SERMON 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 MARCH 29, 1 830, 
 
 THOMAS F • D A V I E S 
 
 PUBLISHED BY REQUEST 
 
 CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY 
 
 green's farms. 
 
 NEW HAVEN: 
 
 PRINTED BY B. h. IIAMLEN. 
 1839. 
 
SERMON 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 MARCH 29, 1 839, 
 
 THOMAS F. DAVIES: 
 
 PUBLISHED BY REQUEST 
 
 CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY 
 
 GREENS FARMS. 
 
 NEW HAVEN: 
 
 PRINTED BY B. L. HAMLEN. 
 
 1839. 
 

 ' 
 
S ERMON. 
 
 Psalm lxxvii, 5 — I have considered the days of old, the years of ancient times. 
 
 We are assembled on an interesting occasion. Two centuries 
 since, the town we now inhabit, was the abode of savage men ; 
 and we are convened after the expiration of two hundred years 
 from its settlement by our ancestors, to trace the manner in which 
 the wilderness has been converted into a fruitful field ; to inquire 
 who were the men by whom so great an enterprise was com- 
 menced and carried forward ; to consider the principles by which 
 they were influenced and the objects they had in view, and to 
 draw from objects so abundant in instruction, lessons of practical 
 wisdom, under the influence of which we also may become the 
 benefactors of those who in succeeding times shall dwell in these 
 pleasant places. 
 
 The settlement of New England is one of the results of the 
 Reformation, which we may consider as commencing in Eng- 
 land, in the reign of Henry VIII. 
 
 No Protestant should be insensible of the services of Wickliffe, 
 who has been styled "the Morning Star of the Reformation," but 
 who may with more propriety be considered as one of those lights 
 which God gave his Church in that dark night, when papacy 
 brooded over the world. By him the New Testament was trans- 
 lated into the English language. He was an able and voluminous 
 writer, and maintained doctrines which at the Reformation were 
 reasserted. More than forty years after his death, his bones, and 
 writings were burnt by order of the Council of Constance, his 
 followers persecuted, and the fears of the papacy which with 
 good reason had been excited, were at length quieted by a law of 
 Henry V, which declared that whoever " should read the Scrip- 
 tures in the mother tongue, should forfeit land, cattle and goods, 
 from their heirs forever, and so be condemned for heretics to 
 God, and most arrant traitors to the land." A period of dark- 
 ness intervened between the suppression of the followers of 
 Wickliffe and the Reformation. 
 
 In the reign of Henry VIII, the Reformation which by the 
 labors of Luther and others had been commenced in Germany, 
 and extended into other European states, was felt in England. 
 Causes which it is not necessary to assign, separated that monarch 
 from the communion of Rome, and he was himself declared to 
 
be " the sole and supreme head of the Church of England." 
 The Bible was translated, and every church furnished with a 
 copy. 
 
 In the reign of his son, Edward VI, Cranmer and his il- 
 lustrious associates availing themselves of the countenance fur- 
 nished by a virtuous prince, urged forward the Reformation, and 
 in a convocation of the bishops and clergy, Articles of Religion 
 were adopted, subscription to which was required from all hold- 
 ing office in the church. They did not consider themselves as 
 having accomplished all that was desirable ; but in one of their 
 service books, assert " they had gone as far as they could in reform- 
 ing the church, considering the times in which they lived, and 
 hope that those who come after them, will, as they may, do more." 
 
 In the reign of Mary, who succeeded Edward on the throne, 
 a sad reverse was seen. Popery was re-established ; in her short 
 reign of six years, many suffered death, and numbers fled to the 
 continent, whence, on the approach of happier days, we may sup- 
 pose, that most of them returned. 
 
 At the accession of Elizabeth, it was manifest that veneration 
 for the papal power had lost its hold of a vast majority of English 
 minds. The fires of persecution had wrought the downfal of 
 the papacy, and the prophecy of Latimer was fulfilled, who said 
 to his co-martyr Ridley, " We shall this day light such a candle 
 in England, as I trust in God's grace shall never be put out." 
 
 Great difference of opinion however, existed, with respect to the 
 extent to which the Reformation should be carried. The dueen 
 exhibited her love of power in the government of the church, 
 and while many ardently wished that some of those "ornaments 
 and ceremonies" which having been connected with the Romish 
 ritual, were still retained in the church, might be relinquished, 
 the Queen was so far from yielding to their wishes, that she prob- 
 ably sought, and certainly received, power from the Parliament 
 " to add any new ceremonies which she thought proper." The 
 question of independence of Rome, having been considered as de- 
 cided, two great parties now existed in the English Church. One 
 party attached to habits and ceremonies, hallowed in their view 
 by long continued use in the temples of religion, enforced their 
 observance, with rigor, while the other party which had received 
 the name of Puritans, from conscientious scruples, refused to sub- 
 mit to them. It would not however be just to consider either 
 of those divisions which the English Church embraced, as con- 
 tending during the long period of their controversy, only for 
 the observance or non-observance of ceremonies. Many who 
 sought a further reform, were opposed to Episcopacy and to the 
 Liturgy, and it is very possible, that the unwillingness to dis- 
 pense with certain habits and ceremonies would have been less 
 strenuous, had there been no knoAvledge or suspicion that the 
 
views of the Puritans extended further. The dispute to which 
 we now refer appears to have had entire reference to the vest- 
 ments of the clergy. 
 
 About the year 1564 there existed a considerable variety of 
 sacerdotal dress. In the performance of divine service, some of 
 the clergy wore " a square cap, some a round cap, some a button 
 cap, some a hat, some were in scholars' clothes, and some in 
 others." Disputes arose. " The bishops published their ' adver- 
 tisements' to the clergy, prescribing an exact conformity as to 
 the fashion of their dress, ' gowns, caps, cuffs, sleeves and tip- 
 pets.' By this measure, a portion of the most serious and useful 
 ministers who had continued to preach, were expelled from their 
 pulpits and shut up in prison. They refused to conform. Some 
 of them became physicians, some became chaplains in private 
 families, some fled to Scotland, others to the continent, some re- 
 sorted to secular business, and many with large families were re- 
 duced to want and beggary. The churches were shut, the pub- 
 lic mind was inflamed. Six hundred people repaired to a church 
 in London to receive the sacrament ; the doors were closed, no 
 minister would officiate. The cries of the people reached the 
 Throne, but the Throne was inexorable. The suspended min- 
 isters appealed to the world, and published an able defence of 
 their conduct. The Star Chamber decreed, that no person should 
 publish any book against the Queen and ordinances or their mean- 
 ing. Booksellers were compelled to enter into bonds to observe 
 this law. This measure hastened the controversy to a signal crisis. 
 The suspended ministers finding themselves in a pressing dilem- 
 ma, having lost all hope of relief, had a solemn consultation and 
 agreed, that since they could not have the word of God preached, 
 nor the sacraments administered, without idolatrous geare, it was 
 their duty to break off from the public church, and to assemble in 
 private houses and elsewhere."* 
 
 Various persecutions succeeded. At the instigation of Whit- 
 gift, the Queen established a Court of High Commission which 
 was to all intents and purposes an inquisition. She appointed forty 
 four Commissioners, three of whom made a quorum, and whose 
 jurisdiction extended over the whole kingdom and over all or- 
 ders of men. " They were directed to make inquiry not only 
 by the legal method of jurors and witnesses, but by all other 
 means and ways which they could devise ; that is, by the rack, 
 by torture, by inquisition, by imprisonment. The fines which 
 they levied were discretionary, and often occasioned the total ruin 
 of the offender, contrary to the established laws of the kingdom. 
 The imprisonment to which they condemned any delinquent, 
 was limited to no rule but their own pleasure. They assumed 
 
 * Morse and Parish, p. xxxi, et seq. 
 
the power of imposing on the clergy what new articles of sub- 
 scription, and consequently of faith, they thought proper." 
 
 In 1591, it was by Parliament enacted, "that if any person 
 above the age of sixteen, shall for one month refuse to attend at 
 some Episcopal Church, and after conviction shall not in three 
 months make a humble confession, he shall go into perpetual 
 banishment ; if he do not depart in the time appointed, or if he 
 return without the Queen's license, he shall suffer death, with- 
 out benefit of clergy." 
 
 In 1603, James VI, of Scotland and I, of England suc- 
 ceeded Elizabeth, and disappointed the expectations of those 
 who wished a more thorough reformation. The present trans- 
 lation of the Scriptures was indeed made, but the Court of High 
 Commission existed in the full possession of its original powers. 
 "Liberty of conscience," says the most distinguished English 
 historian, " was totally suppressed, and no exercise of any reli- 
 gion but the established, was permitted throughout the king- 
 dom." — " I will make them conform," was the language of James, 
 "or I will hurry them out of the land, or else worse." 
 
