The glorious &longs;un him&longs;elf
Bears on his &longs;plendid di&longs;k, dark &longs;pots ob&longs;cure:
Who, in his bright career, denotes tho&longs;e &longs;tains?
Or, ba&longs;ely from his full meridian turns,
And &longs;corns his grateful &longs;alutary rays?
Author's Manu&longs;cript Poems.

ARGUMENT.

The Author re&longs;cueth from Oblivion a valuable
Manu&longs;cript Epi&longs;tle, reflecting great
Light on the `Judicial Proceedings, in the
fir&longs;t Settlement of Ma&longs;&longs;acbu&longs;etts: Apologizeth
for the Per&longs;ecutors of his Ancestor.

[figure description] Page 037.[end figure description]

I HAVE fortunately di&longs;covered,
pa&longs;ted on the back of an old Indian deed,
a manu&longs;cript, which reflects great light
upon my ance&longs;tor's conduct, and on the
tran&longs;actions of tho&longs;e times; which, according
to the beneficial mode of modern historians,
I &longs;hall tran&longs;cribe literally.

[figure description] Page 038.[end figure description]

It &longs;hould be premi&longs;ed, that in the year
one thou&longs;and &longs;ix hundred and thirty &longs;ix,
the governour, deputy governour, three assistants,
and three mini&longs;ters, among whom
was Hugh Peters, afterwards hung and
quartered in England, for his adherence
to Oliver Cromwell, were entreated, by
the Ma&longs;&longs;achu&longs;etts' court, to make a draft
of laws, agreeable to the word of God, to
report to the next general court; and, in
the interim, the magi&longs;trates were directed
to determine cau&longs;es according to the laws,
then e&longs;tabli&longs;hed, and where no laws existed,
then as near to the word of God as
they could.

To Ma&longs;ter Hanserd Knollys—
the&longs;e Greeting.
Worthee and Beloved,

Remembrin my kind love to Mr. Hilton,
I now &longs;end you &longs;ome note of my

[figure description] Page 039.[end figure description]

tryalls at Bo&longs;ton.—Oh that I may come
out of this, and al the lyke tryalls, as
goold &longs;evene times puryfyed in the furnice.

After the rulers at Bo&longs;ton had fayled
to fa&longs;tenne what Roger Harlakenden was
plea&longs;ed to call the damning errours of
Anne Hutchin&longs;on upon me, I looked to
be &longs;ent away in peace; but Governour
Winthrop &longs;ayd I mu&longs;t abide the examining
of ye church; accordingly, on the
thyrd day of ye weeke, I was convened before
them.—Sir Harry Vane, the governour,
Dudley, Haines, with ma&longs;ters Cotton,
Shepherd, and Hugh Peters pre&longs;ent,
with others.—They prepounded that I
was to be examined, touching a certain act
of adultery I had committed, with one
mi&longs;tre&longs;s Miriam Wilbore, wife of Samuel
Wilbore, for carnally looking to lu&longs;te
after her, at the lecture in Bo&longs;ton, when
ma&longs;ter Shepherd expounded.—This mistress
Miriam hath &longs;ince been dealte with,

[figure description] Page 040.[end figure description]

for coming to that lecture with a pair of
wanton open workt gloves, &longs;lit at the
thumbs and fingers, for the purpo&longs;e of taking
&longs;nuff; for, as ma&longs;ter Cotton ob&longs;erved,
for what end &longs;hould tho&longs;e vaine opennings
be, but for the intent of taken filthy
&longs;nuff; and he quoted Gregory Nazianzen
upon good works.—Ma&longs;ter Peters
&longs;aid, that the&longs;e opennings were Satan's
port holes of firy temptatione. Mi&longs;tre&longs;s
Miriam offerd in excu&longs;e of her vain attire,
that &longs;he was newle married, and appeared
in her bridall arraye. Ma&longs;ter Peters &longs;aid,
that marriage was the oca&longs;ion that the
Devil tooke to ca&longs;te his firy darts, and lay
his pit falls of temptation, to catche frale
fle&longs;h and bloode. She is to be further
dealt with for taken &longs;nuff. How the
u&longs;e of the good creature tobaccoe can be
an offence I cannot &longs;ee.—Oh my beloved,
how the&longs;e prowde phari&longs;ees labour aboute
the minte and cummine. Governour Winthrop
inquired of mee, if I confe&longs;&longs;ed the

