At length, when the ship was ready to go, it was discovered that Lyford was long in writing, and sent many letters and could not forbear to communicate with his intimates such things therefrom as made them laugh in their sleeves, thinking he had done their errands satisfactorily. The Governor and some of his friends, knowing how matters stood in England, and what harm this might do, took a shallop and went out with the ship a league or two to sea, and called for Lyford’s and Oldham’s letters. Mr. William Pierce being captain of the ship, and knowing well the mischief they made both here and in England, afforded them all the assistance he could. He found above twenty of Lyford’s letters, many of them long and full of slanders and false accusations, tending not only to their prejudice but even aiming at their ruin. Most of the letters they let pass, but took copies of them; of some they sent true copies and kept the originals, lest he should deny that he had written them. Amongst them they found copies of two which he sent enclosed in a letter of his to Mr. John Pemberton, a minister, and a great opponent of theirs. Of these two letters of which he had taken the copies, one of them was written by a gentleman in England to Mr. Brewster, the other by Mr. Winslow to Mr. John Robinson in Holland, at his coming away, as the ship lay at Gravesend. They were lying sealed in the main cabin; and whilst Mr. Winslow was busy about the affairs of the ship, this sly mischief-maker opens them, makes copies, and seals them up again; and not only sends the copies to his friend and their adversary, but adds in the margin many scurrilous and flouting annotations! The ship went out towards evening, and in the night the Governor returned. They were somewhat blank at it, but after some weeks, as they heard nothing, they were as brisk as ever, thinking nothing was known, and all had gone well for them, and that the Governor had only gone to despatch his own letters. The reason why the Governor and the rest took no steps at once was in order to let things ripen so that they might the better discover their intention and see who were their adherents; for, amongst others they had found a letter from one of their confederates, stating that Mr. Oldham and Mr. Lyford intended a reformation in church and commonwealth, and that as soon as the ship was gone, they intended to join together and have the sacraments, etc.