In spite of various drawbacks, however, the colony grew in prosperity. The windmill was re paired for the autumn grinding. The oxen and the horse bought at New Amsterdam enlarged the possibilities of agriculture, and the fields were somewhat increased. A piece of land, not “properly bought from the Indians,” had been occupied, giving rise to disputes with two chiefs, who demanded pay for the tract. On September 20, 1645, four yards of cloth and about nine yards of _sewant_ were presented to the chiefs for their claim. This seems to have settled the question, and the colonists were henceforth undisturbed in their possession. The winter of 1645 was now approaching. Provisions were purchased from the neighbors and the Indians, and all kinds of necessary supplies were provided for the cold weather. Omens seemed more favorable than previous years, and the settlers were happier than ever before in their new home. But a month before the Christmas holidays a terrible misfortune befell the little colony. It was on the 25th of November, 1645. The governor had gone to rest in Printz Hall; the soldiers and settlers of New Gothenborg had withdrawn to their quarters for the night; the lights in the dwellings were extinguished; all was quiet and peaceful. The gunner Sven Vass was on duty as watchman; but Vass fell asleep and left his candle burning. Between ten and eleven an alarm was given,--the candle had set fire to the fort. The people rushed out of their dwellings to save what could be saved. But the flames grew with great rapidity, the powder chest exploded with terrible force. In a short while nearly everything was consumed in the storehouse. Printz Hall also burnt down, and the governor lost property to the value of 5,584 R. D. When morning dawned on the island of Tinicum, the little settlement there had greatly changed its appearance. Nothing but the barn remained. Cold set in, and the river froze over, preventing aid from reaching the unfortunate colonists who suffered terrible hardships, being cut off from the mainland from December until March. But warmth came at last, and connections were established with the other settlements. Sven Vass was tried at a regular court in 1646. He was found guilty by Printz and the jury, and a verdict to that effect was pronounced. The case was reopened the following year, and “on February 8, 9, 10, 11, Anno 1647, ... a legal court was held in New Gothenborg in New Sweden ... at which an inquiry was made about what was consumed in the fire on the night of November 25 between 10 and 11 o’clock when New Gothenborg was burnt.” Before this court Vass was re-examined, and in March he was sent in irons to Sweden together with all the records and minutes in the cage, and the execution of the verdict was referred to the pleasure of Her Royal Majesty and the Right Honorable Company.