 Under these circumstances a number resolved to go into the 
 Low Countries. To escape from England, however, was no 
 easy task. The first attempt failed, and those who engaged in 
 it were arrested, and for a time imprisoned. The next attempt 
 was more successful ; but the approach of an armed force com- 
 pelled a portion of the emigrants to sail, leaving the women and 
 children to the tender mercies of the existing powers. " Charity 
 and humanity," says the historian, " would have cheered the 
 weeping throng ; but those heavenly spirits were not there. Per- 
 secution raised her voice terrible as death, — she hurried them from 
 one place to another, from one officer to another. To imprison 
 so many innocent women and children would have excited indig- 
 nation. Their meekness and Christian deportment made a deep 
 and favorable impression on the hearts of many spectators, which 
 produced considerable accessions to their number. But by cour- 
 age and perseverance they all finally crossed over to Holland, 
 and united with their friends." Important considerations indu- 
 ced them, after the lapse of about twelve years, to leave Holland 
 for America. Indeed it was so difficult for them to procure the 
 means of subsistence, that it is stated "many preferred prisons 
 in England to liberty in Holland, accompanied by such suffer- 
 ings." They procured a Patent from the Virginia Company, 
 which subsequent events rendered useless, and after impressive 
 religious services, and a most solemn and affectionate parting, 
 which furnishes one of the most affecting passages in the entire 
 compass of history, a portion of these exiles sailed for America. 
 They landed at Plymouth in December, 1620. " Immediately 
 after their landing, they fell on their knees with hearty thanks 
 to God, who had been their assurance when far off on the sea." 
 
The course of events the mean while in England continued 
 unfavorable to the cause of religious freedom. That which es- 
 pecially tended to the increasing and permanent separation of 
 those who had been bred in the same religious communion was 
 the influence and advancement of Laud, who was made chaplain 
 to the King in 1617, and who became bishop in 1621. He 
 was high in favor with Charles I, who succeeded to the throne 
 in 1625. While large numbers were desirous of further reform, 
 and others, perhaps, of changes which would have affected the 
 very order and constitution of the church, Archbishop Laud, (for 
 by this title he is generally known, although he did not attain 
 the primacy until 1633,) endeavored to give an impress of doc- 
 trine and of ceremony to the English Church, which would have 
 made it very nearly resemble the Church of Rome, and was the 
 most distinguished of those men by whom our ancestors were 
 persecuted out of England. 
 
 Living when juster sentiments respecting religion and govern- 
 ment began to prevail, he sought to augment the powers of the 
 church and the burdens of the people. It is said, indeed, that he 
 was not a papist ; but whoever reads an account of the manner 
 in which he dedicated the temples of religion, or administered 
 the sacrament of the supper, will feel unable to point to any 
 source whence the bigotry of Archbishop Laud could have ac- 
 quired a deeper tinge. We question not his sincerity ; but while 
 granting this, Ave cannot forget those violations of the laws of 
 God, and the rights of man, which excited the indignation of an 
 oppressed people. 
 
 In forming our estimate of the scenes which are passing in re- 
 view before us, and of the men engaged in them, we are to re- 
 member that religious toleration, in the true sense of that ex- 
 pression, was unknown. It existed in the Low Countries by suf- 
 ferance for a time, as it regarded the English exiles ; and the 
 knowledge that it might at any moment be taken away, had an 
 influence in forming their determination to seek a refuge in the 
 wilds of America. The French King indulged the Huguenots 
 at this period with a toleration, but fearful was the price which 
 they at length paid for such an indulgence. To toleration, all 
 parties in England were opposed, — the persecutors and the per- 
 secuted. They denominated such toleration " soul murder," and 
 a " relaxing of the golden reins of discipline ;" and Cotton Mather, 
 in a subsequent age, asserted, that if toleration were ever allowed, 
 we should call his name Gad, "for behold 'a troop' cometh, a 
 troop of all abominations." Nor could the Presbyterians of Eng- 
 land or Scotland, perfect as was their dread of prelatical domina- 
 tion, have claimed, even at a subsequent period, any precedence 
 in the cause of religious freedom. That the ecclesiastical was 
 independent of the civil power, was the common opinion of the 
 first reformers of Britain. In Scotland, the Presbyterian pre- 
 
8 
 
 served this tenet with more success lhan the Episcopalian in 
 England, and obtained signal triumphs over the Government ; 
 and independence of the civil power, has to this day been more 
 perfectly preserved in the former than in the latter country. The 
 General Assembly of the church of Scotland still exists, while 
 the Convocation of the English Church has long since lost its 
 vital power, although an occasional assemblage is held around its 
 tomb. The Church of Scotland, as well as the English Church, 
 looked to the civil arm to execute the pains and penalties adjudg- 
 ed by the church. Of toleration, that church then knew noth- 
 ing, and has never manifested any remarkable proficiency in the 
 acquisition of that useful lesson ; and so late as 1712, it bore "a 
 solemn testimony against toleration." The ecclesiastical courts 
 of Scotland could pronounce a sentence of excommunication, in 
 virtue of which, the "whole estate during life, and the mova- 
 bles, forever were forfeited to the crown." Religious toleration 
 was not acknowledged by the laws of any land ; and we should 
 not be unsparing in our censures of what we consider so great 
 an error, or consider it an evidence of mental weakness in the 
 men of that age. Antiquity was against it. The admission of 
 toleration would have been going contrary to the experience of 
 ages. Where men are ignorant, they begin to distrust and to 
 fear. We see the influence of this natural tendency in the little 
 child, who, as the shades of evening gather around him, relin- 
 quishes the objects of its infantile amusement, and draws near 
 the side of its parent. To have ventured on the untried ex- 
 panse of universal toleration of religious opinion, would have 
 been proceeding in darkness ; and our ancestors, of whatever 
 party, supposed that Church and State might at once sink in 
 vast abyss. That it could exist, and be a source of good, and 
 not of evil, was as much of a discovery as that of Columbus, and 
 has added as much to the sum of human enjoyment. Toleration 
 is the safety valve of the church ; it promotes the peace and 
 comfort of all ; and this simple process will safely diffuse in the 
 wide expanse, all the stores of supernumerary zeal. When all 
 then were in an error, we cannot brand any individual for the in- 
 dulgence of the common sentiment. True charity and enlarged 
 views would, however, even in these unfavorable circumstances, 
 have recommended a comprehensive religious establishment. 
 The founders of the Colonies of Massachusetts and Connecti- 
 cut determined to leave their native land. No one who allows 
 the right of private judgment in matters of religion, will blame 
 them for dissent from the Church of England as then established. 
 We shall not enter upon the substantial merits of the subjects in 
 dispute. We simply say, that if our ancestors objected to pre- 
 lacy, to a liturgy, to the sign of the cross in baptism, and to 
 other matters which might be specified, they exercised what is 
 now universally considered an undoubted right. They desired 
 
not only freedom to worship in the way they judged most agree- 
 able to the word of God, but as intimately connected with this, 
 the liberty of choosing their own religious teachers. 
 
 Our fathers did not attribute the evils they endured to the Church 
 of England as such, but to individuals bearing sway within it, 
 acting in concert with the civil rulers. When, in 1 629, they sailed 
 from the Isle of Wight, and had come " to the Land's End, Mr. 
 Higginson, calling up his children and other passengers to take 
 their last sight of England, said, ' Farewell England, farewell 
 the Church of God in England, and all Christian friends there,' 
 concluding with a fervent prayer for the King, Church and State 
 of England;" and no men, did they now live, would more re- 
 joice in the true prosperity of the English Church, and the be- 
 neficent influence she is exerting in other lands, than many of 
 those who at this period left England for America. 
 
 That the motives which led to the settlement of the New Eng- 
 land Colonies were of a religious nature, no one conversant with 
 the history of those times will question. The General Court of 
 this State, in 1672, give us their testimony on this subject. " It 
 recognizes the design of the first planters, who. as the Court ex- 
 presses it, ' settled these foundations' for the maintaining of ' reli- 
 gion according to the gospel of our Lord Jesus.'"* 
 
 In a document drawn up by the ministers of New England, the 
 reason for leaving their native land, and seeking a home in this wil- 
 derness, is stated to be, "that the ancient faith and true worship 
 might be found inseparable companions in their practice, and 
 that their posterity might be undefiled in religion."! Connected 
 with this, there was also doubtless a desire for a better civil gov- 
 ernment than was in England then possessed. The subject of 
 civil liberty, and the privileges of the subject, were much can- 
 vassed at this period, and by no class of men were they better un- 
 derstood than by the Puritans. It is asserted by Hume, that " the 
 precious spark of liberty had been kindled, and was preserved by 
 the Puritans alone ; and it was to this sect, that the English owe 
 the whole freedom of their constitution." We shall find evidence 
 as we proceed, that the fathers of Connecticut were distinguished 
 among their brethren for their knowledge of civil government. 
 With these motives which led to the settlement of New Eng- 
 land, other motives may have mingled. The love of enterprise 
 and adventure, which might find ample field in this wide conti- 
 nent ; the gain which might arise from commerce or the discov- 
 ery of the precious metals, may have had an influence to increase 
 the number of emigrants ; but that the settlers of our land were, 
 in the first instance, men who here sought a free exercise of re- 
 ligious opinions and worship, will be conceded by all conversant 
 
 * Trumbull, Vol. i, p. 323. t Hist, of New England, p. 48. 
 
