th of June, 1639, with every due
solemnity. The act was not consummated until the 25th of October of the
same year, as a term of trial was required for the seven men who were to
constitute the seven pillars of the church. The number of subscribers to
the compact, on the 4th of June, was sixty-three; to which there were
soon after added about fifty other names. This colony enjoyed great
comparative order and tranquillity, as well from the extreme care with
which it was constituted at the beginning, the superior wealth and
character of its founders, and their wise and prudent intercourse with
their neighbors, the Indians.
The New Haven colony was distinguished among the sister-colonies for its
zeal in behalf of education, for its great strictness in the
administration of the laws, for its scrupulous justice towards the
Indians, and for the absence of a frivolous or extravagant legislation,
which in some instances had been thought to characterize the other
colonies.[12] The colony, however, was not exempt from occasional
providential calamities, particularly in its commercial pursuits. For a
period, the colonists did not succeed in their principal secular object.
Their plans may not have been the most judicious; but their greatest
misfortune in this concern was the loss of a large ship, which contained
a valuable cargo of about five thousand pounds. The ship, with its
precious burden, and more precious navigators, was never heard of more
after it left the harbor. Several other settlements in the vicinity were
nearly coëval with that of New Haven. Milford and Guilford were settled
in 1639, as also Stratford and Fairfield the same year; Stamford in
1641, and soon after the town of Brandford.
[Illustration: Portsmouth founded.]
A settlement, at an early period, was made in NEW HAMPSHIRE, but it
did not, until some time afterwards, constitute a distinct colony. In
the spring of the year 1623, two members of the council of Plymouth
(Gorges and Mason) having obtained a grant of a tract of country, sent
over a few persons for the purpose of establishing a colony and
fishing at the river Piscataqua. This was the beginning of the town of
Portsmouth; but, for several years, together with the town of Dover,
which had a fish-house erected about the same time, it was a small and
scarcely permanent settlement. In 1629, some of the settlers about the
Massachusetts bay, purchased a tract of country of the Indians, with a
view to unite with the settlement at Piscataqua. After this purchase,
the latter settlement was favored with a small increase; but no other
settlements were made till the year 1638, when the towns of Exeter and
Hampton commenced. Exeter was settled by people chiefly from Boston,
who had been regularly dismissed from their church relations, and were
constituted at once into a church in their new locality. Like the
settlers of the other New England colonies, those of New Hampshire
were desirous of enjoying the ministrations and ordinances of the
Gospel, and were able to obtain excellent ministers.
These several plantations continued, for many years, to live on good
terms with the natives, and were generally well supplied with
provisions, in consequence of their advantages for fishery. They
constituted distinct civil communities, after the most perfect model of
freedom, but were unable to preserve their peculiar organization, on
account of the intrusion of disaffected individuals, from the colonies
of Massachusetts and Plymouth, and the constant influx of other
emigrants. They were too weak thus to stand alone, and, after suitable
negociations on the subject, they came under the jurisdiction of
Massachusetts, in 1641, on the condition of enjoying equal privileges
with the people of that colony, and having a court of justice maintained
among themselves. This union continued nearly forty years, and was
followed by the greater increase and security of the colony.[13]
The rise of the colony of RHODE ISLAND commenced in the expulsion of
Roger Williams from Massachusetts. He was a minister of the Gospel at
Salem; but, holding tenets that were obnoxious to the people there, and
being unwilling to renounce them, after friendly remonstrance and
dealing, he was ordered to quit the jurisdiction of Massachusetts. He
accordingly took his exile thence, and traveling, with his few
followers, as far as the present town of Rehoboth, he sat down there;
but, being within the jurisdiction of Plymouth, Governor Winslow, out of
courtesy to the government of Massachusetts, desired Mr. Williams to
leave that place. The latter, then crossing the Pawtucket river, came to
the spot which, in acknowledgment of God's merciful providence to him in
his distress, he called 'Providence.' He purchased the lands of his
plantation of the Indian owners, became the father of the colony, and,
for a period, appeared to have combined, in his person, the principal
powers of government. Times of scarcity occurred in the Providence
plantation, as in most of the other colonies in North America, and the
followers of Mr. Williams were saved from famine only by the products of
their forests and rivers. No personal resentment seems to have arisen
between Mr. Williams and Governor Winthrop, from the proceedings which
led to the founding of the new settlement. All the several colonies
remained at peace, and cultivated friendship with each other.
