<=> (T^ . A* ^o-n ^,<. oo District of Maryland, io itde : Be it remembered. That on this first day of October, in the thirty-fifth year of the Independence of the United States of America, Edward J. Coale, of the said district, hath deposited in this office, the title of a book, the right whereof he claims as proprietor, in the words following, to wit ; " A Sketch of the History of Maryland, during the three first " years after its settlement, to which is prefixed, a Copious Introduction. •* By John Leeds Bozman." In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States, entitled " An act for the encouragement of Learning, by securing the copies of Maps, Charts; and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times therein mentioned ;" And also to the act entitled *' An act supplementary to the act entitled, " An act for the encouragement of Learning, by securing the copies of Maps, Charts and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times therein mentioned," and extending the benefits there" of to the arts of designing, engraving and etching Historical and other Prints. PHILIP MOORE, Clerk of the District of Maryland. 1 cJANll / X*/u J i 4 CONTENTS. SECTION I. The effects of Columbus's discoveries on the English nation — Commission to John Cabot and his three sons — John Cabot's death — Sebastian Cabot's voyage — Disputes between the courts of Portugal and Spain, in consequence of Columbus's discoveries — Portuguese discoveries — The Pope's Partition — Cortereal's voyage — Patents for discovery and trade to some merchants of Bristol — Voyages and discoveries of the French — of the Spaniards — Ponce de Leon's discovery of Florida — Luke Vasquez's expedition — Verazzini's voyage — that of Steplien Gomez — English attempts for discovering a North west passage — Pamphilo Narvez's Grant — Ferdinand de Soto's expedition— Cartier's — First attempts of the French to colonise Canada — English at- tempt to settle Newfoundland — La Roque's attemjit to settle Canada — Fui*- ther proceedings of the English — Fishery of Newfoundland — Pension grant- ed to Sebastian Cabot. SECTION II. T«E reign of Elizabeth favovu-able to maritime adventures — Sir Humphrey Gilbert, the first conductor of an English colony to America — Letters Patent to him for that purpose— Characteristic incidents relative to Sir Humphrey Gilbert — His first voyage unsuccessful — sails a second time for America- takes possession of Newfoundland — is lost on his return to England. SECTION III. Sir Walter Raleigh — His rise and character — obtains a renewal of Sir Humphrey's letters patent to himself — Voyage of captains Amidas and Bar- low — The effects of their voyage in England — Sir Richard Grenville's at- tempt to settle a colony in North Carolina. SECTION IV. Attempts to relieve the first colony under governour Lane — A second colo- ny at the same place under governour White — Sir Walter Raleigh assigns his patent — The whole of the second colony lost — Gosnold's voyage to New England — Sir Walter Raleigh's endeavours to find out the second colony at Roanoke — Captain Pring's expedition — Captain Bartholomew Gilbert's vay- age — Captain Weymouth's. SECTION V. The progress of the French in settling colonies in America — A settlement of convicts on the Isle of Sables, by the French — Cliauvin's voyages to the St- Lawrence— Pontgrave's voyage to the same — The Sieur de Monts's com- mission, and voyages under it — His patent revoked — Pontrincourt's endea- vours to fix a settlement at Port Royal, Nova Scotia — The Sieur De Monts obtains a restoration of his grant — and establishes the first permanent colo- ny in Canada, under the conduct of Champlain. SECTION VI. A NEW association formed in England, to colonise America The letters pa- tent commonly called the first charter of Virginia — Proceedings of the Ply- mouth Company under this ch;u-ter — The king's Instructions relative to both the colonies or companies to be formed under this charter— Proceedings of the first or South Virginia Company — The first colony sent out to South Virginia under Newport, and a permanent settlement formed at James' town. SECTION VII. The distresses of the first Virginia colony, and the services of captain Smith His first attempt to explore the bay of Chesapeake— His second attempt is more successful— A general sketch of the tribes of Indians then inhabifui^- iv CONTENTS. Virginia and Maryland — Smitli becomes president of Virg-inia, and the te- nor of some instructions from England to Virginia — An attempt of the Ply- mouth Company to settle a colony in Maine — The second charter of Virgi- nia, and the causes of gi'anting it — The settlement of the Dutch at New York — English attempt to settle Newfoundland — The third charter of Vir- ginia — Captain Argall's expedition to break up the French and Dutch set- tlements at Nova Scotia imd New York. SECTION VIII. Reasoxs for the following digression — Rise of the reformation — Its progress through the continent of Europe Its introduction into England — The ori- gin of the Puritans — Divisions among the Puritans — State of religious par- ties in England, on James Vs accession — The Independents emigrate to Hol- land — Their distressing situation there — They form the design of removing to America — Negociate with the Virginia Company for that purpose — Dis- sensions in the A irginia Company occasion delay — They embaj-k for Ameri- ca, and settle at Plymouth, in Massachusetts. SECTION IX. Causes of the severe statutes against Roman Catholics in England, during the reigii of Elizabeth — Their conduct on the accession of James I. — The cause of additional statutes against them — The excesses of the Catholics and Puritans give rise to political parties — First scheme of a colony of Eng- lish Catholics in Newfoimdland, under the patronage of Sir George Calvert — Sir George Calvert created lord Baltimore, visits Virginia, with further views of colonisation — The conduct of the Virginians towards him — Diffe- yences among the Catholics with respect to the oaths of allegiance and su- premacy — Lord Baltimore forms the scheme of settling a colony in Maryland — Settlement of a colony of Swedes on the Delaware — The Virginians op- pose the lord Baltimore's scheme — William Clayborne's claim — Lord Balti- more returns to England, and relinquishes his views of a settlement ou Newfoundland — obtains the promise of a grant of the province of Mary- land, which is given, on his death to his son Cecllius. CHAPTER I. Cecilius, lord Baltimore, prepares for sending out a cfllony — The Virginians petition against his charter — Their petition ineitectual, and the planters re- conciled — Lord Baltimore appoints his brother to conduct the colony — Their arrival in the Chesapeake — They explore the Patowmack — The governour fixes upon St. Clary's for their first settlement — Circumstances favourable to them — Proceedings of the colonists after landhig — Great harmony between the natives and colonists — Interrupted by Clayborne and his party — Clay- borne resorts to open military force — The lord proprietor's instructions rela- tive to grants of lands — Grants of small lots in the town of St. Mary's — The nature of the first form of government of the colony — An ordinance for that pui'pose — Proclamation in England against emigration — Traffic with the In- dians regulated in the province — Tiie isle of Kent I'educed to lord Balti- more's government — The county of St. Mary's organized — An assembly of the province called — The first assembly of the province meet — The assembly take into consldera,tion the laws sent in by the proprietoi- — The laws sent re-, jected — How far the laws of England were deemed to be in force — The law.s sent in by the proprietor again proposed and rejected — Courts of justice meet — Proceedings therein against Clayborne's party — The Inhabitants of the isle of Kent refuse to sidimit — Governour Calvert proceeds vi'ith a military force against them — Secretary Lewger authorised to hold the assembly — Act of attainder against William Clayborne — Trial of Thomas Smith, one of Clay- borne's men — Inquiry by the assembly into the conduct of captain Cornwalll.s — Resolution of the assembly relative to servants — The assembly dissolved — The lord proprietor refuses his assent to the laws enacted by the assembly— r William Cluyboi-ne's petition to the king in council, and order thereupon PREFACE. IT Avill, perhaps, be expected' by the public, that some reason should be assigned for publishing an Introduction to a History without the history itself. The author has to reply in explanation thereof, that his origuial intention was most certainly to complete the work he had undertaken. As this design of his has been of long standing, and numerous circumstances have intervened so as to interrupt his pro- gress therein, it would afford but little amusement or satis- faction to the reader to peruse a rehearsal of them here in detail. It will be sufficient to mention, that whenever the author's occupation in life v/ould permit his indulgence in any literary pursuit, that of history always presented to him the strongest attractions. But as it is natural for every man to feel an anxiety to know something of the transactions of his own neighbourhood, rather than of those abroad, so an acquaintance with the history of our native country is a more natural object of desire than that of distant nations. A native of the American States, will always feel an inter- est in the affairs of any one of them. But contracting the circle of his patriotic sensations to a smaller compass, he finds thaf 'die individual state, of which he is a citizen, nay indeed the county and neighbourhood of his nativity, will more particularly claim both his affection and his attention. The citizen of Maryland, however, has hitherto in vain inquired for some information relative to the past transac- tions of his own individual state. While almost every other state in the Union* has had its historian, Maryland, though one of the earliest British colonies, l^as never yet vl PREFACE. had even its first provincial transactions developed to the inquiring reader. Under the influence of these sentiments, the author of this Introduction, about six years past, un- dertook the task of examining the Provincial Records, at Annapolis, with a view of extracting from them the neces- sary materials for his design. He soon perceived, that the task of procuring these materials was a much more arduous one than he expected. It was impossible to compile and dio-est from voluminous books of records, scattered in dif- ferent offices, where the author would be liable to constant interruptions, any historical work worthy of perusal. He perceived, that he must have either the original books them- selves, or full copies of the documents which they contain, in his private apartment, before he could extract from them a recital or narrative of their contents. He takes pleasure, however, in this opportunity of expressing his acknowledg- ments of the polite attentions and readiness to oblige, which he received from the two gentlemen, who filled the offices of clerk of the Council, and that of the late General Court. But, formidable as the labour of copying w^as, the author would have readily encountered it, had it not become evi- dent to him, that a residence at Annapolis for a year or two at least, would be necessary for the puq^ose. Of this his circumstances in life did not at that time permit. He re- tired, therefore, from his pursuit, w^ith much reluctance, though still cherishing some hope, that it might at some future time be in his power, by a temporary residence at Annapolis, to complete the task he had assigned himself. Before this could be accomplished by him, he received in- formation, that the gentleman, who has obliged the citizens of this state with a most useful work, " The Landholder's Assistant," had undertaken also, a History of the state of Maryland. As he has manifested much judgment and abi- PREFACE. iity in the execution of the work already published by him, just mentioned, and as he has all the materials either under his own direction, (being register of the Land-office,) or near at hand to him, the public may expect to be amply gratified with his performance. Should, however, the gen- tleman just mentioned,* not ha^ e undertaken the work, or having undertaken it should have since relinquished it, the author of this volume would think himself authorised to pursue his original intentions. It might not perhaps be improper in this place to suggest to the legislature of the state, or at least to those members of it who may be competent judges of the utility and importance of a faithful history of their native countr}-, that the wTitten memorials of the state, whence only that history can be extracted, being comprized in a few MS. volumes of which no duplicates exist, even should they fortunately escape an accidental destruction by fire, yet are constantly acted upon by the mouldering hand of time. The curious inquirer, who would wish to know something of the causes and ori- gin of many of our political as well as civil institutions, may soon be told, that these reliques of the doings of our ancestors have been considered as useless rubbish, and no longer exist. Might it not, therefore, be suggested, that as the finances of the state are, as we are told, in a very prosperous situation, and the public have much money to spare, some judicious compiler should be employed to ar- range and publish such documents remaining on our pro- vincial or state records as would in any way be necessary to form materials for a faithful compilation of our history ? A plan of this kind has already been executed with respect * to the aggregate history of the several states of the Union, by * ]\Ir. Kilty, the gentleman here alluded to, died sir.cC' tliis work Las been in the printer's hands. viii PREFACE. Mr. Ebenezer Hazard, which, it seems, was undertaken at the instance of the legislature of the United States. One great excellence which the Art of Printing boasts over that of manuscript, is the preservation of historical materials, by the multiplication of copies. If such a number only of the collection proposed was printed, as would be sufficient to deposit a copy in each of the several public offices of every county in the state, their preservation would be satisfacto- rily secured. Another advantageous result from this might possibly accrue. It is favourable to the cause of truth, that the materials of history should be accessible to all. Under free governments, both the animosity of political parties, and the fanaticism or bigotry of religious sects are well known to be peculiarly prevalent. It is not enough, that the historian of such governments should have talents for declamation, and should have attained to celebrity in the senate or the forum. He should be one who has ac- customed himself to view the scrambles of parties and the prejudices of sects " in the calm lights of mild philoso- phy." How has the once elevated character of Fox, the English Demosthenes, faded from its former lustre, by one little feeble historical effi)rt — the emanation of party- feelings, while that of the diffident and retired Hume rises daily in importance, and bids fair to be immortal. Besides, the same facts may present themselves to different writers in different points of view. One may state some circum- stances attending a transaction, which throw much light on it, while others may omit the same, considering them as immaterial to the purpose. A variety of historians, there- fore, contributes much to the preservation of historical truth. Thus a modern historian is enabled at this day to present to the world a more perfect history of Rome, than that of either Livy or Tacitus. INTRODUCTION TO A HISTORY OF MARYLAND. SECTION I. The oflfects of Columbus's discoveries on the English na.tion — Com- mission to John Cabot and his three sons — John Cabot's death — Sebastian Cabot's voyage — Disputes between the courts of Portugal and Spain, in consequence of Columbus's discoveries — Portuguese discoveries — The Pope's Partition — Cortereal's voyage — Patents for discovery and trade to some merchants of Bristol — Voyages and discoveries of the French — of the Spaniards — Ponce de Leon's dis- covery of Florida — Luke Vasquez's expedition — Vcrazzini's voyage —that of Stephen Gomez — English attempts for discovei'ing a North-west passage — Pamphilo Narvez's Grant — Ferdinand de Soto's expedition — Castier's — First attempts of the French to colo- nise Canada — English attempt to settle Newfoundland — La Roque's attempt to settle Canada — Further proceedings of the English — Fishery of Newfoundland — Pension granted to Sebastian Cabot. AS Maryland was originally an English colo- sect. ny, to understand fully the early part of its history, v^^--„^^ it is indispensably necessary to be acquainted, in 1492. some measure, with those events which immediate- ly led to its colonisation. This will necessaiily re- quire not only a concise detail of such European attempts to form settlements in other parts of North America, as preceded that of Maryland in time, but also a short elucidation of the nature of those reli- B 10 INTRODUCTION TO A tion. SECT, gioiis controversies in England, which produced the y^^^^S->^ colonial settlements in New England and Maryland. 1492. It is well known to every one tolerably acquainted S^stf ^^'^^^ ^^^ History of Maryland, that the first discovery Coium- Qf the West Indies, by Christopher Columbus, in bus's (lis- •' . * , , coveries 1492, filled all Europe with astonishment and admi- gUshna- ration. This brilliant achievement of this renowned citizen of Genoa, under the patronage and auspices of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, cast such a lustre^ on their throne as to excite the envy of most of the monarchs of Europe. It does, however, no small credit to the character of Hemy VII of England, their cotemporary, that he listened with a favourable ear to the application of Bartholomew Columbus, in behalf of his brother Christopher, prior to his grand undertaking. But Ferdinand and Isabella had anti- cipated him. To make some amends to his sub- jects, among whom this discovery had excited an uncommon spirit of adventure, Henry invited other seamen of known reputation, to enter into his ser- vice for similar purposes. It is remarkable, that at this period of time the English nation was much in- ferior to most other European nations in the science of navigation, though, from the advantages which its insular situation always gave, the contrary might have been expected. Its military glory retained its rank of equality with any ; but the inconsiderate am- bition of its monarchs had long wasted it on pernio cious and ineffectual efforts to conquer France. In succession to Avhich, the civil wars produced by the contest betAveen the houses of York and Lancaster, had, as it were, preyed upon its bowels and exhaust- ed its vigour. The city of Bristol, however, appears HISTORY OF MARYLAXD. 11 to have been inhabited at that time by some mer- chants of considerable enterprise and public spirit. Here also, it seems, a certain Giovanni Gaboto, 1492. commonly called by the English, John Cabot, a na- tive and citizen of Venice, had long resided. De- sirous of emulating the exploits of Columbus, he offered himself to Henry as a person amply qualified to make further discoveries under the English ban- ners. It is to be remembered, that the gi*eat object of Columbus, in his first voyage, was not to disco- ver such a continent as that of America, but to ex- plore a more convenient route to the East Indies, which were then supposed to form the grand foun- tain of all the wealth in the world. As the islands which Columbus discovered, were deemed by him a part of those Indies, and the reports of the vast quantities of gold and silver found among the na- tives of those islands, had, without doubt, reached England, Henry, whose prevailing passion Avas ava- rice, was easily induced to listen to Cabot's propo- sals. He accordingly, by letters patent, bearing date the 5th of March, in the eleventh year of his reign, (in the year of Christ 1496, according to New 1496. Stijle^,) " granted to John Cabot and his three J^j^J^^'' " sons, Louis, Sebastian, and Sancias, and their J^^nC^a. " heirs, full power to navisrate to any country or his three 111-1 ^0"^- ^' bay of the sea, east, west, or north, under his ban- " ners, with five ships, of such burthen, and man- " ned with as many men as they might choose, at " their own cost and charges, to discover such ** islands, countries, regions, or provinces of any * See note (A) at the end of the volume. J 2 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. "• nation of infidels whatsoever, or wheresoever si- 1 ^.^^'>r'^t^ " tuated, which were then before unknown to any 1496. " Christian people ; and as his vassals, governours, " lieutenants, and deputies, to subjugate, occup}% " and possess such countries or islands, as shall be " discovered by them : so that nevertheless they *' should return to Bristol after every voyage, and " that they should pay him a fifth part of the nett " profits of such voyage ; granting to them and their " heirs, to be free from all customs on any goods '' or merchandize brought with them from such " countries so discovered ; and that no English *' subject whatever should frequent or visit such " countries so discovered by them, without the " license of the said John, his sons, or their heirs, " or deputies, under the penalty of a forfeiture of *' their ships and goods ; willing and strictly com- " manding all his subjects, as well by land as by " sea, to be aiding and assisting to the said John and " his sons and deputies, in arming and fitting out *' his ships, to be done at their own expense."* * See this patent at large in Hazard's Collections, Vol. I, p. 9 — It may be proper to take notice here of what is alleged in Harris's collection of voyages, (edit. 1748, Vol. 2, p. 190,) that " the year before this patent was granted, John Cabot, with his son Sebastian, had sailed from Bristol upon discovery, and had actually seen the continent of Newfound- land, to which they gave the name of Prima Vista, or Pirst Seen ; and upon the report made them of this voyage, the before-mentioned patent was granted." But as I do not find this circumstance recognised by any historian, except in the obscure assertion made by the'authors of the Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 44, p. 2, " that Sebastian Cabot was sent by Henry VH, a year before the discovery of Columbus, and, having first dis- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 13 There are some circumstances necessary to be sect. noticed here, which will plainly account for the de- v.,^-^^-^^^ lay which took place with the Cabots in availing 1496. themselves of the benefits of this patent. The re- strictive clause in the letters, that the equipment of their expedition was "to be done at their own ex- pense," so consonant to the parsimonious or frugal policy of the monarch who granted them, will rea- dily suggest, that much difficulty might probably occur in the way of these enterprising navigators, before they would be able to procure the means of preparing such equipment out of their own finances. This consideration necessarily leads to point out the real cause of a subsequent grant or license by the same king, on the 3d of February, 13 Hen. VII. 1493. (nearly two years after their first patent,) whereby he authorized John Cabot " to seize upon six Eng- lish ships,* in any port or ports of the realm of England, of 200 tons burthen, or under, with their requisite apparatus," &c. Before the license here- by granted, could be carried into effect, John Cabot diedf. But Sebastian, his son, making application J^^ " ^^' to the khig, and proposing to discover a north- ^'^^'■'^■ covered Newfoundland, sailed along the coast as far as Flo- rida ;" which certainly is without foundation as to thne at least, if not extent, I have not thought it proper to be insert- ed in the text. It is possible, however, that those authors might have meant, that Cabot was sent a year before Columbus discovered the continent in his third voyage. If so, it is some corroboration of what is said in Harris. * The words are, " quod ipse ca/iere possit," &c. Seeit at lai'ge in Hazard's Collections, Vol. I, p. 10. t Harris's Voyage, Vol. 2, p. 190. 14, INTRODUCTION TO A west passage to the Indies, the grand desideratutii of those days, the ruling passion of the king was 1498. touched, and he ordered a ship to be manned and victualled for him at Bristol at the royal expense. Some merchants also of that city, fitted out for him at their own charges, three or four other ships. With this little fleet, Sebastian was now ready to undertake his long projected voyage. He accord- Sebastlan ingly, in May, 1498,* embarked at Bristol for that voyage, purposc. Animated by the example of Columbus, he had adopted the system of that great man, con- cerning the probability of opening a new and shorter passage to the East Indies, by holding a western course. He accordingly deemed it probable, that by steering to the north-west, he might reach India by a shorter course than that which Columbus had taken. After sailing for some weeks due west, and neai'ly in the parallel of the port from which he took his departure, he discovered a large island, which he called Prima Fista (First Seen), and his sailors (being Englishmen) Newfoundland ; and in a few days he descried a smaller isle, to which he gave the name of St. John's. He landed on both these, made some observations on their soil and productions, and brought off three of the natives. Continuing his course westward, he soon reached the continent of North America, and sailed along it ' from thence to the thirty-eighth degree of latitude. Their provisions now failing, and a mutiny break- ing out among the mariners, they returned to Eng- * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 44, p. 60. Hume's Hist, of Eng- land, at the end of Hen. 7th's reign. Other historians place his voyage in 1497 ; but see note (A) at the end of this Vol. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 15 land, without attempting either settlement or con- sect. quest in any part of this continent.* v^^-^-^/ It may be proper here to observe, that although I'iQii. Columbus might not have actually been the first discoverer of the continent of America, yet as he was unquestionably the first discoverer of those islands, now denominated the West Indies, and the first navigator who had the fortitude to cross the Atlantic, he is certainly entitled to all the merit of the first discovery of the continent. For the disco- very of the continent, after that of those islands, must, in the nature of things, have been in a short time a necessary consequence. All historians seem to agree, that he first discovered that part of the continent of South America adjacent to the island of Trinidad, on the first of August, 1498, in his third voyage. Supposing the first discovery of the continent of North America by Sebastian Cabot was, as before mentioned, in the same year, to wit, 1498, he probably fell in with the continent only a month or two before Columbus did. Each navi- gator, however, appears to have been distinct from, and -unconnected with the other ; and therefore, each entitled to their respective merits, with this * If the reader should be a native of Maryland, and one of those who place confidence in a right resulting from prior discovery, he will be gratified by the strong probability there is, that Cabot in this voyage first saw and discovered that part of the State of Maryland, bordering on the Atlantic Ocean. If he sailed along the coast from the northward to the 38th degree of latitude, (which is at or near the divisional line be- tween Virginia and Maryland,) he must have had a view of Fenwick's and Assatiegue islands, and possibly looked into Sinepuxent or Chinigoteague inlets. 16 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, manifest exception, that Cabot would never, in all ^^^^>^^-,^^ probability, have been sent out on his voyage, had 1498. not the fame of Columbus's prior discoveries led the way. portu- Nor is it easy to deprive the Portuguese nation foveries.^' ^^ ^ Considerable share of merit, which they have just pretences to, in clearing the road, as it were, to the discover}" of America. Their indefatigable in- dustry in exploring the coast of Africa during the fifteenth century, in order to get to the East Indies, undoubtedly induced Columbus to think of his western route. And the accidental discovery of Brazil in the last year of that century, by Pedro Alvarez Cabral, demonstrates, that in the course of a few succeeding years, chance would have thrown on that commander and the Portuguese nation, all the honour and fame which Columbus acquired by his own personal sagacity.* _. , Immediately on the return of Columbus from his Dispute •'_ between first voyagc, in 1492, the Portuguese, who had dis- of Porta- covered and possessed the Azores, claimed also, in Spain" in virtuc thereof, as well as by a former grant of the pope,t all such newly discovered islands and coun- * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 1, p. 666. Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 1, p. 214. t This bull of the pope was made in 1444, through the in- tercession of prince Henry of Portugal, so celebrated for pro- moting the Portuguese discoveries along the coast of Africa. The tenure of this grant of tlie pope to the crown of Portugal, was, an exclusive right to all the countries, which the Portu- guese should discover, from cape A^on,on the coast of Africaj to the continent of India. Harris's Voyages, Vol. 1, p. 664. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 9, p. 246. Robertson's Hist, of Ame- rica, Vol. 1, p. 69. coiise- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 17 tries as had been visited by Columbus. Their catholic majesties, by the advice of Columbus, ap- plied to the pope to obtain his sanction of their i498. claims, iind his consent for the conquest of the West coium- Indies. The Spanish queen being a niece of the covcrLb.* king of Portugal, he was induced to agree to a re- ference of their dispute to the pope. The pope then in the chair, was Alexander VI, a Spaniard by birth, and from this circumstance as well as the ge- neral depravity of his character, was not perhaps so impartial a judge as might be wished. Readily acceding to the proposal, he, by a bull, bearing date the third of May, 1493, made the celebrated line of partition, whereby he granted to their catholic ma- The jesties, all the islands and countries already disco- partition. veredj.or to be discovered, which should lie west- ward of a line drawn from the north to the south pole, at the distance of one hundred leagues west- ward of the Azores and Cape Verde Islands, and which had not been actually possessed by any Chris- tian king or prince, on or before the first day of the same year 1493.* Although the king of Portugal * See this bull at large, in the original Latin, in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 3. The curiosity of a free American citizen of the United States, may perhaps be excited to a de- sire to know a little of the character of a man, who once had the power of making a grant of the land they live in. He is thus spoken of by Guicciardini^ an Italian historian of great estimation : — In his manners he was most shameless ; wholly divested of sincerity, of decency, and of truth ; without fide- lity, without religion ; in his avarice, immoderate ; in his ambition, insatiable ; in his ci'uelty, more than barbarous ; with a most ardent desire of exalting his numerous children, by whatever means it might be accomplished ; soipe of whom c; 18 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, had agreed to the reference, he was dissatisfied with ^^^-.^^.„^, this partition. The subject was, therefore, referred 1498. again to six plenipotentiaries, three chosen from each nation, whose conferences issued in an agree- ment, that the hne of partition, in the pope's bull, should be extended two hundred and seventy leagues further to the west ; that all westward of that line should fall to the share of the Spaniards ; and all eastward of it to the Portuguese : but that the sub- jects of their catholic majesties might freely sail through those seas belonging to the king of Portu- gal, holding through the same a direct course.* Notwithstanding this apparent reconciliation be- tween the two contending nations, and their modest compromise for half the world, the Portuguese, ha- ving reluctantly agreed to it, did not continue in that respect for the pope's grant, or the partial con- firmation of it by the before mentioned referees, so long as might have been expected from that nation. 1500. In the year 1500, one Caspar de Cortereal, a Por- re'ai's voj - tuguese of rcspcctablc family, inspired with the re- *^^' solution of discovering new countries, and a new route to India, and probably under the influence of the jealousy of his nation as to the Spanish incroach- xvere not less detestable than their father." See Roscoe's Pontificate of Leo X, Vol. l,p. 196. It cannot be asserted, however, that this pope Alexander was a worse man than Henry the eighth of England, the great voyal refornier- What ornaments to Christianity are such characters ! • This agreement was made the 7th of June, 1493. It was sealed by the king of Spain, 2d of July same year ; and by the king of Portugal on the 27th of February, 1 494. Mod. Univ. History, Vol. 9, p. 385-6. Holmes's American Annals, Vol. ■I, p. a. HISTORY OF MARYLAND tfi ments, and in spite of the donation of the pope, sailed sect. from Lisbon, with two vessels, at his own cost. In ^^-v-n^ the course of his navigation he airived at Newfound- i500. land, at a bay, which he named Conception-bay ; ex- plored the whole eastern coast of the island, and pro- ceeded to the mouth of tlie great river of Canada, the St. Lawrence. He afterwards discovered a land, which he at first named Terra Verde, but which, in remembrance of the discoverer, was afterwards called Terra de Cortereal. That part of it, which being on the south side of the fiftieth degi'ee of north latitude, he judged to be fit for cultivation, he named Terra de Labrador. Returning, and communicat- ing the news of his discovery to his native country, he hastened back to visit the coast of Labrador, and to go to India through the straits of Anian, which he imagined he had just discovered. Nothing, however, was afterwards heard of him. It is pre* sumed, that he was either murdered by the Esqui- maux savages, or perished among the ice. On this disastrous event, a brother of Cortereal, under- took the same voyage ; most probably in search of his brother : but he is supposed to have met with a similar fate, for he was heard of no more.* Al- * Holmes's American Annals, Vol. 1, p. 25. Holmes cites^ among the authorities for the foregoing account, Harris's Voy- ages, Vol. 1, p. 270. After a careful search through both vo- lumes of that work, I have not been able to find any of the above particulars relative to Cortereal's voyage ; but as it ap- pears from Holmes's Index of authors cited by him in the course of his work, printed at the end of his second volume, that he used the edition of Harris's Voyages published in 1705, and the one here used is of the edition published in the years 1744 and 1748 ; it is possible that this voyage might 20 INlTtODUCTION TO A SECT, though these voyages were undertaken by inclivi- ,^^^r>^ duals, and not by the royal authority of Portugal, 1500. yet as these expeditions seem to have been fitted out openly, and probably must have come to the knoAvledge of the sovereign power of the Portu- guese nation, and were not prohibited by them, they may therefore be considered as a national trans- gression of the interdicted limits prescribed by the pope. This short notice of them seemed necessary to be made, in order to illustrate more fully the early discoveries of the northern parts of the conti- nent of America. In England also, as little regard seems to have been paid to this celebrated papal partition, although that country was still under the ecclesiastical power of the Roman pontiff. Some schemes of further discovery and commercial enterprise having been Palfms formed about this time by some merchants of Bris- fof disco- ^q1 jj^ conjunction with some Portuguese gentle- very and ^1 11 trade, to mcn, patcnts for that purpose were granted to them ciiTntrorby Henry VII, in the sixteenth and eighteenth years of his reign, without noticing the before men- have been designedly omitted in this last or second edition of tliat work. In Vol. 2, p. 401, (edit. 1748), where the north- west passage is treated of, there is this short remark, " One Cortereal, a Portuguese, is also said to have passed this strait, and to have bestowed upon it his name ; but how, when, or where, is not to be inquired, or at least to be resolved." The authors of the Modern Universal History, in man^ parts of their work, particularly in Vol. 11, p. 364, pass high enco- miums on this last edition of Harris's Collection of Voyages, though they do not mention the editor's name except by de- scription, as " the sensible author of the Present State of Eu- some mer- chants Bristol HISTORY OF MAR\XAND. 21 tioned line of division.* But these grants do not sect. appear to have ever been productive of any effect ; ^^^^^v^^,^ for whicli, some probable reasons may be suggest- 1502. ed. Henry was then engaged in a war with Scot- land, and an insurrection in his own kingdom. He was also about forming an alliance with Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, by the marriage of his son to their daughter, which might induce him to dis- countenmice undertakings necessarily disagreeable to them. To which may be added also, that agi-ee- ably to the characteristic genius of Henry, he was not so liberal as to give one penny towards the en- terprise. Nothing further appears to have been done by the English nation, in pursuance of Cabot's discoveries, during the remainder of his reign. Amidst the enthusiasm excited in Europe by the discovery of America, it was not to be expected that so great a nation as the French ^vould remain totally inactive. It is said, indeed, that they pre- tend to a more early discovery of the northern part of America, than that of the English under Cabot. Though this appears to have but a slender founda- tion, yet it seems to be very well authenticated, that 15^04. as early as the year 1504, some adventurous navi- amid^rco. gators from Biscay, Bretagne, and Normandy, in [i^^'^^ °^ France, came in small vessels to fish on the banks French. * See the later patent at large in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 1 1, in which recital is made of the prior one, dated May J 9th, 16 Hen. VH. In each of these patents a clause of do- mination was inserted to the three Portuguese gentlemen concerned, in order to prevent them from being considered as foreign merchants, liable to duties and disadvantages in trade from which English subjects were exempt. 22 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, of Newfoundland. They ai'e alleged to be the y^^^.„^-^^ first French vessels that appeared on the coasts of 1504. North America ; and from their own account, their fishermen are said to have discovered at this time the grand bank of Newfoundland. In a year or 1506. two afterwards, (1506,) Jean Denys^ a native of Rouen, sailed from Harfleur to Newfoundland, and published, on his return, a map of the gulf of St. Lawrence, and of the coast of the adjacent country. 1508. Also, in 1508, Thomas Aubert, in a ship belonging to his father, Jean Ango, Viscount of Dieppe, made a voyage from thence to New^foundland ; and pro- ceeding thence to the river St. Lawrence, is said to be the first who sailed up that great river to the country of Canada, and on his return carried to Pa- ris some of the natives.* The same causes operating on the conduct of Henry VIII, for the first three or four years of his reign, as in that of his father, they would naturally in like manner paralyze any efforts on the part of the English nation in pursuance of Cabot's discoveries. In the mean-time, however, the Spaniards were go- ing on rapidly in their discoveries and conquests in the islands and southern part of America. One in- cident of which, it may not, perhaps, be unneces- sary to mention, as it bears some relation to our present inquiries : — a certain Juan Ponce de Leon, Ponce de being a Spanish officer of some note in the island of dfscov^ery Hispauiola, shortly after the conquest and settlement of Florida. Qf <^^ island, had obtained leave to conquer the * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 406. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 33, 35, 37. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 23 neighbouring island called Porto Rico. After per- sect. forming this, he was for some cause displaced from v^,,rv^^s^ his office of governor thereof. But, having thereby 1512 acquired considerable wealth, he was enabled to fit out some vessels, at his own expense for further discoveries. He was induced to this, not only by that chivalrous spirit of adventure, which appears to have been then, among the Spaniards, the fashion of the times ; but also, as it is said, to gratify a ro- mantic curiosity, in ascertaining the truth of a tra- ditional report, which had long existed among the aborigines of the island, relative to the extraordi- nary .virtues of a certain river, rivulet, or fountain in the island of Biminiy one of the Lucayos, which had the property of renovating those who bathed in its waters, into their former youth and vigour.^ Whatever the motives of his voyage might have been, it seems, that m pursuance of his schemes, he fell upon that part of the coast of North America called by him Florida, and which has ever since retained that name.* But it does not appear that he explored that coast more northerly than the river formerly called St. Mattheo, now St. Juan's or St. Jolm's in East Florida, and which is a little to the southward of what is now the boundary line between, the United States and the Spanish territories.! ' The reader will perceive, that at this period of time, (1512,) even after Ponce de Leon's voyage, there remained a vast space of the continent of * Called so because it "was first discovered by the Spaniards on Easter day, which they call Pasqua Florida, Mod. Univ, Hist, Vol. 39, p. 123, and Vol. 44, p. 41, t Harris*s Voyages, Vol. 2, p, 57. ^4, INTRODUCTION TO A North America along the Atlantic, (from the SOth to the 38th degree of North latitude, from Florida 3512. to the most southern part of the coast of Mar\^land,) which had never been visited by any European. Although the English court long afterwards, both at the time of granting the patent for Carolina, in 1663, and of their claim to Florida in 1762, pre- tended that Cabot's discoveries included both Caro- lina and Florida, by which, through right of prior discovery, they claimed to the gulf of Mexico,* yet as no authentic history can be found to show that Cabot ever descended so far to the south,t or indeed any lower than the 38th degree of north lati- tude, that right must remain unsupported, imless the discovery of a part of the continent of North America could be construed as giving right to the whole of it. But in such an extensive continent as this, such a right must appear at once futile and vain, and the right of prior occupation^ or settle- ment, seems in such case to be the only rational right to be relied on, J The Spaniards did not, however, altogether ne- glect this discovery of Ponce de Leon. Being in want of labourers to work their mines in St. Do- mingo, they fonned the project of kidnapping the natives on this coast for that purpose. Accordingly * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 40, p. 419. Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 325. t This assertion I find made by Oldmixon in the place just above cited from him, and as it seems to be well founded, it is here adopted. But see a further discussion of this subject in note (B) al the end of this volume. I See note (C) at the ei;d of the volume.- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 25 in the year 1520, two ships were fitted out from St. Domingo, under the command of a Spaniard whose name was Luke Vasquez. He proceeded to that 1520. part of the continent of North America which was Suez's ex- then supposed by the Spaniards to be a part of Ponce petition, de Leon's discoveries, and as denominated by him Florida: but the place at which Vasquez an'ived, was, it seems, that now called St. Helena, a small island at the mouth of Port Royal harbour, in the southern part of South Carolina, in about 32°, 15' north latitude. The natives, it is said, seeing his ships as they drew near the land, with expanded sails, never having seen the like before, took them for two monstrous fishes driving towards the shore, and ran in crowds to view them; but on a nearer view of the Spaniards, after they had landed, these simple natives were so struck with their clothing and appearance, that they fled with the greatest marks of consternation. Two of them, however, were taken ; and the Spaniards carrying them on board gave them victuals and drink, and sent them back on shore, clothed in Spanish dresses. This insi- dious kindness had its desired effect with the unsus- pecting savages. The king of the country admired the Spanish dresses and hospitality so much, that he sent fifty of his subjects to the ships with fruits and provisions ; ordered his people to attend the Spa- niards, M herever they had a mind to visit the coun- try; and made them rich presents of gold, plates of silver, and pearls. The Spaniards, having learned all they could concerning the country, watered, and re- victualled their ships, and inviting a large num- ber of their generous landlords on board, after ply-. D 2S INTIIODUCTION TO A 8ECT. ing them with Uqiior, they weighed anchor and ,^^-^^>^ sailed off with them. This scheme, however, had 1520. not all the success its perpetrators expected. Most of the unhappy savages either pined themselves to death, or were lost in one of the ships that foun- dered at sea; so that only a very few survived for the pui'poses of slavery. Vasquez, notwithstanding his loss, having acquired some reputation from the expedition, renewed, in the years 1524 and 1525, his attempts to carry on a slave-trade from that part of the continent. But, one of his ships being wrecked near St. Helena, and two hundred of his men being cut off by the natives, he was so discou- raged, that he returned to Hispaniola, and died, it is said, of a broken heart.* Some schemes for discovery and settlement in America, were now again revived in France. After a lapse of about fifteen years since the expedition of Aubert to Canada, in 1508, before mentioned, and the accession of Francis the first to the throne of France, that excellent monarch began to think of making establishments on the American coast. 1524. With this view befitted out, in the vear 1523, Gio- ni's voy. vauui (or John) Verazzmi, a Florentnie, to prose- ^^^* cute further discoveries in the northern parts of America. History has recorded but little worth mentioning of any of the three several and succes- sive expeditions undertaken by him, except the considerable extent of his voyage along the coast of North America. He is said to have explored, with considerable accuracy, a part of the coast of Flori- * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 40, p. 379. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. Hf da; and the whole extent of his discoveries was sect. about five hundred leagues of the American coast, v^^fv->i^ from the thirtieth to the fiftieth degi'ce of north lati- i524 tude, all of which he denominated New France. He is supposed to have first arrived in this his se- cond voyage, in the year 1524, off that part of America, where the town of Savannah, in Georgia, now stands; " a new land," says he, " never before scene of any man either ancient or moderne."* Having sailed to the southward as far as the 30th degree of north latitude, he then turned back and sailed northwardly to the 34th degree, and thence still northwardly until he found the coast " trend * This assertion of Verazzini himself, is extracted by Mr. Hohnesin h© Annals, Vol. 1, p. 68, from Hackliiyt's Voyages, where Verazzini's own account, which he sent to the king of France, immediately on his I'eturn to Dieppe, in July 1524, is published. It is some presumptive proof that Cabot, in the voyage in Avhich he discovered North America, did not sail so low to the southward as Georgia, much less to Cape Flo- rida as before mentioned. As twenty years had then elapsed since Cabot's voyage, it is not probable that Verazzini was ig- norant of the extent of it. It may be said, indeed, that Ca- bot might have coasted the continent down to Cape Florida, and not have seen nor mentioned the Savannah river, or its adjacent lands. But Verazzini's expression, as above, seems to imply that Cabot never could have seen it, and therefore never passed it. It must be acknowledged, however, that there is considerable probability that the Savannah river must have been discovered by or known to Vasquez, in some one of his voyages before mentioned, he being under a necessity of passing close by it in going to St. Helena, which is but a little further to the northward of it. But as these voyages of Vasquez were about the same time with this of Verazzini, and the French and Spaniards were then at war, it is not probable that Verazzini had any knowledge of them. ii$ INTllODUCTION TO A SECT, towards the east;" here (which is supposed to be on I. the coast of New Jersey or Staten Island) he at- 1524. tempted to send his boat ashore, but was prevented by the roughness of the sea. In latitude 40° he entered a harbour, which is supposed to be that of New York. Proceeding thence to the eastward, he found a well cultivated island, (supposed to be Nan- tucket or Martha's Vineyard) and a little beyond it a good harbour. He proceeded thence still north- wardly along the coast of the country, to 50°, nearly to the most northern part of the coast of Newfoundland ; and then, on account of the failure of his provisions, he returned in July, 1524, to Dieppe, in France. He afterwards undertook a third voyage, in which he and all his company pe- rished by some unknown disaster, and were no more heard of.* About this time also a voyage was made by the Spaniai'ds, which is said to be the first performed by that nation, in which the whole of that part of the coast of North America, now composing the Uni- 1525. ^g(j States, was attempted to be explored by them. Gomez's Ouc Estcvau Gomcz, (called by the English Ste- voyage. pj^gjj Gomez,) a Portuguese by birth, who, on ac- count of the great reputation he had acquired as an able navigator, had been selected to accompany Ferdinand Magellan, then in the service of Spain, in his remarkable voyage in the year 1520, wherein he discovered the Straits which have ever since borne his name ; and who, perfidiously deserting Magellan, soon after they had entered the South * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 348. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 406. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 68, HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 29 Seas tlirough those Straits, had returned back to sect. Spam, probably jealous of the honour which he ^^,^^^^^^ perceived Magellan was about acquiring, proposed, 1525. soon after his return to the emperor Charles V, the discovery of a more direct passage into the South Seas than that found by Magellan, through the nor- thern part of America. But the emperor, for many reasons which appear to have induced him at that time to discountenance an opposition to the Portu- guese claim of the Moluccas, and at the same time, perhaps, disgusted with Gomez's base desertion of Magellan, did not listen to his application in so fa- vourable a manner as he expected. He therefore made proposals of the same nature to the count de Aranda, a Spanish nobleman, and some others, to induce them to send him by this supposed passage to the Moluccas. Less tender of the Portuguese rights than the emperor, and \villing to avail them- selves of this man's abilities as a pilot, they agi'eed to furnish him with a ship for that purpose. Ac- cordingly (in the year 1525, as it appears,) Gomez sailed to Cuba, and thence in search of this pas- sage he coasted the continent northward, as high as Cape Ras, at Newfoundland. His heart now fail- ing him, as it is said, or more probably chagrined at not succeeding in finding the much-desired pas- sage, he returned to Corunna, carrying with him only some of the unhappy natives, whom he had captured somewhere on the coast. An unlucky jest, which occun^ed immediately on his return, injured both his reputation and the credit of the famed north-west passage. When the ship came into port, somebody asked, what they had on board? so INTRODUCTION TO A A seaman answered, Esclavos — slaves, meaning the poor Indians. A person on shore, not far from 1525. the ship, mistaking the sound for Clavos — cloves, and setting off immediately for the Spanish court, reported there that Gomez had returned with a car- go of spice from Moluccas. When the mistake came to be discovered, the disappointment, as it generally happens when hopes are unreasonably ele- vated, produced on the contrary equally unreason- able ridicule and derision on his voyage. The men- tion of it here, however, serves to illustrate the more early discoveries of the continent of North Ame- rica.* 1527. This delusion of a nortli-west passage to the attempt to East-Indies, Avhich had thus in Spain prompted this a nonhf expedition, was at the same time operating in other wes^t pas- parts of Europc. As Henry the eighth of England, among other of his inordinate passions, was often actuated with the avidity of w^ealth, he M^as induced to listen to the advice of a Mr. Robert Thorne, an English merchant, who had long resided at Seville, ^ . in Spain, and had there acquired some knowledge of the East- India trade. This gentleman represented to Henry the advantages which his kingdom might derive from such a commerce, and proposed that endeavours should be made to find out a passage to tlie East- Indies, by the north-west parts of Ame- rica.! The king, on mature deliberation, gave or- ders for two ships to be fitted out for that purpose. They sailed on the 20th of May, 1527; but the voyage was productive of no discovery of import- * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 9, p. 588, 575. t Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol, 10, p. 11,12. \:^ HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 31 ancc. One of the ships was lost in the Gulf of St. sect. Lawrence, and the other returned in the montli ^^ ^^^^.^r^^ October following, to England. One circumstance 1527. attending this voyage of discovery, is perhaps worth mentioning. The king ordered, that " several cmi- 7img men" should embark in the voyage. The wri- ter, who mentions this,* explains tliem to mean, — " persons skilled in the mathematics; \\\\o, with the common sort of people, passed now, and long after, for cunning men and conjurers." By an uncom- mon association for those da}- s, one of these cunning men, it seems, was a priest, — " a Canon of St. Paul's in London, who was a great mathematician, and a man indued with wealth."! To return to the Spaniards : — Notwithstanding their disappointment in Vasquez's expedition before m.entioned, they were not altogether discouraged from pursuing their discoveries in Florida. In about four years afterwards, (in 1528,) Pamphilo ^^^s. Narvez, the same commander, it would seem, whoNanez's a few years before had been ungenerously sent by ^^'^" ' Velasquez, governour of Cuba, to supersede the great Cortez in his important conquest of Mexico, which he was just at that time completing, obtained from his catholic majesty, the emperor Charles V, a grant of " all the lands lying from the Ri^'er of Palms to the cape of Florida. "| * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 192. t Hackluyt's Voyages, cited in Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 75. \ The above description of Narvez's grant is taken from Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 75, who appears to have extract- ed it from the commission as in Purchaft's Pilgrimage, which he there cites. The lUo de las ralmaa^ or River of Palms-, 32 . INTRODUCTION TO A Narvez, in pursuance of his grant, fitted out a powerful armament to conquer the country, with 1528. which he landed somewhere on the western side of the cape of Florida, in the month of April, 1528. It does not appear that he explored any part of the continent at any great distance from the coast bor- dering on the Gulf of Mexico. His expedition was entirely unsuccessful ; and he and all his men pe- rished miserably, except a very few, who, after undergoing inexpressible hardships, found their way to Mexico.* His grant, however, serves to recog- nize the Spanish claim at this early period of time, to a most extensive part of the southern coast of North America, comprehending a considerable por- tion of Louisiana, particularly the most valuable part of it to the United States — the territory of Ncav Orleans. 1539. Before we quit our observations on the progress drsotS'^ of the Spaniards in the southern part of North Ame- expedi- Yica, wc must trcspass a little on the order of time, in briefly mentioning a subsequent expedition of that nation, in about ten years after that of Narvez, for making a conquest of Florida. Ferdinand de Soto, who was governour of Cuba, received from Charles V, the title of Marquis of Florida, with au- thority as we may suppose, to acquire that country by conquest. He accordingly, on the 12th of May, 1539, embarked three hundred and fifty horse, and nhie hundred foot, on board of nine ships, at the empties itself into the Gulf of Mexico, in that part of the coast thereof now called, the New Kingdom of Leon. The mouth of the river is in about 25" of north latitude, * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 40, p. 380. HISTORY OF RIAltYLAND. 33 port of Havanna ; the most formidable armamenf of sect. Europeans, that till then had appeared in North ^^^^.^^ America. Pursuing his course to Florida, he dis- 1539. embarked on the 25th of the same month, at the bay of Spiritu Sancto^ which lies on the western side of the peninsula of East Florida, on the Gulf of Mexico. His route from thence seems to have been in various directions from one Indian tribe to ano- ther, as they were then scattered throughout that part of the continent now called the Floridas ; and from the length of some of his marches, as mentioned in the account of his expedition, he must have pene- trated also far into Georgia, and what is now called the Mississippi Territory, among the Creeks and Cherokees : who are probably the remains of those populous and flourishing tribes of the natives, wdio are so pompously described by the famous Inca Garcilasso de la Vega, one of the historians of this expedition, and who probably felt a partiality for those, whom he might consider as his countrymen, and consequently a natural indignation at the bar- barous usage of them practised on this occasion by Soto. After a series of adventures, experienced by himself and his army, which have the appearance more of romance than reality, during a period of almost five years, and having lost the greater part of his armament, he died of a fever on the banks of the Mississippi ; on which event, the officer next in command, prudently contrived to conduct the miserable remnant of them, by water, along the shores of the Gulf, to Panuco, in the kingdom of Mexico. " Thus," says the historian, " ended this expedition, in ruhi and poverty to all who were E SJt INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, concerned in it ; nor did they leave a Spaniard in ..^..i^, all Florida."* 1539. We may now attend to the proceedings of the French, in the northern parts of the American con- tinent, when they first began to make serious at- tempts to form settlements in Canada. Although the loss of Verazzini had discouraged them, for a few years, from fitting out ships for discovery in America, yet, agreeably to the genius and charac- ter of that nation, their accustomed activity and en- ergy on such occasions, soon again revived. A certain Jacques Quartier, (called by the English, James Cartier,) a native and an experienced pilot of St. Malo, was prevailed upon by admiral Cabot to undertake another expedition. He accordingly, on 1534. the 20th of April, 1534, sailed fi"om that port under Qu^arUer's ^ commissiou from the French king ; and on the voyage, -j^q^j-^ ^f 'M.aj following, he arrived at cape Bona- vista, in Newfoundland. Although in cruising along that coast to the southward, lie found many commo- dious harbours, yet the land was so uninviting, and the climate so cold, that he directed his course to the Gulf of St. LawTcnce, and entered within a bay there, which he called, Le Baye des Chaleurs, on account of the sultry weather which he there expe- rienced, and which has been sometimes since called Spanish Bay.f It may, perhaps, gratify the curiosity of those who are amused with the origin of names, to take * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 40, p. 381. t Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 349. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, pa. 40r. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 35 notice here of a traditional report, mentioned by sect. some writers, that the Spaniards had long before v^-.J->^ this voyage of Cartier, visited this coast, but find- 1534. ing no signs of gold or silver, they huiTied to get off again, crying out in the Spanish language, Aca Nada ! that is. There is nothing here ! These words the Indians retained in their memory, and when the French now visited the country, and land- ed, they were saluted by the natives with the cry of Aca Nada ! Aca Nada ! this the French mistook for the name of the country, and have ever since called it Canada. The writer from whom this is taken, observ^es, that this is a very strange deriva- tion, but as he found it in the best French authors, he thought it worth setting down.* Leaving the bay of Chaleurs, Cartier landed at several places along the coast of the Gulf, and took possession of the country in the name of his most Christian majesty. After which, he returned to France, where he arrived on the 5th of September, 1534. Cartier's report to the French monarch, of his 1535. First s.t" proceedings, was so favourably received by him, tempt of that it was now resolved to attempt the settlement French to of a colony in the country which he had visited. canS He was accordingly furnished with three large ships for that purpose, and sent out again with a sufficient number of colonists ; among whom were many young men of distinction, who were desirous of accompanying him in the character of volunteers. He arrived in the Gulf on the IQth of August, 1535, * Hai-ris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 349, 36 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, and because that was St. Lawrence's day, he then s^^^r-^r^^ gave it the name of the Gulf of St, Lawrence, whicli 1535. name was subsequently extended to the river, and which both retain to this day. Passing by an is- land, to which he gave the name of Assumption, since called Anticosti, he sailed up the Saguenay, a river emptying into that of St. Lawrence. Return- ing from thence, and proceeding up the river St. Lawrence, he passed a small island, to which he gave the name of Isle aux Cuodriers, Isle of Hazels, from tlie number of those trees growing on it ; and afterwai'ds came to another island so full of vines, that he called it the Isle of Bacchus ; but it has since acquired the name of the Isle of Orleans. He had in his kst voyage, the precaution to carry two of the natives with him to France, where they learned as much of tlie language, as enabled thera now to serve as interpreters between him and their countrymen. Sailing further up the St. Lawrence, he entered a small river, where he had an interview with an Indian chief, whose name was Donnacona, and where he was informed of an Indian town called Hochelaga, which was deemed the metropolis of the whole countr}% and situated in an island now known by the name of Montreal, near to which it would seem he then was. The inhabitants here, who are sup- posed to have been the Hurons, the most tractable of all the Indians then in Canada, treated Cartier and his attendants with much hospitality, expressing at the same time astonishment at their persons, dress, and accoutrements. He had at this time with him only one ship and two long boats, having left the rest at St. Croix, a port in the river of St. Lawrence, to HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 37 which port he returned, and there spent the winter, sf.ct. The severe cold of the cHmate, together with a^_^^".^^ more probable cause ; the use of salt provisions, loss. brought on them the scurvy, with which he and his people would have perished, it is supposed, had they not, by the advice of the natives, used a decoc- tion of the bark and tops of the white pine. On the approach of spring, Cartier prepared to return to Europe. Whatever other excellencies of cha- racter he might have possessed, gratitude does not appear to have been a prevalent sentiment with him. He was ungenerous enough to kidnap his Indian friend, Donnacona, and carry him to France, where he arrived in the spring of 1536.* As Henry VHI, and Francis I, were at this time upon the very best terms, and as neither of them expected to draw much immediate wealth from their North American expeditions, it was natural that they should not suffer that harmony, which then subsisted between them, to be interrupted by the feeble attempts which the subjects of each were then canying on for the establishment of colonies in America. In corroboration of this it may be obser\'ed, that such establishments were with Henr}" but secondary objects ; for, his principal desire was to find out a north-west passage, so that, agreeably to his imperious temper, he might have a way of his own to the East Indies, and not be obliged to follow the route either of the Spaniards or Portuguese. It ^VAS this inclination of the king, that indii-ectly pro- duced a spirit in the English nation, at this time, • Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 349. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 3S, p. 408. 38 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, for discoveries and settlements in the noitliern parts y^^^-^^^s^ of America, notwithstanding the many difficulties 1536. and dangers which appeared to attend them. Ac- attempt to cordingly a Mr. Hore, a merchant of London, a ^^e^! man of considerable estate, of an athletic constitii- ioundiand. ^Jqj^ q^^^ undaunted fortitude, and addicted to the study of the sciences of geography and astronomy, resolved to undertake a voyage, and attempt a set- tlement in Newfoundland. He no sooner made his intention known, than he received all the counte- nance and encouragement from the crown that he could expect ; and as this gave much credit to the expedition, so in a short time many young gentle- men of good fortunes and distinguished families, offered to share both the expense and dangers of the undertaking. Among these were some men of the learned professions, pai'ticularly a Mr. Thomas Butts, son of Sir William Butts, the king's first physician, and a Mr. Rastal, brother to Serjeant Rastal, the eminent special pleader. About the end of April, 1536, all things were ready, and the whole of the companies of both ships, amounting tQ one hundred and twenty, mustered at Gravesend, where, with much ceremony, they embarked. They soon after sailed, and arrived in the space of t\\ o months at cape Breton ; from whence they sailed round a great piut of Newfoundland, to Penguin island. They afterwards went on shore upon the east side of Newfoundland, where they staid till their provisions were nearly exhausted. Being then afraid to trust themselves at sea in such a condi- tion, they delayed going on board till they were in such distress, that they began secretly to murder HISTORY OF MARYLAND. jy and eat one another ! This horrid practice coming sect. to tlie knowledge of their captain, or governour, he, v.,^-v->^ by a most judicious and pathetic speech, brought i536. them to resolve rather to live upon grass and herbs, than to subsist any longer by this detestable method. But it happened soon after, that a French ship put in there, well manned and well victualled, of which the Englishmen resolved to take advantage ; and therefore, watching a fair opportunity, they pos- sessed themselves of the French ship, and leaving their own, sailed directly for the coast of England. They returned safely ; but some of them so much altered by their fatigues, that their friends did not know them again ; particularly young Mr. Butts, whose parents could not recognise him, but by a mark on his knee. Another circumstance relating to this unfortunate enterprise, is mentioned also, as redounding much to the credit of Henry VIII. The Frenchman, whose ship had been thus taken, came to England not long afterwards, to complain of the violence committed upon them. King Henry examined very minutely into the affair, and finding that extreme want was the sole cause of an action, otherwise inexcusable, he satisfied the French to the full extent of their demands, out of his own coffers, and pardoned in his own subjects that wrong, which necessity forced them to commit.* The accounts which had been given in France of the before- mentioned voyage of Cartier to Ca- nada, had, according to some writers, made an unfavourable impression on both the nation and its * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 192. 40 INTRODUCTION TQ A monarch. Not being able to produce either gold or silver, all that this unfortunate gentleman could 3540. urge about the utility of the settlement and the fruitfiilness of the country was treated with neglect by the public. Some individuals, however, appear to have cherished a different opinion. For, in about four years after Cartier's expedition before men- tioned, the project of settling Canada began again to be talked of, and a gentleman of Picardy, whose La Roc- name was Francis de la Rocque, Lord of Roberval, que's at- .,..,.. tempt to undertook to accomplish this design. To qualify him settle CjSl- nada. for this thing Francis I, by letters patent dated Janu- aiy i5th, 1540, erected him viceroy, and lieutenant- general in Canada, Hochalaga, Saguenay, Newfound- land,Belle-isle, cape Breton and Labrador, giving him the same power and authority in those places that he had himself. This gentleman, who had a good es- tate, fitted out two ships at his own expense, and prevailed upon James Cartier, by the large promises he made him, to undertake another voyage to Can- ada. La Rocque not being ready for embarkation himself, he sent Ciutier with five ships before him, liaving previously obtained for him a royal commisr hion as captain-general.* Cartier commenced this voyage in May, and after encountering many storms, * This commission is inserted entire in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 19, 21. It is worthy of remark, that in this commission to Cartier, power is given to him to choose fifty persons out of such criminals in prison as shall have been convicted of any crimes whatever, except treason and counterfeiting money, whom he should think fit and capable to serve in the expedition. See an account of a settlement of convicts on the Isle of Sables, by the French, in the year 1598, post. p. 94. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 4.1 landed in Newfoundland, on the 23d of August, sect. Roberval not arriving, he proceeded to Canada ; and v^^-v-s^* on a small river four leagues above the port de St. 1540. Croix, and at no great distance from where Quebec now stands, he built a fort and began the first settle- ment in Canada, which he called Charlebourgh. Car- tier having waited there in vain above a year, for the arrival of the viceroy Roberval, and having near- ly consumed all his provisions, and now dreaded an attack from the savages, set out in the year 1542 on his return to France. Roberval, with three ships and two hundred persons, coming to recruit the set- tlement in Canada, met him at Newfoundland, and would have obliged him to return to his province ; but Cartier eluded him in the night and sailed for Bretagne. The viceroy proceeding up the river St. Lawrence four leagues above the island of Orleans, and finding there a convenient harbour, built a fort, and remained over tlie winter. It is probable that he returned to France in the next year ; for we find him again, in the year 1549, embarking for the river St. Lawrence, accompanied by his brother and a numerous train of adventurers ; but they were ne- ver heard of afterwards. With them expired, or at least ceased for many years, all the hopes which had been conceived in France of making settlements in America.* * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 349. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 408. It seems to be alleged hei-e, in the Mod. Univ. Hist, that, notwithstanding this loss of Roberval and his adventur- ers, some few French settlers still remained in Canada. If so, they must have been some left there by him on his return ao France, after his first voyage in 1542, when he met Cartier, F 42 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. To return to the proceedings of the English na- y^^.^^^,^ tion. — Although Henry VIII, during his long reign, 1546. was frequently at open enmity with Spain, and, for Proceed- considerable part of it, was under no restriction ings 01 the r ' English, from a papal bull, yet his interference in the affairs of the continent, and the vexation he experienced about his wives, seem to have so much engrossed his attention, and of consequence that of the nobility and gentry of his kingdom, that his reign appears to have been unfavourable to the progress of disco- very. In the feeble minority of his son Edwai'd VI, less was to be expected. It seems, from the preamble to a statute made in the second and third year of this king's reign,* that, " within a few years, then past, there had been levied and taken by certain officers of the admiralty, of such merchants and Fishef fishermen as had used and practised adventures and of New- vovaares to Iceland, Ireland, and other places, com- found- -^ ° . / land. modious for fishmg, divers great exactions, as sums of money, doles, and shares of fish, for licenses to pass the realm for such purposes;" severe penalties were therefore enacted against such offenders. This statute appears to have originated from some abuses either connived at or practised by the king's uncle. This seems, however, to be contradicted by a passage in Char- levoix's Nouv. France, 1,22," Avec eux tomberent toutes les esperances, qu'on avoit con9ues de faire un etabHssement en Amerique." And in Harris's Voyages, just cited, it is said that " it was this gentleman (Roberval) who first fixed some French settlements in America, which, however, were after- wards abandoned." ^ * II and III Edw. 6. c. 6. at a parliament holden November 4th, 1548. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 4; Thomas Seymour, lord high admiral of England, sect. who was attainted by an act of parliament of this v,_^^,->^ same session. As the admiral had undoubtedly 1548. formed very unjustifiable schemes of ambition, and probably took this method of obtaining money as the means of success in tliose schemes, there h every reason to suppose that the accusations against him on this subject, were not without foundation. The act, however, serves to show, that the English fishery on the coast of Newfo midland, was at this period an object of such national importance as to deserve legislative encouragement; and it is said to have been the first act of parliament that ever was made in relation to America.* The pension which ^vas in this reign also granted 1549. to Sebastian Cabot, f seems to imply, that his servi- ^^.!^^led ces in the discovery of North America were not t" Oabot. deemed entirely unworthy of remuneration. It must be observed, however, that in the reigns of both Henry and his son Edward, the ruling persons in England appear to have been less desirous of mak- ing discoveries of new countries and settlements therein, than in exploring a more expeditious route to the East-Indies. After failing in some of their • Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 94. t See the letters patent for this pension at large, in Ha- zard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 23. It bears date, January 6th, 2 Edwd. 6, (which, according' to new style, was January 6th, 1549). It is said, in Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 193, that Cabot was by this patent created grand pilot of England, but no such grant of an office appears in the instrument published by Hazard. He seems to have been at the head of a company, which existed in England at this time, under the title of " Merchant Adventurers for the discovery of New Lands." 44 INTRODUCTIOX, &c. SECT, attempts to find out what was called a north-west \^y^.^^.^,^ passage thereto, the minds of the nation seem to 1549. have been at this time turned towards a discovery of what was called the north-east passage. This \vas, in all probability, a more preponderating cause which induced them to hold Mr. Cabot's talents in such high request; and this strange infatuation of the nation about these passages might probably also be one cause of preventing their attention at this time to the more substantial and practicable pur- suits of Cabot's discoveries in America. In the reign of Queen Mary, her marriage with Philip, king of Spain, necessarily put a stop to any thing whatever, that might possibly interfere with the affairs of that nation in America. Thus, from 1553. a singular series of causes, did sixty years elapse from the time when the English first discovered North America, before they had made any effectual efforts to avail themselves of the advantages result- ing from that discovery. SECTION II.* Tlie reig^ of Elizabeth favourable to maritime adventures — Sir Hum- phrey Gilbert, the first conductor of an English colony to America —Letters Patent to him for that purpose— Characteristic incidents relative to Sir Humphrey Gilbert — his first voyage unsuccessful — sails a second time for America — takes possession of Newfound- land — is lost on his return to England. A VARIETY of concurrent circumstances, sect. contributed to render the reign of Elizabeth favour- v,^r.v^^/ able to the growth of the maritime power of Eng- i558. land. The intercourse which had subsisted for of Eliza- some time between the English and Spanish na- vourabie tions, through the alliance of their monarchs, espe- t|^^'"Yd" cially in the reign of Mary, immediately preceding, ventures. had diiFused among the English a considerable knowledge, not only of the general naval affairs of Spahi, but more particularly of their American dis- * The author had prepared a distinct section, to be inserted here, containing; a sketch of the attempts of the French pro- testants, under the direction and patronage of admiral Coligny, to plant colonies, about this time, in that part of the continent of America, now called South Carolina, in consequence of the oppressions which these protestants experienced from the civil war then raging in France. The emigration of the French Hugonots, under Ribaut and Laudonniere — the cruel massacre of them by the Spanish catholics, under Menendez, and the just retaliation inflicted upon the Spaniards by the Chevalier de Gorgues, form a very interesting part of Ame- rican history. But as the reader would probably consider these events, as bearing but a slight relation to the history to which this volume is intended as an introduction, it has been thought most proper to suppress that section. 46 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, coveries and settlements. The wealth, which was ^^,-yi^^ supposed to flow in upon the Spanish nation, from 1558. that source, would naturally allure the English to some endeavours to participate in these advantages. The accession of Elizabeth to the throne of Eng- land, together with the restoration of the reformed religion, in the course of a few years placed the two nations in a state of hostility towards each other. Queen Elizabeth early foresaw this, and neglected nothing that might keep up and promote a maritime, spirit among her people. She therefore, in a parti- cular manner, manifested her approbation of the naval exploits of captain Hawkins, Sir Francis Drake, and other great mariners. It must be ob- served here, that soon after the discovery of the northern part of America by Cabot, and especially that part of it, denominated by him Newfoundland, divers other European nations resorted to that coast, . for the great emoluments to be derived from the fishery on its banks. Insomuch, indeed, that some of them affected to claim the riglit of the first dis- covery of that countr}^ But^ as that claim appear- ed to be without foundation, and as the advantages ©f the fishery, would be much enhanced to any na- tion that might have possession of that island, the able ministry of that politic princess, could not be insensible to the advantages of making a settlement thereon. Added to this, the extensive progress, which the Spanish nation had now made in the co- lonisation of South America, could not fail to excite the ardent emulation of the English, in following their example by a like colonisation of the north. Indeed, the danger of anticipation must have been HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 47 now urgent ; for, it appears by an account publish- sect. ed in the year 1578,* that there were fifty sail of ^^^^.,,^>^ English ships, one hundred sail of Spaniards, fifty 1558. of Portuguese, and one hundred and fifty French, employed in that year, in the fishery on that coast. It was evident, therefore, that so extensive and in- viting a continent as North America, could not now remain much longer without some attempts by some nation, to fix settlements thereon. At this period then. Sir Humphrey Gilbert is i^rs. mentioned by historians, with the distinction due to pin-ey gu- the conductor of the first English colony to Ame- conductor rica. He was a native of Devonshire ; inherited a first'Eri- good estate, and had early rendered himself conspi- giishcolo- cuous by his militaiy^ services in France, Ireland, America. and Holland. Having afterwards turned his atten- tion to naval affairs, he pubHshed a discourse con- cerning the probability of a north-west passage to the Indies; which discovered no inconsiderable portion, both of learning and ingenuity, mingled with the enthusiasm, the credulity, and sanguine ex- pectations which incite men to new and hazardous undertakings, t With the honourable desire of in- • By a Mr. Barkhurst. See Harris's Voyages, VoL 2, p. 198. t Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 159. Tindal's edit, of Rapin's Hist, of England, Vol. 7, p. 387. Leland's Hist, of Ireland, Vol. 2, p. 252. In confirmation of the above character of Sir Humphrey, from Robertson, it may be men- tioned, that Sir Humphrey was, a few years before this, (be- tween the years 1571 and 1574,) engaged with the learned Sir Thomas Smith, in some visionary schemes of alchymy, ^ through which means Ihey expected to accumulate sudden wealth, by the transmutation of iron into copper. They were 46 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, creasing his private fortune, by the pursuit of the i^,-.^^^^^ public service, he applied to Elizabeth for permis- I5r8. sion to carry his schemes into effect. He repre- sented to her the expediency of settling all those countries upon the continent of America, which had been formerly discovered by Cabot, because other- wise it was not at all unlikely, that the French, who had often reviewed those places, would be desirous of supplanting the English, and because it was very far from being improbable, that those countries abounded with very rich minerals.* Upon these suggestions, he easily obtained from the queen, letters patent, vesting in him sufficient powers for this purpose. It has been observed, that this being the first charter to a colony granted by the crown of En- gland, the articles of it merit particular attention, as they unfold the ideas of that age with respect to the nature of such settlements.! " She thereby men of such reputation for talents and genius, that they drew in secretary Cecil and the earl of Leicester, to join them in the scheme. The pi'oject eventuated, as other delusive dreams of alchymy have generally done — in the ruin of the projectors. Sir Thomas smarted very severely in his purse, and Sir Humphrey w^as impoverished by it. The former sought to recruit his finances by planting colonies in Ireland, and the latter by the like proceedings in America. It is, however, one among many instances, wherein the very errors of philosophers have been consequentially productive of great good to mankind. See a biographical account of the life of Sir Thomas Smith, published in the Pennsylvania Magazine for January, 1776. * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 199. t Although this observation is made by Robertson, {Ibid. HISTORY OF MARYLAND; 49 grants to him, and to his heirs and assigns, for ever, skct. license to discover and view such remote heathen ^' and barbarous lands, countries, and territories, as 1578. were not actually possessed by any Christian prince Leu^rs or people, and the same to hold, occupy, and enjoy fj^^J"!,,^,.^ to him, his heirs, and assigns for ever, with all com- i?o^^- modities, jurisdiction, and royalties, both by sea and land ; and the said Sir Humphrey, and all sucli, as from time to time, by royal license, should go and travel thither, to inhabit or remain there, the statutes or acts of parliament made against fugitives, or any other act, statute, or law whatever, to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.* And that he might take and lead in the same voyages, to travel thi- therward, or to inhabit there with him, such, and so many of her subjects as should willingly accompany him, so that none of them be such as thereafter should be specially restrained by her. And further, that he, his heirs, and assigns, should liave, hold, occup}^, and enjoy forever, all the soil of all such lands, &c. with the rights, royalties^ and jurisdictions, as well marine as other, within the said lands, with full powder to dispose thereof, or part thereof, in fee sim- last cited,) yet there seems to be no sound reason, why the letters patent granted by Henry VII, in the year 1502, to Hugh Elliott and others, merchants of Bristol, as before men- tioned, should not be called a charter to a colony, as well as this to Sir Humphrey Gilbert. The former, after granting license to the patentees to dincover new countries, grants them^ license also, to take out with them, any English subjects to inhabit and settle in those countries so discovered — " ct in einUem in/mbitare." No permanent settlement in America was ever formed under either of the charters. * See note (D) at the end of this volume, C INTRODUCTION TO A pie, or othcr^\ ise, according to the la^v■s of England, at his and their will and pleasure, to any person J 578. within her allegiance, paying unto her the fifth part of all the gold and silver, that should be there got- ten : the said lands, &c. to be holden by the said Sir Humphre}', his heirs and assigns, of her majesty, her heirs and successors, by homage, and by pay- ment of the fifth part before reserved. She grants him license to expel all persons, who without his t-pecial permission, should attempt to inhabit the said countries, or within two hundred leagues of the place, where he, his heirs, or assigns, should, Xvithin six years next ensuing, make their settle- ment : and she authorises him to capture all per- sons, with their A'essels and goods, who should be found trading within the limits aforesaid, without his license. And for uniting in perfect league and amity, such countries, lands, and tenutories, so to be possessed and inhabited, as aforesaid, she de- clares, that all such countries, so to be possessed and inhabited as aforesaid, from thenceforth should be of the allegiance of her, her heirs and successors, and the persons to inhabit them should enjoy all the privileges of free denizens or natives of En- gland. She grants to Sir Humphrey, and his heirs and assigns, for ever, that he and they might, from time to time, for ever thereafter, within the sisid mentioned remote lands and countries, and in the way by the seas thither, and from thence, have full power and authority to coiTCct, punish, pardon, go- vern and rule, by their good discretions and poli- cies, as well in causes capital or criminal, as civil, both in marine and other, all such her subjects, and HISTORY OF MARYI.AM). 