10 
 
 with their history. So severe had been the laws, that at the 
 Revolution in England, a law was enacted, " that the statutes of 
 Queen Elizabeth and King James I, concerning the discipline 
 of the Church, should not extend to Protestant Dissenters."* We 
 are to distinguish between the objects of those noblemen and 
 gentlemen of England who obtained Patents from the King for 
 the establishment and government of colonies in America, and 
 the motives by which those who settled under the protection of 
 those Patents were influenced. Motives of gain had doubtless a 
 great influence with the former. 
 
 Under a Patent issued Nov. 3, 1620, certain noblemen and gen- 
 tlemen were incorporated under the title, " The Council estab- 
 lished at Plymouth, in the County of Devon, for the planting, 
 ruling, ordering and governing of New England in America;" 
 and to them was granted the territory lying between the 40th 
 and 48th degrees of north latitude ; and the persecutions in Eng- 
 land not only continuing but increasing in severity, the number 
 of Puritans was greatly augmented, for many warm advocates 
 of civil liberty made common cause with those who were denied 
 the just rights of subjects. 
 
 It was in 1627 that purchases were made of the Plymouth 
 Company for the founding of the Colony of Massachusetts, but 
 as that Company conferred no powers of government, a Charter 
 was subsequently obtained from Charles I, constituting them a 
 body politic, by the name of the " Governor and Company of 
 Massachusetts Bay in New England." To join those who had 
 preceded them in that interesting settlement, there embarked, in 
 the spring of 1630, from different ports in England, about fifteen 
 hundred emigrants. The expedition consisted of eleven vessels, 
 fitted at the expense of more than £21,000. These took with 
 them the Charter of the Colony, without which they were un- 
 willing to emigrate, and under its provisions enjoyed a degree of 
 freedom unknown in the parent land. In this expedition came 
 those who were subsequently the founders of the Colony of Con- 
 necticut, and the most distinguished of the first settlers of the 
 town and county of Fairfield. 
 
 The history of Massachusetts, however, until 1635, is our his- 
 tory. There our fathers settled, and were numbered with her 
 distinguished and useful men. We claim, in common with our 
 brethren of "the Massachusetts," the recollections of that period, 
 and with them gather as numerous around the grave of the Lady 
 Arbella. Thither shall the daughters of New England come, 
 strewing the fairest flowers of our valleys on the tomb of her who 
 perished as a rose in adverse storms, but which has left a fra- 
 grance that is imperishable. 
 
 * Jacob's Law Dictionary. Art. Dissenters. 
 
11 
 
 Various reasons, the most prominent of which were the con- 
 stant accession to their numbers, caused by the persecutions in 
 England, and reports respecting the fertile valley of the Connec- 
 ticut, induced those who had settled Dorchester, Watertown, and 
 Newtown in Massachusetts, to leave that Colony. The people 
 of Dorchester removed and settled Windsor ; those of Watertown, 
 Wethersfield ; and those of Newtown, Hartford. These were 
 the three first towns of Connecticut. They came as churches ; 
 as such they " were gathered antecedently to their settlement in 
 Connecticut, and it does not appear that they were ever re-gath- 
 ered afterwards." The hardships experienced in this removal, 
 and for a considerable time afterward, were very great. 
 
 They were without the limits of Massachusetts, and in the 
 occupancy of territory for which Lord Say and Seal and others 
 had obtained a Patent from the Council of Plymouth. Under 
 these peculiar circumstances they determined to form a constitu- 
 tion of civil government ; and in January, 1G39, the free planters 
 convened at Hartford, and adopted a Constitution. This provided 
 for two General Courts or Assemblies to be held annually. The 
 choice of officers was to be made by ballot by the whole body of 
 freemen. It provided that all persons who had been received as 
 members of the several towns by a majority of the inhabitants, 
 and had taken the oath of fidelity to the Commonwealth, should 
 be admitted freemen of the Colony. The Governor could not 
 hold his office two years in succession, and neither the Governor 
 nor magistrates might execute any part of their office until they 
 had been publicly sworn, in the face of the General Assembly. 
 
 All the provisions of this instrument had an especial regard to 
 the rights of the people. It provided, in case the Governor and 
 other magistrates did not comply with the laws requiring them to 
 convene the General Assembly or Court, the freemen might them- 
 selves hold it, in person or by deputy ; and in the Assembly thus 
 convened, the supreme power should consist, and "shall have 
 power to call either Court or magistrate, or any other person what- 
 soever, into question for any misdemeanor, and may for such 
 cause displace, or deal otherwise, according to the nature of the 
 offence." 
 
 This memorable Constitution, contains in its final clause a Bill 
 of Rights, which will ever remain an honor to the men who 
 drew the instrument. 
 
 The settlers of the first Colony (Plymouth) subscribed, before 
 leaving the vessel in which they had embarked, a covenant or 
 compact, as the basis of their government ; but this cannot be 
 considered as giving such evidence of advancement in the science 
 of government, as is furnished by the first Constitution of Con- 
 necticut. The Constitution formed at New Haven was of a few 
 months later date, and the government of the Massachusetts was 
 
12 
 
 conducted in conformity with the provision of the charter. No 
 history of free governments can be written, without regarding 
 the constitution of civil government formed by our fathers at 
 Hartford in 1639. Its provisions were subsequently, in a great 
 measure, incorporated in the Charter granted by King Charles II, 
 in April, 1662, and its important principles re-asserted in our pres- 
 ent Constitution. 
 
 Soon after their settlement, the first colonists became engaged 
 in a war with the Pequots. That powerful tribe sustained a sig- 
 nal defeat. A remnant of them fled from the eastern part of the 
 State to Sasco, a name which then appears to have been appro- 
 priated to what was subsequently termed "the Great Swamp in 
 Fairfield," and which is now known by the name of Pequot 
 Swamp. It was this expedition which led to the settlement of 
 this town.* 
 
 We will speak briefly of the expedition. The statement given 
 in Trumbull's History of Connecticut is familiar to many. The 
 following is from the private journal of Governor Winthrop, who, 
 it may be proper to observe, was not in the expedition. " Eighty 
 of their stoutest men (speaking of the Pequots) were at a place 
 within twenty or thirty miles of the Dutch, whither our men 
 marched, and being guided by a divine Providence, came upon 
 them where they had twenty wigwams, hard by a most hideous 
 swamp, so thick and so quagmiry, as men could hardly crowd 
 into it. Into this swamp they were all gotten. Lieut. Daven- 
 port, and two or three more that entered the swamp, were dan- 
 gerously wounded by the Indian arrows, and with much diffi- 
 culty were fetched out. Then our men surrounded the swamp, 
 being a mile about, and shot at the Indians and they at them, 
 from three of the clock in the afternoon till they desired parley and 
 offered to yield, and life was offered to all that had not shed En- 
 glish blood. So they began to come forth, now some and then 
 some, till about two hundred women and children were come 
 out, and amongst them the Sachem of that place, and they thus 
 kept us two hours, till night was come on, and then the men 
 told us they would fight it out ; and so they did all the night, 
 coming up behind the bushes very near our men, and shot many 
 arrows into their hats, sleeves and stocks ; yet (which was a very 
 miracle) not one of ours was wounded. When it was near morn- 
 ing it grew very dark, so as such of them as were left, crept out 
 at one place and escaped, being (as was judged) not above twenty 
 at most, and those like to be wounded." 
 
 The late President Dwight, in his Greenfield Hill, has given 
 the following account of the manner in which the troops discov- 
 ered the resting place of their enemies : 
 
 * See Note A. 
 
13 
 
 " Amid a circling marsh, expanded wide, 
 
 To a lone hill the Pequods wound their way ; 
 
 And none but Heaven, the mansion had descried, 
 
 Close-tangled, wild, impervious to the day ; 
 
 But one poor wanderer, loitering long astray, 
 
 Wilder'd in labyrinths of pathless wood, 
 
 In a tall tree embower'd, obscurely lay : 
 
 Strait summon'd down the trembling suppliant show'd 
 
 Where lurk'd his vanish'd friends, within their drear abode, 
 
 " To death the murderers were anew requir'd, 
 
 A pardon proffer'd and a peace assur'd : 
 
 And though with vengeful heat their foes were fir'd, 
 
 Their lives, their freedom, and their lands secured. 
 
 Some yielding heard." 
 