The religious difficulties in Massachusetts, arising out of the case
of the fanatical Mrs. Hutchinson, were the occasion of the origin of
the Rhode Island plantation, south of Providence. Several gentlemen
differed in principle from the prevailing belief of the churches, and
chose to leave the colony. Among them were William Coddington, John
Clark, and others, who came to Providence in search of a place where
they might enjoy their own sentiments unmolested. Through the
assistance of Mr. Williams, they purchased Aquetnec of the Indian
sachems. The adventurers, eighteen in number, incorporated themselves
into a body politic, and chose Mr. Coddington to be their judge, or
chief magistrate. The character of the climate and soil, soon brought
many adventurers to their settlement. The territory was RHODE ISLAND,
according to its subsequent name. The two settlements of Mr. Williams
and Mr. Coddington, being destitute of any charter from the
mother-country, the former went to England with a view to procure one.
He succeeded in the object, and returned with a liberal charter of
incorporation of Providence and Rhode Island plantations.
The district, now state, of MAINE, though the first permanent
settlement commenced in 1630, was for a long time in an unhappy
condition, from the number and hostility of the Indians within its
borders. The early settlers, after the death of their proprietary, Sir
Fernando Gorges, formed some kind of voluntary compacts, and chose
their own rulers; but the difficulties under which they labored
induced them, in 1650, to unite with the government of Massachusetts,
and to become an integral part of that colony. Their civil and
religious institutions generally resembled those of the other colonies
of New England. In the first settlements, churches were early
established, which enjoyed the labors of some of the worthiest
ministers of their time.[14]
A project of great importance was consummated, in 1643, in the _union_
formed by the New England colonists. It had been proposed, by the
colonies of Connecticut and New Haven, as early as 1638, but was not
brought to a conclusion until five years after. The confederacy
consisted of Massachusetts, New Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven.
The plan of it evidently reminds one of the great confederacy,
afterwards formed between the thirteen United States, with similar
provisions and principles. It was a powerful means of defence, and of
the subsequent strength and prosperity of the colonies. It maintained
their internal peace, awed the savage tribes, and caused their
neighbors, the Dutch, and the French in Canada, to respect them. By
the articles of confederation, they entered into a firm and perpetual
league of friendship and amity, for offence and defence, mutual advice
and assistance upon all just occasions, both for preserving and
propagating the truth and liberties of the Gospel, and for their own
mutual safety and welfare. Each colony was to continue its separate
organization, as to courts and laws, but to be considered as one, in
regard to their public transactions. This union subsisted, with some
alterations, more than forty years, and was dissolved when the
charters of all the colonies were rescinded by James II. It was known
under the style of _The United Colonies of New England_.
The state of VERMONT was not settled until long after the other New
England states. It was as late as the year 1724, before any settlement
was made in that territory. This was on a spot, within the present
town of Brattleborough, where, at the same time, during a severe
Indian war, the government of Massachusetts had erected a fort. It was
then supposed that the settlement was within the limits of that state,
but it afterwards appeared not to be the case. Subsequently it was
believed that the territory belonged to New Hampshire. Grants were
accordingly made from time to time, by the latter colony, of tracts
within the territory of Vermont. As it was the scene of warfare,
during the middle part of the century, the country became well known
to many individuals, and not a few openings were made in the
wilderness, towards the cessation of hostilities, on the northern
borders. During the revolutionary war, the Green-mountain Boys, as
they were familiarly called, distinguished themselves by their
bravery, and rendered important service to the cause. In 1777, the
inhabitants constituted themselves an independent state. As Vermont
was settled mostly by emigrants from Connecticut, the character of the
people was similar to that of the inhabitants of the latter state, and
of New England in general. They were careful to establish their civil
and religious institutions in accordance with those of the
sister-states, and have been highly distinguished by their stability
in the principles and usages of the fathers.
The _character_ of the early settlers of New England deserves a
distinct notice, beyond that which has incidentally appeared in
narrating the history of their achievements. A brief sketch can only
be presented, and scarcely commensurate with the importance of the
topic; but it is all that the limits of this work will admit. The
greatness of the results, though affected extensively by the direct
providence of God, manifests the peculiarity of the dispositions and
motives of the agents who were concerned in producing them.
The planters of New England were men of whom their descendants need
not be ashamed. So far as the pride of ancestry may be lawfully
indulged, New Englanders, of the present race, may indulge it to the
full, in view of the character and deeds of their forefathers. They
were _inferior_ men in _no sense of the word_, however apt we may be
to connect the idea of adventurers with that of a roving, restless,
dissipated, loose-living class of men, loving savage nature, or
freedom from the restraints of civilized life. They became
adventurers, not from love of adventure, but from high and noble
impulses--the impulses of religion. To advance that precious interest
was, indeed, their commanding object. This was indicated by their
circumstances and manner of life in Holland before they removed
thence, and by the desire they felt to leave that country. Could their
favorite views, in respect to religion, have been carried out there,
they would, probably, never have come to this western wilderness.