51 Others, as should inhiibit the snid countries, accord- ing to such statutes, laws and ordisiances, as should be by him, the said Sir Humphrey, his heirs, and 15ts. assigns, devised or established, for the better go- vernment of the said people as aforesaid ; so always, that the said statutes, laws and ordinances, may be, as near as conveniently may, agreeably to the form of the laws and policy of England : and also, so as thev be not against the true Christian faith or reli- gion now professed in the church of England, nor in an}^ wise to withdraw any of the subjects or peo- ple of the lands or places, from the allegiance of her, her heirs or successors."* After obtainino' this flwour from the queen. Sir ^'^'^i'^''- •II- IP 1 • 1 • teiistic in- Humphrcy applied himself to his relations and cidcnts • rtlntivc to friends, in order to frame a society capable of car- sir Hum- rying this design into execution ; for, it seems that ^j^^^^' ^'^' the English monarchs of those times, were either unable or indisposed, to defray the expenses of these great naval expeditions, although the public \\ ere to be principally benefited by them. Hence, as Avas observed before, the Cabots were obliged to bear the expenses of their Aoyages themselves, except with what aid they might procure from the merchants of Bristol ; and it has been attributed to the parsimo- ny of Elizabeth, though it might probabh' have been owing to her inability, that she contributed but lit- tle, besides her royal license, to aid the many im- portant naval expeditions undertaken in her reign. With her letters patent, indeed, for the erection of exclusive companies for trade, she was very liberal. • See this charter at large, in Hazard's CoIIccllons, Vol. I, p. 24. 52 INTUODUCTION TO A >!FCT. Hence monopolies were among the most grievous ^_,,^j^^ burthens of her high-toned exertion of prerogatiA^e. 157^. We are sorry to find, that our worthy knight was among the most zealous advocates for these exer- tions of royal authority ; perhaps, indeed, self-in- terest might haA'e an undue operation in his mind. He was a member for Dca onshire, in the house of commons, at the parliament holden in the 13th of Eiiz. a few j^ears prior to the date of his patent. One Robert Bell, a Puritan, (to which sect, as ob- served by Hume, although dieir principles appear so frivolous, and their habits so ridiculous, yet the English owe the whole freedom of their constitu- tion,) had, in that session, made a motion against an exclusive patent, granted to a company of mer- chants in Bristol. Sir Humphre}^ spoke against the motion : " He endeavoured to prove the motion made by Bell, to be a vain device, and perilous to be treated of; since it tended to the derogation of the prerogative imperial, which, whoever should at- tempt, so much as in fancy, could not, he said, be otherwise accounted than an open enemy. For, what difference is there between saying, that the queen is not to use the privilege of the crown, and sa^-ing that she is not queen ? And though expe- rience has shown so much clemency in her majesty, as might, perhaps, make subjects forget their duty, it is not good to sport or venture too much with princes. He reminded them of the fable of the hare, who, upon the proclamation, that all horned beasts should depart the court, immediately fled, lest his ears should be construed to be horns ; and by this apologue, he seems to insinuate, that even HISTORY OF MAJiYLAND. 53 those who heard, or permitted such dangerous sect. speeches, would not themselves be entirely free ,^.,;^ from danger. He desired them to beware, lest, if 1578. they meddled faither with those matters, the queen might look to her own power ; and finding herself able to suppress their challenged liberty, and to ex- ert an arbitrary authority, might imitate the exam-^ pie of Louis XI, of France, who, as he termed it, delivered the crown from wardship." Upon this speech, the historian proceeds to observe : " Though it gave some disgust, nobody at the time replied any thing, but that Sir Humphrey mistook the mean- ing of the house, and of the member who made the motion : they never had any other purpose, than to represent their grievances, in due and seemly form, unto her majesty. But in a subsequent debate, Peter Wentworth, a man of superior free spirit, called that speech an insult on the house ; noted Sir Humphrey's disposition to flatter and fawni on the prince ; compared him to the cameleon, which can change itself into all colours, except white ; and recommended to the house a due care of liberty of speech, and of the privileges of parliament. It ap- pears, on the whole, that the motion against the ex- clusive patent had no effect. Bell, the member who first introduced it, was sent for by the council, and was severely reprimanded for his temerity. He returned to the house with such an amazed counte- nance, that all the members, well informed of the reason, were struck with terror ; and during some tin;e, no one durst rise to speak of any matters of importance, for fear of giving offence to the queen and the council. It is remai'kable, that the patent, 54 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, which the queen defended with such imperious vio^ y^^,^^^^^ lence, was contrived for the profit of four courtiers, J578. and was attended with the utter ruin of seven or eight thousand of her industrious subjects.'*!'^ 1579. We are to return, however, to the progress which His first gjj. Humphrey made, in carryins: into effect his char- voyage I J ' JO tinsiic- ter of colonisation. With the influence of his own cessful. character, and the zealous efforts of his half-brother, Walter Raleigh, who, even in his early youth, dis- played those splendid talents and that undaunted spirit, which create admiration and confidence. Sir Humphrey at first met with considerable encourage- ment. But as the time of embarkation approached, some of his associates beginning to form particular projects of their own, inconsistent with his general scheme, and others totally failing in the performance of their engagements, his preparations were much thwarted and delayed. He, however, put to sea with such of his friends as had adhered to their promises, among whom it is said, was liis brother Walter Raleigh. The voyage proved unfortunate, and was attended with the loss of one of his best ships, and several of his most esteemed friends. Nor is it quite certain that he arrived, in the course of this voyage, at any pai't of America; but it is supposed, that he met with a severe encounter with the Spa- niards, and was on that account obliged to return, f '5 3 As Sir Humphrey's patent was to expire at the cond end of six years from the date thereof, unless he voyage, j^^jjg some settlements under it, it soon became • Hume's Hist, of England, ch. 40. t Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2. p. 201. Holmes's Annalsi, Vol. l.p. 113. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 55 necessary for him to resume his schemes, or relin- sect. quish them altogether. In the spring of the year ^}!\. 1583^^1^ had again brought his design into some i5&^. order ;' but to furnish the necessary expenses there- of, he was obUged to sell what estate he had, though he had great assistance from his friends, and several gentlemen of rank and fortune agreed to go with him in person. With this view a small squadron was fitted out, consisting of five ships and vessels of different burthens, among which was one called the Raleigh, of 200 tons, fitted out by his brother Wal- ter Raleigh, though, it seems, he did not attend him in this second expedition. In all these vessels were shipped about two hundred and sixty men, among whom were shipwrights, masons, carpenters, smiths, miners, and refiners. To complete the equipment of this colony, some singular circumstances were thought necessary, and may be here mentioned in the words of the original account of the voyage, as it is in Hackluyt; " Besides, for solace of our peo- ple, and allurement of the savages, we were provi- ded of musike in good varietie ; not omitting the least toyes, as moiris dancers, hobb}'-horse, and May-like conceits, to delight the savage people, whom \VG intended to winne by all faire means pos- sible. And to that end we were indifferently fur- nished of all pettie haberdasherie wares to barter with those simple people."* The resolution of the proprietors was, that the fleet should begin its course northerly, and follow as directly as they could the trade- way to Newfoundland, from whence, after hav- ing refreshed and supplied themselves with all ne- !» Holmes's Annals, Vd. 1. p. 1 13, quotes Hackluyt, iii, 149. 56 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, cessaries, their intent was to proceed into the ^uthj >^^r-^^^^ and not to pass by any river or bay^<^ which in all 1583. that large tract of land should appear aa orth their looking into. They likewise prescribed the orders to be oliserved in the voyage, and the course to be steered, which were delivered to the captains and masters of every ship in writing. On the 11th of June, 1583, the fleet sailed from Plymouth; but, on the thirteenth, their large ship, the Raleigh, un- der pretence that her captain and a great number of her men were suddenly taken ill of a contagious dis- ease, left the fleet and returned to Plymouth ; some say, in great distress, but others that it was done with a design to ruin the expedition. Of this cir- cumstance. Sir Humphrey, when he arrived in New- foundland, UTOte to one of his friends in England, with great resentment and asperity.* On the 30th of July they had sight of land in about 51° of north latitude. From thence they followed the coast to the south, till they came to the island Bacalaos. Contin- uing the same course southward, they came the same day, being the 3d of August, to the harbour of St. John. He found there several vessels, of different na- tions, to the amount of thirty-six sail,lyingin the har- bour and fishing therein. They seemed at first dispo- sed to refuse him an entrance into the harbour. But Sir Humphrey, after preparing to make good his pas- sage b}' force of lU'ms, first sent in his boat to inform the masters of those vessels, that he had a commis- sion from the queen to take possession of these lands for the crown of England. They were satis- fied, and submitted to the levying a tax of provi- * See note (E) at the end of this volume. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 57 * sions Irom cacli ship, for supplying the wants of Sir sect. Humphrey's small squadron. \^r-^rKj On the fourth of August, Sir Humphrey, whom losj. they called the general, and his company, was con- J^^^^l, ducted on shore by the masters of the Ensrlish fishing; «'"" ^^' J K3 Kj New- vessels, and their owners or merchants, who were found- with them. On the fifth, the general having caused a tent to be set up in view of all the ships in the har- bour, to the number of between 30 and 40 sail, and being accompanied by all his captains, masters, gen- tlemen, and soldiers, summoned all the merchants and miasters, both English and foreigners, to be present at his taking a formal and solemn possession of those territories. Being assembled, he caused his commis- sion, under the great seal of England, to be openly read before them, and to be interpreted to those who W'Cre strangers to the English tongue. By virtue of this commission, he declared that he took posses- sion of the harbour of St. John, and two hundred leagues every way; invested her majesty with the title and dignity thereof, and having had (according to custom) a rod and turf of soil delivered to him, entered and took possession also for himself, his heirs, and assigns forever. He signified to those who were present, and through them to all men, that from thenceforward they should look upon those territories as appertaining to the queen of En- gland, and himself, authorized, under her majesty, to possess and enjoy them, with power to ordain laws for the government thereof, agreeable (as near as conveniently could be) to the laws of England, under which all people coming thither for the fu- ture, cither to inhal)it or by way of traffic, should H 58 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, submit and be eoverned. He then published three IT ■.^^^-..^-^^ hwvs for the government of the territoiy. By the 1524. first, public worship was established according to the church of England; by the second, the attempt- ing of anything prejudicial to her majest}''s title, was declared treason, according to the laws of England; by the third, the uttering of woi^ds to the dishonour of her majesty, was to be punished with the loss of ears and the confiscation of property. To all this, the multitude then present, as well strangers as En- glishmen, assented, it is said, by a general voice. The assembly was then dismissed, and not far from the same place a pillar of wood was erected, to which was infixed a plate of lead, with the arms of lL,ngland engraven thereon. For the further esta- blishment of this possession so taken, the general granted " in fee fai^me" several parcels of land lying by the water side, both in the harbour of St. John, and elsewhere, with a reservation of a certain rent and service unto Sir Humphrey Gilbert, his heirs^ or assigns for ever. Some writers have attributed all this solemnity to a high degree of vanity in the ^vest country knight; and have ridiculed his pretences to improve the trade of the kingdom, and enlarge the queen's dominions by cutting a turf; in -which, however, they injure this gentleman's memory extremely ; for, the plain reason of Sir Humphrey's conduct throughout this affair, Avas his anxiety to give some effect to his grant, \vhich was perpetual to him, and his heirs, in case he took possession of any countries within six years, as before mentioned, and otherwise it was void. There were now but a few months of this period to come. He had sold his estate in England, and it HISTORY OF MAR\XAND. 59 concerned him \'ery nearly to secure an estate some- sect., where else ; and tlierefore this parade was not from ^^,r-^r->^ any principle of vanity, but from justifiable pru- ^^^•''■ dence and good economy, especially under the full expectation, as we may suppose him to have then been, of settling a colony in that part of the country. The important public consequences, also, which are said by later writers to have flowed from his con- duct herein, will effectually do a\vay all ridicule at- tending it. This formal possession now taken, in consequence of the prior discovery by Cabot, has been considered by the English as the foundation of the right and title of the crown of England to the territory of Newfoundland, and to the fishery oti its banks. It is perhaps unnecessary to add, that their powerful navy has enabled them to support this right, however flimsy and exceptionable it may appear. Sir Humphrey remained at St. John's some time, is logt q^ to collect a tax of provisions, granted to him by Jo^En^^"'"' every ship which fiished upon the coast adjoining, to *''"'^- repair his ships, and in the mean time to explore the island. They found no inhabitants in the south- ern part of the island, the natives having probably abandoned it on its being so much frequented by Europeans; but in the northern there were some savages who appeared to be harmless and inoffensive in their tempers and dispositions. He now resolved to proceed in his discoveries southward ; and accord- ingly sailed, on the 20th of August, from the hai'- bour of St. John's. Pursuing this route for some days, they found themselves on the 29th of the month in the midst of dangerous shoals, in latitude 44°, somewhere about Nova Scotia or Cape Breton. Here they lost one of theh' best ships, in which pe 60 IXTRODUCTIOX, 5cc. Si'ic.T. rishcd near a hundred persons. Of this number K^r-^-^^ was Stephen Parmenius Budeius, a learned Hunga- 15J6. rian, \a ho had accompanied the adventurers to record their discoveries and exploits. After this loss, the men being generally discouraged and in want of necessaries, Sir Humphrey proposed returning to England, having, in his judgment, made discove- ries sufficient to procure assistance enough for a new voyage, in the succeeding spring. His people, when he made this proposal, were at first reluctant in their assent to it; but upon hearing his reasons, they submitted; and, according to his advice, on . the last of August, they altered their course and steered for England. When they left St. John's, Sir Humphrey had embarked himself on board of the smallest vessel he had with him, which was only of ten tons burthen, thinking her the fittest for ob- serving and discovering the coast. In a few days after they had taken their departure from Cape Race, the most eastern promontory of Newfoundland, they met Avith violent storms, attended with heavy seas, which so small a ^x'ssel was unable to sustain. About midnight, on the 9th of September, the men in the larger ship, having watched the lights in the small vessel in which Sir Humphrey was, observed them to be suddenly extinguished. It was suppo- sed, that she sunk that instant, for she was never afterwards heard of. Thus perished a man, whose spirit of adventure certainly contributed much, at least by example, to the early population of British America, and whose genius and talents entitled him to better fortune.* • Harris's Voyages, Vol, 2, p. 199, 200, Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 113. SECTION III. Sir Walter Raleigh — his rise and character — obtains a renewal of Sir Humphrey's letters patent to himself — Voyage of capts. Amidas and Barlow. — The effects of their voyage in England — Sir Richard Grenville's attempt to settle a colony in North Carolina. THE laudable schemes of Sir Humphrey Gil- sect. bert, happily for mankind, did not expire with him. v^^-^-n^ His half and younger brother, Sir Walter Raleigh, i584. as he appeared to inherit his useful qualities, seemed ^^![. ^^^}' also to become heir to his pursuits. He was at this 'eigh, his period of time in high favour with the queen. Some character. writers seem to insinuate, that most of Queen Eli- zabeth's favourites were remarkable for their per- sonal attractions. All historians who speak of Sir Walter appear to agree that he was conspicuous in his time, not only for the symmetry of his form and the manliness of his deportment, but for his insinua- ting address with the ladies. Although most au- thors place the era of his rise at court about this time, }-et they do not agree so exactly in assigning the cause of it. The military eclat which he had, a a year or two before, acquired in Ireland, where he commanded a company under Lord Grey, against the Spaniards and Irish rebels, was, according to some, the cause of his being known at court. Others would have the earl of Leicester to Ivave been the chief agent in his rise, who, being in the decline of life himself, thought that he might still continue to govern the queen, through the interme- 62 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, diate agency of Sir Walter's youthful form and s^-sr^^ pleasing manners. Others again, attribute his in- 1584. troduction at court to the influence of RatclifFe, earl of Sussex, in order to supersede his great enemy, the earl of Leicester, himself. But his biographer, in a small tract of his life, prefixed to his History of the World,* thinks it proper to lay some stress on a ridiculous incident, which as he supposes, might have been one cause of his aggrandizement. For the mention of this he apologizes, by remarking, that " little transactions are often the best inlets to truth and the mysteries of state ;" and thus relates k : "Our captain (Raleigh) coming over out of Ireland upon the aforementioned cause to court, in very good habit, (which it seems was the greatest part of his estate,) which is often found to be no mean introducer where deserts are not known, found the queen walking, till she was stopt by a plashy place, which she scrupled treading on ; presently he spread his new plush coat on the ground, on which the queen gently trod, being not a little pleased, as well as surprised, with so unexpected a compli- ment. Thus, as one remarks upon this story, an advantageous admission into the first notices of a prince, is more than half a degree to preferment.^ For he presently after found some gracious beams of favour reflecting on him, which he was resolved, and well knew how, to cherish and contract. To * This tract here cited, does not appear to be the one writ- ten by Oldys, but one prior to it, printed in 1 687. t Fuller's Worthies. HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 63 put the queen in remembrance, he wrote in a win- sect. dow obvious to her eye, ^.^^^s^ « Fain would I climb, yet fear I to fall ; 1^84. which her majesty either espying or being shown, under- wrote this answer, " If thy heart fail thee, climb not at all." Whichever of the foregoing causes be adopted, and it is probable that they all might have combined in his promotion, it is very certain, that he stood HIGH AT THIS TIME IN THE FAVOUR OF THE (^UEEN.* Sir Walter, thus placed in a familiar intercourse He ob- with royal authority, would naturally be led to avail newai of himself of his situation, in carrying into effect the pbr^^J"" honourable schemes of his brother Sir Humphrey i^^^rs pa> Gilbert ; especially when those schemes were not himself, only congenial to a young and ambitious mind, but were also the means of recommendation to the pa- troness of his fortunes. t Having maturely digested * See note (F) at the end of the volume. t It would seem, that at this time, considerable foreign trade was carried on in the west of England, particularly in Devonshire, by some merchants and others, resident in that part of the country. Indeed, as will be seen hereafter, in the course of this work, the settlements of Virginia and New England, were principally owing to them. Among these p\iblic-spirited persons, the Gilbert and Raleigh family of that county seems conspicuous. It was in the year 1584, (new style), February 6th, a little more than a month prior to the grant to Sir Walter, that letters patent were granted to Mr. Adrian Gilbert, " of Sandridge, in the county of Devon, gentleman ;" (whom we may suppose to have been a full brother to Sir Humphrey, and half brother to Sir Walter Ra- leigh,) and others, for the search and discovery of a passage 64 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, a plan for the discovery and settlement of diose s.,,^-^^^^^ parts of North America, lying north of the Gulf of 1584. Mexico, and which were as yet unknown and un- settled by the Spaniards, he laid it before the queen and council ; to whom it appeared a rational and practicable undertaking. He, therefore, easily ob- tained a renewal of letters patent to himself, in as ample form, and containing nearly the same clauses and provisions as in that to his brother Sir Hum- phrey Gilbert.* As the monarchs of England, not to China and the Molucca Isles, " by the northwarde, north- eastwarde, or northwarde," creating them a corporation by the name of " The colleagues of the fellowship, for the discoverrc of the north-west passage." (See the letters patent at large ,, in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 28.) But this grant was in some measure superseded by a like project set on foot about the same time in London, under the patronage of Mr. WiUiam Sanderson, an eminent merchant of that city. The two associations uniting, captain John Davis was sent out for that purpose, in the year 1585, to the northern coasts of Ame- rica ; who made considerable discoveries in that part of the American continent since called Davis's Straits. (See Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 203.) The reader's attention may be in- terrupted for a moment, in noticing a remarkable clause in these letters patent, to Adrian Gilbert : mutiny on board the ships, while on their voyage, was to be punished, '* as the cause shall be found, in justice to require, by the verdict of twelve of the companie, sworne thereunto ;" that is, by a jury selected from the ships company. » They bear date the 25th of March, 26th of Eliz. (1584, new style,) and are nearly verbatim the same as the before- mentioned patent to Sir Humphrey Gilbert. One small va- riance between them may be noted : in the clause granting power to Sir Walter, to capture all such vessels as shall be found trafficking within the limits of his grant, without his license, exception is made of " the subjects of our realms and HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 65 only of the Tudor line, but afterwards of the Stuarts,^ sect. were unwilling to be dependant on their parliaments v^Jl^J^Lj for their revenues ; they- were, therefore, generally i584. too poor and needy, to assist with money in the pro- motion of such laudable enterprises, as the one no\V contemplated by Raleigh. With their' pntentsfor exclusive trade, especially with those which pro- mised any emolument to the crown, they were ex- tremely liberal. Hence, mompolies Were among the most grievous burthens, and the most frequent sub- ject of complamt, even during the popular reign of Elizabeth. Sh* Walter was, iherefore, obliged to have recourse to the assistance of private indivi- duals, to enable him to pursue his schemes. Be- fore he had obtained his patent, he had formed an association of his friends*, and had prevailed on se- veral merchants and gentlemen, to advance large sunis of money towards carrying on his designs. f Accordingly, within a month after the date of his' patent, he was enabled to fit out two ships, under- the command of captains Philip Amidas and Arthur dominions, and all other persons in amitie with us, trading to the JVewfoundlands for fishing, as heretofore they have com- monly used." This exception is not in the patent to Sir Humphrey Gilbert. See them at large in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 33. * Among these were Sir Richard Grenville, his kinsman, and Sir W. Sanderson, who had married his niece. Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 45. The latter gentleman was, probably, the same as the one before mentioned, who was con- cerned with Adrian Gilbert, in the discovery of a north-west passage. t Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. I, p. 210, Mod. Univ. Hist, Vol. 39, p. 235. I 66 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. Barlow, to visit the countries which he intended to 111. \^,'^,r>u settle, and to acquire some previous knowledge of 1584. their coasts, their soil, and productions. captains They Sailed for the west of England on the 27th and Bar- of April followiug ; and to avoid the error of Sir low. Humphrey Gilbert, in holding too far north, they shaped their course for the Canaries, which they passed on the tenth of June,* and proceeding from thence to the West Indies, they crossed the Gulf of Mexico, and on the second of July, fell in with the coast of Florida. They sailed along this coast, till they came, on the 13th of the month, to a river, where they anchored; and going on shore, took possession in right of the queen, and for the use of tiie proprietors. They went to the tops of the hills which were nearest to the shore, from whence, though they were not high, they discovered the sea on all sides, and found the place where they landed, to be an island of about fifteen miles in length and six in breadtl>; then called by the natives, Woko- ken.f • Another reason for this course is said to be thus expres* sed in the account of this voyage, written by Barlow : " Be- cause we doubted that the current of the Bay of Mexico, be- tween the Capes of Florida and Havannah, was much stronger than we afterwards found it to be." Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 46. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 236. t The disagreement and confusion among all the writers on this voyage, as to the topography of the places referred to, render it almost impossible to ascertain with precision where this island was situated, or what river it was which they first entered. A passage cited (by Burk in his history of Virgi- nia, Vol. 1, p. 46,) from Barlow's letter to Sir Walter Ra- leigh, preserved by Hackliiyt,is supposed to throw some light HISTORY OF MARYLAND. Qf On the third day after their arrival and landing, sect. Ill they saw three of the natives in a canoe, one of v.^%<->^ whom went on shore and waited, without any signs 1584. of apprehension, the approach of a boat from the ships, which was sent to him. He spoke long and earnestly to them, m his own language, and then went with them on board, without any apparent fear. They gave him a shirt and hat, and some wine and meat, with all which he seamed pleased. After he had, with a seeming satisfaction, narrowly viewed the ships, and examined every part with his eyes and touch, he went in his canoe, to about a quarter of a mile's distance, where he fished, and returned in a short time, with his canoe loaded with fish ; which he divided equally in two heaps, and making signs that each vessel should take one, he departed. The next day several canoes appeared in view ; in one of which came the king's brother, whose name was Granganemeo, attended with about forty men. The king himself, whose name was Win- upon the subject ; wherein he says, that he, (Barlow) " with seven others, went in a boat, twenty miles into the river Oc- cam, and the evening following, came to an island called Roanoke, distant from the harbour by which we entered, seve7i leagues." Stith (in his Hist, of Virginia,) seems to think that this island called Wokoken, must have been that now called Ocracocke. Beverly, (in his Hist, of Virginia,) says, " they anchored at an inlet by Roanoke." What is said also in the accounts of the subsequent voyages of Sir Richard Grenville to Roanoke, and the reliefof the colony by Sir Francis Drake, seems to confirm the opinion, that Wokoken and Ocracocke were one and the same island ; and the river where they an- chored, Roanoke inlet. 68 INTRODUCTION TO A Sect, eina,* lay ill of the wounds he had received in bat- III. . . ^.yy^ tie, with a neighbouring nation. The behaviour of 1584. Granganemeo, when he approached the ships, is best described in-the very words of the original account of the voyage, as preserved in Hackluyt. " The maner of his comming was in this sort ; hee left his boates altogether as the first man did (the day before) a little from the shippes by the shore, and came along to the place over against the shippes, followed with fortie men. When Jie came to the place, his ser- vants spread along matte upon the ground, on which -he satte downe ; and at the other end of the matte, foure others of his companie did the like, the rest of his men stood round about him, somewhat a farre off: when we canie to the shwe to him, with our weapons,- hee never moved from his place, nor any of the other foure, nor never mistrusted any harme to be offered from us ; but sitting still, he beckoned us to come and sit by him, which we performed : ,and being set, hee made all signs of joy and wel- come*' 'f Our navigators made to him and his four chiefs, presents of several toys, which he kindly accepted ; but he took all himself, and gave them to understand, that none there had a right to any thing but himself. Tvv:o days afterwards they let him see their merchandise ; of which nothing seem- ed to please -him more than a pewter dish, for which he gave twenty deer-skins ; and making a hole in the rim of it, hung it over his neck for a * The country was called by tl>e natives, Wingadocia, in respect possibly tp th.e.i'^ig,ning_fi.hief, Wingina. t See Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 117. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 6» breast-plate, making signs that it would defend him sect. against the enemy's arrows. The next thing he v,.,,^^^-^ bought was a copper kettle, for which he gave fifty 1584. skins. As long as he thought fit to traffic with ithem, none but such as like him, wore plates of gold or copper on their heads, were allowed either to buy or sell; but as soon as they had done, every man had his liberty. They offered very good ex- change for hatchets, axes, and knives ; and would have given any thing in truck for swords, but the English would not part with any. Granganemeo came afterwards frequently on board, and would eat, drink, and be merry with them ; and once he brought his wife and children with him, who after- wards came frequently with her followers only. The English often trusted him with goods upon his word, to bring the value at a certain time, which he never failed in doing. He had a strong inclination to have a suit of armour and a sword, which he saw in one of the ships ; and would have left a large box of pearls in pawn for them ; but they refused it, that he might not know they set a value upon them, till they could discover whence he got them. He sup- plied them every day with venison, fish, and fruits ; and invited them to his habitation on Roanoke is- land. After this friendly intercourse, captain Bar- low, with seven of his men, went in a boat twenty miles into the river Occam, (supposed to be the same as Pampticoe sound,) and the evening follow- ing came to the isle of Roanoke, at the mouth of Albemarle sound, where they found a village, the residence of Granganemeo, situated in the northern extremity of the island, and consisting of nine 70 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, houses, built of cedar, and fortified with sharp pali- ^^^.^^^ sades. When the English arrived there in their 1584. boat, Granganemeo was absent ; but his wife re- ceived them with generous hospitality. Their boat she ordered to be drawn on shore, that she might not be injured by the surge ; the oars, for better se- curity, were taken to her house ; while the English, by her orders, were conveyed from their boat on the backs of the natives. She took off then* stockings, and washed their feet in warm water. When dinner was ready, she led them into an inner room, where they were feasted with venison, fish, fruit, and ho- mini.* Whilst they were eating, some of her peo- ple came in with their bows and arrows. The English, suspecting treachery, flew to their arms ; but the wife of Granganemeo, perceiving their sus- picions, ordered the bows to be taken from her people, their arrows to be broken, and themselves * I find this dish, so well known both in Maryland and Vir- ginia as a great delicacy, though borrowed from the aborigines of the country, spelt as above by the latest historian of Vir- ginia, Burk, (Vol. 1, p. 47,) who cites Stith on this occasion. I have never understood, that the word was of Indian origin. It is, more probably, a corruption of the French word omelet, and now spelt " homini," according to the sound as pro- nounced by us. An omelet with the French, a nation celebra- ted for their knowledge in the science of cookery, means a kind of pancake or fricassee of eggs, with other ingredients. It is derived, according to the learned Mr. de la Mothe de Vayer, from the two words auf, eg^^ and meler, mingled. But the forms of omelets among them are various. There are omelets of green pease. So with us, a dish oi fried ho- ming may be called an omelet of maize. HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 71 to be beaten out of the house. In the evening,* the sect. English thought it prudent to return to their boat, ^_^^^:^^ and having put off at a small distance from the shore, i584. lay at anchor. This generous woman seemed hurt by this precaution; but had a supper dressed for them and delivered at the boat's side, with the pots in which it was cooked. Perceiving their continued distrust, she ordered several men and thirty women to sit on the bank, as a guard to them through the night, and sent several mats to screen them from the weather. This island is said to have been the limit of their discovery during this voyage, nor were they fortu- nate enough to procure any information, except a confused account from the Indians of the wreck of some ship on the coast, between twenty and thirty years before. f Having loaded their ships with furs, sassafras, and cedar, and procured a small quantity of pearl, which was supposed to be an evident sign of the great riches of the country,^ they returned to Eng- • There seems to be some difficulty in reconciling the time:, of Barlow's arrival at Roanoke island, in the evening, accord- ing to his own account, as before cited, and the time here above mentioned, of their retiring to their boat If they arrived in the evening' at the island, there certainly was not time sufficient for all the circumstances above mentioned to have been acted before they retired to their coat. I have, however, related it as I find it in several respectable histo- rians. See Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol, 1 . p. 50. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 118. t Burk's Hist of Virginia, idid. i It is said, they also brought home with them some tobac- co, the first that was seen in England. Oldmiscon's British Em- 72 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. land about the middle of September, carrying with \^^->r>,^ them two of the natives, whose names were Manteo 1584. and Wanchese, who voluntarily accompanied them.* Theef- The adventurers in this voyage, on their return, their voy- Spread abroad marvellous accounts of their disco- gfand. "* veries. To those who are now well acquainted with that part of the continent which Amidas and Barlow visited, the description which they gave of it on their return can be considered only as a scarcely plausible fiction, principally intended to induce future adven- turers. Their accounts, however, of the beauty of the country, the fertility of the soil, the mildness of the climate, and the innocence of the natives, were pictured and represented to the queen so much in the style of the scenerj^ of a romance, that her ma- jesty was graciously pleased, it is said, to promise what assistance it should be necessary for the crowii to give towards promoting a settlement there. Sir Walter Raleigh, with the gallantry of a courtier, in compliment to his mistress — a virgin queen, thought it proper to bestow on this new discovered paradise the name of Virginia. Others, though with less probability, attribute that denomination to the queen herself, because she fancied, that it exhibited man- pire in America, Vol. 1, p. 211. Although the introduction of tobacco into England is generally referred to the time of governour Lane and his colonists, as hereafter mentioned, yet it is not probable that capts. Amidas and Barlow would have omitted, not only to notice a custom then in common use with the Indians, but also to bring with them a sample of such a remarkable vegetable. It would seem, however, that tobacco was first brought into England by Sir John Hawkins in 1565. See Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 124. • * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 201. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 73 kind in their primitive innocence, and the creation in sect. its first virghi purity and plenty.* s-<^->^-s»/ Encouraged by the reports of his navigators, wSir 1585. Walter hastened his preparations for taking posses- ^jlj"; ^^ren- sion of this inviting propcrt}-. It was his first intention "^^^^^^ ^^^ to have commanded in this expedition himself, and to settle a co. lony 111 N. have carried with him a sufficient number of forces Carolina, to have completed his design of making a settle- ment there ; but being at that time jealous, that his absence might be prejudicial to his interest at court, he committed the care of this second enterprise to Sir Richard Grenville, his relation,t who was inter- ested with him in his patent, before mentioned, ob- tained from Elizabeth 4 Sir Richard, with seven small ships, laden with provision, arms, ammuni- tion, and spare men, to settle a colony, with the • Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 211. Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 202. t It has been supposed, that Sir Walter Raleigh himself went to Virginia with this colony ; but this mistake, it appears, has arisen from a mistranslation of a passage in Heriot's nar- rative, published in Hackluyt's Voyages. !t is thus expressed in the original English : " The actions of those who have been by Sir Walter Raleigh therein employed ;" which is thus ren- dered in the Latin translation : " qui generosum D. Walte- rum Raleigh in eam regionem comitati sunt" See Burk's Hist, of Virg. Vol. 1, p. 55. \ Oldmixon, in his British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 212, speaks of this expedition as carried on by a company^ and that it was the first of that kind established in Europe. But it seems, that they were not a regular corporate body, until the reign of king James, who incorporated them by the name of " The governor and company of the West Indies." They were afterwards dissolved by Charles I, it is said, for their mal-administration. Harris's Voyages, Vol 2, p. 202. K 74 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, two Indians before mentioned, Wanchese and Man- ,^^^,.,^^^^ teo, to assist him in his negociations with their 1585. countrymen, sailed on the 9th of April, 1585, from Plymouth.* But, induced by a desire of sharing in the plunder of a predatory war, then carried on by the English against the Spaniards, in capturing their vessels bound home with the treasures of their Mexican mines, as well as from unacquaintance with a more direct and shorter course to North America, he took the southern route by the West India islands. He spent some time in cruising among these, and in taking prizes; so that it was .towards the close of June, before he arrived on the coast of North America. It is said, that in going into the harbour of Wokoken, he lost the ship which he himself commanded.! He touched at both the islands where Amidas and Barlow had landed. Mantco, the faithful Indian whom they had carried to England, and was now brought back with Sir Richard, became of essential service. His knowledge of the language made him useful as an interpreter, while his attachment to the persons of the English smoothed the difficulties to a free and friendly intercourse with his countrymen. Under * It is said, that Sir Richard was accompanied in this voy- age by the celebrated circumnavigator Sir Thomas Cavendish, who, being then a young man of family and fortune, fitted out a ship of 1 20 tons burthen, called the Tyger, at his own expense, in which he attended Sir Richard, without any pro- fit. Harris's Voyages, Vol. 1, p. 23. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 2, p. 411. t Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 59, p. 236. In Burk's Hist, of Virg. Vol. 1, p. 53, it is said, that " he narrowly escaped ship- wreck on Cape Fear." UISTORY OF MARYLAND. 7-5 his guidance they made several excursions, and vi- sect. sited several villages on the islands and the main. In ,^,^ one of these excursions, Sir Richard went, attended isss. by a number of his officers, to an Indian town on the continent, called by some Scroton, by others Aquaseogok,* where he was hospitably received by the inhabitants; but some of them having pilfered a silver cup from the English, of which no restitu- tion was made, Sir Richai-d gave loose to an impru- dent revenge, plundered one of the Indian towns, and destroyed their corn-fields, and was forced to avoid the rage of the natives by immediate embar- kation. At this juncture of time, no conduct in him could have been more impolitic, and might well forebode the disastrous conclusion of this first attempt at colonisation. After this outrage, Sir Richard sailed to Hatteras, where he was visited by Granganemeo, the prince who had been so friendly to Amidas and Barlow, the preceding year, and who was, on this occasion, accompanied by Man- teo. Of what passed between Granganemeo and Grenville at this interview, the journal of the voy- age, it is said, gives no account ; but it is suppo- sed, that the setdement of the English in the coun- try, at least of the island of Roanoke, was then agreed on between them, to their mutual satisfac- tion.! Sir Richard then sailed for that island, and having fixed upon it for the site of his settlement, he remained there for the space of six weeks, pro- bably to see the colony somewhat arranged and set- * Bulk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 54. t Oldy's Life of Raleigh, cited in Holmes's Annals, Vol 1, p. 119, note 3. t$ INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, tied before his departure. The colony consisted of ^.^,^->,,.>^^ one hundred and eight men;* Mr. Ralph Lane, 1535. being their governour, and captain Philip Amidas, titular admiral of the country. Thomas Heriot, a celebrated mathematician, and John Wythe, an in- genious painter, Avere also of the number of these colonists, t Having disposed all things for . his de- parture, Sir Richard set sail for England on the 25th of August. He shaped his course, it seems, so as to keep in view the American continent which lies between Currituck inlet and the Chesapeake ; but nothing is mentioned of any discoveries thereby made by him. He arrived at Plymouth on the 18th of September follo\A'ing, with a rich Spanish • In Robertson's Hist, of America, b. 9, it is said, that there were one hundred and eighty men ; but that is evidently a mistake eitiier in himself or the press, by transposing the figures 108 to 180, or by adding the letter y to the word eight. The list, published in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 38, contains 107 persons, which with governour Lane, would complete the number 108, mentioned by Oldmixon, Harris, and the Mod. Univ. Hist. t Mr. Heriot wrote a topographical description of this part of Virginia (now called North Carolina,) and its natural his- tory, which is preserved in Hackluyt's Voyages. It was translated into Latin by Theodore de Bry, and published in his collection of voyages. It is said, that the famous French philosopher, Descartes, borrowed much of his light from this excellent mathematician ; and that the learned Dr. Wallis gave his preference to Heriot's improvements before those of Descartes, although the latter had the advantage of being suc- cessor to the former. Mr. Wythe also made several draw- ings of the figures and dress of the natives, of which copper- plates were afterwards taken and published by de Bry in 1590, with Latin explanations of them. Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 55. HI3T0RY OF MARYLAND. 17 prize, which he had taken on the passage. His sect. proceedings appear to have been highly satisfactory ^^^^^^ to his employers, or ^vhat was then called, The ne^v 1535. Virginia Company. Soon after the departure of the ships, govcrnour Lane began to make preparation for obtaining a more extensive knowledge of the country. With this view, he proceeded in his boats along the coast to the southward, to an Indian town called Secoton, by their reckoning, distant from Roanoke eighty miles, and lying between the rivers Neus and Pamp- ticoe. To the north they advanced one hundred and thirty miles, to the Chesapeakes, a nation of Indians seated on a small river, now called Elizabeth, which falls into the great bay of Chesapeake, below Nor- folk.* To the north-west, they went up x\lbemarle sound and Chowan river, one hundred and thirty miles, to a nation of Indians called the Chowanocks, inhabiting a little beyond the fork of that river, where one branch takes the name of Meherrin, and the other of Nottoway. The king of this nation, Me- natonon, is represented by the adventurers, to have been shrewd beyond the cunning of any of the In- dians they had seen. Having collected from tlie inquiries of the English, the principal subjects of their search, he anmsed govcrnour Lane and his company, with the story of a copper mine and a • In the Indian language, the word Chemfieake is said to signify, Mother of Waters. The obvious application of this name to the great bay so called, would seem to intimate, that this Indian nation must have taken their name from their si- tuation near the Chesapeake bay. See Burk's Hist, of Vir- ginia, Vol. 1, p. 56, who cites Stith. 78 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, pearl fishery, and with the marvellous description of \,,^-sr>^ ^^^ source of the Moratuck, now called Roanoke ; 3585. which he represented as springing out of a rock, so near the sea, that in high winds the surge beat over it. Added to this, there seems to have been at this time a general rumour among the Indians, perhaps designedly propagated by them, of a rich mine, that lay in the interior part of the country high up the Moratuck. Filled with these delusive hopes, the governour now prepared for an expedition up this river, under the full expectation of exploring these advantageous discoveries, and of taking immediate possession of this fancied source of u ealth. It is necessary to observe, that Whigina, the Indian king before mentioned, who appears to have been sove- reign of the country about the mouth of the Roa- noke river, had been always secretly inimical to the English, or to their settling in the country, and was restricted in the exercise of his animosity to them, only by the influence of the friendly Granganemeo his brother. This did not, however, prevent him from injuring them, whenever he could do it with secresy; and it may be inferred from circumstances, that he acted on this occasion, in concert with Me- natonon. Immediatel}^ before the English set out upon their expedition, the artful Wingina despatched messengers to the several nations of Indians, who inhabited the banks of the Moratuck, to apprize them of their intended excursion, and to spread amongst them suspicions of the evil views and in- tentions of the English. Lane pursued his course in boats, up the Moratuck ; but, strangely confi- ding in this treacherous prince, whp, the better to HISTORY OF MARYLAND. i?9 deceive him, had furnished him with sruides, he had sect. . . .... HI. neglected to take any provisions with him, imagm- v^-no^^ ing he should be supplied by the natives on each i585. bank. The consequence of which was, that he soon became reduced to extreme difficulties. After rowing four days against a strong current, he found the country wholly deserted, and laid waste by the inhabitants. Still, however, in hopes of better for- tune, he pursued his course under the auspices of his guides, until at length they had nothing to sub- sist on but the flesh of two large dogs, which they were compelled to eat. Their perseverance being now wearied out, they returned to Roanoke island much chagrined and disappointed.* In addition to the foregoing disappointment, they had, on their return, the disagreeable intelligence of the death of prince Granganemeo, which happened during their excursion. While this friendly Indian lived, his influence, supported by the authority of Ensenore, their father, had, as before observed, re- strained the animosity of Wingina. It is not diffi- cult to account for this authority of Granganemeo, if we believe that their manner of descent was simi- lar to that of the other tribes of North American Indians. The brother of the reigning chief was heir apparent, and succeeded to the sovereignty in bar of the children of the chief. f This rule of de- scent might probably be founded on a very substan- tial reason, under a government purely military. It * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 239. Burk's Hist, of Vir- ginia, Vol. I, p. 57. t Burk (Hist, of Virginia, Vol. I, p. 58,) cites, in support of this, tlie instance of Powhatati, in Virginia, 80 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, would in such case be obviously necessary, that the III reigning chief should be capable of discharging the J 585. military duties of his station ; which an infant or minor, would be incapable of performing. This reason might also apply to an explanation of Win- gina's authority as a sovereign during tlie life of his father, Ensenore ; who, now grown old and infirm, and incapable of going into battle with his enemies, might ha\'e delegated, if not totally resigned his power into the hands of his eldest son, Wingina. Another circumstance, arising on the death of Gran- ganemeo, deserves to be noticed here ; it seems to have been a custom, generally prevalent w ith the In- dians of this part of America and Virginia, to change their name, when any extraordinary change took place either in their circumstances or feelings.* On this occasion Wingina assumed the name of Pemisapan, the etymology of which had probably some allusion either to tlie event or its consequences ; and by this name alone he is designated n^y some historians. During the absence of the governour, it had beea reported that he and his party were lost ; and the little influence, which Ensenore, (who upon all oc- casions, seems to have partaken in the friendly sentiments of his son Granganemeo, towards the English,) had, with his eldest son Wingina, now called Pemisapan, seem.s to have been, upon this report, nearly extinguished. Accordingly, Pemisa- pan was still CA er secretly contriving mischief against • Burk (Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 58,) cites here similar instances among the successors of Powhatan, from Stith's Hist, of Virginia, p. 155. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. gl them. He had projected a scheme of starving the sect. EngHsh out of the island Roanoke, by neglecting v^^.-.^^,^^ to plant or cultivate it. This scheme, however, i.i«5. seems to have been in some measure defeated, by a combination of fortunate circumstances, which took ])lace in the spring of the following year. The chiefs of several other nations, had manifested an amicable disposition towards govcrnour Lane and his settlers. The king of the Chowanocks, though from his former conduct, he must still hiivt been a secret enemy, sent a present of pearl to Mr. Lane ; and Okisko, king of the Weopopomewks, (another powerful nation, possessing all that country frotn. Albemarle sound and Chowan river, to Chesapeake bay), in March, 1586, came himself, with twenty- 1586. four of his principal men, to own subjection to the queen of England. The aged and cautious Ense- nore, induced thereto, perhaps, more zealously by the pacific conduct of these other chiefs, exerted on this occasion, the little influence he had with his son, and prevailed upon him to relinquish his schemes, and to plant in corn, a considerable extent of ground, both on the island and main land. This apparent prosperity of the adventurers, ad- ded to the influence of Ensenore, preserved peace for a short time with this savage. But on the death of Ensenore, which happened on the twentieth of April, this year, all check on his natural disposition being now removed, he meditated a plan for the utter extirpation of the colonists. Under pretence of solemnizing; his father's funeral, he issued secret orders to tlie Indians, to rendezvous at a certain place, widi intent to full on the English witli the 82 INTRODUCTION TO A SKCT. whole force of the nation. The plot, however, s^'^^r^'s^ previous to the time fixed for its execution, was 1586. discovered to the Enghsh, by tlieir prisoner Skiko, the son of Menatonon. An attempt was made to retahate on the Indians, by seizing their canoes, and thus keeping them in a state of seige on the island ; but they took the alarm, and after a loss of six men escaped into the woods. After various stratagems on both sides, Pemisapan was, at last, on the first of June, drawn into an ambush, with eight of his chiefs, and slain.* The colonists now began to be in so much dis- tress, from want of food, that they were under the necessity of dispersing themselves into different parts of the country, in quest of the means of sub- sistence. It was, in consequence of this, that cap- tain Stafford, who had, with a small party, been stationed on the southern part of Cape Look-out, to shift for themselves, and to " see if they could spy any sail pass by the coast," sent, on the ninth of June, intelligence to Mr. Lane, that he discovered twenty sail of ships. f Queen Elizabeth, being now at war with Spain, >vas advised to attack her settlements in America, and to surprise the Spanish galeons. In prosecu- tion of this scheme, a fleet of twenty sail had been fitted out and placed under the command of Sir Francis Drake. This distinguished naval com- * Bnrk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 57, 60. Holmes's Annals, Vol. !,p. 122. t Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. .39, p. 237. Robevlson's Hist, of Americ'a, (1). 9,) Vol. 4, p. 166. Burk's Hist, of Virginia, ^'ol. ], p. 60. HISTORY OF MARYX.AND. 85 mander, after maiiy important successes against the srct III. Spaniards, in the West Indies and South America, and attacking and reducing Fort St. John's, near St. i586 Augustine's, in Florida, had, according to the spe- cial orders of queen Elizabeth, sailed to visit this English colony, and to yield it all possible assist- ance.* Arriving oft" Cape Look-out, and disco- vering a distant fire, the admiral sent his skiff" ashore with some of his men, who found captain Stafford and his party there, and took them on board their ships. By their direction, the fleet proceeded the next day, to the place which the English colonists made their port ; but some of the ships, being of too great draught to enter, anchored about two miles from the shore, " without the harbour in a wilde roade at sea."t From this place Drake, who had been told that the colony was in distress for want of provi- sions, sent a letter by captain Stafford to governour Lane, then at his fort on Roanoke island, about six leagues distant, making him an offer of supplies. The next day, Mr. Lane and some of his company going on board the fleet, Drake made them two proposals ; either to leave them a ship, a pinnace, and several boats, with sufficient masters and mari- ners, furnished with a month's provisions, to stay and make further discovery of the country and coasts, and so much additional provision, as would be sufficient to carry them all to England ; or, to give them a passage home in his fleet. The first * Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 214. t According to the above description of the place where Drake arrived and anchored, it is most probable, that it was what is now called Roanoke inlet. 84 INTRODUCTION- TO A s^xT. proposal was gratefully accepted.* A ship was uc- ^,..^,„,^ cordingly selected by Drake, and delivered to the I5ti6. colonists ; but before the provisions were entirely received on board, there arose a great storm, that con- tinued three days, and endangered the whole fleet. Many cables ^vere broken, and many anchors lost, and some of the ships, of which number was that destined for the use of the colonists, were compelled to put to sea. Drake now generously rnakhig the colony an offer of another ship with provisions, or a passage home, governour Lane, and the principal persons with him, having considered what was ex- pedient, requested the admiral, under their hands, that they might have a passage to England. The rest of their company was now sent for : the whole colony was taken on board ;t and the fleet, leaving * An observation of Holmes, in his Annals, (Vol. l,p. 123,) seems to explain this : " The hope, he says, of finding a rich mine in the interior part of the country, which they had alrea- dy made an attempt to discover, seems to have greatly influ- enced their wishes to continue longer in Virginia." In sup- port of this, he cites Hackluyt, iii. 255, 263 ; adding, «' The mine is said to be 'notorious' among the Indians, and to lie up the river Moratuck. The narrator in Hackluyt calls it « a marvellous and most strange mineral ;" and the narrator lidds, " there wanted no great good will, from the most to the least amongst us, to have perfitted this discoverie of the mine: for that the discovery of a good mine, by the goodness of God, or a passage to the South sea, or some way to it, and nothing due can bring this country in request to be inhabited by our na- tion." I would observe here, that this indicates very strongly the motives to colonisation, which existed generally among the first settlers of Virginia. t The narrator in Hackluyt (according to Holmes's An- nals, Vol. I, p. 122, note l,)says, that when Drake sent his HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 85 America on the eighteenth of June, arrived on the sect. twenty-eightli of July, at the English harbour of ^^^^.^ Portsmouth. Thus terminated the first English i586. colony planted in America. vessels to Roanoke, to bring away a few persons, who were left therewith the baggage, " the weather was so boisterous, and the pinnaces so often on ground, that the most of all we had, with our cards, books, and writings, were by the sailors, cast overboard." This accident may have deprived us of a more full and accurate account of the proceedings and disco- veries of this colony, during its year's residence in Virginia, than we otherwise have- SECTION IV. Attempts to relieve the first colony under governour Lane — A second colony at the same place under governour White — Sir Walter Ra- leigh assigns his patent — The whole of the second colony lost Gosnold's voyage to New England— Sir Walter Raleigh's endea- vours to find out the second colony at Roanoke — captain Pring's expedition — Captain Bartholomew Gilbert's voyage — Captain Wey- mouth's. SOME writers* think it proper to apologize sect. for Sir Walter Raleigh, on account of the misfortune ^^' of the first colony, by observing, that it was not at i586. all owing to any negligence in him ; for he continu- ally pressed the company or those concerned with to rdi^ve him in interest, to reflect on the necessity of sup- coion"in. portins; the colony in time ; and so solicitious was^^^''^°^^^"" . . , . nourLane. he m this business, that finding the fleet, which was preparing for that purpose under the command of Sir Richard Grcnville, went on but slowly, he pro- posed that the first ship, that was completely man- ned and equipped, should be sent without staying for the rest ; which was done ; but when she arrived at the island of Roanoke, which was within a few davs after Drake had departed, they found it deserted. The master of the vessel, not being able to get any information concerning them, returned to England. In a fortnight after this, Sir Richard Grenville arrived with his squadron of three small ships, but to his great disappointment found not a man upon the • Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. l.p. 214, Harris's. Voyages, Vol. 2. t>. 202. 6a INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, island. After searching in vain for the colony he had left the year before without being able to leara 1586. what had befallen it, he resolved to try the experi- ment of another settlement, and accordingly placed fifteen men, (some authors say fifty,) on the island. He left them furnished with all necessaries for two years, and gave them the strongest assurances, that they should be constantly and regularly supplied. But this handful of unfortunate men was soon after over-powered and destroyed by the Indians. 1587. Not discouraged by these abortive efibrts to plant ^oi^nTat ^ colony in America, Sir Walter Raleigh, with a the same perscvcrance natural to great minds in arduous un- place un- ^ ^ " dergov- dertakings, resolved to attempt at making another ernoiir wiiite. settlement. By an indenture of grant bearing date the 17th of January, 29th of Eliz. 1587 (new style) he granted unto John White," and twelve others, (dierein mentioned,) " free libertie to carrie with them into the late disco\'ered barbarous land, and countrie, called Assamacomock^ alias JFingandacoia^ alias Firginia, there to inhabit with them, such and so many of her Majestie's subjects, as shall willing- ly accompany them, and also divers and sundrie other prerogatives, jurisdictions, royalties and pre- heminencies." — By this indenture also, it would seem, he constituted a corporation by the name of the governour and assistants of the city of Raleigh in Virginia, " a city intended to be erected and buildcd m Virginia aforesaid."* Captain John White was made governour, and the twelve assistants formed his council, in whom conjointly were vested the • See the recital of the Indenture in Sir Walter Raleigh's indeiUure of assignment, iu Hazard's collections, Vol. 1, p. 42. !^. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 89 legislative and executive powers for the government sect. of the colony. A small fleet of three ships was v^^->^^-^ fitted out and placed under the command of the i587. governour captain White. About one hundred and seventeen adventurers and settlers, consisting of men, women, and children,* with a plentiful supply of provisions, were embarked on board the fleet. They were directed by Sir Walter to fix their plan- tation and erect a fort at the bay of Chesapeake, which had been discovered by governour Lane the preceding year. Thus prepared for a permanent settlement, they arrived on the 22d of July, 1587, at Hatteras. The governour, with forty of his best men, went on board the pinnace, intending to pass up to the island of Roanoke, in the hope of finding the fifteen Englishmen, whom Sir Richard Grenville had left there the year before ; and, after a confer- ence with them concerning the state of the country and of tlie Indians, to return to the fleet, and proceed along the coast to the bay of Chesapeake, according to the orders of Raleigh. But no sooner had the pinnace left the ship, than a gentleman, instructed by Fernando, the principal naval commander, who was destined to return soon to England,! called to the * See a list of their names in Hazard's collections, Vol. 1. p. 40. Although these adventurers composed in reality the third English colony attempted to be settled in America, con- sisting the before-mentioned fifteen men as one, yet as Ro- bertson and other historians speak of these above under White as the second colony sent out, their authority is here followed . t In the Indenture of Jan. 7th, 1587, above-mentioned, (under which this colony was attempted to be planted) .men- Uon is made of " Simon Fernando of London," as one of the M 90 INTRODUCTION TO A SF.cT, sailors on board the pinnace, and charged them not IV. to bring back any cf the planters, excepting the i.5br. governour and two or three others, whom he approv- ed, but to leave them in the island ; for the summer, he observed, was far spent, and therefore he would land all the planters in no other place. The sailors on board the pinnace, as well as those on board the ship, having been persuaded by the master to this measure, the governour, judging it best not to con- tend with them, proceeded to Roanoke. At sun- set he landed with his men at that place in the island^ where the fifteen men were left ; but discovered no signs of them, excepting the bones of one man, whom they supposed to have been killed by the savages. The next day the governour and several of his company went to the north end of the island, where governour Lane had erected his fort, and his men had built several decent dwelling houses, the preceding year; hoping to find here some signs, if not the certain knowledge, of the fifteen men. But^ on coming to the place, and finding the fort razed, and all the houses, though standing unhurt, over- grown with weeds and vines, and deer feeding with- in them, they returned in despair of ever seeing their looked-for countrymen alive. Orders were given the same day for the repair of the houses, and for grantees, and who was probably also one of the twelve assis- tants or counsellors. His name appears also in the list of colonists, (published in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 40.) " who remained to inhabit in Virginia" at this time, they could not therefore be the same persons, but I find it related as above in Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 125, who probably took it from some authentic writer. HISTOTIY OF MARYLAND. 91 the erection of new cottages. All the colony, con- sect sisting of one hundred and seventeen persons, soon v,^^/^ after landed, and began to make the necessary pre- 1587. parations for their accommodation and comfort. It was not long before they were visited by Manteo, the faithful Indian, who had accompanied Amidas and Barlow to England ;* from whom they received some intelligence of the fate of their countrymen. He informed them, that the natives secretly set upon * Although the names of two Indians, Manteo and Towaye, are n\entioned in the list of adventurers in this expedition, published in Hazard's collections, vol. 1, p. 40. as " Savages that were in England and returned home into Virginia with them;" which seems to be repeated in Holmes's Annals, vol. 1, p. 127, note, 1. ; yet there is evidently a mistake in this supposition, although it may be so in Hackluyt ; not merely because it is expressly said by Oldniixon, in his British Em- pire in America, vol. 1, p. 212, and Burk in his History of Virginia, vol. I, p. 51, that Manteo and Wanchese, the two Indians who had been in England, returned with governour I^ane and his colony under Sir Richard Grenville, but that it would be otherwise impossible to suppose, that Manteo should be said to have come to captain White's colony soon after their arrival, and given them some information of the loss of the fifteen men left by Grenville, as he is said by most writers to have done, if he had not been in the country during the time when these fifteen men resided at Roanoke. The im- probability also of governour Lane's coming out with a colony and leaving these two Indians in England, when he must have been certain of their utility to them, forms a strong ground against the supposition. The difference between the names " Towaye" and " Wanchese" appears to be immaterial, as Indians are said to change their names frequently, and the name of Towaye most probably means the same person as that of Wanchese. It is possible, that they were mentioned in the Jist of colonists, because, being friendly to them, they might make their constant residence with them. 92 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, them, and killed some ; the rest fled into the s^'-v^^,^ woods. i58r. The colony had now been but a few days on the island, when Mr. Howe, a gentleman who was one of the council, or court of assistants as it was called, was attacked and barbarously murdered by the na- tives, as he happened to stroll about at a little dis- tance from the fort, which the new planters had re- paired or erected. Soon afterwards a party was sent under the command of captain Stafford, accompanied by Manteo, to a place called Croatan^ which it seems was the name of an Indian town, situated near Ocracock inlet, and on the northern part of the island of which Cape Look-out is the southern ex- tremity. At first, the natives seemed determined to oppose the captain's debarkation ; but, through the persuasion of Manteo, they were induced to alter their resolution, lay down their arms, and enter into an alliance against the Indians of Scroton, on the continent. Upon this occasion, it was, that they received further information of the fate of the little co- lony left by Grenville. Seven of the fifteen, it seems, had been killed by the Indians of Scroton, who fell upon them by surprise, and set fire to their houses in the night ; while the remaining eight escaped to the water-side, went over to a little island near Cape Hatteras, and were never since heard of* The • The above account of the destruction of these unfortu- nate men, is from the Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 239 ; but it is somewhat differently related in an extract from Hack- luyt, iii, 283, 284, published in Holmes's Annals, Vol. I, p. 126, note 1 : " About a week afterward, some of the EngHsh people going to Croatan, were told by the Indians, that the 15 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 9 reader will recollect, that the Indians of Scroton were sect. IV. the same tribe or nation, upon w horn Sir Richard y^,^^^^ Grenville had exercised such an imprudent revenge 1587. for the theft of a silver cup. In consequence of this intelligence, it was now resolved to fall upon the Scrotons; upon which expedition, the governour set out in person, attended by twenty-eight select soldiers, well armed. Being informed of the situa- tion of their principal town, he attacked it in the night, broke in with the greatest impetuosity ; but was astonished to find that he had killed and wound- ed several of his allies, the Croatans. The Scrotons, it seems, expecting an attack from the English set- tlement, to revenge the ruin of Grenville's little co- lony, and the death of Mr. Howe, had evacuated the place ; and, after their departue, the Croatans had un- luckily taken possession of it. Two small events about this time, have been thought by historians, worth recording. On the thirteenth of August Manteo, the friendly Indian, was baptized at Roanoke, according to a previous order of Sir Walter Raleigh ; and, in reward of his Englishmen, left by Grenville, were surprised by 30 Indians ; who, having treacherously slain one of them, compelled the rest to repair to the house containing their provisions and weapons, which the Indians instantly set on fire ; that the English, leaving the house, skirmished with them about an hour ; that in this skirmish, another of their number was shot in the mouth with an arrow, and died ; that they retired fight- ing to the water-side, where lay their boat, with which they fled towards Hatteras ; that they landed on a little island on the right hand of the entrance into the harbour of Hatteras, where they remained a-while, and afterward departed, whither they knew not." 94. INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, fidelity and services to the English, the governoiir TV created him Lord of Dassamenpeak, an Indian na- 1587. tion in the neighbourhood. And on the eighteenth, Mrs. Dare, a daughter of governour White, and wife of Ananias Dare, (one of the assistants,) was delivered of a daughter at Roanoke, who was bap- tized on the next Sunday, by the name of Virginia; because she was the first English child bom in the countr}'.* The affairs of the colon}^ seem to have been now considered in so prosperous a way, and the colonists so well pleased with their situation, that when the ships were about to return to England, and it be- came necessary for some person to return with them in order more speedily to promote further supplies, they all declined, except one, who was judged to be imequal to the office ; and the governour, by mere importunity and solicitation, was constrained, much against his wishes, to undertake it.f He sailed from Roanoke on the twenty- seventh of August, and ar- rived in England at a most unfavourable time in- deed, for the purposes he had undertaken. He found the nation in imiversal alarm, at the formi- dable preparations of Philip H, of Spain, to invade England, and collecting all its force to oppose the fleet, which the Spaniards arrogantly denomi- nated the Invincible Armada. Raleigh, Gren- ville, and all the most zealous patrons of the new * Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. !,p. 215, 216. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 239, Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 124. Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 63. t Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 64. Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 203c HISTORY OF MARYLAND. '9o settlements, were called to act a distinguished part sect, in those measures of defence, which the public dan- ^^IL_^ ger demanded and rendered indispensable. 1588. Raleigh, however, mingled with his exertions to defend his native country, some attention to the si- tuation of the colony he had planted. Early in the following year he found leisure to lit out for its re- lief, at Biddeford, a small fleet, the command of which was given to Sir Richard Grenville ; but the apprehensions from the Spanish armament still in- creasing, the ships of force prepared by Raleigh were detained in port, by order of the queen, for the defence of their own country ; and Sir Richard Grenville was specially and personally commanded, not to depart out of Cornwall ; where his sevices under Sir Walter Raleigh, who was mustering and training the forces, as lieutenant of the county, were deemed necessar}\* Governour White, it seems, was also at this time, one of the queen's council of war, and was, therefore, by reason of his office, obliged to remain in England, f These patrons of the colony still, however, found means to make some efforts for their relief in this year. Two small pin- naces, in which were fifteen planters, with suitable supplies of provision, were fitted out, and sailed for Virginia. Being more intent on a profitable voyage, than on the relief of the colony, the person or per- sorvs under whose direction they were placed, went in chase of prizes ; until at length, two men of war from Rochelle, falling in with them, disabled and rifled diem, and obliged them to put back for Eng- * Marshall's Life of \Vashington, Vol. 1, p. 18, t Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. ISO. 96 INTRODUCTIOX TO A SECT, land.* Thus the whole year of 1588 elapsed with- IV out furnishing the colony with supplies. 1589. Soon after this, the attention of Raleiarh beinar SirWaltei- ' . , • , Raieigii directed to other more splendid objects, he assigned his'putent his patent to Thomas Smith, William Sanderson, Toothers, ^^j^ scvcral othcrs, merchants and adventurers, whose names are enumerated in the indenture of assignment, bearing date the 7th of March, 31 Eliz. (1589,) making at the same time a donation to the assignees, of one hundred pounds lawful money of England, foi the encouragement of their designs. f Although the Spanish armada had been destroyed in the course of the preceding year, and the nation freed from the alarm of invasion, yet, it seems, that they were as anxiously engaged this year in retalia- ting on the Spaniards, by an expedition against them ; so that difiiculties, similar to those of the former year, might have operated to prevent any relief to the unfortunate colonists. 1590. It was not till the year after the assignment, that ot'iiie se-^ go vernour White could go to their assistance. Above comi coio- ^yyQ years had now elapsed, since he had left his infant colony, imder the full expectation of his speedy return to them. On the 20th of March, 1590, he sailed from Plymouth with three ships ; but, taking the usual circuit by the West Indies, he, perhaps undesignedly, suffered himself to be too much delayed in the capturing of Spanish prizes. Ha^^ing arrived at Hatteras on the 15th of August, they fired some cannon to give notice of their aiTi- * Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 129. t See this indenture of assignment at large, in Hazard's Collectionsj Vol. l,p. 42. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 9r val, and sent some men on shore at the place where sect. the colony had been left ; but no signs of their ^^ ' countrymen could be found. In attempting the 1590. next day, to go to Roanoke, one of the boats in passing a bar, was half filled with water ; another overset, and seven men were drowned. This disas- ter discouraged the other sailors to such a degree, that they all seemed resolved to abandon the research : but by the persuasion and authority of the gover- nour and one of their captains, they resumed it. The govemour accordingly, taking with him nine- teen men in two boats, went towards the place where he had left the English colon}', and found on a tree at the top of the bank, the letters CRO, carved in fair Roman characters. This he knew to be intend- ed to mark the place, where the planters might be found : for they had secretly agreed with him, at his departure for England, to WTite or carve on the trees or posts of the doors, the name of the place where they should be seated, because they were at that time preparing to remove fifty miles frojn Roa- noke island, into the main land. It had also been agreed, that in case of their distress, they should carve over the letters a cross ; but, to the great comfort and encouragement of their English friends, they found not this sign. Coming to the spot where the colony had been left, they found the houses taken down, and the place very strongly inclosed with a high palisade of trees, in the form of a fort. At the right side of the entrance, on one of the chief trees or posts, the bark of which had been taken off five feet from the ground, was carved in fair capital letters, CRO AT AN, without the sign of distress. N fi8 INTRODUCTION TO A SKCT. Within the palisade they found many bars of iron, s,^,'-^-^,^ pigs of lead, iron shot, and other things of bulk and 1590. weight, scattered about, and almost overgrown with grass and weeds. In the end of an old trench, they found also, five chests, that had been carefully bu- ried and hid by the planters ; three of which gover- iiour White recognised as his own, together with many other things of his, spoiled and broken : such as his books torn from their covers, the frames of his pictures and maps rotten and spoiled with rain, and his armour almost eaten through with rust. Concluding from the circumstance of no signal of distress being left, as agreed upon, that the colony was safe at the place thus designated, they returned to their ships, and determined to sail for Croatan on the next morning. But, a violent storm arising that night, the ships were separated from each other, and having lost their anchors and cables, durst not venture in with the shore. So they all shifted for themselves, and with various fortunes, arrived in England and Ireland.* What became of the un- fortunate colonists, whom White had left in 1587, time has never yet developed. From the palisaded fort, it would seem, that they had been either at- tacked by, or were in much apprehension of danger from the natives before their removal. The Indians of Croatan, having been always friendly to the Eng- lish, through the influence of Manteo, who, it seems, belonged to that tribe, and was a native of that place,f * Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 217, Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 130. f Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 131. HISTORY OF MARYLAifD. 99 they were induced, probably by that circumstance, sect. to remove thither. After which no traces of them ^^-v-^ appear. I602. This unfortunate event seems to have chilled the GosnoWs voyage to ardour of the English for colonisation m America New \Lng- for many succeeding years. It was not until the year 1602, the last year of the reign of Elizabeth, that any voyage of importance was undertaken by them to North America, some of the Virginia com- pany, probably the most zealous of those to whom Sir Walter Raleigh had assigned his patent, resolv- ed to fit out a vessel for that country, and accord- ingly made choice of captain Bartholomew Gosnold for the commander thereof, who had been one ol* the adventurers in a former voyage thither, and was an excellent mariner. He sailed from Falmouth on the 26th of March, 1602, in a small vessel, with thirty-two persons on board, of whom it was pro- posed, that twelve should stay behind and form a settlement, in case he sh6uld meet with any place which he should judge convenient for that purpose. Instead of following former navigators in their un- necessary circuit by the West India isles and the Gulf of Florida, Gosnold steered due west, as nearly as the winds would permit, and is said to be the first English commander, who reached America by this shorter and more direct course.* He arrived * Although Robertson, and other historians after him, have observed as above, that Gosnold was the first English com- mander who sailed to America by this shorter course, yet, unless it be understood of that part of America then called Virginia, it cannot well be admitted. For undoubtedly Ca- ^t, (who, though not sn Englishman, yet sailed under English 100 iNTRODUCtlON TO A SECT, on the 1 1th of May in neaily forty-three degrees of K^y.^-y^ north latitude on the coast of Massachusetts. Here 1602. they met with a shallop with a mast and sails, having on board eight Indians, with whom the English had friendly intercourse.* Sailing along the shore they the next day discovered a headland in the^atitnde of forty-two degrees, where they came to anchor ; and, taking a great number of cod-fish at this place, they called it Cape Cod, a name it still retains, holding their course along the coast as it stretched toward the south-west they discovered, on the twenty-first of May, an island, which they called Martha^s Vine- yard ; not that, it seems, which now bears that name, but a small island now called Noman's Land. Co- ming to anchor, two days afterwards, at the north- west part of this island, they were visited the next morning by thirteen of the natives, with whom they colours and -with English seamen,) and all those, who had previously visited Newfoundland, particularly Sir Humphrey Gilbert, sailed this shorter and direct course. * These natives first hailed the English ; who answered them. After signs of peace, and a long speech made by one of the Indians, they went boldly on board the English vessel, *' ali naked," saving loose deer skins about their shoulders, *' andneer their wastes seal skins tyed faste like to Irish dimmie trowses." One of them, who seemed to be their chief, wore a waistcoat, breeches, cloth-stockings, shoes, and a hat ; one or two others had a few things of European fabric ; and " these with a piece of chaike described the coast thereabouts, and could name Placentia of the Newfoundland; they spake divers christian words.** Their vessel is supposed to have belonged to some unfortunate fishermen of Biscay, wrecked on the t:oast. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1 J p. 142. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. lOl tiad a friendly traffic. On the twenty-fourth they sect. discovered another island, which they named Dover ^^^^..^^.^^ Cliff, now called Gay Head ; and the next day came ]603. to anchor at a quarter of a mile from the shore, in a large bay, which they called Gosnold's Hope, which is said to be the same as that now called Buzzard's Bay. On the northern side of this bay was the main land ; and on the southern, four leagues disUmt, was a large island, which, in honour of the queen, they called Elizabeth. On the twenty-eighth they con- sulted together upon a fit place for a plantation ; and concluded to settle on the western part of Elizabeth island. In this island there is a pond or lake ot fresh water, two miles in circumference, in the cen- tre of which is a small rocky islet of about an acre of ground, and on this islet they began to erect a fort and store-house. While the men were occu- pied in this work, Gosnold crossed the bay in his vessel ; went on shore ; trafficked amicably with the natives ; and having discovered the mouths of two rivers, supposed to be the two harbours of Apoone- ganset and Pascamanset, on one of which the town of New Bedford is now built, in the southern part of the State of Massachusetts, returned in five days to the island. In nineteen days the fort and store- house were finished ; but discontents arising among those who were to have remained in the country, it was concluded, after deliberate consultation, to re- linquish the design of a settlement. Having loaded their ship with a cargo of sassafras and cedar wood, furs, and some other commodities of the country, sufficient to indemnify the charges of the expedition, they set sail for England, The whole company, 102 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, havinsr left their little fort on the 18th of June, ai'- IV . ^^_,,-,,,.