 Dr. Trumbull observes, that " Mr. Ludlow, who went with 
 the troops in pursuit of the Pequots to Sasco, was so much pleased 
 with that fine tract of country, that he soon projected the scheme 
 of a settlement in that part of the colony. This year (1639) 
 he with a number of others, began a plantation at Unquowa, 
 which was the Indian name of the town. At first there were but 
 about eight or ten families. These probably removed from Wind- 
 sor with Mr. Ludlow, who was the principal planter. Very soon 
 after, another company came from Watertown and united with 
 Mr. Ludlow and the people from Windsor. A third company re- 
 moved into the plantation from Concord ; so that the inhabitants 
 soon became numerous, and formed themselves into a distinct 
 township under the jurisdiction of Connecticut."* There were 
 but three towns in the State before the settlement of that which 
 we now inhabit. The number of inhabitants in Connecticut at 
 this period, was about eight hundred souls, or one hundred and 
 sixty or seventy families ;f and the number of ratable persons in 
 Connecticut, so late as the year 1665, was 775.J 
 
 The expedition in pursuit of the Pequots to Sasco, was impor- 
 tant in its consequences. " By the pursuit of the Pequots to the 
 westward," says Dr. Trumbull, " the English became acquainted 
 with that fine tract along the shore from Saybrook to Fairfield," 
 and the settlement of New Haven, as well as of Fairfield, is dis- 
 tinctly attributed to this circumstance. 
 
 It is proper that we here speak of Roger Ludlow, who accom- 
 panied that expedition, and who may be considered as the founder 
 of this town. 
 
 This gentleman was one of the early and most distinguished 
 settlers of New England. He was chosen a magistrate of Massa- 
 chusetts, before leaving England, and was a member of the 
 first Court of Magistrates held on board the Arbella, in the 
 harbor of Boston. He was subsequently, and in more than 
 one instance, a Lieutenant Governor of that State. He was 
 
 * Trumbull's Hist. Con., Vol. i, p. 109. t Hist. Col., p. 10. 
 
 t Trumbull's Hist. Con., Vol. i, p. 224. 
 
14 
 
 there active and useful, and superintended the erection of the first 
 military works on Castle Island. In 1635, he with others com- 
 menced the settlement of the town of Windsor in this State, 
 and from 1635 until 1654, he was either a magistrate or Lieu- 
 tenant Governor of the Colony. He compiled at the request of 
 the General Court, our first body of laws ; he was for a time a 
 member of the Board of Commissioners of the United Colonies, 
 and is considered by Trumbull as having been " a principal," in 
 forming " the original civil Constitution" of which we have 
 spoken, who also declares, that for jurisprudence, he appears to 
 have been second to none in New England at that time.* 
 
 In 1652 it was believed that Stuyvesant, the Dutch Governor 
 at the Manhadoes, " was confederate with the Indians, in a plot 
 for the extirpation of the English Colonists."! At a meeting of 
 the Commissioners of the United Colonies, war under certain 
 contingencies was resolved upon, and measures taken to that end. 
 The General Court of Massachusetts, refused to be bound by the 
 determination of the Commissioners, although the courts at Con- 
 necticut and New Haven, had voted their respective quotas of men, 
 appointed their officers, and given orders that all necessary prep- 
 aration should be made for the designed expedition. Such was 
 the danger of attack from the Indians, that the inhabitants 
 of this and other towns, were to a great extent prevented from 
 prosecuting their customary labors, and the consequent incon- 
 venience and distress were great. Under these circumstances 
 it cannot appear very surprising, that without waiting for further 
 orders the frontier towns should raise a military force of which 
 Mr. Ludlow accepted the command. " He was" says Dr. 
 Trumbull, " one of the most zealous for prosecuting the war 
 against the Dutch, and no man was more displeased, that the col- 
 onies did not follow the determinations of the Commissioners. 
 He might apprehend himself to be particularly in danger at Fair- 
 field. Besides he had taken a very hasty and unadvised step in 
 accepting the command of men to go against the Dutch, without 
 any legal appointment." Any person who will look with atten- 
 tion into the history of that period, will grant, that the circum- 
 stances of the case go far to justify the course pursued by Mr. 
 Ludlow. It is stated for instance, in the history of the town 
 of Milford, as given in the Connecticut Historical Collections, that 
 " the Indians were again troublesome in 1653, and the people 
 were under the apprehension of a sudden and general massacre. 
 They were greatly hindered in their farming avocations, and 
 
 * It was doubtless at his instance, that in 1645 " the town of Fairfield made ob- 
 jcrtionsto that part of the act passed in 1644, which admitted of a jury of sis. 
 They insisted on twelve jurymen in all cases triable by a jury ; but consented that 
 eight out of twelve should bring in a verdict." It does not appear, that a jury of 
 six was ever empanelled after this time. 
 
 t Trumbull's Con., Vol. i, p. 202. 
 
15 
 
 worn down with incessant watchings." The law of self-preser- 
 vation would almost seem to have required the course which the 
 inhabitants of Fairfield, appear to have desired at this period, 
 with respect to the prosecution of the war. No man can be 
 mentioned who acted a more prominent part in the early settle- 
 ment of this State than Mr. Ludlow, or one to whom the State 
 is more indebted for important services.* 
 
 It appears from existing records, that purchases were from time 
 to time made from the natives, for what was deemed a fair equiv- 
 alent. Mr. Ludlow, the principal planter, settled, as there is good 
 reason for believing, near the present residence of Capt. Benson, 
 and the first courts of which we have knowledge, were held a 
 small distance west. The lands at Sasco, and at Compo, were 
 subsequently divided among the inhabitants. The lands from 
 about the centre of this parish, to the north line of the town were 
 disposed of at a subsequent period, and in a different manner. 
 
 It would be interesting to dwell on many particulars connected 
 with the early progress of the settlement, but I desire to confine 
 myself to those, which on this day may justly claim our attention. 
 
 It appears that the first minister of Fairfield was the Rev. John 
 Jones. Dr. Trumbull states respecting him, that he was episco- 
 pally ordained in England. From his will, a copy of which now 
 remains among the records of the town, it appears that he died in 
 1664 or 1665, leaving a widow and six children; two sons and 
 four daughters. He was succeeded in 1665 by the Rev. Samuel 
 Wakeman, whose ministry continued until 1692. Mr. Wake- 
 man was one of the four ministers appointed by the legislature 
 in 1668, to meet at Saybrook and " devise a way of uniting the 
 churches in some general plan of church communion and disci- 
 pline, by which they might walk, notwithstanding their different 
 sentiments in points of less importance." " This," says Trum- 
 bull, " appears to have been the first step towards forming a re- 
 ligious constitution." It led to the formation of the Saybrook 
 Platform in 1708. The Rev. Joseph Webb was his successor 
 in August, 1694, and died in 1732. Mr. Webb was one of the 
 founders of Yale College, and appears to have been a Fellow of 
 that Institution from 1700 to 1732. 
 
 It was in his ministry that the church in this parish was 
 formed. By an extract from the records in Hartford, it appears 
 that in the October session, 1714, the General Assembly did al- 
 low the inhabitants of West Farms in Fairfield, to embody them- 
 selves into a church estate. The name of Green's Farms does 
 not occur until long after. By our records it. appears that the 
 church was formed October 26th, 1715, and that the Rev. Daniel 
 Chapman, was on the same day ordained their pastor. The ori- 
 
 * See Note B. 
 
16 
 
 ginal covenant was subscribed by seven persons besides Mr. Chap- 
 man. These probably were all the male members of the church. 
 The ministry of Mr. Chapman, continued until 1741, in which 
 year he died. The number of members in the church at this 
 time appears to have been eighty.* 
 
 Mr. Chapman was succeeded by the Rev. Daniel Buckingham, 
 who was ordained to the work of the gospel ministry in this place 
 March 19, 1742, and who died May 23, 1766, after a ministry of 
 more than twenty four years. At the time of his decease, there 
 were 75 members of the church. 
 
 The Rev. Hezekiah Ripley, commenced his labors here in the 
 fall of 1766, and was ordained pastor Feb. 11, 1767. During his 
 ministry occurred the Revolutionary war, and for a time he, as 
 chaplain, was connected with the army. The inhabitants of this 
 place were great sufferers during that war. Those whose recol- 
 lections embrace that eventful period, inform me that during their 
 religious worship, alarming tidings were not un frequently received. 
 In such cases and at the desire of Dr. Ripley, who was unwilling 
 to forego those services, persons were stationed at such points that 
 they might give timely notice of the approach of the enemy. 
 What a contrast to the peaceful scenes of the present hour ! 
 
 As the visit of the British troops to this place, in July, 1779, is 
 the most calamitous event which has occurred since its first settle- 
 ment, J will mention it in the words of Chancellor Kent. " The 
 British incendiaries on the morning of the 8th of July, (Thurs- 
 day,) swept along over the village of Green's Farms, and destroy- 
 ed all the houses for near a mile in succession ; and among others 
 the house where I had slept on the Tuesday evening preceding, 
 and the house of the Rev. Dr. Ripley, and the meeting house in 
 which that excellent man used to preach. If he still lives," was 
 in 1831, the language of Chancellor Kent, respecting Dr. Ripley, 
 "as I believe he does, he is among the oldest of the Connecticut 
 clergy, and I have not lost for him, a particle of my early rever- 
 ence." Dr. Ripley died in November succeeding the delivery of 
 the Address, in connection with which this statement was pub- 
 lished, and it may not be improper to state, that he was highly 
 gratified with the respectful mention of a man he esteemed so 
 much.f 
 
 During the ministry of Dr. Ripley, the years 1815 and 1816, 
 appear to have been the most distinguished for attention to divine 
 things. In these years, there were thirty eight persons who uni- 
 ted with the church. 
 
