The Popham Colony : $b a discussion of its historical claims, with a bibliography of the subjectPoole, William Frederick
History
The Popham Colony : $b a discussion of its historical claims, with a bibliography of the subject
Poole, William Frederick
Maine -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
Thomas Fuller (Worthies of England, ii. p. 284) says "his [Popham's]
justice was exemplary on Theeves and Robbers." Wood quotes this
passage, adding, "whose wayes and courses he well understood when he
was a young man," and connects it with the fact of his sending
convicts to the plantations. Fuller, in his essay on Plantations, in
"Holy and Profane States," 1642, says: "If the planters be such as
leap thither from the gallows, can any hope for cream out of scum,
when men send, as I may say, Christian savages to heathen savages? It
is rather bitterly than _falsely_ spoken concerning _one_ of our
Western plantations, consisting of most dissolute people, that it was
very like unto England, as being spit out of the very mouth of it."
David Lloyd (State Worthies, 1760, ii. p. 46) gives a sketch of Chief
Justice Popham, in which, quoting the words of Fuller, already cited,
he goes on to say: "neither did he only punish malefactors, but
provide for them. He first set up the discovery of New England to
maintain and employ those that could not live honestly in the Old."
Lloyd also, in this connection, quotes the passage we have cited from
Lord Bacon (p. 23), showing that it was understood by the old English
historians as applying to the Popham Colony.
The authorities seem to be conclusive as to the character of the
colonists sent to Sagadahoc, the person by whom, and the manner in
which, they were "prepared;"--for that is the expression Strachey uses
(p. 163) with regard to these very colonists. Popham had sent out the
year before (1606) a colony of one hundred persons destined to the
same place. The ship was captured by the Spaniards, and the persons
taken to Spain, and "made slaves in their gallions." The loss of the
ship and outfit was suitably lamented; but not one word of sympathy
was expressed by the old writers for the persons enslaved by the
Spaniards; nor did Popham, so far as we know, make any attempt to
rescue them from their hard fate; but he forthwith "prepared a greater
number of planters,"--that is, the one hundred and twenty persons who
afterwards landed at Sabino. If it is pretended that the first company
were honest, worthy men, the assumption carries with it the necessary
inference that Popham was a heartless wretch; but, assuming that they
also were criminals, it was natural that he should leave them to their
fate.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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