-;.^_^ rived at Plymouth the 23d of July following.* 1603. It would be doing gi'eat injustice to Sir Walter icr Ra- Raleigh to omit an event, appertaining to this year, lei-h's en- -^vhich displays both his sense of honour and huma- to find out nity in a very conspicuous point of view. Uneasy, colony at as hc manifestly appears to have been, at the aban- donment of the colony left at Roanoke in 1587, and which had been sent there under his auspices, he had sent vessels four different times prior to the present instance, at his awn charges, for their relief; but these had returned without doing any thing ef- fectual ; some having followed their own profit, and others returned with frivolous excuses. Still not abandoning all hope of finding them, he resolved to make one effort more to discover and relieve them. Having accordingly purchased and fitted out a bark for that purpose, he gave the command of her to Samuel Mace, an able mariner and an honest, sober man, who had been at Virginia (North Carolina) twice before. He sailed from Weymouth in March, 1602, and fell on the American coast ; in about the thirty-fourth degree of north latitude ; spent a month there; proceeded along the coast; but returned * Harris's voyages, Vol. 2, p. 219. Modern Universal History, Vol. 39, p. 240. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 143- The following note from Holmes's Annals, Hid. may perhaps gratify the curious. In 1797 the reverend Dr. Belknap with several other gentlemen went to the spot, Avhich was selected by Gosnold's company on Elizabeth Island, and had the su- preme satisfaction to find the cellar of Gosnold's store-house : the stones of which Mere evidently taken from the neighbour- ing beach ; the rocks of the islet being less moveable, and ?yingin ledges.*' Belknap's Biog. ii, 1 IS. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 103 home without any thorough attempt to effectuate the sect. puqDOse of the voyage. They offered an excuse, ^^^r-v-i^^ either real or pretended, that the extremity of weather 1602. and the loss of some principal ground tackle forced and deterred them from seeking the port of Hat- teras.* The voyage of Gosnold, however inconsiderable ieo3. it may appear, is said to have had important effects, p^f^y} He had found a healthy climate, a rich soil, and good expedr-^ harbours, far to the north of the place where the English had attempted to make a settlement. Its distance from England was diminished, almost a third part, by the new course he had pointed out. The pacific reign of James had now succeeded to that of Elizabeth, whose government, as well from her parsimony, as from the happy content of het subjects under it, had not been favourable to colo- nisation. In addition to which, the frequent wars With Spain, which had afforded her subjects such constant employment, and presented to them such alluring prospects both of fame and wealth, having now ceased under James, persons of high rank and ardent ambition became impatient to find some ex- ercise for their activity and talents. New plans for establishing colonies in America were the result. Under all these circumstances, the reverend Mr. Richard Hackluyt, a prebendary of the cathedral of Westminster, (to whom England is said to have beer> more indebted for its American possessions than to any other man of that age, and whose valuable col- kction of voyages and discoveries, published by * Harris's voyages. Vol. 2, p. 219, 220. 104 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, him in the year 1589, diffused a relish among his y^^^-v-^^ countrymen for the sciences of geography and navi- 1603. gation,) was induced to project a scheme for send- ing in the year 1603, a small fleet on a voyage, simi- lar to that of Gosnold's, and prevailed upon several gentlemen and merchants of Bristol to embrace and join in the undertaking. -*^ Previous to any prepara- tions, for this purpose, it is said to have been deem- ed by them necessary to apply to Sir Walter Raleigh, who was still looked upon as the proprietor of Virgi- nia, in order to procure his licence. On Mr. Hack- luyt's application to Sir Walter, they received all the encouragement they could desire; for he not only o-ranted them a licence under his hand and seal, but also made over to them all the profits which should arise from the voyage. After they were thus empow- ered, they raised a joint stock of a thousand pounds, and fitted out two small vessels, the one called the Speedwell, commanded by captain Martin Pring, of the burden of fifty tons, with thirty men and boys ; the other a bark of 26 tons, called the Discoverer, commanded by Mr. William Brown, who had un- der him a mate and eleven men, and a boy.f These • It is sard in Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 222. that Mj\ Hackluyt "had a prebend in the cathedral of Bristol," and in the Modern Universal History, Vol. 39, p. 240, that he was *' a Prebendary in the cathedral of Bristol."- This corresponds ■with his influence with the Bristol merchants. He is how- ever styled, " Prebendary of Westminster," in the first Vir- ginia charter of 1606, and by Robertson. He might, perhaps, have had a prebend in both cathedrals at different times. t These vessels appear very small to us at this day for such long voyages ; but, according to Hume, such was the mode of building them at that time. See his Appendix to queen Elizabeth's reign. HISTORY OF MARYLAND.' 105 vessels were victualled for eie^ht months, and had a sect. large cargo on board, consisting of all sorts of goods ^^^-^^^Vl,• that were deemed proper for bai-ter in that country. ^^^^• They sailed from King's Road, near Bristol, on the 20th of March, 1602-3. Being hindered by con- trary winds, they put into Milford Haven, where they continued till the 10th of April following, and then proceeded on their voyage. They did not pursue the short route, which Gosnold took, but went by the Azores, and arrived without any re- markable accident, in the beginning of June, on the coast of North America, between the forty-third and forty-fourth degrees of north latitude, among a multitude of islands, in the mouth of Penobscot bay. Ranging the coast to the south-west, and passing the Saco, Kennebunk, York, and Piscata- qua rivers, they proceeded into the bay of Massachu- setts. They went on shore here, but not finding any sassafras-wood, the collection of which was a great object of their voyage, they coasted further along, till they entered a large sound, supposed to be what is now called the Vineyard sound, and came to an anchor on the north side of it. Here they landed at an excellent harbour in a bay, which, in honour of the mayor of Bristol, they called Whit- son bay ; mentioned to be in about forty- one de- grees and some few minutes north latitude. Having built a hut, and inclosed it with a bairicade, some of them kept constant guard in it, while others were employed in collecting sassafras in the woods. The natives came and trafficked with them, forty or fifty in a company, and sometimes upward of an hun- dred, and would eat and drink, and be meny with o 106 INTllODUCTION TO A SECT. them. Observing a lad in the company, playing IV upon a guitar, they seemed much pleased at it, got 1603. round about him, and taking hands, danced twenty or thirty in a ring, after their manner. It was ob- served, that they were more afraid of two mastiff dogs, which the English had with them, than of twenty men ; so that when our voyagers wished to get rid of their company, they let loose one of these mastiffs, upon which the natives would immediately shriek out, and run away to the woods. After re- maining here about seven weeks, the bark was des- patched, well freighted with sassafras, for England. Soon after her departure, some alarming appearances of hostility began to be manifested on the part of the Indians ; which might, probably, be owing to the above-mentioned improper conduct towards them, as well as the erecting a fortification in their coun- try ; for not long afterwards, when most of the men were absent from the fort, a large party of Indians came and surrounded it, and would probably have surprised it, if the captain of the ship had not fired two guns, and alarmed the Avorkmen in the woods. This induced them to accelerate the lading and de- parture of the ship, for which they had procured a very valuable cargo of skins and furs, in exchange for the commodities which they had bartered with the Indians. Amongst the curiosities which they brought back with them, was a canoe, or boat used by the inhabitants, made of the bark of the birch tree, sewed together with twigs, the seams covered with rosin or turpentine ; and though it was seven- teen feet long, four broad, and capable of carrying nine persons, it did not weigh sixty pounds. These HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 107 boats the inhabitants rowed, or rather paddled, with sect. two wooden instruments, similar to baker's peels, v.^-v->^ by ^\^hich they went at a great rate. On the day i603. before the embarkation of the English, an incident occurred, which seemed to confirm the suspected hostility of the natives. They came in great num- bers to the woods where the English had cut the sassafras, and set fire to it ; which seemed to be de- signed to let them know, that th,ey would preserve nothing in their country, which should invite such guests to visit them again. On the ninth of August our voyagers quitted the coast, and sailed for Eng- land, amving in the mouth of the Bristol channel in five weeks ; but meeting there with contrary winds, tliey could not reach King's road before the second of October : and they had the satisfaction of find- ing that their bark was safely arrived a fortnight be- fore them.* In the same year also, and while Pring was em- captaTn ployed in this voyage, captain Bartholomew Gilbert, ^J^ ^^^yI who had been the year before with captain Gosnold, l^^'^'^^^' was sent by some merchants of London, on a fur- ther discovery, to the southern part of Virginia ; it being intended also, that he should search for the lost English colony. Sailing from Plymouth on the tenth of May, in a bark of fifty tons, by the way of the West Indies, where they made a short stay, they arrived on the 25th of July, off the Capes of Chesa- peake bay, which Gilbert was very desirous of en- tering; but the wind blowing hard, with a high sea, though they beat about for two or three days, • Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 222. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 240. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 145. 108 INTRODUCTION TO A SF.CT. they could not get in, and were obliged to bear ^^«^^^^ away to the eastward. On the twenty-ninth they 1603. anchored about a mile from the shore ; and the cap- tain, with four of his best inen and two lads, landed in their boat. Being provided with arms, he and his men marched some short distance up into the country : but, in their march, they were set upon and overpowered by the natives, and all killed ; and it was not without difficult}'-, that the two young men who were left with the boat, could reach the ship again, to bring the news. They being now, in all, but eleven men and boys in the ship, were afraid to \'enture the loss of any more of their small compa- ny ; and their provisions growing short, the master, Henry Sute, who had taken the command, resolved, though they were in extreme want of wood and water, to return homewards ; which they did, and arrived in the river Thames about the end of September.* * Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 223. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 146. The above account of Gilbert's voyage is exti'act- ed from Harris's Voyages, with which Holmes's Annals cor- respond. But it may be proper to be informed, that Oldmixon in his British Empire in America, Vol. 1 , p. 2 1 9, gives a dif- ferent relation of this expedition. He says, that " Gilbert pro- ceeded from the Carribee islands to the bay of Chesapeake, in Virginia, being thejirst that sailed ufi into it, and landed there. The Indians set upon him and his company in the woods ; and captain Gilbert and four or five of his men, were killed by their aiTows : upon which his crew returned home." But, as the above mentioned collection of voyages by Harris, is not only posterior in time, but also rather a more authentic work than Oldmixon's, the narration of the former is here adopted in the text. There is an obscurity, however, in Harris's ac- count of it as to the jilace where Gilbert was killed. As only a day or two intervened between his quitting the capes of Che- HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 109 The pacific disposition of king James, and his sect. inexperience in the usage and law of nations, had v>-^^^ induced him to suppose, that by his mere accession 1604. to the tlirone of England, peace was thereby restored between England and Spain, he having been always before, as king of Scotland, in amity with Spain. He had on the 23d of June, 1603, before any terms of peace were concerted, or even proposed by Spain, recalled all the letters of marque that had been granted by Elizabeth against the nation ; and, al- though a sort of peace actually existed between Spain and England from the commencement of his reign, yet it was not until the 18th of August, 1 604, that the treaty of peace was signed between the two nations.* This event removed many of the obsta- cles that stood in the way of the British trade, and opened to their ships a free access to many coun- tries, to which they had not before resorted. The old passion for the discovery of a north-west pas- sage, now revived again in its full vigour. With a view to this discovery, two noblemen of the highest rank and influence in the kingdom, were induced to send out a ship under the command of captain George Weymouth. Writers who have mentioned jggj this voyage, differ so widely, and give such con- Captain tradictory accounts of it, that it has become scarcely moTth's intitled to notice. It seems that they sailed on the '''^y''^^^- last day of May, 1605, from Dartmouth, (some say, sapeake and the time of his landing, it would seem that it could not be higher to the north-eastivard than the Hudson's river. More pi'obably, however, some where along the sea-coast of Maryland, or state of Delaware. • Hume's Hist, of Eng. end of ch. 45j in James I, reign. 110 INTRODUCTION, kc. SECT, from the Downs,) and met with nothing of consfe- ,^_^.-^-|^^ quence, till such time as they judged themselves to 1605. be very near the coast of what was then called Vir- ginia ; but the winds carrying them to the north- ward, in the latitude of 41° 30', and their wood and water beginning to grow extremely short, they be- came very desirous of seeing land. By their charts they had reason to expect it, and therefore bore di- rectly in with it, according to their instructions, yet they found none in a run of almost 50 leagues. After running this distance they discovered several islands, on one of which they landed, and called it St. George.* Within three leagues of this island, they came into a harbour, which they called Pentecost harbour, because it was about Whitsuntide they discovered it.f They then sailed up a great river forty miles ; J set up crosses in several places, and had some traffick with the natives. In July they re- turned to England, carrying with them five Indians ; one a Sagamore, and three others of them, persons of distinction, whom they had taken as prisoners. § • In Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 223, this island is said to be that which is now called Long island, near New York. t In the Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 240, this harbour is said to be the mouth of Hudson's river. I This river is said by Oldmixon, in his British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 220, to have been "the river of Powha- tan," now called James's river, in Virginia. Dr. Belknap (American Biog. ii, 149,) is satisfied, that it was the Penob- scot, in Maine ; but from the Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 240, it would seem to have been the Hudson's ; which is the most probable, if (according to Harris's Voyages, just cited,) the island above-mentioned was Long Island. § See Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 223. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 150. SECTION V. Xhe progress of the French in settling colonies in America— A set- tlement of convicts on the Isle of Sables, by the French— Chauvin's voyages to the St. Lawrence — Pontgrave's voyage to the same— The Sieur de Mont's commission, and voyages under it — His pa- tent revoked— Pontrincourfs endeavours to fix a settlement at Port Koyal, Nova Scotia — The Sieur de Mont obtains a restoration of his grant — and establishes the first permanent colony in Canada, under the conduct of Champlain. THE connection which necessarily subsists sect. between the events attending the early settlements ^' of the French in Acadia, now called Nova Scotia, 1598. and Canada, and those of the former British colo- The pro- nies in North America, must apologise for a short of the digression here, in taking a cursory notice of the in'^settUng early progress of those French settlements. In do- ^or h"^^^" ing this it will be necessary to carry the attention of '^'"^^'^-'^ the reader a few years back. That great and good monarch, Henry IV, of France, (having acceded to the throne of that king- dom in the year 1589,) as soon as he had defeated his enemies, the Guise faction, and obtained quiet possession of the crown, with a liberality of mind, which always marked his character, issued his edict of the 4th of July, 1590, whereby he revoked those extorted from his predecessor by the Leaguers, and established religious liberty of conscience through- out his dominions. A restless disposition, however, which appears to have too much attended the con- duct of the Hugonots or Protestants of France, m INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, throughout their unhappy civil wars of the six- V, teenth century, did not permit them to rest quiet 1598. with these concessions of Henry.-* Indeed, as he had been a Protestant and one of their leaders, and had obtained the crown principally by their means, they might naturally look up to him for greater fa- vours than a mere toleration. Be this as it may, he thought it proper to yield to the importunities of their deputies, who had for that purpose waited up- on him at Nantz, where he then was, by issuing another edict, bearing date the 13th of April, 1598, since well known and celebrated in history under the emphatic denomination of " The Edict of Nantz ;" the revocation of which by Louis the fourteenth, in the year 1685, is said to have been productive of much mischief to France for many succeeding years. By this edict of Henry, the Protestants were, not only restored to the free en- joyment of their religion, and a safe protection in their civil rights by the establishment of particular tribunals of justice for them, but they were also advanced to an almost equal share of political liber- ty, by a free admission to all employments of trust, profit, and honour in the state, f France, having thus recovered some tranquillity after fifty years of internal commotion since her last attempts at colonisation in 1549, J was now enabled * The Hugonots, or Pi'otestants of France, are said to have been at this time, about a twelfth part of the nation. — > Voltaire's Age of Lewis XIV, Vol. 2, p. 183. t Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 24. p. 334, 342, 377. \ See before, p. 41. I HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 113 to exercise again, the enterprising talents of her citi- sect. zens. In the same year in which the Protestants ^^.^^^^^ obtained from Henry tlie edict of Nantes, (1598,) i598. -' A seltle- the Marquis de la Roche, a Breton genUeman, re-mcntof . . „ 1 -I • • • ^ convicts ceivnig from the kmg a commission to conquer ^^ tj^e isie Canada, and other countries, not possessed by any Jy^hg^^^' Christian prince, sailed from France, in quality of French, lord-lieutenant of those countries, taking with him a person of the name of Chetodel, of Normandy, for his pilot. The marquis, having most absurdly pitched upon the isle of Sables, (which lies about fifty leagues to the south-east of Cape Breton, is about ten leagues in circumference, and is itself a mere sand-bank,) as a proper place for a settlement, left there about forty malefactors, the refuse of the French jails.* The history of those poor wretches, contains the history of the expedition. The mar- quis, after cruising for some time on the coast of Nova Scotia, returned to France, without being able to carry them off the miserable island ; and is said to have died of grief for having lost all his interest at that court. As for his wretched colony, they must all have perished, had not a French ship been wrecked upon the island, and a few sheep driven upon it at the same time. With the boards of the wreck, they erected huts ; with the sheep, they sup- ported nature : and when they had eat them up, they lived on fish. Their clothes wearing out, they made coats of seal's skins ; and in this miserable condi- tion, they spent seven years, till Henry IV ordered * See a like colony of convicts authorised by the commis- sion to Quartier, before mentioned, and referred to in a neta in p. 40. i If4 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. Chetodel to go and bring them back to France, s^-S^^^ Chetodel found only twelve of them alive ; and 1598. when he returned, Henry had the curiosity to see them in their seal-skin dresses. Their appearance moved this generous and humane monarch so much, that he ordered them a general pardon for their offences, and gave each of them fifty crowns to be- gin the world with anew.* Though la Roche's patent had been very ample and exclusive, yet private adventurers still conti- , nued to trade to the river St. Lawrence, without any notice being taken of them by the government. Amongst others was one Pontgrave, a merchant of St. Malo, who kid made several trading voyages for furs, to Tadoussac.f Upon the death of the jNIarquis de la Roche, his patent was renewed in fa- \'our of Mons. de Chauvin, a commander in the French navy, who put himself under the direction of Pontgrave ; as the latter might justly be suppo- sed, from his frequent trading voyages to that coun- try, to have acquired a considerable knowledge of 1600. it. In the year 1600, Chauvin, attended by Pont- ciiauvin's grave, made a voyage to Tadoussac, where he left to^ihrst. some of his people, and returned with a very pro- Laurence.^^^j^j^ quantity of furs to France. These people, \vhom he left, would have perished by hunger or disease, during the following winter, but for the compassion of the nati> es. Chauvin, in tlie next • Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 408. t Tadoussac is a town, or place, at the mouth of the Sa- . guenay, a small river emptying into the St. Lawrence from .the north, considerably below Quebec, and ninety leagues from the mouth of the St. Lawrence. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 1%$^ year, (1601,) made a^econd voyage with the same sect. good fortune as the first, and sailed up the St. Law- v^^,!>^ rence as high as Trois Rivieres ; but while prepar- i60i., ing for a third voyage, (in the year after,) he died. The many specimens of profit to be made by the Canadian trade, led the public to think favourably of it. M. de Chatte, the governour of Dieppe, succeeded Chauvin as governour of Canada. De Chatte's scheme seems to have been, to have carried on that trade with France, by a compan}^ of Rouen merchants and adventurers. An armament for this purpose, was accordingly equipped, and the com- mand of it given to Pontgrave, with powers to ex- tend his discoveries up the river St. Lawrence. Pontgrave, with his squadron, sailed in 1603, hav- ing in his company Samuel Champlain, afterwards p^^^^ ' the famous founder of Quebec, who had been a&'"^''^'^ voyage up captain in the navy, and was a man of talents and the st. ... mi 1 1 p 1 • Lawreivce. enterprise. Arrivmg at 1 adoussac, they leit their ships there, and in a long-boat they proceeded up the river as far as the falls of St. Louis, and then re- turned to France. While Pontgrave was engaged in this voyage of ^,,^g gj^^j. 1603, De Chatte died, and was succeeded in his pa- ^^ Mont's ' _ * _ commis- tent by Pierre du Gast, Sieur de Monts, styled in sion, and the king's commission to him, " gentilhomme ordi- under it. naire de notre chambre." The tenor of his letters patent, (as we have it at large in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 45,) bearing date November 8th, 1603, appears to have been as well for colonising the country then called Acadie, (which compre- hended Canada, as well as what is now called Nova Scotia,) as for encouraging the fur-trade carried on ?II6 INTRODUCIION TO A SECT, there. A difference of opinio i is said to have takefi V K^y^^^.^^ place, on the occasion of granting these letters pa- 1604. tent, between king Henry and his very able minis- ter, the duke of Sully. The duke declared round- ly, that all settlements in America above the fortieth degree of north latitude, could be of no utility ; and that all pretended advantages insisted upon in their favour, vv^ere but so many commercial chimeras. Here again, (observes the historian,*) the monarch was right and the minister vrrong, as we know by experience. By these letters patent, the Sieur de Monts was constituted and appointed the king's lieutenant-general, to represent his person, in the country, territor}^, coasts, and confines of Acadie, from the fortieth degree of north latitude to the forty-sixth. The extent of this portion of the con- tinent was, from that part of the coast of New Jer- sey, in the latitude of Philadelphia, to the northern extremity of Cape Breton. Had the Sieur de Monts fixed his settlement or colony, at this time, on that part of the continent as low as, or near to the fortieth degree, which he might have done, the country be- ing then unsettled by any Europeans, and entirely open to him, very different indeed might have been the present situation of affairs in North America. But it is probable, that as all northern furs are said to be much better than those of a southern climate, the French found greater profits from that trade in Canada, than the English did from the southern part of the continent, which they were at this time ex- ploring. The Sieur de Monts, was therefore, soon » Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 24, p. 406. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. %(L^ enabled to form a company under his patent, more sect. -considerable than any that had yet undertaken that .^^.^^^^^ trade. For their further encouragement, it seems, i6u4. the king, soon after the former patent to the Sieur de Monts, granted also to him and his associates, an exclusive right to the commerce of peltry in Acadie, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Thus en- couraged, they fitted out four ships. De Monts, in person, took the command of two of them, and was attended by Champlain, and a gentleman called Pontrincourt, with a number of volunteer adventu- rers.* Another of the ships was destined to carry on the fur trade at Tadoussac ; and the fourth was * Some were Protestants and some Catholics. De Monts himself was a Calvinist ; but the king allowed him and his people the exercise of their religion in America. A passage is cited in Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 147, from Charlevoix, wherein it is said, that De Monts engaged on his part, to esta- blish the Catholic religion among the natives. But the origi- nal letters patent, as in Hazard's Collections, above-cited, do not warrant this assertion ; and it is not probable, from the well known character of Henry, that any such stipulation was made by verbal agreement. It is true, that in the preamble of the letters patent, Henry sets forth his resolution, (as was usual in the first planting of America, both North and South,) to cause the native inhabitants of that country to be converted, " au Christianisme et en la creance et profession de notre foi et religion." But this seems to be explained further along in the letters, where he authorises De Monts, " les (peuples) ap- peler, faire instruire, provoquer et emouvoir a la connoissance de Dieu et a la lumiere de la foi et religion chretienne." It is not impossible, but that Charlevoix, being of the order of Je- suits, might very dextrously suppose, that the Christian reli- gion could mean nothing else than the Catholic religion, and so set it down. 118 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, given to Pontgrave, who was ordered, after touch- V. ing at Canso, (the eastern extremity of Nova Sco- 1604. tia) to scour the sea between Cape Breton and St. John's islands, and to clear it of all interlopers. De Monts, with his two ships, sailed from Havre de Grace on the 7th of March, 1604, and, after a passage of only one month, aiTived at Cap de la Heve, in Nova Scotia. In a harbour very near this cape, to the southwest, he met with an interloping vessel, commanded by one Rossignol, a Frenchman, who was trading there with the Indians without license; for which reason he seized his ship and cargo, and called the harbour Port Rossignol. Coasting thence further to the southwest, he arrrived at another haven, which his people named Port Mutton, on account of a sheep which either leaped or tumbled overboard here, and was drowned. From this port they coasted the peninsula to the soutli- west; doubled Cape Sable, and came to anchor in the bay of St. Mary. They afterwards proceeded to examine an extensive bay on the northwest of the peninsula, to which they gave the name of La Baye Francois, but which is now called the Bay of Fun- dy. On the southeastern side of this bay they dis- covered a narrow strait, into which they entered, and soon found themselves in a spacious bason, envi- roned with hills, and bordered with fertile meadows. Pontrincourt was so delighted with this place, that he determined to make it his residence, and propos- ed to send for his family, and settle there. Upon which De Monts, in virtue of his commission, made him a grant of it; and Pontrincourt gave it the name HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 119 of Port Royal, which grant was afterwards, in the sect. year 1607, confirmed to him by Henry IV. It has ^^^.^^^ since been known by the name of Annapolis Royal. i604. From Port Royal or Annapolis, De Monts sailed still further up the Bay of Fundy, in search of a copper mine, then said to lie at the head of that bay. While De Monts w^as thus engaged in his coasting voyage, Champlain, who had been despatched in a long-boat, immediately after their arrival at Cap de la Heve, to search for a proper place for a settlement, in examining the Bay of Fundy, pursuant to the instructions of De Monts, came to a large river on the northwest side of the bay, which he called St. John's, originally called by the natives Ouy-gondy. From this river, Champlain coasted the bay south- tvestwardly twenty leagues, until he came to an- other ri\'er, in exploring which he met Avith a small island, in the middle of that river, and about half a league in circumference, to which he gave the name of VIsle de St. Croix, This island he deemed to be a proper situation on which they might begin a settlement. He was soon followed thither by De Monts, who resolved to build a fort, and pass the winter there. This they did, but from their account they must have endured great hardships. The in- sular situation of the settlement precluded them from many advantages. When the winter came on, which was said to have been severe, they found themselves without fresh water, without wood for firing, and without fresh provisions. These inconveniences soon filled the little colony with diseases, particu- larly the scurvy. By the ensuing spring thirty-six 120 INTROnUCTIOX TO A SECT, of the colonists had died, and forty of them only ^^^-v-^^/ were left alive. These considerations determined 1605. De Monts to remove his colony across the bay to Port Royal. The buildings at St. Croix were left standing,* but all the stores, &c. were removed. New houses were erected at the mouth of the river L'Eqiiille, which empties itself into the basin of Port Royal, and here the people and stores were lodged. These incidents, however induced De Monts to look out for a more comfortable situation in a warmer climate. With that view he sailed southwardly along the coast to Penobscot, Kenne- bec, Caseo, Saco, and ultimately to Malebarre, * The river in which L'isle de St. Croix lies, is called the Scoodich, which was the original name given it by the na- tives, but it is also called thu St. Croix ; and being part of the boundary between the territory of the United Stales and the British province of New Brunswick, it has become a stream of considerable importance. After the treaty of 1783, by which the river St. Croix was made a boundary, it became a question which was the real St. Croix; whether the river known by the name of Scoodich, or that known by the name of Magaguadavick. It has, however, been satisfactorily de- determined, by commissioners appointed for that purpose, that the Scoodich is the river, originally named St. Croix, and the line has been settled accordingly. Professor Webber, who accompanied the commissioners in 1798, informed Mr. Holmes, that they found an island in this river, corresponding to the French descriptions of the island St. Croix, and near the upper end of it, the remains of a very ancient fortification, overgrown with large trees, that the foundation stones were traced to a considerable extent; and that bricks (a specimen of which he showed Mr. Holmes,) were found there. There is no doubt that these were the reliques of De Monts's fortifica- tion. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 149. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 121 which was at that time the French name of Cape sect. Cod. He explored divers of these rivers, bays, and ^^.^.-v-i^^^ harbours: particularly the Kennebec, up which he i605, went a considerable distance. But the natives ap- pearing numerous and unfriendly, and his company being small, he returned to St. Croix, and then to Port Royal, where he found Pontgrave, in a ship from France, with supplies, and a reinforcement of forty men. Having put his affairs into good order, he embarked for France in September, 1605, leav- ing Pontgrave as his lieutenant, with Champlain and Champelore to perfect the settlement and explore the country. M. de Monts, on his arrival in France, found, His patent revoked. that endeavours had been made to prepossess the French court against his views. The masters of the fishing vessels, who frequented the coast of Aca- die and the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which fishery is said to have been the best trade the French then had, represented to the ministry, that De Monts, on pre- tence of preventing the fur trade with the natives, to which by his patent he had an exclusive right, kept them from the necessaries fit for fishing, and that they were upon the point of abandoning the fisheries. They succeeded so far that De Monts's patent was revoked. This did not, however, en- tirely discourage him. He entered into new engage- ments with Pontrincourt, who was then likewise in France. Pontrincourt sailed asrain for America, in the „ \^?^' o ' 1 ontnn- year 1606, in an armed vessel from Rochelle. The <;""''t's en- deavours colony which had been left at Port Royal under the to fix a set- care of Pontgrave, was, by die time of the arri- port kov- 122 IKTRODUCTION TO A SFCT. val of Pontgrave ofF Cape Canso, reduced to such s,^-^^^-^^ difficulties, that Pontrincourt was obhged to reem- 1606. barjj: all the inhabitants but two, w horn he left to , X- take care of the effects he could not carr)^ off. How- al, Nova -' Scotia, ever, before he got out of the Bay of Fundy he heard of Pontrincourt's arrival at Canso, upon which he returned to Port Royal, where, about the same time, Pontrincourt arri^ td. The relief which Pontrincourt brought to this infant colony, came so sieasonably, that it again held up its head; but its prosperity is said to have been in a great measure owing to the spirit and abilities of Le Carbot, a French lawyer, who, partly from friendship to Pon- trincQu^l:, and partly through curiosity, had accom- panied him in this \^oyage. It would seem also, that about this time Pontgra\ c, said to be the ablest man by tlu- of any concerned in these projected set- tlements, resigned his command. 16;;7. In the next year, 1607, Pontrincourt returned to De'^Moml ^"r^i^ce, and the king, induced probably by his fa- oi)tains a yourablc representations of the country, either con- tion of his firmed or rcgranted to the Sieur De Monts his for- ^'''"' mer exclusive privilege for the fur trade with the natives, for the purpose, as it is said, of enabling him to establish his colonies in New France. De Moists accordingly sent over, in the year 1608, three ships with families, to commence a perma- nent settlement. Champlain, who took the charge of conducting this colony, after examining all the most eligible places for settlement in Acadie, and the river St. Lawrence, selected a spot at the con- fiuence of this river and the St. Charles, another small riYtv empt} ing into the former, about three HISTORY OF MAUYLANU. 123 hundred and twenty miles ui) the river St. Lawrence, sect. . V from the sea. Here, on the third of July, 1608, v^,<-^r^^^ he began to erect barracks for lodgings for his peo- 16O8. pie, and to clear the ground, which he sowed with l^i"'i,^7'^*" wheat and rye, and on this si^ot laid the foundation ^'^*^ '^''^'^ of Quebec, the present cai^ital of Canada.* The^ent coio- iiy ill C;an- succeeding events relative to Acadie and Canada, aik, under appertain to the histories of those countries. It isp-^'^,, " now our business to return to the at last successful attempts of the English at colonisation. • Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p 408, 413. Holmes's An- nals, Vol. 1, p. 148, 163. SECTION VI. A new association formed in England, to colonise America — The let- ters patent commonly called the first charter of Virginia — Proceed- ings of the Plymouth Company under this charter — The kiii(?'s in- structions relative to both the colonies or companies to be formed under this charter— Proceedings of tlie first or South Virginia Com- pany — The first colony sent out to South Virginia under Newport, and a permanent settlement formed at James' town. « ALTHOUGH one hundred and eighty years sect. had now elapsed, since the discovery of the northern ^^^^^..^^.,^„^ part of the continent of America, by Cabot, yet the 16O6. Enghsh had as yet made no effectual settlement in any f^ "j^^^^'* part of this new world. From the coast of Labrador formed in „ ., Kngland, to the Cape of Florida, not a single European family to colonise was to be found, except the small settlement of Spa- niards at St. Augustine, and a few French at Port Royal, in Acadie. The period, however, of Eng- lish colonisation was at length arrived. Through the unremitting endeavours of the rev. Mr. Richard Hackluyt, before mentioned,* or, as some will have it, through the zeal and exertions of captain Bartho- lomew Gosnold,t who had made the successful voyage of experiment in the year 1602, before spoken of, an association was formed in England in the year 1606, consisting both of men of rank and men of business, who had resoh'ed to repeat the at- • Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 176, 177. t Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 220> Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 75. 126 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, tempt to colonise some part of North America. The VI. former grant made to Sir Walter Raleigh being now 1606. void by his conviction and attainder for high trea- son, for which he now lay imprisoned in the tower, it was supposed that a clearer way was thereby opened to any subsequent royal grant for the same purpose. This association of respectable merchants and gentlemen, therefore, now petitioned the king for the sanction of his authority, to warrant the ex- ecution of their plans. It was not a subject with which James was altogether unacquainted : he had before this, turned his attention to consider the ad- vantages which might be derived from colonies, at a time when he patronised his scheme for planting them in some of the ruder provinces of his ancient kingdom of Scotland, with a view of introducing there, industr}^ and civilization.* He was now no less fond of directing the active genius of his Eng- lish subjects, towards occupations not repugnant to his own pacific maxims, and listened with a favour- able ear to their application. The let- He accordingly, by letters patent bearing date the tent lorn- tenth day of April, in the fourth year of his reign, "luedthe (A- ^- 1606,) at the desire and request of the ap- firstchar- pficauts, divided that portion of North America giuia. which stretches from the thirty-fourth to the forty - fifth degree of north latitude, into two districts nearly equal, and the members of the association " into two several colonies and companies ;. the one consisting of certain knights, gentlemen, merchants, * Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 178. Also see note (G) at the end of this volume. HISTORY OF MARYLAXD. 127 and other adventurers of our city of London^ and sf.ct. . . VI. elsewhere, which are, and from time to time shall v,^^/--*^ be, joined unto them, which do desire to begin ^gog. their plantation and habitation in some fit and con- venient place, between four-and-thirty and one and- forty degrees of the said latitude, alongst the coasts of Virginia, and the coasts of America aforesaid : and the other consisting of sundr}^ knights, gentle- men, merchants, and other adventurers of our cities of Bristol and Exeter, and of our town of Plimouthy and of otlier places which da join themselves unto " that colony, which do desire to begin their planta- tion and habitation, in some fit and convenient place between eight-and-thirty degrees and five-and-forty degrees of the said latitude, all alongst the said coasts of Virginia and America, as that coast lytth."^ • Robertson, in his History of Virginia, (see his Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 178,) seems to make the above division of the continent of America, an act of the king himself, as- sifjning the reason of that division to have been, that " a grant of the whole of such a vast region to any one body of men, however respectable, appeared to the king an act of impolitic and profuse liberaiiiy. In his History of New England (same Vol. p. 255,) he seems to assign a difi'erent reason: " tliis ar- rangement (meaning the division above-mentioned) seems to have been formed upon the idea of some speculative refiner, Wiio aimed at diffusing the spirit of industry by fixingtheseat of one branch of the trade that was now to be opened, on the east coast of the island, (^Great Britain,) and the other on the West." But whoever w 11 attentively read the letters patent, will see that this division was made at the 8ji<;ciul instance and request, of the association. It is probable, indeed, that the vast extent of the country to be colonised might have suggested to the asseciators a reason for requesting it to be divided into two 128 fNTRODUCTION TO A And granted, " that Sir Thomas Gates, Sir George Somers, Richard Hackluyt, and Edward 1606. Maria Wingfield, adventurers of and for our city of London, and all such others, as are, or shall be joined unto them of that colony, shall be called the first colony ; and they shall, and may begin their said first plantation and habitation, at any place upon the said coast of Virginia or America, where they shall think fit and convenient, between the said four- and-thirty and one-and-forty degrees of the said la- ' titude ; and that they shall have all the lands, &c. from the said first seat of their plantation and habi- tation by the space of fifty miles of English statutes measure, all along the said coast of Virginia and America, towards tlie west and southwest, as the coast Iveth, with all the islands within one hundred miles directly over against the same sea-coast ; and also all the lands, &c. from the said place of their first plantation, &:c. for the space of fifty like Eng- lish miles, all alongst the said coasts, &c. towards the east and northeast, or towards the north, as the coast lyeth, together with all the islands, &c. and also all the lands, &c. from the same fifty miles every way on the sea- coast, directly into the main land, by the space of one hundred like English miles." And likewise granted, "that Thomas Hanham colonies. See Hubbard M. S. N. Eng. 29, cited in Holmes's i^nnals, Vol. I, p. 152, note 1. To which may be added also, the probability, that as many of the associators resided in De- vonshire, at Exeter, and Plymouth, the convenience of a se- parate arrangement into two trading companies, might have been a further reason for the division. See Oldmixon's Bri- tish Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 26, HISTORY OF MAR\*LAND, 129 and Raleigh Gilbert, *^ William Parker and George sect. Popham, and all others of the town of Plimouth^ in ,^^^,-^^^>^. the county of Devon, or elsewhere, which are, or 16O6. shall be joined unto them of that colony, shall be jcalled the second colony ; and that they shall and may begin their plantation. Sec. at any place between eight-and-tliirty and five-and-forty degrees of the same latitude, &c." (with the like limitations as be». fore to the first colony.) " Provided always, that the plantation and habita- tion of such of the said colonies, as shall last plant themselves, as aforesaid, shall not be made within one hundred like English miles of the other of them, that first began to make their plantation, as afore- said." " And we do also ordain, establish, and agree, that each of the said colonies shall have a council, which shall govern and order all matters and causes which shall arise within the same several colonies, according to such laws, ordinances, and instruc- tions, as shall be, in that behalf, given and signed with our hand or sign manual, and pass under the privy seal of our realm of England : each of which councils shall consist of thirteen persons, to be or- dained, made, and removed, from time to time, ac- cording as shall be directed and comprised in the same instructions." " And that also there shall be a council establish- ed here in England, which shall, in like manner, consist of thirteen persons, to be, for that purpose, * Son of the famous navigator before-mentioned. Sir Hum- phrey Gilbert. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 270. J 30 INTRODUCTION TO A SKCT. appointed by us, our heirs, and successors, which ,,^J!^X^ shall be called our coimcil ofFirgiiiia ; which shall, 1606. from time to time, have the superior direction of all matters concerning the government of the said colo- nies."* He moreover granted license to the several coun- cils of the said colonies, to cause search to be made for mines of gold, silver, and copper, yielding to him the fifth part of the gold and silvcr,t and the fifteenth of the copper, that should be got there- from ; and to cause money to be coined. He likewise authorised each of the aforesaid com- panies, to take to the said plantations and colonies, as many of his subjects as would wiUingly accom- pany them. Provided that none of the said persons should be such, as should thereafter be specially re- strained by him, his heirs, or successors. He moreover granted license to the said colonies, for their several defences, to encounter, expulse, re- * The reader cannot but observe here, a considerable simi- litude, if there was not an intended imitation, of the Spanish mode of governing their colonies, adopted shortly after their conquests of Mexico and Peru, early in the sixteenth century, about the year 1511. Their colonies in America were divid- ed into two viceroy-ships, north and south, of which Mtxico and Peru were the principal provinces. Over these, the royal council of the Indien, (permanently held in the mother coun- try, in the place where the monarch resides, and in which council he is supposed to be always present), has the supreme government of all the Spanish dominions in America. See Robertson's Hist, of America, (book 8,) Vol. 4, p. 19. t This was the proportion reserved by the king of Spain, ffom the Spanish mines of gold and silver in America. Har- '' ris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 164. Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 366, note 34. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 131 pel, and resist all such persons, as, without their skct. special license, should attempt either to inhabit ^^^.^j within their several precincts, or annoy them. i^us. He authorised also, each of the said colonies, to take all persons, with their vessels and goods, who should be found trafficking in any harbour, creek, or place within their respective limits, not being of the same colony, until they should agree to pay into the hands of the treasurer of that colony, within whose precincts they should so traffick ; if the king's subjects, two and a half per cent, upon the wares and merchandises so trafficked ; if strangers, five per cent. : which sums of money, for one-and-twenty years next ensuing the date of the letters patent, should be appropriated to the use of the plantation, where such traffick should be made ; at the end of which period, to be to the use of the king.* Also, that the said colonies might import out of any of the king's dominions into their respective plantations, all goods whatever, without paying any duty thereon, for the space of seven years next en- suing the date of the said letters patent. He also declared, that all persons who should dwell and inhabit within either of the said colonies, and their children born therein, should have and en- * Robertson (in his Hist, of America, book 9, Vol. 1, p. 181,) has construed this clause as giving to these colonies, " the unlimited permission of trade with foreigners," and mentions it as one of the articles in it "unfavourable to the interest of the parent state, as it deprived the parent state of that exclusive commerce, which has been deemed tlie chief advantage resulting from the establishment of colonies." It demonstrates, however, that James was, at this timej sincer^^ in his encouragement of these colonies.. 13^ INTRODUCTIOX TO A joy all liberties, franchises, and immunities, as if they had been abiding, or born m ithin the realm of 1606. England. And finally, that all lands in each of the said co- lonies should be held of the king, his heirs and suc- cessors, as of his manor of East- Greenwich, in the comity of Kent, in free and common soccage only, and not in capite.* The most remarkable clauses in these letters pa- tent, are those which prescribe the mode of govern^ ment for these colonies, to wit : that the councils in each colony should govern according to such laws, ordinances, and instructions, as should be given and signed by the king ; and that he should have die power of appointment and removal of all such per- sons as should compose the two councils in the co- lonies, as well as those at home forming the council qfV'irgmm. It must be ackno\^"ledged, that these clauses do not explicitly invest the king with the power of making the laws, ordinances, and instruc- tions, since the latter of them particularly provides that the council of Virginia should have the superior management and direction of all matters that shall, or may concern the government of the said colonies ; which seems to imply, that t4ie council of Virginia at home, should have the power of making such laws, ordinances, and instructions, to be approved of and signed by the king. This construction seems to be warranted by Avhat is called the second charter of Virginia^ (in 1609,) wherein it is expressly so ^ * See the letters patent at large in Hazard's Collections., V^ol. Ij p. jO. HISTORY OF MARYLAXa 13Z provided. But the power of appointment and re- sbct. moval, as before-mentioned, certainly \ ested a great ^„^^-v->^ preponderating influence with the king; and he' i6C6. might, without doubt, propound to the council at home, what laws, ordinances, and instructions he pleased, or might reject any proposed by them. These clauses, indeed, ai-e not to be reconciled to the present ideas of jjolitical liberty entertained in either America or England. The principles of an elective and representative government, were deve- loped by the English revolutionists, in 1690, with such wisdom and moderation, and have been che- rished by their descendants in America with so, much ardour, that there are few readers among us at this day, who would approve of a mode of go- vernment so repugnant to those principles. But it ought to be remembered, as the best historian of England has clearly demonstrated,* that the two first English princes of the house of Stuart, were not tyrants in their natural disposition. There is strong presumption, that James the first sincerely believed, that his prerogative was, by the English constitution, paramount to the laws; or, at least, that ^vhere parliament had made no provision, his proclamations, in virtue of his sovereign authority, v;ere the substitutes of laws. And although his son Charles, instigated by tlie unprincipled Buck- ingham, manifested at the first of his reign, a strong inclination to reiKler himself despotic, yet much al- lowance is to be made for him, on account of ' liis dxlucation under his father, from whom he would naturally im.bibe all that monarch's metaphysic no- * Hame. 134 INTllODUCTION TO A SECT, tions of the J lire divino power of kings.* It is cer- ^^^^!X>^ tain that the arbitrary conduct of their immediate 1606. predecessors of the Tudor line, particularly queen Elizabeth and Henry VIII, seemed too strongly to authorise them in these sentiments. Although James's English subjects began in his reign to hold the privileges of parliament and the power of the house of commons in higher estimation than for- merly, yet the temper of the age was not then such as to view with much scrutiny or jealousy such small aberrations from the fundamental principles of a representative government as were to be found in an abstract clause of a Charles, as yet unexecuted. It was therefore without hesitation or reluctance, that the patentees of these colonies prepared, under the authority of this charter, to execute their respec- tive plans. Proceed- Although only four gentlemen are specially na- vivnilfuth i«ed in the foregoing letters, as patentees for the Company second colouy, yet the general expression, " and all ciiaiter. othcrs of the town of Plymouth, in the county of De- von, or elsewhere, who shall be joined unto them of that colony," — necessarily implied the association of other persons with them for the purpose of mana- ging the affairs of the second colony, which asso- ciation now assumed the indiscriminate appellations of the Plymouth Company, and the North Virginia colony. Accordingly, we find mention made of the interference of so high and respectable a charac- * Voltaire's character of Charles seems to be just: " He was a good husband, a good master, a good father, and an honest man : but he was an ill-advised king." ^ge of Louis' XIV, Vol. I, p. 19. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 135 VI. 1606. ter as Sir John Popham, lord chief justice of Eng- sect land, as one of the members of the Plymouth Com- ^ pany, and a great promoter of the design. Mr. George Popham, one of the patentees, was his bro- ther.* Sir Ferdinando Gorges, then governor of Plymouth, and several other west- countrymen and merchants are mentioned also as being concerned in this company, t They seem to have been more ex- peditious than the members of the London Compa- ny, in their first attempts to carry into effect the in- tentions of the Charter. In August, 1606, they dis- patched a ship of fifty tons, under the command of Henry Challons, to make further discovery of the coasts of North Virginia ; and, if it should appear expedient, to leave as many men, as he could spare, in the country. On his passage, however, from the West India islands towards the American coast, he and his crew, consisting of about thirty persons, were taken by a Spanish fleet, and carried into Spain, where his vessel was confiscated. Although this misfortune considerably abated the ardour of the Plymouth company; yet the lord chief justice Pop- • Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Vol. 1, p. 10. t Oldmixon's British Emp. in America, Vol. 1, p. 26. — It may be proper to observe here, that, although the two colo- nies were to be under the direction and government of the king- and his council of Virginia^ yet the associators who ap- plied to the king for his letters patent became thereby divi- ded also into two mercantile or trading companies, one at London, the other at Plymouth, the former as proprietors of the first or South Virginia colony, and the latter as proprie- tors of the second or North Virginia colony, but each colony subject to the " laws, ordinances, and instructions" of tht kini^ and his council of Virginia. 136 INTRODUCTION TO A i SECT, ham having, immediately after the departure of ^^^^^-.^-i^^ Challons, sent out, at his own expense, another ship, I J606. under the command of Thomas Hanam, one of the patentees, whose business was not so much to settle a colony as to make discoveiy in order thereto, the account given of the country on the return of this ship was so fa\ourable as to cherish in a considera- ble degree the spirit of enterprise necessary for fur- ther undertakings.* The Mean-while, in order to effectuate the purpose of l^stmc- ^^^^ letters patent, a set of instructions, under the ti -i^-kinsr's privy seal, relative to both colonies or com- tiveto b 1 . ' bcui coio- panics, in pursuance of the before-mentioned impor- tant clause in these letters, were made out on the twentieth of November, in the same year. Whe- ther these instructions were drawn up by the king himself, history does not expressly say.f As James * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 270, and Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. l54, where it is said, that Sir Ferdinando Gorges observed, on this occasion, that Martin Pring(or Prinn) who "went with Hanam in this voyage, (and who had commanded tiie voyage of discovery in the year 1603, as before mentioned,) brought, on his return from this last-mentioned voyage, the most exact account of the Virginia coast, that ever came to J his hand. What part of the American coast they visited does not appear in modern authors who mention this voyage. The particulars of it, however, are probably to be found in Pur- chas's Pilgrimages. t Marshall (in his Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 25,) calls them a Code of Laws, framed by the king, for the govern- ment of the colonies. This would impress the reader with an idea, that James in his vanity, had compiled a volume of laws for the occasion. But a recurrence to the instrument will show that the title of " Orders and Instructions for the colo* HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 13* was not a little vain of his talents as a writer, and sect. not much less so as a legislator, there is great pro- ^ ^' bability that they were the dictates of his o^vll i6u6 mind. If the arbitrary power which he supposed to be annexed to the prerogative of his crown, be allowed him, there is nothing in them but what was consonant to his usual exercise of that preroga- tive, and apparently necessary to carry into eftect the provisions of the charter. The patentees or proprietors of the^r^^ or South Proceed- Virginia colomj, proceeded with more effect, though filS or ^^ not with so much expedition, as those of the second vh"li!,ia colony. On the receipt of their letters patent, pre- company. parations for the purpose had been undertaken by three small vessels, one of a hundred tons, another of forty, and a pinnace of twenty, with everything requisite for settling a colony, consisting of one hundred and five persons, were provided by the lat- ter end of the year, and the naval command thereof, together with the care of transporting the colony, was entrusted to capt. Christopher Newport, said to be " a mariner of celebrity and experience on the American coast." Besides the set of " orders and instructions," under the king's privy seal before-mentioned, two other several sets of instructions were given by the South Virginia Company, on this occasion. One to capt. Cliristopher Newport, concerning the naval command and transportation of the colony: the nies," which other v/riters give it, is more correct. Hohnes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 153. — See them nearly at large, in Bark's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 85. 138 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. Other, to him, (Newport,) in conjunction with capt. '^/^VN^ Bartholomew Gosnold and capt. John RatchfFe, re- 1606. specting the form and administration of the govern- ment. These last, being the most important, were close sealed, and accompanied with orders that they were not to be opened for twenty -four hours after their arrival on the coast of Virginia. To these were added also by his majesty, by way of advice, instructions of a general nature; containing, how- ever, one or two strange particulars, concerning a communication by some river or lake between Vir- ginia and the Indian or South Sea.* The first This little squadron sailed from Blackwall, on semTuttothe Thames, on the twentieth of December, 1606; gtnilTu^"' but by some unlucky accidents, were for several tier New- ^^ecks detained on the coast of England. At last, port, and ^ . , . a perma- thcy coutiuucd their voyage, and havmg taken m tiemeiit frcsh watcr and other necessaries at the Canaries, jame^s^ ""^ proceeded to the Caribbee islands, where they arri- town. ^^^ Qj^ ^j^g twenty-tliird of Februar}^, 1607, and staid amongst them, but chiefly in the island of Nevis, about five weeks. These delays seem to have af- forded nourishment to some violent dissensions, which arose, during the voyage among the adventu- rers. Jealousy of power, and envy of preferment, seem to have been at the bottom of them. Symp- toms of these dissensions made their appearance be- fore the squadron had cleared the English coast, but they were in some measure allayed, it seems, by the prudent conduct and pious exhortations of their chaplain, the rev. Mr. Hunt. They, however, * Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 93. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 1^ eventuated in the arrest of capt. John Smith, on the sect. '^ VI absurd charge of an intention to murder the council, ^_^r>r^ usurp the government, and make himself king of 1607. Virginia; and he was accordingly kept in close con- finement during the remainder of the voyage. Smith was, perhaps, the most extraordinary personage, of whom the early histories of North America have made mention. The accounts of his adventures in the east of Europe, seem rather to have been boi^- rowed from some romance of the thirteenth century than taken from any real scenes of life. After these adventures, he had returned to England, his native country, and had accidentally formed an acquaint- ance with captain Gosnold, in the height of the zeal of the latter for colonising America. Gosnold rightly conceiving that Smith's active genius was peculiarly fitted for such an undertaking, communi- cated his schemes to him. They were ardently em- braced by him, and he embarked with the other co- lonists for America. Thus disturbed by internal dissensions, the little fleet left the West Indies, on the third of April, 1607, but not fallmg in with the land for tliree days after their reckoning was out, serious propositions were made for returning to England. The place of their destination was the old disastrous situation at Roanoke; but fortunately they were overtaken by a storm, which drove them to the mouth of the Chesapeake, which they entered on the twenty- sixth of April. The promontory on the south side of the entrance into the bay, they called Cape Henry, in honour of the then prince of Wales, who died not . 140 INTHODUCTTON TO ▲ SRCT. long afterwards, and that on the north side Cape ^^-y.>^ Charles, in honour of the then duke of York, who i6or. -vvas afterwards king Charles I, of England. Impa- tient to land, a party of about thirty men went on shore at Cape Henry, to recreate and refresh them- selves, but they were suddenly and boldly attacked by only five savages, who wounded two of them ver}' dangerously. A large and beautiful river which empties itself into the bay, on the west of Cape Henry, naturally first invited their attention. It was in that season of the year when the country is clothed in its richest verdure, and seemed to pre- sent itself to them dressed in its most attractive charms. In search of some fit place for a settle- ment, they proceeded up this river, to which they gave the name of James, in honour of his majesty; though called by the natives Powhatan^ probably in honour of their grand chief or sovereign, who occasionally dwelt on its banks. Near the mouth of this river they met with five of the natives, who invited them to their town, Kecoughtan, or Kicho- tan, where Hampton now stands. Here those who went on shore were feasted with cakes made of In- dian com, and ^' regaled with tobacco and a dance."* In return, they presented to the natives beads and other trinkets. As they proceeded further up the river^ another company of Indians appeared in arms. Their chief Apamatica, holding in one hand his bow and arrows, and in the other a pipe of to- bacco, demanded the cause of their coming. They made signs of peace, and were received in a friend- • Smith's Hist, of Virginia. HISTORY OF MAIIYLAND. 14,1 ly manner. On further exploring the river they sf.ct. came to a peninsula, situated on the north side of v^rw** it, where they were also hospitably received by the ^^7. natives, whose chief Paspiha, being informed of their intentions, offered them as much land as they wanted, and sent them a deer for their entertain- ment. As this peninsula was so situated as not only to afford them convenient anchorage, but some security against any invasion of the natives, it was fixed upon as the most eligible spot for their first colonisation. Accordingly they here debarked on the 13th of May, and called the place James' town, which name it has ever since retained. The sealed instructions before-mentioned being now opened, it was found, that Bartholomew Gosnold, John Smith, Edward Maria Wingfield, Christopher Newport, John Maitin, John Ratcliffe, and George Kendall, were appointed counsellors, who being duly sworn, proceeded, according to the king's instruction un- der the privy seal before-mentioned, to elect tlieir president, of which their choice fell upon Edward Maria Wingfield. They excluded Smith from the council, and a declaration was entered on their mi- nutes, setting down at large their reasons for so doing. He was released from his confinement, but it was with some difficulty that he could obtain a trial in the colony, his accusers proposing that he should be sent to England for that purpose. After a fair hearing, however, he was honourably acquit- ted of the charges against him, and took his seat in the council. As a minute detail of the proceedings of these 142 INTRODUCTION, &c. SECT, colonists, and the events which attended them, more ^^^^,^^.1^^ properly appertains to a history of Virginia, of im. which there are several, we shall for the future con- fine ourselves only to those incidents thereof which have some immediate relation to that of Maryland* SECTION VII. I'he distresses of the first Virginia colony, and the services of cap- tain Smith — His first attempt to explore the bay of Chesapeake— His second attempt more successful — A general sketch of the tribes of Indians then inhabiting Virginia and Maryland—Smith becomes president of Virginia, and the tenor of some instructions from England to Virginia — An attempt of the Plymouth company to settle a colony in Maine — The second charter of Virginia, and the causes of granting it — The settlement of the Dutch at New York — English attempt to settle Newfoundland — The third charter of Virginia — Captain Argall's expedition to break up the French and Dutch settlements at Nova Scotia and New York. DURING the remaining part of the year 1607, sect. after the arrival and settlement of this first Virginia i^^v-Ly colony at James' town, it appears to have struggled leor. with much difficultv for existence. The provisions '^^^ ^^^'r. •' ^ *■ tresses oi which were left for their sustenance by Newport, the first who sailed with his ships for England, some time in colony, June this year, were not only scanty, but bad in servicers of their quality, having received damage in the holds g^^-^h" of their ships during the voyage. Hence the colo- lonists became subject to diseases, arising as well from the unhealthiness of the climate, as from a scai'city bordering on famine. This contributed much to a diminution of their numbers. They were harassed also with repeated attacks by the na- tives, who were far from being content with the visit of these strangers, when they found out that it would probably be permanent. Added to those difficulties, the conduct of their president Wing- field, and his successor Ratcliffe, was such as to 144 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, excite considerable disturbance and dissatisfaction. VII. t,,^->r's,^ Disregarding the distresses of the colony, these I60r. presidents had not only consumed the stores of pro- visions, in the indulgence of their own luxury, but had planned schemes for deserting the country and escaping to England. Smith, ^ whose active and vigorous mind had been constantly employed dur- ing these distresses, both in protecting the colony from the hostile attacks of the savages, and in pro- curing from the natives corn and other provisions, was obviously the only member of the council in whom the colonists could, with any confidence, re- pose the administration of their affairs. Pursuing with ardour, his endeavours to procure supplies, as well as to explore the country, he was unfortunately captured by the Indians ; but after undergoing an interesting series of adventures, with them for seven weeks, his life was almost miraculously saved, tlirough the amiable interposition of the princess Pocahontas, a favourite daughter of the emperor Powhatan. Restored to the colony again, his influ- ence became doubly necessary. Wearied with their hardships and distresses, a great portion of the co- lony had determined to abandon the country. He an'ived just in time to prevent the execution of their design. By persuasion, he obtained a majority for continuing ; and by force, he compelled the mino- rity to submit. He now experienced also, some benefit from his captivity ; for it acquired him con- siderable repute among the Indians, and enabled him to preserve the colony in plenty of provisions until the arrival of two vessels, which had been dis- patched from England under the command of cap- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 145 Win Newport, with a supply of provisions, of instru- sect. ments of husbandry, and with a reinforcement of ,^^^,^,^,1^^^ one hundred and twenty persons. i608. This seasonable accession of force and provi- His first sions, although it brought joy to the colonists, yet expu^re ^ had the inconvenience of inducing them again to a^I^^^^'^^ °^ relaxation of discipline, and to a neglect of the ad- peake. vice and direction of Smith, who zealously opposed their idle pursuit of ^vealth, in loading the ships des- tined to return in the spring, with an imaginary golden ore, instead of preparing for their future sub- sistence. Perceiving this, he bent his attention to more important pursuits. Well knowing that this fatal delusion would end in a scarcity of food, which Jiad indeed already begun to be felt, he proposed, as they had not hitherto extended their researches beyond the countries contiguous to James' river, to open an intercourse with the more remote tribes, >and to explore the shores of that vast reserv^oir of waters — the bay of Chesapeake. The execution of this arduous design, he undertook himself, ac- companied by doctor Russell, in an open boat of about three tons burthen, and with a crew of thir- teen men. On the second of June, he fell down the river in company with the boat of Newport's vessels, under the command of captain Nelson; and pcUting with her at the capes, began his sur- vey at Cape Charles* He examined, with im- mense fatigue and danger, every river, inlet, and bay, on both sides of the Chesapeake, as far as the mouth of the Rappahanock ; from whence he re- turned on the twenty-first of July to James' tewn - T l46 IKTRODUCTION TO A sEic;T. according to some, through tlie want of provisions,*" i.^->^^y^ but more probably, as mentioned by others,! from i60«. an accident which happened to him at the mouth of the Rappahanock. Having stuck with his sword, a fish called the Stingray, which lay in the sedge, the animal struck him in the wrist with the thorn which lay in its tail. The pain was for some time so vio- lent, and the appearance of the wound so swoln and livid, that his life was despaired of. From this place they immediately sailed to James' town ; and in memory of this event, a small island at the mouth- of that river has been called Stingray island.J On his return to James' town, he found the co- lony in the utmost confusion and disorder. Those who had arrived last with Newport, were all sick ; a general scarcity prevailed, and an universal dis- content with the president, Ratclifie, whom they charged witli riotously consuming the stores, and mmecessarily fatiguing the people with building a house of pleasure for himself in the woods. The seasonable arrival of Smith, prevented their fury from breaking out into acts of personal violence ; and they contented themselves with deposing their president. Whether Smith was immediately thereon * Marshall's Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 39. t Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 121. \ Rurk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1 , p. 1 2 1 . I find it so re- lated by Burk, who probably took it from Stith ; but it is to be observed, that no island is there laid down in bishop Ma- dison's new map of Virginia, but the south cape of Rappa- hanock is there denominated Stingray Point. As the island is mentioned to have been small, it may possibly have been since washed away, or not worthy of notice in a map. SUSTORY OF MARYLAND. I47. elected president in his stead, or whetlier that event sect. was postponed until his return from his second ex- ^ "' pedition up the Chesapeake, does not appear certain 160.8. from the historians of Virginia. It seems, however, that Mr. Matthew Scrivener, a man of respectabi- lity, who had been sent from England with Newport in his last voyage, and nominated one of the coun- cil in Virginia, was elected vice-president by the colonists ; which seems to imply that Smith was considered by them, as their president, but that Scrivener should be intrusted with the administra- tion of the affairs of the colony, during his absence. Smith accordingly prepared for pursuing his His se. scheme, of thoroughly exploring the Chesapeake ; l^'i^l^^' and it is on this expedition, we are to consider him ""^''^^''t^r ^ cessiul, as the first European adventurer, who had ever pe- netrated into the interior parts of the country now constituting the state of Maryland. After remain- ing since his return, only three dayii at James' town, he set out again on the twenty-fourth of July, with twelve men; probably in the same open vessel, which he had used before. But before we follow Mr. Smith, in his route up . 1 • , ^ general the Chesapeake, it may be well to pay some atten- sketch of tion to the accounts which writers upon this subject oHndia^n^s have given us of the situation of some of the prin- vh-ghS'^' cipal nations of Indians, tosrether ^vith a few of the f "^ Mary * . ' o land. subordinate tribes, who were found to inhabit on the borders of the Chesapeake, when the Europeans first intruded on them. The country which now forms the state of Virginia, including also a part of the state of Maryland, was occupied by upwards of forty different tribes of Indians. These tribes werc 148 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, formed again into three great and distinct confede- ^..^^._. racies or nations, denominated the Powhatans^ the 1608. Manahoacs, and Monacam. Each of these three nations spoke a different language, and were under separate and distinct governments, insomuch that interpreters were necessary when they transacted business with each other. The Powhatans possessed all that part of the country bordering on the sea-board and the Chesa- peake, which extends from North Carolina to the mouth of the Patuxent, in Maryland. On the westward, their territories seem to have been bound- ed by a supposed line running with the highlands, and crossing the heads of the rrvers from North Carolina to the head of the Patuxent.* Some of the Powhatans are said also to have occupied what is now called the eastern shore of Virginia, under the denomination of the Accohanocs and Acco- macks, from whence probably Accomack county took its name. The Monacans inhabited that part of Virginia which lies on the highlands, to the westward of a line drawn through the falls of James' river, in ex- tent from York river to North Carplina.f The Manahoacs appear to have possessed that * See Mr. Charles Thompson's note (5) in the Appendix to Mr. Jefferson's Notes. Also Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 112. t The Monacans afterwards assumed the name of Tusca- roras, and for some cause deserted their country in Virginia about the year 17 12, and joined the Iroquois, commonly called the Five JVations^ making the Sixth. Colden's Hist, of the Jive Nations, p. 5. Jefferson's Notes, query IJ. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 149 part of Virginia, in the highlands, to the westward sect. of the Powhatans, lying between the York and Pa- v^r-v->^ towmack rivers. These two nations, (the Monacans 1603. and Manahoacs,) were in amity with each other, but waged joint and perpetual war against the Powha- tans. That part of Maryland which lies between the Patuxent and the Patapsco rivers from the bay to the Alleghaney mountains, seems to have been inha- bited by a nation called the Shawanees,* still ex- isting in the northwestern parts of the United States, t The Susqiiehanocks appear to have lived along the river Susquehanah, to the westward thereof, not only in Maryland, but to a considerable extent in Pennsylvania, probably occupying that part of Ma- ryland which forms Harford county ; and to the northward and eastward of them was a nation called originally Lenopi, by the French Loups, but since by the English Delawares, whose country is said to have extended from the Hittatinny mountains to Duck-creek, in the state of Delaware, including all the Jerseys and the southeastern part of Pennsyl- vania. It is not improbable, that it included also a part of Coecil county in Maryland. | * See Charles Thompson's not^ (5) to Jefferson's Notes. t They, together with several other Indian nations, sub- scribed a treaty with the United States, bearing date Novem- ber 25th, 1808. % See Thompson's note above-cited ; where it is mentioned that a tribe of the Loups or Delawares, called Chihohockiy oc- cupied t|ie remainder part of the Delaware state, along the west side of the Delaware river, which by them was formerly called Chihohocki, 150 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. The rest of the Eastern Shore of Mar}'land ap*- ^-^.^ pears to have been possessed by two, nations ; one 1608. called the Tockwocks., the other the Nanticokes ; the former occupying Kent, Queen Ann's, and Talbot counties : that is, from the Sassafras river to the Choptank, the latter Dorchester and Somerset coun- ties.* * See Evans's Map of the Middle British Colonies, pub- lished in 1755. Mr. Charles Thompson, hi note (7) in the Appendix to Jefferson's Notes, says, that " the Nanticokes were formerly of a nation that lived at the head of Chesapeake bay, and who of late years, have been adopted into the Mingo or Iroquois confederacy, and make a seventh nation ; the Monacans or Tuscaroras making the sixth," (as befiare-men- tioned.) But, whether the " Nanticokes" here meant by him, were the same nation as the Minticokes, above-mentioned, does not appear quite certain, though probable. The circum- stance mentioned by Mr. Thompson, that the " Nanticokes" lately joined the Iroquois, is true also of the Nanticokes of Dorchester and Somerset, in Maryland. In the year 1768, a remnant of the Nanticoke Indians, some of them residing on their lands situated on the north bank of the Nanticoke river, in Dorchester county, and others of them on a creek emptying into the head of the said river, called Broad creek, in Somer- set county, petitioned the assembly of Maryland, for leave to sell their said lands, or to receive some compensation for them ; for which purpose an act was passed in that year, the preamble of which states, " whereas the greatest part of the tribe of the Nanticoke Indians, have some years ago, left and deserted the lands in the province, appropriated by former acts of assembly for their use, and the few that remain here, by their petition, prayed that they might have liberty to dis- pose of their right to the said lands, or that some compensa- tion should be made them for quitting claim thereto, as they are desirous of totally leaving this province, and going to live with their brethren, who have incorfiorated themselves with the Six A'ationsf ijfe." The sale was accordingly effected through HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 151 We arc now to accompany Mr. Smith in his sect. voyage up the Chesapeake. The first object of his y^^^^v-s- notice, as they naturally presented themselves, was icos. - that cluster of islands, now usually denominated the Tangier islands ; the largest of which, from their first discoverer, still retains the name of Smith's island. Leaving these islands, it appears, that he then explored the eastern shores of what is now called Poconoke bay, into which the river Poco- noke empties. Departing from thence, he passed a high point of land, which he called Point Ployer^ but which in all probability was the same point now well known under the denomination of Watkyns's Point, and referred to in the charter or grant of Ma- the agency of a certain Amos Ogden, a deputy acting undei" Sii' William Johnson, at that time his majesty's superintend- ant of Indian affairs for the northern department ; and the re- mainder of the Nanticokes removed from the province. Some notice may be here taken also, of some Indians, who were set- tled in Dorchester county, on the south bank of the Choptank river, and who, as far back as the year 1669, have been known under the denomination of the " Choptank Indians,'* as ap» pears by an act of assembly of that year, appropriating to them certain lands lying on the south bank of the Choptank river, and Secretary Sewall's creek. Whether they were a tribe of the Nanticoke nation^ distinct from those who had emigrated, or a remnant of the Tockwocko, who had left their residence on the opposite side of the Choptank, we have no sufficient au- thority to determine. It is certain, that they did not migrate with the Nanticokes in 1768, although they lived within twenty miles of each other. There are at this day, two or tliree individuals of them yet I'emaining, but intermixed, it is said, with Negro blood. They live on some spots of land ap= propiated to them by an act of assembly of the year 1798, out of their apprppriation in the year 1669-, 152 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, rylaiad to the lord Baltimore, as the most southerfi y^,„r->/.^ part of that province bordering on the Chesapeake. 3603. In doubling this point or cape, he fell in with some shoals formed by another cluster of islands, said by some to have been the same, as those since called JVatts^s islands, by others Holland'' s islands. To tjhese shoals, probably from their difficult and per- plexed navigation, he gave the name of Limbo. From thence he stood over again to the eastern shore, and discovered a river called by the natives Cuscaravi'^acock. On this river lived the nations of Sarapinak, Nause, . Arseck, and Nantlquack^ (of which, probably, the word Nanticoke is a corrup- tion), said by him to be the best traders of any In- dians in those parts. They told the English of a great nation, called Massawomccks, in search of whom, Smith returned by Limbo, into the bay. Leaving the shallows of the easteiTi shore, he ap- pears to have stood over to the western shore, but not to have fallen in with it until he came to a river, which he called Bolus river ; but which is said to be that which is now called the Patapsco.* Some- where in the upper part of the bay, he fell in with seven canoes full of Indians, who turned out to be the Massarvomecksj who were then making ^var upon the Susquehanocks and the Tockwocks. When they first met, the Massawomccks made a show of hostility, but suffering themselves to be persuaded of the friendly disposition of the English, after a mutual exchange of presents they departed.! • See Note (H) at the end of this volume. t This nation, called Massawomccks (or Wassawomecks) are said by Mr. Charles Thompson, in note (5) to Jefferson's HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 15,3 The English are said to have next entered a tiver, sect. called the Tockwock, on which Hved a nation of v.^rv-v7 the same name in a palisaded town, in order to guard 16.O8. themselves against the Massawomecks.* In com- pany with the Tockwocks, they found, it seems, a party of the Susquehanocks, who had probably come there to form a joint collection to oppose the Massawomecks. Implements of European manu- Notes, to have been the same nation 'as that subsequently- well known by the English, under the denomination of the Mve Nations^ called by the French Iroquois^ but by them- selves Mingoes. When Smith met them, they had descend- ed the Susquehannah, and were coming to attack the Susque- hanocks and the Tockwocks in the rear. Mr. Jefferson ob- serves also, (Notes, quere 11,) that these Massawomecks or Iroquois harassed unremittingly both the Manahoacs and Pow- Jiatans. Mr. Golden, in his history of them, p. 36, says, that they over-ran a great part of North America, carrying their arms as far south as Carolina, to the northward of New England, and as far west as the Mississippi. But these latttu' conquests by them were subsequent to the period we are now speaking of, and after they had been furnished with fire-arms. They were, however, exhibiting their martial prowess in a high degree against the Adirondacs or Algonquins, a nation on the north of the St. Lawrence, when the French first set- tled in Canada, in 1603, and would have extirpated them, if the French had not opposed them. Colderi's Hist. ch. 1. * As the Tockwocks are supposed to have occupied that part of Maryland, of which the counties of Kent, Queen Ann's, and Talbot are composed, and the English had, at this period of their expedition, arrived as high up the bay as the Patapsco, it may be conjectured, although it is certainly but an inference from circumstances, that this river, here called the Tockwock, was that now called the Chester river, and the palisaded town above-mentioned, was probably situa- ted on Eastern J\\ck island, or somewhere in that part of Kent county. 