 Dr. Ripley resigned his pastoral charge in Aug. 1821, at which 
 time the Rev. Edward W. Hooker, was ordained Pastor of this 
 Church. The ministry of Mr. Hooker, continued until Jan., 
 1829, when he was dismissed at his own request. During his 
 
 * See Note C. t See Note D 
 
17 
 
 ministry there were 19 persons received into the church ; 16 by 
 profession, and 3 by recommendation from other churches. 
 
 The present pastor commenced his labors in this place, May 
 10th, 1829, and was installed October 29th, in the same year. 
 Since my installation there have been 110 persons received into 
 the church ; 99 by profession, and 11 by recommendation from 
 other churches. About 40 have been dismissed to the church 
 in Westport and the number of members in the church on the 
 1st of Jan. 1839, was 148, including 16 who were non-resident. 
 The year 1831 has been more than all others distinguished for 
 attention to the interests of the soul. Oh, that with the remem- 
 brance of those happy scenes, there might arise fervent and effec- 
 tual prayer for their renewal ! 
 
 It may not be improper to mention, that all the pastors of this 
 church, with the exception of Mr. Hooker, have been graduates 
 of Yale College ; and that there have been as few changes in the 
 ministry in this, as in any other church in this county, formed at 
 so early a period. There have been five pastors including the 
 present, and for a period of more than one hundred and twenty 
 four years, the pulpit has been supplied with scarcely an interrup- 
 tion. The maintenance of divine worship has been an object 
 dear to the hearts of those who have here lived. The destruc- 
 tion of their house of worship in 1779, was, with the other dis- 
 tresses of that time, severely felt ; but they cheerfully made the 
 sacrifices then necessary to erect the present edifice ; in which, 
 in consideration of their losses, they were aided by the State. I 
 should do injustice to the convictions of my mind, and to the 
 grateful feelings of my heart, if I did not say, that they have 
 been distinguished for their attachment and respect to those who 
 have been placed over them in the Lord. 
 
 1. We will speak briefly of the Results of the settlement of 
 our Puritan Fathers in New England. 
 
 By it, Christianity has diffused her light and blessings through 
 extensive regions, from which light radiates over distant and be- 
 nighted lands. The preservation and extension of the church of 
 Christ as the prominent object of their great enterprise, is beauti- 
 fully indicated in the Seal of the State. Three vines are there 
 presented us with the words, Qui transtulit, sustinet, (He who 
 transplanted, still sustains.) 
 
 Let us look at the condition of the State, when its constitution 
 of civil government was adopted. It consisted of three towns, 
 containing three churches, no one of which was originally gath- 
 ered in this State. The three vines of the Seal I suppose to in- 
 dicate those churches which were here transplanted ; and how 
 scriptural the allusion. " Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt," 
 is the language of the eightieth Psalm, " thou hast cast out the 
 heathen and planted it. Thou preparedst room before it, and 
 
 3 
 
18 
 
 didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land. The hills 
 were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof, 
 were like the goodly cedars. She sent out her boughs unto the 
 sea, and her branches unto the river." How beautiful and how 
 true when applied to the American Church ! Our fathers consid- 
 ered that arbitrary power made their native land in a degree, as 
 was Egypt to Israel, and evidently acknowledge his goodness in 
 leading them, and here planting them amid the tokens of his favor. 
 The vine here transplanted He has indeed sustained. It has 
 taken root, and, blessed be His name, has filled the land. The 
 branches of this vine are already extending beyond the moun- 
 tains, to yield its fruits by the western sea. Animated by the 
 spirit of the Pilgrims, their sons have gone forth as heralds of the 
 gospel ; and while some speak of the prospect natural and moral 
 from the sides of the Himmaleh Mountains, others from the West 
 send us the joyful news that the Isles wait for his law. 
 
 2. The settlement of this country has been greatly promotive 
 of the cause of civil and religious freedom. 
 
 Written constitutions of government " are the work of mod- 
 em times alone ; and they evince a prodigious advance of the 
 minds of men towards perfection in human governments, beyond 
 all that was known in previous ages. Some resemblance indeed 
 to such constitutions may be traced in the laws of Athens and of 
 Sparta, but it is only a faint resemblance : the United States have 
 given the first example in the history of mankind, of a nation 
 deliberately and peaceably establishing its form of government 
 as defined by a written constitution, of which the provisions are 
 as comprehensive and full as they are explicit and universally 
 known. We have thus accomplished for ourselves, what God 
 was pleased to accomplish for the Israelites by the hand of Mo- 
 ses. "* The constitutions of civil government formed in this 
 country have exerted and will continue to exert a great influence 
 in other lands. Their sound has gone through all the earth, and 
 their words to the end of the world. When the political regen- 
 eration of the world shall have been accomplished ; when the fet- 
 ters shall have fallen from the limbs of the slave, and the thrones 
 of despots subverted, the nations will bless God for the precious 
 spark of liberty preserved by the Puritans ; and in the train of 
 causes which have led to the grand result, will assign an honored 
 place to the noble written constitution, formed by our fathers in 
 1639. 
 
 3. The cause of education and of human happiness has been 
 vastly promoted. 
 
 From the records of the State, of towns, and of parishes, we 
 learn that from the very first, a zeal in the cause of learning was 
 
 * Discourse by Rev. W. T. Dwight of Portland, Dec. 1, 1836. 
 
19 
 
 by our fathers manifested, which we may imitate, but shall not 
 surpass. It is unnecessary to recapitulate various votes of towns, 
 or enactments of the General Court. Provision was made for 
 the instruction of children of the poor, on the ground that duty 
 and the common good required it. Religious instruction was 
 communicated in the schools. With just and enlarged views, 
 aid was extended to Harvard College, before the establishment of 
 a College in this State; and now while in England, one twenty 
 fifth, in others one thirty fifth, and in some melancholy instances 
 one fortieth only of the whole population enjoy the benefits of in- 
 struction, here about one fourth enjoy these benefits ; and while 
 from the great schools of Oxford and Cambridge, dissenters are 
 still excluded, our Colleges are open to all. 
 
 The common blessings of life, we may suppose are diffused in 
 the two countries among the great mass of inhabitants about in 
 the same proportion ; and when reading, as I have done, how in 
 times of distress in the mother country, it has been a matter 
 of calculation among some of the operatives, whether it would 
 be better to labor the entire evening for three farthings, deducting 
 from that sum two farthings for the expense of light, or to re- 
 main in darkness, and husband the remains of strength for the 
 labors of the succeeding day, I have blessed God who has 
 opened this asylum for the oppressed. 
 
 I hasten to observe, that what with so much toil has been ob- 
 tained, should be carefully cherished and preserved. 
 
 Guard well your civil rights. The first Constitution of this 
 State furnishes evidence that in the estimation of our fathers, the 
 preservation of liberty was a trust confided to the entire body of 
 freemen, and they carefully guarded against the abuse of power 
 and neglect of duty on the part of the magistrate. It is the duty 
 of every freeman to read and understand the laws of his country. 
 When the laws of this State were in manuscript only, they were 
 publicly read in the respective towns ; and when in 1672 they 
 were first printed, the Assembly enacted that every family should 
 have a law book. The same reasons do not now indeed exist 
 for this, for the laws of those times somewhat resembled family 
 legislation ; but no man can be an intelligent and useful citizen 
 who is ignorant of the laws of his country. It is the duty of 
 every citizen to attend meetings held for the choice of rulers and 
 the transaction of all important business. For a time, after the 
 settlement of the State, the entire body of freemen were accus- 
 tomed to assemble at Hartford. With comparative ease, every 
 freeman may discharge the duties here pointed out, as those which 
 he owes his country and himself ; and I trust that we have not 
 so far degenerated from the good principles of our fathers, as to 
 be insensible that the manner in which the obligations of the 
 freeman's oath have been discharged, will find a place among the 
 ransactions of the Great Day. 
 
20 
 
 Let there be a true toleration.* 
 
 While it is freely admitted that our fathers had not those tole- 
 rant principles on the subject of religious profession which are 
 characteristic of a later age, their practice on some points may 
 even here afford us instruction* Dogmatism and metaphysics 
 were not then so rampant as has been commonly supposed. Par- 
 ticular churches so framed their confessions of faith as to embrace 
 a greater diversity of religious belief than is embraced in many 
 of our confessions at the present time. 
 