Their declarations and professions, through their leading men, also
show that the establishment and enjoyment of a free Gospel was their
great object. Their laws and institutions, moreover, evince that this
was their principal concern, in connection with the diffusion of
education and knowledge. These all had reference, more or less
directly, to the moral and religious welfare of the community. The
cause of God and righteousness was guarded by the wisest and most
decided legal provisions. The concurrent declarations of all the early
writers among them, likewise indicate the spirit and purposes which
distinguished the fathers of New England above, perhaps, all other
settlers of new countries, in proposing and carrying forward the
interests of religion. Indeed, no object but religion and its
enjoyment, could have borne them through their almost unprecedented
trials and privations. To these they voluntarily submitted, on account
of their religion. They were not otherwise compelled to leave their
native land and the homes of their childhood--the seats of ease and
plenty. To hardships, of any kind, many of them had never been exposed
before; but the love of God's word, and freedom of worship, according
to the light of their own minds, were motives, with them, sufficient
to brave every peril and earthly woe.
They were not inferior men, in respect to their _civil standing in the
community_. They did not proceed, generally, from the lower orders of
society--the poorer artisans and the laborers. They belonged, mostly,
to the middle and respectable ranks of English society. A few were
classed with the higher orders, but not to the same extent as was the
fact with the settlers of Virginia, if we may judge from the list of
names and titles of several emigrants of the different colonies. In
respect to a worldly, chivalrous bearing and spirit of adventure, New
England and Virginia differed--the latter were eminent in this
respect, but never were men more truly brave than the fathers of New
England; in moral courage, they were unrivalled. Like other
adventurers, they manifested their undaunted spirit in relinquishing
their comfortable homes, in braving the dangers of the deep, in
encountering the horrors of a wilderness, in incurring the risk of
famine and pestilence, and in frequently combatting a fierce savage
foe. There were as extraordinary traits of martial heroism displayed
among the pilgrims of New England, when called forth by the necessity
of circumstances, as can be found in the history of any of the
American colonists, though this was not a characteristic in which they
gloried. The exploits of Miles Standish, of Plymouth, and John Mason,
of Connecticut, might be ranked among the most striking exhibitions
of courage on record. Of Standish, it is remarked, by an old
historian, that "he was allied to the noble house of Standish, in
Lancashire, and inherited some of the virtues of that honorable
family, as well as the name." But the high bearing and courage of the
planters was eminently of a moral kind. Unlike their Virginian
neighbors, they suffered no misrule in their settlements. If any
threatened for a time, they promptly put it down. Their courage was
seen in resisting evil among themselves. They feared not to put their
laws into execution. They were characterized by a healthful, vigorous
public spirit, consenting to sacrifice their own individual interest
for the general good. They thus manifested a noble nature, the product
of principle, if not of birth.
The fathers of New England were not _ignorant_ men, and unversed in the
concerns of the world. Their clergymen and leading men in civil life,
were among the ripe scholars of the age. They had been educated at the
English universities, and numbers of them had occupied important
stations in church and state. As authors and men of influence, in their
native land, they could not have sunk their high character by
emigration; and though in a wilderness, and under the pressure of mighty
cares, they could not so advantageously pursue their studies as in the
shades of academic retirement, they still did not neglect to add to
their intellectual stores. In several instances, they brought large and
valuable libraries with them. The writings of Colton, Hooker, Davenport,
Winthrop, Bradford, Prince, and others, show that they were eminently
men of mind and masters of language--that they were well versed in the
science and literature which adorned the age; and their universal
learning, sanctified by grace, we know, was devoted to the most noble
and beneficent purposes. There were among the merchants and men of
business, who had figured in the world's affairs before they came to
these solitudes--men of large experience and cultivated taste, not
wanting in any accomplishment deemed essential in refined and honorable
society. The mass of the people, who came over to this country as its
settlers, must evidently, from the nature of the case, have been of that
thinking, intellectual, practical class, who understood their rights and
duties as human beings, as also the principles of government; and could
not, therefore, with their good sense and honesty, submit to the
exactions and wrongs of tyranny. This, of all others, is the most
valuable body of the community.