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matter. I &longs;aid I wi&longs;hed a coppy of there
charge.—Sir Harry Vane &longs;aid, there was
no neede of any coppie, &longs;eeing I knew I
was guiltee. Charges being made out
where there was an uncertantie whether
the accu&longs;ed was guiltie or not, and to
lighten the accu&longs;ed into the nature of his
cryme, here was no need. Ma&longs;ter Cotton
&longs;aid, did you not look upon mi&longs;tre&longs;s
Wilbore? I confe&longs;sed that I did. He &longs;aid
then you are verelie guiltie, brother Underhill.
I &longs;aid nay, I did not look at the
woman lu&longs;tfully.—Ma&longs;ter Peters &longs;aid,
why did you not look at &longs;i&longs;ter Nowell or
&longs;i&longs;ter Upham? I &longs;aid, verelie they are not
de&longs;yrable women, as to temporale graces.—
Then Hugh Peters and al cryed, it is enough,
he hath confe&longs;&longs;ed, and pa&longs;&longs;ed to
excommunication. I &longs;ayd where is the
law by which you condemne me. Winthrop
&longs;aid, there is a committee to draft
laws. Brother Peters are you not on that
committee, I am &longs;ure you have maide a law

[figure description] Page 042.[end figure description]

again&longs;te this cryinge &longs;in. Hugh Peters
replyed that he had &longs;uch a law in his
minde, but had not writtene it downe.
Sir Harry Vane &longs;aid, it is &longs;ufficient.
Haynes &longs;aid, ay, law enough for antinomians.
Ma&longs;ter Cotton tooke a bible from
his coate and read who&longs;o looketh on a
woman, &c.

William Blaxton[1] hath been with me
privelie, he weeps over the cryinge &longs;ins of
the times, and expecteth &longs;oone to goe out

[figure description] Page 043.[end figure description]

of the juri&longs;diction. I came from England,
&longs;ais he, becau&longs;e. I did not like the
lords bi&longs;hops, but I have yet to praye to
be delivered from the lords bretherenne.

Salute brother Fi&longs;h, and others, who
havinge been di&longs;appointed of libertie in
this wilderne&longs;s are erne&longs;tlie lookinge for
a better countre.

eaf407v1.n1

[1] When our forefathers fir&longs;t came to Bo&longs;ton,
they found this William Blaxton in the pe&longs;&longs;e&longs;&longs;ion of
the &longs;ite, where the town now &longs;tands. The general
court, April 1 &longs;t, 1633, granted him fifty acres of land,
near where his hou&longs;e &longs;tood; &longs;uppo&longs;ed to be where
the pe&longs;t hou&longs;e in Bo&longs;ton formerly &longs;tood.—He afterwards
removed to Rhode I&longs;land, and lived near
Whipple's bridge in Cumberland.—He planted the
fir&longs;t orchard in that di&longs;trict, the fruit of which was
caten of one hundred and forty years afterwards, and
&longs;ome of the trees are now &longs;tanding.—He had been a
mini&longs;ter of the church of England, preached often
at Providence, and died in a good old age much lamented.

It is with great reluctance I am induced
to publi&longs;h this letter, which appears to
reflect upon the ju&longs;tice of the proceedings
of our forefathers. I would rather,
like the &longs;ons of Noah, go backwards and
ca&longs;t a garment over our fathers' nakedness;
but the impartiality of a hi&longs;torian,
and the natural &longs;olicitude to wipe the
&longs;tains from the memory of my honoured

[figure description] Page 044.[end figure description]

ance&longs;tor, will excu&longs;e me to the candid
Whoever reflects upon the piety of our
forefathers, the noble unre&longs;trained ardour,
with which they re&longs;i&longs;ted oppre&longs;&longs;ion in
England, relinqui&longs;hed the delights of
their native country, cro&longs;&longs;ed a boisterous
ocean, penetrated a &longs;avage wilderness,
encountered famine, pe&longs;tilence,
and Indian warfare, and tran&longs;mitted
to us their &longs;entiments of independence,
that love of liberty, which under God enabled
us to obtain our own glorious freedom,
will readily pa&longs;s over tho&longs;e few dark
&longs;pots of zeal, which clouded their rising
&longs;un.

p407-052

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