 From the private journal of Governor Winthrop, under date of 
 September, 1636, we learn that the then " Governour Mr. Vane, 
 a wise and godly gentleman, held, with Mr. Cotton and many 
 others, the indwelling of the person of the Holy Ghost in a be- 
 liever, and went so far beyond the rest as to maintain a personal 
 union with the Holy Ghost ; but the deputy, with the pastor and 
 divers others denied both ; and the question proceeded so far by 
 disputation (in writing, for the peace sake of the church, which 
 all were tender of) as at length they could not find the person of 
 the Holy Ghost in Scripture, nor in the primitive churches three 
 hundred years after Christ. So that all agreeing in the chief 
 matter of substance, viz. that the Holy Ghost is God, and that he 
 doth dwell in the believers (as the Father and Son are said also 
 to do), but whether by his gifts and power only, or by any other 
 manner of presence, seeing the Scripture doth not declare it, it 
 was earnestly desired that the word person might be forborne, 
 being a term of human invention, and tending to doubtful dispu- 
 tation in this case." 
 
 Any person who will examine the creeds and confessions of 
 faith, as contained in the ancient records of our churches, and 
 compare them with many now extant, will be convinced that a 
 straiter sect than that of our fathers has here arisen. There ap- 
 pears to be a manifest propriety in requiring more definite views 
 and greater precision of statement from those who are to preach 
 the gospel, than can be required of the great body of communi- 
 cants ; and it appears to be highly desirable that churches of dif- 
 ferent demoninations should rather diminish than increase the 
 number and particularity of articles to which assent, as a term of 
 communion, must be given. Were this done, the bonds of broth- 
 erhood would be strengthened and true fellowship increased. 
 
 Toleration by law of all religious denominations exists. Let 
 us bless God for it ; and while holding fast the faith once deliv- 
 ered to the saints, also remember that until we arrive at that 
 blessed world, in whose light we shall see eye to eye, there will 
 always be debatable ground in the church, which should be oc- 
 cupied not in angry controversy, but in free Christian discussion. 
 
 * See Note E. 
 
21 
 
 We learn that so early as the year 1732, and it is the first in- 
 stance in which the name Green's Farms occurs in our records, 
 the taxes for religious worship, gathered by the Collector, were 
 paid to a minister of the Episcopal Church, in proportion to 
 the number and property of the inhabitants belonging to that 
 communion. Let us rejoice to see our Christian brethren, though 
 called by another name, rearing their churches and founding their 
 institutions. Within the limits of the original town of Fairfield, 
 there are seven Congregational, three Episcopal, three Methodist, 
 and three Baptist churches, living in harmony, and presenting a 
 fair specimen of the peaceful and prosperous state of these com- 
 munions in New England. May peace be within their walls and 
 prosperity within their palaces ! 
 Promote the cause of Education. 
 
 Our schools and churches are the foundation of our political 
 institutions. Without intelligence there cannot be virtue, and 
 without virtue, the discharge of appropriate civil duties will give 
 place to unhallowed contests. It was a remark of a distinguish- 
 ed American statesman, in reference to the republics of the South, 
 that you might as well construct a seventy four gunship from 
 chestnut saplings, as a republic from Spanish materials. Repub- 
 lican France sought refuge in a military despotism, and the voice 
 of liberty at the South, has well nigh expired in a deluge of 
 blood. The spirit of liberty breathed by our fathers into the 
 body of republican government, still lives. Its eye is not dim, 
 nor its natural force abated ; and this, because in the colleges, 
 the schools, the churches they founded, provision was made for 
 the preservation of learning and of religion,— the lights of the 
 world. Bring up your children in* the fear of God, and they will 
 then be blessings to the land. Let the word of God be, as it now 
 is, a book for reading in your schools. Let the Catechism of the 
 Assembly of Divines be taught your children. Much of the pi- 
 ety which has adorned New England is doubtless, under God, to 
 be attributed to the practice, once almost universal, of instruct- 
 ing the rising generation in that form of sound words. Show 
 your children, that, as sinful beings, they need the renewing and 
 sanctifying influences of God's Spirit. Let the morning and eve- 
 ning incense arise from the family altar. Be constant in your 
 attendance, with your children, in the house of God ; consider 
 the education, the adornment of the immortal mind, as of greater 
 worth than silver or gold ; then shall your sons be as plants 
 grown up in their youth, and your daughters as corner stones 
 polished after the similitude of a palace. 
 
 Place the subject of religion before your mind, as that which is 
 of surpassing, even of immeasurable worth. 
 
 The sacrifices, the toils, the dangers, the institutions of the 
 Pilgrims, are so many comments on the worth of the soul. By 
 
22 
 
 these, though dead, our fathers speak, exhorting us to prepare for 
 an eternal destiny. Consider, then, the days of old, the years of 
 ancient times. 
 
 There is no subject, perhaps, to which a mind given to reflec- 
 tion, more frequently turns, than to the history of the genera- 
 tions which have preceded us ; the myriads and myriads of im- 
 mortal beings who have lived upon the earth ; and no thought in 
 this connection is more appropriate, than that, while the day of 
 grace for the past generations of men is gone, now is our day. 
 Repent of sin, and believe in Christ, and walk before him in 
 newness of life. Aspire to the benevolence of heaven, as you 
 would aspire to its felicity. Choose life, and choose it now, — 
 and from the unhappy fate of many, even in ancient times and 
 in the days of old, be warned not to hesitate or defer in this great 
 matter. 
 
 We have dwelt upon the history of our fathers, and the forms 
 of those venerable men have seemed to pass before us. And now 
 shall we not rise up and call them blessed ? Shall we not honor 
 them for the courage that knew no fear, — the perseverance which 
 would not yield to privations and hardships long continued, — the 
 benevolence which sought the good of all succeeding genera- 
 tions ? Shall we not honor them for making the glory of God 
 and the good of men the great ends of their action ? and more 
 than this, shall we not make efforts to prove ourselves the worthy 
 sons of those glorious sires, by emulating their purity of principle, 
 and elevation of purpose ? Then when these present times shall 
 to succeeding generations become " the days of old," and we 
 shall have joined the spirits of those just made perfect, our 
 children, and our children's children, shall rise up and call us 
 blessed, and shall accord to us the praise of having preserved and 
 augmented for them the legacy which our Pilgrim fathers be- 
 queathed to their remote descendants. 
 
23 
 
 A HYMN COMPOSED FOR MARCH 29, 1S39. 
 
 1. These Fields so Fair which round us spread, 
 
 Speak of the men who sought the West, 
 And lives of toil and suff'ring led, 
 
 That we, their children, might be blest. 
 
 2. The Schools these beauteous vales disclose, 
 
 The Churches which our hills adorn, 
 The Laws 'neath which we safe repose, 
 'Mid blessings rich at eve and morn : — 
 
 3. Memorials dear of those who gave 
 
 Wealth, country, all, for Him whose hand 
 Sustained them 'mid the swelling wave, 
 And plac'd them as in promis'd land. 
 
 4. Thrones have been rear'd in crime and blood, 
 
 And gold and fame their followers draw ; 
 Our fathers sought not these ; they stood 
 For God, for Liberty and Law. 
 
 5. Around them rose war's savage powers ; 
 
 Pale want did evils dire combine ; 
 Richer than fig-tree's fruits are ours, 
 And o'er us spreads the peaceful vine. 
 
 6. Thanks for such sires, Immortal King, 
 
 Us, as thy covenant children, own ; 
 Safe in their steps thy servants bring, 
 To stand with them before thy throne. 
 
NOTES. 
 
 Note A. 
 
 The chartered limits of the towns of Fairfield and Norwalk, were such 
 as to leave for many years an intervening territory, whose inhabitants 
 were termed " the inhabitants of the bank side, between Fairfield and 
 Norwalk." Disputes arose between the towns, and a letter from gentle- 
 men in Norwalk may be seen in the first book of Fairfield records, (lately 
 recovered,) which shows that while the men of Fairfield, had not been 
 backward in asserting their claims, those of Norwalk knew how to guard 
 their own interests. The limits of Fairfield as originally fixed by the 
 legislature extended seven miles " upon the sea coast, and from the sea at 
 least twelve miles into the country to the northward." That part of Read* 
 ing which lies north of the road passing from east to west by the churches, 
 was not covered by the charter of any town, and became the property of 
 individuals, either by purchase from the natives, or by grants from the le- 
 gislature. Tradition states, that Mr. Webb of Fairfield, had one hun- 
 dred acres assigned to him by the legislature, for preaching an election 
 sermon, and that he considered himself as poorly paid. The north-west- 
 ern part of the tract was purchased of the Indians, by the Hon. Nathan 
 Gold. In this deed mention is made of Umpawaug Pond, and of "ye 
 path yt goeth from Poquiag ye English plantation, down to Norwalk." I 
 presume this is one of the earliest references to the settlement of the town 
 of Danbury, which can be found. 
 