The estimate which the fathers placed upon education, is seen in the
immediate establishment of literary institutions, both of the higher
and lower grades. Scarcely had the venerable men felled the trees of
the forest, than they erected the common school-house, the academy,
and the college. In the midst of their untold personal pressing cares
and troubles, they exercised a far-reaching sagacity and benevolent
regard towards the common good, and towards posterity, in laying
broadly the foundations of order, intelligence, and virtue. They
conceived the highest idea of the importance of sound education to
their rising republic. They wisely judged that solid learning and true
religion were the firmest pillars of the commonwealth and of the
church. Within ten years from the settlement of Massachusetts, a
college, with good endowments, was founded for the use of the colony.
The planters of New England were not _poor_ men--needy adventurers.
Had they been such, whence could the funds have been derived that were
necessary to sustain the enterprise? It is evident that large sums of
money were expended in the transportation of themselves, their cattle,
and their effects to this country, and in their various removals when
here, as well as in the continued sustentation of their families in
times of scarcity and famine. These we know, from their history, were
of frequent occurrence. Governors Winthrop, Haynes, Eaton, and
Hopkins, were men of wealth; so also were Mr. Johnson, Mr. Colton, and
Mr. Hooker--the last two uncommonly rich for ministers. Mr. Johnson
was reputed to be the wealthiest of all the original emigrants. The
mass of the early comers must also have possessed no inconsiderable
means, to enable them to bear the heavy expenses of their voyage and
settlement. With such a basis of property, it is not a matter of
surprise that, notwithstanding the drain and exhaustion of the few
first years, they should have increased greatly in their worldly
substance in the end, inasmuch as they settled on a virgin soil,
possessed abundance of land, and carried on a lucrative trade in the
products of the country. Their habits of sobriety and industry were
essentially favorable to their advancement in wealth.
The New England planters were not _wanting in any moral virtues_,
_piety_, _wisdom_, _or magnanimity_. There never lived on earth, if we
may credit history, a more disinterested, upright, conscientious,
prudent, and holy body of men. Their souls were imbued with the
loftiest principles of patriotism and piety. They gave undoubted
proofs of the possession of this spirit in their exertions, toils, and
sacrifices for the best welfare of their descendants and the cause of
Christianity--in their spirituality, prayerfulness, purity, and
well-ordered lives. They wished, above all things, to serve God and to
do good--to transmit to posterity a pure church and free form of
government. They received the Word of God as their sole guide in
religious concerns and moral conduct--they regulated their individual
life, their families, their local societies, their churches, and their
state, by its rules, so far as the latter could be consistently
applied. They were sound in the faith, receiving the doctrines of
grace as the real system of divine truth--were strict in preserving
the order and carrying out the discipline of the churches--and were
rigid in the administration of law and justice. Their zeal and
liberality in supporting the institutions of the Gospel among
themselves, and in efforts to Christianize the Indians, were marked
traits in their character. They considered it one of the great objects
of their mission to this continent, to become the means of the
salvation of its aboriginal inhabitants, and thus to extend Christ's
kingdom in the world. In a most commendable degree, they carried their
religion into the various every-day concerns of life, and consulted,
especially on every occasion of interest and importance, the
particular guidance and blessing of God.
Such was the character of New England's fathers: they were not perfect
men; they did not claim for themselves the attributes of perfection;
neither can others, their warmest panegyrists, claim it for them with
any consistency. They had their errors--the errors of the age. All
darkness had not passed away from their understandings, nor all
obliquity from their hearts. There was an austerity, a preciseness in
some points, an unaccommodating temper, which perhaps is not well suited
to all times, or every state of society, but which better agreed with
their circumstances as the founders of a nation, and as an example for
others to follow. In the natural course of imitation from age to age,
there will be apt to be a feebler resemblance of the original; so that
where the conduct in the beginning was over-strict, in the lapse of
years it will be apt to fall quite too far below the true standard of
virtue. The founders of a nation, if they fail at all in firmness of
temper or rigidness of discipline, will be very apt to bring on the
sooner a dissolute state of the body politic. Our fathers, on this
account, were not so much at fault as many suppose. They were fitted, by
the guidance and grace of God, for the times in which they lived--for
the work which they were called to perform. If some few spots or shades
could have been effaced from their characters, they would have been
still more fitting instruments of good to the Church and to posterity;
but as the case is, no other founders of an empire probably ever
possessed so large a portion of wisdom and goodness.
In respect to charges made against the fathers of New England,
pertaining to superstition, enthusiasm, injustice towards the Indians,
treatment of supposed witches, bigotry, persecution, and the
incorporatio
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