Canada -- Description and travel; United States -- Description and travel
Within the Pilgrim Hall, a fireproof building upon the chief street,
are kept the precious relics of the "Mayflower" and the Pilgrims, with
paintings of the embarkation from Delft-haven and landing at Plymouth,
and old portraits of the leaders of the colony. Among the interesting
documents are autograph writings, establishing a chain of
acquaintanceship connecting the original Pilgrims with the present
time. Peregrine White was the first child of the new colony, the
infant being born on the "Mayflower" after she came into Cape Cod Bay,
in November, 1620, and he was only a month old when they landed. The
baby, surviving all their hardships, lived to a ripe old age, and
"Grandfather Cobb," born in 1694, knew him well. Cobb, in his day,
lived to be the oldest man in New England, his life covering space in
three centuries, for he exceeded one hundred and seven years, dying in
1801. William R. Sever, born in 1790, knew Cobb and recollected him
well, and living until he was ninety-seven years old, died in 1887.
These three lives connected the Pilgrim landing almost with the
present day. The old cradle that rocked Peregrine White on the
"Mayflower," and after they landed, is preserved--an upright,
stiff-backed, wicker-work basket, upon rude wooden rockers. One of the
chief paintings represents the signing of the memorable "Mayflower
Compact." There are also in the hall some of the old straight-backed
chairs of the Pilgrims, with their pots and platters, and among other
relics Miles Standish's sword. In the court-house are the original
records of the colony, the first allotment of lands among the
settlers, their deeds, agreements and wills, and the patent given the
colony by Earl Warwick in 1629. There are also shown in quaint
handwriting, with the ink partly faded out, records of how they
divided their cattle, when it was decided to change from the original
plan of holding them in common. Signatures of the Pilgrims are
attached to many of these documents. Governor Carver died the first
year, William Bradford succeeding, and there is preserved in Governor
Bradford's writing the famous order establishing trial by jury in the
colony.
THE PLYMOUTH ROCK.
"The breaking waves dashed high
On a stern and rock-bound coast."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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