 A history of the town and county is a desideratum. Some interesting 
 particulars may be found in the Travels of President Dwight, and in the 
 Historical Collections of Mr. Barber. I have regretted, however, to per- 
 ceive a statement in the latter work, in which in an account of a military 
 execution in the town of Reading, Gen. Putnam is represented as exer- 
 cising great cruelty. Mr. Barber must have been misinformed. Reading 
 is my native town, and from my boyhood I have heard the history of the 
 proceedings on the occasion referred to, and was much surprised at the 
 statements in. the Historical Collections. The Rev. Mr. Bartlett, whose 
 father was Chaplain on that occasion, informs me that Gen. Putnam could 
 not have been guilty of the acts there charged. 
 
 That Mr. Barber may have something to substitute for the narrative to 
 which I object, I give the following : 
 
 When Gen. Putnam occupied the house of which Mr. Barber has given 
 an engraving, a scene occurred which presents the General in very amia- 
 
 4 
 
26 
 
 hie light. A poor man with a family needing support, and who lived in the 
 neighboring town of Ridgefield, was told by one acquainted with his 
 wants, that if he would visit Gen. Putnam and hold a conversation with 
 him, he would on his return, and on proof of the fact, give him a bushel 
 of wheat. The temptation in that time of scarcity and taxes, was great, 
 and so also was the fear of intruding upon so distinguished an individual; 
 but the stern necessities of his condition, at length induced the poor man 
 to venture. He accordingly presented himself at head quarters, and re- 
 quested the servant to solicit for him an interview with the general. Put- 
 nam promptly summoned the man to his presence, directed him to be 
 seated, and listened with interest while the man with great trepidation 
 gave the statement which accounted for the liberty he had taken. The 
 genera] directed the servant to bring some wine — conversed for a time 
 very pleasantly with his needy visitor, and then calling for pen and ink, 
 wrote a certificate, in which he gives the name of the individual, and stated 
 that he had visited and conversed with Gen. Putnam, who signed it in his 
 official character. Thus furnished with the means of giving bread to 
 his family, the distressed individual returned to his humble roof, and 
 this anecdote which I have on the very best authority, is proof that 
 Putnam was not destitute of those kind and gentle affections, which are 
 so desirable an ornament of the most heroic character. 
 
 Note B. 
 
 It is stated by Dr. Trumbull in his History of the State, that Mr. Lud- 
 low was " clerk of the town of Fairfield, and carried off their records, 
 and other public writings." A similar statement has been made by oth- 
 ers, but that it has its origin in mistake, is believed for the following 
 reasons. 1. Mr. Ludlow was Lieutenant Governor, and was perhaps 
 more fully occupied with the public concerns than any other individ- 
 ual ; it is not probable he held the office of Town Clerk. 2. By taking 
 away the records, he would have endangered his title to his own lands 
 which were among the most valuable in the town, and which to the 
 extent of about three hundred acres, were sold by his agent, Alexan- 
 der Byran, Esq., one of the magistrates of the New Haven colony. 3. 
 Aged persons informed upon the subject, have told me that they did not 
 believe Mr. Ludlow carried away the records of the town, but say that 
 the early records were in part written in the character called German 
 Text, and that a person was employed by the town to transcribe them. 
 His bill for that service, being disallowed, he would not put the town in 
 possession of his copy. Probably the first volume of records was from 
 that time missing. 4. A volume of nearly five hundred pages, and hav- 
 ing every appearance of being the original first volume of town records, 
 and from which about ten pages are missing, has lately been placed in 
 the town clerk's office, having been in the town and in private hands, for 
 an indefinite period. In this there are records of earlier date than the 
 removal of Mr. Ludlow. 5. There are no records of the County Court, 
 of so remote a date as the year 1700. As Mr. Ludlow left in the year 
 1654, and certain records of a later date are missing, it is charitable 
 to suppose, that Mr. Ludlow, a man who for important and long contin- 
 ued services, deserved well of his country, did not take with him any pa- 
 pers to which he was not entitled. 
 
27 
 
 Note C. 
 
 ' The present meeting-house is the third erected in the Parish. The 
 first was occupied for about twenty five years, and was situated on the 
 Green ; and that district was called Maximus. The second house of 
 worship stood opposite the Southern burial place, and was burnt by the 
 British, as stated in the discourse. 
 
 For the accommodation of Mr. Chapman, the first minister, a parson- 
 age house was erected. By vote of the Parish, it was ordered that it 
 should be forty two feet long, and twenty feet wide ; and that it should 
 be covered with shingles four and a half feet long. At a subsequent 
 meeting it was concluded that shingles three feet in length would do very 
 well, and it was directed that these should be used. 
 
 In the early years of his settlement, Mr. Chapman was allowed eight 
 pounds annually for wood ; and it was stipulated, that if any chose to 
 pay their proportion of the sum in wood, they should, for oak, be allowed 
 two shillings a load. They supposed, therefore, that eighty loads a year 
 was but a reasonable allowance. The sum assigned for wood was sub- 
 sequently increased. 
 
 Thirty shillings at first, and subsequently fifty shillings, were annually 
 voted as a compensation for sweeping the meeting-house, and beating the 
 drum, which in those days answered the purpose of a bell. By a vote of 
 December 23, 1734, it was ordered that " John Blackman shall beat the 
 drum on Clapboard Hill, and sweep the meeting-house, and have fifty 
 shillings for his so doing." 
 
 December 12th, 1733, it was voted that the Constables, Grandjury- 
 men, and Tythingmen, should sit in the front seat in the gallery. 
 
 Note D. 
 
 I placed a copy of the Address delivered at New Haven before the Phi 
 Beta Kappa Society, September, 1831, by Chancellor Kent, in the hands 
 of Dr. Ripley, soon after its publication, and directed his attention to the 
 note in which his name had been introduced. " Ah," said the Doctor, 
 " James was always a good boy !" 
 
 In compliance with the wishes of some of the friends of Dr. Ripley, 
 an extract from a Sermon preached December 4th, 1831, the Sabbath 
 after his decease, is here introduced. It has already appeared in the 
 Evangelical Magazine. 
 
 The Rev. Dr. Ripley, who closed his long and honorable career dur- 
 ing the last week, was a native of Windham, in this State, and was born 
 February 3d, Old Style, 174 >. He was the fourth in descent from one of 
 those Pilgrim Fathers who landed on the Rock at Plymouth, That ances- 
 tor was Governor Bradford; and the daughter of Lieut. Governor Brad- 
 ford was married to Mr. Ripley, the grandfather of Dr. Ripley ; — and 
 surely, in bodily and mental vigor, as well as in sincere and unaffected 
 piety, our departed friend was a worthy representative of the noble Pil- 
 grim stock from which he sprang. 
 
 He was graduated at Yale College in 1763, and early formed the reso- 
 lution of devoting himself to the service of God, in the ministry of the Gos- 
 
28 
 
 pel. I am not aware that any documents remain which show what were 
 his religious opinions, or what the exercises of his mind at this period ; 
 but as he never, in any of the interviews which I had with him, spoke of 
 entertaining, in the latter part of his life, different sentiments from those 
 which at the commencement of his ministry he had cherished, we may 
 conclude that he then embraced those doctrines of grace for which the 
 churches of New England have been distinguished, and which, during the 
 period of my acquaintance with him, he held with undoubting faith and 
 joyful confidence. In conformity then, with his known opinions upon 
 these subjects, we may suppose that in early life he cherished the hope, 
 that through the influences of the Spirit of God, he had passed from death 
 unto life. He made a public profession of his faith in Christ, and united, 
 I believe, with a church in Pomfret, then under the pastoral care of his 
 brother, where also, for a period, he devoted himself to preparation for the 
 ministry. He came to this place as a candidate for settlement near the 
 close of the year 1766, the Rev. Mr. Buckingham, who for a period of 
 more than twenty-four years, had been pastor of this church, having died 
 in May of that year. Mr. Ripley was ordained, February llth, 1767, 
 and continued in the peaceful discharge of parochial duty until the com- 
 mencement of the Revolutionary war. Faithful to those principles of civil 
 and religious liberty, for which his ancestors had been distinguished, he 
 did not hesitate respecting the course which he should pursue. He dis- 
 charged, for a time the duties of a Chaplain in the Continental army, and 
 participated largely in the sufferings of that eventful period ; — his house, 
 his furniture, and a portion of his library, having been burned by the ene- 
 my. While his countrymen, were engaged in war, his feelings were alive 
 to their success ; although amid the contest, he pursued those labors 
 which were appropriate to a servant of the Prince of Peace. The inde- 
 pendence of the country established, he was relieved from the almost con- 
 stant alarm and anxiety incident to a residence upon the seaboard, and 
 gladly hailed the return of peace, when every man could sit under his own 
 vine and fig tree, having none to disturb or make him afraid. He was 
 now enabled to assist in the support of those institutions, with whose pros- 
 perity the welfare of our country is so intimatly connected. Yale College 
 ever found in him a warm and constant friend. Tn 1790, he was chosen 
 a member of the Corporation of that Institution : in which office he con- 
 tinued for the term of seven-and-twenty years, and resigned it on account 
 of the infirmities of advancing age, in the same year in which died its late 
 venerable President Dwight ; and in this connection, it may not be im- 
 proper to state, that the friendship which existed between those men was 
 a source of great enjoyment to each. Settled for many years in adjacent 
 parishes, their intercourse was frequent and of the most endearing char- 
 acter ; and during the whole of that period in which Dr. Dwight was con- 
 nected with Yale College, as its President, Dr. Ripley was a member of 
 its Corporation ; and in hearing from the lips of the deceased, the history 
 of their friendship, I was reminded of that beautiful expression of sacred 
 writ, ' The soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David.' 
 