154- INTRODUCTION TO A SKCT. factiife were observed to be in the possession of ,J~J^ both these nations, which the Susquehanocks in- 1608. formed them they had from the French in Canada.* An incident, which must be noticed, is said to haA-e occurred, either in this or the following excur- sion of Smith up the Chesapeake. Invited by the great breadth of the Patowmack, at its mouth, he sailed up this river, but to what distance is not men- tioned. Three or four thousand of the natives, it * Although the city of Quebec was not founded by Cham- plain until July, 1608, yet the French had, as early as the year 1600, established a trading settlement at Tadoussac, on the St. Lawrence, as has been before mentioned. With re- gard to what is represented in the accounts of the early ad- venturers, as coming from Smith, on this occasion, of the gi- gantic stature of the Susquehanocks, it is unworthy of notice. They were, without doubt, like most other North American Indians, tall and well limbed. What is said by Stith, of their language and dress may desei've to be here inserted: " Their language and attire were very suitable to their stature and appearance. For their language sounded deep and so- lemn, and hollow, like a voice in a vault. Their attire was the skins of bears and wolves, so cut that the man's head went through the neck, and the ears of the bear were fasten- ed on his shoulders, while the nose and teeth hung dangling down upon his breast. Behind was another bear's face split, with a paw hanging at the nose. And their sleeves coming down to their elbows, were the necks of bears, with their arms going through the mouth, and paws hanging to the nose. One of them had the head of a wolf hanging to a chain for a jewel, and his tobacco-pipe was three quarters of a yard long, carved with a bird, a deer, and other devices, at the great end. His arrows were thi'ee quarters long, headed with splinters of a white crystal-like stone, in the form of a heart, an inch broad, and an inch and a half long. These he carried at his back, in a wolf's skin, for a quiver, with his bow in onelkand, and lii'^j club in th:.* othei'." HISTORY OF MARYLAND 1^5 seems, had planted themselves in ambush to cut sect. him off; but a few musquets bemg discharged, the v,^r-v->,^ Indians were so frightened by the report, that they i608. made peace, having confessed that they took up arms by the orders of Powhatan. In a small creek cal- led Quigough* formed by d>e waters of the Patow- mack, they saw a mine of antimony, which the In- dians made use of to ornament themselves, and the faces of their idols, f No further account of any other material inci dents of this voyage, has readied us. They return- ed to James' town on the sevendi of September, having their boat loaded with corn. From this ex- cursion Smith is said to have drawn a map of Che- sapeake Bay, and of the rivers thereof, annexing to it a description of the countries bordering there- on, and the nations or tribes inhabiting them, which he sent to the council in England, and which is said to have been done with admirable exactness, J as we have before had occasion to mention. His superior abilities having obtained the ascendancy over en^y * As there does not appear in the best and latest maps of the states of Maryland or Virginia, any creek or water of this name, emptying into the Patowmack, we are left to suppose, from the similitude of sound, as before-mentioned, that this creek was what is now called the Wicomoco river, falling into the Patowmack on the Maryland side of that river, and divi- ding the counties of St. Mary's and Charles. It is possible, indeed, that it may have been the same as that now caller? Yocomico river, lower down the Patowmack, and on the Virginian side thereof, or the river called Little Jngco?nko, at its mouth. t Bark's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 121. * I Ibid. p. 127,, liS6 INTUODUCTtON TO A SKCT. and faction, he now entered on his office of prcsi- All. - v^r-v'^^ dent. 1608. About this time, Newport arrived with an addi- of'somr"'^ tional supply of inhabitants, and with fresh " in- instiuc- structions" from the London Company. The te- lions from p i • England nor of thcsc " mstructions" demonstrates, that those nia. ^ ^' who were engaged in the colonisation of America at this time, in England, were actuated more by the alluring prospects of a sudden acquisition of wealth, than the future benefits arising from colonies. The president and council of the colony were required to explore the western country, in order to procure certain intelligence of a passage to the South Sea ; to transmit, as a token of success in the discovery of mines, a lump of gold; and to find some of the lost company sent out by Raleigh to Roanoke. And they threatened in a letter to Smith, that unless the charge of Newport's voyage, amounting to about two thousand pounds, was defrayed by the ship's re- turn, they should be deserted, and left to remain there, as banished men. A reader of humanity could scarcely give credit to this fact, did he not find it re- corded by a credible historian.* Thus far, then, we have not yet found, that either religious persecution or political oppression, or even the glory of propa- gating the Clii-istian faith, however much talked of, were really and truly the prime and original motives to English colonisation. A feeble attempt made in this and the preceding year, b)^ the North Virginia or Plymouth company, * Burk's History of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 127, 148, and Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 162. HISTOKY OF MARYLAND. 157 to plant a colony in that part of North America now sect. called the District of Maine, deserves some notice. v,.^->.r>^ In 1607, Sir John Popham, then lord chief justice i^us. of England, and others concerned in the Plymouth tempt'of Company, sent out two ships with a colony, under Jj^o^f//' the srovemment of Georee Popham, his brother, company attended with Raleigh Gilbert, nephew of Sir Wal- colony in ter Raleigh, second in command. They sailed from Plymouth on the last of May, 1607, and on the 11th of August, landed on a small island, since called Parker's island, at the mouth of Sagadahoc or Kennebec river. Here they built a store-house - and fortified it, and gave it the name of fort St. George. On the fifth of December, the two ships sailed for England, leaving a little colony of forty- five persons. During the winter, which was said to have been very severe, the governour or com- mander-in-chief, George Popham, died. They had the misfortune of losing all their stores by fire: so that when the ships arrived the next year, 1608, : bringing with them the disagreeable intelligence of the death of Sir John Popham and Sir John Gilbert, in England, the great patrons of the colony, they were so dispirited, that they unanimously resolved to return with the ships to England, which they did. All the fruit of this expedition was the build- ing of a barn, which was found to be of use to the succeeding colonists, who planted there some years afterwards.* In the succeeding year, an important change took • Hutchinson's History of Massachusetts, Vol. 1, p. 10. ilolmes's Annalsj Vol. Ij p. 160, 162. 158 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, place in the London or South Virginia Company. ^^^^i^^JI^^ Whatever their motives might have been, it seems 1609. that the members of that company thought it pro- condchar- P^^ ^^ petition the king, for a new organization of ter of vir- their body. Some have attributed this to that su- ginia, and the causes preme direction of all the company's operations, ing^it!" which the king, by the former charter, had reserved to himself, and which discouraged persons of rank or property, from becoming members of a society so dependent on the arbitrary will of the crown.* Others have supposed, that the distractions and di- visions, which had prevailed in the council in the colony, having created much mismanagement in their affairs, the company in England, were on that account, induced to request an alteration in their charter, t While others again, have atti-ibuted tlie desire of a change therein, to tlieir inordinate thirst for a sudden accumulation of wealth ; J which con- jecture seems to be too much strengthened by the tenor of their last instructions, sent to the colony by Newport. The most probable motives, however, arose from a combination of the two last- mentioned causes ; and, as a late writer upon it observes — dis- appointed in their sanguine expectations of a rich and immediate profit, they were wilHng enough to believe the representations of the discontented and envious, rather than suppose that they themselve,s • Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 192. t Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 225. Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 225. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 243, \ Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 164. Marshall's Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 42. filSTORY OF MARYLAND. 1 59 were mistaken in their calculations.* The king sect. yielded to their request, and granted, what is com- v^^->r-^^ monly called, the second charter of Virginia, bear- 1609. ing date the 23d of May, 7 Jac. 1, (A. D. 1609).t By this the administration of the affairs of the colo- ny was vested in a single person, under the deno- mination of a governour, who was to reside in the colony, and to act according to the orders, laws, and instructions of a council resident in England. The principal clause in this charter, which has any immediate relation to what is now the state of Ma- ryland, is that which designates the extent of terri- tory thereby granted. The king granted and con- firmed to the company, " all those lands, countries, and temtories, situate, lying, and being in that part of America, called Virginia, from the point of land called Cape or Poiiit Comfort, all along the sea- coast to the northward, two hundred miles, and from the said point of Cape Comfort, all along the sea-coast to the southward, two hundred miles, and all that space and circuit of land, lying from the sea-coast of the precinct aforesaid, up into the land throughout from sea to sea, west and northwest ; and also all the islands lying within one hundred miles along the coast of both seas of the precinct aforesaid." There was certainly a great enlarge- ment of their territories beyond what was expressed in their first or former charter ; which seemed to have confined them to fifty miles, of English statute measure, northward and southward, along the coast • Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 148. t See this charter at large in Hazard's Collections, Vol. I. p. 58, 160 INTRODUCTION tO A SECT, of America from the Jirst seat of their plantation ,^_^^,..^,-^ and habitation, which was James' town, and only 1609. one hundred miles back into the country from the sea-coast. But the country granted by this second chaiter, included nearly one-third of the present United States. The extent of it " from sea to sea," that is, from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean would have been absurd, could it be supposed, that they were then acquainted with the real distance betM^een those seas across the continent of North America, in the latitude of Point Comfort. But it would seem, from the tenor of their last instructions to the president and council, sent out by Newport, before referred to, that they were at that time strongly pos- sessed with the idea, either that a passage to the south sea westward, through some inlet, would soon be discovered, or that the distance to that ocean across the continent was but very short, compared ^vith what it has been since found out to be. Into this mistake they seem to have been led, not only by the previous discoveries of the Spaniards at the narrow isthmus of Darien, but also by some ac- counts given by the Indians to captain Smith, when he was exploring the Chesapeake, of gi'eat waters lying to the westward, not far distant; obviously meaning the lakes, and not the Pacific ocean.* Another observation on this charter occurs, in rela- tion to the subsequent grant by Charles I, to Lord Baltimore, which at first was so loudly complained * Marshall's Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 40. It is wor- thy of notice, however, tha* Powhatan told Smith, that all the accounts he had received, " of salt waters beyond the moun- tains," were false. Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 12^. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. t64 of as unjustly lopping off so much of the territories sect. of Virginia. The absurd aspect of the extent of v.^^vx-#» territory granted by this second charter of Virginia, 1609. left this solitar}^ question only — how, and where its excrescencies should be pared off ? That it was too .large for any kingdom or commonwealth upon earth, admitted of no doubt. The last and concluding clause in this charter, seems also to claim some notice, as it manifests the temper of those times in relation to religious con- troversies, and indicates those causes which eventu- ated in about twenty years afterwards, in the settle- ment of a colony of English Catholics in Maryland. *' And lastly, because the principal effect which we can desire or expect of this action, is the conver- sion and reduction of the people in those parts unto the true worship of God and Christian religion,* in which respect we shall be loath that any person should be permitted to pass, tliat we suspected to * This cant pervades all the early charters of North Ame- rica, both French and English. As the emperor Powhatan was well known to entertain a most inveterate hatred to the Anglo-Virginians, on account of their invasion of his territo- ries, his sentiments on the above clause, could he have read it, would very probably, have been similar to those of the In- dian cazique of Cuba ; to whom, when fastened to the stal^e to be burnt, a Franciscan friar, labouring to convert him, pro- mised immediate admittance into the joys of heaven, if he would embrace the Christian faith. " Are there any Spani- ards,** says he, after some pause, " in that region of bliss which you describe ?" " Yes," replied the monk, " but only such as are worthy and good." " The best of them," returned the indignant cazique, " have neither worth nor goodness ; I will not go to a place where I may meet with one of that accurse4 race!" X 1&5^ INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, affect the superstitions of the church of Rome, we K^^^i'-.r^j c^o hereby declare, that it is our will aiid pleasure, 1609. that none be permitted to pass in any voyage, from time to time, to be made into the said country, but such as first shall have taken the oath of supremacy : for which purpose, we do by these presents, give full power and authority to the treasurer for the time being, and any three of the council to tender and exhibit the said oath, to all such persons as shall at any time be sent and employed in the said voy- age."* jheset- The Dutch nation, notwithstanding their con- UiTduicIii stant war with Spain for many years, for their inde- York ^ pendence, which about this time was acknowledged by all, except their ancient masters, had now attain- ed to a considerable extent of trade in the East In- dies ; irisomuch that the States General, had, in 1602, thought it proper to erect, what is styled by historians, the Dutch East India Company. The great length of the passage to the East Indies, by the Cape of Good Hope, being productive of many in- conveniences, the company became anxious, as in- deed all the rest of Europe had long been, to explore some more convenient route thereto. Witli tWs view, they employed captain Henry Hudson, an En- glishman, to find out what was supposed, and called a northwest passage. Being furnished by the com- pany with a vessel, equipped with all necessaries, and with twenty men, English and Dutch, he sailed from the Texel in the beginning of the year 1609, • This clause will be animadverted upon more at large in a subsequent part of this work. HtSTORY OF MARYLANP, 165 awd pursuing a westward course, fell in with the s'-xt. coast of Newfoundland. He is said to have shaped v^^^sj his course from thence to Cape Cod ; looked into I609 the Chesapeake, where the English were settled ; anchored off the Delaware, and penetrated up the river on which New- York is situated, called after him, Hudson's river, as far north as the latitude of 43°. The consequence of this voyage, is said to have been, that thaDutch, having purchased of him his chart of discoveries on the coast, sent some ships next year to the place, then called Manhattan island, on which the city of New York now stands, and in process of time, settled a colony there and at Albany, higher up the river ; calling the province New Netherlands, which, agreeably to their claims., extended so far south as to comprehend what is now called the Delaware state, Pennsylvania, and the Jerseys.* Although Sir Humphrey Gilbert, as befcre-men- jsiq, tioned, had taken formal possession, in her majesty's Engiisii name, of the island of Newfoundland, yet hitherto settle no settlements hiid been made thereon ; which pro- foundhn^^ bably may be attributed to the coldness of the cli- mate and the barrenness of the soil. However, Mr. John Guy, a mercliant, and afterwards mayor of Bristol, who, in the year 1609, WTOte a treatise to encourage persons to undertake a settlement there, by his writing and solicitation, succeeded so well, that in the following year king James made a grant, dated April the 27th, 1610, to Henry Howard, Earl * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 10, p. 293. Smith's Hist, of New- York, p. U. Proud's Hist, of Pennsylvania, Vol, I, p. 109^ Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1. p. 167, J.64 INTRODUCTION TO A SFX T. of Northampton , lord keeper, Sir LaAvrence Tan- v..^-,^,,^ field, lord chief baron, Sir John Dodderidge, knig's 1610. sergeant, Sir Francis Bacon, then solicitor-gene- ral, afterwards lord chancellor, and created Lord Verulam, together with the above-mentioned Mr. John Guy, divers other merchants of Bristol, and otlicr persons therein mentioned, by the name of the Treasurer and Company of Adventurers and Plan- ters of the cities of London and Bristol, for the co- lony or plantation in Newfoundland ; from north la- titude forty-six to fifty-two degrees, together with the seas and islands lying within ten leagues of the coast. The proprietors soon after, in the same year^ sent the before-mentioned Mr. Guy, as conductor and governour of a colony of thirty-nine persons, who accompanied him to Newfoundland, and be- gan a settlement at Conception bay.* It appears, that this attempt to form a settlement there, did not succeed ; and we ai'e told, that Mr. Guy returned to England again, after residing there for two years, with little advantage. A part of his colony, if not tl e whole of them, i-etumed with him.f As the shipwreck of Sir Thomas Gates and Sir George Somers, on the Bermuda islands, in their voyage to Virginia, in the year 1609, had made the colonists acquainted with the produce, pleasantness, and beauty of those islands, whose accounts thereof reached the company in England, they were induced to apply to the king, to obtain an enlargement of * Holmt's's Annals, Vol. l,p. 172. t Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 3. ISlod. Univ. Hist. Vol 39, p. 249. Also, see n'ote (I), at the end ol this volume. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 165 thetf territories, so as to include these islands. Con- sect. siderable deficiencies, as to their necessary powers ^^^• in conducting the affairs of the Virginia colony un- leio. der their then existing charter, appearing to them to require remedy, afforded additional inducement to them to apply for supplemental authority, whereby they might be enabled to remedy existing abuses, not only in the government of the colony, but in procuring the means of defraying the charges and expenses of supporting it. They accordingly ob- tained from the king a new patent, called by some writers the third charter of Virginia, bearing date March 12th, 9 Jac. 1, (1611-12.) By this the king jgij. gave, granted, and confirmed " to the treasurer and The thipd company of adventurers and planters of the city of Virginia. London, for the first colony in Virginia, and to their heirs and successors forever, all and singular those islands whatsoever, situate and being in any part of the ocean, seas bordering upon the coast of our said first colony of Virginia, and being within 300 leagues of any of the parts heretofore granted to the said treasurer and company, in our said former let- ters patent as aforesaid, and being within or between the one*and-fortieth and thirtieth degrees of northerly latitude." They were authorized also, to hold four great and general courts, at the four usual feasts in the year ; and therein to elect and choose members of the council in England, for the said colony, and to nominate and appoint officers, and to make laws aiid ordinances for the good and welfare of the said plantation. Besides other incidental powers, appa- rently necessary, they authorized the company to establish lotteries, in order to raise money for their 166 INTRODUCTION TO A sfiCT. necessary expenditures.* It appears, however, froih s,^f,-s<^^^ the whole purview of this instrument, that it was 161^. intended, not as an abrogation, but as a deed ofcoji- firmation of their former charter. Their territories, therefore, were not abridged by it in their enormous extent, but on the sea -board were considerably en- larged. In order to derive their promised utility from the Bermudas, it was not thought necessary, it seems, for them to retain those islands, as a part of their territories, for they irhmediately sold them to another company, who thereupon sent out a co- lony to settle them. The French and Dutch, now making some pro- gress in their settlements on the North American continent ; the former in Acadie, now called Nova Scotia, and in that part of the United States called the District of Maine ; the latter in the state of New York : Sir Thomas Dale, the governour of Virgi- nia, in virtue of the claim of the English to the whole northern part of America, by reason of Ca- bot's prior discovery of it, sent an armed expedition J5J3 in the year 1613, under captain Samuel Argal!, to Captain break up and destroy those settlements. He did so Argall's ^ _^ expedi- as to thosc of the French ; but, as he left no g^am- break SOU to keep posscssion of the places where they had Fmldi settled, they soon afterwards resumed their former and Dutch stations. On his return to Virginia, he visited the roents in Dutch settlement on the Hudson ; and, on his de- via and maudiug the possession thereof, tlie Dutch govcrT Yoi^. nour, Hendrick Christizens, incapable of resistance, * See the charter at large, in Hazard's Colkctionsj Vol. 1, p. ^2. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 16 J peaceably submitted himself and his colony to the sect. king of England, and, under him, to the governour v^^>,->^ of Virginia, consenting to pay a tribute. But in the 1614. next year, a new governour from Amsterdam arri- ving, with a reinforcement, asserted the right of Holland to the country ; refused the tribute and ac- knowledgment stipulated with the English by his predecessor, and put himself into a posture of de- fence. He built a fort on the south end of the island Manhattan, where the city of New York now stands, and held the country many years, under a grant from the States General, by the name of the New Nether- lands.^ » Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 163, 179. Marshall's Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 57. SPJCTION Tin. Kfensons for the fuUowin^ digression — Rise of the reformation— Its progress through the continent of Europe — Its introduction into England — The origin of the Puritans — Divisions among the Puri- tans — State of reHgious parties in England.on James I's accession — The Independents emigrate to Holland — Their distressing situation there — Tiiey fftrm the design of removing to America — Negociate with the Virginia Company for that purpose — Dissensions in the Virginia Company occasion delay — They embark for America, and settle at Plymouth, in Massachusetts. IT is a common remark throughout the sect. United States of America, that most of these states ^"^' were originally colonised by means of religious per- Reasons secution, which the first settlers of them experienced fo^f^^^^S" in their mother country; and the provinces of New&'"^3®'°o England, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, are general- ly cited as instances tliereof. But when we recur to the records of history, at the period of time when the colonies of New England and Maryland were first settled,* and find that the mother country was then a scene of the most tumultuous contest between three principal sects of the Christian religion, the established Church of England, the Roman Catho- lics, and the Puritans,)- a contest, not indeed for • The colony of Virginia, the only English colony prior to those last above-mentioned, unquestionably origioated from the Spanish views of gold and silver mines, as well as from a desire to find out a short passage to the East Indies, and not from religious motives. t The appellation of " Puritans," included, during Eliza- beth's reign, the Fresbytereans, as well as the BrotmistSy th© latter of whom were afterwards called Indefitndentp . Y 170 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, the supreme power merely, but each for its own ex- ^^^,tr>r^^^ istence; and find also, that at the close of the scene T the established Church gave many instances of her moderation, not exhibited by either of the others when in power, we are compelled, if not entirely to excuse, at least to make much allowance for her conduct in the causes of those first emigrations. The reign of queen Mary abundantly demonstrated that the English Roman Catholics would tolerate neither the Church of England nor tlie Puritans. And the conduct of the Puritans, in their turn, at the helm of power, will equally convince us, that neither Church nor Catholics were to expect tolera- tion from them.* Nay indeed, these Puritans, when at the height of their pov/er, and the sceptre of England was wielded by the hypocritical Crom- well, had their agents of persecution, even in the infant colony of Maryland. Among the " Acts and orders of a general assembly, holden at Patuxent (Maryland) the 20th of October, 1654, by com- mission from his highness the lord protector," Stc is an act, entitled, " An Act concerning religion," whereby, " it was enacted and declai'ed, That none, who professed and exercised the Popish (commonly called the Roman Catholic) religion, could be pro- tectedin this province, by the laws of England, for- merly established, and jet unrepealed : nor by the government of the commonwealth of England, &c. * By an ordinance of the 23d of August, 1645, imprison- ment for a year, on the third offence, and pecuniary penal- ties on the former two, were inflicted, in case of using the Book of Common Prayer, not only in a place of public wor- ship, but also m any private family. See 4 /"/. Cow. 53. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 171 but to be restrained from the exercise thereof, 5cc. skct. VIII. That such as profess fliith in God by Jesus Christ, ^.^^-v-s^ though differing in judgment from the doctrine wor- ship, or discipline publicly held forth,* should not be restrained from, but protected in, the profession of the foith and exercise of their religion; so as they abused not this liberty, to the injury of others, dis- turbance of the peace, &c. Provided such liberty was not extended to Popery or Prelacy^ nor to such, as, under the profession of Christ, held forth and practised Ucentiousnessy\ The reader will easily see through the flimsy veil of this insidious proviso. As " Prelacy is synonymous to Episcopacy^ and the Cliurch of England could not exist without the government of its Ms/iopSy it is very fairly to be sup- posed, that it was meant thereby to exclude that Church also, as well as the Catholics, from the ex- ercise of their religion in this province. But be that as it may, the crime of " licentiousness" was certainly so indefinite as to leave ample occasion for unlimited persecution ; and a slight perusal of the early part of the History of Massachusetts, will furnish numerous instances of the wild judicial constructions put by these fanatics on similar legislative expressions. Thus then, as the causes of the colonisation of New England and Maryland, which are nearly co- eval, appear not to be clearly understood, in the United States, or if so, not generally acknowledged, • This meant, without doubt, the doctrine and discipline of the Indcfiendents, forming at that time in England, under Oliver, what might be called, the established religion or Church. t See Bacon's edition of the Laws of Maryland, 1654, ch.4. tlOTl 172 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, it is here hoped, that it will afford some apology for .^^''^^^y^ leading the reader, in a very cursory manner, through the scenes of religious transactions in England, at- tending the progress of the reformation, and the consequent struggle, between the three great reli- gious sects before -mentioned, for that earthly poli- tical crown, which was to bring the others as hum- ble vassals at the victor's feet, isir. When Pope Leo X, in the beginning of the six- reforma-'^ecnth ccutury, by his profuse liberality in the pa- tronage and encouragement of the arts and sciences, ill the collection and publication of valuable and scarce books, and also in the completion of that su- perb edifice at Rome, St. Peter's church, but more especially by his inordinate ambition to aggrandize his family, the house of Medici, of Florence, had exhausted the revenues of the church, he was con- strained to adopt such devices as suggested them- selves to him, to replenish the coffers of the holy see. As the Christian religion, in its then organi- zed state, acknowledged, and in the consent of a large majority of that religion*^ still acknowledges, the papal power, of granting a pardon and remis- sion of all sins, Leo was naturally induced, through his philosophic and unbelieving mind, to yield to tlie superstition of his flock. He, therefore, in the year 1517, published all over Europe general inchil. gences in favour of such as would contribute sums of money for the building of St. Peter's church, • " Three-fourths of Europe consist at this moment ( 1 805)- of Christians professing the Roman Catholic religion," Mr. Fox's speech in the house of commons, on the Catholic peti- tion, May 13th, 1805- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. l/S and at the same time appointed two persons in each se^t. country to recommend those indulgences by preach- >,^rv-^ ing, and to receive the money for them. As reli- i5i7 gious indulgences are founded on the infinite trea- sure of the merits of Jesus, die holy virgin, and all the saints, vt^hich it is supposed Christ's vicar upon earth has a right of distributing, by virtue of the communion of saints, it must be allowed, that Leo fell upon a most apt, though not a novel mode, of recruiting the treasures of the apostolic chamber, of Rome. But an unfortunate incident in the mode of collecting this revenue, brought such a storm upoa the church, as to shake the proud fabric to its basis. The person appointed by the pope for this purpose, in the northern part of Germany, particularly in Saxony, was Albert, archbishop of Magdeburg and Mentz. That prelate, either by his own autho- rity, or by order of the pope, bestowed the com- ^ mission for distributing these indulgences on the order of Dominican friars, instead of that of the Au- gustine friars, as had been usual, and, as it seems, in consonance to the convention which had been made among the four orders of mendicants. This preference sorely vexed the Augustine friars, who considered the neglect as a contempt upon their or- der; perhaps also, at the same time regretting to see themselves frustrated of the share they might have had of the money. These indulgences certainly appear to the eye of reason, however long they may have been sanctioned by Christian usage and prac tice, as totally repugnant to those moral principles, adopted by the common consent of all mankind, in 174 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, all ages, as the best ligaments of human society.* y^-,^.^^. In this point of view the Augustines did not omit I5ir. to place them; and the Dominicans, by their indis- creet conduct in relation to them, gave their ene- mies ample room to exercise their envious and ma- lignant passions. Offices were everywhere set up, even in taverns, where the collectors consumed in riot and debauchery a gi-eat part of the profits pro- duced from this traffic of the sacred treasures of the church. lohn Stulpitz, or Staupitz, vicar general of the Augustines in Germany, being supported by the elector of Saxony, who had a particular regard for him, was the first who openly attacked the ser- mons of the Dominicans, and the abuses wliich ivere committed in the distribution of the indulgen- ces. The better to promote his opposition, he se- lected for his colleague and assistant Martin Luther, a preacher of the same order of Augustine friars, and a doctor of Wittenberg, whose name has since been so well known in the world. As he was a man of an ardent, zealous, and enterprising temper, and possessed considerable talents for both writing and eloquence, and remained safe also from the thunder of the Vatican, under the protection of tlie elector of Saxony, his doctrines soon gained num- bers of proselytes throughout all Germany, and in- deed set all Europe in a blaze of zeal for reforming the abuses of the Church. In addition to this, it may be observed, that the minds of the people of Europe had been already, in some measure, prepared for the occasion, by that diffusion of ancient Utera- *• See note (K) at the end of the vohime. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 175 ture, particularly the Platonic philosophy, which sect. resulted from the invention of printing. The com- s.^-^>^ bustible materials had been collected. It only re- i^ir. quired the intrepidity of such a man as Luther to apply the spark. — From such sources originated that great event so well known in history under the name of the reformation.*. Minor reformers soon sprung up in numbers, its pro- sketching out different schemes of reformation, in through such different shades of opinion as best suited their 5,'^^^*"^?'" fancy. In Switzerland, Zuinglius decLired himself i^^rope- an advocate for the doctrine of Luther, and imita- ting his conduct, declaimed warmly against the person who was appointed to publish the indulgen- ces in that country. Subsequently, however, dif- fering in opinion from Luther, on the doctrine of the Eucharist, he became the founder of the sect in Switzerland called Sacramentists.'\ The Anabap- tists also, in Germany, grew out of Luther's here- i^^- sy ; though he took pains to disown them, and to have them repressed. They boasted of immediate revelations to themselves, and taught that men ought to regulate their conduct by the visionary pre- cepts which such supposed inspiration might dic- tate. They destroyed all the books that happened in their way, but the Bible. They despised not only ecclesiastical but civil laws ; and held that all government was nothing but usurpation. They were for having all things in common, and for every • Du Pin's Hist, of the Church, Cent, xvi, ch. 6. Mtx) Univ. Hist. Vol. 29, p. 500. t Du Pin's Hist, of the Church, Cent, xvi, th. 7, 11, 176 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, man's being free and independent, and promised VIII themselves a happy empire, in which they would 1521. reign alone, after having extirpated all the wicked. Encouraged by this doctrine, the peasants and boors throughout Germany rose up in arms, and threaten- ed destruction to every government. In private life they were not less wild and dangerous. One of their leaders in Switzerland, in the presence of his 1527. father and mother, cut oft' his brother's head with a sword, assigning to them as a reason for it, that he was commanded by God to do so. Two of their principal leaders, natives of Holland, John Matthias, who had been a baker at Haerlem, and John Boccold, or Beukels, a journeyman-taylor of Leyden, aided by their followers, took forcible possession of the city of Munster, in Westphalia. Matthias, assuming the power of a prophet, governed the city, until he was killed in a sally by the bishop of Munster's troops, who besieged it. He was succeeded by Boccold, who, in imitation of king David, danced naked through the streets, and caused himself tor be crowned king of Sion. He ordered his minor prophets to preach to the people, that it was one of the privileges granted by God to the saints, to have a plurality of wives. To set the example, he him- self married three. As he was allured by beauty or the love of variety, he gradually added to the num- ber of his wives, until they amounted to fourteen ; nor was any private man allowed to remain with one onl}\ As it was instant death to disobey this tyrant in anything, one of his wives having uttered certain words that implied some doubt concerning his ^, divine mission, he immediately called the whok HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 177 number of them together, and commanding the bias- sect. phemer, as he called her, to kneel down, he cut off^^^,,-,^^^^^ her head with his own hands; and so far were the 1^34 rest from expressing any horror at this cruel deed, that they joined him in dancing, with a frantic joy, around the bleeding body of their companion.* It is but justice, however, to the modern Anabaptists to add, that these extravagant and fanatic notions "have been long since relinquished by them. I Next in order came the grand reformer of the re- 1536, formed, John Calvin. He seems to have been more remarkable for his talents as a contro^'^ersial writer, than as a preacher. As the heresies of the before- mentioned reformers did not find a ready access into France, of which Calvin was a native, he was forced into a kind of voluntary exile to other countries, to propagate such doctrines as he might think conveni- ent to propose. The glory of being the founder and head of a religious sect, is scarcely less intoxicating than that of being at the head of an empire. With a mind filled, without doubt, with this sort of ambi- tion, he wandered to Geneva. As this city formed in itself a little independent republic, being but a i'tw years before emancipated from the t}Tanny of the dukes of Savoy, and as the heresies of Luther and Zuinglius, by the preaching of William Fai-el, a French Protestant refugee, and other reformers, had gained so much ground in this city, that the Gbspel/erSj as they were there called, had driven the * Robertson's Hist, of Charles V, book 5th, Du Pin's Histv of the Church, Cent, xvi, ch. 8 and 10, Bayle's Hist. Diet, art. Anabaptists. t See note (L) at the end of this volume 2 1,78 INTRODUCTION TO A * SKCT. Catholic bishop out of the city, and seized both the VIII . . . ^^^,,...^^,^^ ecclesiastical and temporal power into their own 1536. hands, it became the great asylum for all the French refugees, who were discontented with the establish- ed religion of their own country. Here John Cal- vin was persuaded by his friend Farel to fix his abode. Calvin was to write, and Farel was to preach, and thus they were jointly to defend their possession of the temporal as well as ecclesiastical - powers of the little state. They soon found cause of disagreement with their friends and allies the Ber- nese, who were Lutherans. They abominated the practices of these Bernese Lutherans, in making use of unleavened bread in their sacrament, and of wo- men being married with their hair dishevelled. The inhabitants of Geneva still retained also their fond- ness for other holydays besides Sundays; and their reformation in manners did not keep pace exactly with tlieir reformation in doctrines. To punish these propensities to sin, Calvin and his coadjutor refused to administer the sacrament to them. The citizens enraged rose in a body, and drove them both out of the city. Calvin, however, soon con- trived to raise a powerful faction in his favour, and 1541. in a year or two, (1541,) he was solicited to return. He returned, indeed, with redoubled influence and power. The first thing he did was to establish a form of discipline and a consistorial jurisdiction, with power to exercise canonical censures and pun- ishments, even to excommunication. He shut up all taverns, prohibited all prophane dancing and singing, and put a stop to all sports. In vain, did the inore rational part of the citizens HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 179 complain, that this was re-establishing the tyranny sect. of the church of Rome. Calvin had the syndics on ^^.^-v-O his side ; and the contumacious were threatened i54i. with excommunication, if they did not submit. A member of the council, however, had the courage to impeach his doctrine as being unsound ; but the magistrates, without further inquiry, committed him to prison, and condemned him to do penance for his accusation, by walking through the city witli a torch in his hand ; probably intimating thereby, that he deserved to be burnt as a heretic. One Bolsec, I5;5t a physician, who had denied Calvin*s doctrine of predestination, and said that he made God the au- thor of sin, was first imprisoned, and then banished the city, under the penalty of being whipped if he ever returned there again. But the most impious l55o. abuse of the secular power, in matters of religion, happened in the case of the famous Michael Reves, commonly called Servetus, a Spaniard, and one of ^the most learned physicians of that age. He had been imprisoned for his opinions, at Vienna ; but making his escape from thence, he took refuge at Geneva. It was natural for him to hope for an asy- lum, amongst a people who had founded their liber- ties upon their right of thinking for themselves oa religious subjects, and disclaiming authority in pouits of conscience : he was fatally deceived. On his arrival at Geneva, he was thrown into prison, and accused by Calvin of some heterodox opinions 'ivith regard to the Trinity, and other articles of faith. He was at the same time robbed by the ma^ gistrates of a gold chain, and a considerable sum of money, which never were returned to him ; so that 180 INTRODUCTION TO A SKCT. he was in great danger of perishing during his im- ^^^r-.^r-^,^ prisonment, for want of the common necessaries of 1553. life. Being called upon to make his defence, he did it with so much freedom and learning, that Cal- vin could oppose him with nothing but the secular power, which condemned him to be burnt alive. Servetus suffered this sentence without retracting his opinion, to the indelii)le infamy of all those who were concerned in it. As an explanatory- supple- ment to the sentence against Servetus, may be ad- ded that which was given in, about two years after- 1555. wards, against Philibert Berteilier, who was a native of Geneva, and register there of one of the inferior courts of justice. He was first excommunicated by Calvin's consistory, and then a criminal sentence against him by the syndics and council, was pub- licly given and pronounced, accompanied with sound of trumpet : " That the said Philibert, for the horrid and detestable crimes of conspiracy against the holy institution and Christian reformationy and against this city, and the public good and tranquil- lity thereof, be condemned to be bound and brought to the place of execution, there to have his head cut off, his body to be quartered, and his members to be set up in the foiu* most eminent places round about this city, for an example to others, who shall com- mit such crimes. ^^ But having secretly fled out of the city, he was so fortunate as to escape the terri- ble punishment that awaited him. As Calvin, un- questionably, had the civil as well as the ecclesiasti- cal power of Geneva under his direction, to him, principally, may be attributed these dreadful perse- cutions. A little whik before the death of this HISTORY OF MARYLAND.' 1«1 arch persecutor, two citizens were put to death for sect. adultery : nor did these bloody deeds cease with his v._^^,->^ breath ; his successors in his consistory, appear to 1555. have carefully copied his intolerant practices. A poor miserable maniac, in the succeeding century, professing himself a Jew, and perhaps, as his reli- gion dictates, speaking contemptuously of Christ, was strangled and burnt. In short, the rack and the faggot became familiar modes of punishment, as well for heresy as for treason, with the citizens and syndics of this petty republic* Amidst all this religious uproar throughout the 1531. continent of Europe, it was not to be expected that ^^^ "?^''"" England would remain quiet ; especially as there i"to Eng- • 1 1 • 1 -111 • i'^nd. Still subsisted m that kmgdom considerable remains of theWickliffites, commonly called Lollards, whose principles resembled those of Luther. But Henry VIII, among the most arbitrary tyrants that ever sat upon a throne, was at first more unusually stre- nuous against the reformation than any other mon- arch in Europe. He not only used his power to suppress its entrance into England, but turned au. thor, and wrote a book against Luther and his doc- trines, for which he received from Pope Leo the glorious title of Defender of the Faith. But what the fantastic zeal of the Lollards and the Lutherans could not effect, was soon produced by the youth, beauty, and charms of the accomplished Anne Bo- leyn. Finding that her virtue and modesty, pre- • See Robertson's Hist, of Charles V. b. 11. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 37, p. 292, 300. Boyle's Hist, and Crit. Diet, artic. Calvin, Bolsec, Bertellier. And note (M,) at the end of this volume. 182 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, vented all hopes of gratifying his passion fof her in VIII any other manner than by marriage, Henry formed 1531. the resolution of being divorced from his then wife, Catherine of Arragon. Some scruples, which had been before that time, suggested about the propri- ety of marrying a brother's wife, as Catherine had been, afforded some plausible grounds for him to go upon. But as Pope Clement, who had succeed-^ ed Leo, was entirely under the awe and influence of the emperor Charles V, who opposed the divorce, on account of the honour and interests of queen Catherine, who was his aunt, Henry found more diflSculty tnan he expected, in obtaining the formal consent of the holy pontiff to annul his marriage. His passions, always violent, not admitting of such delay, rather than wait such slow proceedings in un- tying the knot, he chose to cut it, by throwing off at once, all subjugation to the papal power. He caused his own clergy to try the validity of the marriage, and to annul it as unlawful, while at the "--i same time, if not prior to it, he married Anne Bo- / leyn. Mean-while, the Lutheran doctrines had, as it were, stole into his dominions, and had gradually disposed his parliament and his subjects, so far to join in the reformation as to renounce all submis- sion to the power and authority of the see of Rome* With this disposition of the nation, Henry in some measure coincided, and connived at the introduc- tion of the reformation into England. But, as the reformers on the continent had exhibited many symptoms of a republican spirit, especially in the furious insurrections of the Anabaptists in Germany, there v/as little probability, that so absolute a king HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 183 ^ould ever give favour or countenance to any doc- sect. VIII. trine, which lay under the imputation of encourag- ing sedition. Besides, this political jealousy having i53i. gained much honour, as he thouglit, in his polemi- cal writings against Luther, and elated with the most lofty opinion of his own erudition, he received with impatience, mixed with contempt, any contra- diction to his own religious sentiments. He seem- ed, therefore, to play together tlie two factions of Protestants and Catholics so as to suit his own pur- poses. The consequence was, that during his reign, few innovations on the doctrines of the ancient Ca- tholic religion were allowed by him, except the re- nunciation of all papal authority in England, the dissolution of the monasteries and nunneries, and some little alteration in the mass-book.* On the death of Henry, his crown descended to 1547. his son Edward VI, who was then a minor of about nine years old. As he was incapable at that age of exercising the powers of royalty, his father had en- deavoured to provide for that incapacity by appoint- ing persons to administer the affairs of the govern, ment until his arrival at age. But the relations of Edward, by his mother's side, particularly Edward Seymour, duke of Somerset, his uncle, contrived to set that appointment aside, and to have the ward- ship of young Edward, as well as the administra- tion of the government vested solely in him as lord protector. The duke was a zealous reformer, and consequently was careful that no other religious principles should be instilled into his nephew's mind, * Hwme's Hist, of England, chap. 29, 30, 31, 32 184 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, than those which he himself approved. The young s,^^^.^^^^^ king, therefore, as he grew up, manifested much I54r. zeal for the reformation. As the majority of men in most countries are apt to adopt those religious opinions to which preferment and profit are annexed, those early inclinations of young Edward had a pow- erful effect in converting the bulk of the nation to the modern heresies, especially among the courtiers, who with every probability, had not fairly calculated upon a total abolition of the ancient religion. The protector, therefore, aided by the zeal of young Edward, who, it is said, exhibited an uncommon understanding for so young a man, found but little difficulty in eifectijig his design of establishing a hierarchy in England, which should partake, in a moderate degree, of the doctrines of the reformers in the rest of Europe. In these schemes he usually had recourse to the counsels of Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, who being a man of moderation and prudence, was averse to all violent changes, and advocated the mode of bringing over the people by insensible innovations, to that system of doctrines and discipline which he deemed the most pure and perfect. It is a feature of the reformation easily traced throughout its history, that whenever it pre- vailed over the opposition of the civil authorit}', it raged, like a torrent, disregarding any bounds. Such reformers, to show their detestation of the numerous and burthensome superstitions with which the Romish church was loaded, proscribed all rites, ceremonies, pomp, order, and exterior observances, as impediments to their spiritual coiitemplations, and obstructions to their immediate converse with HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 185 Iheaven. But where it was introduced by the rulers sect. of the government, as in England, the ti'ansition y^J!^ was more gradual; much of the ancient religion 1547. was still preserved ; and a reasonable degree of sub- ordination was retained in discipline, as well as some pomp, order, and ceremony in public worship. With this spirit, the English reformers proceeded ; and by the aid of acts of parliament, during the short reign of Edward, completely established that hierarchy, denominated the Church of England, nearly in the same doctrines and form of worship in which it exists at this day. But, unfortunately for the English reformers, the 1553. life of Edward was but of short duration : he died in the year 1553, in the sixteenth year of his age. The crown descended to his sister Mary, who, not- withstanding all the earnest importunities of her brother, as well as of the reformed bishops, had still persisted in adhering to the ancient rehgion. Being educated by her mother Catherine of Arra- gon, she had imbibed the strongest attachment to the catholic communion, and the highest aversion to the new tenets. Naturally of a sour and obstinate temper, she was well fitted in mind to become a bigot; and her extreme ignorance rendered her ut- terly incapable of doubt in her oa\ n beHef, or of in- dulgence to the opinion of others. It was not long, therefore, before she discovered her intentions of not only abolishing the newly established religion, but of persecuting its professors. The good old chris- tian principle of " compelling men to come in, that 2 A iSii" IKTllODUCTION TO A \ SKCT. the house may be filled,"* not a little recommended VIII- ^r->^r^^^ by Luther in Germany,! and ardently adopted and 1553. enforced by Calvin in Geneva, was now as zealously revived in England by Mary. She disliked the tedi- ous mode of punishing heretics by prescribing to diem oaths and declarations of belief, and depriving them in that manner of all political as well as reli- gious liberty, as modern protestants do in another quarter of the world, than either Europe, Asia, or Africa. She took the shorter method of roasting them alive ; by which means the faithful got rid of them at once. The beneficial effects of this mode of Christian compulsion were soon perceived, in a general return of the English nation to the good old way of thinking in religious matters; except indeed a few, who made their escape into Germa- ny, Switzerland, and Geneva, and whom we shall presently see returning again from their foreign. tra- vels, much improved in their religious opinions, according to their own estimation.^ 1558. The triumph of the Catholics, and the suiFerings of the reformers in England, were not however des- * See the parable of the great supper, Luke xiv, 23. t Luther allowed of persecution, as far as banishment; but Calvin thought it lawful to put heretics to death. Tindal's Cont. of Rapin's Hist. Vol. 15, p. 274. See also an account of Luther's persecution of his friend Carlostadt; Roscoe's Pontificate of Leo X, ch. 19. \ Leave was given to the celebrated Peter Martyr, and other reformers, who were foreigners, to quit the kingdom. Under this leave, many English, to the amount of a thou- sand, it is said, under pretence of being foreigners, withdrew from England. Rapin's Hist, of England, (Tindal's edit) Vol. 7, p. 117, and Vol. 15, p. 276. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 18.7 tined to be long. The cruel reign of Mar}'^ was sect. short, and as she died without issue, her crown de- ^.^^-^^ scended to her sister Elizabeth, whose mother be- i-^^s ing of the reformed religion, she herself adopted it with ardent zeal, as Mary had that of the Catholic. In this singular series of events the English nation had to turn round again, and to try, if the heretical coat, which Mary had lately obliged them to put off, Avould still fit them, and once more become fashion- able among them. Elizabeth found little difficulty in making this reconversion of the nation. Although the Catholics had in the preceding reign, by the bigotry of Mary, obtained the reins of power com- pletely into their own hands, and had apparently re- duced the nation back to tlie communion of the Ca- tholic church, yet it seems to be clearly establish- ed by the concurrent events of the times, that a majority of the people were attached to the reformed religion. The queen proceeded cautiously and gradually in the alteration, and, like her predeces- sor, availed herself of the authority of a parliament chosen to her own mind for that purpose. By their ^sanction the obnoxious statutes of the former reigo were repealed, and such re-enacted as were necessa- ry to pLice the reformed Church of England nearly, if not precisely, in tlie same situation as her brother Edward had left it, and as we now see it. Prior to the session of parliament, however, and soon after her accession to the throne, she had deemed it re- quisite to discover such symptoms of her intentions, as might give encouragement to the protestaiits, so much depressed by the late violent persecutions. She therefore recalled all the exiles who had fled out ^88 INTRODUCTION TO A SRCT. of the kindom, as before-mentioned, and ordered all s^^^^^ persons confined in prison on account of religion to 1558. be immediately discharged. As it is natural for Se^piri!^ those, who have been persecuted for their zeal in tans. ^y^y particular object, to feel a more inveterate ani- mosity to the usages and practices of those from whom they receive the persecution than they would otherwise have done, had their zeal been left to it- self to spend its first fury, so the most zealous re- formers in England, after Mary's reign, became more anxious to push the reformation to a much greater excess than it had been carried to in the reign of Edward. The English exiles also, especially those who had resided at Geneva, came back to Eng- land, full fraught with all the splenetic inveteracy of John Calvin, against the superstitions of the church of Rome. Added to tWs also, the reformation had commenced in Scotland, shortly after the accession of Elizabeth, under the patronage of John Knox,;- who had just then arrived from Geneva, where he had passed some }ears in banishment, and where he had imbibed from his commerce with Calvin the highest fanaticism of the Caivinistic sect, augment- ed by the native ferocity of his own character. The contagion of that spirit, which dictated the outrages committed by Knox and his followers, in that neighbouring kingdom, could not be prevented from spreading itself also into England. The English exiles, thus impressed with Caivinistic principles, were not a little disappointed, on their return, in finding, that the reformed Church of England, as settled by Elizabeth, still retained so much of what they denominated the abominable idolatry of the HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 189 Catholics. Beina: resrarded with c:eneral \'eneratioii sk€t. on account of their zeal and past sufferings, they ^.^.-v^^ were emboldened to insist, that the reformation i568. should be established on that model which they deemed most pure and perfect. The restraints of the priest, the sign of the cross in baptism, the use of the ring in marriage, with several other rites which long usage had accustomed the people to view with reverence, were deemed by the moderate English reformers, inoffensive observances, which they were willing to retain ; but the fanatics rejected them with horror, as " badges of idolatry and the dregs of the Romish beast." Elizabeth herself, however, so far from being willing to strip the •church of the few ornaments and ceremonies which remained in it, and which at least served, in a very innocent manner, to amuse, allure, and engage the attention of the vulgar, was rather inclined to bring ^ the public worship still nearer to the Romish ritual. The consequence was, that a schism took place among the reformers in England ; and the zealots, who were for carrying the reformation to the great- est extent, were, on account of their pretending to a superior purity of worship and discipline, deno- minated Puritans.^' These Puritans, however, were far from being i5S0, united amonsr themselves, as to a uniformity of^"^^"""",^ *-> '' among the principles. The more sober and learned among Puntans. them, inclined to that form of ecclesiastical policy, ^ Hume's Hist. ch. 40, who cites Camden, as fixing upon the year 1568, for the period when the Puritans began to make themselves considerable in England^ igO INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, which is known by the name of Presbyterian : but^ yjj_^ such as were more thoroughly possessed with the 1580. spirit of innovation, reprobated the authority which the Presbyterian system vests in various judicato- ries, descending from one to another in regular sub- ordination, as inconsistent with Christian liberty. Of this latter sort of Puritans, one Robert Brown, a popular declaimer in high estimation, modelled a distinct sect, which, from him took the name of Broxvnists.^ He taught, that the Church of Eng- land was corrupt and anti-christian, its ministers not lawfully ordained, its ordinances and sacraments in- valid, and therefore he prohibited his people to hold communion with it in any religious function. He maintained, that a society of Christians, uniting to- gether to worship God, constituted a church, pos- sessed of complete jurisdiction in the conduct oj[ its own affairs, iiidependejit of any other society, and unaccountable to any superior ; that the priesthood was neither a distinct order in the church, nor con- ferred an indelible character ; but that every man qualified to teach, might be set apart for that office by the election of the brethren, and by imposition of their hands ; in like manner, by their authority, he might be discharged from that function, and re- duced to the rank of a private christian ; that every person, when admitted a member of the church, ought to make a public confession of his faith, and to give evidence of his being in a state of favour * He was a man, it seems, of a good education, being brought up at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. Tindal's Com. of Rapin's Hist. Vol. 15, p. 278. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 191 with God ; and that all the affairs of a church were sect. VIII. to be regulated by the decision of the majority of ^_^^,.,,,,^^ its members.* As the tenets of this new sect wore i592. a threatening aspect, not only to the established re- ligion, but to the government itself, it began to be deemed necessar}', that some more effectual checks than they had hitherto experienced, should be given to their progress. Some peculiar acts of sedition, blended with an extraordinary religious fanaticism, occurring about this time in the city of London, seem to have accelerated the interposition of the legislature. To this cause, among others, is attribu- ted the statute of the 35 Eliz. ch. 1, made towards the latter end of her reign y\ by which it was enact- 159$ ed, " If any person, refusing to repair to the esta- blished church," (as was required by preceding sta- tutes, viz. 1 Eliz. ch. 2, 23 Eliz. ch. 1, 29 Eliz. ch. 6,) " shall, by printing or writing, advisedly or purposely, practice, or go about to move or per- suade any one to deny, withstand, and impugn her majesty's power and authority, in cases ecclesiasti- cal, united and annexed to the imperial crown of this realm ; or to that end or purpose, shall advi- sedly and maliciously, move or persuade any other person whatsoever, to forbear or abstain from com- ing to church, according to her majesty's laws and statutes aforesaid ; or to come to, or to be present at any unlawful assemblies, conventicles, or meetings, under colour or pretence of any exercise of religion ; or if any person, so refusing to repair to some estab- * Robertson's Hist, of America, b, x. t See note (N,) at the end of thia voltimi?. 192 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, lished Church, as aforesaid, shall, either of hhnself or VIII- . .... s,^^>^'^^^ by the persuasion of any other, willingly join, or be 1593. present at any such conventicles, under pretence of religion, aforesaid ; every such person, so offending, and being thereof lawfully con\'icted, shall be im- prisoned, ^^ ithout bail or mainprise, until they shall conform, and make such open submission and de- claration of their said conformity, as hereafter in . this act is declared and appointed." " Every such person, so not conforming himself, shall abjure and depart the realm ; and in case of refusing to abjure, or of not departing after abjuration, or of returning without license, he shall be guilty of felony, without benefit of clergy." This blow, as was intended, affected both the Puritans and the Catholics ; but was, ^vithout doubt, more particularly pointed at the former. As Eli- zabeth, on her accession to the throne, was indebt- ed to the English reformers for her support against the formidable opposition which she experienced from the Catholics, her principal attention had been hitherto directed to guard against the dangers of Popery. But the variety of seditious acts, which were now exhibited by those fanatics, who were for pushing the reformation to its utmost extent, gave her just cause to apprehend, that her sovereignty was in equal danger from Puritanism. The num- ber also of these Puritans, had now increased so much, as in itself to be a sufficient cause of alarm to those who professed the established church. If we are to credit an assertion, said to have been made by Sir Walter Raleigh, in the house of com- mons, in the year 1592, (but one year prior to the ITISTORY OF MARYLAND. 193 'makins: this statute of 35 Eliz.) the Brownists, as sect. Vill. they were then called, amounted to no less than v.„„-v^^^ twenty thousand, divided into several congregations i^^-^- in Norfolk, Essex, and about London. *^ As it was evident also, that nothing would content them, but a total abolition of the established religion, called the Church of England, not even indeed an unli- mited indulgence in the exercise of their own, it was not to be wondered, that Elizabeth and her clergy should consider themseh'es as contending for their existence, and that these enemies of their power should feel the full force of their resentment. The persecution, if it may be so called, which these sectaries experienced, during the few remaining years of Elizabeth's reign, seems, therefore, to have been the nccessaiy result of such a state of things. On the accession of James to the throne of Eng- 1603 land, both the Papists and the Puritans had con- state or ^ ^ religious ceived high hopes of some happy change, each in parties in their own favour. The Papists could not believe, on tiie ac- (hat a prince, who had never expressed any hatred jan^esV to them, should suddenly alter his mind, and choose to tread in the steps of Elizabeth. The Puritans imagined, that James, having been educated in their religion, that is, the Presbyterian, cind professed it all his life, till his arrival in England, would be pro- pitious to them. I'hey expected, that he would at least abate the rigour of the laws against them, if not reform many of the faults they had found in the Church of England. Both were deceived, but the ftist much more than the first. Of the Catholics, * See Tindal's Cont. of Rapin's Hist. Vol. 15, p. 2?8_ 3 n 194; INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. James disliked only the Jesuits, and such as ^verc x_^_,,^y-y^ too servilely attached to the court of Rome and the 1603. prerogative of the pope. But to the Puritans in ge- neral, he conceived a most violent hatred, especially as he thought that he discerned in them a strong inclination towards republicanism. As they were usually veiy familiar with their Maker, in their prayers to him, he was naturally induced to sup- pose, that they would take still greater liberties with him as their earthly sovereign. They both, how- ever, presented their petitions to him. To the Ca- tholics he answered, that he thought himself obliged to support what he found established in the king- dom. To the Puritans, he granted a pretended op- portunity of justifying their principles before him^ by appointing a conference to be held in his pre- sence, of which he himself was to be moderator, between some of their principal ministers and eld- ers* and seme bishops and divines of the establish- ed church. The victory, as was to have been expected, being adjudged by him to the latter, the consequence was, that he ordered, by proclamation, the laws against non-conformists to be put in strict execution. The court of " high commission for ecclesiastical affairs," a most odious tribunal, began now also to act against the Puritans with more severity and less control from the courts of common law, than they ^ad done in the former reign. It was about this « * These ministers and elders, appear to have been of the Presbyterian class of Puritans, and not Brovvnists- Rapin's Hist, of England, (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 1, p. 18. HISTORY OF MAIlYtAND. IQ3 time, that archbishop Bancroft exhibited his cele- sect. VIII brated Articuli Cleri^^ in whicli he enumerates v,^^^^,-,^^ many grievances of the clergy, arising from the leos, power exercised by the courts of common law in granting wiits of prohibition to the proceedings of the ecclesiastical courts, and writs of habeas corpus for persons imprisoned by them ; among which courts, that of the " high commission" was the most prominent. This tribunal had been originally instituted in the reign of Henry VIII, as a substi- tute for the former power of the pope, and had been revived under the statute of 1 Eliz. ch. 1, which defined heresy^ and authorized the queen to appoint commissioners, to sit as judges thereof in this highest ecclesiastical court. But, throughout the wliole of her reign its authority is said to have been exercised with great moderation ;t which appears to have been principally owing to the control of the courts of law4 K.i»g James, however, being evi- dently prejudiced against the common law,^ and * See them at large in toke's 2 Inst. p. 601 , t Rapin's Hist, of England, (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 78. % Lord Coke affirms, (4 Inst. 332,) that although there might have been many instances, in the reign of queen Eli- zabeth, wherein the. high commission court exercised the power of fine and imprisonment, especially against the weaker soi't, yet, as often as complaint had been made, the highest courts of common law always relieved them according to law and justice. § It is said, that he had dropped expressions of his inten- tion to establish the ci-vil law in the room of the cormnon law. Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 77^ 79. It is no small eulogium on the common law, that the advocates for arbitrary 196 INTRODUCTION TO A SRCT. having a high opinion of his own talents as a theo- ^^^^ logian, abetted and supported the bishops in the 1605. extent of their claims to an uncontrolled jurisdiction over all matters of heresy and religion.* The Pu- ritans, therefore, now became liable to be harassed not only with fines and imprisonment, by the com- mon law courts, for non-conformity, but to have their religious tenets examined by this high com- mission court, according to the test of heresy pre- scribed by the statute. f The rigorous penalties of power, whether it is to be exercised by a mob or a king, have an invincible antipathy to this system of jurisprudence. The great securities for personal liberty and private property, which it upholds, are sad stumbling blocks in their way. * For further information with respect to this curious con- test, which took place about this time, between the spiritual and temporal courts in England, see the several notes of cases on that subject in Lord Coke*s 12th Rep. Also his 2 Inst. 601, and 4 Inst. :330. However censurable Coke's conduct was, in many instances, while he was attorney-general, parti- cularly on the trial of Sir Walter Raleigh,,yet the noble stand which he made, when he became chief justice, against not only the arbitrary power assumed by the "high commission" and other ecclesiastical courts, but even against the lawless exertion of prerogative by the king himself, does him infinite honour. This independent conduct, however, in a few years, eventuated in the loss of his place of chief justice. t The statute oY 1 Eiiz. ch. 1, defines heresy to be, " only such matter or cause as heretofore have been determined to be heresie, by the authority of the canonical scrifitures, or by ^ny general council wherein the same was declared heresie by the express and plain words of the said canonical scrifi- tures." As the almost innumerable variety of sects of the Christian religion uncjuestionably arises from their various modes of construing these " canonical scriptures," we are un- avoidably led to join Mr. Justice Blackstone in his remark on HISTORY OF MARYLAND. t9T abjuration of the realm, or death as a felon, in cer- skct. Yin tain cases, under the before-mentioned statute of v^^^^^,..,^ 35 Eliz. also hung over their heads. But it will i605. surprise the reader at this day, after reading these severe denunciations against the Puritans, unjustifi- able indeed, upon any other principle than self-pre- servation, and after a minute search through the pages of the best historians of those times, when he finds considerable difficulty in discovering one soli- tary instance, where a Puritan was either burnt as a heretic or hung as a felon , merely for his religion. The instances of Udal and Penry, mentioned by Hume,* were cases of seditions libels^ punishable with death under an abominable statute of 23 Eliz. Thev were instances of the arbitrary exertion of prerogative in the execution of a most tyrannical law against a po- litical crime. The two Flemish Anabaptists, burnt as heretics, in her reign, had no connexion with those species of Puritans denominated Brownists, who are the subjects of our present inquiry ; espe- cially, as these Brownists, or their successors in New England, subsequently considered Anabaptists in the same point of view : and the two Arians, who suffered at the stake for heresy, in the reign of James, were alike unconnected with the Brownists. Denying the divinity of Christ, or at least his con- substantiation with the Father, it is not probable, that this definition — " that it would not have been the worse, to have defined it in terms still more precise and particular ; as a man continued still liable to be burnt, for what perhaps he did not understand to be hei'esy, t!iH the judge so informed him." * See his Appendix to queen Elizabeth's rei§;n. 198 - INTRODUCTION *rO A SKCT. such orthodox Christians as the Brownists would yjl^^^ have treated them with greater leniency, had it been 1605. in their power. In corroboration of this, the re- marks of Hume, upon the same subject, may with propriety, be quoted: " Had the king," says he,* *' been disposed to grant-the Puritans a full toleration for a sepai-ate exercise of their religion, it is certain, from the spirit of the times, that this sect itself would have despised and hated him for it, and would have reproached him with lukewarmness and indif- ference in the cause of religion. They maintained that they themselves were the only pure church; that their principles and practices ought to be esta- ' blished by law; and that no others ought to be tole- rated. It may be questioned, therefore, whether the administration, at this time, could with proprie- ty deser\'e the appellation of persecutors, with re- gard to the Puritans." Suffering, as they certainly did, during the reigns both of Elizabeth and James, by lines and impri- sonment, for their non-attendance at the established Church, and now liable to be treated as heretics, by the high commission court, or compelled to abjure the realm, under the penalties of the statute before- mentioned, the only alternative left for them seemed to be conformity or a volunl^jy exile. From the small proportion which the number of those who subsequently emigrated to Holland, bore to the whole of their society, at that time in the kingdom, we may infer that an exterior conformity was adopt- ed by a very large majority of them. Perhaps, con- * See his Appendix te the reign of James I. HISTORY OF MARYLANI}. . IQl? dilatory methods, blended with compulsion, might seci also have been practised towards them ; for we find ^^.r-^^ that some of them were not proof against either ico5, temptation or persecution. Their founder and leader, Brown, either frightened by the terrors of the law, or allured by the comforts of a good living, which, it seems, he afterwards accepted, surrender- ed the glory of heading a religious party, for a snug benefice in the established Church. Others, how- ever, stuck to their tenets with a more consistent obstinacy. From their own account of themselves, as handed down to us by the successors of their • sect in America, they must have existed in consi- derable numbers, about this time, in the north of England, particularly in Nottinghamshire, Lanca- shire, and Yorkshire. They had there, it seems, formed themselves into two distinct bodies or churches. Over one of them Mr. John Smith pre- sided as pastor; over the other Mr. John Robinson.- * In the Extracts from the Plymouth Kecords, published iTi Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 350, are the following pas- sages on this subject: " These people became two distinct bodyes, or churches, in regard of distance ot place, and did congregate severally, for they were of several townes and vil- lages ; some in Nottinghamsheire, some in Lankisheire, and some in Yorksheire, where they bordered nearest together. In the one of these churches, besides others of note, was Mr. John Smith, a man of able giftes, and a good preacher, whoe afterwards was chosen their pastour; but these after- wards falling into some errors in the Low Countreyes, there^ for the most part, buryed themselves and their names. " But in this other church, which must be the subject of eur discourse, besides other worthy men, was Mr. Richard Clifton, a grave and reverend preacher, whoe by his paines anS diligence, had done much good, and under God had bin 20O INTRODUC TIOX TO A SECT. Prefemng: a voluntary banishment from their native VIll. , iWN'^^w/ country to a conformity to the discipline of the 1607. established Church, Robinson and a few of his fol- lowers stole away by degrees, (for it seems they were not permitted openly to leave the kingdom,*) Tiie inde-to Amsterdam, as the states of Holland, after their pendents rr -i n i i • emitrrate independence, anected to allow a general toleration land" " to aU sects of religion. They had not lived at x\m- sterdam more than a year, before ambition, through which even angels are said to have fallen, set these " holy brethren and exiled saints" by the ears-i* After Robinson and his flock had been there some time, they were followed, it seems, by another company from England, under the guidance of the before-mentioned John Smith. As these congre- gations were not only distinct, but independent a meanes of the conversion of many ; and alsoe that famous and worthy man, Mr. John Robinson, whoe afterwards was theire pastourfor many years, until the Lord tooke him away by death ; and alsoe Mr. William Brewster, a reverend man, afterwards was chosen an elder of the church, and lived with them untill old age and death." Their dispersed situation, herein described, together with their danger in convening in large bodies, most probably first suggested that form of hierarchy which they afterwards adopted, to wit, that each cofigregalion should be a distinct, independent church of itself. * This prohibition appears to have been, to emigration ia large companies, which was frequently attempted. See Ex- tracts from the Plymouth Records, in Hazard's Collections,. Vol. l,p. 351, and Rapin's Hist, of England, (Tindal's ed.) Vol. 8, p. 72. t See the highly-wrought characters of " Tribulation, the pastor, and Ananias, the deacon, in Ben Jonson's Alchymist,. written about this time. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. £01 of each other, tlieir pastors also claimed equal and sv.r.r. distinct supremacy over their several and respective v^-^,^^,^ flocks. No subordination in their ecclesiastical go- 1607. vernment being acknowledged, these pastors, like little monarchs of two little neighbouring kingdoms, jealous of each others power, soon found cause of quarrel. Whatever this cause was, it eventuated, it seems, cither through the superior prowess of Smith, or the more humble meekness of Robinson, in the removal of the latter and his followers to Ley den.* During the residence of these people, both at I609. Amsterdam and Ley den, it appears that they must J^^g^ '^ have undergone considerable hardships. This, in- sit"auon deed, was naturally to have been expected. They were, most of them, poor country people, out of the north of England, raw and simple in their man- ners, and uninformed in their minds : fit subjects, indeed, for religious imposture. Many of them, perhaps, had been inured in their own country to the acquirement of their daily bread by personal la- bour, but they were now transplanted into another nation populous in the extreme, and with whom, consequently, the means of livelihood, even by la- bour, were more difficult to be attained. Added to this, they were unacquainted with tlie language, and ignorant of the manners and customs of the people^ wath M'hom they now dwelt. There is nothing extra- ordinary then, that the leaders of this little band of enthusiasts soon had cause to complain, " that many • Extracts last-cited, in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 354, and Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Appendix, Ne. I, at the end of Vol. 2, 3 r. 202 INTRODUCTIOlf TO A SECT, of their children were draA\Ti away aiTd departed si^'sr^^^ from their parents ; some became soldiers, others 1609. took upon them for voyages by sea, and others worse courses, to the great grief of their parents and dishonour of God."* " They had just apprehen- sions, therefore, that their little community would soon become absorbed and lost in a foreign nation."! The celebrity which commonly attaches to the name of a founder of a religious sect, was in great danger of being forever covered in obscurity. If, perchance, some historian of the country in which they dwelt, should deign to mention their fortunes or their suf- ferings, it would be only with the sentiment of pity and compassion, the most galling circumstance to Tlieyform an ambitious mind. The glory, or if it is insisted o/remo^" upou, " the natural and pious desire of perpetuating America. ^ church which they believed to be constituted after the simple and pure model of the primitive church of Christ, and a commendable zeal to pro- pagate tlie gospel in the regions of the new world," induced them to think of a removal to America. J But to what part of that grand continent, whether to the southern or northern region of it, was not at first determined by them. Sir Walter Raleigh had raised the fame of Guiana, about this time, and k is probable, that they had heard of the successful progress of the English in colonising Virginia. The former was represented as. "rich, fruitfull, and * Extracts from the Plymouth Records, in Hazard's Col- lections, Vol. 1, p. 357-8. t Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 197. I Hid. an^i see note (O) at the end of this volume r HISTORY OF iMARYLAND. 2pii blessed with perpetual spring; where vigorous Na- sect. ture brought forth all things in abundance and plen- ^.^vv-/ ty, without any great labour or act of man;" but to 1609. this was opposed the -tmhealthiness of the country, and the propinquity of the Spaniards. Virginia was next thought of; and to this it was objected, " that if they lived amongst the English there planted, or so near them as to be under their go- vernment, they should be in as great danger to be troubled and persecuted for their cause of religion, as if they lived in England, and it might be worse; and if they lived too far off, they should have nei- ther succour nor defence from them. At length, the conclusion was, to live in a distinct body by themselves, under the general government of Vir- ginia."* Having formed this resolution, they delegated ^^^'^' \ r 1 • •' -n 1 Negociate (m the year 1617) two of their society, Robert with the Cushman and John Carver, to go England, in or- company^ der to negociate with the Virginia Company for^"^^^^^ their sanction in this proposed s,ettlement, as also to ascertain whether thc' king would grant them liberty of conscience in that distant country. These agents found the Virginia Company very desirous of the projected settlement in their American terri- tory, and willing to grant them a patent with as am- ple privileges as they had power to convey. They found also friends to intercede with the king foj; • Extracts from the Plymouth Records, in Hazard's Col» lections, Vol, 1, p. 360. " The general government of Vir, ginia," here meant, was that which took place under the, sfc- oqnd and third charters of Virginia before-nientioned. 210* INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, them, particularly Sir Robert Naunton, who was VIII. ^_,^-.v.^^^ then one of the secretaries of state.* When Sir 1617. Robert urged to the king, that it was bad policy to unpeople his own kingdoms |br the benefit of his neighbours, and that he could have no objection to grant them religious liberty in America, where they would still continue to be his subjects, and where they might extend his dominions, his majesty's an- swer is said to have been, that it was " a good and honest proposal ;" but he positively refused to allow or tolerate them by his public authority under his seal, though he promised, that he would connive at them, and not molest them.f Their friends in England, notwithstanding this refusal, advised them to pursue their scheme of settlement, and gave it as their opinion that they would not be troubled. S618. With this answer, the agents returned to Holland in the year following ; but the king's refusal damped the ardour of their religious brethren, for a removal for some time. Debating upon the subject among * He was appointed to this office on the death of secretary Winwood, in October, 16 1 7, together with Sir George Cal- vert, who afterwards projected the colonisation of Maryland. See Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 135. The ap- pointment of these two gentlemen, of opposite characters, at the same time, may be reckoned ambng the singularities of king James. Sir George was an acknowledged Papist, and Sir Robert a Protestant, much inclined to favour the Puri- tans ; which seems to confirm an observation of Hume, (Hist. of England, ch. 46,) that James seemed to make it a matter of conscience, to give trust and preferment almost indiffer- ently, to his Catholic and Protestant subjects. t Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 271. Extracts from the Plymouth Records, in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 36 L HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 205 themselves, it seemed to be at last, the ophiion of a sect. Mil majority of them, that they might safely proceed v.^^r-v^^ without an express licence of the king. Reasoning I6I8. very justly on the king's character, they concluded, that if there was no security in the promise inti- mated, there would not be much greater certainty in a written confirmation of it : for if afterwards, there should be a purpose or desire to wrong them, though they had a seal as broad as the house-floor, (as the writer expresses it,) it would not serve the turn, as there would be means enough found to recal or reverse it. Wherefore, they resolved to despatch messengers again, to conclude a contract with the Virginia Company, and to procure a pa- tent with as good and ample conditions as they could ; as also to treat and agree with such mer- chants and other friends, as had manifested a dispo- sition to hazard some capital in the adventure of such a voyage. Their agents arriving again in England, in the 1619. succeeding year, (1619,) found the council and ^J^^^'^^^^ Company of Virs:inia* so disturbed with factions the vir- i -f o ^ giniacom- and quarrels among themselves, as that no business puny occa- of any importance could be transacted with them. ^'°" These dissensions appear to have been founded on very frivolous grounds, if we are to believe the statement of them given by Robert Cushman, one * This council and Company of Virginia, was composed of persons acting under the third charter of the South Vir- ginia or First Colony, sometimes called the London Compa- ny. The North Virginia, or Plymouth Company, appear at this time to have relinquished all further attempts at making settle mente. «■ 206 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, of the agents for the Puritans.* It seems, that no(!t ^'^^s^ long before the last agents had returned to England, 1619. Sir Thomas Smith, repining at his many offices and troubles, wished the Company of Virginia to ease him of his office in being treasurer and govemour of the Virginia Company; whereupon the Company took occasion to dismiss him, and chose Sir Edwin Sands in his stead. But Sir Thomas, vexed it seems, at being so soon taken at his word, grew very angry ^ and raised a faction to cavil and con- tend about the election, and endeavoured to tax Sir Edwin with many things, that might not only dis- grace him, but also either induce him to resign or disqualify him for the office. f What was the issue of these bickerings, Cushman does not state : but Sir Edwin continued in his office ; and the affairs of the colony already planted in Virginia, seemed to have prospered unusually from his accession there- to.J From his letter to Mr. Robinson and Mr. • See his letter dated May 8th, 1619, taken from the Ply- mouth Records, in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 366, 368. t It may, perhaps, not be "Unnecessary to mention, that this Sir Thomas was not the learned Sir Thomas Smith, who was so celebrated in the reign of queen Elizabeth. That gentle- man died in August, 1577. See Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 7, p. 404. This was probably some eminent merchant of London, and a city-knight. He was appointed treasurer of the Virginia Company by the king, in the body of the second Charter of Virginia, of May 23, 1609 ; though provision wa^ made by that charter, that such treasurer should afterwards be elected by a majority of the Company, and the third char- ter seems to have confirmed that privilege. I Sir Edwin Sands (or Sandys,) is represented by Hume, (Hist, of England, note [DD] to chap. 45,) ai^' a man of the HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 20f Brewster, of November 12th, 1617, he appears to sect. have been friendly to their proposal of removing to v^^-v^^^ America. It is couched in those polite and oblig- 1619. ing terms, which the chief officer of such a com- pany, who possessed liberal and generous senti- ments, would have written.* The extraordinary ill-treatment of a certain cap- tain Blackwell, towards some passengers of his ship, whom he carried about this time, as colonists to the setdement on James' river, in Virginia, operated much in the discouragement of the intended remo- val of the Puritans. t However, a patent being at length obtained from the Virginia Company, it was canied to Leyden for the consideration of the peo- ple there, with several proposals from English mer- chants and friends, for their transportation. By the advice of some friends, it seems, this patent was uot taken in the name of any of the society at Ley- greatest parts and knowledge in England," at this time next to Sir Francis Bacon. It was, on Sir Edwin's suggestion, after he was at the head of the Company as treasurer, that a freight of young women was sent over, in the 1620, to the planters of Virginia, to be bought by ;hem as wives, they being mostly destitute of families. The scheme succeeded so well, that it was repeated. It was probably also owing to him, that the commerce with the colony in Virginia, which had hitherto been monopolized by the treasurer and company, to the great depression of the colony as it was said, was in the same year laid open to all without restriction. See Holmes's Annals^ Vol. 1, p. 304, 206. * See this letter and their answer in Hazard's Collection^ Vol. I, p. 352. t See Cushman's letter, in Hazard's Collectioqp, Vo^. i. 208 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, den, but in the name of a certain John Wincob, or VI [I \,y^,.-^^ WmcoU, who was a servant in the family of the 1620. Countess of Lincoln. foTSl^ After mature deliberation, it was at last agreed, rica, and among the Puritans at Leyden, that a part of their Plymouth, congregation should go to America, in order to imsttts. niake preparation for the rest ; and therefore, such as chose to become the first adventurers were re- quested to fit and prepare themselves for the voy- age. Several of the congregation sold their estates, and made a common bank ; which, together with money received from other adventurers, enabled them to purchase a small vessel of sixty tons, and to hire in England another of one hundred and eighty tons, for their intended enterprise. In this smallcT vessel, the first adventurers embarked at or near Leyden, for Southampton, where most of them were to re-embark on board the larger ship, called the May-flower. They were under the conduct and direction of William Brewster, the ruling elder of their church ; for Robinson did not accompany them.* After their aiTival at Southampton, their * Mr. Robinson's caution, in evading the accompaniment of his flock to America, seems to afford some grounds to sus- pect that his " Catholicism," (though praised by Mr. Hohnes in his note V, before-cited, partook somewhat of that of his prototype, Robert Brown. This seems to be confirmed by what Mr. Holmes, in the same note observes, that " at first indeed, he favoured the rigid separation from the Church of England ; but, after his removal to Holland, /le was convinced of /lis 7}n&taf:e, and became ever after ^ more moderate in his sen- timents resfiecting separation^ And further, by what is said in Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Appendix No. I, to Vol. 2 ; " He was at first a thorough separatist, and Mr. Hubbard HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 209 "small ship being deemed unfit for sea, they were sect obliged all to embark on bOcird the May-flower, in ^.^^.^r^^^ which they finally left England on the sixth of Sep- I620. tember, 1620. After a boisterous passage, they discovered on the ninth of November, the land of Cape Cod. Perceiving that they had been carried to the northward of the place of their destination, they stood to the southward, intending to find some place near Hudson's river for settlement. Falling, however, among shoals, they were induced, from this incident, together with the consideration of the advanced season of the year, and the weakness of their condition, to relinquish that part of their ori- ginal design. The master of the ship, influenced by the fears of the passengers, and their extreme solicitude to be set on shore, shifted his course to the northward. The real cause of his doing which has been alleged to have been, a reward clandes- tinely promised to him in Holland, if he would not carry the English to Hudson's river.* Be that as says, was transported with their principles so far as to publish his opinions against hearing any of the preachei's of the Church of England, were they never so learned and pious, but after- wards acknowledged his error in a judiciu2is and Godly dis- course." Although the American republic is indebted to these " mistakes" and " errors" for those populous and flou- wishing states, denominated N^ew-England, yet, as Mr. Ro- binson evidently had no such sublime ideas in contemplation, and, if he had, the end would not sanctify the means, these " mistakes" and " errors" seem to form a lesson to ambitious religionists, to be cautious in leading simple and ignorant country people into situations, wherein they must necessarily endure inexpressible hardships and misery. * Although it is alleged by Morton, (New England Me- 2 D 210 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, it may, steering again for the Cape, the ship was ^^^^^^^ clear of the danger before night ; and the next day, t620. a storm coming on, they dropped anchor in Cape Cod harbour, where they were secure from winds and shoals. Finding the harbour to be in the forty-second degree of north latitude, and therefore be}'ond the tenitory of the South Virginia Company, they per- ceived that their charter, received from that com- pany, was here useless.* The consequence of this inutility of tlicir charter, was, that they were desti- tute of the powers usually held necessary to insti- tute a government. The danger of this situation was strongly enforced upon the minds of the more morial 13,) that, " Of this plot, betwixt the Dutch and Mr. Jones, I have had lat'e and certain intelligence." To which Mr. Holmes, in his Annals, (Vol. 1, p. 199,) appears to give entire credit: yet, as it is stated by Hutchinson, (Hist, of Mas- sachusetts, Vol. 1, p. 11,) that "the Dutch laboured to per- suade them (the English at Leyden,) to go to Hudson's river, and settle under their West India Company; " the fact is sta- ted as above with some hesitation. It is possible, however, that as these adventurers preferred being under the govern- ment arid protection of the English, and their designed place of settlement was near Hudson's river, but to be considered as a part of the government of Virghiia, the Dutch might be averse to having them as neighbours in that way, and for that reason bribed the captain to. carry them farther from their settlement at NeAV York. See the Appendix No. 1, to Hutch- inson's Hist. Vol. 2. • This seems to be a better and stronger reason, why they never made any subsequetit use of their charter from the , !jouth Virginia Company, than that which has been usually assigned i)y historians ; that is, because Wincob, the pateTi- tee, never welit to New Ena-land. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 211 prudent part of them, by some symptoms of Aictioii skct. and disorganisation exhibited during the passage v,,^,^-^^ among the inferior class of them, who were heard I620. to mutter, that when they should get on shore, one man would be as good as another, and they would do what they pleased. It was, therefore, judged expedient, that before disembarkation, they should combine themselves into a body politic, to be go- %-erned by the majority. A written instrument, drawn for that purpose, was accordingly subscribed on board tl^ ship, on the eleventh day of Novem- ber, by forty-one of their number, who are suppo- sed to have been all the males of age in the com- pany, which amounted to one hundred and one per- sons.* John Carver was then unanimously chosen their governour, for one j^ear. The principal inten- tion of this written instrument of express covenant, is said to have been " of a mere moral nature, that they might remove all scruples of inflicting neces- sary punishments, even capital ones, seeing all had voluntarily subjected themselves to them." It does not appear, however, notwithstanding the expedi- ency of this express compact, that the leaders of these colonists considered themselves so entirely brought back to a state of nature, and so totally emancipated from all former obligations, as to ac- knowledge no superior political power, and to be independent of all other governments. Although the most of them had been residents for some time * See this instrument in Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachu- setts, Vol. 2, Appendix No. Ijandjn Hazard's Collections, Vol. l,p. 119. 212 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, ill Holland, and therefore, in modern construction. VIII were now expatriated from their native country; 1620. yet they seem to have considered themselves as English subjects, and entitled to all the benefits and privileges resulting from the common law of England, and such English statutes, as were ap- plicable to their local situation. This indeed miglit possibly have been so deemed, as being the con- sequence of both their contract with the Virginia Company, and the permission of the king to set- tle in North America. They are said to have, therefore, " resolved to make the laws of England their rule of government, until they should agree upon laws suited to tlieir peculiar circumstan- ces."* Several of their principal men now went in their boat or shallop to search for a suitable place where they might fix their first settlement. After ranging for some days about the bay of Cape Cod, they entered a harbour, which after sounding they found to be fit for shipping, and after exploring the land adjacent to the harbour, they judged it a con- venient situation for a settlement, and returned with the welcome intelligence to the ship. They pro- ceeded with the ship to the newly discovered port, where they arrived on the sixteenth day of Decem- ber, a very improper season of the year, indeed, for the commencement of a colonial settlement, in such a climate. But necessity seemed now to have left them no choice, and as soon as they could erect * Hutchinson's History of Massachusetts, Volume 3dy Appendix, No- L at HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 213 habitations to receive their company, they were sect. VIII landed. The place, it seems, was called by the v,^rvN^ natives Patuxet, but is now well known by the I620- name of Plymouth, in the state of Massachusetts. From this small beginning, time has at length pro- duced those now populous states, which lie to the northward of New York. It is unnecessary for us to pursue their history ajiy farther in this place. SECTION IX. C^use^ of the severe statutes against Roman Catholics in England, during the reign of Elizabeth — Their conduct on the accession of James I — Thej cause of additional statutes against them — The successes of the Catholics and Puritans give rise to political par- lies — First scheme of a colony of English Catholics in Newfoimd- l^nd, under the patronage of Sir George Calvert — Sir George Cal- vert created lord Baltimore, visits Virginia, with further views of colonisation — The conduct of the Virginians towards him — Diffe- rences among the Catholics with respect to the oaths of allegiance and supremacy — Lord Baltimore forms the scheme of settling, a colony in Maryland — Settlement of a colony of Swedes on the Delaware — The Virginians oppose the lord Baltimore's schema — William Claybournc's claim — Lord Baltimore returns to England, and relinquishes his views of a settlement on Newfoundland — Ob- tains the promise of a grant of the province of Maryland, which is given on his death to his son Cecilius. WHILE the Puritans had thus sought an asy- lum in America, from the rigour of those laws< which the government of England, in the reigns of Elizabeth and James, hid thought proper to be enacted against non- conformists to their established Church, the Papists, who were eqiVally obnoxious to the majority of the nation, had nc»w begun also, from similar motives, to look about for a place of refuge. But it will be proper to examine a little into the precedent causes, which brought them into this situ,ation. It must be acknowledged by every candid Ca- tholic, at this day, that the church of Rome, from the third century to the French revolution, having considered itself as the only true Christian churchy SECT.. IX 216 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, has uniformly held that all persons who ventured to kJ^,^.^^ promulgate and mamtain religious doctrines con- 1620. trary to those which the ancient church are suppo- sed to have received from Jesus Clirist, were to be deemed heretics, liable, upon the principles of Christianity, to th^ punishment of death. Intole- rance, therefore, with respect to other sects of the Christian religion, seems to have been a principle necessarily inherent in the papal hierarchy. Those who professed this system of religion, seem to have been bound by the obligation of their religious pro- fession, to apply the strong arm of persecution, in order to correct any presumptuous aberration from the doctrines of their church. It appears, there- fore, that the reformers in general entertained iiTa- tional expectations, when they demanded a toleration of their opinions. It was, without doubt, under these impressions, that the English reformers, es- pecially in the reign of Elizabeth, renounced such expectations, as visionary hopes. The cruel per- secutions also, which they experienced during the reign of Mary, taught them what they were to ex- pect, should the Papists retain their power in that nation. There were, moreover, certain principles maintained by the Papists on the continent of Eu- rope, at the period of time of which we are now treating, which were totally inconsistent with any thing like good government. That the pope had a power of excommunicating kings who refused to obey his directions, and that thereupon all subjects of such king so excommunicated, were absolved from their allegiance to him ; and besides, that any of the subjects of such king might privately assas- HISTaRY OP MARYLAND. 217 sinate him, and for such deed not only obtain the sf>ct. IX pardon and blessing of his holiness, but thereby v,.,r>r%^ merit an everlasting crown of glory in heaven ; and moreover, that it was lawful to put heretics to death by private assassination, without the formality of legal trial and public execution; that these were political as well as religious tenets, held by the greater number of the zealous Roman Catholics un- til the latter end of the seventeenth century, cannot possibly be denied."* The horrid massacre of the French Protestants on St. Bartholomew's da}-, in the year 1572, and the assassinations of two kings - of France, Henry III and IV, and that of the prince of Orange were all in the sixteenth century, avowedly justified on these principles. f Much * See note (P) at the end of the volume. t The assassins of the two kings of France were evidently instigated thereto more by their religious tenets than the poli- tical principle of tyrannicide. Sermons were preached, and books were written, to prove that, these princes being here- tics, and excommunicated by the pope, it was meritorious, even in individuals, to remove them. Nor do these tenets appear to have been peculiar only to the Jesuits. John Cle- ment, who assassinated Henry III, was a jacobin monk, of the order of DoirAnkans. The whole convent knew his de= sign, before he went on the execution of it, and approved it ; and pope Sixtus, Vth, of hypocritical notoriety, was not ashamed, in a full consistory, to Ihagnify the holy zeal of this bloody villain, and to extol his courage and piety beyond that of Judith. The reward set on the head of William, prince of Orange, (the Washington of the states of Holland,) by Philip H, of Spain, was, perhaps, the real motive of both the assassins who attempted his life ; but the first of them, who only wounded him, had confessed his intention to a Domini^ can priest, and received from him absolution, and a promise 2 !• 218 INTRODtrCTION TO A SECT, cause, therefore, had the people of England to ap. K^y^^^-,^ prehend danger in the enjoyment of theh' civil and religious liberties, had the crown of that kingdom descended, on the death of Mary, to any other claimant than Elizabeth. Hence, therefore, the severe laws which were enacted against Papists during the reign of that princess, were iiatiu'ally to have been expected. Not that the free enjo}^ment of religious opinions is not a natural right, inherent in every individual member of society, but if poli- tical opinions are so mingled with religion, as to af- fect the just as well as necessary administration of the government, without the preservation of which mankind cannot well, or at least happily exist, and those who profess such opinions are constantly en- deavouring to put them into action and practice, through the medium of religion, reason and com- mon sense dictate the necessit}' of suppressing the exercise of even such ostensible rights, by such laws as shall be adequate to the purpose.^ Whe- of eternal reward. The massacre of St. Baftholornew's was done by the orders of the king, (Charles IX) who openly avowed it, and was complimented upon it by the parhanient of Paris ; and pope Gregory, X'lII, went in a procession oh foot, to a church in Rome, to give public thanks on the news thereof, and ordered a jubilee over all Europe to be observed, in consideration of that great blow given to the heretics. See Bayle's Hist. Diet. art. Boucher, Chastel, Guignard, Hen. HI, and Sanctesivis. Also, the Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 24, p. 271, 328, 354, 361, 435. — Vol. 26, p. 368, 398. — Vol. 31, p. 91. * Voltaire well observes upon the disptlte between the Gal- lican church and the pope, in the seventeenth century, before- mentioned, " that it was the cause of the people, whose re- pose requires, that their sovereign be independent of any fo reigti power." .^'^■f of Louia A'/F, ch. 3L HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 219' ther the several statutes enacted against popish recu- sect sants, during the reigns of Elizabeth and James, .^^^^-^^ transcended these ends and purposes, and were un- 155«- necessarily severe, is quite a different question from that which involves the position just mentioned. 1j58. In confirmation of these obser\'ations, one of the the severe first incidents which occurred on the accession of gj^i'^^s^t Elizabeth to the throne, before anv parliament had^"'!'.''"*'" sat, or statutes been enacted, deserves notice. — Ed- En£,^aiui, /-^ 1 -r« !• 1 1 1 T-» during' the ward Carne, the English ambassador, at Rome, reis-n'of had orders to notify to the pope, (Paul IV,) Mary's death and Elizabeth's accession to the crown. This haughty high priest, whose bigotry of mind and austerity of temper appear to ha\'e increased in his extreme old age, replied to the ambassador, " That it was great boldness in her to assume the crown without his consent; that England was a fief of the holy see; that being illegitimate, she could not possibly inherit that kingdom; that she deserved no favour at his hands; but if she would renounce her pretentions, and refer herself wholly to him, he would show a fatherly affection for her."* In these ■cnore enlightened days, no person can understand ihis in any other sense, than an assumption of power by a high priest of a particular sect of Christians, * Rapin's Hist, of England, (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 7, p. 183. Hume's Hist. ch. 38. This pope refused, but a few months before this, nearly upon the sanie principles, to confirm the election of Ferdinand I, of Austriaj as emperor of Germany, on the resignation of Charles V, " contending that the pope, as the vicegerent of Christ, was entrusted with the keys both of celestial and terresiial government ; and that from him the imperial jurisdiction was derived." Robertson's History of Charles V^ b. 12. J20 INTRO-DUCTION TO A SKCT. to dispose of the civil government, and with it, the y^^.>,.^s^ people of an independent nation. i56j. The barbarous association entered into, in a few years afterwards, between the courts of France and ' Spain, at: their celebrated interview at Bayonne', in the year 1565, for a total extermination of the Pro- testants by fire and sword, (of which the massacre of St. Bartholomew's, before- mentioned, was, with- out adoubt, a consequence,) affords strong indica- tion of the principles of the Catholics at this era of time : which association seems to be too well au- thenticated in history, to admit of doubt.* 1569. As a further proof of the improper intermixture of religion and politics, by the Catholics of these times, may be mentioned the bull of excommuni- cation, issued by pope Pius V, against Elizabeth, bearing date February 25, 1569, wherein, after de- claring, " that, as successor of St. Peter, he was constituted by Him that reigncth on high, over all nations and all kingdoms, that he might pluck up, destroy, dissipate, ruinate, plant, and build," he proceeds thus : ** We deprive her of her pretended right to the kingdom, and of all dominion, dignity, and privilege whatsoever ; and absolve all the no- bles, subjects, and people of the kingdom, and who- ever also have sworn to her, from their oath and all rx^ which was at that time in agitation in the north of 1569. England. In pursuance of these objects, one John Felton had the hardiliood to affix the bull to the gates of the bishop of London's house ; and scorn- ing either to fly or to deny the fact, he was aiTcsted, tried, condemned, and hanged : and thereby obtain- ed the empty repute of a glorious martyrdom.* Not content with these means of dethroning the 1585. queen, and thereby restoring themselves to their former ascendancy in the state, the Catholics had recourse to the inhuman scheme, of causing her to be assassinated. One William Parry, an English Catholic gentleman, had received the queen's par- don, for a crime, by which he was exposed to capi- tal punishment ; and having obtained permission to travel, he retired to Milan, and made open profes- sion of his religion, which he had concealed while he remained in England. He was here persuaded by a Jesuit, that he could not perform a more meri- torious action, than to take away the life of his so- vereign and his benefactress. The pope's nuncio at Milan, when consulted by him, approved ex- tremely of this pious undertaking ; and Parry, though still agitated with doubts, went to Paris, with an intention of passing over to England, and executing his bloody purpose. He was here also encouraged in the design by one Thomas Morgan, an English Catholic refugee, then residing in France, * Hume's Hist, eh, 40, Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 7, p. 350. 2S2 INTRaDUCTION TO A SECT, of great credit in the party ; and though some other IX Catholic priests told him that the enterprise was 1585. criminal and impious, yet having received the fur- ther encouragement of the pope's nuncio at Paris^ he determined to persist in his resolution, Before he left Paris, he wrote a letter to the pope on the subject ; in which he communicated his intention to the holy father, and craved his absolution and paternal benediction. This letter being conveyed to the pope, through the cardir^l Como, he re- ceived an answer from the cardinal ; by which, he found that his purpose was extremely applauded, and he went over to England, with a full design of carrying it into execution. But, as Hume on this occasion justly observes, " so deeply are the senti- ments of morality engraved in the human breast, that it is difficult even for the prejudices of false religion, totally to efface them." This bigotted assassin resolved, before he came to extremities, to try every other expedient for alleviating the perse- cutions under which the Catholics at that time la- boured. He found means of being introduced to the queen : assured her that many conspiracies were, formed against her ; and exhorted her, as she ten- dered her life, to give the Romanists some more indulgence in the exercise of their religion. But, lest he should be tempted by the opportunity, to assassinate her, he always came to court unprovided with every offensive weapon. He even found means to be elected a member of parliament ; and having made a vehement harangue against the severe laws enacted against the Catholics, was committed to custody. This circumstance, together with that ©f HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 223 his perusal of a book, then lately written and pub- sect. lished by a doctor William Allen, afterwards a car- y^^^r^^^^^^ dinal, wherein it was attempted to be maintained, io85. that it was not only lawful, but honourable, to kill princes excommunicated, confirmed him in his for- mer resolution.* Having obtained his liberty, he communicated his intention to a person of the name and ancient family of the Nevils, who at first enter- ed zealously into the design, and was determined to have a share in the merits of its execution. But Nevil, becoming in the mean-time, next heir to the title of the earl of Westmoreland, which had been forfeited by the last earl, he conceived hopes, thaf by doing some acceptable service to the queen, he^ might recover the estate and honours. He there- fore, betrayed the whole conspiracy to the minis- ters ; and Parry, being thrown into prison, con- * This cardinal Allen was originally an English Catholic, bred at the university of Oxford, but shortly after Elizabeth's accession to the throne, and the restoratign of the reformed religion, he retired from England, and had the priocipal hand in founding the English Catholic college at Donay, on thp borders of France and Flanders, in the year 1568, where pro- bably he wrote his above-mentioned mischievous book. It was from here, as well as from similar institutions at St. Omer's and Leige, that the Catholics in England were sup- plied with priests during the reigns of Elizabeth and James. He was made a cardinal by pope Sextus V, about the time of the famous invasion of England by the Spanish armada, in 1558, at the particulai^ request of Philip II, to whom this pope had given the investiture of England, after having ex- communicated Elizabeth, and deprived her as far as he couid, of her right to the kingdom. See Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 7, p. 415, and ihe Mod. Univ. Hisv Vo>. 26^ p." 388. 224 INTRODUCTION TO \ SECT, fessed the guilt, both to them and to the jury whd ^^^^^^^■y,^ tried him. The letter from cardinal Como, being 1585. produced in court, put the encouragement he had received both from the pope and the Ccirdinal, be* yond all question.* These incidents are here mentioned, only as a few of the most prominent proofs, with which the historians of those times abound, of the improper conduct of the English Catholics in the reign of Elizabeth ; which, if not a complete justification, yet greatly palliates the injustice, if any, in enacting those rigorous statutes against popery, which took ■place in her reign, and which could not have been justified on any other principle.! 1603. On the death of Elizabeth, and on the accession Their con- of Jamcs to the tlirouc, the Eno-lish Catholics, as duct on . the acces- bcforc obscrvcd, had cherished ardent hopes, that he James I. would rcstorc them to their lost influence and power. Disappointed in these expectations, and surprised and enraged, to find James on all occasions, express his intention of strictly executing the laws already enacted against them, and moreover actually giving his royal assent to further rigorous statutes against them,$ a few of the most zealous among them be- gan to revolve in their minds some means of libe- rating themselves from the persecution they expe- rienced. In the fury of these sentiments, they medi- tated that horrible contrivance usually denominated * Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 7, p. 446. Hume's Hist. ch. 41. t See note (Q) at the end of the volume, t See the statutes of I Jac. I, ch. 4 and 25. inSTORY OF MARYLAND. 22a the Gunpowder Plot : " an event," as Hume ob- sect IX. serves, " one of the most memorable that history has conveyed to posterity, and containing at once a i603. singular proof both of the strength and weakness of the human mind ; its widest departure from morals, and most steady attachment to religious prejudices ; a fact as certain, as it appears incredible." As this scheme consisted in blowing up by gunpowder, the two houses of parliament, while the king was deli- vering his speech to them from the throne, the ex- cellence of it, as boasted of by them, was, that by a sort of retributive justice, it would destroy at one blow, the authors of their sufferings, and bury their principal enemies in one common ruin. " They flattered themselves with the vindictive pleasure of beholding those sacrilegious walls, in which were passed the edicts for proscribing their church, tossed into a thousand fragments." Their scheme, how- ever, was discovered in a very extraordinary man- ner, within a few days prior to its intended execu- tion, and consequently became abortive. The parliament met in safety, and notwithstand- 1605-6. ine: the kind's speech to them contained a softening: ^^^ c o o 1 o causes or apology for the Catholics, they proceeded to enact additional laws, not only for the attainder of such offenders in against the late plot, as had made their escape out of the ^™' kingdom, but " for the better discovering and re- pressing of popish recusants," and " to prevent and avoid dangers" arising from such recusants.* By these statutes, additional disabilities, restraints, pe= nalties and forfeitures, were imposed upon the Eng;- • See the statutes of 3 Jac. 1. ch. 4 and 5. 3 F 226 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, lish Catholics beyond what they had been before ^^~^r>.^ hable to. And thus, by an intemperate zeal aitd 1606. injudicious conduct, not comporting with any sound principles of morality, however consistent it might be with their religious tenets, they brought on them- selves a greater degree of intolerance from the Pro- testants towards them, than they would otherwise have experienced. It does not appear that any other statutes against Catholics were enacted during the remainder of James's reign. Those already mentioned, both of this and the preceding reigns, contained severities enough to keep them in all due subjection, had those laws been executed on all occasions with the utmost rigour. But it seems to have been one of the greatest anxieties of James's life, to exculpate himself in the eyes of the rest of Europe, from the charge of being a persecutor of the Catholics, though he heartily joined in the suppression of the Puri- tans. He accordingly, therefore, pardoned popish recusant ct)nvicts, or remitted their forfeitures, as * often as the clamour of his Protestant subjects would permit him to do it \^'ith any seeming propriety. As the hoifse of commons during his reign, was com- posed entirely of members professing to be of the established Protestant Church, among whom were many strongly tinctured with Puritanism, and as the administration of justice and the execution of the laws, would necessarily be intrusted to many zealous Protestants, it socn became impossible for the Catholics to live in the kingdom, and at the same time openly profess their religion. When- '♦ ever, therefore, any great incident occurred relative HISTORY OP 1MARY1.AND. to jifrsQiis of that persuasion, the nation seemed to sect IX. feel an uncommon alarm. The assassination ofy^ , Henry IV, of France, which happened not long at- i6iu. terwiirds, had such an effect upon the Eno;lish na- tion, that James, instigated in all probability not a little by a sense of his own personal danger, was under a necessity of issuing his proclamation, com- manding all Jesuits and priests to depart the king- dom, and that no recusants should come within ten miles of the court. This tragical event in France, so roused the antipathy of the Protestants to the Catholics, that the laws began now to be executed against them with increased rigour and severity. The king's absurd obstinacy, in persisting in his endeavours to marry his son Charles to a princess of the royal family of Spain, was another constant source of uneasiness to his Protestant subjects. They dreaded the consequences of such a union, to their party in England ; and as the increased in- fluence and power of the house of commons, be- came obviously discernible towards the latter part of his reign, insomuch that larger strides towards that political liberty, which they afterwards, in Charles's reign, more boldly assumed, were for the first time manifested by that body, in a remon- strance to the king, on the then state of affairs. I621. Jealous of the extraordinary propensity of James to favour the Catholics, they urged to him in a bolder tone than any house of commons had ever before used towards a sovereign of England, the dangers which they apprehended to the Protestant religion, Among the many causes of those great and grow- ing mischiefs which they appreliended, thf y reprsr 22« INTRODTJCTION TO A gECT. sented "the devilish positions and doctrines whereon IX • ... t^^^ popery is built, and taught with authority to their 1621. followers, for advancement of their temporal ends. " The expectation of the popish recusants of the match with Spain, and feeding themselves with great hopes of the consequences thereof. " The interposing of foreign princes, and their agents, in the behalf of popish recusants, for conni- vance and favour unto them. " Their forfeitures compounded for, at such mean rates, as amounted to less than a toleration. " The licentious printing and dispersing of po- pish books, even in the time of parliament. " The swarms of priests and Jesuits, the com- mon incendiaries of all Christendom, dispersed in all parts of the kingdom. " And that the popish religion had such a restless spirit, that if it should once get but a connivance, it would press for a toleration : if that should be ob- tained, they must have an equality ; from thence they would aspire to superiority, and will never rest till they get a subversion of the true religion." Among a variety of other remedies for these evils, they pressed his majesty " to put in execution the laws for preventing of dangers by popish recu- sants."* The ex- It is at this session of parliament, that historians ccsscs ot the Catho- have fixcd the era of the rise of the two distinct po- puritans, litical parties in England, which have subsisted fo^Viitf. ^^'^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^7' under different denominations, eai par- Thosc who opposcd the absolute power, which the • Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 191. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 229 king now claimed, formed soon afterwards what sect. was known by the name of the country -party, and s^-^^^s, received the powerful aid of the Puritans. The i^^i. court-party were principally composed of the clergy of the established Church, those also who enjoyed offices under the crown, and the vast body of Ca- tholics, which secretly lurked in the kingdom.* But as, happily for the English nation and their de- scendants in America, those who advocated the rights of the people, as exercised by their represen- tatives in parliament, finally prevailed, so even, throughout the remainder of the reign of James, they found themselves able to maintain that firm position which they had now taken in support of their religious as well as civil and political liberties. For the reasons before suggested, it became neces- sary, in their estimation, that the English Catholics, who certainly were but a minor part of the nation, should yield up their religious rights, when the en- joyment of them became manifestly incompatible with those of a majority of the people. It was in this state of things, that parliament now pressed the execution of the laws heretofore made against them. But James was too tenacious of what he deemed his prerogative, to give way so readily. Soon aft^r he had prorogued and dissolved parliament, in order to please the king of Spain, and to promote the pro- jected match between his son and the infanta, in defiance of the law, as well as the before-mentioned remonstrance of the commons, he issued writs to * Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 182- Hume's Hist, note [LL] to ch. 48. 230 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, the judges and justices of the peace, to release all \^^y^,^.,^ the imprisoned recusants. Deeming himself head 1621. of the English Church, and thereby possessed of siq^reme ecclesiastical power, he wished to have it considered, that the toleration of Catholics was a measure of that nature. But not only the religious Puritans murmured at this proceeding of the king ; the friends of civil liberty were alarmed at' so im- portant an exertion of prerogative i for it does not appear to have been definitively ascertained, at this period of time, whether the king had not a power of dispensing with penal statutes.* This last session of parliament, however, appears to have formed a crisis, from which the declension of the royal pre- rogative under the English constitution is mani- festly visible. As the Catholics had, prior to thi^. period, by the patronage of the king, gained such an evident ascendancy in their influence in the af- fairs of the nation, as to render the situation of the Puritans so uncomfortable, as to prompt them to emigration, so now the Puritans, in their turn, through the increased power and privileges of the house of commons ; of which many of them, or at least many of those who inclined much to favour them, were members, began to be enabled to retort upon the Catholics, their own intolerant system. By their clamours for a vigorous execution of the * Rapin says, that some stop was put to these dispensing mandates or writs of the king, by the advice of the lord keeper, "Williams. Rapin's Hist.(Tindal'sedit.) Vol. 8, p. 261, But this was subsequent to the period of time we are now speak- ing of, and at the time of the ratification of the Spanish treaty ofmarriage, in 1623. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 03 j laws against Papists, it became now necessary for sect. them also to Look about for a place of refuge. ' v.^-v-n^ It was in this situation of things, that Sir George I621. Calvert, who was still one of the principal secreta- fj^^gme of ries of state, and an acknowleda:ed Roman Catho- a colony ' ^ . ofEng-lish lie, influenced probably by the then recent previous Catholics, example of the Puritans in New England, contem- found- plated a settlement of Catholics in Newfoundland. dT/the"' Standins: hie:h in the favour of his sovereis:n, not p^^™"'^^'^ ^ '^^ _ \ _ ^ ' of Sir only perhaps from his long services to him as secre- George tary for many years, but from his late zealous exer- tions in promotion of the Spanish match, an event 30 ardently desired by all the Catholics, they natu- rally looked up to him as one of their ablest pro- tectors.*" He easily, therefore, obtained a grant * These exertions of Sir George do not appear to have been strictly honourable, if what is mentioned by Rapin be true. He is said to have been one of those whom count Gon- demar, the Spanish ambassador, had bribed with presents and pensions, to cherish in the king this vain project of marrying his son to the inlanta. It is said also, that the couut extend- ed his system of bribery, on this occasion, even to the very ladies about the court, of which we may be excused for men- tioning a pleasant anecdote. It happened that he had ne- glected to bri|je the lady Jacobs, who, upon his passing by her window in his chair, instead of answering his salutation as usual, only gaped with her mouth, which repeating agaii^ n^xt day, he sent to know the reason ; she replied, that " she- had a mouth to stop as well as other ladies." In justice to Sir George, however, it ought to be observed, that being a zealous Rpman Catholic, he might possibly have been active in promoting the matrimonial union betweeu the crowns of England and Spain, not under the influence of a bribe, b«t, through zeal in promoting the interests of his religion. See Rapin's Hist. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 167. There is a let- ter of Sir Geoi'ge Calvef t to secretary Gonway, about the Spa- 232 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, from the king, of that part of the island of New- y^^^^ foundland, which hes between the Bay of Bulls, on 1621. the east coast thereof, and Cape St. Mary's on the south, which was erected into a province, and called Avalon. This grant was, apparently, in direct re- pugnance to that previously made by the king, of the same tract of country, in the year 1610, as be- fore-mentioned, to the earl of Northampton, and others. But, as the expedition under Mr. Guy, for a settlement thereof, had totally failed, and the patentees had, to all appearance, entirely relinquish- ed their intention of making any further use of their patent. Sir George might, with propriety, accej^t the grant. He accordingly, therefore, prepared to execute the purposes and intention of his patent. Previous, however, to his own embarkation for the country granted to him, he thought it most proper for him to send a small colony thither, under the command of a captain Edward Wynne, as gover- nour, who seated himself and colonists, at a place called Ferryland, a harbour on the east coast of Newfoundland, between Cape Race and the Bay of Bulls. Here he commenced a settlement, erected granaries and store-houses, and built the largest dwelling-house that had ever been seen on the is- 1622. land. In the following year, (1622,) he set up a salt-work, and had the encouragement, through the interest and means of the proprietor, of receiving a reinforcement to his colony, by the arrival of an addi- > nish match, among the Harleian MSS. in the British mu- seum ; but of the contents of it, we have not on this side of the Atlantic, a convenient opportunity of knowing. HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 233 tional number of colonists and fresh supplies of skct. IX stores and provisions. Exaggerated accounts ofv.^,,v>sV the fertility of the soil, and pleasantness of the coun- 16:^4. try, being transmitted to Sir George,* he is said t-o have determined to remove thither and reside there with his family. Continuing to be one of the principal secretaries of state, and appointed by James ifis*. one of the provisional council in England, for the co- lony of Virginia, in the commission to Henry Vis- count Mandeville, and others,t issued by that mo- narch shortly after the judgment in the court of king's bench on the quo warranto^ to avoid the for- mer charters of Virginia, it is not probable that Sir George put in execution his intention of removing to Ferryland, prior to the death of king James. On ^^^^" this event it seems to have been supposed, that this commission, as well as that to Sir Francis Wyat and others, of the 26th of August (1624,) for the establishing a government in Virginia, were annul- led by the demise of the crown4 On the acces- sion of Charles to the throne, it appears, that Sir George Calvert ceased to be a secretary of state, for we find that lord Conway and Sir John Cook are mentioned as secretaries of state in August, 1625, about five months after the death of king James, § and Sir George Calvert is no more men- * Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 39, p. 250. t This commission bears date July 15th, 1624, about eight ^nonths before the death of king James. See it in Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 183. See note (R) at the end of the volume. % Holmes's Annals, Vol, I, p. 234. § Rapin's Hist, of Eng. (Tindal's edit.) Vol. 8, p. 333.— 2 G 2^4 INtROttUCTlON TO A SECT, tioncd in histoiy in that capacity. He was, for his ^^^^^^^^ past services to the crown, created about this time, 1625. (either by king James, a litde before his death, or by Charles, in the first year of his reign,) lord baron of Baltimore, in the kingdom of Ireland.* Disen- gaged from the duties of office, he had now leisure to attend to his project of establishing a colony in America. With this view, it is said, that in the beginning of the reign of Charles he visited in per- son his colony in Newfoundland. t Residing here for a few years, he soon discovered that it was not a country fit, or at least eligible for colonisation. As he had, without doubt, received full information of the flourishing situation of the colony of Virginia, and flwourable accounts of the climate and soil of the Lord Bai- co^i^^T bordering on the Chesapeake, he was in- timore vi- d^ced, in the year 1628, to visit that colony, in nia^ ' ''' search of some more desirable situation for his Ca- From the English histories of these limes it appears, that there were then usually but two principal secretaries of state, and lord Clarendon (Hist, of the Rebellion, p. 21,) in charac- terising the different personages of young Charles's court, mentions " the two secretaries of state," Sir John Coke and Sir Dudley Carleton, the latter of whom had been re- cently put into the place of lord Conway, removed for age and incapacity. Lord Clarendon also here observes, that " the secretaries of state were not in those days officers of that magnitude they have been since, being only to make despatch- es upon the conclusion of councils, not to govern or preside in those councils." * He was not created lord Baltimore at the time of the commission of July 15, 1624, being then styled only Sir George Calvert. t Chalmers's Annals, Vol. K p. 20!. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 235 tholic dependents.* Whether a jealousy of his co- skct. lonial views, or those general prejudices against the v^,.-v->,^ papists, which were now more prevalent than e^'er, 1628 « even in the mother country, operated witli the Vir- ginians, his visit was received by them most ungra- ciously indeed. What renders this reception of him somewhat more surprising, is, that the colonists of Virginia had not emigrated from England to evade religious persecution, as those of New England are supposed to have done, but seem to have been allu« red to it originally by the prospect of a sudden ac- cumulation of wealth, by means of t^ie discovery of mines as the Spaniards had done, or a shorter route to the Indies. The Church of England was then the established religion in Virginia, and Puritanism had not been hitherto encouraged among them. It is true, that those in England who were denominated high churchmen, as archbishop Laud and others, were accused by the Puritans of being inclined to po- pery; but it is to be remembered, that king Charles constantly professed, and apparently with sincerity, to be alike opposed to popery and Puritanism, f He • Some writers make his visit to Virginia to have been in I60I; (See Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 261 ;) but Burk-in his late History of V^irginia, Vol. 2, p. 25,) places this event in 1628; for which he seems to rely on a MS. copy of" An» cient Records" of Virginia, in his possession, preserved from destruction in the time of the American revolution, by colo- nel Byrd. t Even Rapin acknowledges, that he did not believe that ei- ther the king or archbishop Laud ever formed the design of restoi'ing the Romish religion, and mentions the circumstance of the archbishop being offered a cardinal's cap, if he would help to do it. Rapin's Hist (Tindal's edit.j Vol. 8, p. 526-7, 236 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, was evidently less inclined to favour the papists than y,^-^^^^ his fatJier had been. It is clearly perceptible through- 1628. out the early part of his reign, that the churchmen considered themselves as standing upon a ground quite distinct from either the papists or the Puri- tans. Taking the tone from the sovereign, the offi- cers of justice began to put in execution the laws against both more frequently than in the former reign tl:iough the emptiness of the royal coffers induced the monarch to connive at the frequent practice of compounding for the penalties. It is not impossible, but that this disposition of the minds of church- men towards the Catholics, had passed by this time across the Atlantic to Virginia. The con- Immediately on the arrival of lord Baltimore in Virgi- Virginia, the assembly of that province, actuated, w^rds*^ as is supposed by a late historian,* by a sense of hun. duty, caused the oaths of allegiance and supremacy to be tendered to him and his followers. He rejected them, proposing, however, at the same time, for himself and his followers a form of oath, which he de- clared himself ready to accept. As particular forms of these oaths were prescribed by particular statutes, it was not in the power of the assembly to dispense with them after being tendered. In this state mat- ters rested, the assembly contenting itself with lay- ing the whole transaction before the privy- council in England. t Setting aside the want of courtesy and hospitality ill this treatment of lord Baltimore, and the ques- • Burk, in his Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 2. p. 25, t Burk's Hist. /&U HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 237 tionable colonial policy of the measure, as it would sect. • " . IX appear to us at this day, considerable doubts might v,^,-v>»^ arise, as to the legal power of the assembly, in this 1628. instance, to tender these oaths to his lordship. No such power appears to have been given by what is called the first charter of Virginia, of 4 Jac. 1. By the second charter of the 7 Jac. 1, power was given (as before-mentioned*) " to the treasurer for the time being, and any three of the council," (that is, any three of the council of Virginia in England^) " to tender and exhibit the said oath" (of suprema- cy,) " to all such persons as shall at any time be sent and employed in the said voyage." By the third charter of Virginia, of the 9 Jac. 1, power is given to the treasurer or his deputy for the time being, " or any two others of the said council, for the said first colony in Virginia, to minister and give the oath and oaths of supremacy and allegiance, or either of them, to all and every person and persons which shall at any time or times hereafter, go or pass to the said colony of Virginia." But it is evi- dent, that thtsQc\ix\isQso^ dedimiis potestateniy in both these charters, vested authority for that purpose in the treasurer and company in England^ and not in any of the members of the government in Virginia^ and that too must have been necessarily exercised by them before such persons passed into Virginia. But after all, should this reasoning not be thought to be correct, it is certain, that these charters were all annulled by the judgment of the court of king's bench, on the quo warranto before-mentioned, and • See this clause of this charter before recited in p. 159. 238 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, the assembly itself was but a self-created body, not x^-^^^-^^ authorized by the commission of government td 1628. Mr. John Hervey, of the 26th of March, 1627, the only then existing authority for the government of Virginia. Moreover, if these oaths were tender- ed to him by two justices of the peace, of the pro- vince, the statutes which enabled two justices to do so, expressly excepted noblemen from their ju- risdiction. DifFeren- It was not to bc cxpcctcd, that such a conscien- ces among , ^,. .,t-.i- • xj.t tiie Caho- tious Catholic, as lord Baltimore is represented to respec '^to have been, could with propriety have taken the of\iie^' bath of supremacy, which oath at that time was the glance quc prescribed by the statute of 1 Eliz. ch. 1, sec. andsupre- ^ '' i i t i i j macy. 19; inasmuch as he must thereby have declared, that the king was the only supreme governour of all his dominions and countries, " as well in all spi- ritual or ecclesiastical tilings or causes^ as tempo- ral." This could not consistently be done by one who believed the pope to be the supreme head of the Christian church. It was, probably, then known also by his lordship, being an Irish peer, that pope Urban VIII had but a few years before (in the year 1626) issued his bull to the Irish Catholics, in which " he exhorted them rather to lose their lives, than to take that wicked and pestilent oath of su- premacy, whereby the sceptre of the Catholic church was Avrested from the hand of the vicar of God Almighty."* But as to the oath of allegiance, which was that prescribed by the statute of 3 Jac. i, ch. 4, sect. 15, although it required a denial ■ * Leiand's Hist, of Irelsmd. Vol. 2, (ch. 8,) p. 479. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 239 of the pope's power of excommunicating kings, and sect. thereby deposing them, yet many of the moderate ^,.^-v■^^^ English Catholics, soon after the making of the sta- i628. tute of 3 Jac. 1, in the year 1606, thought that they could with propriety, and actually did, take the oath prescribed by that statute ; and in this they were encouragea by George Black well, who had been established as the archpriest or superior of the Catholic church in England, and \\ ho gave it as his opinion that the English Catholics might with safety take this oath of allegiance. But pope Paul, by a brief, in 1606, forbade them to take it. Black well refused to publish the brief, and on that account the English Catholics conceived, that it was a forged one. I'he pope, however, renewed his prohibition, and cardinal Bellarmine wrote a sharp letter of re- proof to Blackwell, exhorting him to redress his fault, and rather suffer martyrdom than continue that course. Blackwell answered Bellarmine, that since the ablest divines did not believe that the pope had any power over the temporals of princes, he thought that he might in conscience take the oath ac- cording to that opinion.* This letter of Bellarmine • Blackwell probably alluded here to some controversial writings, which the then recent dispute between pope Paul V, and the republic of Venice, had occasioned. That pontiff had thought that some laws or decrees of the senate interfe- red with his ecclesiastical jurisdiction, and demanded by his nuncio, that they should be revoked. The senate supposing that these laws concerned only matters which were properly the subjects of their internal police, refused the demand. Two clergymen also, who had committed crimes, were about to be punished. He demanded, that they should be delivered nft, to be tried by his ecclesiastical judges. This also the 240 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, and the two briefs of the pope, drew forth the pen IX. of king James, who was always glad of an opportu- 1628. nity of displaying his talents for theological contro- versy ; and it is said,* he clearly demonstrated that the cardinal had confounded the two oaths of supre- macy and allegiance, and thereby shown, that he did not imderstand the subject. The intended dis- tinction between them, appears to have been, that the oath of supremacy obliges the sul^ject to ac- knowledge the king for supreme head of the Church of England, as well as to bear allegiance to him ; but the oath of allegiance, prescribed by the statute of 3 Jac. 1, requires only submission and obedience to the king, as a sovereign, independent of any other power upon earth. f So that it was supposed, that every Catholic could safely take this new oath, un- less he was one of those who thought, that to be a true Catholic it was necessary to believe, that the pope had power to depose kings, and give away their dominions. It is said also,| that the commons having put into the rough draught of the oath, " that the pope has not power to excommunicate the king," James observed, that these words might senate refused. The consequence was, that his holiness pro- nounced the doge and the republic excommunicated. This dispute occasioned many books to be written, in different parts of Europe, relative to the bounds of division between ecclesiastical and political power ; in which many sound Ca- tholics attempted to maintain the independence of princes and states against the papal power. See Dupin's Hist, of the Church, Cent. 17, chap. 2 and 3. * Rapin's Hist. (Tindai's edit.) V'ol. 8, p. 65, t Ibid. Vol. 8, p. 62. \ Ibid.. inSTOttY OF MARYLANtl 2^ possibly offend his good Catholic subjects, and It sect. would be sufficient to assert, that the pope's ex- v,^^-~^r>w' communication could not authorise subjects to rise 1628 against their sovereign. Whether foreigners, espe- cially Catholics, really understood these distinctions or not, it seems that soon afterwards, in conformity to the sense of it at the court of Rome, the English Catholics generally adopted the resolution of rejectr ing both oaths alike. It was not to be A\'ondered at, therefore, that lord Baltimore should on this occa- sion, have also pursued that line of conduct. Whether lord Baltimore personally, at the time Lord Bai- of his visit to Virginia, explored that tract of coun- ^^1116 try now denominated Maryland, of which he after- ^'^^^'"^**^ "' ' settling' a wards procured a grant, we are not positively in- colony io formed. But, as the obtaining a more complete ^ ^' knowledge of the country bordering on the Chesa* peake, than he could otherwise possibly have from report, must have been the principal object of his visit, we cannot but suppose, tliat he must at this time, notwithstanding the discouragement of his pursuits by the Virginians, have made the tour by water of the principal parts of the Chesapeake bay. Although it is highly probably, that the Virginians had then been for some time in the practice of trad- ing and bartering with the Indian natives inhabiting the shores of that bay, even to its head, at the mouth of. the Susquehanna; and might, indeed, as it is said, have established trading- houses on some of the islands toward the head of the bay,* particularly perhaps on the isle of Kent ; yet, if the " ancient • Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 26i, 2 M 242 rNTRODUCTlON TO A SECT, records" of Virginia, before -mentioned, and cited ^ij^;^^ by a late historian of that state, be authentic to 1628. prove that this visit of lord Baltimore to Virginia, was in the year 1628, which we have here taken as granted, there are strong grounds to presume, that at this time there had been no actual settlements made, either by the Virginians or any other Euro- peans, within the lines and limits of any part of that country for which the lord Baltimore afterwards ob- tained a grant, unless a colony of Swedes and Fins, which had arrived in the Delaware, in the preced- ing year, (1627,) and may be supposed to have been in this year settling themselves at the mouth of Christina creek, near Wilmington, in what is now called the Delaware state, be considered to have been within the limits of his lordship's patent. It may be proper to take some further notice here, of this attempt at colonisation by the Swedes, inas- much as it was made the ground of a charge in the bill in chancery, filed by the Penns, proprietors of Pennsylvania, in the year 1735, against lord Balti- more, in a dispute concerning the bounds of their provinces, that his lordship had set forth, in his pe- tition to the king for his grant, what was not true ; that is, that the country for which he prayed a grant, *' xvas not then cultivated and planted, though in cer- tain parts thereof, inhabited by certain barbarous people ;'* by means of which false suggestion, it was contended that his patent was void, at least for so much as was within their claim.* * Fi'om a MS. copy of the above-mentioned bill in chance- ry, in my possession, the following clause is abstracted : " and HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 243 It appears, that in the year 1626,imder the reign sect. of Gustavus Adolphiis, king of Sweden, a scheme v,„r-v^>^ w^^as formed in that kingdom, for settling a colony i628. in America. This was chiefly promoted by the ^'"J^^^";,^ ^ ereat commendation which WiUiam UsselHn, (orc"i<^"yof o ^ Swedes on Usehng,) an eminent Swedish merchant, gave'oftht DcLv the country in the neighbourhood of what was then your orators further show unto your lordship, that on the eastern side of the said peninsula or tract, and also above the said peninsula or tract, within the main land or continent, and towards the sea and the estuary and river of Delaware, there was, of very early and ancient times, {the begimiing whereof is not knoivJis) a settlement and plantation, made and planted and inhabited by Christians of the Swedish nation ; and the said settlement and plantation was afterwards held and inha- bited in the year 1609, and for many years then after, by Christians under ihh dominion of the States General, of the United Provinces." Mr. Murray, (afterwards lord Mans- field,) who dix;w this bill, was certainly misinformed as to two facts exhibited in this allegation. No authentic history has ever yet undertaken to show, that the Swedes were settled on the Delaware, in " times the beginning whereof is not known," nor indeed prior to the year 1627, as is stated in Proud's Hist, of Pennsylvania ; and it is, moreover, entirely inconsistent with the early events of the History of Virginia, wherein no circumstance to that purpose is recognised. The other fact stated, seems to be in consequence thereof, evi- dently groundless, to wit : that the Dutch had " afterwards, in the year 1609, held and inhabited the said settlement of the Swedes." Now it seems to be agreed on all sides, that cap- tain Hudson did not make his voyage of discove7-y, under the authority of the Dutch, until the year 1609 ; and it was not until the next year, (1610,) that the Dutch colony was sent out, which settled on Manhattan (now New York) island. It would necessarily take some years for them to have extended their /losscssions and habitations to the Delaware. Accord- ingly, the historian of Pennsylvania, (Proud.) makes the first 24,4r iNTR<5DXJCTI0:N TO A SECT, tailed New Netherlands, now New Jersey and New ,,_^^^^^-s^ York, Gustavus was thereby induced to issue a 1628. proclamation, exhorting his subjects to contribute to a company associated for the settlement of a co- lony in that country. Considerable sums were raised by contribution ; and in the next year, (1627,) a nu'mber of Swedes and Fins came over to America. They first landed at Cape Inlopeuy the interior Cape of Delaware bay,* which, from its pleasant appear- ance to them, they named Paradise-point. They are said to have purchased of some Indians, the land from Cape Inlopen to the falls of Delaware, on both sides of the river, which they called Ntnv Swedeland stream ; and made presents to the Indian chiefs, to obtain peaceable possession of the land so purchased : with whom they apjfear to have lived settlement of the Dutch on the Delaware, to have been in the year 1623, "near Glocester, in New Jersey;" which appa- rently indicates, that their first exploring excursions to the Delaware were from Manhattan across the Jersies ; and this was, as Proud asserts, " before any of the Swedes came into America." See Proud's History of Pennsylvania, Vol. 1, p. 110. * A note is here made by Mr. Proud, (in his Hist, of Penn- sylvania, Vol. 1, p. 1 11,) as follows : " this cape is frequently confounded with Cape Htnlofien, the exterior, or the False Ca/iPy in Fenivick^s island, being written in the same manner, and sometimes Henlofien ; said to be a Swedish word, signi- fying entering in. It was also fonnerly, sometimes called Cape Cornelius, and afterwards, by irniiam Penn, Cape James.'' From this it would appear, that the aspirate letter H, in the Swedish language, prefixed to the word Inlofien^ altered the sense of it, from the interior to the exterior cape, the lattej" of which was at Fenwick's island. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 245 ilTi much amity ;* but they were frequehtly disturb- sect. ^d by the Dutch settled at Manhattan, now New v^^^^^i^. York, who, extending their territories, which they 1628, called New Netherlands, so as to include the western shores of the Delaware, built a fort in the year 1630, on a small creek near Cape Inlopen or James, call- ing it Hoarkill, since called Lewis town.f While we are upon this subject, it may not be improper to observe further, that it seems to be agreed by his- torians, that in the succeeding year, (1631,) the Swedes erected a fort on the west side of Delaware, at a place near Wilmington, upon the river or creek, which still, from the name of the fort, is called Christina, or commonly Christee?i,X where they had hid out a town, and made their first settlement.^ * Smith, in his Hist, of New Jersey, says, it is uncertain ■whether they bought the land of those natives, who could properly convey it. Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 242. t The building of this fort at Lewis town, is differently re- lated in Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 259, under the year 1630. He says, " the Dutch continuing their pretensions to the land settled by the Swedes, one of the Swedes built a fort (this year) witliin the Capes of Delaware, " at a place called Hoar- kill ;" for which he cites Smith's Hist, of New Jersey, 22. So that from him it would seem, that the fort above-mention- ed Was built by the Swedes, and not the Dutch, as it is stated in Proud's Hist, of Pennsylvania, Vol. 1, p. 11 3 ; from whence ■what is said above in the text here, is taken. "^ This is sometimes corruptly spelt Christiana, but as the- name of Gustavus's mother was Christina, and he had a daughter, born in 1626, called Christina, who succeeded him as queen of Sweden, and was much celebrated in history, it is probable that Christina is the true name of the fort and creek. $ Proud's Hist, of Pennsylvania, Vol. 1, p. 1 15. It seems to hafe been th,e opinion of two very judicious annalists of our 246 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT. Supposing this settlement of the Swedes at Chris- ,^r.^y^^^^ tina, in the year 1631, to have been the first p€?'?na- 1628. nent settlement made by them on the Delaware, as it would appear to be, although temporary habita- tions might have been erected by them before that time at Hoarkill, or other places, for the purposes of traffic with the natives, it goes very far to justify the suggestion of lord Baltimore before-mentioned, that the territories for which he prayed a grant, were "hitherto unsettled ;" which receives further con- firmation by the possibility of his being ignorant of the first trafficking voyage of the Swedes to the Delaware, in the year 1627, which was but the year preceding that of his visit to Virginia. But allow- ing that he had full knowledge of the arrival of the Swedes in the Delaware, in th# year 1627, it was natural for him to have considered them only as in- terlopers, intruding into the British dominions;* country, that neither the Swedes nor Dutch had, prior to the year 1629, formed any jicrmanent settlements on the Dela- Avare. In Holmes's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 251, (under the year 1629,) it is said : " Although the subjects of different nations now traded with the natives in the bay of Delaware, nb settle- ments appear to have been formed on either margin of it, by Ihe Dutch or Swedes ;" for which he cites Chalmers, 1, 227. * That all other nations who attempted to make settlements in any part of North America, especially in those parts of it lying between the colonies of Virginia and New England, were considered by the English at this time, as intruders within their dominions, is evident, not only from the preced- ing expedition of captain Argall, against the French and Dutch as before-mentioned, but from their subsequent con- tests with the Dutch about their settlement at Manhattan. This claim of theirs was founded on the right of prior disco- verv bv Sebastian Cabot : to demonstrate which, a small tract HISTORY OF MARYLAND. ^ 24: and therefore, in his representation to his majlfety, sect not entitled to be considered as persons, whose set tlements could obstruct his grant. The Dutch, 1628 whatever their subsequent claims might ^ave been, had then certainly made no permanent settlements within the limits of his grant. With regard to the extent of his patent to the fortieth degree of latitude, (inclusive,) it is to be observed, that the latitudes of the different places of such a new country, must or essay was drawn up by some anonymous writer, most pro- bably towards the end of the Dutch war in 1 654, but publish- ed in Thurloe's State Papers, under the year 1656 ; (see it in Hazard's Collections, Vol. l,p. 602,} entitled "A Brief Nar- ration of the English Rights to the Northern parts of Ame- rica ;" in which the author, after some laboured reasoning, and metaphysical distinction between general and particular rights, concludes, " tMt as the general and particular rights of the English to those northern parts of America, are so plainly and perspicuously laid doAvn, so upon a due examina- tion it will be found, that the Dutch have no right at all, either in the general or particular, but have intruded inio and anti- cipated the English in their rights." Agreeably to this right of the English, preparations were made by the New Eng- landers, in 1654, for conquering the Dutch settlement at Manhattan ; but Oliver, desirous that the two sister republics, the English and Dutch, should be well with each other, clapped up a sudden peace in April, 1654, which put an end to the hostile intentions of New England, and left the Dutch for some years in quiet possession of New Netherlands. In the next year, (1655,) the Dutch made a conquest of all the Swedish settlements on the Delaware. Smith's Hist, of New York, 18, 19 : but Oliver, charmed with the fine character of Charles X, king of Sweden, made a treaty with him in the year 1656, in which he promised to grant such of his ma- jesty's Swedish subjects as should be recommended by him, " special licence" to trade in America. See Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 605, and Hvime's Hist. ch. 61. 248 INTRODUCTION TO A The Vir j^inians oppose Ihe lord Balti- more's scheme. SECT, hav^ been subject to much error, being often taken V>^ and so set down by unskilful persons ; and, as lord 1628. Hardwicke observed, in the great case of these two proprietors, (the Penns and lord Baltimore,) before referred to, it is a fact, that latitudes were then fixed much lower than they have been since found to be by more accurate observations. A mistake of the latitude, in extending his northern bounds, might tlierefore have been very unintentionally made.* As both the secorid and third charters of Vir- ginia^ before-mentioned, unquestionably compre- hended the whole of the country afterwards called Maryland, rt wns to be expected that the colonists of Virginia, would make some objections to any grant, whereby a part of their territory should be lopped off from them and tr^sferred to others. But, although some apprehensions on this ground of supposed injury to them in their rights, were art- fully raised among them, so as to induce them in a few years afterwards, to prefer a petition to the king and council, against any grant of their territory to lord Baltimore, as will hereafter be seen in its pro- per place ; yet it appears, that they had too much discernment, not to perceive, on more mature re- flection, that a colony planted so near to them as that of Maryland, so far from being injurious, would be highly beneficial to them, particularly in contri- buting to their greater security from the hostile in- vasions of the savages. And when we reflect upon the enormous extent of those territories inchided within the lines of their charters, to wit : " from the * See note (H) at the end of this volume, before referred to. m HISTORY OF MARYLAND. ^ 249 point of land called Cape or Fomt Comfort, A)ng sect^ the sea-coast to the northward, two hundred miles, and in equal distance to the southward, and from i6:!8. sea to sea, west and northwest ;" that is, from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, it leaves the question of policy, and indeed of right and justice, easily to be decided at this day. We may here further ob- serve, that inasmuch as these charters of Virginia had been all annulled by the judgment of the court of king's bench, in the year 1624, (whether right- fully or not, could not be questioned but in a legal manner, by writ of error or appeal to a superior tri- bunal,) all political right of the colonists in Virginia to any territory whatever, except to the particular tracts which each individual colonist occupied, must have been taken a\«By from them by such judgment until reversed. It seems, therefore, with regard to the colonists in Virginia, in a corporate capacity, to have been an act perfectly justifiable in lord Balti- more to apply for, as well as lawful for the king to grant, all that territory included \vithin the Jines of his patent. But the most formidable objection raised against his grant, seems to have been founded on a circum- stance, apparently immaterial to the public, however it might interfere with the private rights of some individuals. It has been alleged, on a variety of occasions, that settlements had been established by the Virginians, under the authority of William Clay- borne, within the country afterwards denominated Maryland, prior to the date of his lordship's charter of grant for the same,* and that as it was suggested •Jyne 20th, 1632. 2 I 250 INTRODUCTION TO A pcT. theiTin, that the country was hitherto unsettled^ " hactenus inculta^'''' his grant became thereby void. 1628. But it seems to be extraordinary, that although his- tory recognises this objection as being frequently made, yet it furnishes no authentic proof of the fact on which it is founded. If lord Baltimore's visit to Virginia was in the year 1628, as we have supposed on the authority of the History' of Virginia, before- cited,* there are some established facts in history, which seem to indicate very strongly, that at the time of h\s visit to Virginia, whatever there were at the time of his grant, no such settlements had been made. Temporary habitations, for the purposes of traffic with the natives, misrht have been .before that time erected, both on the isle of Kent and at the mouth of the Susquehanna, ^s contended ; but these were certainly not such settlements as could preclude the right of the crown to grant, or the jus- tice and policy of planting in that country a nume- rous colony. It may be proper, however, to inves- tigate the claim of William Clay borne a little more minutely. William When king James had caused the charters of borne's Virginia to be dissolved by a judgment in the court claim. Q^ king's bench, as before-mentioned, and had vest- ed the supreme direction of the affairs of Virginia, in a provisional council, in England, he afterwards, also, as before observed, issued his commission, bearing date the 26th day of August, 1624, to Sir Francis Wyat, and others, vesting the government * " Ancient Records," mentioned in Burk's Hist, of Vir- ginia, as before-cited. HISTORY OF ^MARYLAND. 2>1 in Virginia, in a governour and council, who should sec IX. reside in the colony. Among those so nominated of the council, was William Clayborne. From 1^28 whence we may infer, that he was then, or shortly afterwards became a resident in Virginia ; and was a man, who by some merit, had attracted the ro}'al notice. When king Charles, on the death of his father, renewed the commission for the government of Virginia, to Sir George Yardley, and others, of the 4th of March, 1625, Clayborne was continued as one of the council. Moreover, in the same com- mission, towards the conclusion thereof, he was ap- pointed secretary of state in Virginia, in the follow- ing remarkable expressions: " and forasmuch as the afiairs of state of the said colony and plantation, may necessarily require some person of quality and trusty to be employed as secretary, for the writing and an- swering of such letters, as shall be from time to time directed to, or sent from the said governour and council of the colony aforesaid, our mil and pleasure is, and we do by these presents, nominate and assign you the said William Clayborne, to be our secretary of state, of and for the said colony and and plantation of Virginia, residing in those parts ; giving, and by these presents granting unto you, the said William Clayborne, full power and autho- rity to do, execute, and perform all and every thing and things whatsoever, to the said office of secretary of state, of and for the said colony and plantation of Virginia, incident and appertaining." By the sub- sequent commission to John Harvey, esquire, and others, of the 26th of March, 1627, for the govern- ^ment of Virginia, Clayborne was again continued 2J2 HS'TRODUCTION TO A f^^^SECT. one of the council, and re-appointed secretary of ^^J^^^^ state, in the same words just cited from the formef 1628. commission ;* from whence we are enabled to collect some ideas of the character and standing of this gentleman, who afterwards proved so trouble- Some to lord Baltimore and the early settlers of Ma- r}iand. As it seems to have been a practice with many of the first colonists of Virginia, especially those of note and influence, to endeavour to derive some emolument to themselves, by carrj-ing on a traffic or bartering with the Indian natives, particu- larly those inhabiting the shores of the Chesapeake, for their peltry, and such other commodities as would afford a profit, when sold in the province, or exported to Europe, we find that Mr. Clay borne was one of those, who availing himself of his sta- tion and influence, early sought to better his for- tunes in this way.- But it seems, that this species of trafiic could not be caiTied on without a special licence, either from the king himself or the gover- nour of the pro\4nce ; for reasons founded, without doubt, in the personal danger of the colonists in ge- neral, by too indiscriminate an intercourse with the natives, especially in furnishing them with fire-arms, and the means of forming conspiracies. Accordingly, we find that Clay borne, in the year 163 1, several years after lord Baltimore's visit to Virginia, obtained a licence, under his majesty's hand and the signet of Scotland^ " to trade with the Indians of America, in such places where the said trade had not formerly * For these several commissions relative to Clayborne, see llttzard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 189, 230, 234. KISTORY OF MARYLAND. 253 been granted by his majesty to any other."* On sect IX. which it may be observed, that it seems somewhat extraordinaiy, that Mr. Clayborne should, at that i628. late period, have thought it necessary to obtain such a hcence, if any settlements had been formed by him, at the time of lord Baltimore's visit to Virgi- nia, in 1628, either on the isle of Kent, or at the mouth of the Susquehanna, as alleged. If no such settlements had then, or even indeed prior to the licence in 1631, been made; but immediately on lord Baltimore's departure, under a full knowledge of his lordship's intentions of procuring a grant of that country, as may be fairly inferred, Clayborne being then, in 1628, the secretary, and of course a resident of Virginia, endeavours were made by him, under the cover of a licence for trade, to fix settle- ments at those places, it must in candour be acknow- ledged, that such conduct had much the appearance of a fraudulent anticipation, and well merited the fate which it afterwards received. Another fact, which authorises an inference, that no such settlements were formed prior to Clay- borne's trafficking licence in 1631, is the petition of the planters in Virginia, to the king in council, against tlie lord Baltimore's grant, according to the recital of it in tlie " order in council," of the 3d of July, 1633. The preamble to the order thus states the petition : " Whereas an humble petition of the * See the recital of this licence in the order in'council upon Clayborne's petition. Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 431; and towards the end of this volume. The date of the li- cence is mentioced in Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 2, p. 40, to have Ijeen in 1631. 254 INTRODUCTION TO A •^ECT. planters in Virginia, was presented to his majestVj IX. in which they remonstrate, that some grants have 1628. lately been obtained^ of a great proportion of lands and territories within the limits of the colony there, being the places of their trajpc^ and so near the places of their habitations, as will give a general disheartening to the planters, if they be divided into several governments, and a bar to that trade which they have long since exercised towards their siip- portation and relief, under the confidence of his ma- jesty's royal and gracious intentions towards them, as by the said petition more largely appeareth. For- asmuch as his majesty was pleased, on the twelfth of May last, to refer to the board the consideration of this petition," 8cc. &c.* From this statement, may be collected some very material facts relative to the present question. It is at once observable, that not the slightest mention is made therein of any settlements established within the territories so granted, as complained of ; but that those territories had " been the places of their traffic^'' and were " near the places of their habitations.'''' Now, had there been any settlements actually formed within these territories before the time of drafting tliis peti- tion, other than temporary settlements for the pur- poses of " traffic," it would, without doubt, have been so stated in the petition, and dwelt upon as an exaggeration of their grievance. But the next ex- pression in the same sentence, " near the places of their habitations,^'' seems to deny the supposition, • See this " order in council" at large, in note (S,) at the end of this volume. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 255 that they had then any habitations^ that is, settle- ments^ within these territories so granted, being only near them. Not being able to have recourse to the petition itself, we are left to infer the date of it, and the time referred to in the description of these terri- tories, from some of the above expressions. That the petition was drawn after the date of lord Balti- more's charter, which is June 20th, 1632, may be implied from the expression, " grants have lately been obtained." That it was before the 12th of May, 1633, is to be gathered from the time of its reference to the council, " the twelfth of May last." It was, therefore, framed some time between the 20th of June, 1632, and the 12th of May next sue- ceeding that date. Taking the mean-time for the ' date of this petition, to wit : some time in the lat- ter part of the year 16§2,^ about four or five months ^ f ^^ . after the date of lord Baltimore's charter, we have a period of time, when, as we are informed by this petition, there were no actual or permanent settle- ments formed within the limits of these territories granted to lord Baltimore ; and also, a strong impli- cation, that the " places of their traffic" here alluded to, were some that Clayborne had fixed up, perhaps on the isle of Kent and at the Susquehanna, in vir- tue of his royal licence before- mentioned, obtained by him in the year 1631. It has been deemed necessary, to state the pre- ceding circumstances, relative to the objections against lord Baltimore's grant, in order to show what was the real situation of the country thereby granted to him, at the time of his visit to Virginia, in the year 1628. From all which, it would seem, 256 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, that his lordship might have returned to England, ^^,_^^J^^^ with the intention of soHciting a grant of all that 1628. country, which he subsequently denominated Mary- land, and with a thorough conviction in his own mind, that it was^then, in the year 1628, uninhabit- ed by any but savages, and with the most perfect honesty and integrity of conduct, suggested to the king, that the country for which he desired a patent, was, as that instrument cxpressess it, " hactenus in- culta^'' hitherto unsettled. 1629. It is probable, that lord Baltimore did not take Lord Bai- j^jg departure from Vireinia, until tlie following vear. timore re- ' ... i • i turns to As fcw of the miuute incidents of this nobleman's and rdm'- hic havc rcachcd us, we are not informed whether quishes j^ rctumed from thence to his province in New- His views ■'■ of a set- foundland, or to Eny-land ; it is most probable, to tkment ^ -^ . , in New. the former. He is said to have made two visits to iand. his colony at Ferryland ; and that, in his second visit to that place. Great Britain being then at war with France, he was so fortunate as to perform some considerable services in recovering above twenty sail of English ships, which had been taken by a French squadron, and in capturing several of the enemy's fishing ships on the coast- As this war had been commenced by England against France, rather suddenly, about April, 1627, without any previous proclamation, and indeed without any just cause, through the instigation of the unprincipled Buckingham, then the sole director of all affairs in England, and who was regardless of everything but his own interest and pleasures, there is no won- der that the vast number of English ships, which HISTORY OF MARYLAN-D. 257 then frequented the coast of Newfoundland,* should sect. have been left unprotected, and a prey to the first v^^^^^rx^ French force that might be sent against them. How 1629. lord Baltimore accomplished the recovery of these English ships, or the capture of the French fishing vessels, which were most probably unarmed, we are not informed. A sort of petit guerre, however, seems to have been carried on at this time between the English and French, in this part of America. The valuable right of fishery on the banks, to which the French had never relinquished their pretensions, w^as, without doubt, some cause of contest. In this year also, (1629,) a successful attack was made by a certain David Kertk, a French refugee and Hu- gonot, with his two sons, under the English ban- ners, and with a considerable English force, upon the feeble settlement which the enterprising Cham- plain, was then endeavouring to support at Que- bec. But, peace being made between the two countries, in the early part of this year, though pro- bably not known in America until these events had past, Quebec and Canada were afterwards restored, and the French left to pursue their schemes of set- tlements and trade on the St Lawrence, and the western shores of Newfoundland. These circum* stances, together with the discouraging appearances • It appears from Smith's Hist, of Virginia, as cited by Mr. Holmes, (in his Annals, Vol. 1, p. 237,) under the year 1626, that the coast of Newfoundland, for most of the late years, was frequented by two hundred and fifty sail of English vessels, estimated at fifteen thousand tons, employing five thousand persons, and making an annual profit of about one hundred and thirty-five thousand pounds sterling. 2 K 258 INTRODUCTION TO A SECT, of the climate and soil of the country, soon con- ^.^r-^^-^,^ vinced his lordship, that it would never answer his 1629. purposes in colonisation. Having found the coun- try on the shores of the Chesapeake so much better suited to his plans, we may suppose, that in the 1-53Q succeeding year he returned to England, with the intention of exerting his influence at the English court, to obtain a grant thereof. 1632 ^* seems to have been considered by the king and Obtains his ministers, about this time, that on the dissolu- mfsi'of a tion of the charters of Virginia, as before-mentioned, SlT\o^ a right vested in the crown of subdividing or re- vince of g-rantinsf such parts of the territories of Virginia Maiyland, ^ ° ^ .,.,.„, , which is formerly included wuthm the Imes of these char- hirderth. ters, as had not before been parcelled out into small CeciiLr" ^^^^^ to particular individuals. The king being under this impression, and lord Baltimore standing high in his personal esteem, the latter found little difticulty in procuring from liis majesty, the pro- mise of a grant of such a tract of country as his lordship then described to him. But before a char- ter or patent for that purpose could be finally ad- justed, and pass the seals, his lordship died, on the 15th of April, 1632. He left several sons ; but Ce- cilius Calvert being his eldest, and by the laws of England, heir not only to his Other's title, but per- haps to the bulk of his estate, the charter of grant, intended for his father, was, it seems, without hesi- tation, on the 20th of June following, executed to Cecilius, now become also, baron of Baltimore, in the kingdom of Ireland. It was intended, it is said, that the country granted by this charter, should Iiave been called Crescentia ; but when it was pre- HISTORY OF IMARYLAND. 259 sented to the king for his signature, in conformity, sect. to his majesty's wishes, the name of the province ^..^rv-v^ was changed to that of Maryland, in honour of his 1632. queen, Henrietta Maria, a daughter of the great king Henry IV, of France. POSTSCRIPT. ALTHOUGH the lord Baltimore's charter, ought with propriety, to be here inserted, yet, as it would occupy a very large portion of this volume, and recourse can easily be had^ by most of our readers, to the publication of it in several com- pilations of the laws of Maryland, and also in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 327, it is hoped the reader will excuse the -omission of it. r^ /y? ^/pf— SKETCH n1 ' HISTORY OF MARYLAND, DURING THE THREE FIRST YBARSj, AFTER IT'S 0RIG1N.U. SETTLEIVIENT. HISTORY OF MARYLxVND. CHAPTER I. Cecilius, lord Baltimore, prepares for sending- out a colony — The Vir- ginians petition against his charter — Their petition ineffectual, and the planters reconciled — Lord Baltimore appoints his brother to conduct the colony — Their arrival in the Chesapeake — They explore the Patowmack — The governour fixes upon St. Mary's for their first settlement — Circumstances favourable to them — Proceedings of the colonists after landing — Great harmony between the natives and colonists — Interrupted by Clayborne and his party — Clay- borne resorts to open military force — The lord proprietor's in- structions relative to grants of lands — Grants of small lots in the town of St. Mary's — The nature of tiie first form of government of the colony — An ordinance for that purpose — Proclamation in England against emigration — Traffic with the Indians regulated in tlie province — The isle of Kent reduced to lord Baltimore's go- vernment — The county of St. Mary's organized — An assembly of the province called — ^The first assembly of the province meet — The assembly take into consideration the laws sent in by the proprie- tor — The laws sent i-ejected — How far the laws of England were deemed to be in force — ^The laws sent in by the proprietor again proposed andrejected — Courts of justice meet — Proceedings thej-e- in against Clayborne's party — The inhabitants of the isle of Kent refuse to submit — Governour Calvert proceeds with a military force against them — Secretary Lewger authorised to hold the as- sembly — Act of attainder against William Clayborne — Trial of Thomas Smith, one of Clayborne's men — Inquiry by the assembly into the conduct of captain Cornwallis — Resolution of the assem- bly relative to servants — Tlie assembly dissolved — Tlie lord pro- prietor refuses his assent to the laws enacted by the assembly — William Clayborne's petition to the king m council, and order thereupou. 2JM. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. ^"jAP- CECILIUS CALVERT, baron of Balti- >^-v>*,^ more, having, on the twentieth of June, 1632, ob- 1632. tained his charter for the province of Maryland, as lord Balti- beforc-mentioned, had now to make preparations for pare? For' Carrying into effect his father's intended plan of co- sending lonisation. The procuring: a sufficient number of out a. CO- _ . . tony. colonists, and the furnishing them with all conve- niences and necessaries essential to a residence in a remote country, which was as yet a wilderness, unavoidably protracted the time of their depai'ture from England to some considerable length. In the mean-time, however, much discontent was industriously excited among the planters in Virgi- nia, by inducing them to suppose, that the very soil upon which they trod, and which they had earned by their fatigues and dangers, was about to be taken from under their feet, and by this charter 1633. transfeiTed to others. A petition therefore was fra- med in the name of the planters, and in May, 1633, a'^ainsthis P'"^sented to his majesty, in which they remonstrate, charter. " That somc grants have been lately obtained, of a great proportion of lands and territories within the limits of the colony there, being the places of theu' traffic, and so near their habitations as will give a general disheartening to the planters, if they be di- vided into several governments, and a bar to that trade which they have long since exercised towards their supportation and relief, under the confidence of his majesty's royal and gracious intentions towards them." The king referred the consideration of this petition to the consideration of his privy-council, The Vir ginians HISTORY OF MARYLANIX 265 aad agreeably to this reference the council, on the chap, fourth of June, in the same year, made an order, in v.^,-v->^ which they appointed the twenty-eighth of that i-633. month, when the business should be heard, and that all parties interested should then attend. This was done accordingly, and their lordships having heard the cause, ordered that the lord Baltimore and the planters of Virginia should meet together* between that time and the third of July, 1633, and endea- vour to accommodate their controversy in a friendly manner. Also, that the propositions made by either party should be set down in writing, with their se- veral answers and reasons, to be presented to the board on that day. This was likewise accordingly done, and on the third of July, same year, it was finally ordered, " that the lord Baltimore should be left to his patent, and the other parties to the course of law, according to their desire ; but for preventing of farther questions and differences, their lordships did also think fit and order, that things stand as they do ; the planters on either side shall have free traf. fie and commerce each with the other, and that nei- ther part shall receive any fugitive person belonging to the other, nor do any act which may draw a war from the natives upon either of them ; and lastly, that they shall sincerely entertain all good correspond dence, and assist each other upon all occasions, in such manner as becometh fellow-subjects and mem- bers of the same state, "f * This must have meant, that the planters, by their agents or attorneys in England, should meet the lord Baltimore. t See this order in council at large, in note (S) at the enjd of this volume. 2 L HeiQ^ HISTORY OF MAllYLANi). As we ai'e at liberty at this day to judge of this transaction calmly and dispassionately, it is impos- i63o. sible not to perceive, that the planters in Virginia (by whom it may be supposed to be meant in the above order the actual settlers and colonists resident in Virginia, and not any of the numerous members of the old Virginia Company) were instigated to this opposition to lord Baltimore's charter by a few influential persons among them, (particularly WiF- Ham Clayborne) who sought to obtain a property in different portions of the temtories of Virginia, with- out putting themselves to the trouble or expense of obtaining a legal conveyance or charter for the same. Unquestionably by the laws of England, under which they professed to live, the right of granting a property in the soil of the country, was originally, after its discovery by Cabot, vested in the king, and subsequently in the treasurer and Company of Vir- ginia, under the second and third charters from the king. But as the right of making grants of the same, heretofore appertaining to the Company, was taken away by the judgment in the court of king's bench, under the g~uo ivarraiito, which judgment was certainly binding, until legally reversed, such right, by the laws of the kingdom, reverted back again to the king, according to the feudal principles of the nionarchy. Tlie planters in Virginia, then, had really no interest in the question. None of their individual rights or particular plantiitions, on which they lived, were at all invaded. We may, indeed, adopt the observations of a late historian of Virgi- nia upon this subject; — '' This grant to lord Balti- more did not interfere with the rights of former set- HISTORY OF MARYlAXD. 26S tiers, or ^vith the government of Virginia. His object was the establishment of a new colony, which would be her friend and neighbour and ally, i^- ■• against the assaults of the Indians or the machina- tions of distant poM'ers. The prosperity and repu- tation of the nation would be advanced by new set- tlements ; and an immense territory was yet reser- ved to Virginia, far exceeding her wants and her powers. In every point of view the transfer appeais judicious and salut^iry."* It must be acknowledged, however, that these observations of this historian are rather inconsistent with his ill-timed invective in the same page against king Charles and his council, principally on account of this grant. It does not appear from the order in council before-cited, that ** they acknowledged the justice of the claim of the planters," as he alleges. The doubtful claim could be only between the king and those persons, whose names, as inserted in the second charter, form a very large list of the nobility and gentry of England, to whom the territories of Virginia then in truth belonged,t if they did not to the crown. Notwithstanding their failure of success in their Their pe- , • ir- • • 111 1 titioniiuifr petition, the planter-s in Virginia, probably on bet-fectuai, ter information, soon became reconciled, as we^j^^^^^j^g ai-e told, to the lord Baltimore's grant, and left the J'^^^^^*^'" individuals, whose immediate interest it was, to • Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 2, p. 39. t They had expended more than 100,000/. sterling of their own estates, in the support of the colony in Virginia, at the time of the dissolution of the charters. Holmes's Anna|s, Vol. J, p. 233. the colo- ny f eg HISTORY OF MARYLANt), CHAP, persist ill their own measures, in any further contest ^^^^^^.^^.^^ against his right. 1633. His lordship being now invested, as he supposed, Lord Bai- ^^,j^|.j ^ f^jj. ^i^jg ^Q j^jg province, and having nearly timore ap- ^ . points his completed the necessary preparations for the emi- broiherto ^ , . ^ j ^ n ^ 4. conduct gration of the colonists, contemplated at tirst to ' have attended them himself in person ; but after- wards changing his mind, from what cause we are not informed, he appointed his brother, Leonai^d Calvert, esq., to go in his stead, in the character of govemour,* and joined in commission with him Jeremy Hawley and Thomas Cornwallis, esqrs., as assistants or counsellors.! George Calvert, esq., another brother, also came with them, but in what capacity is not mentioned. The number of colo- nists consisted of about two hundred, of whom the names of the chief or principal characters are men- tioned in history, as follows, Richard Gerard, Ed- • In most of the early public acts of the province, he is commonly styled " his lordship's lieutenant-general," &c., but as the term gover?iour is a word of the same import, and sometimes used in some of the old records of the province, and is of more modern usage, and therefore more intelligible, it is here adopted. The term lieutenant-general, as thus used in the early colonisation of the province, was probably adopted from that applied to the king's viceroy or governour of Ireland, who was at this time so termed. t This commission, it seems, is not extant among any of the records of the province. Kilty's Landholder's Assistant, p. 64. The term assifitant seems to have been in use about this time, as synonymous to that of counsellor. It appears to have been so used in Massachusetts, on the first settlement of New Plymouth. See the Extracts from the New PlymouUi Records, published in Hazard's Collections, Vol, 1, p. 411. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 269 ward Winter, Frederick Winter, and Henry Wise- chap. man, esqrs.; Mr. John Saunders, Mr. Edward ^^^,,;,^^ Cranfield, Mr, Henry Green, Mr. Nicholas Fairfax, i633 Mr. John Baxter, Mr. Thomas Dorrel, captain John Hill, Mr. John Medcalfe, and Mr. William Saire. Many of these arc said to have been gentlemen of fortune, and most of the adventurers, if not all of them, were Roman Catholics. They sailed from Covves, in the Isle of Wight, 1634. on the 22d of November, 1633, and taking the old jy^|;.f;,.f ' route by the Azores and West Indies, stopped on fiom Eng- •' _ * land, and the islands of St. Christopher's and Barbadoes, arrival in where they staid some time, most probably for the sapea-ke, purpose of timing their arrival in the Chesapeake in the most favourable season of the year for colonisa- tion in that climate. It was, therefore, the 24th of February following, (1634, new style,) when tlijey arrived off Point Comfort, in Virginia. Here, in consequence of recommendatory letters from the king, they met with all possible assistance from iht governour of Virginia ; and on the third of March, proceeded from thence to Patowmack river. Go- vernour Calvert, not being apprised, perhaps, of any former names appropriated to the two capes or points of land at the mouth of the Patowmack river, called the south point St. Gregory's, and the north point St. Michael's ; but, as they are both now known by other appellations, the southern being called Smith's point, from the celebrated foinider of Virginia, captain John Smith, and the northern, Point Look-out, it is probable that they had received 2Tty HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, these denominations before the arrival of the Mar)'- ,,^,r>^^^,^ land colony.* 1634. Sailing up the Patowmack about fourteen leagues, They ex- ^^ came to an island called Heron island, and an- plore the •' Faiow- chored under another neia^hbourinsr isle, to which muck. they gave the name of 6"^. Clements\-\ Here thegov- ernour landed, and setting up a cross, in the Roman Catholic manner J, took formal possession of the country — " for our Saviour, and for our sovereign lord the king of England." In order to make dis- coveries, the governour here left his ships, and tak- ing two boats, or pinnaces as they were then called, proceeded up the Patowmack about four leagues, • The charter refers to a place called Cinquack, " situate rear the mouth of the Patowmack," on the south side thereof; but I do not find tliis name mentioned in the modern maps of either Virginia or Maryland. From the description of it in the charter, it would appear to be the same as Smith's Point. t These names do not appear in either Griffith's map of Maryland, or Madiso?i's of Virginia, the two most modern. In Griffith's map an island is placed off Clement*s branch or river, which empties into the Patowmack, and which is there called Blaekstone's island ; but in Madison's map, Blackstone's island is placed higher up the Patowmack. It is most proba- ble, however, that the island opposite to the mouth of Cle- ment's branch, is the island to which at this time, they affixed the name of St. Clement's. In a loose estimation, it will nearly answer the distance mentioned up the Patowmack ; sfourteen leagues, or forty-two miles. \ It may be mentioned, by way of counterpart to this, that in this same year, (1634,) the New Englanders at Massachu- setts, had carried their fanaticism to such a ridiculous ex- treme, that they cut the cross out of the king's colours undei* which they mustered, as being a relique of anti-Christian su- perstition. Hutchinson's Hist, Vol. 1, p. 41. Robertson's Hist, of America, Vol. 4, p. 295^ 296, HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 27 i and landed on the south or Virginia side of the cha/P river, but found that the Indians had fled from them ,^^^'^^^ through fear. He thence still proceeded up the ri- 1634. ver about nine leagues, and came to an Indian town called Patowmack town;* where the chief, called the IFerowance,-\ being an infant, the territory was governed hi his minority, by his uncle, whose name was Archihan. By him they w^ere received in a very friendly manner. From this town they sailed up the Patowmack a considerable distance, estimated by them at about twenty leagues, to Piscataway ; where they found many Indians assembled, and among them an Englishman, captain Henry Fleet, who had lived there several years, in great esteem with the natives. Through the influence of captain Fleet, the Werowance or chief of the tribe there as- sembled, was prevailed upon to go on board the governour's pinnace. The governour asked him, whether he was willing, that he and his people • The histoi'ians from whom this account is taken, do not say on which side of the Patowmack this town was ; whether in Virginia or Maryland. If in the latter, it was, most pro- bably, situated somewhere near Cedar point, or Pickawaxen creek, in Charles county. t The word IVeroivance, seems to have been in use also with the Indian tribes of Virginia. The emperor Powhatan is re- presented as applying the appellation of Werowance to him- self See Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 1, p. 117, 137. It appears to have signified among the Indians — the king, or chief, or head-man of the tribe or nation. The infancy of this Werowance, above-mentioned, seems to disprove what is alleged by some writers, that among the American Indians, Tnonarchy is always elective. See Mr. Charles Thompson's no.te (5,j to Jefferson's Notes. Appendix. 273 HISTORY OF MARYLAiSTD. should settle in his country, in case they found 3 place convenient for them. ' The Werowance re- 1634. plied, " I will not bid you go, neither will I bid you stay, but you may use your own discretion." The Indians on shore, finding that the Werowance staid on board longer than they expected, crowded down to the water- side, to look after him, fearing that the English had killed him ; and they were not satisfied till he showed himself, to appease them. The governour, on reflection, thinking that it Would not, perhaps, be so advisable to settle so high up the river, in the infancy of the colony : and in- fluenced somewhat, probably, by the cautious an- swer of the Werowance, determined to seek for a settlement further down the river. He, therefore, returned down the Patowmack, to St. Clement's isle again, taking captain Fleet with him. They then proceeded to a small river on the north side of the Patowmack, within four or five leagues of its mouth, which the governour called St. George's river. Sailing up this small river about four leagues, they came to an Indian town, called by the natives Yoamaco^* from whence die tribe here inhabiting, were called Yoamacoes. The reader will recollect, that it has been before mentioned, that Powhatan's territories, over which he was emperor or grand chief, was said to extend along the lowlands upon the Chesapeal^e, from Cape * This town is by some, (See Kilty's Landholder's Assist- ant, p. 14, called Yaocomico : but 1 find the name spelt as above, in the histories, from whence what is here related is taken. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 273 Henry to the mouth of the Patuxent, in Maryland ; chap. and that his empire consisted of at least forty differ- v.,^-v^^^ ent tribes.* As governour Calvert, in his present 1634. exploration of the Patowmack, found, it seems, se- voral distinct independent chiefs, called Werow- ances, it is probable, that they were the chiefs of as many distinct tribes, who formerly composed a part of that grand confederacy, which had existed under Powhatan ; called, from him. The Powhatan Con- federacy, in contra-distinction to the two other grand confederacies, denominated the Manahoacs and the Monacans. But, ?.s Powhatan had now been dead some years, it does not appear clearly, whether his successor was, at the time of the arrival of our co- lonists, the grand chief or emperor of the whole of the former Powhatan confederacy, or whether the Yoamacoes considered themselves as belonging to that confederacy, and subject to Opitchapan, who was Powhatan's successor. The governour, having landed here, entered into The go- a conference or treaty with the Werowance, and fi^g^^Jp^,^ acquainted him with the cause of his coming ; to ^*; '^^^}y which the Indian said little, probably not wishing first set- , , , . . tlement. to encourage a settlement among them ; but, invit- ing him to his cabin, he entertained him as kindly as he could, and at night gave him his own bed to lie on. The next day he showed him the country; and the governour, determining to make the first settlement here, sent orders to the ship and boats to * See Mr. Charles Thompson's note (5,) in the Appendix to Jefferson's Notes on Virginia. Also, Burk's Hist, of Vir- ginia, Vol. l,p. 112. 2 M 274> HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, come to him. To pave the way to his peaceable ^^^--v-y^^ admission into the country, he presented the We- 1634. ro^v ance, and principal men of the town, with some English cloth, axes, hoes, and knives, which they accepted with pleasure, and freely consented that he and his company should dwell in one part of their town, reserving the other for themselves. Those Indians who inhabited that part which was assigned to the English, readily abandoned their huts to them. The natives further agreed to leave the whole town to the English, as soon as they could gather their corn ; which they faithfully performed : and it was further stipulated, that until that time, die two na- tions should live in a friendly manner together. If any injury was done on either part, the nation offending was to make satisfaction. The gover- nour then, on the 27th of March, 1634, caused the colonists to land, and according to the agreement, take possession of the town, which they named St. Marifs. circum- ^ circumstance is mentioned to have occurred at stances fa. ^j^-g x\xn&. whlch vcry much facilitated this treaty tothtm. with the Indians. The Susquehanocks, \\ho lived about the head of the bay, were in the practice of making incursions on their neighbours, partly for dominion, and partly for booty ; of which last, wo- men were most desired by them. The Yoamacoes, fearing these Susquehanocks, had, a year before the Maryland colony arrived, resolved to desert their habitations, and remove higher into the countr}^ Many of them were actually gone, and the rest were prepai'ing to follow them, about tiie time when HISTOnV OF MARYLAND. 275 the English arrived : so that the vohmtary surrender chap. of their town is easily accounted for. vwv^^ The first thing the governour caused to be done 1634. after the colonists were landed, was to erect two intrs'^'o'f buildings, one for a guard-house, i^id the other for^^J^^' ^'^^j. a store-house. Some of the colonists he also set to^^"*^'"^- work, in making preparations for the planting of corn. In a few days afterwards, the governour re- ceived a friendly visit from Sir John Harvey, then governour of Virginia. From this circumstance it may be inferred, that however unfavourably the his- torians of Virginia may have represented the cha- racter of this governour, he did not enter into the opposition which had been excited in that province against lord Baltimore's charter, and the settlement ofthe Maryland colony. We are not informed of any material incidents relative to his visit. W^hilC he re- mained there, governour Calvert received also, the visits of several Indian Werowances, from the inte- rior parts of the country ; among others, came the king of Patuxent, who had formerly been a pri^ soner to the English, in Virginia, To please these Indians, the government made an entertainment on board of the ship then at anchor in the river : the king of Patuxent was placed at the table, in a kind of state, between the governour of Virginia and the governour of Maryland. But, an incident occurred, which threatened to destroy the pleasure of the feast : a Patuxent Indian coming on board, and seeing his king thus seated, staited back, and refused to enter into the cabin, supposing that his king was confined there as a captive; and would have leaped overboard, 276 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, had not the king himself come and satisfied him, s^^^-^J-^^^ that he was in no danger. 1634. The store-house being finished, and it becoming necessary to unload the ship, and bring the stores for the colony on shore, the governour, thinking that doing it with a little pomp and state would im- press the natives with respect for the colonists, or- dered it to be done with as much solemnity as they could. The colours were brought on shore, and the colonists were all paraded under arms. VoUies of musquetry were fired, which were answered by discharges of cannon on board the ship. The two kings or Werowances of Patuxent and Yoamaco, being both present at this exhibition, with many other Indians of Yoamaco, the former took that oc- sion to advise the Indians of Yoamaco to be careful to keep the league they had made with the English. He remained in the town several days afterwards ; and it is said, that when he took his leave, he made this remarkable speech to the governour : " I love the English so well, that if they should go about to kill me, if I had so much breath as to speak, I would command the people not to revenge my death ; for I know they would not do such a thing, except it were through my own fault."* Great har- During the remainder of the year, while the Eng- twTJn the lish and Indians lived in St. Mary's together, ac- and^ojio- cording to their stipulation, the utmost harmony nists. appears to have prevailed among them. The natives went every day, to hunt with the " new comers," * Oldmixon's British Empire in America, Vol. 1, p. 104j 188. Mod. Univ. ?Iist. Vol. 40, p. 467. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 277 for deer and turkies ; which, when they had caught, being more expert at it, they either gave to the EngUsh, or sold for knives, beads, and such trifles. i(>^'^ They also suppHed them with fish in plenty. As a certain mark of the entire confidence, which these unsuspecting people placed in the colonists, their women and children became, in some measure, do- mesticated in the English families. We have here to express a regret, that the loss of most of the early records of the province, in about ten years after this period, during the civil commotions which agitated the mother country, and had extended to the colonies, has irreparably de- prived us of other interesting particulars of the first transactions of the Maryland colony.* The arrival of the colony in the early part of the year, was attended with such fortunate circum- stances, that we cannot but suppose, that it was in- tentionally so done, in order to have time to erect habitations against the succeeding winter, and to raise sufficient corn for their next year's subsist- ence. It seems, however, that they had taken the precaution to bring along with them from Barba- does, an additional supply of Indian corn, beyond the flour and bread of their English stores. They had, very judiciously, preconcerted their departure from England, so as to pass the winter months in the West Indies, and by that means to arrive in the colder latitude of the Chesapeake at the commence- * Captain Richard Ingle, who associated with captain Clay- borne, seized the records of the province in 1644, and carried them to Virginia. Most of them were lost or embezzled. See Bacon's preface to his edition of the Laws of Maryland. 278 HftTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, ment of the vernal season. They availed themselves y^^^,~^r^^^ of this advantage, by planting Indian corn at the 1634. proper time of the year, in the grounds bordering on the town, which had been already cleared by the Indians. Their crops proved so luxuriant, that in the next year, or in the year after, it is said they ► exported ten thousand bushels of Indian corn to New England, to purchase salt fish and other pro- visions.* Inter- From concun'ent circumstances, and indeed from Suyborne ^^^ asscrtions of historiaus, we are induced to sup- and his pose, that amonQf the first causes which tended to party. r ' O disturb this harmony between the English and na- tives, were the improper insinuations circulated among the latter by captain William Clay borne and his party. They most unjustly and falsely endea- voured to create a belief among the Indians, that the Maryland colonists were Spaniards, and enemies of the English in Virginia ; probably availing them- selves, in proof thereof, of the similitude in their religious ceremonies. Clayborne had, it seems, prior to the arrival of governour Calvert and his colony, settled himself, with some others, on the isle of Kent, which is situated in the Chesapeake, higher up than St. Mary's, and within the lines of the lord Baltimore's charter. This he had done in virtue of his license to traffic with the natives, and thereupon claimed a right to the property of the soil, not only of this island, but of another settle* ment which he had also fixed at the mouth of the Susquehanna. Lord Baltimore, perhaps apprized •Oldniixon's British Empire, Vol. 1, p, 18. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 279 of these circumstances before the emigration of his chap. colony, had given orders, that if Clayborne would ^,^„,-^!.>^ not submit to his government, he should be seized i634. and punished.* He was not, however, taken ; but being provoked that the lord Baltimore had obtain- ed a grant, which included these places to which he had been accustomed to trade, and where he had now made some settlements, he sought all the means in his power to defeat the success and pros- perity of the colony at St. Mary's. Among those means, was this ungenerous and cruel attempt to set the savages at war upon this infant colony. This ridiculous suggestion was at first believed by the simple natives, and suddenly they withdrew their company from St. Mary's. Our colonists were then employed in erecting comfortable habitations for themselves, in and about the town ; but, alarmed at this alteration in the behaviour of the Indians, they ceased from the work on their buildings, and be- took themselves to the erection of a fort for their security ; which, it is said, they accomplished in about six weeks, and then returned again to their employments in finishing their houses. In a short time, however, the Indians became sensible of this deception, and resorted again, as formerly, to the colony, t * The 12th and 13th sections of the charter, seem to have j authorised the exercise of martial law in such cases. ' t Oldmixon's British Empire, Vol. l,p. 188, 189. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 40, p. 468. About this time, a commission was issued by the king, to archbishop Laud, and divers other lords spiritual and temporal, (therein named,) vesting in them powers of government over all the English colonies already 280 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP. Clayborne, however, was not content with this y^^^^Jr-y^^ secret mode of annoying the colony. He resorted 1634. to open mihtary force in his opposition to lord Bal- reSits To timore's government. Early in the year 1635, he open miii- gnranted his special warrant or commission, under tarv force. « 1 his hand, to a certain RatclifFe Warren, then com- monly known as lieutenant Wan-en, to seize and capture any of the pinnaces or other vessels belong- ing to the government or colonists at St. Mary's; and in pursuance thereof an armed pinnace or boat belonging to Clayborne, was fitted out for that pur- pose, manned with about fourteen men, among whom was a certain Thomas Smith, gentleman, who appears to have been second in command, next to Warren, on this expedition. The government at St. Mary's, probably apprized of these measures of Clayborne, immediately equipped also two armed pinnaces or boats, which sailed under the command of Thomas Cornwallis, esq., one of the assistants or commissioners before-mentioned. These two armaments met, it seems, some time in April or planted or to be planted, not only in political, but in eccle- siastical matters. It seems to have been styled in common parlance, The Board of Lords Commissioners for Foreign Plantations, See it in the original Latin, in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 345, and in English in Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Vol. 1, appendix. No. IV.; but these two copies vary in the names of one or two of the commissioners, and somewhat also in the date of it. It does not appear to have ever had any operation with respect to the Maryland co- lony, and was probably intended more particularly against that of Massachusetts ; but the approach of the civil wars in England, shortly afterwards, must soon have rendered it a dead letter, even as to that province. HISTORY OF MAHYLANn, 281 May of this year, 1635, in either the Pocomoke chap. or Wighcomoco rivers on the eastern shore of the v.^-><^^^ province,* where a battle commenced between them, i'J35. , by Clayborne's men firing first on Cornwallis's boats, as alleged in the proceedings of the assem- bly in this case.f Cornwallis immediately returned the fire ; and the result was, that lieutenant Warren and two of his men were killed, and one of Corn- wallis's men. Clayborne's boat and men, it would seem, were taken; and as Thomas Smith, gentle- man, was probably the next in command or princi- pal person, after the death of Warren, he was' after- wards tried for the offence by the assembly, as will presently be further noticed.^ Clay borne, before * There were two indictments found before a county court, \ held at St. Mary's on the 12th of February, 1637, (old style), ' \ipon which Thomas Smith and others of Clayborne's men, appear to have been arraigned and tried by the assembly. In one of which indictments the offence is stated to have been committed " in the river Pocomoque, on theeastei'n shore, on the 23d of April, in the year 1635.'* In the other indictment, tlie offence is laid or stated to have been committed " in the harbour of great Wiggomoco, in the bay of Chesapeake, on the 10th day of May, in the year of our Lord 1635 ." Whether they were two distinct engagements between the two parties does not appear certain. The murder of William Ashmore, one of Cornwallis's men, seems to be the gist of the of- fence in both indictments. From which it might be inferred, that there was only one battle ; and Clayborne, in his subse- quent petition to his majesty, mentions but one engagement. t It is proper to mention here, that Clayborne, in his peti- tion, alleged that Cornwallis and his men fired first on his boat, and that they had taken his pinnaces and boats, and still detained them. See his petition hereafter-cited. \ Provincial Records, entitled " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1644." 2 N The lord proprie- tor's in- structions 282 HISTORY OP MARYLAXD. CHAP, this, had fled for refuge to Virginia, and commis- \^^ry^^ sioners were sent by the governour of Mar}'land to 1635. the governour of Virginia (Hervcy) to reclaim him. as a criminal against the laws of Mar}^land; but Hervey thought it proper to send Ciayborne, with the witnesses, to England.* 1636. In this situation of constant danger from the sa- vages, and actual warfere with their own country- men, it could not be expected that the colonists had relative to 33 yet, in a little more than a year from their first CT-ants of '^ •' .... lands. landing, extended their settlements to begni their small town at St. Mary's. The lord proprietor, how- ever, had not forgotten to make arrangements for a more dispersed occupation of the country. There is strong evidence to presume that written proposi- tions or conditions, upon which the colonists were to emigrate, had been " propounded" to them, before their departure from England ; but as these are not now to be found among the records of the province, it is probable that the instrument of writing contain- ing them was either among those lost or embezzled by Ingle and Ciayborne, as before-mentioned, or it was never placed on record. Be that as it may, his lordship, in tlie year 1636, considered it proper to send to his brother, the governour, or as he is there- in styled, " his lieutenant-general of the province of Maryland," " Instructions," relative to grants of land, to be made to the several colonists or " adven- turers," as they are therein termed, " for the plant- ing of his province of Maryland." As this instru- f Burk's Hist, of Virginia, Vol. 2. p. 40. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 283 merit of writing* contains the outlines of his lord- chap. ship's plan for parcelling out the lands of his pro- y^^^v^^ vince, in pursuance of his charter, and therein de- i^se velopes the mode of colonisation subsequently pur- sued by him, it will be proper here to state the sub- stance of it in as concise a manner as it will admit. After referring in the preamble to former agree- ments heretofore propounded and promised by him, for the grants of land to the adventurers, he autho- rises his brother and lieutenant-general, or any other his lieutenant-general there for the time being, to " cause to be made under the great seal of the province, unto every frst adventurer for every five men, aged between sixteen and fifty years, which such adventurer did bring into our said province, to inherit and plant there, in the year 1633,t and un- Howknds ^ were to be to his heirs forever, a errant of two thousand acres granted to of land of English measure, for the yearly rent of advemu- 400 lb. of good wheat, and to every adventurer '^''^l^^. which in that year did bring a less number than five men into the said province, of the ages aforesaid to inhabit and plant there, and unto his heirs forever, a grant of one hundred acres of land of like mea- sure for himself, and one hundred acres more for his wife, (if he brought any,) and for ever}^ servant, * It is by some called, " conditions of plantation ;" and si- milar documents, to be found among the records, issued from time to time, have been generally so denominated ; but " in- structions" is the appellation given them on this occasion in the Provincial Records; see " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657." t The first colonists left England, on the 22d of Novem- ber, 1633. 284 HISTORY OF MARYLAND, CHAP, and fifty jrcrcs for every child under the age of six- y.^iT'J'^s^ teen years, for the rent of 10 lb. of wheat yearly for 1636. every fifty acres. How to " And to eveiy other adventurer, which hath ad- tureiVor ventured to transport men into our province, of the 1655 ""'^ age aforesaid, in the years 1634 and 1635, for every ten men which such adventurer did bring into our said province, in either of the said years, and to his heirs, forever, a grant of two thousand acres of land of the like measure, for the yearly rent of 600 lb. of good wheat, and to every other adventurer, %\ hich in either of the said years, did bring a less number than ten men as aforesaid, and to his Heirs, forever, a grant of one hundred acres of land (of like measure) for himself, and one hundi'ed acres for his wife, (if he brought any,) and for every ser- vant one hundred acres, and for every child under the age of sixteen years fifty acres, for the yearly rent of 10 lb. weight of wheat for every fifty acres. How to all " And to every other adventurer, which hath ad- ter The ^ ventured to plant and transport any men into our year 1635. gjjj^j proviucc, siucc the year 1635, or which at any time hereafter, shall transport any men of the age aforesaid, to inhabit and plant there until some other or further conditions of plantation, shall by us be propounded and jmblished to adventurers, and an authentic copy of such conditions, by us signed and transmitted into our said . province, for every five men which he or they shall so transport thither, and to his or her heirs, forever, a grant of one thousand acres of English measure, for the yearly rent of twenty shillings, to be paid in the commodities of the country, for every such thousand acres ; and to HISTORY OP MARYLAND. ^85 every other adventurer, which within the time next chap. afore-mentioned, hath or shall transport any number v^,^>^ of persons less than five, a grant of one hundred 1636. acres of land for him or herself, and one hundred more for his wife, (if he brought any,) and as much for every man-servant, and fifty acres more for every child under the age of sixteen years ; and for every maid- servant under the age of forty years, to his or her heirs, forever, for the yearly rent of twelve pence, for every fifty acres. "And we do further authorise you, that every Manors of two thousand acres, and every three thousand acres, 3'yo'o and every one thousand acres of land so to be grant- J^^'cre.^'* ed, unto any adventurer or adventurers, be erected ^ted. and created into a mannor, to be called by such name as the adventurer or adventurers shall de- sire. " And we do further authorise you, that you courts-- cause to be granted unto every of the said adventu- courS- rers, v, ithin every of their said mannors respectively, ^^°"' and to his or their heirs, a court-baron and court- leet, to be from time to time held within every such mannor respectively. And to the end you may the better be informed, in what manner to pass every such grant, court and courts as aforesaid, according to our intention, we have sentunto you, under our hand and seal, a draught of a grant of a mannor court-leet and court-baron, and a grant of a fi-ee- ■ hold ; which precedents you are to follow, chang- ing only the adventurer's names, the rents and con- ditions of plantation, as the case shall require : for doing whereof, this shall be yoiir sufficient warrant. I. 1636. 286 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP. So we bid you heartily farewel. Given at Ports- mouth, the eighth of August, 1636. " Signed, " C. BALTIMORE."* It will readily be perceived, that these instruc- tions, or conditions of plantation, were well calcu- lated to induce men of some property in England, who were able to bear the expense of transporting servants and dependents, to emigrate to this pro- vince. It is true, that it was sketching out aristo- cratic features in the future government of the pro- vince, which, in other times, might have been sup- posed to operate in discouragement of emigration. But, it is to be remembered, that the colonists, for whom Maryland >vas formed as an asylum, being Catholic refugees, were accustomed to arange them- selves, according to the then politics of England, on the side of the supporters of the monarchy and aristo- cracy of the realm. This feudal mode of parcelling out lands by subinfeudation, was not, therefore, so horrible to them, as may appear to us at this day.f " The age of chivalry," had not then quite past; and some faint remains of the reciprocal connexion between a lord and his vassals, might still be dis- • See the Provincial Records, entitled, " Council Proceed- ings from 1636 to 1657," p. 1. t The feudal tenures then subsisted nearly in the same state as they are described in lord Coke's Institutes, which were written and published but a few years prior to lord Baltimore's charter of Maryhind. The reader recollects, that the feudal tenures were not completely abolished, until within a few years after the restoration of Charles II, in 1660. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 287 cemed in the structure of society, sufficient to in- duce the dependents of a chief, to brave with him the dangers of the ocean, the wilderness, and the 1636. savage. One circumstance, however, discernible in this plan of colonisation, must attract approbation. The grants to the adventurers were to be, of an indefea- sible estate of inheritance in fee simple, to them and their heirs, forever. Security in the absolute en- joyment of property, is the best corner-stone that can be laid in the foundation, which is to support the fabric of a free government. An humble feu- dal tenant, enfossed round with this rampart, might well consider his cottage as his castle ; and might smile with regret at the delusion even of the well- meaning citizen, who delights in the uncertainty of revolutionary liberty. In pursuance of these instructions, and corre- spondent also, with the charter, manors of lands were, in process of time, laid off in different parts of the province ; and some of them appropriated or reserved for the lord proprietor's own particular use, others again were erected by the special orders of the lord proprietor, for the benefit of his relations or particular friends, with special conditions and privi- leges, and others also so denominated and granted to individuals, according to the terms of these in- structions, or coriditions of plantation, as they so came entitled, for the transportation of colonists or settlers into the province. But, although the power and right of holding courts-baron and courts-leet, might have been inserted in some, or all of those grants of manors, yet we are told, from good autho- 288 HISTORY OP MARYLAND. CHAP, rity, that no memorial appears on the records of the ^,^^^^1^^^ province, of any practical use of either of these 1636. kinds of courts.* Grants of As it would uot havc been safe, at this period of in"the ° ^ time, to have commenced a scattered population of Mar "f ^^^"^^ country, it was very properly directed by his lordship, soon after the foregoing instructions, by letter, to his brother and lieutenant-general, bearing date the 29th of August, 1636, that he should " pass in freehold, to every of the first adventurers that shall claim or desire it, and to their heirs, ten * See the Landholder's Assistant, p. &o ; a very judicious work, lately published by Mr. John Kilty, register of the land office for the western shore of the state of Maryland. But, I find in the " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1637," p. 23, a commission there recorded, for holding a court-leet in the isle of Kent, directed " to Robert Philpot, William Cox, and Thomas Allen, of the isle of Kent, gentlemen, to be justices of the peace within the said island, to hold a court-leet in all cixnl actions not exceeding 1200 ib. tobacco ; and to hear and determine all offcncts criminal, within the said islands, which may be determined by any justice of peace in England, not extending to the loss of life or member. Given at St. Mary's, February 9th, 1637. Witness, Leonard Calvert." As pro- ceedings, most probably, took place under this commission, there must, of consequence, have been some written memo- rials of those proceedings once existing, though probably now lost. As the business of courts-leet in England, have long ago been gradually absorbed by the courts of quarter sessions for the shire or county, so with us, it is probable, that if any courts-leet or courts-baron were ever held in the province, the county courts at a very early period, swallowed up their jurisdictions. To trace these transfers of judicial power, would at this day be an unnecessary, if it was a possible, task, except it be to throw some light upon the history of those times. HTSTORY OF MARYLAND. 289 acres of land within the plots assigned, or to be as- chap. signed for the town and fields of St. Miiry's, for ^^^^..^^^^^^ every person that any of the said adventurers trans- i6'i6. ported or brought into Maryland, according to their conditions first published, and five acres of land to e\ery other adventurer, for every other person which he hath or shall transport thither, since that time of the first plantation, until tlie thirteenth day of Au- gust, 1638." Although king Charles I, had, but a few years xik> na- before he granted the charter of Maryland to lordi'"'?.*^'"^ ^ _ -^ first lorm Baltimore, dissolved his parliament, and had at that of g-ovem- P 1 1 , • , . . mentof tune tormed the resolution, as some historians al- the coi*^ kge, of never calling another, and of go\'erning"^ without them, yet we find very strong provision made in that instrument of grant, for that important ingi-edient of a free government, — a representative legislature. In the seventh section of that charter, the king " grants unto the said baron and to his heirs, for the good and happy government of the said provinces, free, full, and absolute power, to ordain, make, and enact laws, of what kind soever, according to their sound discretions, whether relat- ing to the public state of the said province, or the private utility of individuals, of and with the advice, assent, and approbation of the free-men of the same province, or of the greater part of them, or of their delegates or deputies, whom we will^ shall be called together for the framing of laws, when, and as often ^ ber, life, freehold, goods or chattels.'*'' 1636. This was entirely consonant to those unfortunate maxims which Charles had adopted about this time, for the rules of his regal conduct. That his orders in council, and proclamations thereupon, should be deemed the legal and constitutional substitutes of laws, which ought to have been enacted by tl\e three estates of the realm in parliament assembled, was a principle, on which, as a dangerous rock, his subsequent fortunes split.* But it must be ac- knowledged, that qualified as this principle is, by the limititions at the end of the clause in this eighth section of the charter, it is difficult to conceive, wherein a case could occur, in which an ordinance of the lord proprietor or his governour, could possi- bly be made so as not " to oblige, bind, charge, or take away the right or interest of some person or i:)ersons, of, or in member, life, freehold, goods, or chattels." This leads us, however, to the notice of an in- jg^j, strument of writing, called in the body of it, " an An ordi- ordinance," made by the lord Baltimore, in Eng- that pur- land, in the early part of the year 1637, bearing date P°^^' the 15th of April, 1637, containing instructions to his brother Leonard Calvert, esq. for the regulation, government, and settlement of the province. But, as he therein constitutes and appoints him to fill se- veral offices in the province, it would seem more propei'ly to fall under the denomination of a com- * Hume's Hist, of England, chap. 41, i)y2 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP. ?nission ; in which, after constituting him gover- ,,,^^^^r>^ nour, lieutenant-general, chief captain and com- 1637. mander, as well by sea as by land, of his province, and the islands to the same belonging, and appoint- ing him also, chancellor, chief justice, and chief magistrate within the said province, until officers and ministers of justice should be appointed, he proceeds (to what seems to be the most important part of the commission,) to grant to him power and authority also, " to assemble the freemen of our said province, or their deputies, at St. Mary's, upon the twenty-fifth day of January next ensuing the date hereof, and then and there to signify to them, that we do disasscnt to all the laws, by them heretofore, or at any time made within our said province, and do hereby declare them to be void ; and further, to show unto them the draught or copy of all such laws and ordinances for the good government of our said province, as we shall before that time trans- mit to you, with our assent for enacting the same ; and likewise, if the said freemen, or their deputies, so assembled, shall approve and consent unto all the said draughts or copies of the said laws and ordi- nances, in manner as we send them over, to pub- lish the same as laws, under the great seal of our said province, that the people of our said province may take the better notice thereof." He also therein, grants power to the said gover- nour, " after dissolving the present assembly, to call another, and to propound and propose other laws, to be assented to and confirmed, if approved by his lordship himself." Also, general power " to call and dissolve assem- HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 2< blies, and also to make ordinances, edicts, and chaf proclamations, with reasonable pains and penalties ^^^^ therein, not extending to the taking the right or in. 1637. terest of any person or persons, of, or in their life, member, or freeholds, goods, or chattels." Also, power to appoint places for public ports for shipping, 8cc. and places for fairs and markets, on certain days. Also power to grant pardons, &c. not extending to high treason ; — Also, to grant commissions for the execution of justice, and for the dividing and bounding of lands, and also to make grants of lands being thereby also made keeper of the great seal. Also, by the same commission, three persons, to wit, Jerome Hawley, esq., Thomas Cornwalleys, esq., and John Lewger, gentleman, were appointed "to be of our council of and within our said pro- vince, with whom our said lieutenant shall from time to time advise," &c^ Also power given to the said lieutenant " to in- quire and determine, and finally to judge of and upon all causes criminal whatsoever, to give sen- tence or judgment in or upon the same, (excepting only where the life or member of any person shall or may be inquired of or determined,) and to award execution on such sentence or judgment; and also to hear and determine all civil causes, both in law and equity, concerning any goods, chattels, con- tracts, debts, or other personal or mixt action or actions, suit or suits whatsoever, in the most sum- mary and equal way that he may according to the orders, laws, and statutes of that our said province. 294 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. already made and established or hereafter to be made," Sec. and in default of such laws, &c. then according to the laws and statutes of the realm of England as near as he may or can." " Also, when the life, member, or freehold of any person shall happen to come in question, full power to the said lieutenant or to such persons as we shall from time to time appoint to be of our council with- in the said province, or to any three of them, where- of our said lieutenant always to be one, to inquire and determine according to the laws of our said province, and finally to give sentence and judgment thereupon, and to award execution accordingly." By the same instrument John Lewger, gentleman, was appointed " secretary and keeper of the acts and proceedings of our lieutenant and council for tlie time being, and for the doing and recording of all grants of land, or of officers within the pro- vince." Also power was given to the governour to ap- point a deputy in his absence, or to the council, on the failure of the governour to do so.* The most remarkable part of the foregoing com- mission seems to be, that which relates to the calling an assembly on the twenty-fifth of Januiuy next, for the purpose of signifying to them his lordship's dis- asseiit to some laws which had been before that time enacted by them. Although no memorial of any proceedings of any assembly remains upon the records of the province, prior to that which was * See the Provincial Records, entitled " Council Procetd- i'figs from 1636 to 1657," p. 11. HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 295 called and held on the 25th of Januar}% 1638, (1637 chap. old style), according to the directions contained in v,^^^.,^ the foregoing commission, yet it seems that an as- 1637. sembly had been held at St. Mary's in 1635,* and, as is to be inferred fi'om the foregoing commission, had enacted divers laws, to which, it seems, the lord proprietor thought proper to refuse his assent, and to declare them void. What those laws were, or what were his lordship's reasons for refusing his assent to them, we are not informed. It would seem at first, as if his lordship meant to contend for such a construction of the seventh section of the chapter, as if it exclusively invested in him the right and power of first propounding the laws to tlie assembly, for their advice, assent, and approbation," and that the assembly had no right or privilege of originating or framing laws. Something like this seems to have been hinted, at divers times during the reigns of king James and king Charles I, by the advocates for extending the royal prerogative, and that the only use of a house of commons was to grant money to the crown. This subject, howe- ver, will be further explained, when we come to notice the proceedings of the assembly, which was directed to be called on the twenty-fifth of January. In the mean-time, it will be necessary to men- Proclama- tion some intervening incidents of the present year; England among which a proclamation issued by king Charles, ^^^"ra. bearing date " the last day of April," 1637, " against *^o"- the disorderly transporting his majesty's subjects to • Holmes's Annals, Vol, 1. p. 306, who cites Chalmers's Annals, Vol. 1, p. 232. 29S HISTORY OF MARYLAND. the plantations within the ports of America," seems to claim some notice. By this proclamation the offi- 1637. cers of the several ports in England, Wales, and Berwick, were commanded not to permit any per- sons, being subsidy-men, or of the value of sub- sidy-men,* to embark for any of the plantations, -without leave from his majesty's commissioners for plantations,! first had and obtained, nor any persons under the degree or value of subsidy-men, without an attestation or certificate from two justices of the peace, living next the place where the party lately then before dwelt, that he hatli taken the oaths of su- premacy and allegiance y and like testimony from the minister of his conversation and conformity to the orders and discipline of the Church of England; and that such officers should return to his majesty's said commissioners of plantations every half-year a list of the names and qualities of all such persons, as shall from time to time be embarked in any of the said ports for any of the said plantations 4 Al- though it is evident that this proclamation would af- fect the emigration of English Catholics to Mary, land, if put in execution against them, yet it would seem, from the preamble to it, to have been princi- pally intended to check the emigration of the Pu- ritans to New England, referring to the transporta- • That is, men, who were liaUe to pay the tax called a Subsidy. t These seem to be the commissioners before-mentioned p. 235, viz, archbishop Laud and others, \ See the proclamation more at large in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. I, p. 421. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 297 tion of '^ many idle and refractory humours, whose chap. only or principal end is to live as much as they can v^^^v-,^ without the reach of authority." It is probable issr. that it was never enforced as to Catholics, or that they at all times could easily obtain a license to de- part. Besides, the civil wars now approaching, soon rendered it ineffectual even as to the Puritans. It seems to have been adopted as a proper policy Traffic to be observed in the infant state of the Maryland Indians re- colony, borrowed perhaps from the same or a simi- ^ ^ ^ ^ ' lar regulation in Virginia, that no person should be allowed to carry on any traffic with the Indians, without a formal, written license for that purpose. The late alarm created by the behaviour of the In- dians towards the colonists at St. Mary's, before- mentioned, might have, perhaps, dictated this regu- lation. "We find, therefore, among the records of this year, that of a written license to Thomas Corn- wallis, esq., bearing date the 30th of December, 1637, " to trade with the Indians for corn."* It would appear also, that towards the latter end The isle of r 1 • 1 • 1 f Tr 1-11 • Kentredu. of this year the isle of Kent had been m some mea- cedtoiord sure reduced to the obedience of the lord Baltimore, more's go- Clay borne had failed in his attempts to retain his ^'^'""'"^"^ possession of it by force, and had, as before-obser- ved, been sent by the govemour of Virginia to England, to seek what remedy he might have there. Measures seem, therefore, now to have been taken to put in force the civil authority of the lord pro- prietor over that island, as a part of his province. Accordingly a commission was granted by gover- • " Council Proceedings," from 1636 to 1657," p. 20. 2 P i3t>« HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, noiir Calvert, to captain George Evelyn, bearing y^^^J->^^ date the 30th of December, 1637, to be governour 1637. of the isle of Kent,* authorising him to choose six of the inhabitants thereof for his council, and giving him power to call a court or courts, and in the said courts, to hold pleas in civil cases not exceeding 10/. sterling ; and jurisdiction in criminal cases over all oft'ences which may be heard by justices of the peace in their sessions in England, not extending to life or member, and to appoint officers for the exe- cution of justice and conservation of the peace there, with allowance of such fees as are usually belonging to the same or the like offices in Vir- ginia.! 1.638. The colonists, it seems, had now begun to extend The coio- their settlements beyond the limits of the town of gin to ex- St. Mary's. In a commission to Robert Vaughan, se'uk- '^ of St. George's hundred, bearing date the 5th day "iuo\he of January, 1637, (1638, new style,) appointing him country, coustablc of the said hundred,^ there is the follow-- * Evelin must have been a man of some note at this time in the province, as it appears from the land records of the province, that he was the owner at this time of " the manor of Evelinton, in the baronie of St. Mary's ;" (see Kilty's Land- holder's Assistant, p. 68.) A manor could not be less than one thousand acres, according to his lordship's instructions of 1636, before-mentioned. t " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 20. \ Although the oflice of constable is now by us, and might be then in England, thought to be an office bcloAv the dignity of a gentleman ; yet in the then situation of the province, it might with propriety be estimated an office of honour. That Mr. Vaughan was then considered in the rank of a gentleman, we may infer from his subsequent promotions, particulailv HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 299 ifig preamble to it : " whereas the west side of St, cn\i'. George's river is now planted by several inhabitants, v.^-^^^,^ and is thought fit to be erected into a hundred, by i63h. the name of St. George's hundred," &:c. The com- mission specifies his powers as the constable of that hundred, nearly in the same manner as the like com-, mission in England, prescribing their common law- duties; but moreover parti c-ularly enjoins him, to make diligent search and inquiry, for persons who furnish the Indians or savages, with arms and am- munition.* As hundreds were the civil divisions of a county xhe conn- in England, we may infer, that all the parts of the ^^."yg^^j.^ countiy adjacent to the town of St. Mary's, inhabit- ganized. ed by the colonists, were considered as forming a county, to which the name of St. Mary's was given ; but whether any real limits were yet assigned and marked out as the boundaries of that county, does not appear. That a county was now so called, ap- j>ears from a commission to John Lewger, esq., bearing date the 24th of January, 1637, (1638, new style,) appointing him conservator of the peace within the county of St. Marifs, with such powers as are usually exercised and executed by any jus- tice of peace in England, &c. The same commis- sion appoints him also, "commissioner in causes testamentary," to prove tlie last wills and testaments • of persons deceased, and to grant letters of adminis- tration, &c. : it is addressed to him in the following from his being made commander of the isle of Kent county, under governour Stone, about the year 1650. ♦" Council Proceedings fii-om 1&36 to 1657," p. 2i 300 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. style — " to our trusty counciller John Lewger, se- cretary of our province of Maryland."* He had 1638. been appointed counciller and secretary by the com- mission of the 15th of April, 1637, before-mention- ed ; in virtue of which oifice of secretary^ it seems to have been the intent of that commission, to make him also, both principal clerk of the council and re-- gister of the land-office. It appears from subsequent Mr. John records of the province, that Mr. Lewger had been Lewger. ^^^^^ j^^^^ ^^^ proviucc from England, by the lord proprietor, as a man well qualified to assist his bro- ther in the administration of the government. He arrived there on the 28th of November, 1637, with his wife, and a son named John, about nine years old, together with three maid servants, three men servants, and a boy.f It would seem, therefore, that he was a man above the ordinary rank in so- ciety, both as to fortune and mental qualifications. An assem- In pursuance of the lord proprietor's instructions, plovfni? before-mentioned, of the 15th of April, 1637, for the called. holding an assembly, on the 25th of January next, the governour proceeded to some preparatory ar- rangements necessary thereto. Accordingly, about the first of January, 1637, (1638, new style,) he * " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 23. t See Kilty's Landholder's Assistant, p. 67. Although these are styled servants in the record, yet they might not all have been retained by him as menial servants, but persons imported or brought in with him at his expense, so as to en- title him to " rights" of land accruing from such importation, by virtue of the lord proprietor's instructions of 1636, before- mentioned. These particulars relative to Mr. Lewger, exhi- bit the early mode of colonising the province. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. SQt issued his warrant to captain Evelin, commander ckap. of the isle of Kent, as before- mentioned, reciting, v^r^,^>^, tliat " whereas my dear brother, the lord proprietor 1638. of this province, hath, by his commission to me directed, in that behalf, bearing date at London, in the realm of England, the 15th day of April, 1637, appointed a general assembly of all the freemen of this province, to be held at his town of St. Mary's, on the 25th of January next ; these are therefore, in his lordship's name, to will and require you, all ex- cuses set apart, to make your personal repair to the fort of St. Mary's, on the said 25th day of January, then and there to consult and advise of the affairs of this province ; and further, to will and require you at some convenient time, when you shall think fit, within six days after the receipt hereof at the far- thest, to assemble all the freemen inhabiting within any part of your jurisdiction, and then and there to publish and proclaim the said general assembly, and to endeavour to persuade such, and so many of the said freemen as you shall think fit, to repair per. sonally to the said assembly, at the time and place prefixed, and to give free power and liberty to all the rest of the said freemen^ either to be present at the said assembly, if they so please, or otherwise to elect and nominate such, and so many persons, as they or the major part of them, so assembled, shall agree upon, to be the deputies or burgesses for tlie said freemen^ in their name and stead, to advise and consult of such things as shall be brought into de- liberation in the said assembly, and to enter all the several votes and sufiVages upon record, and the re- cord thereof, and whatsoever }^ou shall do in any of 302 HISTORY OF MAICYLAND. the premises, to bring along with you, and exhibit ^-^^^^^ it at the day and place prefixed, to the secretary of 1638. the province for the time being ; and for so doing, this shall be your warrant."* • See "Assembly Proceedings from 1637 to 1658," p. i. As the word " freemen," so often repeated in this warrant or writ, frequently also occurs in the early legislative proceed- ings of the province, and is moreover, an expi-ession used in the charter, of material import in the political constitution of the province, it will be proper, that a correct idea should be annexed to it. In the translation of the charter, inserted in Bacon's edition of the laws, it is used as the true signification of the words " liberorum hominum" of the original Latin. It is true, that in common speech at this day, the word " free- man" means a person who is not a servant or slave. But the words " liberoi-um hominum," in the charter, must, I appre- hend, have a more technical meaning, and be subject to the signification annexed to it by the rules of the common law. It will be recollected, that the feudal tenures then, at the time of making the charter, subsisted in considerable force ; and as the charter was evidently framed upon feudal principles, these words ought properly to be interpreted in a feudal sense. Now the word " freemen," as well as the Latin expression " liberorum hominum," were, according to common law wri- ters, cotemporary, or nearly so, with the date of the charter, understood as being synonimous to the word freeholder. Spelman, in his glossary, verb homo., says that " homo liber" is to be taken » pro libero tenente," for a freeholder. The fol- lowing sentence in Magna Charta, ch. 14: Liber homo r\on amercietur pro parvo delicto, nisi secundum modum illius de- licti, is thus translated in Keble's statutes at large : " o. free- man shall not be amerced for a small fault, but after the man- ner of the fault." Upon this lord Coke (2 Inst. 27,) has made the following comment: " a frcevian hath here a special un- derstanding, and is taken for him, qid tenet libere., for y. free- holder" Also in his comment on the statute of Quia Emp- tores, (2 Inst. 501,) he makes the same interpretation of the HISTORY OF MARYLAND. SQci It is not easy to determine, whether the isle of chap. Kent. was at this time considered as a county by^^^-^,^^^^ itself, or a distinct territorial government, within 1638. words " libero homini." And again, in his 1 Inst. 58, a. he uses the words freemen ^xvdi freeholders as synonimous terms, when applied to the tenants of a manor. It might possibly be objected, that inasmuch as the words " liberi tenentes," which literally signify freeholders^ are used in the next suc- ceeding section (the eighth,) of the charter of Maryland, and which words are, in tlie translation in Bacon, rendered free- holders^ this variance in the terms used in the same instru- ment bespeaks a different sense of the words " liberorum ho- minum" in the preceding or seventh section; But by com- paring the two sections together, it will be seen, that the words " liberi tenentes" in the eighth section, are used in re- ference to the " liberorum hominum*' of the next preceding seventh section ; which clearly implies, that they were consi- dered as synonimous expressions. Hence it is to be inferred, that no inhabitant of the province was, at this period of time considered as a freeman^ unless he was an owner of land therein ; that is, ^freeholders and consequently not entitled to a seat in the house of assembly, unless he was such. It ap- pears, indeed, from the 14th clause of the act of 1638, (1639, new style,) ch. 2, and the 26th bill of those ingrossed at the same session, but not fiassed, that the governour, as lieuten- ant-general of the lord proprietor, claimed the prerogative, probably as a part of the Palatinate Regalia, of summoning by special writ, " gentlemen of able judgment and quality," to the assembly, similar to the royal prerogative of England, of calling by writ to the house of peers ; but it does not appear, that it was not requisite, that these " gentlemen" so summon- ed, should be freeholders. It is probable, however, that at this time, most of the inhabitants of the province, except such as were imported at the expense of others, were freeholders, or owners of land within the province. Although a right to a seat in the house of assembly, and a right to vote for a bur- gess or delegate, or to constitute a proxy, appear to have been at this time one and the same right, dependent upon the same 304 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, the lord Baltimore's jurisdiction, subordinate to the ^l^,^ general government of the province. From the cir- i638. cumstance of captain Evelyn's having a council as- signed him of six persons, as mentioned in his com- mission, before stated, of the 30th of December, 1637, it would seem to be of the latter.* However that was, yet it seems, that at this time ?avf freeman thereof had liberty to repair in person to the assem- blv, and to be considered as a member thereof. Al- though the alternative was given them, by the fore- going warrant, of meeting together, and electing representatives to serve in the assembly, as at this day ;f yet it would appear from the proceedings of this assembly, that the practical construction of the foregoing warrant was, that every freeman who did not choose to attend himself, might depute some one, who did attend as a member, to vote for him qualifications, and attached to every freeman of the province, yet it would seem, that in process of time, when the popula- tion of the province increased, and it became inconvenient for every freeman to have a right to a seat in the house, (an in- convenience felt, and proposed to be refitiedied by the before- mentioned 26th bill of the session of 1638-9,) other persons besides freeholders, were by law admitted to the right of suf- frage. It accordingly appears, by the act of 17 16, ch. 1 1, that freemen, who were residents, and who had a visible estate of 40/. sterling," (though not freeholders,) were entitled both to vote and to be voted for ; though it is probable, that this re- gulation had been adopted prior to the year 1710. * But subsequently, in the year 1650, it was considered as a distinct county, sending one delegate to the assembly. See Bacon's Laws, the N. B. preceding chap. 1. t This alternative seems to be authorized also by the seventh section of the charter, before-mentioned. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 30 j St as his proxy^ in the manner of the house of lords chap in England.* v-.^-v^^^ The assembly accordingly met on the 25th day 1638. of January, 1637, (1638, new style.) The lieuten- '^^^^Jl^^ ant-c^eneral, (or arovernoin*,) appears to have taken °^^''P -^ . \ o '/ 1 1 province the chair as speaker thereof, and the three gentle- meet men who composed his council, to wit : Jerome Hawley, Thomas Cornwallis, and John Lewger, esquires, sat widi the others as individual members only, and not as constituting an upper house, as the council afterwards did, but in the manner of a Scotch parliament before the union. The com- mander of the isle of Kent, (Evelyn,) also took his * Something like this constituted an article in the first form of government instituted by the New Haven colony, on their first settlement at Quinipiack or New Haven, in 1637-8, be- fore their union with Connecticut. " All freemen, without summons, should meet once a-year, and vote in the election of officers ; ajul such as cannot attend in jierson, may iwte by firoxy, or send their votes sealed." Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Vol. 1, p. 82. This practice, adopted as we see in two of the earliest English settlements of North Ame- rica, must have been derived from an usage in the house of lords in England, The principle, upon which the right of making a proxy prevail^ in the house of lords and not in the house of commons, is said to be, that the lords are supposed to sit in parliament in their own personal rights, and not as delegates or deputies of others, as the commons do. And, therefore, as a commoner in parliament was only a proxy or representative of another, he could not constitute a proxy in his place, according to an ancient maxim of law, delegata potestas non fxoto^t delegari, 4 Inst. 12, 1 Bac. Abr. 582. So allowing every freeman in Maryland to have a seat in the as- sembly, sitting there in his own personal right, he might make a proxy upon the same principle as a lord in England. 2 Q SOQ HISTORY Ol- IVIARYLAXD. CHAP, seat as a member. In the list of fhe members, t^^y^,^^^^ some of whom are styled gentlemen, and some i6aS. planters, the fnmdreds from which they came, are annexed to their respective names. It would ap- pear, that some of the members sat as burgesses or representatives from hundreds ; others claimed and held seats in their own personal rights as freemen, and so far constituting, what is by some required to constitute, a true and real democracy, or an assem- blage of all the free citizens of the state to make laws for themselves. It is true, that all the freemen of the province did not attend ; but it appears, that such as did not attend, either voted for some per- son in his hundred as a burgess or representative thereof, or authorised some member, as his proxy, to vote for him. Although n'rits of summons , it seems, had been issued to every freeman, individu- ally, to attend, yet one of the first acts of the pro- ceedings of the assembly, on the first day of their meeting, was to cause proclamation to be made, " that all freemen omitted in the writs of summons, that would claim a voice in the general assembly^ should come and make their claim." " Whereupon claim was made by John" Robin- son, carpenter, and was admitted." A list was made of such freemen as were absent, and of the names of those members who attended, and vvcre proxies for such absentees ; among which members, the three gentlemen who were councillors appear to have had the greatest number.* * The proceedings do not specify, how such delegated au- thority to a /iroxy should be verified ; but we may suppose it HISTORY OF MAIIYLAXB. 30r The house then proceeded to establish rules and chap orders to be observed during their session ; the sub- v^^^,^^^ stance of which was as follows : i6-'>8 " Imprimis — The lieutenant-general, as president of the assembl}^, shall appoint and direct all things that concern form and decency, to be observed in the same ; and shall command the observance thereof, as he shall see cause, upon pain of imprisonment or fine, as the house shall adjudge. " Item — Every one that is to speak to any mat- ter shall stand up, and be uncovered, and direct his speech to the lieutenant-general, as president of the assembly ; and if two or more stand up to speak together, the lieutenant-general shall appoint which shall si^ak, " Item — No man shall stand up to speak to any matter, until the party that spoke last before, have sat down ; nor shall any one speak above once to one bill or matter at one reading, nor shall refute the speech of any other with any contentious terms, nor shall name him but by some circumlocution ; and if any one offend to the contrary, the lieutenant- general shall command him to silence. " Item — The house shall sit every day at eight o'clock in the morning, and at two o'clock in the afternoon. to have been by the production to the house of some writtei) instrument, in the nature of a warrant of attorney. Although it is said, (Cunningh. Law Diet. verb, firoxy^ that a peer of the realm must enter his proxy in person^ on the journal of the house of lords ; yet, from the case that occurred in 1 Eliz. (as stated by lord Coke, 4 Inst. 12,) it might be done by an instrument of writing for that purpose. 308 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP. " Item — The freemen assembled at any time, to ^^,^^'-v>^^ any number above ten persons, at the hours afore- 1638. said, or within one hour after, shall be a house to all purposes. Item — Every one propounding any matter to the house, shall digest it at first into writing, and deli- ver it to the secretary,* to be read unto the house. " And it was ordered by the house, that these orders should be set up in some public place of the house, to the end all might take notice of them." The house met again on the next day, the 26th of January, at eight o'clock, according to regulation. Several persons came in, and " claimed their voices as freemen ;" of which the following entries on the journal of the house, appeal' to be the most remark- able : " Then came Edward Bateman, of Saint Mary's Tiundred, ship-carpenter, and claimed a voice as freeman, and made Mr. John Lewger, secretary, his proxy, "t Also, " came John Langford, of the isle of Kent^A gentleman, high constable of the said island, who had given a voice in the choice of Robert lihilpot, gentleman, to be one of the burgesses for the free- men of that island, and desired to revoke his voice. * From this we may infer, that the secretary of the pro- vince, Mr. Lewger, acted as clerk of this assembly, notwith- standing he was a councillor, and held moreover severalother offices, and besides voted as a member of the house. t This seems consonant to the practice of.the house of lords in England, where a proxy must be made in the house in /ler^ aCKj as before-mentioned. y HISTORY OF MAR-iXAND. 309 and to be personally put in the assembly, and was chap. admitted." v^-v^^s^ The house then proceeded to the most important i638. business of their session, the consideration of the 3^n!biv laws transmitted to the colony by the lord proprie- take into tor. The draughts of the twelve first acts of them fion the being read, they "were severally debated by the in by the house." An adjournment then took place until fj^^^^'^*^' three o'clock in the afternoon ; but notliing further of importance appears on the journal, to have been transacted on that da}\ On the meeting of the house on the third day of their session, (the 29th of January,) an extraordinary question seems to have been agitated. It thus ap- pears on the journal : " Upon occasion of some warrants granted out against some freemen that had made proxies, a question was moved in the house, whether freemen having made proxies during the assembly might be arrested before the assembly were dissolved ; and captain Cornwaleys and James Baldridge were of opinion that they might, but the rest of the bouse generally concurred, that after the writs issued for summoning the assembh^ no man having right to repair unto the assembly might be arrested, until a convenient space of time after the dissolution of the said assembl}'', for their repair home." It is to be observed, that this privilege from ar- rests, on -warrants here mentioned, must have been only in civil cases, as for debt ; for even at this time in England, no privilege of parliament was allowed , to exempt even peers of the realm, from arrests for ' ^ny indictable crime. If the pri^-ilcge here contend- 310 HISTOR* OF MARYLAND. CHAP, ed for, was meant to extend to a freeman while he ^^^,^,„^^ was actually on his way to the assembly, either to 1638. take his seat therein, or even to revoke a proxy be- fore made by him, the decision of the house must be allowed to have been proper enough ; for, by the law of parliament, the appearance of a peer in the house of lords, cancels any proxy before made by him ;* but, if he was to be privileged from ar- rests while he was about his ordinary business at home, and at the same time represented by his proxy, whom he had appointed, or burgess for whom he had voted, it does not appear to have been consonant to any principle of sound policy. It seems somewhat remarkable to us at this day, that our ancestors, in such an early state of their colonisation, should have had occasion to stickle so much for a privilege, generally esteemed odious even under governments where personal liberty is most strongly cherished. As the habit of contract- ing debts without the means of payment, is gene- rally supposed to originate from an excess of luxury in living, it is difficult to account for the frequency of aiTests for debts, which must be supposed to have existed at this time among the colonists, so as to make their legislative interference a subject of anxiety among them. Just settled in a wilderness, where few temptations to extravagant expenses could exist, we should have supposed that habits of economy would have become almost unavoid- able. The house now proceeded to take into conside- • 4 Inst. 13. HTSTORY OF MATIYLAXD. 311 ration again, the laws sent b}^ the lord proprietor, as chap. before-mentioned. Three qnestions on the subject v^^^v-^^ appear to have been proposed in the house : first, lo^s, whether the laws should be now read again in the house ; or, secondly, whether they should be put to the vote immediately, without further reading ; or, thirdly, whether the subject should not be post- poned to a future day, when a greater number of members might attend. *' Captain Cornwaleys gave his opinion, that they should expect a more frequent house;" that is, that the business should be postponed until a greater number of members attended. " Captain Fleete* gave his opinion, that they should be read again;" but seemed to coincide with the opinion of captain Cornwaleys, of postpon- ing the subject to a future day. The previous question, however, was put ; whe- ther the laws " should be now put to the vote im- mediatelv," or not. It was carried in the affirma- tive by thirty-three voices to eighteen, both sides including proxies. " Then were the laws put to the question, whe- ther they should be received as laws, or not." " Affirmed by the president and Mr. Lewger, ^vho counted by proxies fourteen voices." " Denied by all the rest of the assembly, being The law* thirty-seven voices," including, as we may suppose, jected. their proxies. * It is probable, that this was the same captain Henry Fleete before-inentioned, (p. 27 1 ,) who was found by governour Calvert, living at Piscataway among the Indians, where he had been for sonxe years before the arrival of the colony. a 12 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP. Thus it would seem, that governour Calvert and _^_^^. Mr. Lewger, the secretary, were the only two 1638. members of the assembly who were for receiving the laws sent in by the lord proprietor; for although they counted twelve other votes besides their own, on the same side, that is, fourteen voices, yet as those freemen for whom they voted as proxies might not have voted in the same way, had they been pre- sent, the fourteen voices cannot fairly be counted, in forming an estimate of the real opinions of the free- men of the province. Neither can all the thirty-se- ven voices in the negative be taken in for the same reason ; but, we may suppose, that a much less pro- portion of those thirty- seven voices were proxies,, than on the other side ; since by the rules and orders of the house before-mentioned, ten members at least Avere necessary to constitute a house, and in that case there must have been eight members at least in the negative, who voted in their own rights, to two in the affirmative. The grounds and reasons of their objections to these laws do not appear on the Journal; but certain it is, that a very warm opposition, among a large majority of the freemen, was made to their reception, at the head of which opposition cap- tain Cornwaleys may, from all appearances, be consi- dered as having taken his stand. Neither are we able ait this day to judge of the merit or demerit of those laws sent in by the proprietor, by a perusal of them, as no copies of them are to be found on our records."^ Did the duty of a historian allow him to mention his conjectures, a plausible supposition might be made, * Bacon's Laws of Maryland, anno 1537. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 515 that the dispute about the reception of these laws chap. was dictated more by a political contest for the right x^^^^-^^ of propounding laws to be enacted by the assem- 1638. bly than any other cause. From the good charac- ter which Cecilius, lord Baltimore, always bore, we cannot suppose that he had framed or proposed any laws for the colonists, but such as he deemed the best in his own opinion, for the promotion of their welfare, with which his own interest at this early period of the province must have been necessarily involved, and for the prosperity of which he must have felt the sincerest solicitude. It is observable, also, that no specific objections to any particular law or laws of those sent in by the lord proprietor, were made, but the opposition to their reception seems to have been founded solely on his assumption of the right of propounding them. We may suppose, on the other hand, also, that his rejection of the laws said to have been made by the colonists in 1635, before-mentioned, was founded on this dis- putable right.* So that in the very infancy of the settlement, the contest for the right of propounding laws was likely to result in placing the colonists in that most dangerous situation of society, of living under a government without any known laws. The house of assembly, convened at this time, seemed to be sensible of this. We accordingly find, there- fore, on the journal of the house the following en- tries, immediately succeeding those of the rejection of the laws as just mentioned. ** iThen question being moved, what laws the pro- • See note (T) at the end of the vplume. 2 R 314 HISTORY OF MARYLAJOX CHAP, vince shall be governed by, it was said by somCy ^^r>,r^^^ that they might do well to agree upon some laws 1638. till we could hear from England again. theTawsof " The president denying any such pou-W" to be Engl; :!id ij^ ^}-jg house, captain Comwaleys propounded the deemed to laws of England, the president acknowledges that beiniorce. , . . , , . .... his commission gave nim power m civil causes to proceed by the laws of England, and in criminal causes, likewise, not extending to life or member^ but in those he was limited to the laws of the pro- vince; there could be no punishment inflicted on any enormous offenders by the refusal of these laws." " Whereupon the commission was produced and examined, and upon the reading of it, it appeared that there was no power in the province to punish any offence deserving the loss of life or member, for want of laws."* " To this they answered, such enormous offences would hardly be committed without mutiny, and then it might be punished by martial law." The house at this period of the business appear to have adjourned for dinner, but met again in the • The commission here alluded to? was most probably that sent in to the governotir, bearing date the 1 5th of April, 1637, before-mentioned, by which the governour and council were authorised, " where t/ie Ufe^ member^ or freehold of any per- son should happen to come in question, to inquire and deter- mine according to the laws of our said provmce.^ and finally to give sentence and judgment thereupon and to award execu- tion accordingly." Tlie difficulty appeared to be, that accord- ing to the commission they could not proceed against offend- ers, in capital criminal cases, by the laws of England, but by their own particular local latvs of the fir ovine e i from whence it followed, that if there were no laws of the firovince, thelrp could be no proceedings in such cases. HISTORY OF TSIARYLAJ^D. SU afternoon of the same day, when it was moved, cijap. *' that the house would consider of some laws to be s^-^r^*^ sent to the lord proprietor," 1638. " And the president advised, that they should choose some committees* to prepare the draught of them, and then the house might meet for confirm- ing them ; and in the mean-time, every one might follow their other occasions." " So it being put to the vote, how many commit- tees should be appointed for that purpose, they agreed that five should be chosen." And five were accordingly chosen, " It was then considered, for how long to adjourn the house, and it was thought fit to adjourn till the eighth of February following." " And because the court was to be held in the mean-time, that is to say, on the third of February, that therefore, the privilege of parliament should be void until the court were past, and all freemen might be arrested, as if no assembly wer^ And so the house broke up." The interval of ten days, for the committee to prepare the draughts of new laws, being elapsed, the assembly met again on the eightii of February, according to their adjournment. The committee, it seems, had, during this interval, prq^ared a new set of laws to be enacted by the assembly, and to be sent to the lord Baltimore ; but it appears also, that upon consultation during tliis short recess, it * It appears from subsequent proceedings of the house, that the word " committees," here meant the members composing a committee. It was a phraseology in use at that time. See Hazard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 410, 428. 316 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, was thought proper to propose again, the laws sent . ^^^^y^y,^ in by the lord proprietor. l 1538. " The committee reported to the house, that they ^it inTy thought fit to read the former draught of laws again, the pro- and to put them to the vote the second time, in re- pnetor '■ again pro- gard there was found a great deal of misunderstand- r^ected" ing of them among die freemen, which made them to refuse them. " And it being put to the vote of the house, whether +hey should be read again, or not, was affirmed by forty-eight voices, and denied by twenty- one voices. " Then was an order made, by general consent of the house, that all bills propounded to the house for laAvs, should be read three times, on three seve- ral days, before they should be put to the vote." " Then was the draught of laws read through the second time, and twenty bills propounded by the committee, were read the first time.* " Captain Cornwaleys desired it might be put to the vote of the house, whether these lawsf at the third reading, should be voted severally, (yr the whole body of them together. " And that they should be voted altogether, was affirmed by thirty-two voices, and denied by thirty- seven." This last vote seemed preparatorj^' to a total re- jection of them. The house upon this adjourned, • The draught of laws to be read the second time, must have been the laws sent in by the proprietor ; and the twenty bills, those prepared by the committee. t Viz. those sent in by the lord proprietor. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 317 (probably for dinner,) and met again in the after- chap. noon of the same day. s.^-v-^w " The house being sat, the president declared i638. that he thought it fitting to adjourn the house for a longer time, till the laws, which they would pro- pound to the lord proprietor, were made ready, which some would take care of, and in the mean- time the company might attend their other busi- ness. " Captain Cornwaleys replied, they could not spend their time in any business better than in this for the country's good ; and one of the planters de- manded the reason why it should be adjourned, and said they were willing to leave their other business, to attend to it. The president replied, he would be accountable to no man for his adjourning of it. " Then captain Cornwaleys moved, that at least a committee might be appointed, that should take charge of preparing the laws till the house met again ; and it being put to the house, they agreed that tliree committees* should be appointed. Then every one nominating severally his three commit- tees, the president had forty-six voices, captain Cornwaleys had fifty-six, captain Evelin forty-four, Mr. Lewger thirty-one, Mr. Snow five, and captain Fleete four. " Then was it ordered, that privilege of parlia- ment-men for their persons, should not be allowed till the next meeting of the assembly. *' Then the president adjourned the house till the twenty-sixth day of February.'* • Three members of a committee, as before. 518 HISTORY OF MARYLANb. CHAP. From what fell from captain Cornwaleys, in the y^^^,.^^ foregoing proceedings, in his proposition for adopt- 1638. ing the laws of England, it might be inferred, that the laws of England had never yet been put in ■practice among the colonists, although full three years had elapsed since their first settlement at St. Mary's. It must be confessed, that this observa- tion of his, cannot at this day be easily accounted for, since it is certain, that the earliest records of the province seem all to indicate, that the whole of their proceedings, both legislative and judicial, were conducted according to those laws, except, as ob- served in the house of assembly, " where life or member was to be aflfected." Indeed, the subject that so often occurs on the little journal of the house, before quoted, as to ** privilege of parlia- ment," in exempting the members of the house from arrest, presupposes the common law of Eng- land as to this purpose in force ; for, if there were no local laws of the province^ nor any common law^ from whence could this privilege arise ? We are, therefore, to construe Mr. Cornwaleys' proposition to this effect : that the laws of England, so far as they were applicable to the local circumstances of the colonists, were to be continued to be used and practised by them ; and that a legislative declaration to that purpose, should be made. Courts of ^^^ confirmation of this construction of the fore- justice going proposition, we are to observe, that in a few days after the assembly rose, courts of justice were held at St. Mary's, in which the proceedings appear to have been in exact conformity to those laws. A court " for testamentary causes," composed of the HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 319 governour and council, was held on the 12th of chap. February ; in which letters of administration were y.^,-v^-,^^ granted on the estates of divers deceased persons, 1638 and proceedings had, as in the same kind of courts in England. On the same, or the succeeding day, a court, called in the records, a county-court^ was holden before the lieutenant-general, captain Robert Wintour, and Mr. John Lewger ; at which a grand jur}-^ were impanelled and sworn, and two bills of indictment for piracy and murder, were sent up to them, and found true bills. These indictments ap- pro- pear to have been drawn according to English pre- thereilf^ cedents, and the technical phraseology used in them p^,^'"^^ according to the established practice of the criminal bome's laws of England. As these indictments, which have ^^ ^ been before alluded to, related to those political in- cidents of the province occasioned by Clayborne's resistance to the lord proprietor's right and autho- rity over the isle of Kent, some more particular no- tice of them will be necessar}'. The first of these indictments charges : " Let kiquest be made for the lord proprietor, if in the river Pocomoque, on the eastern shore, on the twenty-third day of April, in the year 1635, Tho- mas Coniwaleys, esq. one of the commissioners of this province with divers other persons of the com- pany and servants of the said Thomas Cornwaleys, being in two pinnaces, called the St. Helen and the St. Margaret, in the peace, &c. RatclifT Warren, commonly known by the name of lieutenant War- ren, Richard ,* and Robert Lake, with divers • The surname here in the record is not legible 320 HISTORY OF MARYLANF. CHAP. Others, to the number of fourteen persons, or there. .^^^^^r>^ abouts, &c. in one pinnace belonging to William 163a Clayborne, of the isle of Kent, gentleman, with force and arms, &c. on the day aforesaid, in the place aforesaid, upon the two pinnaces aforesaid, feloni- ously, and as pirates and robbers, an assault did make, and upon the said Thomas Cornwaleys and his company, divers guns charged with powder and bullets, did shoot and discharge, &c. and one Wil- liam Ashmore, of St. Mary's, apprentice in the pin- nace aforesaid, the day and year aforesaid, at the place aforesaid, did shoot and wound in the breast, on tlic left side, near the left papp, of which wound the said 'William Ashmore instantly died ; and if the said Wiilium Claybonie did encourage and in- stigate, and abet the said lieutenant W^arren, to make and attempt the said assault upon the pinnace aforesaid, or upon any other, the pinnaces, boats, or vessels belonging to St. Mary's ; and if the said William Clayborne did, by a special warrant or commission, under his hand, command, warrant, and authorise the said lieutenant Warren, to seize, take, and carry away the pinnaces or other vessels belonging to St. Mary's, contrary to the peace ()f the sovereign lord the king, his crown and dignity, and contrary- to the peace of the said lord proprietor, his domination and dignity." The other indictment is against Thomas Smith, gentleman, and three other persons, planters, for the murder of the same William Ashmore, and is in other respects, the same as the former indictment, totidem verbis^ except as to time and place, as fol- lows : " Let inquest, &c. if in the harbour of great HISTORY OF :\IARYLAND. 32t Wiggomoco, in the bay of Chesapeak, on the tenth chap. day of May, in the year of our Lord 1635, Thomas ^^^^.^^ Cornvvaleys, esq. one of the commissioners of the 1638. province, Cuthbert Hemirk, and John Hollis, ser- vants of the said Thomas Cornwaleys, being in the good pinnace called the St. Margaret, in the peace, &c. Thomas Smith, of the isle commonly called Kent, gentleman, Philip Tailor, Thomas Duffil, and Richard ,* planters, together with divers others, to the number of fourteen persons, or thereabouts," &c. and so on, the same as the former indictment, charging William Claybome also, as accessary be- fore the fact, in the manner as before. On account of the deficiency in the laws, and the exception in the lieutenant-general's commission, before-mentioned, so that no capital punishment could be adjudged by any court of the province then existing, the trials on these indictments were postponed until the next meeting of the assembly. Notwithstanding these proceedings, and although The inha- Clayborne had, before this, departed for England, the' isie of yet it seems, that the inhabitants of the isle of Kent J^^"\o^" were far from being at this time quiet and obedient submit. to the lord proprietor's government. The authority of the provincial government, was yet so openly contemned and resisted, by many of the inhabitants of that island, as to render it necessary for the go- vernour to proceed thither with an armed force, to quell and punish the refractory and disobedient. We find in the records of the " Council Proceed- ings" of this period, an entry explanatory of the • The Eurname here in the record is not legible. 2 s 2'i HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, reasons and causes of this measure of the govem- . ment. 1638. " By the govemour and council, this 12th of Fe- ^"^^^'r , bruarv, 1637," (1638, new style.) nour Gal- • ' ' ^ ' . . vert pro- " The ffovcmour and council, taking into consi- teeds . ^ . . . 1 . . . with a deration the many piracies, msclencies, mutinies, ^urcT'^ and contempts of the government of this province, thcm^^ formerly committed by divers of the inhabitants of the isle of Kent, and that the warrants sent lately into the said island, under the great seal of the pro- vince, for apprehending some malefactors, and to compel others to answer their creditors in their law- ful suits of debt or accompt, were disobeyed and con- temned, and the prisoners rescued out of the officer's hands, by open force and arms ; and being now ne\vly informed, that divers of them do maintain and pro- tect themselves in their said unlawful and rebellious acts, did practice and conspire with the Susquiha- noughs and other Indians, against the inhabitants of this colony, have thought it fit, that the governour should sail, in person, to the said isle of Kent, and take along with him a sufficient number of fieemen, well armed, and there, by martial laWy (if it shall be necessar}',) reduce the inhabitants of the said island to their due obedience to the lord proprietor, and by death, (if need be,) coiTect mutinous and seditious offenders, who shall not, (after proclamation made,) submit themselves to a due course of justice ; and for his better, assistance herein, it was thought fit, and so ordered, that captain Thomas Cornwaleys, esquire, and one of the council of this province, should go along with the governour, and be aiding itfid assisting to him, to the uttermost of his power, HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 32 ^ for the command of the forces, according to such chap. directions as he shall receive from the governour v.„^-v->^ during the expedition. ^^js. Signed, LEONARD CALVERT, JEROME HAWLEY, JOHN LEWGER."* Preparator}^ also, to this expedition, the governour secicary issued his proclamation, reciting, that " whereas this ^utT/oH- present general assembly, begun on the 25th day ^^^^^°^^ January, last past, and by several adjournments, con- assembly. tinned until the 8th of this instant month of Februa* ry, was then adjourned until the 26th of this instant month, now designing at this present, to make an expedition in person, unto the isle of Kent, and doubting, lest some accident might hinder my re- turn to St. Mary's, afore the said day, whereby the assciiibly would of itself be dissolved, for want of power to assemble ; know ye, therefore, that in case of such my absence, I have authorised and deputed Mr. John Lewger secretary, in my name and place, to hold and convene the said assembly, at the day appointed, and to give voice for me, to all such things as he shall think fit, also to adjourn or dis- solve the said assembly, and to do all things in my stead, &c. LEONARD CALVERT." During the govcrnour's absence from St. Mary's, the assembly met on the 26th of February, 1637, (1638, new style,) according to adjournment. But, • See the Provincial Records, entitled " Cotirttfil Proceed- ings, from 1636 to 1657," p. 56, 37. S24> HISTORY OF MAnVLAND, CHAP, after ordering " that privilege of parliament be sus- ^^^,„rv->^ pended till the next meeting," the house was ad- 1638. journed till the 5th of Miirch next. The house met on the 5th of March, according to their last adjournment ; but, the governour being still absent, " Mr. Secretary adjourned the house till the 12th of March following." " And the house ordered that privilege of parlia- ment should be suspended till the next meeting." The house met on the 12th of March, according to their adjournment; and the governour, being now returned, was present, and presided as speaker. " Privilege of parliament was affirmed ;" and the twenty bills draughted by the committee, which were formerly read, at the session on the eighth of February, were now read a second time. The house meeting again on the next day, (the 13th of March,) fourteen other bills were then read for the first time. Act of at. Which bills were again read on the succeeding ^S L\RHAKi>: CHAP, dent, in the name of all the freemen, in these | ^^^^^.^-^ words : 1638. « Thomas Smith, you have been indicted for fe. lony and piracy ; to your indictment, you have pleaded not guilty, and you have been tried by the freemen in this general assembly, who have found you guilty, and pronounce this sentence upon you, that you shall be carried from hence to the place whence you came, and thence to the place of exe- cution, and shall there be lianged by the neck till you be dead, and that all your lands, goods, and chattels shall be forfeited to the lord proprietor, sa- ving that your wife shall ha^'e her dower, and God have mercy upon your soul. " Judgment affirmed and approved by special con- sent, by word of mouth, by captain Cornwaleys,** and others (named in the record) sixteen in number.* " Then did the prisoner demand his clergy ; but it was answered by the president that clergy could not be allowed in his crime, and if it might, yet now it was demanded too late after judgment." Inquiry by It Will be recollcctcd, that in the rencounter be- biytnto™ tween captain Cornwaleys and his company with duct of Claybome's men before- mentioned, several persons captain ©f the latter party were said to have been killed bv Cornwa- ... leys. the fire of Comwaleys's men in resisting the attack upon them first made by ClaybwTje^s piirty, as alleged by those of Cornwaleys. It was, therefore, deemed necessary by the house, that inquiry should * By this the whole house of assembly mint at this time have consisted of seventeen members, incJuding John Halfe- hide the dissentient. ;. -j^j }q ya^i^mop ?fi b^T ? {jL - HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 32 f be made by them of these facts; and their proceed- chap. ings thereon, appear upon the records to have been s^^-w^^^ as follows ; ^"^^ " Then departed out of the house, captain Corn- waleys, Cuthbert Fennick, William Lewis, John Nevill, Anthony Cotton, Edwaixi Fleete, and Cy* prian Thoroughgood. " Then was the house moved by the attorney to inquire of the death of William Ashmore, Ratcliff Warren, John Bellson, and William Dawson, and the house having heard the evidence of Cyprian Thorou^hgood, John Nevill, Cuthbert Fennick, and Edv/ard Fleete did find that the said RatclifFe War- ren, John Bellson, and William Dawson, with di- vers others, did assault the vessel of captain Corn- waleys and his company, feloniously and as pirates and robbers to take the said vessel, and did discharge divers pieces charged with bullett and shott against die said Thomas Cornwaleys and his company, whereupon and after such assault made, the said Thomas Cornwaleys and his company in defence of themselves and safeguard of their li\'es, not be- ing able to fly further from them, after warning given to the assailants to desist from assaulting them at their own peril, did discharge some guns upon the said RatclifF and his company, of which shots the said RatclifF Warren, John Bellson, and William Dawson died, and so they find that the said Thomas Cornwaleys and his company did law- fully, and in their own necessar)' defence kill the said RatclifF Warren, John Bellson, and William Dawson, and do acquit the said Thomas Com- waleys and his company of the death cf the said 328 HISTORY OF MARYLAND.' CHAP. Ratcliff Warren, John Bellson, and William Daw, I. s,^-vr>^ son. 1638. " And tliey further find, that the said Ratcliff Warren and his company did discharge their guns against the said Thomas Cornwaleys and his com- pany, and did kill the said William Ashmore, being one of the company of the said Thomas Cornwa- leys, as felons, pirates, and murderers." That the assumption of judicial power by the house of assembly at this time, was not confined to Smith's case, appears from the journal of the house for the succeeding day, (the 15th of March,) where an entry appears of the following purport: " Then \\ as fined to the lord proprietor Thomas Baldridge, 40 lb tobo- for striking John Edwards." It is true that this might have arisen from the fact being per- petrated in the presence of the house, on which oc- casion, by the law of parliament, they would have had power to impose the punishment of imprison- ment as for a contempt; but the journal does not au- thorise this supposition of the circumstances of the fact. Resoiu. Another entry on the journals of the house, of thTasscm-the 17th of March, may perhaps be deemed wor- JSefJ'ser. ^hy of noticc, as tracing a feature of the early ha- vunts. |-jj^g^ manners, and customs of our ancestors — " Then upon a question moved touching the rest- ing of servants on Saturdays in the afternoon, it was declared by the house that no such custom was to be allowed." It may be remarked, that not with -^ standing this declaration of the legislature, the cus- tom has in some measure, '^^ven ^vith slaves, pre- vailed throughout the province. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 5.29 On the last day of the session, (March 24th), chap. which according to old style, was the last day »^,^v-nJ of the year 1637, the several bills which had been i63b. prepared to be ])assed by the house were now " fair- Jjj,^,f * ly ingrossed and read, and after the reading of them dibsohcd. the governour signed them, and so did the rest of the house. And so the house dissolved." However beneficial and necessary for the province The lord proprietor those laws now enacted by the assembly, and assent- refuses lus ed to by the governour, might have been, yet it the laws seems when they were sent to England and pro- ^"''J'hJ^'^as. pounded to the lord proprietor for his assent, hescmbiy, thought it proper to reject them. Of his reasons for so doing, we are nowhere positively inibrmed; but the same conjecture we have before ventured may be again hazarded ; — that he had resolved to retain the right of first propounding the laws to be enact- ed by any assembly of his province. Although a complete list of the titles of these laws remains upon our records, yet the laws themselves at large are not extant, no copies of them appearing upon our records.* Many of these laws were, probabl}-, afterwards reenacted under the same or similar titles. The contents of some of them, however, to ^vhich we do not find subsequently any with titles similar, would interest our curiosity even at this day, parti- cularly the first on the list, entitled, " A Bill for di- * See a complete list of them published in Bacon's edition of the Laws of Maryland, 1537, where it is said, "They ■were never enacted into laws ;" meaning, without doubt, for want of the lord proprietor's assent to them ; " nor are any copies of them, or of those sent in by his lordship to be found in our records^ aSO HISTORY OF MARYLAND. crtAP. vidiiig of the province." From the titles of several ^^,-^,^,,^^ bills immediately following, relative to manors, and 1638. one entitled, " A Bill for Baronies," we are induced to suppose, that besides the division of the province into counties, a further division of the same was con- templated into baronies and manors, with their feudal appendages of courts-baron and courts-leet. This may, probably, have been the cause of its being stated by some writers, that the province was originally divided into bcironies and manors. Although many manors were subsequently laid out and granted to individuals, yet it does not appear, that this division of the province into baronies, (at least in the feudal sense of the word, was ever car- ried into effect; for we are told that " no grant of a barony is to be found on record."* William Claybomc having been sent to England by the borne's govcrnour of Virginia, after the military outrage the'kin^in committed by his men, through his orders, on the council, Maryland colonists, as before-mentioned, he pre- »nd order ^ . , ^ *■ ihereup- ferrcd a petition to the king, in order to obtain re- dress of the " wrongs and injuries," which he had sustained, as he alleged. A ver\' imperfect copy of this petition appears among the earliest docu- ments of our Provincial Records,! with intervening blanks therein, which render it in some places al- most unintelligible. The tenor and substance of it is, however, as follows: " The petition of captain William Clay borne, on * See Kilty's Landholder's Assistant, p. 93. Also note(V) at the end of this volume. + " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 16a7," p. 4. on, HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 3Jil the behalf of himself and partners, to the king, chap. showing — that the petitioners, by virtue of a com- ^^-v^-.^^ mission under his majesty's hand, &c. divers years losa past, discovered, and did then plant upon an island in the great bay of Chesapeak, in Virginia, by them named the isle of Kent, which they bought of the kings of that country, and built houses^ transported cattle, and settled people thereon, to their very great costs and charges ; which the lord Baltimore taking notice thereof, and the great hopes for trade of bea. vers and other commodities, like to ensue by the petitioners' discoveries, hath since obtained a patent from your majesty, comprehending the said island within the limits thereof, and sought thereby to dis. possess the petitioners thereof, and debar them of their discovery, &c.; complaint thereof being made, your majesty was pleased to signify your royal plea- sure by letter, intimating that it was contrary to jus- tice, and the true intent of your majesty's grant to the said lord , — that notwithstanding the said patent, the petitioners should have Jreedom oftrade^ requiring the governour, and all others in Vir- ginia, to be aiding and assisting unto them, prohi- biting the lord Baltimore and all other pretenders (under) him, to offer them any violence, or to dis- turb or molest them in their and plantation, as by your majesty's letter annexed appeareth, — since which — — * be it your — majesty's said royal pleasure hath been made known to Sir * These blank spaces are so in the record. In this place it may be supposed, that the obsolete adverb, "allbeit," was in- tended, which is synonymous to the word " although.*' 332 ' HISTORY OT MARYLAND. I. CHAP. ,* govemoiir of Virginia, (who slighted the same,) as also to the lord Baltimore ageiitg 1638. there ; yet they have in a most wilful and contemp- tuous manner, disobeyed the same, and violently set upon your petitioners' pinnaces and boats goods to ti'ade, and seized them, and do still detain the same by the ■ , of which pinnaces and goods the inhabitants within the said isle were so great famine and misery, as they became utterly destitute of any corn sustain themselves, which enforced them to send a small boat ► why they obeyed not your majesty's said royal letters and commands the said pinnaces and goods to en- able them to trade for coni-seed boat approach- ing near unto some vessel of the said lord Balti- tTT^ore's agents, they shot among the petition- ers' men and slew three of them and more ; and fiot content with these great injuries, the said lord Baltimore and his agents, have openly defamed and unjustly accused the petitioners of crimes, to his exceeding great grief, which hath caused him purposely pairf into this kingdom, and humbly prostrates himself and his cause majesty's feet, to be relieved therein. " And the petitioner having likewise discovered plantation and factor}^, upon a small island, in the mouth of a river, at the bottom of the said bay, * This must mean Sir John Hcrvey ; for Sir JVilliam Berkeley, his successor, was not appointed governour of Vir- ginia until the year lv339. t Probably intended for the words, " purposely to repair into," Sec HISTORY OF 1MARY1.AND. 333 in the Susquehannock's country, at the Indians dc- ch\p. sire, and purchased the same of them ; by means ^..^^i-,^ whereof, they are in great hopes to draw thither the i'>38. trade of beavers and furs, which the French now wholly enjoy, in the grand Lake of Canada, which may prove very beneficial to your majesty and the commonwealth; but, by letter sent him thenceforth, your petitioner is advised, that the lord Baltimore's agents are gone with forty men, to supplant the pe- titioners' said plantations, and to take possesssion thereof, and seat themselves thereon. " And the petitioner being desirous to propose a way, whereby your majesty may receive to the crown for plantations, an annual benefit, (and) be certain to enjoy the same, with the fruits of their labours, they do offer unto your majesty 100/. per annum, viz. 50/. for the said isle of Kent, and 50/. for the said plantation, in the Susquehannock's countiy, to have there twelve leagues of land, &c. from the mouth of the said river, on each side thereof, down to the said bay southerly, to the sea- wai'd, and so to the head of the said river, and to the grand Lake of Canada ; to be held in fee from the crown of England, and to be yearly paid into your majesty's exchequer ; to be governed according to the laws of England, with such privileges as your ma- jesty shall please to grant : by which means, your majesty may raise a great revenue annually, and all planters will be encouraged to proceed cheerfully on their designs. " And the petitioners having now a ship ready to depart, with goods and people, for the prosecuting and managing of their said discoveries and trade, SH JUStORY OF MARYIANIJ. CHAP, which without speedy supply, and your majesty's s^''^r>^ favour, &c. is like to come to ruin, — 163&. « May it therefore please your majesty, to grant a confirmation of your majesty's said commission and letter under your majesty's broad seal, for the quiet enjoyment of the said plantations, &c. to send now with the said ship ; and to refer the speedy ex- amination of the said WTongs and injuries, unto whom your majesty shall please to think fit, to cer- tify your majesty thereof, and that your petitioner may proceed without interruption of the lord Balti- more's agents," Sec. Immediately following the foregoing petition, there appears on the provincial records, the follow- ing entry, which is probably a copy from the pro- ceedings of the privy council in England, relative to the same : ^ " At the court at Newmarket, the 26th of February, 1637,"(1638, N. S.) " His majesty approved the proposals made in the foregoing petition, and confirmed what was con- tained in his former condition and letter under the broad seal ; and to that end, referreth to the lord archbishop of Canterbury, lord keeper, lord privy seal, and any other the commissioners for planta- tions, who shall be near at hand, &c, and with Mr, Attorney's advice, to prepare a grant for the king's signature. The said lords were also to examine the wrongs complained of, and certify his majesty accordingly, " The lords accordingly appoint a day for the hearing of this businees at the council board, and HISTORY OP MARYLAND. 3^5 direct notice thereof to be given to the lord Balti- chap. more, to be heard by himself or council. Signed, ^.^-v^^^^ Wm. Cant, Tho. Coventry, W. Manchester.'* i638. The following order in council appears to be the result of the foregoing proceedings : « At Whitehall, the fourth of April, 1638. " Present, lord archbishop of Canterbury, lord keeper, lord treasurer, lord privy seal, earl Marshall^ eai'l of Dorset, lord Cottington, Mr. Treasurer, Mr. Comptroller, Mr. Secretary Cooke, Mr. Secretary Windebank. " Whereas a petition was presented to his ma- jesty, by captain William Claybome, on the behalf of himself and partners, showing, that by virtue of a commission under his majesty's hand and signet, they, divers years past, discovered, and planted upon an island in the great bay of Chesapeak, in Virginia, named by them, the isle of Kent, where- upon (they pretended) they had bestowed great charges ; and that the lord Baltimore (as they al- leged,) taking notice of the great benefit that was likely to arise to them thereby, obtained a patent from his majesty, comprehending the said island within the limits thereof; and that they had likewise settled another plantation upon the mouth of a river, in the bottom of the said bay, in the Susquehannah*s country, which the said lord Baltimore's agent thefe (as they allege,) sought to dispossess them of, pre- tending likewise, great injuries and violence offered to them in their trade and possessions in those parts by the said agent, in killing some of the siiid cap- tain Clay home's men ; takbig their boats coatrarv 336 HISTORY OP MAKYLAND; CHAP, to the said commission and express words of a let- ^^^,.^,1^^^ ter from his majesty, under his hand and signet ; 1638. and therefore, besought his majesty to grant unto the petitioner a confirmation, under the great seal, of his majesty's said commission and letter, for the quiet keeping, enjoying, and governing of the said islands, plantation, and people, with other addita- ments of lands and immunities in those parts ; and likewise, that his majesty would refer the examina- tion of the said wrongs and injuries, to such as his majesty should think fit, as by the said petition more at large appeareth. Forasmuch as his majesty was pleased, at New Market, the twenty-sixth of February, 1637, to refer the consideration of the pe- titioner's request unto the lord archbishop of Can- terbury, the lord keeper, the lord privy seal, and any other the commissioners for plantations, who should be near at hand, and whom they pleased to call, and withal to advise with Mr. Attorney-general, for the preparing and settling the grant desired, for his ma- jesty's signature, and to examine the Avrongs com- plained of, and certify his majesty what they thought fit to be done for redress thereof: whereupon, all parties attending their lordships this day, with their counsel learned, and being fully heard, the said commission and letter being likewise read, it ap- peared clearly to their lordships, and was confessed by the said Clay borne himself, then present, that the said isle of Kent is within the bounds and limits of the said lord Baltimore's patent ; and the said cap- tain Clayborne's commission, (as it likewise appear- ed,) was only a license under the signet of Scotland, to trade with tlie Indians of America, in such places HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 337 where the said trade had not been formerly granted chap. by his majesty to any other; which commission, v.^r-vr>,^ their lordships declared, did not extend, nor give 1638. any warrant to the said Clay borne, or any other; nor had they iiiy right or title thereby to the said isle of Kent, or to plant or trade there, or in any other parts or places, with the Indians or savages within the precincts of the lord Baltimore's patent; and their lordships did likewise declai'e, that the afore- said letter, under his majesty's signature, which had reference to the said commission, under the signet of Scotland, was grounded upon misinformation, by supposing that the said commission warranted the plantation in the isle of Kent, which (as now appears) it did not. Whereupon, as also upon con- sideration of a former order of this board of the third of July, 1633,* wherein " it appeared, that the difference now in question being controverted, the lord Baltimore was left to the right of his patent, and the petitioners to the course of law, their lord- ships having resolved and declared as aforesaid, the right and title to the isle of Kent, and other places in question, to be absolutely belonging to the lord Baltimore, and that no plantation or trade with the Indians ought to be within the precincts of his pa- tent, without license from him, did therefore like- wise think fit and declare, that no grant should pass to the said Clayborne or any others, of the said isle of Kent, or other parts or places within the said pa- tent; whereof his majesty's attorney and solicitor- general are hereby prayed to take notice; and con- * See the order in note (S) at the end of this vohime, - 2 IT 338 mSTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, ccrning the violences and wrongs, by the said Clay- .^^^^^^ borne and the rest complained of in the said petition 1638. to his majesty, their lordships did now also declare, that they found no cause at all relative thereto, but do leave both sides therein to the ofdinary course of justice. Ext. T. Meantys."* Notwithstanding the apparent authenticity of the foregoing documents, the reader is to be informed, that it has been utterly denied, that any such pro- ceedings or order in council ever existed. In the bill in chancery, before- cited, filed by the Penns against the then lord Baltimore, in the year 1735, to compel a specific performance of an agreement then before entered into between these two proprie- tiiries, relative to the bounds of their respective provinces, it is stated that shortly after Mr. Wil- liam Penn had obtained his patent for Pennsylva- nia, which was in the year 1681, (1682, N. S.) he also purchased of the duke of York, (afterwards James II,) the three Lower Counties, (now Dela- ware state,) and that a controversy arising there- upon, between these two proprietaries, concerning the bounds of the province of Maryland, on the side next to those Counties, the lord Baltimore (Charles, son and heir of Cecilius,) preferred his petition to the king in council concerning the same, which petition was, some time in May, 1683, " referred to the consideration of the then commit- * " Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 8. This order in council is also inserted at large in Hazard's Collec- tions, Vol. 1, p. 430. HISTORY OF MARYLAND, 33,9 tee of trade and foreign plantations, (which com- chap. mittee did then consist of lords of his majesty's ^^y^r^j most honourable privy-council,) and before the said i638. committee, the said lord Bahimore and your ora- tor's father (William Penn) and their counsel learn- ed in the law, were many and divers times heard for near two years and a half together, and a very long suit and trial were had thereon between your orator's said father and the then lord Baltimore, touching the right and title to the said land and soil of the said three Lower Counties." The bill then proceeds, after stating the order in council there- upon, (which was, in substance, to divide the pe- ninsula between them) to a distinct allegation rela- tive to the foregoing order in council of 1638, on Clayborne's petition, as follows: " And your ora- tors further show unto your lordship, that during the said contest in the years 1683, 1684, and 1685, the said then lord Baltimore, upon the eighth of October, 1685, produced to the then committee of trade and plantations, in order to serve himself, an unauthentic, blank, fictitious paper, not pre- tended to be signed or sealed at all, but drawn up in the form of the draft of a report and order of the committee of foreign plantations, and supposed to be made on the fourth of April, 1638, touching differences between some lord Baltimore and one Mr. Claybome about the isle of Kent, in order to show that former boards' pretended opinion touching the lord Baltimore's right to the isle of Kent, and the then said committee of trade and plantations in 1685, put off the matter, and gave the said lord Baltimore time to procure an attested copy of such 340 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, pretended report or order in 1638, which the said v__^^^,^^ lord Baltimore undertook to procure, but nine days 1638. after the said lord Baltimore declared in person to the said committee of trade and plantations, name- ly on the 17th of October, 1685, that he could not find the original, whereby an attested copy might be procured, neither, as your orators charge, is there any authentic book or office where any ori- ginal or authentic copy may be found or had but the said blank paper was a mere fiction.''''* Unprovided as we are with any authority to dis- prove this allegation in the before-mentioned bill, and not being in possession of lord Baltimore's an- swer thereto, we are left to rest the authenticity of the proceedings and order in council of 1638, as before-stated, on that kind of evidence which de- pends upon concomitant circumstances. That Clayborne made resistance to lord Baltimore's pos- session of the isle of Kent ; that from superior mili- tary force he was obliged to fly to Virginia — that he was there demanded by commissioners from Ma- ryland — and that the governour of Virginia thought it proper to send him home to England for the in- vestigation of his rights and pretensions — all seem to be facts well authenticated by the historians of Virginia. There is every probable circumstance, therefore, to warrant the presumption, that he made the application by petition, as before-stated to the king in council for a redress of his wrongs. If then he did actually prefer his />e^zYwn before-mentioned, some proceedings must have been had upon it. If • Taken from a MS. copy of the bill in my possession. HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 341 I. 1638. the petition of Claybof^ne was heard, as befofe-sta- chap. ted, it is to be presumed that no order in council ^ thereupon ever took place in favour of his claim, or else he would immediately have availed himself of such order, by returning to the possession of his is- lands and settlements, and such order would have ap- peared in form. But this not being the case, and the order appearing of a directly opposite nature, there are strong grounds to suppose that such order was " authentic," although no original could be found, " whereby an attested copy could be procured." It is to be observed also, that the proceedings and order in council of 1638 as before stated, appear upon our ear- liest Provincial Records of Maryland. The question would naturally occur — how came they there if such proceedings and order were " a mere fiction?" It is to be presumed, that they were placed there shortly after they occurred, and long before the contest be- tween William Penn and lord Baltimore, in 1683. It- is worthy of remark also, that the copy of the same order, which Mr. Hazard has inserted in his Collections, purports to be from the " votes of assembly of Pennsylvania." The same question would here occur again. The confusion of the times, which shortly after the date of this order of 1638, ensued, by reason of the civil war m .England, might afford some grounds to account for the omission of recording it in the records of the council in England, or for the loss of the original ; or, if recorded there, for the loss of the roll. The signature annexed to it, as it now stands on our Provincial Records, to wit : " Ext. T. Me- antys," purports that the copy of it, there inserted, ^42 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. CHAP, was extracted from some authentic document o\\ ^^^.^,;,„^^ record, by *' T. Meantys," who was then "clerk 1638. of the council, and attendant upon the said commis- sioners for foreign plantations," as is expressly men- tioned in a " letter" or order in council, made on the same day, by the same lords in council, relative to Massachusetts, and now published by Mr. Hazard in his Collections, immediately following the forego- ing order, relative to Clayborne's petition. To supr pose this order of 1638, to be " a mere fiction," we are driven to impute the basest fraud to Charles, lord Baltimore, or his agents, in 1683, contrary to every concomitant circumstance. On the contrary, if this insinuation in the bill, be destitute of any foundation, as it really appears to be, except in the circumstance of the loss of the original, the sugges- tion reflects something contrary to the principles of honour in the conduct, on this occasion, of either the Penns or their agents, in 1735 ; and however elevated in history, the character of lord Mansfield may be, yet, as Mr. Murray, their counsel on this occasion, in drawing this bill, he certainly transcend- ed the duty of an honourable advocate at the bar, in lending himself as the instrument of so false an im- putation. With respect to the equity of Clayborne's claim, and the justice of the foregoing decision of tlie *' commissioners for plantations" in 1638, the ques- tion seems to have been decided by the government of the United States since their independence. Con- gress have regulated by law, the trade and inter- course to be carried on by the citizens of the United States, with the several tribes or nations of HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 343 Indian natives, resident within that part of the con- chap. tinent of America, which the United States claim as s.^^-v^^^^ their territories. They have enacted, that no per- i638. son shall trade with the Indians, without special license, obtained from the government of the United States for that purpose.* This is, without doubt, founded on good policy : it tends to prevent indivi- dual citizens, from acting in such manner with the savages, as to irritate and cause them to make at- tacks on the peaceable frontier settlers. These la\^is, moreover, forbid such traders from making pur- chases of lands from the Indians, the United States claiming that privilege alone, for the government, in its corporate capacity. Should any trader, there- fore, obtain by purchase or voluntary grant from the Indians, even as much land as would suffice for him to put a temporary trading-house thereon, and should occupy the same for several years, during his license for such trade, and the United States should " extinguish the Indian claim" to such lands, as included the trader's purchase ; or, (what in the opinion of some philanthropists amounts to the same thing,) take tl^ same lands from the Indians by force, and make sales and grants thereof, to such of their citizens as would purchase the same ; it is ap- prehended, that such licensed trader would not be admitted to contend, that he had bought his house and land from the Indians, and the United States had therefore, no right to sell or to give it away to any other citizen. He would probably be told, and • See the Acts of Congress of 1799, chap. 152 ; and ISOij chap. 43. ;j44 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. very properly too, that the United States being about to fix a colony or settlers in that part of their 1638. territories, had made a grant of the same to a com- pany, who were about to settle thereon, and if he wished to possess any lands there, he must purchase of the government or of its grantees, like any other citizen, his purchase of the Indians being illegal and contrary to the true policy of the United States. Nay more, the president would be authorised by law to use imlitary force ^ in driving him from those lands, of which he had so possessed himself. Now this statement precisely comprehends Clayborne's right and claim. Although king Charles I, might have had no right to dispossess the Indian natives, of the country which they inhabited, yet he cer- tainly, as the representative of the nation of which he was the monarch, had as much right to the In- dian lands of America, as the government of the United States now have : his grants thereof were equally just, and therefore equally valid. The pre- tended or real purchase of an individual licensed trader^ (as Clayborne was,) of the Indian natives, could not, nor ought not to have precluded the king from making a grant thereof to a company, or to an individual possessing equal means, such as lord Bal- timore, who would undertake to transport thither, a numerous colony of his subjects, for the benefit of the mother country. The severance of a portion of the territory of Virginia, was really beneficial to that colony, inasmuch as the addition of such a number of their fellow- subjects, seated on their frontiers, would contribute nmch to their security from the hostile invasions of the savages. This benefit was HISTORY OF MARYLAND. 345 not likel}' to arise from the manner in which Clay- borne, with his fellow-traders, were going on. The colonists of Virginia soon saw the matter in 1638. this point of view, being quickly reconciled, we are told, to this dismemberment of their territory. Thus it ^vGiild seem, that there was in reality no injustice done to any individual whatever, by the grant of the province of Maryland to lord Baltimore; and, if the policy of planting distant colonies is really beneficial to an over-populous country, and the measure be dictated also, by die liberal generosity of indulging mankind in their religious opinions, the unfortunate Charles may be said to have done one act, at least, in his life, with which posterity ought not to re- proacli him. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. NOTE (A) p. 11. THE reader ought to be apprized, that no circumstance attending modern history has occasioned more anachronisms than the variation •f the commencement of the year in the computation of the Christian era. To this may be referred the difference of opinion among dif- ferent historians, not only as to the date of this commission to John CaBot, but as to the real date also of the voyage performed in conse- quence of it, either by him or his son Sebastian. Although the period of time denominated a year is founded in na- ture, being the measure of time while the earth is performing its an- nual revolution round the sun, and therefore can never vary, yet the commencement of that year, like a point in the periphery of a circle, may be arbitrarily fixed upon without aff'ecting its length or circumvo- lution. Hence different nations have fixed upon different periods of time for the commencement of their year, which has been commonly regulated by some remarkable event, from which as an epocha they compute their era. Agreeably to this, the Christian era is commonly- supposed to be computed from the first existence of Christ upon earth, that is, when God first assumed a mortal nature, whether that be at the time of his incarnathyi or nativity. But this mode of computation did not take place among the Christians until more than five hundred years had elapsed from that remarkable epocha. Prior to this time the generality of Christians computed, either from the building of Rome, or according to such other computation as was in use with the people among whom they lived ; if with the Jews from the creation of the world, or with the Greeks according to the Olympiads. But as the number of Christians had in the sixth century very much increased, both in Greece and Italy, and from that circumstance began to assume somewhat more importajit consideration than formerly, and the eastern 3iB KOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. find western or Greek and Latin churches experiencing some incon- venience from their different mode of computing time, it was propo- sed, by an abbot of Rome, called Dyonisius Exiguus, to adopt a uew form of the year, with a newgenei'al era, which, consonant to the^ le- ligion should commence with the first existence of Christ upon rarth, in a mortal nature. This proposition was atlopted by the Chi'istians, and the incarnation or time when Christ entered the virgin's womb was fix- ed as the great event or epocha from which they were to calculate their era; but they retained the Roman division of the year into months, as also the names of those months. It is to be observed, that the Romans had ever since the time of Numa Pompilius commenced their year on tJie calends of Januai^y, that is, on the first day of ciiat month ; but the Christians now, from a pious zeal in their own religion, having fixed upon the incamafion, which according to the Roman computation of the months, they ascertained to be the 25 th of March, as the day of the commencement of their era, fixed that day also as the day upon •\yhich their year was in futui'e to commence. This prevailed for some time, but as it occurred to some good Christians, that the years of a man's life were not numbered from the time of his conception, biit fi om that of his birth, which must have been nine months afterwards, a dif- ference in the commencement of the year took place among the Christian churches throughout Europe, some adopting the day of Christ's A/r/A, to wit, the 25th of December, as the coirmencement of the year, others adhering to that of his incarnation, and others again to the old Roman method of the calends of January, which last happened to be also the day of Christ's circumcision. The result was, that dif- ferent nations, and indeed different writers, considering the subject rather in a temporal than in an ecclesiastical point of view, regulated the commencement of their civil year in their own way, still how- ever computing from the supposed commencement of the Christian era ; from which disagreement it is supposed, that an error of one year at least, if not two, in the number of years elapsed of the Christian era, has crept into the vulgar computation now generally in use throughout Christendom. Although the Roman calendar had been regulated by Numa Pompi- lius, and afterward by Juhus Cxsar, yet as astronomy was far from being so completely understood in those days as it was afterwards even in the sixteenth centviry, it was found m the lapse of several centuries, that the Roman computatiwi disagreed much with the motion of the ^OTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 34.9^ 4^rth, and that the holy feast of Easther, which was dependent on the Ternal e uinox, had got quite out of its place. Pope Gregory, there- fore, in the year 158 2, to counteract so great an inconvenience to the church) procured a thorough correction of the Roman calendar, and by a bull commanded all the Catholic states of Europe to adopt his cor- rectien, prescribing in the same bull also, that the commencement of the year should for the future be on the first day of January. This reg- ulation, as may be supposed, was conformed to by most of the Catho- lic states: but the Protestants at first peremptorily refused to receive it; though at last, from the obvious propriety of the measure, it met with a general reception even among them. England, Russia, and Sweden held out in opposition to it longer than any, and it was not till the year 1751, that an act of parliament was made, (stat. 25, Geo. 2, cap. 23,) prescribing the first day of January to be deemed for the future, throughout all the British dominions, the first day of the year, and such alterations in the common English calendar were directed also as brought it to be the same as the Gregorian, then generally in us^ throughout the most of Europe. As the British colonies in America, now United States, naturally adopted the mode of computation practised by their mother country, it is materially important to them to know the computation used in England by the historians of that coimtry from the adoption of the Christian era in the time of Dyonisius before-mentioned, or at leas.t from the time of the fifr,t British settlements in America, to the alter- j^tion of the style in the year 1751. It is alleged by Dr. A. Holmes, in his very judicious work — "American Annals," (Note I., annexed to his second vol.) " that Beda" (sometimes called the venerable Bedr, the oldest English historian except one, and who lived from the year 673 to that of 735, about a century after Dionysius Exiguus,) "took the Christian era from Dyonisius, and used it in all his writings ; and by that recommendation of it, occasioned its adoption and use in Great Britain, and the western parts of Europe." Although the Doctor does not expressly allege in the above-cited note, that Bede adopted the cojninencement of the year used by Dyonisius, to wit, the incarnation^ the 25th of March, yet in the text to which it is subjoined he strongly leaves that inference. But I find that a contrary opinion as to ede is held by the anonymous writer of a learned " Dissertation on the ancient manner of dating the beginning of the year," (pu!)lished in the Annual Register for 1759, a few years after the \d,^\ alteration of the style in 350 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS, England,) who is of opinion that Bede commenced the year at the na' tivity of Christ, at least in some instances, and cites a passage from him in proof thereof, wherein he plainly places January among the first and not among the later months of the year. The same writer pro- ceeds to trace this subject in the following manner ; — " From Bede's time quite down to the Norman conquest, the constant way of compu- tation seems to be from Chrisnnas-day. The Saxon Chronicle also, (which comprises a period from the birth of Christ to the death of king Stephen in the year 115 4,) begins the year from the nativity of our Lord." " After the conquest, Gcrva.^e, a monk of Canterbury, in the preface to his chronicle, takes notice of many different ways of computation in his time, that is at the end of the twelfth, or the beginning of the thirteenth century. He says, that some computed from the annuncia- tion.) some from the nativity., some from the circumcision., and others from the /iassio7i of our Lord. The solar year, continues he, accor- ding to the custom of the Romans, and of the church of God, begins from the calends of January, (circumcision-day ;) but he rather chooses to fix the commencement of it to Chri&tnias-day, because we compute the age of men from the day of their birth." " This shows there was no standing, fixed rule of computation in Gervase'.9 time ; and the following observation confirms it, not only in his age, but also for several centuries after him. Matthew Paris, Matthew of Westminster, Ralph de Diceto, and Polydore Virgil, place the coronation of William the concjueror upon Christmas-day, A. D. 1067, that is, these authors begin their new-year with that day, at least in this instance ; whereas Thomas W^alsingham, Roger de Hov- eden and John Brompton, all refer it to Christmas-day, A. D. 1066, which proves that they do not in this place begin the year till after that day." This writer further observes, that " Thomas Walsingham, who liv- ed in the fifteenth century, although he was one of the most accurate, of our monkish historians, does not always count from the same day.'* He adduces two instances to prove, that "he sometimes begins the year from the circumcision," (first day of January,) "and some- times from the 7z«m'zV;/," (twenty-fifth day of December;) for which he supposes the reason to be, " that in his Ypodigma Neustrse, he writes as a Norman, and that they computed the year only from the c.ircuvici.non, whereas in his History of England he Writes as an En- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATldNS. 351 glishman, who in his time," (about the time of Gabot's voyage,) " gen- erally reckoned from the nativity." « Hitherto nothing of our late custom of computing from the an- nuncialion, has appeared in any of our old historians, except the bare mention of it in 'rervase. There is good reason to think it began about the beginning' of the reign of king Edward, IV. ; " which was in 146 1. In confirmation of this the author of this dissertation adduces the history of Croyland Abbey, and also a biographical account of VVil» liam of VVickham, written by Thomas Chandler, who was chancellor of Oxford from 1458 to 1462, who dates the beginning of the year from the annunciation, and " about 15 or 16 years after," he says, " this custom" of beginning the year with the annunciation, that is, the 25th of March, " seems to have been fully settled." — This deduces the prac- tice of the English historians nearly down to the time of Cabot's com- mission. " At the reformation in England, in Henry the eighth's reign, in the early part of the sixteenth century, both the civil and the ecclesiastical authority interposed, to fix the commencement of the year to the feast of the annunciation, by adding the following rubric to the calendar im- mediately after the table of moveable feasts for 40 years, viz. " Note, That the supputation of the year of our Lord, in the Church of Eng- land, beginneth the 25th of March, the same day supposed to be the first day upon which the world was created, and the day when Christ was conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary ;" which stood thus down to the Savoy conference, soon after the restoration, when it was thought proper to retain the order, and drop the reason given for it, and in this shape it was continued down to the late parliamentary cor- rection of the calendar, (in 1751,) which brings it back to the first of January, and is indeed the only legal settlement of it for civil affairs, for the rubric above-mentioned settles only the supputation of the Church of England, and says nothing of the civil government, which seems to have never used any other date than that of the king's reign, till after the restoration, not even in common deeds. During the usur- pation of Oliver Cromwell, the years of our Lord seem to have been in- troduced, because they did not choose to date by the years of the king's veign, and continued for convenience afterwards, without the interpo- sition of legal authority." " Our neighbours the Scots, from time immemorial, have invaria- bly observed the 25th day of March on the first day of the year, till 352 NOTES A%T) ILLUSTRAT10^*S. November, 27th 1599, ^-hen the following entry was made in the books of the privy council : On Monday firoclamation made be the king^s waf rani, ordaining- the Jirst of January .^ in tyme coming, to be the beginning of the Mw-Year, which they have as constantly followed ever since. As supplementary to the foregoing extracts from the before-men- tioned dissertation, it may be observed, that the neighbouring kingdom of France had also different dates for the commencement of their year at different periods of time. " During the reigns of the Merovingian race, the French year began on the day whereon the troops were re- viewed, which was on the tirst day of March. Under the Carlovin- gians it began on Christmas-day ; and under the Capetians, on Easther day, which last still remains the beginning of the ivGnch ecclesiastical year," (unless altered by the late revolution,) " but for the civil year j Charles IX., appointed in 1564, (but a few years before the pope's bull for that purpose before-mentioned,) that for the future it should commence on the frst of January." See Chambers's dictionary, vtrb. year. It will be acknowledged, we may suppose, that this variance in the commencement of the year would not affect the dates of any events mentioned to have occurred out of the space of time contained between the first of January and the twenty-fifth of March. It is true that those who compute the Christian era from the incarnation or 25th of March, vary one whole year from those who compute it from the ca*' lends of January ; but that variance is only in the number of years which have elapsed from the birth of Christ. It does not affect the date of any intervening event, occurring in the space of time to which those who calculate from different commencements of the year, affix the same <3ate as to the year, that is, in the space of time between the 25th of March and the first of January next succeeding. To save much reason- ing, necessary to elucidate this, I will beg leave to cite a scientific au- thority upon the subject. In Xeil's Astronomical Lectures, (lect. 28,) published before the alteration ofthe style in 175 1, are the following pas- ^;ages ; — " The English reckon from the feast of lady-day, 1718, (that is, from the 25th of March, 1718.) that there are completed 1717 years ; but from the birth of our Lord, to the feast ofthe Nativity ofthe year 1717, they number only 1716 years elapsed ; whereas all the rest ofthe Christian world count 1717 years, — But yet for all this, the Enghsh, for the greatest part of the year, design it by the same number that the rest ofthe Christian world does; but for three months, viz. from NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 353 the calenils of January to the 8th of the calends of April," (that is, from the first day of January to the twenty-fiftli day of March,) " they write one less." This is illustrated by the instance put by our Ame- rican annalist, Dr. Holmes, in the note last-cited from him ; " it Avas customary" (says he) " to give a double datf from the 1st of January to the 25th of March. Thus, February 8lh, 1721, was written Fe- bruary 8th, 17 |°." This demonstrates, that in the remaining part of the year there was no difference between the English and the rest of Europe, as to the date of the year. It is true that the ten days thrown out by pope Grep^ory, in his reformation of the calendar, made that much difference from the English computation, in the days of the months, but as to the date of the year, wliich is the present question, it has no effect. Hence, therefore, as the commencement of the reign of Henry VII, who jnade this patent to Cabot, and whose reign is therein alluded to, is an event which occurs in that part of the year, wherein all " the Christian world" agree in their number, and this too whether it be fixed on the day of his accession to the throne, when he gained the battle of Bosworth from Richard III, which was on the 22d day of August, 1485, or on the day of his coronation, which was on the 30th of October following, in tke same year, and the patent or commission to John Cabot bears date on the 5th of March, in the eleventh year of the reign of Henry VII, we are enabled to affix to this commission the year of Christ, as well as that of the reign of the king. For, calcu- lating the commencement of his reign from either of those events, to wit, the battle or the coronation, it will be found, that the 5th of March in the eleventh year of his reign, must be either in the year 1495 or 1496, according to the time of the commencement of the year 1496. If the commencement of the year 1496 is fixed on the 25th of March, agreeably to old style, the 5th of March of the cle" ■venth year of his reign, will undoubtedly be in the year 1495, which is the year to which Hackluit, Harris, and Robertson h^ive referred the date of this commission; but if the commencement of the year 1496 is fixed on the first day of January, agreeably to nevj style, the 5th of March of the eleventh year of his reign will be in the year of Christ, 1496, to which year Rymer and Rapin have referred its date. Before this subject is closed, it will be proper to take notice of an- other note subjoined by Dr. Holmes in t\\t Jirst volume of his " Ame- rican Annals," (p. 15, anno 1495). It is as follows: " Henry vva-i 2 V 554 NOTES AND nXUSTRATIONS. crowned Oct. 30th, 1485. If that year be reckoned the ^frs? of his reign, this commission is rightly placed by Hackluit, Robertson, and others, in 1495; but, if the first year of his reign be reckoned froni 1486, the commission must be placed, where Rymer and some others have placed it, in 1496." Tliis judicious annalist has accordingly adopted the former opinion, and in his work referred the date of the commission to the year 1495. But it must be observed, that his rea- soning here is either very inaccurately or very obscurely expressed. The word " from" being always exclusive^ if the year 1486 is thrown out of the computation of the eleven years altogether, it would place the date of the commission in 1497, contrary to his inference. Al- thctugh the end of " the first year of his reign would undoubtedly be in 1486, to wit, either on the 22d of August, or 30th of October of that year, yet one year of his reign, being then complete and ended, it must be counted as one in the computation of the eleven years. The progression then would bring the end of the tenth year of his reign to the 22d of August or 30th of October, 1495, when the eleventh year of his reign would commence, and would end on the 22d of August, or 30th of October, 1496. It would then be obvious, that the 5th of March in the eleventh year of his reign, would be referable either to the year 1495 or 1496, according to the coipmencement of the year 1496, as before-explained. But as the neiv style^ that is, the compu- lation of the year from the first day of January, is now generally adopted in the United States, as well as in Europe, perhaps by force of the English statute before-mentioned, and when a year is mentioned in history, it is so computed in the mind of almost every reader, unless otherwise expressed, it would seem to be most proper to refer the date of the patent or commission to Cabot and his sons to the year 1496. For the same reason also, the author has thought it best, throughout this work to adjust the chronology of it according to what is called 7iew style^ commencing the year always on the first of January. It is hoped, there- fore, that although the date of this commission is a matter of little im- portance, yet, as the same variance in the commcncenient of the year* pervades every part of the early history of the British colonies in America, the reader will excuse the length of this note. NOTE (B) p. 24. Mr. Holmes, in his " American Annals," Note 1, at the end of his first volume, expresses himself as satisfied, that Cabot sailed as far NOTES AND ILLUSTRATION'S. 355 south as Cape Florida. It is with great diffidence, that I venture on an opinion diflerent from that of so accurate and judicious a writer. The passage wliich he cites from Peter Martyr, as the ground-work of his opinion, is according to him, thus : " Quare coactus fuit, uti ait, vela vertere, et occidenlem sequi : telenditciue tantum ad meridiem, littore sese incurvante, ut Hcrculei freti latitudinis fere gradum oequa- rit : ad occidentemque firoftctus tantum est, ut Cuham wfiidam a Uvo^ lo?igitudinc graduum /lent- /larem, /labut-rit." To which he immedi- ately afterwards adds, — ^^ Obscure as this passage is, it satisfies me, that Cabot sailed to Cape Florida, which lies in 25 deg. 20 min. north iat." From the manner in which the last sentence of the above pas- sage from Peter Martyr, is printed in his " Annals," (to wit : in Ita- lics,) it is to be inferred, that he laid a stress upon this sentence in par- ticular, as warranting the opinion he gives. But to come fairly at the meaning of the passage, every part of it should be taken into conside- ration ; and it may be thus rendered into English : " Wherefore he was forced, as he says, to turn his course toward the west ; and he stretched so far to the south, the shore bending in, as to be almost in the same degree of latitude as the Mediterranean : and he went so far to the west, as to have the island of Cuba lying on his left hand, almost equal in the longitude pi degrees." That the word " meridiem" is here to be rendered south is evident, not only because it is often so used according to the best Latin dictionaries, but that otherwise it would be here unintelligible, unless indeed it should be said to mean, '< towards the equinoctial line ;" in which, it would be synonymous to south in this case. (N. B. In pope Alexander's bull, in 1493, before referred to, which is published at large in the original Latin, in Hazard's Col- lections, Vol. 1, p. 5, the word " meridiem" is used as synonymous to jintarctic or South Pole.) Then the extent of Cabot's voyage to the south, is here very clearly confined to the same degree of latitude as the Mediterranea7i ; almost to it, twit certainly not beyond it. Now, the mouth of the Mediterranean, or Straits of Gibraltar, are well known to be in about 36° north Iat., which brings the voyage here spoken of, along the coast of America no further south than Roanoke, or Albe- marle Sound, in North Carolina. But the word " fere," almost, is not to be altogether rejected as a mere expletive ; it plainly intimates that Cabot did not come down to the o&th degree of north latitude, and be- ing indefinite as to the precise minute or degree above 36°, leaves the extent of his voyage south&rly, to be collected from circumstances 355 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATION^. only, with this express restriction, that it did not reach quite to 36°. A strong inference is to be drawn also, from the agreement of so many respectable historians, besides Oldmixoti, before-cited in the text, who speak of Cabot's voyage, as extending southerly only to the 38th de- gree of north latitude. Harris, in his Collection of Voyages, Vol. 2, p- 191, edit. 1748, and Robertson, in his History of Virginia, both limit it to the 38th degree. There must have been some solid ground for this coincidence of opinion. Harris cites Robert Fabian, as ex- pressing himself, that Cabot sailed to the 56th deg. of north lat., " and from thence he ran down to the 38^, along the coast of the continent of America, which, as he (Fabian) says, was afterwards called Flori- da." Fabian lived and wrote in the reign of Henry VH, and must have had some substantial authority for fixing it to the 38° ; most probably, from the Journal of the \^oyage, then newly published, and fresh in the memory of every literary man. This agrees also, with ■what is a well known historical fact, that the Spaniards, after Ponce de Leon's discovery of Florida, gave that name indefinitely, to the whole of the coast connected Avith the land he discovered, as appears from their subsequent claims, in virtue thereof, to both the CaroUnas, even as high up as the 37° of latitude. (See Harris's Voyages, Vol. 2, p. 275. Mod. Univ. Hist. Vol. 44, p. 41.) To proceed, however, with the above extract from Peter Martyr, particularly upon that part print- ed in Italics by Holmes, and on which he seems to rely : " ad occi- dentemque profectus tantum est, ut Cubam insulam a laevo, longitu- dine graduum peneparem, habuerit." Although this passage is obscure, as he observes, yet I think it may be understood without carrying Cabot down to Cape Florida. Having ascertained how far soz^^/z, or towards the Equinoctial, Cabot went, to wit : not further than the latitude of the Mediterranean, Peter Martyr then proceeds to show how far nvest he went, and in doing this, he attempts to ascertain the degree o{ lon- gitude to which he went west ; and it is well known, that the only v/ay bf ascertaining the situation of places on the globe, is by ascertaining their latitude and longitude. WheH he makes use of the expression, »' longitudine graduum," longitude of degrees, I understand him to jnean longitude as ascertained by the dei^rees on the equator, in the same manner as longitude is now and was then, calculated from some first meridian, and in contradistinction to the longitude or length of distance, which the ship had run from her place of departure. But the longitude of Cape Maize, the easternmost end of the island of NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. -^57 Cuba, is 74°, 25', west from London, as appears from the most au- thentic tables and maps of the West Indies. A meridian Hne drawn through Cape Maize, would intersect the coast of North America a little to the north of Cape May, one of the capes of Delaware bay, in about 39° of north latitude. The coast there trending southwesterly, Cabot might still be said to have proceeded ivesterly as soon as he reached the 39° of latitude ; and thus proceeding westerly, he might with perfect propriety, be said to have the island of Cuba on his left hand, as soon as he had passed the meridian of Cajie Maize, abovcr mentioned. Then from Cape May to the 38° of latitude, (the point of division on the coast, between the states of Maryland and Virginia,) which is contended to be the utmost extent of his voyage towards the souths he was sailing with Cuba on his left, agreeable to the passage in Peter Martyr, and still more so, if it is supposed that he extended his coasting voyage to the 36° of latitude. It ought to be remember- ed, that Peter Martyr and Sebastian Cabot were cotemporaries. When Martyr, therefore, wrote his book 'je Or be J\''ovo, from whence the preceding passage was probably extracted, his knowledge of the coast of North America, in a relative situation to that of Cuba, must have been very limited indeed ; and possessed, as most navigators were at that time, with the idea of there being a free passage to the East In- dies by holding a nvestcrn course, he might with no great impropriety have expressed himself as he did with regard to Cuba, and yet not have meant that Cabot had continued his route as far as Cape Florida. An additional reason for this supposition, might be drawn from the words " pene parem," almost equal ; not quite to the same degree of longitude as Cuba, but almost to it. But if he had sailed to Cape Flo- rida, he would have been not only almost to the same degree of longi- tude, but almost past it, or very near to the western extremity of that island. It would be difficult also, in such case, to reconcile the limi- tation which Martyr had just before given, to what may be called the sotithing of Cabot's voyage, when he expressly confines it to the north- ward of the latitude of the Herculean sea, which without doubt, means the mouth of the Mediterranean, and which is, as before-mentioned, in about 36° north latitude. It may not be improper also, to make a few observations on one of the authorities cited by Mr. Holmes, (Annals, Vol. 1, p. 18, note 2, sub anno 1497,) in support or illustration of the extent of Cabot's voy- age, to wit : the Mod. Univ. HiaS. Vol. 40, p. 378. Although that vo- 358 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. luminous historical compilation is a most useful work, yet, as Doctor Johnson has somewhere observed, it has been executed in a very unequal manner ; which seems indeed to be an unavoidable result, from its beinn; the joint labour of several men of unequal talents, learn- ing, or industry. In that part which relates to America, especially in respect to Florida, it does not appear to have been done with that fide- lity to historical truth, which ought ever to be the polar star of an his- torian. About the time when these volumes, which relate to America, were compiled, the British and Spanish nations were at war, and the two Floridas presented to the view of the former, a very convenient arrorz- dissemenc to their colonies on the continent of North America. In the 39th Vol. p. 127, they speak of an expedition, which was at that time fitting out by the British for the conquest of Florida, and in the same Vol. p. 123, 129, 234, they manifestly endeavour to impress their readers with the idea, that Great Britain had just pretences to a prior right to that part of America by reason of the prior discovery of it by Sebastian Cabot ; though in the same volume, p. 129, they acknow- ledge that this prior right of discovery, was the only support of their claim. Accordingly, in the 40th Vol. p. 378, (the place cited by Holmes, in his Annals,) which appears to have been written just after the acquisition of Florida by Great Britain, by the treaty of peace in 1763, acknowledging in the text, that the question, who were the first discoverers of Florida ? was a common topic^ much agitated, but little known, and confessing that the whole dispute was then immaterial on account of the late cession of that country under the treaty ; they ne- vertheless subjoin thereto a note, and insert the same again in the text, in Vol. 44, p. 2, and 41 : containing proof, as they suggest, from Sebastian's own words in 1496, that Florida was discovered by Sebas- tian Cabot long before Ponce de Leon's voyage. The passage they cite for that purpose, though they do not say from whence they take it, after describing how far Cabot explored the continent northward, makes him to say, " I turned back again, and sailed down by the coast of that land, toward the equinoctial, (ever with an intent to find the said passage to India,) and came to that part of this firm land which is now called Florida, where my victuals failing, I departed from thence, and returned to England." But whoever attends to what was before ob- served, that the Spaniards, in virtue of Ponce de Leon's discoveries, claimed all the southern part of the continent of North America to an indefinite extent northward, at least so as to comprehend the CaroK- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS, 359 nas, and that the name of Florida, was by them so indefinitely applied to all that part of the coast along those states, will at once perceive, that this passage by no means proves what it was cited for. Cahot might have sailed " to that part of the firm land then called Florida,'* and yet sailed no further south than the 38th or 36° of north latitude. It clearly then appears, that what the authors of the Alod. Univ. Hist. have said upon the subject, cannot be admitted as very cogent au- thority. NOTE (C) p. 2 4. History seenxs to present mankind to our view only in three distinct states or conditions : the hunter, the pastoral, and the agricultural. In the first of these, which is that in which the aborigines of North Ame- rica were found by Europeans, the human race necessarily requires a greater superficies of the earth for its support and existence, than in either of the other two. But as it is manifest, that if all nations re- solved to live in this state, there would not be sufficient room on the earth for even the present number of its inhabitants, without any fu- ture multiplication thereof, it seems necessarily to follow, that it is lawful to compel those who live in this manner, either to occupy as small a space of country as possible for them in this state, or to foir- sake that mode of life and become cultivators of the earth. From hence it is obvious, that our ancestors, the English, were guilty of no infringement of natural right, when they attempted to occupy a por- tion of the continent of North America, whereon a few tribes of sa- vages were scattered in thin population, and whose subsistence princi- pally depended on the prey of the forest. While no wanton cruelties were practised towards them, nor offensive violence was offered to their persons or personal rights, there seems to have been no injustice in compelling them, either to contract their limits, or to cede a portion of their territory to those of their fellow-creatures who would culti- vate and improve it. It must be observed, however, that this reason- ing does not go in justification of the conduct of the Spaniards in the conquest of either Mexico or Peru, for there civilization had carried tlie population of the earth to nearly as high a pitch as in the most improved countries of Europe. The question, then, on the rights of prior discovery or prior occu- pancy with respect to America, seems to have been chiefly confined to the contests between Europeans for their respective portions of that 560 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. extensive continent. The general reasoning, just before used, seems to oppose the idea, that a right resulting to one nation merely from first discovering an island or continent, without some actual occu' fiancy thereof following such discovery in a reasonable time, should forever thereafter preclude another nation from taking possession of the same. The manifest inconvenience to mankind, which would re- sult from this principle, if allowed, appears to demonstrate its absur- dity. The right of prior discovery is then, necessarily dependent on subsequent occu/iancy ; and as independent nations never have yet agreed to fix any precise limited time, within which the latter shall follow the former, the question, like all others in the law of nations, rests on the reasonable construction of mankind. It is upon this con- struction, and not on the pretended right of prior discovery by Cabot, that the English nation were justifiable in taking possession of that part of the continent afterwards denominated by them South Carolina and Georgia. It had been long abandoned by both the French and Spaniards, was derelict property, and was then unoccupied by either of those nations. It must be confessed, that considerable difficulty often attends the right of occupancy with respect to the limits or extent of the territory, which shall be said to be so gained by occupancy. Where a colony of a few hundreds of individuals sit down upon so extensive a conti- tinent as America, or as either the northern or southern half of it, it would be absurd to say, that such an occupancy would entitle them to the whole of such a continent. Some limitation to such a right must always be made ; and what this should be, has for the most part occa- sioned the many contests, which have taken place between European powers, in regard to America. The ignorance of the people of Eu- rope, of the great extent of the continent of North America towards the northwest, at the time of their first emigrations thereto, will in some measure apologise for the English monarchs in granting, and for their subjects in requesting patents of colonisation, comprehend- ing such enormous territories as some of them did, extending in pa- rallelograms of the surface of the earth from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. And yet on such a grant, was it seriously contended, at the time of the first colonisation of Maryland, that it was unjust to lop off from Virginia even so small a portion of that extensive dominion, as now composes the former state. This indeed, was only a contest be- tween the subjects of the same sovereign. More serious bickerings, NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 361 producinc^ one or two long and bloody wars, afterwards occurred be- tween the maritime powers of Europe, with respect to America ; and yet, no sure and permanent rule has yet been ascertained. The claims of the French, while they possessed Canada, in virtue of their right to that province, would have hedged in the British colonies, within that narrow slip of the continent which lies between the Allegany moun- tains anf! the coast; but the right was decided, without recurring to the principle, on the plains of Abraham. The Spaniards, who seem least of all to set any bounds to their claims both of discovery and oc- cupancy, brought the subject into litigation between them and Eng- land, in the year 1771, by pretending, that because the Faulkland or Malouine islands lay within a b.undred leagues of the Straits of Ma- gellan, they were to be considered as a part of South America, and therefore their undoubted property, by the rights of both discovery and occupancy. The superiority of the British navy, however, com- pelled the Spanish court to the mortifying necessity of disavowing the violence, which the Spaniards had been guilty of, in dispossessing the British of those islands, and to give orders, that things should be re- stored precisely to the state in which they were before that outrage, contenting themselves with gravely declaring at the same time, that this should not affect the question, of the prior right of sovereignty over those islands. The uncertain extent of the claim of occupancy, was again exhibited, in a subsequent contention between the same na- tions, in the year 1790, relative to a small settlement made by the British in a part of the northwest coast of America, called J^'ootka sound, lying in about 50" of north latitude. In the year 1788, a party of English, with intent to establish a fur-trade on this coast, purchased some land of the Indian chief at this sound, built a house thereon, and erected a fortification for their protection. While they were thus in possession of the country at this place, a squadron of Spanish ships arrived, seized their vessels and stock of furs, and dispossessed them of their settlement. The Spaniards could have had at this time, no actual settlement or occupation of the coast, higher up than a place called San Francisco ; which, according to a journal of a voyage made by an American captain in that trade, in the year 1804, (published in the American Register for 1808,) was even at that time the most northern Preddeo or district of the Spaniards on that coast, and which is, as he says, in the latitude of 37°, 47', so that a space of the continent along the coast, of twelve degrees at least, about eight hundred miles, intervened 2 Z 362 KOTES AND 1LLUSTRAT10!S S. between that Pret^ideo and the place where the English attempted a settlement. It ought to be observed, that this same journalist explains a Presideo to consist only of a missionary or priest, for the conversion of the Indians, with a guard for him of five Spanish soldiers, under the command of a serjeant or corporal ; which could scarcely be called a colony or settlement for the occupation of the country. But the Spanish claim did not stop at Xootka sound, but extended as high as the Russian settlement or colony at Prince William's sound or Cook's river, which is in about sixty degrees of north latitude ; so that they would claim a coast of fourteen hundred miles in extent, without a single Spaniard settled thereon. It might be presumed that so haughty a nation as the English, would not yield to this. Atonement and com- pensation were demanded. The result was a convention between the two nations, signed by their respective ministers, on the 2Sth of Octo- ber, 1790, in which, after the stipulation for a restoration of the settle- ment, and compensation for the injury to the British subjects, a prin- ciple seems to be recognised, whereby each nation was at liberty "to carry on commerce, or make settlements on the coasts of the Pacific Ocean or South Seas, in places not a/ready occupied ; subject never- theless to the restriction, that the British should not navigate or carry on their fishery in the said seas, ivithin the space of ten leagues from any part of the coast already occupied by Spain." The Spaniards ap- pear to have here surrendered their claim under a right of prior dis- covery of the continent ; and it would seem, that although the limits of ten leagues is here applied to the fisheries on the coast, yet it would probably operate also as a limitation to the right of occupancy. But, from these circumstances we may infer, that neither of these thi-ee nations will be disposed to pay much regard to the claim of our young American states to their share of this coast, as a part of Louisiana. However, a sufficiency of our purchase from the emperor Napoleon, will probably still remain on the western side of the Mississippi, for the formation of many sister states. We have only to wish, that our union may live to see it. NOTE (D) p. 49. The statutes here alluded to were the 5 Bich. 2, c. 2; 13 E/iz. c. 3; and 14 Eliz. c. 6. By the first of these, (viz 5 Pic/i. 2,) " all manner of people, as well clerks" (clergymen) " as others, (except only the lords and other great men of the realm, and true and notable mei-^ NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 36^ chants, and the king's soldiers,) were prohibited from passing out of the reahn without the king's special license, upon pain of forfeiture of all their goods ; and the master of any vessel, who carried such persons out of the realm, should forfeit such vessel." By the statute of 13 Eliz. " If any native or denizen of the realm should depart the realm without the queen's license, and should not return again within six months either after warning by proclamation, or after the expira- tion of his license, he should forfeit to the queen the profits of all his lands during his life, and also all his goods and chattels. Fraudulent assurances made by fugitives of their lands and goods, to deceive the queen, should be void ; but the offender should have restitution upon submission." The statute of 14 Etiz. only regulated the mode in which the queen should take the profits of the lands of fugitives. The two last of these statutes, (viz. those in the reign of Eiiz.) being temporary, expired at the queen's death. Dyer, 176, b. note (30.) That of 5 Bich. 2, was repealed in the next reign after Elizabeth, by the statute of 4 Jac. 1, c. L Notwithstanding this, a clause of dis- pensation of " the statute of fugitives," is inserted in the ninth section of the charter of Maryland, granted to lord Baltimore, in 1632 (8 Car. 1.) The repeal of the statute of 5 Bich. 2, by that of 4 Jac I, might possibly have been construed to extend only to Scotland, to which the whole of the statute of 4 Jac. 1, seems to relate, and ap- pears to have been made solely to remedy inconveniencies, which would otherwise have accrued from the recent union of the two kmg- doms. All of these three first-mentioned statutes, however, were in force at the time when Sir Humphrey Gilbert obtained his patent, and a special dispensation was therefore essentially necessary, (inasmuch as dispensations were then held to be legal,) for such persons as should go out of the realm, even with the laudable intentipn of settling a co- lony. In those times there seems to have been some doubt also, whe- ther the common law, without any statute for that purpose, did not prohibit any subject from going out of the realm, without special license previously obtained. Dyer, 165, b. 3 Inst. 178. Lane 43 — The common law on this subject, as well as the before-mentioned statutes, evidently originated from the intolerable interference prac- tised by the popes of Rome, during the reigns of Edward III, and Richard II, in the political transactions not only of England, but of every nation in Europe. Subjects were invited to Rome to concert schemes, ostensibly for the good of the church, but in reality to carry 364 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. on operations against their own government, and though committing the most atrocious acts of treason, were assured of the powerful pro- lection of the Roman pontiff. But the common law seems to be now settled, that every man may go out of the realm, for whatever cause he pleaseth, without any license for that purpose ; though it seems to be settled also, that the king by his prerogative, and without any help of an act of parliament, may prohibit his subjects from so doing; but this must be done by some express prohibition, as by Jaying on an embargo, or by writ of Ne exeat regno^ which writ is never grunted univernuUy, but only to restrain a particular person, upon oath made, that he intends to go out of the realm. This writ appertains more particularly to a court of chancery, and is adopted as a common pro- cess of that court, to prevent debtors from absconding out of the juris- diction of that court, with intent to evade the payment of debts, or to eloin property, 4 Bac. Abr. 168-9. 1 BL Com. 265. 3 Brown's Ch. Hefi. 218, This we may suppose to be still the law in Maryland, since the writ of J^e exeat firovinciam,, in similar cases, seems to have been adopted as unquestionable practice in the Maryland court of chancery, prior to the revolution. See the case of Somerville v. Johnson, (Feb. 1770,) I Harris 8c M'Henry's Rep. 348, where it issued to prevent a person from removing and carrying with him, negroes from Maryland to Virginia, to which negroes the complainant had an equitable claim. It is said also, that by the common law of England, the king may restrain his subjects from going abroad by proclamation^ 4 Bac. Abr. 168. 4 BL Com. 122. This may be understood, as lawful in such cases as are spoken of by the writers on the Law of Nature and Nations, (particularly by Grotius and Burlamaqui,) where subjects leave the territories of the state in large companies. The general right of expatriation, would involve a discussion of too much length, to be here introduced. It may, however, perhaps be excusable to suggest a doubt, whether the time is not now arrived, when true policy dictates, that the importation of foreigners into the United States, and their easy access to citizenship among us, should no longer be encouraged. It is very questionable indeed, whether the nature of our republican institutions would admit of a population of our extensive territories equal to that of an European state. That foreigners should be permitted to reside among us under the protection of pur laws, without the political right of office or right of election ; but that their children born here, should acquire citizenship by their birth, NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 365 in its fullest extent, seems to present to them no unreasonable hardship, and it is believed, would not operate much against the importation of them. The admission of foreign seamen also, to the protection of citizenship, must, in the nature of things, forever embroil us in quar- rels with the most powerful maritime nation in Europe. Our situation in this respect, presents a new case in the Law of Nature and Nations. For one whole race of people, speaking the same language, — using the same habits and customs, — living under the same laws, — and con- nected by the ties of blood and family, to be suddenly disjoined, and placed under two distinct governments, is a political incident, the exact parallel of which is not to be found in the records of history. It is a case, which the writers upon National Law, have never contemplated, and their general reasoning, therefore, vague and inconclusive as it is, on the right of expatriation, can, in relation to Britain, have no appli- cation to us. NOTE (E) p. 56. Letter from Sir Humphrey Gilbert to Sir George Peckham, taken from Ha- zard's Collections, Vol. 1, p. 32. Sir George, I departed from PlymmUh on the eleventh of .Tune with five saile, and on the thirteenth the Barke Raiuley ran from me in faire and cleere wea- ther, having a large winde. I pray you solicit my brother Raiuley to make them an Example of all Knaves. On the third of August wee arrived at a port c;dled Saint John's, and will put to the Seas from thence (God willing) so soon as our ships will be ready. Of the Newfoundland I will say nothing, until my next Letter. Be of good cheere, for if there were no better Expectation, it were a veiy rich demaynes, the country being very good, and full of sorts ol' victuall, as fish, both of the fresh-water and Sea-fish, Deere, Pheasants, I'ar- tridges, Swannes, and divers Fowles. I am in haste, you sliall by every Mes- senger heare more at large. On the fifth of August, I entred here in the rig'ht of the crown of England, and have engraven the armes of England; divers Spaniards, Portugah, and other Strangers, witnessing the same. I can stay no longer ; fare you well with my good Lady ; and be of good cheei'e, for I have comforted my selfe, answerable to all my hopes. From Saint John's, in the Newfoundland, the 8th of August, 1533- Your's wholly to command. No Man more, HUM. GILBERT. NOTE (F) p. 63. As a supplement to the complimentary contest between the queen and Sh» Walter, noticed in the text, may be read a letter which he wrote to Sir Robert 566 XOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Cecil, (with a view, without doubt, of having it shown to the queen,) during- his short imprisonment, for having- incurred her displeasure on an interesting occasion many years after his first introduction at court : " My heart was ne- ver broke till this day, that 1 hear the queen goes away so far off, whom I have followed so many years, with so great lo^•e and desire, in so many jour- neys, and am now left beliind her in a d;u-k prison all alone. I, that was wont to behold her riding like Alexander, hunting like Diana, walking like Venus, the gentle wind blowing her fair hair about her pure cheeks like a nymph, sometimes sitting in the shade like a goddess, sometimes singing like an an- gel, sometimes playing like Orpheus ; behold the sorrow of this world ! once amiss hath bereaved me of all. All these times past, the loves, the sighs, the sorrows, tlie desires, cannot they weigh down one frail misfortune ? Can not one drop of gall be hid in so great heaps of sweetness ? I may then conclude , Spes et fortvna, valete." It is to be remarked, (adds Hume, Hist, of Eng. ch. 4-1, note (S), that this ,\ymph, Venus, goddess, angel, was then about sixty. The imprisonment, alluded to in the above letter, seems to be explained by an anecdote, mentioned by Sir Walter's l)iogi-apher, in his life prefixed to hi* History of the World, (3d edition, 1687,) as occurring about the year 1595 : *• Sir Walter having now deserted his naval employ, and become again a covir- tier, it was not long before he was seized with the idle court-disease of love, the unfortunate occasion of the worst action of his whole life. For in the year 1595, I find him under a cloud, banished the court, and his mistress's favour withdrawn, for clevirginativg a maid of honour. But why for this one action he should lie under the imputation of an atheist, and from a single crime get the denomination of a debauch, is the logic of none but the vulgar. But, to stop the mouth of fame, which is always open on such occasions, and to wipe out the infamy of the fact, he was shortly after married to the object of his love, the deflowered lady. Having, therefore, obtained his liberty, (for, for this action he was imprisoned some months,) and finding all things with an unpleasant aspect, he followed his genius of discovering new places, and trac- ing nature in her more retired and hidden parts, thinking that absence, and a fortunate voyage, might reinvest him in his mistress's thoughts, and merit a new esteem." He set out, in the same year, it seems, on a voyage to Guiana, (for, by this time, he had assigned away all his right to the territories of Vir- ginia,) and on his return, as lie had conjectured, appears to have been some- what reinstated in the queen's favour, being again employed in her service. NOTE (G) p. 126. It is not unworthy of nonce, that king James had, in a few years after this pe- riod, (between the years 1608 and 1612) another opportunity of exercising his ta- lents for the arts of peace, in planting English colonies in the province of Ulster in Ii-tland, upon those extensive demesnes forfeited by the rebellion and flight of the earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnel. Similar attempts had been made in the reign of his predecessor Elizabeth, on the forfeiture of the estate of the earl of NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS, 367 Desmond in Munster; but, as Leland observes, "In those plantations the Irish and Enjclish had been mixed together, from a fond imagination, that the one would have learned civility and industry from the other. But experience had. now discovered, that by this intercourse, the Irish learned only to envy the superior comforts of their English neighbours, and to take the advantage of a free access to their houses, to steal their goods and plot against their lives. It was, therefore, now deemed necessary to plant them in separate quarters. ' From this passage of the Irish historian, ("who was partial enough to his own countrymen,) as well as from his whole vork, it would seem, that the aborigs- nal Irish were, at this period of time, very little, if any, more civiliztd than the Indians of America, at the time of the first settlement of Virginia. The English colonists had, therefore, nearly the same difficulties to encounter in the one country as in the other. This historian, on this occasion, gives ho- nourable testimony in favour of the plans and designs of James, and further observes, that "Ireland must gratefully acknowledge, that here were the first fouTidations laid of its affluence and security." See Leland's Hist, of Ireland, Vol. 2, p. 430, 4:31 ; and Hume's Hist, of England, at the end of ch. 46, in the reign of James I. NOTE (H) p. 152. Tlie author has to lament, that it has not been in his power to procure a sight of Smith's History of Virgivia, in which, without doubt, this interesting voyage is more minutely described, and, in his map annexed to it, the places to which he first affixed names, more plainly delineated. An additional incentive to curiosity in this particular, arises from an allegation in the bill in chancer)' filed by the Penns, pi-oprie'tors of Pennsylvania, and drawn bj' the celebrated iord Mansfield when acting as counsel for them, in the year 1735, against the lord Baltimore, for a specific performance of the agreement made between the said Penns and lord Baltimore, relative to the bounds of their two provinces, in which it is alleged, that " the tracts of land, granted to lord Baltimore and described in the chai'ter, were so described and bounded by the help of captain Smith's History and Map of what was then called Virginia, and no other, and so all skilfuU persons do own, acknowledge, and believe, which ma- nifestly appears, for that the said map has all and every of the names of the several places which are contained and mentioned in the said letters patent, and no other map or maps whatsoever, which was extant in the year 1652, and at the time of granting the said letters patent, (save only the said Smith's map of Virginia,) hath or h.ave the names and descriptions of the several places mentioned in the said letters patent." What is related in the text is taken from a note in Bw-k's History of Virginia, (Vol. 1, p. 129,) in which he gives what he calls " a summary of Smith's route." It is as follows : " Fi'om Cape Henrr, Smith visited the islands, called after him Smith's islands ; thence to Russell's islands, now calleil Tanger's islands ; coasted along Eastern Sliore, till he reached the river Wighcomoco, now called Pocomoke; departing saw 368 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIOXS. a hi^h point of land, which he named Point Ployer : calls the shoals near a cluster of islands, Limbo, since called Watt's islands. Stood over again to Eastern Shore, and discovered a river called Cuscarawacock. On this river lived the nations of Sarpinak, Nause, Arseck, and Nantaquack, the best mer- chants and greatest traders in those parts. They told the English of a great nation called Wassawomecks, in search of whom, Smith returned by Limbo, into the bay. Leaves the shallows of the Eastern Shore, and falls in on the western side, above the mouth of Patuxen— Calls the first navigable river Bo- lus river, now called Patapsco, in Maryland." Much of this note in Burk's History, is rendered unintelligible, by a confusion of names, not only in this short "Summary," but even by the most modern map-makers. The summary mentions, that " he coasted along the Eastern Shore, till he reached the river Wighcomoco, now called Pocomoke." But, as there are two distinct rivers in that part of the state of INL-iryland, yet well known by the names Wighcomoco and Pocowokp, the latter being the most southern, dividing the counties of Somerset and Worcester, and emptying itself, as before-mentioned, into Poco- moke bay below Watkins's Point, the former a little further northward above Watkins's Point, and emptying itself, together with the rivers Manokin and Nanticoke, into what is called Fishing bay, there seems at first view, to be some uncertainty in fixing the location of the river here called Wighcomoco. However, as the lord Baltimore's letters patent or charter of Maryland, de- scribes Watkins's Point, as situated upon the bay, " near the river Wighco," ipropeflvvivm de Wighco,) and as Pocomoke agrees with that description bet- ter than Wighcomoco in Somerset, (the river Manokin being between that river and Watkins's Point,) and moreover, as the name Wighco, is affixed to the Pocomoke, in the map annexed to the articles of agreement entered into between the lord Baltimore and the proprietaries of Pennsylvania, on the lOlh of May, 1732, (referred to in the before-mentioned bill in chancery, a copy of which map is now before me,) it would seem, that the river called Wighco, in the "Summary of Sm.ith's route," must have been the same as that now called Pocomoke, as is therein alleged. It is worthy of notice, that the word Wighco, Or Qiiigogh, or Wighcomoco, was a name very frequently affixed to rivers by the Indians, there being another river of that name in Maryland, separating the counties of St. Mary's and Charles, and another in A'irginia, at the mouth of the Patowmack. Considerable confusion arises also, from the different names given to these islands, not only in tlie Summary, but even in the two latest and best maps of the states of Maryland and ^ irginia. In that of Maiyland, published in 1794, b}- Dennis Oritfith, the first islands which Smith would naturally meet with in ascending the Bay of Chesapeake, they being the most southernly cluster be- low and south of the larger island, called Smith's island, are denominated 'J'angier islands ; Init in that of Virginia, published by bishop Madison, in 1807, tlse same islands are denominated Watts's islands; and the islands above arid north of the above-nuntioncd larger island, called Smith's island, are NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 359 denominated the Tau^-ier islands; which same islands, so north of Smith's island, are, in Griffith's map, denominated Holland's Islands. These maps differ more than mig-lit be expected, also in the latitiicles of these islands, and in their situation in relation to the opposite shoi-es of the bay. In both maps, the line of the thirt3-eig-hili degree of latitude, (the division between Mary- land and A'irg-inia,) interseds Watklns's point nearly in the same proportion; but in GritHlli's map the line intersects the larger island, called Smith's island, nearly at its most aoiithem extremity, so as to place nearly the whole of the is- land in the state of Maryland, while in that of bishop Madison this island is placed so that its most nortliern extremity is at least two minutes below and south of Watk\ns's Point, and somewhat more south of the line of the 38th degree of latitude, by which means the whole of Smith's island is represented as belonging to the state of Virginia. Thus from this disagreement between these two maps, both made upon a large scale, a furtlier difficulty in under- standing this " Summary" is superadded to that which resulted from a change in the names of the places. It is worthy of observation, however, that it seems to be the opinion of the best mathematicians and gcog-raphers, that it is impossible, with the best in- struments, to fix any degree of latitude to a precise point. The uncertainty is such as to vary, according to some, to the difference of two or three miles; according to others there is imcertainty in coming within seventeen miles. This circumstance was dwelt upon by lord Hardwicke, io the great case of the Pemia v. lord Baltimore, (before alluded to in 1 Vesey, 453,) in which the true situation of Cape Henlopen came in question. He took occasion also, in th.Ht case to remark, that the computations of latitude, at the time of the lord Baltimore's charter varied much from what they were at present ; and that they were set much lower anciently than what they are now; as appears (as he said) by Mr. Smith's book, which is of reputation ; but (says he) I do not rely on that; for the fact is certainly so. We are left to conjecture also, in ascertaining what river is meant in the above-mentioned summary, by that c.iUed Cuscarawacoch. As one of the na- tions or tribes, which are said to have lived on it, was called JVantaqvack, there is much probability, from the similitude of sound, as well as their local situation, that this nation was the same as th.at which has been longknown by the name of J\'aniicukes, inhabiting on the banks of the Nanticoke river. — There arises a presumption, therefoi-e, that the river then culled Cuscarawa- cock is that now called Nanticoke, and that the place of Smith's interview with the several tribes before-mentioned, collected together there, most pro- bly by curiosity, was at the point of land or peninsula, dividing the rivers W'ghcomoco and Nanticoke, and which is called in Griffith's map Nanticokc- point. If it be true, as Mr. Thompson alleges, that the Nanticokes formerly resided at the head of the bay, it is not improbable, that the name of the Cuscarawacock was changed to that of Nanticoke, in some course of time after their residence on it. The app.arent terror expressed by them to SmilM 3 A 370 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. of the Wnssawomecks, is some corroboration of the supposition, that they once resided at the head of the bay, and were driven thence by the Wassawo- mecks to seek a habitation in the lower parts of it. NOTE (T) p. 164. The principal use of the notice we have taken of this abortive attempt to settle a colony in Newfounclkiiid, is to show a probable chain of connexion between this and a subsequent attempt made by the lord Baltimore, afterwards the proprietary of the province of Maryland, to make a settlement on that island, in a province there, wliicli was granted to him under the name of Ava- lon. Notwithstanding the partiality which king James evidently had for the English Catholics, yet a very great majority of tlie nation being Pi-otcstants of one description or another, he was obliged to give way to the inclinations of tliat majority. Hence the penal laws against Papists, though against his wishes, were rigidly enforced throughout the kingdom. A few great men, however, by temporising and professing themselves of the Church of England, though really Catholics, were received at court b) James with great cordiality. Among these was Henry Howard, eavl of Northampton, one of the patentees of the grant here referred to. An additional cause also operated on the mind of James, which was the attachment which had been manifested by the Howard fam.ily to his mothei-, Mary, queen of Scots. This Henry Howard was the younger brother of Thomas Howard, fourth duke of Norfolk, who was be- headed in the reign of Elizabeth, for holding a treasonable correspondence with the queen of Scots. " Alas!" said Mary, when she was told of his death, " what have the noble house of the Howards suffered on my account !" James entered into all these feelings. He had scarcely arrived in London, on his first accession to the throne, before he restored to the family their lost honours, and created Henry earl of Northampton, who in complaisance to James, pro- fessed himself a Protestant. The main branch of the family, however, that is, Tiiomas Howard's son, and gi-andson, and their descendents, continued Catho- lics until about the middle of George the third's reign. Henry made use of his favour with James, on all occasions, to befriend the Papists. Being warden of the Cinque Ports, he connived at the entrance of the Jesuits and Romish piicsts into the kingdom, though he thought it proper to institute his suit of bcandalum magnatuni, in the star chamber, against some persons who hap- jiened to talk of this. Ilapin says, that the truth of the report was proved bv a letter under the earl's own hand to cardinal Bellarmine, which the archbisliop of Canterbuiy (George Abbott, who was so opposed to popery that he was called a Puritan,) produced on the trial, and that upon this letter the parties accused were discharged, but in the report of the case hy Mo ore ^ (see JMoore'a liep. 821), it is said, that they were grievously fined. In a little more than a year aferwards the earl died, on the 15th of .Tune, 1614; and, what corrobo- rated the truth of the charges against him, lie declared in his last will and testament, that he had alwajs been a Catholic, and would die in that religion. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 371 Hypoei-isy being most commonly the mother of every vice, it is almost unne- cessary to add, that historians have drawn his character in tiu most odious colours. It is very certain, that he was deeply concerned with his niece in the poisoning- of Sir Thomas Overbury, in order to facilitate her marriag-e with Carr, the king's favourite. Viewing this man's character, and the situation of the Papists at this pe- riod of time, we are unavoidably led to connect his intentions in sending out this colony to Newfoundland, with those of Sii- George Cidvcrt, in about ele- ven years afterwards, whose motives were honestly and openly professed to be, that of forming an asylum for the Catholics. What inducements operated with lord Bacon, Mr. Justice Dodderidge, lord chief baron Tanfield, and others of the patentees less known, we are not informed; and are therefore to attribute to them the laudable motive of pursuing the public good, though perhaps blended with the prospect of private emolument. See liapin's Hist, of Engf- land. Vol. 8, p. 8, 99, lUl, 104, 131. Hume's Hist. Vol. 4, p. 247. NOTE (K) p. ir4. Although the observations of Doctor Russell on indulgences, (in his History of Modern Europe, letter 55,) are here acceded to, yet it is not thereby meant to approve of his hijpercriticism on what Mr. Hume has said on the same sub- ject, in Note (A) to chap. 29, of his Hiit. of England. Mr. Hume was endea- vouiln., to show, that "the sale of indulgences was no more criminal than any othe: cheat of the church of Rome, or of any other church ;" which led him to ren=..ii, that "after all these indulgences were promulgated, there still re- mamed (besides hell-fire,) the punishment by the civil magistrate, the infamy of -uie world," (which last sanction, a very powerful one, is, by the by, omitted by Doctor Russell in his quotation,) "and secret remorses of conscience, w/iuA are the great motives that operate on mankind.''' On which the Doctor has thought it pr(jper to bestow the following extraordinary language : "Now the first of these assertions" (by which the Doctor can mean nothing else than the existence of hell-fire,) " is literally /a/se ; for the very words of an indulgence bore, that it restored the person to whom it was granted to that limocence and purity which he possessed at baptism ; and according to the doctrine of the Romish church, the infant is then fit for Heaven. But the indulgence did not stop here; it concluded thus : ' so that when you die, the gates of punishment shall be shut, and the gates of the paradise of delight shall be opened.'" Not- withstanding :Mr. Hume might have been here guilty of a small over-sight, in not attending to the operation of an indulgence, in exempting the sinner from JieU-fire—a. circumstance, on which he appears to lay very little stress, and that too probably, only in compliment to the believers in Christianity, relying upon the other " great motives" to morality which he mentions, yet he evidently means here only to check the exuberant declamation of " Protestant writers," upon the effects of indidgences. Pronoancmg the sale of indulgences to be a « cheat," like other pious frauds committed by other chtirches as well as tiiQ 372 SfOTES AND ILLUSTRATIOXS Romish, he cannot fairly be said to be arguing in their favour. It must be ac- ktiowleg'ed b)' those who suffer themselves to reason on such subjects, that the unbounded confidence, which is tauglit by modern fanatics to be placed in the efficiency of failh^ in preference to g-ood works, in obtaining salvation, has much the same pernicious effect on the moral conduct of human society, as the actual grant of indulgences by the supreme pontiff of Rome. NOTE (L) p. 177. There is not, perhaps, any sect of the original reformers, which has admit- ted of a greater number of subdivisions, than that of the Anabaptists. The doctrine of the baptism of adults, being somewhat more consistent with rea- son, than that of infants, it seems to have been greedily adopted by muny of tlie first reformers. With this principle as a foundation, they frequently con- nected the most ridiculous and absurd tenets ; still retaining, however, the name of Anabaptists. Several of them attempted, in the year 1535, at Amster- dam, to revive the doctrine of the Adamites, a Christian sect of the second century, whose principal tenet was to strip themselves naked during their reli- gious ceremonies. These Anabaptists exceeded the Adamites, for they parad- ed the streets stark naked, both men and women. Another schism happened among the Anabaptists, about the same time, at Haerlem, in Holland. It owed its original, to the liberty which a young man there took, of putting his hand into the bosom of a young woman whom he loved, and had a mind to marry. This touch of her breast, came to the knowledge of their church ; and there- upon they consulted what punishment the delinquent ought to suffer. Some maintained, that he ought to be excommunicated ; others said, that his fault deserved favour, and wovdd never consent to his excommunication. The dis- pute grew to such a heighth, that it caused a total rupture between the two parties. Those who declared for indulgence to the young man, were called JdamiUarimis, from J\faimILe, breasts. (Sec Bai/Ie's Hist. Diet. Artie. Adamites, Mamilluriansj and Picards.) A more inoffensive party of them, however, was formed about the same time, in Holland, by one of their principal chiefs, whose name was Mennon, from whom they took tjie name of Meimonites, and subsist to this day as a distinct sect, both in Europe and America. " Conti-ary to the mutinous and sanguinary principles of the original Anabaptists, they became altogether innocent and pacific. Holding it unlawful to wage war, or to ac- cept of civil offices, the}- devote themselves entirely to the duties of private c'.tixens; and L>y their industry and charity, endeaAour to make reparation to human society, for the violence committed by their founders. A small num- ber of this sect, which is settled in England, retains its peculiar tenets con^ earning baptism, but without any dangerous mixture of enthusiasm." {Robert- so?i^s Hist, of Cha. V, book 5th.) They hold the principle also, of refusing oaths ; (Prond's Hist, of Pennsylv. Vol. 2, p. 342;) which is probably what is meant by Kobcrtson, in their refusing to accept of civil offices. A very early instance, in regard to them, occurs : about the time of tlie first revolt of the NOTES AND TLLUSTRATIONS. 373 Datch provinces from Spain, when only the two provinces of Zealand and Hol- land had become independent, the magistrates of the city of Middleburg', in Zealand, had prohibited the Menists, as they were then called, from carrying' on trade, and had caused their shops to be shut up, because they refused to take the usu.'d oaths to the state. The prince of Orange, who still retained his power, as governour of Zealand and Holland, after an admonitory letter to the magistrates, dated January 26th, 1577, issued express orders to them, not to molest the Menists on account of their refusing the oaths. See tlicse letters and orders in a book published by the Quakers, when they applied to Charles II, of England, for the like liberty, in the year 1675, entitled "The Ciise of the people called Quakers, relating to oaths." The Menonists emigrated to Penji> sylvania, where their principal settlement in America is, as early as t!ie year 1698, some in 1706, 1709, and 1711, but most of them in 1717; when, in a veiy extraordinary manner as it appears, the Quakers of that province, notwith- standing the similarity of their tenets, expressed great uneasiness at their coming there. See PmuVs Hist, of Pennsylvania, Vol. 2, p. 100. Acts of asr fiembly in Maryland, provide for the indulgence of them in refusing oaths, put- ting their affivmatim. upon the same footing as that of the Quakers j but it is doubtful, whether any of them be settled in that state. Lancaster, the place of their principal residence, being in the neighbourhood of Maryland, it i3 possible that their frequent intercourse in that state, might have occasioned a legislative provision in their favour. The Anabaptists, properly so called, are numerous in almost every state in the union. They are said to be " chiefly upon the Calvinistic plan as to doc- trines, and independents in regard to church-government. Morsels Geographj', artic. Pennsylvania. If we could place any confidence in an allegation made in a law of Massachusetts against them, in the year 1644, which must have been shortly after their first emigration to America, to wit : that " they denied the lawfulness of magistrates," it would seem, that they had not then relinquish, cd uU their dangerous tenets. But this allegation might have been made merely to cover the persecution against them. See the law in Hazard's CollectioUo, Vol. 1, p. 538. NOTE (M) p. 181. The reader, it is hoped, will not be displeased with the insertion here of it description of the execution of Servetus, extracted from a MS. history of him, cited in a note on the same subject in Jtoscoe's Pontificate of Leo X, ch. 19. ** Impositus est Servetus trunco ad terram posito, pedibus ad terram pertin- gentibus, capiti imposita est corona, straminea vcl frondea, et ea sulphure conspersa, coi-pus palo alligatum ferrea catena, coUum autem tunc fune crasso quadruplici aut quintuplici laxo; libef femori alligatus; ipse carnificem roga- vit, ne se diu torqueret. Interea carnifex ignem in ejus conspectum, et deinde in orbem admovit. Homo, viso igne, ita horrendum exclamavit ut unlversiim popidum pcrterre fecent. Cum diu langueret, fuerunt ex populo, qui Livi- 374 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. culos confertim conjecerunt. Ipse horrenda voce damans, Jesii, Fili Dei Eter- rd, viiserere mei. Post dimidiae circiter horx cruciatum expiravit." On this Roscoe remarks, that Calvin, who was apprehensive that the death of Ser- vetus mig-ht entitle him to the rank of a martjr, thought it necessary to defame his memory, by asserting- that he had no relig-ion; and inhumanly at- tributed the natural expression of his feelings, on the approach of his horrible fate, to what he calls a brutal stvpiditt;. " Ceterum ne male feriati nebulones, vecordi hominis pervicacia quasi martyi-is glorientur, in ejus morte apparait belluina stupiditas, unde judicuim facere liceret, nihil unquam serio in reli- gionem ipsum cgisse. Ex (juo mors ei denunciata est, nunc attonito smiilis haerere, nunc alta suspiria edere, nunc instar lymphatici ejulare. Quod pos- tremum tandem sic invaluit, ut tantum, hispanico more, reboaret, Misencor- dia, MiseHcorcUa." Calvini Opus. p. 101. — Was not this making a cruel scoff at the sufferings of this unfortunate man ? And are we not as much surprised at the opinion expressed on Servetus's execution by a celebrated cotemporary I'eformer — Melanchton ? " Miratus sum esse qui severitatem illam impro- bent." — But we find the principle of these intolerant sentiments recorded in Calvin's " Christian Institution " — " Si penes singulos jus et arbitrium erit judicandi nihil unquam certi constitui poterit, quin potius tota vacillabit reli- gio." Calv. Inst. lib. 4, p. 10. sect. 31. — But we are told, that the followers of these reformers have left off these things, particularly in America; and that the excellent constitution of the United States gives unbounded freedom in matters of religion. — Vain deception ! — The constitution of the United States, it is true, provides, in one of its amendments, that " Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the fi*ee exercise thereof" — It is possible, that instances ma}" occur, where this amendment to the constitution may be of some use ; as appears from two recent cases in the late session (in 1810 — 11,) where the president thought it proper to interpose his disupprobatioji of two bills deemed by him unconstitutional under this clause. But as congress seldom have occasion to legislate on subjects of re- ligion, the oppression of individuals in the enjo3'ment of their religious as well as civil rights, is most generally to be apprehended from the state go- vernments. In most of the states the penalties of the common la-u, in matters of religion, still subsist. The bloody statutes also, of some of them, only shep. Not being repealed they are liable to be called up into action at any moment when either superstition or fanaticism shall perceive a convenient time for it. What Jew, Socinian, or Deist, possessing a sound mind, would venture, in the state of Maryland for instance, to open his lips even in defence of his own re- ligion ? — Alas ! (as Roscoe observes on this subject,) " The human mind, a slave in all ages, has rather changed its master, than freed itself from its ser- vitude." NOTE (X) p. 191. In Tindal's edition of Rapin's Hist, of Engl. (vol. 7. p. 528,) it is suggested, that " the severities, which from this time" (to wit, that of making the sta- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 375 tute of 35 Eliz. ch. 1.) " began to be exercised in England upon the nonconfor- mists, were probably occasioned by the disturbances caused by Ilacket and some other enthusiasts." This William Ilacket, (according to the account of him given by Bayle, in his Hist. Diet. art. Ilacket, which account seems to have been extracted principally from Camden^s Annals,) was originally a servant to one Mr. Husscy in Northamptonshire. It was a practice with him to attend tlie sermons of the Puritan ministers, for the purpose of repeating them again to his acquaintance, and though illiterate, yet having a most retentive memory, he would over his cups with his companions, amuse them v/ith a mock recital of tlicir sermons. Being much addicted to drunkenness and debauchei-y, to support his expenses in that way he turned a highwayman. At last he set up for a prophet, and prophesied famine, pestilence, and war to England, unless it established the consistorial (or Calvinistic) discipline. He began to pro- phesy at York and Lincoln, for which, it seems, he was publicly whipped ; pro- "bably on a prosecution against him at common law, as an impostor in religion; (for which see 1 Haivh. ch. 5, sect. 3.) Having a wonderful fluency in extempo. rary prayer, he made the people believe, that it proceeded from an extraordi- nary gift of the Holy Ghost. He pretended to have a very great confidence in these prayers, for he said, that if all England should pray for rain, and hp should pray to the contrary, it would not rain. He had the address to per- suade two persons of some learning, Edmund Coppinger and Henry Arthing- ton, to join him. Coppinger assumed the title of the prophet, of mercy, and Arthington that of the prophet of judgment. They gave out, that they had an extraordinary mission, and that next to Jesus Christ none upon cartli hy»d greater power than William Hacket. They declared that he was the sole monarch of Europe. They would have proceeded to the ceremony of unction, but he would not sufler them, being already anointed, he said, by the Holy Ghost^ in heaven. They asked him at last, what he had to command them, and protested they would pay an obedience without reserve. He ordered them to go and pro- claim through all the streets of London, that Jesus Christ was come to j udge the world. They immediately obeyed him. They drew together, by their bawling, such a concourse of people, thW being come to Cheapside, they covdd go no further, nor be heard; but finding an empty cart, they mounted upon it and discoiu-scd of tlie important mission of William Hacket. They said, that he partook of the nature of glorified bodies, and was to convert all Europe to the consistorial di.scipline; and that the power of judgment was committed to him. They prophesied, that all who refused to obey this king of all Eui-cpe, should kill one another, and that the queen should be dethroned. — Havhig tlnis, as fiithful missionaries, propagated the doctrines of their lord and master, -they returned to the inn where he lodged. As soon as Arthington approached his presence, he turned rouiid to the people, who had followed them, and ci-ied out, " Behold the king of the earth !" They were afterwards arrested, prosecuted, and tried for high treason; (it being plainly within the statute <5f 13 Eliz. ch^ 1, at that time in fprce; see 1 IMc's Hist. Fl Cr. 319.) Whe:\ ^7-6 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATION'S. >hey were on their trial, they refused to take their bats off before the judges, sayingi, they icere ttb'/ve the Ttiagistratea. Hacket also, at the same time, ex- pressed to the judg'cs the most virulent invectives against the queen, and added, that his design was to rob her of her crown and life, and change the. •luhole form of the got'ernment. Hacket was executed in pursuance of his sen- tence, which was, to be hanged and quartered. Coppinger starved himself to death in prison; and Arthington was pardoned. These disturbances in the streets of London occurred, (according to Bayle, as before-cited,) on the six- teenth of July, 1592, which was about six months prior to the making the statute of 35 Eliz. ch. 1. — It must be acknowledged, that these scenes too strong-ly indicated a renovation in England of the then recent excesses of the Anabaptists at Munster. When religion will thus forcibly mingle itself with the political proceedings of the government, reason pronounces the necessity of applying some curb to it. The happiness of the people, the supreme law, in such case demands it. NOTE (0) p. 203. Mr. Holmes, in his Annals, (in Note 5, at the end of his first volume,) has expressed consideitible dissatisfaction with an Jlmerican histonan, for endea- vouring to represent, that the Puritans removed from Leyden to America, be- cause they were " obscure and unpersecuted." He seems to allude to an ex- pression of Mr. Marshall, in his Life of Washington, Vol. 1, p. 90, who says, that "their obscure situation at Leyden became irksome to them," and ** with- out persecution they made no converts." But it is to be observed, that Mar- shall h-is on this occasion, only copied the expressions and observations used by Dr. Robertson in his History of New England, who could not be suspected «f being an " advocate for the English hierarchy." Besides, as it is in vain to deny, that the eclat attending the foundation of any religious sect, which shall happen to make a noise in the world, has considerable operation in the minds «f the founders, v\'hether they are sincere in their belief or not, there cannot be much impropriety in saying, that the dread of having their schemes to prove abortive, and their names to sink into obscimtn, would not a little mingle with «ther considerations, however laudable or virtuous. It is equally in vain also, to deny, that persenUion has, in many instances, contributed much to promote the growth of religious sects. Robinson's sect being entirely destitute in Hol- land, of the nourishing dew of persecution, it was not too vague an inference, tliat, through want of this, they made fewer converts than they would other- wise have done. Without some of these means, by which a regular accession to their numbers could be made, it was evident, that old age, natural deaths, rnd the vexatious defection of their youth, so pathetically complained of, would in time work their annihilation. Mr. Holmes is displeased also, that " the Puritans of Leyden and of New England are, to thin day, represented as Broivnists.^' But it seems to be cer- tain, however, from all ilie best historians of those times, that the first person NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 377 among the Puritans, who set up a separate congregation distinct from the PresbyteriaHj was Robert Brown. Whether he then introduced the exact church-disciplinej afterwards established by Robinson, is immaterial. Brown being the first person who appeared in England at this time, among the Puri- tans, at the head of a visible congregation, of a sect entirely new, would natu- rally induce persons of other sects to give them a name ; which they didj by calling them after their first apparent founder. It ought to be noticed, that it is not always in the power of any sect or religious society of people, to appro- priate to themselves a fixed determin.ate denomination. Other men will fix it for them. Nor is it in their power to alter it, any more than the language ge- nerally spoken. This is verified by that of the Quakers, who to this day dis- claim that name, it being a term of ridicule ; but call themselves " Friends," a term which few people adopt when they speak of them. A book v.Titten by Ro- binson, entitled " A just and necessary apologie of certain Christians no less contumeliously than commonly called Broimists or Barrowists," is cited by Mr. Holmes, to show what were Robinson's principles; in which Robinson pro- fesses that their religion was the same as the Dutch Reformed Church, except- ing something relative to the Apocrypha. That might be, and yet not be va- riant in doctrine from the church founded by Brown. But this citation of the title of Robinson's book is so far unfortunate, as to prove directly, that in the time of Robinson, according to his own acknowledgment, the members of his church were "commonly called Brownists ;" and moreover, that the Brownists and these anonymous "certain Christians," were, according to the confession of the chief or leader of the latter, one and the same sect ; which reduces it to the question, whether it was in their own power, or in that of other men, to alter or continue their former denomination. Analogous to this, is the title of a very learned and well-written book, by that gi-eat apostle of the Quakers, Ro- bert Barclay: "An Apology for the True Christian Divinity, as the same is held forth, and preached by the people, called in scorn, Quakers ;" in which he, in the same manner as Robinson, professes to set forth the principles of the Quakers, and expressly mentions, that " it was a name not of their choosing, but reproachfully cast upon them." But it would be ridiculous for any Quaker, who professed to belong to what they call The Society of Friends, to say, that he was no Quak£r. In corroboration of what is here said, it may be proper to subjoin a short extract from No. I, of the Appendix to the second Vol. of Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts: *'I shall briefly touch upon their eccle- siastical affairs. I suppose this people were the first who took or received tlie name of Independents, which in a few years after was the name given to a body of men in England, who assumed the government there. When they first -vent to Holland, they ivere hno-.m by the 7iame of Browmsts. Some of the characteris- tics of Brownism, they afterwards disclaimed, and at the same time disclaim- ed the name, which was generally odious ; the character of the founder of the sect, being at best, problematical. Besides, he renounced his principles, and returned to cpiscopacv. The Puritans they could not conform to, and there ^ 3 B 378 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. fore considered, themselves as a distinct church or by themselves, independent of all other." Who are meant here, "by the Puritans to whom they could not conform," unless they are the Eng-lish Presbyterians, it is difficult to conceive. However, it shows, that ivhen theij first -zvent to Holland, they -were known by the name of Broivnists ; but that Brown, by his apostacy, having- brought the name into discredit, tliey began to be ashamed of it. To this may be added, that Sir William Temple, in his excellent " Observations on the United Pro- vinces," wliich he wrote about the year 1670, mentions the liro-wnists among- other sects, "whose names were then almost worn out in all other parts," as a sect then and there existing by that name ; which sect must certainly have** been, the remains of either Robinson's or Smith's congregations at Amster- dam or Leyden. Mr. Holmes also represents Robinson as " a man of learning, of piety, and of Catholicism ;" and in Hutchinson's Hist, of Massachusetts, Vol. 2, Appen- dix, " he is said to have been a man of good leai-ning, and of a benevolent dis- position :" where is mentioned, (we may suppose by way of confirmation of his character for learning,) that he was persuaded by Poljander, one of Ihe divi- nity-professors in the university of Leyden, to dispute publicly with Episco- pius, another divinity-professor in the same imiversity, on the relig-ious tenets of the Armenians, a new sect then lately risen in Holland. When we read and reflect upon the troubles and distresses, which befel the persons who professed the Ai-menian tenets in Holland about this time, persecuted throughout ail the provinces more inveterately than the Puritans were in England, whatever " honour and respect" Mr. Robhison might have acqij^d from his disputation with Episcopius, it certainly was no evidence of his ^'benevolent disposition." The Gormarists, who were Calvinists, like the established Church in England, would tolerate no dissenters from their principles. The Armenians differed fl-om them only with regard to the unintelligible mysteries of predestination, election, justification, and gi-ace. If Robinson had one spark of a " benevolent disposition," he would not have joined the cry of persecution, in huntingdown a sect for such differences of opinion, especially when these Armenians could boast, of having then at their head, such men as tJ*e;putriotic Barnevelt and the learned Grotius. , NOTE (P) p, ^1?^^. I am well aware, that the Gallican Church, in iW latter end of the seven- teenth century, made, under the auspices of Louis XIV, a noble stand against the encroachments of the papal power. Had the jSHvr articles, contained in the ' dcclai-ation made^bv tfe^^bieral assembly of the Fi'ench clcrgj^^*n the 19th of March, 16B2, l)ten aci'l'i^^jdged by the pope, an'cV adopted throiighout other Catholic countries in r^ufope, the Roman Catholic church would have been as harmless hi its political tenets as any other sect of Christians. The first of thDse articles was, " That kings and princes are not subject to the ecclesiastical power as^to tlKiir tcmpprals ; and that they cannot be deposed, directly or indirectly. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 37^9 by the authority of the keys of the church, nor their subjects absolved from the alleg-iance and obedience, which they owe them." See Dvpin's His- . of the Church, Cent. XVII, ch. 19. But it is well known, that pope Innocent XI, as soon as he was informed of these proceedings of the French bishops, immedi* ately called a consistory at Rome, in which these four articles or propositions, were formally condemned and ordered to be burnt. See the Mod. Univ. Hist. Yol. 26, p. 479. The Republic of Venice had, indeed, in the beginning of the seventeenth century, made a feeble effort to oppose the power of the pope to interfere in the political affairs of the state, but in the end, were obliged to yield to it. The power of the pope, therefore, in deposing kings, and absolv- ing subjects from their allegiance, was generally acknowledged throughout the greater number of the Catholic states of Europe, until the emperor Napoleon, on the 17th of February, 1810, deprived the Roman pontiff of all temporal power, and obliged him to swear to the observance of the above-mentioned four propositions contained in the declaration of the French clergj', in 1682, yjs before-mentioned. NOTE (Q) p. 224. The author. In vindication of those observations he makes on the conduct of t^e Catholics, begs leave to add a quotation from a work, \\hich he has once or twice before cited, and which has been always held in high estimation by the literati of all Europe. Bayk, in his Historical and Critical Dictionary, art. Elizabeth, makes the following remarks on MorerVs Dictionary, in relation to the same article : *' He should not have several times exaggerated the perse- cutions of the Roman Catholics, without mentioning the acts of rebellion which exposed them to that storm. A faithful historian, ought first to have observed, their plots against the queen's government, and then the severe pimishmeut she inflicted for those plots. The transposition of these two things, would be great unfiiithfulness in a historian. What name then sliall be given to Moreri's conduct, who suppresses entirely those plots ?" In another remark on the same article, he observes^^^' Elizabeth was forced, by reasons of state, to use seve- rity towards Papist'sO Some lost their lives ; a great number of others, either suffered the rigour^fejmprisonment or inconveniences of exile. The Protes- tants of England e^^^s this ; they do not deny the fact; but they maintain, that the wicked attempts of the Papists against the government, and against the queen, deserved such a punishment. You will be sure not to find this ob- servation in the libels of the English Roman Catholics. You will indeed find the punisftments, with all the rhetorical flourisl^s that can amplify them, but not a word of the seditious enterprizes which p"M^ede^, and were the cause of them. There are few relations, in which the order of events is not confounded. • This confusion is not always produced by fraud ; a too turbulent zeal, is some- times the cause of it. An ill-conducted zeal, fixes the mind upon the hard- ships of persecuted virtue, and causes the provocation of the persecutors \o be forfotten. If these two causes are not sufficient, dishonesty, whifli- alojie S80 KOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. would disorder the events, completes the confusion. However it be, I have observed, that the principal diflbrence between the accounts of C.ilholics and Protestants, consists in the order of the facts : each party endeavours to giva the fiist place to the injuries thej' have endured ; tliey make a long- detail of these, and pass o\'er slightly what they have done, by way of reprisals, or what they have suffered as a just punishment." These remarks of Mr. Bayle, may be pi-esumed to have been made with the utmost impartiality. He was by birth a Frenchman, a son of a Huguenot minister in the south of France. For his fine talents and learning, he was made professor of moral philosophy and history, in the Protestant college of Sedan. But that college being suppi-esi^ed by Louis XIV, about the time of his revocation of the edict of Nantes, and Mr. Bayle being offered a like professorship in the college of Rotterdam, in Holland, he became a resident of that place, and there passed the remainder of his life. Although he always professed himself a member of the reformed French church, (except during a temporary conversion to the Catholic church, at an eai-ly period of his life,) yet his writings gave his enemies some apparent gi'ounds to accuse him of Deitsm, and some indeed of Atheism. He was cer- tainly, what was called in England about this time, a. Free-thinker ,- and his writings, particularly his Dictionarj-, abound witli severe sarcasms on the su- perstition and fanaticism of the age in which he lived. For this reason, his character was assailed by t|ie bigots and fanatics, both of the Catholics and the Calvinists ; but for the same reason also, his opinions, like those of Mr. Hume, are to be respected as of the most impartial authority, in all historicid controversies between these two sects of religion. NOTE (R) p. 233. This commission, of July 15th, 1624, has been passed unnoticed by most oi' the historians of Virginia, possibly on account of the shortness of its duration, though it is probable that the proclamation of king Charles, on the 13th of May, 1625, might have been considered as a confirmation of this commission. Upon the dissolution of the second and third charters of Virginia, under the judgment in the court of king's bench, on the Qiio Wurrcnito, king James thought it proper to ei-ect a provincial coinicil for "the management of the bu- siness and affairs of Virginia 27; Englandy^ which he did by this commission of July 15th, 1624. On the suggestion of this provincial council, he afterwards issued another commission, bearing date the 26th of August, (same year,) di- rected to Sir Francis Wyat and others, (which see in Hazard^ Collections, Vol. 1, p. 189,) appointing a governour and council in Virginiu. Both these commissions were intended, (as expressed in the body of them,) to be only tem- porary, until a new charter could, upori " advised consideration and delibera- tion," be passed, or *' some other constant and settled course be resolved upon and established;" and each of them had a clause of limitation of time at the end of thcnij to wit : " to continue in force until such time as the kmg, by vriting under his signet or privy seal, should signify his pleasure to the con- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS, 384 trary." This latter commission to the govcrnour and council in Virginia was not intended to be repugnant to the former commission, to the provisional coun- cil in England, for the former were to act " according to suchunstrucvions as they should receive from the king or his commissiotiers here" (in England,} " to that purpose or intent." NOTE (S) p. 254, 26^!. (Copied from HazarcVs Collections, Vol. 1, p. 337.) Or4er of Council upon the Dispute between the Virginia planters and lord Baltimore ; £VOTES OF THE ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA.] At the Star Chamber, third of Julv, 1633. Present Lord Keeper, Earl of Danbije, Lord Privy Seal, Lord Viscount Wentxcorth, Lord Hijh Chamberlain, Lord Viscount Falkland. Earl of Dorset, Lord Cottington, Earl of Bridge-water, Mr. Secretary Whidebavk. Whereas an humble petition of the planters in Virginia, was presented to his majesty, in which they remonstrate, that some gi-ants have lately been obtained, of a great proportion of lands and territories within the limits of the colony there, being the places of their traffic, and so near the places of their habitations, as will give a general disheartening to the plant- ers, if they be divided into several governments, and a bar to that trade which they have long since exercised towards their supportation and relief, un- der the confidence of his majesty's royal and gracious intentions towards them* as by the said petition more largely appeareth. Forasmuch, as his majesty was pleased, on the twelfth oi Maij last, to refer to the board the consideration of this petition; that upon the advicejind report of their lordships, sucli order might he taken as to his majesty's wisdom should seem best; it was there- upon ordered, upon the fourth of Jvne last, that the business should be heard the second Friday in this term, which was the twenty-eighth of the last month, that all parties interested should then attend, which was accordingly ^rformed; and their lordships having heard the cause, did then order tliat the lord Baltimore, being one of the parties, and the adventurers and planters of Virginia aforesaid, should meet together between that time and this day, and accommodate their controversy in a friendly manner, if it might be ; and likewise set down in writing the propositions made by either party, which was likewise accordingly done. Now their lordships having heard and maturely considered the said propositions, answers and reasons, and whatsoever else was alleged on either part, did think it fit to leave the lord Baltimore to his patent, and the other parties to the course of law, according to their desire; but for 38:2 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. the preventing' of further questions and differences, their lordships did also think fit and order that thing-s stand as they do ; the planters on either side shall have free traffic and commerce each with the other, and that neither part shall receive any fugitive person belonging to the other, nor do any act which may draw a war from the natives upon either of them ; and lastly, that they shall sincerely entertain all good correspondence, and assist each other upon all occasions, in such manner as becometh fellow-subjects and members of the Hame state. NOTE (T) p. 313. In illustration of this early contest between the lord Baltimore and his colo. nists, relative to the right of propounding laws for the assembly to enact, it may be observed, that about the same time, or a few years prior to it, (in 1634,) a dispute, somewhat similar to it, took place between the lord deputy of Ireland, and the Irish house of lords. It will appear, pei-haps, a little extraordinary to Americans, (in the present state of their political sentiments,) when they are informed that an Irish statute made in the 10th Hen. Tlh (com- monly called Sir Edward Po\Tiing-s law, was enacted (as the statute expresses it,) " at the request of the commons of the land of Ireland," and was, during the 16th and 17th centuries, considered by the people of Ireland, as the Irish Magna Charta, by which, " No parliament was to be holden thereafter in the said land, but at such season as the hijig's lieutenant and covncil there first do certify the king under the great seal of that land, the causes and considera- tions and cW swcA «c;« as (to) them seemeth, should pass in the same parlia- ment, and such causes, considerations, and act«, affirmed by the king and his council" (in England,) " and his license thereupon, as well in affirmation of the said caiises and acts, as to summon the said parliament had and obtained." Tile Irish house of peers contended (in 1634.) that being the king's hereditary council, they could originate statutes to be sent to England, for the king's ap- probation, according to the statute ; but lord Wentworth (the then lord lieu- tenant of Ireland) protested against the proposition. And indeed, the words of the statute Seem clearly to have justified his ideas, as it expressly confines it to the lieutenant and his council, meaning his privy council. See Leland's Vlist. of Ireland, Vol. 2, p. 108, and the appendix thereto. Vol. 3, p. 20; ^so 4 Inst. 352. Thus lord Baltimore, an Irish peer, might have been led to con- strue his charter, like Poj-ning's law, vesting him with the prerogative of first propounding to the assembly such laws as were to be enacted : but whether he ever meant to contend for such a prerogative or not, it is certain, that the as- sembly after this session of 163r-8, ever afterwards exerted the right of fra- vT\'mg their o\v'n laws, to be afterwaj-ds approved and assented to by the lord ■. roprietor. NOTE (V) p. 330. -\s the original scheme of colonising .Maryland, was evidently formed upon ■ " plan of the feudal institutions, as they existed in England at the time of NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 383 ihe first emigration to this province, some few remarks in illustration thereof inay not be deemed altogether unnecessary. Although the feudal system might have been known to the Anglo-Saxons, it does not appear to have been ever introduced into England, in any considera- ble extent, prior to the Norman conquest. There were manors possessed by t)»e Saxon thanes or lords, having their subordinate tenants holdmg under allodial or free tenures, yielding" a certain rent, and parts of those manors reser- ved by those thanes for their own immediate rural use, similar to the demesTies after the conquest. But when that event occurred, William the Conqueror claiming all the lands of the kingdom by right of conquest, or, as some say, only those that accrued to him by right of forfeiture, for ti-eason, in opposing his title to the crown, parcelled them out to his several principal followers or feudal chieftams, in such distributive shares as best pleased him. To several of them each he gave many hundreds of manors. (Siillhan''s Lectures, lect. 17; and see an enumeration of the names oi many of these chieftains, and the numbi r of manors given to each of them. Hume's Hist, of England, Vol. 1, appendix II.) These Norman chieftains were called barons, a term (according to the learned. Sir Henry Spelman, Gloss, verb. Baro,) which seems to have b£en first intro- duced into England by the Normans, or at least was not in common use there prior to their conquest of that kingdom ; for although, as he observes, the word occurs in the translations of the laws both of the Danes and Saxons, yet the term itself was not known in their language, and consequently was not used by them in the original language of their laws, but was substituted by the Norman writers in their translations of these laws, for some other term in their language synonymous thereto. From the etymology of the term, it seems, according to him, to have originally signified a man. {Baro, natiyo sensu, idem esse videtur quod Latinis vir. Gloss, verb. Baro.) By the an- cient Francks the word vir was pronounced ber ,- hence this learned antiquarian conjectures that the word baro was originally synonymous with the Latin word i*ii-o, and thus to have been susceptible of v.arlous significations; as, simply a man — a man of eminence — or a married man, in which last sense, it may be observed, that the word baron is the common term in use at this day in our law books. The term baron sometimes signified also a freeman, or freedman; (Baro pro homine libero, et libertino. — Gloss, ibid.) It was synonymous also to freeholder ; (Baro pro vassallo seu cliente feodali in genere, ct quem nos libcrc tenentem vocamus. — Gloss, ibid.) Most of the barons, if not all, in the time of AVillium the Conqueror, held the lands granted to them immediately of the king. They were thence called by ancient feudal writers tenants in capiie, though afterwards, by the common law, those only were considered as tenants in capite who held immediately of the person of the king, as of his crown, and not of him, by reason of any ho- novr, manor, castle, he, {Co. Litt. 108, a.) Hence, in lord Baltimore's charr ter, it is expressed, that he was to hold of the king, as of his castle of Wind- sor, and not in capite. OS thess barens, in. the ti'me of the Conqueror, and 384 >rOTES AND ILLUSTR.\TIOKS. shortly fiftcr, some held more, some less lands, which differed not only in quantity but in value. This produced the distinction of ^'eater and lesser ba- rons, — barones majores et minores. But every immediate military tenant of the crown, however small his holding, was, by the principles of the more an- cient feudal constitutions, a baron, and obliged to assist the king, not only with his personal and military sei-vice, if required, but also with his advice, that is, to attend in parliament. (Sullivan's Lectures, lect. 20, Spelman'i- Gloss, verb, liaro, p. 66.) But as this attendimce was usually by Writ of Sum- mons, for that ptirpose sent to them in the name of the king, it became a prac- tice, in subsequent reigns, to neglect the lesser barons, and summon only the greater. Two reasons are assigned for tliis; first, that the number of bai-ons in the kingdom being not less than thirty thousand, no house could hold them, ii they were all to attend in parliament, {Spehmai's Gloss, verb. Baro, p. 66, <>7;) secondly, that attendance in parliament was considei-ed by the lesser ba- rons, who could not afford the expense, rather as a grievous burthen, than an honourable privilege. {SuUivaii's Lectures, lect. 20.) Sir Henry Spelman adds an additional reason for this neglect; which was, that the kings of Eng- l.md had frequent quarrels with their bai-ons, and were therefore glad of dis- pensing with their presence. — Sic antiqua ilia baronum dignitas, (he observes,) .wcessit sensim in titularem et arbitrariam,- regioque tandem diphmate (letters patent) idcirco dispensata est. This learned writer further distinguishes the barons of England, as they existed at the time when he wrote, which was about the time of the first emi. gration to Maryland, into three different kinds, according to their origin. — " Hodiernos itaque nostros barones, e triplici fonte, triplices faciamus : feoda- le-5 seu prxscriptitios, qui a priscis feodalabus barombus oriundi, suam hodie prcscriptione, (magis quam temiro,) tuentur dignitatem. Evocatos seu prescript tition, qui brevi regio evocantur ad parliamentum. Et diplomalicos, qui regio eliplomate hoc fastigium ascendunt. Feodnliuin origincm inter eos collocavero, quibus Willielmus senior Angliam totam dispertitus est, de se tenendam : quorumque nomma in Domesdei pagi- iiis recognovit. Prescriptitios, ab acvo regum Johannis et Ilenrici tcrtii, caput extulisse ccnseo. Diplomnticos initium sumpsisse perhibent sub Ricardo secvmdo." Spelman'a _ Gloss, verb. Baro.) If the " Bill for Baronies," bgforc -mentioned, contemplated the creation of a rank of people in the province invested with the distinction of the honorary title of barons, it must have fallen under ilie first head of the above arrange- ment of that order of nobility. They would, most probably, liave derived their several titles from their several apportionments of territory ; and might therefore have been denominated feudal barons, or as some other writers ex- press it, barons by tenure, so called, because the dignity and privileges were annexed ID the lands (hey held, SvHivan's Lectures, lect. 20,) They could NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 387 .not be dcnommated prescriptive, time immemorial being essential to themory. tinction ; but, as pvxscviption in such case, implies a feudal origin, it u .-tli, amount to the same thing. How far the statute of Quia emptores (18 Edw. 1. c. 1,) would have prohibited the lord proprietary from making these subinfeu- dations by grants of baronies, so as to enable such barons to regrant to others, to hold of themselves, is not for us to determine, with certainty, at this day. That statute was dispensed with by the king, in a clause in his charter to the lord Baltimore, so as to enable his lordship to grant and create tenures of him- self ; for, it seems, that in the time of Henry VIII, and probably at the time of the cliarter, it was held, not only that the king, by his royal prerogative, had a general power of dispensing with statutes, but in regard to this statute in par- ticular, he had this power, inasnnich as tlw staUtte was made for the advantage of chief lords, and therefore, the chief lord, with his own assent, might thus be enabled to alien and create a tenm-e, to be holden of himself, agreeably to a maxim of law : Quilibet renunciare potest beneficium juris pro se introductum. {Bro. Jlrb. Tenures, pi. 65. Bacon's Abr. tit. Temire, (B) pi. 11.) Thus tlie lord proprietor might have been enabled to grant baronies to hold of himself, but it would seem'that the statute must have operated on the subinfeudatory grants of those barons, had such barons ever been created. It may be furtlicr observed, that under the principles of the feudal system, prior to the statute of Qida emptores, the Barones majores, especially counts palatine, (similar to whom the lord proprietary of Maryland might be considered,) having J7/ra re- galia, might have created barons of their counties palatine. Spelman's Gloss. verb. Barones Comitatum. SuUivun's Led. lee. 29. But after tliat statute, which was in force at the time of this first session of assembly, such barons, as cre- ated by his lordship, must have been subject to the operation of the statute, and the words of the dispensation in the charter, seem to confine it to the lord proprietor. This observation applies as well to manors as baronies ,- in respect to the former of which. Sir William Blackstone observes, " It Is clear, that all manors existing at this day, must have existed as early as king Edward I; for it is essential to a manor, that there be tenants wlio hold of the lord; and by the operation of these statutes, (viz. IS Ed^v. 1. c. 1. 17 Edw. 2. c. 6 ; and 34 Echv. 3. c. 15,) no tenant in ca^nte since the accession of that prince, and no tenant of a common lord since the statute of Quia emptores, could create any new tenants to hold of himself." 2 Bl. Com. 92. As these barons, had they been created by the lord proprietor, as well as the grantees of manors, to whom grants of manors were actually made by hini, rdust \\3.ve been at the most but common lords, they would have been, according to Sir William Blackstone, un- der the operation of the statute. This view of the subject, it v.'ould seem, ought to have settled those questions, which are said (A'Htfs Landholder's Assistant, p. 28,) to have arose in the province, relative to tlie rlgl^'s of tbc lords or owners of manors, in opposition to those of the proprietan:, as chief lord of the fee. -Manors (it seems,) were formerly called baronies, as they stUl are lordships, 3 c 384 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. - Com. 90;) though it is probable, that they never were known under that " ciSomination until after the conquest, when they were distributed by William to his Norman barons, as before observed. From whence it is, that the domes- tic court, called a court-barony which each lord or baron was empowered to hold within his manor, evidently took its title. These common lords, or owners of manors, seem (according to Sir Hennj Spelman, GUoss. verb. Baro.) to have been included under the ancient feudal denomination of BaroneH minores, in contra- distinction to the Baroncs majores, who were mostly Tenants in Capite. They were not considered as peers of the realm, and had no right to a scat in parlia- ment. The inferior court just mentioned, is, however, by the English common law, an mseparable ingredient in every manor, (2 Bl. Com. ibid.) Notwith- standing this, and although the lord proprietary of Maryland made numerous grants of manors in his province, yet we are informed from good authority, as before observed, that no memorial upon record is to be found, of any practi- cal use within the province, of eitlicr a court-leet or a court-baron. It is not impossible, but the before-mentioned legal objections, resulting from the sta- tute of Quia emptoref!, might have prevented these inferior lords, the owners of manors within the province, from laying claim to all the baronial privileges Himexed by the common law, to tlieir manors, though tlieir grants thereof might enable them to hold them as lands under socage-tenure. We will close our remarks here, on this subject, with hazarding a conjec- ture on the proljable intention of tlie before-mentioned " bill for baronies." The reader will recollect, that the colonisation of Ireland, in the reigns of Eli- zabeth and Jarnes, (which was a favourite pursuit of the latter monarch, as giving him an opportunity of displaying his talents for legislation, as well as literary composition,) had preceded that of Maryland but a few years. Sir George Calvert entei-ed much into the schemes of king James, being his favou- rite secretary. There is, therefore, some grotmd to suppose, that his son Ce- cilius, created lord Baltimore, and having become an Irish peer, would promote institutions in his province, similai- to those which had been, most probably, planned by his father and his patron, James, with regard to Ireland. Now, we are told from good authority, (Stdlivun's Lectures, lect 26,) that even at this dav, those divisions of a country, which in England are called hundreds, are in Ireland called baronies. We have authority also, for supposing, that this deno- mination of the divisions of a county in Ireland, took place either in the latter end of the reign of Elizabeth or first of James, while attempts were making at that time, to plant English colonists there. In Spelman's Glossary, (verb. Ba- ronia,) is the following passage : " Baronia pro parte Comitatus quam Hundre- tlim dicimus. Sic frequens in Hlbernia, ubi Connacia Provincia sub nostra wemorm in Comitatus dispartita est: Comitatusque deinceps in Baronias dis- secti, ut miper etiam in Ultonia factum intelligo." This part of his Glossary was first published in 1626, and we may suppose it to have been compiled not long before its publication. He died in 1641, at the age of eighty; so that the iirst division of Connaught into counties, which took place in the yoar 1790. . NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 387 iLeland^s Hist, of Ireland, Vol. 2, p. 247,) might have been wiihm his memory. The first division of Ulster into counties, was also in the reign of Elizabeth, not many years afterwaixls, about 1585 ; but as the turbulence of the native Irishj which prevailed most in tlie northern parts of Ireland, prevented any eflecls from those divisions of tliat province, until king' James's reign, at the time of his instituting the hereditary order of baronets, (about 1611,) it is pro- bable, that Sir Henry Spelman, here, in the words " nuper etiam," aUudes to tlie plantations whicJi that moiiarcli was then endeavouring to settle in Ulster. From hence results a strong probabilitj', that the before-mentioned " bill for baronies," contemplated a division of counties in Maryland, similar to that adopted in Ireland, whicli it seems was analagous to those of hundreds in Eng- land ; and not, perhaps, intended to create an order of nobility in the province, as might at this day be supposed. Although Leland, the Irish historian, has mentioned this sclieme for colonising Ulster, in a veiy cursory manner, yet we may from tlience collect some further incidents, analagous to lord Baltimore's plan for that of Maryland. " The lands to be planted, were divided in thi-ee different proportions ; the greatest to consist of two thousand English acres, the least of one thousand, and the middle of fifteen hundred." " Estates were assigned to all, to be held by them and their heirs : the undertakers of two thousand acres, were to hold of the king vi capite ; those of fifteen hun- dred, by knight's service ; those of a thousan;!, in common socage." " They had power to erect manors, to hold courts-baron, and to create tenures." We may here discern a considerable resemblance to the scheme directed in lord Baltimore's first instructions, to his lieutenant-general, of the 8th of August, 1636; which instructions appear to have been autliorised, in this respect, by the 19th section of his charter. THE END. 'F'liomas T. Stiles, Printer, Philadelphia. if^ ERRATA, In line 11, of Ihe summary of contents of Sect. I, for " Castler* s," read "Car- tier's" — 1. 4, p. 10, (Me " Maryland" and insert "America" — 1. 8, note in p. 12, insert " by" between the words " made" and " them" — 1. 2d, note in p. 13, dele " is" between the words " certainly" and " witliout" and insert " being-" — 1. 4, 2d note in p. 16, instead of " tenure" alter it to " tenor" — 1. 4, note in p. 21, ilele " domination" and insert " denization" — 1. 14, p. 34, instead of " admiral Cabot" read "admiral Chabot" — 1. 10, p. 36, for "Cuodriers" read "Coudriers" — 1. 12, p. 40, altei- tiie word " tiling" to " king" ; and in the next 1. the word " erected" into " created" ; and in the last 1. of the note in the same p. ilele the figures " 24" and insert " 113" — 1. 1, 1st note in p. 47, for "Barkhurst" read " Parkhurst" — 1. 4, note in p. 89, instead of " consisling" read " counting" — 1. 1, p. 122, for " Pontgrave" read " Ponti-incourl" ; and in tlie 2d 1. of the same p. for " Pontrincourt' read " Pontgrave" — 1. 1, of Sect. \ 1, dc-k the y in tiie word " eighty" ; that is, for " one hundred and eiglity years" read " one hundred and eight" — 1. 26, p. 159, instead of "There" read "This" — 1. 2d, note in page 181, instead of " Boyle" read " Bayle" — 1. 26, same p. (TBI,) instead of " faniastic" read " fanatic" — 1. 9, p. 184, for " not" read " now" — ^1. 5, p. 187, insert the woid " as" between " with" and " ardent" — 1. 5, p. 189, instead of "reslraims" read "vestments" — 1. 15, p. 192, instead of" blow" read "law" —1.3, p. 202, instead of " for" read "far"— 1. 4, of the con^ents of Sect. IX, instt;d of " successes" read "excesses" — 1. 24, p. 241, for "probably" read " probable"—]- IT", p. 255, for " 1682" read " 1632"— last 1. of p. 264, strike out the words, "the consideration of" — 1.11, p. 269, for "on" read "at" — 1. 11, p. 282, instead of the words " to begin" read "beyond" — 1. 10, note in p. 288, instead of " islands" read " island" — 1. 13, p. 295, instead of " chap- ter" read " charter" — 1. 7, p. 338, instead of " Meantys" i-ead " Mcautys"; and the same again in the last 1 of p. 24, and in the 2d 1. of p. 342 — last'l. of p. 351, instead of "on" read " as". POSTSCRIPT... .As the distance between the press and the residence of the author, precluded him from an)' opportimity of revising the proof-sheets as tluy came from the press, it is ho])ed tlmt the reader will excuse the foregoing list oi' errata, which have taken place in the printing of this vohmie ; and he is so- licited to make the alterations with his pen, in the places therein referred to- ff^ ■^ -V-