Bradford's history of the Plymouth settlement, 1608-1650: Rendered into modern English by Harold PagetBradford, William
History
Bradford's history of the Plymouth settlement, 1608-1650: Rendered into modern English by Harold Paget
Bradford, William
Massachusetts -- History -- New Plymouth, 1620-1691; Pilgrims (New Plymouth Colony) -- Early works to 1800
This is their own judgment of the man’s proceedings. I thought it
better to describe them in their words than my own. Yet, though
no other compensation was got from him than the reversion of this
patent and the shares he had in the adventure, he was never quiet,
but sued them in the chief courts of England, and when he was still
frustrated, brought it before Parliament. But he is now dead, and I
will leave him to the Lord.
This ship was in greater extremity at sea, during her second
attempted passage, than one could often hear of—without being
wrecked—as I have been informed by Mr. William Pierce who was then
captain of her, and by many others who were passengers on her. It
was about the middle of February. The storm lasted for fourteen days
altogether; but for two or three days and nights continuously it was
of fearful violence. After they had cut down their mast, their round
house and all their upper works were swept away; three men had all
they could do to keep the helm, and the man who held the ship before
the wind was obliged to be bound fast to prevent him from washing
away. The seas so over-raked them, that many times those on the deck
did not know whether they were within board or without; and once she
was so foundered in the sea that they all thought she would never
rise again. But yet the Lord preserved them, and brought them at last
safe to Portsmouth, to the wonder of all who saw what a state she was
in, and heard what they had endured.
About the latter end of June there arrived a ship, with Captain
Francis West, commissioned to be Admiral of New England, to restrain
interlopers and such fishing ships as came to fish and trade without
a license from the Council of New England, for which rights they were
to be made to pay a substantial sum of money. But he could do no good
with them; they were too strong for him, and he found the fishermen
stubborn fellows; and their owners, upon complain made to Parliament,
procured an order that fishing should be free. He told the Governor
they spoke with a ship at sea and were aboard her, which was coming
to this settlement, in which there were several passengers; he
wondered she had not arrived and feared some mischance, for they
parted company in a storm shortly after they had been aboard. This
report filled them with fear, though they still had hopes. The
captain of this ship had some two hogshead of peas to sell, but
seeing their need he held them at £9 sterling a hogshead, and would
not take under £8, and yet he wanted to buy their beaver at less than
the market rate. So they told him they had lived so long without,
they would do so still, rather than give such an unreasonable price.
So he went on to Virginia.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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