 It cannot be supposed that the life of a minister of the Gospel, under 
 ordinary circumstances, should be fruitful of remarkable events; but in 
 reviewing that of our departed friend, we find evidence of the respect in 
 which, by his cotemporaries, he was held. In 1803, the degree of Doc- 
 tor in Divinity was conferred upon him by the College of Nassau Hall. 
 
29 
 
 In the year 1821, Dr. Ripley resigned his office as minister of this peo- 
 ple, more than fifty-four years having elapsed from the time of his ordina- 
 tion. In August of the present year, he was called to mourn the loss of 
 Madam Ripley, and a union was thus dissolved which had continued for 
 more than sixty-six years; and at length in the 89th year of his age, and 
 in the 65th since his ordination to the work of the ministry, he has been 
 called to follow his deceased companion to the world of spirits. ' Lovely 
 and pleasant were they in their lives and in their deaths not long divided ;' 
 and I know not any thing in the word of God, which should forbid our 
 supposing that his entrance into blessedness may have been welcomed, 
 and perhaps first welcomed, by her who was here the partner of his labor 
 and the partaker of his faith. Such is a brief outline of the history of our 
 departed friend ; and now when I attempt to sketch his character, I de- 
 sire to remember his own injunction, when he requested me to preach his 
 funeral sermon, ' not to exalt him in the view of the people.' A just state- 
 ment of my sentiments respecting him, will, I trust, be no departure from 
 the spirit of that injunction. 
 
 Of the character of his mind I have already briefly spoken. He had a 
 sound mind in a sound body, which have ever been considered as the first 
 of earthly blessings. His mind presented all the elements of true great- 
 ness, — strength of memory and depth of judgment, with a readiness to 
 compare and to combine. In the remark which he made to me, ' not to 
 exalt him in the view of the people,' he manifested that unambitious spirit 
 by which he was ever characterised, and which led him to be content 
 in the station in which God had placed him, and to employ his time and 
 talents in such a manner as should most conduce to the good of his people, 
 and not to the extension of his own fame. He never endeavored to make 
 his parish a stepping-stone to something higher. 
 
 In natural character, he was amiable. He was open, sincere, benevo- 
 lent. The aged and the young alike delighted in his society. It is often 
 a characteristic, and a fault of age, that it has but little interest in the in- 
 nocent pleasures of the young, and that any deviation from established 
 usages, induces them to censure the change without a candid examina- 
 tion of the reasons for it. Age had not chilled the affections of our aged 
 father. He entered without effort into the society and feelings of younger 
 men, and brought with him cheerfulness, wisdom, and piety. All felt 
 that he was their friend and father, — the friend of man, and the friend of 
 God. 
 
 Were we now to take that great test of character which our Saviour has 
 given, ' By their fruits ye shall know them,' and apply it to the character 
 of Dr. Ripley, it is believed that the result would be favorable. As a pro- 
 fessing Christian, he loved not in name only, but in deed and in truth. 
 The attributes of God were to him, great and present realities. He re- 
 vered the greatness, — he adored the justice, — and he trusted in the mercy 
 of God ; and while he often adopted the language of holy men of old, — 
 their expressions as recorded in the Bible, it was a natural reflection in his 
 society, that he resembled them in character. He loved God, and feared 
 to sin against Him. He desired to do and to suffer all His will. In age, 
 in sickness, and in comparative solitude, he manifested the meekness and 
 the patience of one who trusted in God. 
 
 In his intercourse with men, he was distinguished for purity of motive, 
 so far as motive can be indicated by the conduct. He was benevolent — 
 
30 
 
 he was forgiving ; and if he has left an enemy, which I hope is not the 
 fact, of that enemy Dr. Ripley was the friend. That kindness, however, 
 which he exhibited to all who had intercourse with him, did not result from 
 an inability to judge of character. It resulted from no obtuseness of intel- 
 lect. He was a remarkably good judge of character. His kind treat- 
 ment of any who might ever have been unkind to him, was the result of 
 Christian prudence and of Christian principle. 
 
 As a minister of the Gospel, he was conscientious. He acted in con- 
 formity with the lights he possessed. In the measures, which, during his 
 ministry, he pursued, to draw a more distinctive line between the church 
 and the world, by requiring those who made a profession of religion to en- 
 ter into full communion, he showed a readiness to co-operate in whatever 
 he considered as conducive to the prosperity of Zion. Here, however, 
 I desire you to remark, that whatever change of views, that change of 
 measures indicated, it involved no change of opinion respecting the great 
 doctrines of the Gospel. From the first, as we have every reason to be- 
 lieve, he advocated the great doctrine of regeneration through the influ- 
 ences of God's Spirit, and the justification of the sinner by the righteous- 
 ness of Christ alone, through faith. These doctrines he held firmly, con- 
 stantly, consistently. He was beloved by his people, for they knew the 
 man. He was beloved by his brethren, for they confided in him, and his 
 residence was the abode of cheerfulness, of hospitality, and of piety. No 
 intelligence could be carried to Dr. Ripley, which gratified him more than 
 that which related to the spread of the Gospel. The late revival of reli- 
 gion in this place gave joy to his aged bosom, and he contemplated those 
 various institutions of benevolence, which arose in the evening of his days, 
 and in the formation of some of which he was instrumental, with a father's 
 heart. As truly of him as of most ministers of the Gospel, it may be said 
 that ' he was clear in his great office.' Wherever he went, men felt that 
 there was dignity, — and that there was purity, — and that there was piety. 
 He made to me the following statement of his views and feelings, in re- 
 view of his ministry and in prospect of death. A few days before the 
 decease of Madam Ripley, and while he was encompassed with many in- 
 firmities, he told me that on reviewing his past life, he saw that he had 
 done many things which he ought not to have done, and that he had left 
 undone many things which he ought to have done ; and that the sins of 
 the latter class appeared to him to exceed those of the former ; but that 
 he had preached the Gospel as he understood it — that never from fear, 
 favor, or affection had he kept back the truth, and that he had never 
 knowingly deceived a single soul, — that his trust was in the righteousness 
 of Christ, and in that alone, and that he was not afraid to die. 
 
 " Return, (said he,) O God of love, return, 
 
 Earth is a tiresome place ; 
 How long shall we thy children mourn, 
 
 Our absence from thy face." 
 
 An account of my last interview with him, I gave on the day of inter- 
 ment. Humility, — patience, — faith, were then, eminently his charac- 
 teristics. His sun has set in brightness, and has arisen, as we believe, in 
 glory. Whatever may be the duration of my life, or in whatever place 
 its remaining days or years be spent, this treasure is mine-, that I enjoyed 
 the friendship and the prayers of him, who, on earth, is no more. 
 
31 
 
 Note E. 
 
 An Ecclesiastical Law, passed by the Legislature of this State in May, 
 1742, was highly objectionable. The Rev. Nathan Birdseye, who died 
 in 1818, at a very advanced age, informed me that the Dissenters of Eng- 
 land made earnest request for its repeal, stating that the party then in 
 power answered their request for a relaxation in the laws respecting non- 
 conformists, by a reference to the laws of Connecticut. Governor Law 
 showed Mr. Birdseye a letter which he had received from England upon 
 this subject. 
 
 Of Mr. Birdseye I may be permitted briefly to speak. In the summer 
 of 181G, while supplying the desk in Huntington, I was favored with an 
 invitation to dine with Mr. B., who lived in the village of Oronoque, in the 
 neighboring town of Stratford. His son, Captain Joseph Birdseye, then 
 of the age of 76 years, accompanied me. This gentleman had seen ser- 
 vice in the war of the Revolution, and spoke in an interesting manner of 
 the scenes of that period. On our way we saw his brother, Mr. Ezra 
 Birdseye, aged about 70, and on arriving at the place of destination, the 
 gate was opened by another brother, Mr. Nathan Birdseye, aged 74. 
 These gentlemen conducted me to the presence of their venerated pa- 
 rent, the Rev. Joseph Birdseye, who was then nealy 102 years of age. The 
 father, the sons, and two daughters, who were somewhat younger than 
 the youngest of the sons, formed an interesting circle. The patriarch 
 directed my attention to the comforts by which he was surrounded and 
 to the meadow in which he had assisted in. gathering hay for more than 
 eighty successive years. He entered with ardor on some religious discus- 
 sions in which he had formerly been engaged ; while the intelligence, 
 the kind feelings, and the piety exhibited were highly interesting and 
 instructive. 
 
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 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS