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REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
3 1833 01083 7133
HISTORY
OF THE
STATE OF MAINE;
FROOI
ITS FIRST DISCOVERY, A. D. 1602,
TO
THE SEPARATION, A. D. 1820, INCLUSIVE.
By WILLIAM D. WILLIAMSON.
IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. II.
fSlallotDcU:
GLAZIER, MASTERS & CO.
1832.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1 832, by William D. Williamson, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Maine.
THIS PRINTING IS A FACSIMILE OF THE 1832 EDITION
This edition published by The Cumberland Press, Inc. Freeport, Maine 04032
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 66-22134
Printed in the United States of America By KJ Printing, Augusta, Maine
CONTENTS OF VOL. II.
A. D. CHAPTER I. Page 9 to 37.
1691. Oct. 7, Provincial Charter of William and Mary granted ; em- bracing Massachusetts, New-Plymouth, Maine and Sagadahock. 1692-3. The first administration.
1694. Feb. Death of Sir William Phips, first Royal Governor.
1696. Nova Scotia conceded by Massachusetts to the British Crown.
Distress of Yorkshire.
1697. Sept. 11. Treaty of Ryswick. Nova Scotia resigned to France.
1698. Villebon, the French Governor, claims westward to Kennebeck.
1699. May 26, Lord Bellamont arrives, Provincial Governor. J.
Bridges, first surveyor in the King's woods.
1700. Resettlement of Maine promoted. A Committee of Claims. 1701-2. Deaths of Lord Bellamont, Lieut. Gov. Stoughton, James II. and
William III.
1702. Joseph Dudley, Provincial Governor. Population in Maine.
CHAPTER II. p. 38—79.
1703. Queen Anne's war. The French draw the broken tribes to St.
Francois. Several eastern towns attacked by the Indians.
1704. Church's 5th eastern expedition. Colonial sufferers in this war.
1706. The Indians consider the war a burthen.
1707. All the remaining eastern settlements assailed.
1709-10. Expeditions against Port-Royal. Nova Scotia subdued by Col.
Nicholson ; — an event important to Maine and Sagadahock. 1711-12. The war. Last skirmish at Wells.
1712. Oct. 27, Hostilities cease.
1713. March 30, Treaty of Utrecht ; and July 11, of Portsmouth. No- va Scotia resigned to England and made a British Province. Castine the younger.
CHAPTER III. p. 80— 110.
1713. The administration and prudentials of Maine. Three towns sur-
vive the war. Ecclesiastical affairs. Order for the resettle- ment of several towns.
1714. Five towns revived. Paper money floods the country. Samuel
Shute commissioned Governor.
1715. A road ordered from Berwick to Pejepscot. Three townships
projected in the Pejepscot purchase. Georgetown resettled.
1716. Settlement of Kennebeck attempted. Yorkshire extended to
St. Croix.
1717. Treaty with the Indians confirmed at Arrowsick. Timber trees
protected.
1718. Armstrong's project to settle Sagadahock.
1719. Settlements between Kennebeck and St. Georges revived. Fort
Richmond built. The Governor and House differ.
1720. Coram's project to settle Sagadahock. Affairs of Nova Scotia.
Rale's character and conduct. Notaries Public.
1721. P. Dudley's case as a Councillor. Mast trees protected. The
Indians denounced as rebels. Castine the younger seized. Rale escapes.
1722. North- Yarmouth resettled.
CHAPTER IV. p. 111—151.
Lovewell's war. The first reprizals and attacks by the Indians. Brunswick burnt. July 25, war proclaimed. Events of the war. Part of Georgetown burnt.
1723. Old town destroyed by Col. Westbrook. Attacks of the Indians.
1724. Col. Moulton's attempt to take Ral^. Successes of the Indians.
Norridgewock taken and Raid killed. Lovewell's excursions.
1622210
iv
CONTENTS.
A. D.
1725. The battle of Pegwacket. The Indian village at Fort Hill de- stroyed. Dummer's treaty, Dec. 15, at Boston. Its ratifica- tion. Sagamores' sentiments,
CHAPTER V. p. 152—178.
Dummer's administration. Three trading houses established.
1727. A mission sent to recover captives. Earthquake. A back tier of
towns proposed.
1728. July 13, Governor Burnet arrives. Councillors. His disputes
w'ith the House. Death.
1729. Political changes in Sagadahock. David Dunbar, surveyor of
the woods, takes possession of that Province ; rebuilds the fort at Pemaquid and surveys lots.
1730. Gov. Belcher's administration commences. Officers in York-
shire. Complaints against Dunbar. He is appointed Lt. Gov. of New-Hampshire, 1732-3. His removal effected.
CHAPTER VI. p. 179—193.
1733. Terms on which new townships were granted. Grants made.
1734. Paper money overflows the country. Salary question put to rest.
1735. Falmouth made half-shire with York. County officers. A new
valuation finished. Census. Throat-distemper rages.
1736. Trade extended. Right to the woods discussed. Natives com-
plain of encroachments by Mr. Waldo. Dormant claims revived.
1737. Great dearth of provisions.
CHAPTER VII. p. 194—214.
1737-8. Dispute with New-Hampshire as to dividing lines, referred, dis- cussed, settled.
1739. William Pepperell and Samuel Waldo command the two York-
shire regiments.
1740. News of the Spanish war received. Specie scarce. Land-bank
formed — dissolved.
1741. Governor Belcher removed from office ; and appointment of
Governor Shirley. George VVhitefield. New tenor bills issued. First instance of impressment.
1742. Ship-building, trade and fisheries flourish. Settlements promoted.
New valuation.
1743. Fears ®f war and measures of defence.
CHAPTER VIII. p. 215—233.
1744. The Spanish war. The French join against' England. War de-
clared against the Indians, from Passamaquoddy eastward. Eight eastern scouts. Defensible men in Maine, 2,855. Lou- isbourg described. Expedition against it.
1745. The officers, the fleet, and the army. Assistance of a British
squadron. The siege. Ijouisbourg capitulates. Its great strength. Expenses of the expedition repaid by Great Britain.
CHAPTER IX. p. 234—259.
Fifth Indian war. A defensive force of 450 men raised. Depre- dations by the savages.
1746. A French fleet of 70 sail, under Duke d'Anville, arrives at Hali-
fax. Its disasters, A force of 470 men from this Province capitulates at Minas.
1747. A naval victory achieved by two English Admirals, Anson and
Warren. Defence of the eastern people provided. News of peace arrives.
1748. Oct. Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelie. In this war, the Province lost
3,000 effective men.
1749. Treaty with the eastern tribes at Falmouth.
CHAPTER X. p. 260—273.
1749-60. Claim of the French westward to Kennebeck. Governor Shir- ley goes a Commissioner to Paris, on the subject of boundaries, Monej' due received from England, aod the paper money all
CONTENTS.
V
redeemed. The French Neutrals join the troops from Canada at the Isthmus of Nova Scotia. Halifax settled.
1750. Cornwallis attacks the French helow the Isthmus. The homi-
cide of Albee and accomplices, at VViscasset. The Indians from the north, commit mischief.
1751. August, Treaty with tlte Natives confirmed.
CHAPTER XI. p. 274—303.
1750-2. The people — conspicuous for their merits, and tolerant in their sentiments. The ministry of the g-ospel is able and pious. The British American system enforced, by acts of Parliament. Settlement of the eastern country encourag-ed.
1752. New valuation. New Style adopted. Petition for a new County.
1753. The Indians disturbed by encroachments, and by fires in the
woods. Obstacles to settlement were the fears of savag-e hos- tilities and the question as to land-titles. Vassal's project. Governor Shirley's return. The claims of the Eng-lish and French to the eastern country specified. French line of north- ern forts, and aggressions,
1754. Defensive measures enlarged. General Union of the colonies
projected. Fort Halifax at Kennebeck erected. Measures of defence. War inevitable.
CHAPTER XII. p. 304— 345
French war and 6th Indian war. The French forts built. The eastern fortifications.
1755. Four expeditions against the French, — three being unsuccessful.
The French driven from Nova Scotia, and the French Neu- trals removed. War declared against all the eastern tribes, except the Tarratines. The people jealous. Cargill's affair War upon the Tarratines. An Earthquake.
1756. Four expeditions against the French. Public burthens great.
War declared against France. Governor Shiriey leaves the Province. The Indians attack the eastern towns and settle- ments. The expeditions all unsuccessful.
1757. The Indian war. Governor Pownal arrives. William Pitt put
at the head of the British ministry.
1758. Three expeditions — all crowned with success — Louisbourg and
other places taken. The last efforts of the Indians against the English, at St. Georges.
1759. A general attack upon the French. General Wolfe proceeds
against Quebec. A fortress built at Penobscot, and named Fort Pownal. Death of General Waldo. Sept. 13, Quebec capitulates. Major Rogers destroys the Indian village of St. Francois. Death of Generals Pepperell and Waldo.
1760. Peace with the eastern tribes. Canada finally conquered.
CHAPTER XIII. p. 346— 36S.
Limits of the, Eastern Patents and great Tracts reviewed. Gov. Pownal leares the Province. Members of the Council for the last 30 years. Cumberland and Lincoln Counties established. Francis Bernard arrives. Provincial Governor. George III.
1761. New valuation completed. Political parties noticed. Disputes
between the Governor and House. York bridge erected.
1762. Twelve townships granted at Union river. Line between Maine
and Nova Scotia, considered. Drought, fires and scarcity. Three new towns established.
1763. Feb. 10, Treaty of Paris, — Canada, resigned to Great Britain.
Quebec Province established.
CHAPTER XIV. pr 369— 407.
1763. Measures to raise a revenue in America.
1764. Governor's view of the eastern tribes. Census of Maine.
1765. Jan. 10, Stamp-act passed. The first Continental Congress,
1766. Stamp-act repealed. Crown lands and timber, considered.
1767. A Hurricane. Parliament lay duties on tea, glass, paper, &c.
and regulate salaries.
vi
CONTENTS.
A. D.
1768. Colonial circulars offend the British ministry. A Provincial
Convention. British troops stationed in Boston.
1769. Gov. Bernard leaves the Province. Duties repealed, except on teas.
1770. Boston Massacre. Public lands and mechanical arts, ingreat repute.
1771. Thomas Hutchinson commissioned Governor. He opposes the
settlements in Sag-adahock. They increase on the Kennebeck. Governor disputes with the House. Judg-es' salaries.
1773. About 300 families leave Waldoborough. Symptoms of revolution
noticed. Ministers and lawyers opposed to British taxation. The dispute well understood b}' the parties.
1774. Dec. 16, Teas destroyed in Boston.
CHAPTER XV. p. 409—420.
1774. Acts passed by Parliament, to close the port of Boston, alter the
charter of Massachusetts, and make other chang-es. Gen. Gag-e appointed Governor. He dissolves the General Court. A Pro- vincial Cong-ress meets. Second Continental Congress convenes. County Conventions. Committees of Safety and Supplies. Af- fairs of Coulson and Mowett.
1775. April 19. Battle of Lexington. Gen. Gage denounced.
CHAPTER XVI. p. 421—448.
The war of the Revolution commenced. Capt. Mowett seized at Falmouth. First Bills of Continental money issued. George Washington commands the American Army. June 17th, Bunk- er Hill battle. Eastern affairs. Provincial charter resumed. Members of the Assemblies. Massachusetts issues paper-money. Falmouth burnt by Mowett. Arnold's expedition through Kennebeck to Quebec. Repulse. General Post-oflBce estab- lished. New appointment of Civil officers. Militia reorganized.
1776. Defence of Maine. Declaration of Independence.
CHAPTER XVII. p. 449—485.
The amity of the eastern Indians confirmed. Measures of de- fence. Eddy's retreat to Machias. A Continental Army raised. Firearms arrive from France. Battle ol Trenton.
1777. A garrison established at Machias. The enemy there repulsed.
Capture of Gen. Burgoyne's army.
1778. New Constitution rejected. Estates of Absentees confiscated.
Paper*money depreciated, 30 to one. Arrival of a French fleet. Maine and Sagadahock formed into a District.
1779. The British seize upon Penobscot and occupy 'Biguyduce. The
American fleet and troops sent to remove the enemy — defeated. The losses. Saltonstall cashiered.
1780. Troubles in Maine : — 600 men raised for the eastern service.
Gen. Wadsworlh commands the Eastern Department. Arnold's treason. Constitution of the Commonwealth adopted. Mem- bers of the Council for the past 20 years.
CHAPTER XVIII. p. 486—605.
1781. Administration under the State-constitution. Gen. Wadsworth
carried a prisoner to 'Biguyduce. Maj. Barton made prisoner also. They escape. Defence of the eastern inhabitants. Gen. McCobb succeeds to the command of Gen. Wadsworth. Pub- lic credit low, and public burdens great. First Commissioners of Eastern Lands. October 27, surrender of Cornwallis and his army.
1782. Cessation of hostilities. Judicial and militia systems new modelled,
1783. Sept. 3. Definitive treaty of Paris. The American army dis-
banded. Losses.
CHAPTER XIX. p. 506—520.
1784. Great and immediate increase of settlements and population in
Maine. Committees of Eastern Lands appointed. Lumber and other articles of export. Disputes between the borderers on the river St. Croix.
CONTENTS.
vii
1785. Body of Statiitc-lav/ revised. Expenses of the Penobscot expe- dition considered. Governor Hancock resig-ns, and J. Bowdoin elected Governor. Demand for eastern lands. Twelve town- ships confirmed. Provision made for quieting- the Islanders. Treaty with the Tarratines. Towns and plantations revived. Great freshet.
CHAPTER XX. p. 521—547.
1785-6. Separation of Maine, from Massachusetts, discussed. Falmouth Gazette, first published. Address to the people. Result of measures taken for Separation. Three new towns. Shay's in- surrection. Land lottery instituted.
1787. Hancock re-elected Gov. Economy and industry enccurag-ed.
1788. Federal Constitution adopted. First Representatives to Congress,
and Electors. Slavery abolished. A Colleg-e in Maine project- ed. Twenty new towns.
1789. Georg-e Washington, first President of the U. States, inaugurated.
CHAPTER XXI. p. 548—557.
1790. Counties of Hancock and Washington established. Maine a Dis-
trict. A Census taken. Officers of the District Court. Dis- putes between the eastern borderers and British provincials qui- eted. A law to preserve game. 1791-2. Nine new towns. Objects of eastern enterprize.
1793. Death of Governor Hancock. Two new towns incorporated.
CHAPTER XXII. p. 558—586.
1794. Political parties— Federalists and Anti-federalists. The French
revolution. The Americans take sides. Mr. Jay's treaty. Samuel Adams elected Governor. Three Representatives to Congress elected. Bowdoin College established. 1794-5. Nineteen new towns incorporated. 3,500,000 acres of eastern lands sold since the peace.
1795. Emigrant Society formed. Metalic coins regulated — eagles, dol-
lars and cents, adopted in computation.
1796. A 3d Militia Division formed. Law as to Shell-fish. By a treaty
with the Tarratines, 9 townships relinquished by them. Seven new towns. Academies endowed.
1797. Records of Supreme Judicial Court removed from Boston to their
respective counties. 1. Sumner elected Governor. Parties. Federalist and Democrat, J. Adams and T. Jefierson, President and Vice-President. French aggression. Five new towns.
1798. The true St. Croix determined. Eight new towns. War meas-
ures— Land-tax, sedition law and alien bill. Envoys to France,
1799. Truxton's victory. Kennebeck County established. The Ply-
month, Waldo and Pejepscot patents limited. Deaths of Gov. Sumner and Gen. Washington.
CHAPTER XXIII. p. 587—604.
1800. The Supreme Judiciary revised. Caleb Strong elected Gov-
ernor. Electors of President and Vice-President chosen. Opposition of the Democrats to the measures of the National administration. Treaty negociated with France. The Fed- eral Eagle — a badge. C. Bench of 16 Judges established. T. Jefferson and A. Burr, President and Vice-President. A 2d census. A new valuation. Six new towns.
1801. J. Read and P. Coffin, Land-agents. Sales of the eastern lands
considered. The Federalists oppose the new administration.
1802. Repeals of Congressional Acts— Other measures adopted. Me-
rino sheep imported. New towns.
1803. Banks increased, and the banking system revised. Law against
counterfeiting.
1804-5. Judiciary improved — and a Nisi-prius system adopted. Fisheries.
1805. Oxford County established. The era of incorporations.
1806. Though Governor Strong was re-elected, each legislative branch
viii
CONTENTS.
was democratical. The British insult our flag-. Non-importa- lion Act passed. Berlin and Milan decrees. British impressments. Embargo laid. Twenty-four new towns incorporated.
CHAPTER XXIV. p. 605—627.
J. Sullivan elected Governor. His administration — County-At- torneys, Courts of Sessions and Jury act. Betterment Law. A 4th militia division. Sullivan's death. Six- teen new towns.
C. Gore elected Governor. Somerset County established. Mr. Gore's administration. J. Madison, President of the United States. Erskine's arrangement. Rambouillet Decree. The affair of Chadwick. Vaccination recommended, Maine Bible Society established. E. Gerry elected Governor. The 3d Census. Exports, tonnage,
valuation, and fishery. Religious freedom-bill. Measures of Mr. Gerry's administra- tion. Skirmish between the Little Belt and the President. Two new militia divisions established. Mr. Strong re-elected Governor. Tax on banks. Corporeal punishment abolished. Land controversies in Lincoln settled.
CHAPTER XXV. p. 628—638.
The European belligerents. Embargo, and measures of defence.
June 18, war declared against G. Britain. Events of the war. Politics. New towns and Banks. Washington Benevolent Socie- ties. Direct tax imposed. March, all restrictive laws repealed. Factories established. American successes in the war.
CHAPTER XXVI. p. 639—657.
1814. The war in Maine. The enemy seize upon Eastport, Castine,
and Machias. The government instituted there by the British. Their other measures. Trade at Castine and Hampden. Clos- ing events and incidents of the war. Battle of N. Orleans. Measures of the Hartford Convention. Castine and the eastern coast evacuated by the British, as far eastwardly as Eastport.
CHAPTER XXVII. p. 658—679.
1815. Feb. 11, news of peace arrives. Trade and Commerce. The
condition of the cod-fishery. Public morals.
1816. New towns. County of Penobscot incorporated. A land office
established. J. Brooks elected Governor. Measures resumed to separate Maine from Massachusetts. Brunswick Conven- tion. Parties, Emigration westward.
1817. Cold Seasons. Emigrations partiallv checked. Moose Island
decided to belong to Maine. Our northern boundary discussed.
1S18. Treaty with the Tarratines. Probate Code revised. Sea-Serpent.
1819-20. Maine separated from Massachusetts. Its Constitution framed and adopted. It is admitted into tlie Union. Its political ad- ministration.
SUPPLEMENTAL.— CHAPTER XXVIII. p. 680—705. 1623 to The periods -of our history. The Militia. Expenditure and 1820. revenue. Taxation. Coins. Education, arts, studies and pro- fessions. The religious denominations and their ecclesiastical polity. Industry, trade and manufactures. The various insti- tutions, established. Domestic life reviewed.
APPENDIX.
List of Councillors under the Provincial Charter. Page 707. List of Councillors and Senators, under the Constitution. 708. List of Members of Congress from Maine. 709. ■The Rulers and Governors of Maine from its first settlement. 710. ■List of Counties and corporate towns. 712.
A. D,
1807.
J807.
i8oa.
1809.
1810. 1811.
1812.
1812. 1813. 1814.
No. 1.—
2. —
3. —
4. —
5. —
HISTORY OF MAINE
CHAPTER L
Provincial Charter — Governor and other Public Officers — Lcgisla- ture — Council— House oj Representatives — Voters — Statute enact- ments— Judicial Courts — Justices of the Peace — Appeals to the Crown — Militia — Ecclesiastical affairs — Education — Land-titles — Rights — Laws—Crimes and PunishmentS'^Witchcraft'^Death of Gov. Phips — NelsoUy Governor of Nova Scotia^ seized by Vil" Icbon, the French Governor — Massachusetts resigns the Govern^ ment of that Province to the Crown of England — Her measures protective of Maine — Restrictive acts of Parliament — Board of Trade and Plantations — Treaty of Ryswick — Nova Scotia re* signed to the French — They and Massachusetts both claim Saga- dahock^-Conduct of Villebon, the French Governor— 'Dispute about the jurisdiction of Sagadahock^I^ord Bellamont succeeds Governor Phips — His Speech — John Bridges, Survey or-^Gnreral of the woods — The eastern towns revived — Rumors of war and measures of defence — Great Island to be fortified — Committee of Claims — Fears of war — Deaths of Lord Bellamont, William Stoughton, James IT. and William III. — Measures of the French ^Governor Dudley succeeds Lord Bellamont — Meets the Indiana at Casco — The conference and its incidents^
The celebrated Charter of William and Mary, dated Octo- a . D. 1692. ber 7th, 1691, was brought hither from England by Sir Wil- ^"^^^(prof LiAM Phips, the first royal Governor, and went into operation ^^^^"^ ^ on the 14th of May, 1692. It embraced the whole territory of ibis State, in two great divisions ; — one, extending from Piscata- qua to Kennebeck, was called the Province of Maine} the other, Maine and including all between Kennebeck and the St. Croix, was usually J;^^^**'"' denominated Sagadahock*^ — As the political connexion between
♦ See Utvol. chap. xxii. A. D. 16»1.-— Though Nora Scotia was embraced; Massachusetts resigned the government of it to the crown, A. D. 1696, about a year before the peace ; and it became a British Province. — The Vol. II. 2
truor.
10 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1692. Massachusetts proper and the present State of Maine continued about 130 years ; it becomes important to give a general outline of the Province government under the new Charter. TheExccii- Its features bore a resemblance to the government of England, ^^^* and its departments were nearly as distinct. The Governor, Lieutenant-Governor and Secretary of State were appointed and commissioned by the crown, — to hold their respective offices dur- ing their sovereign's pleasure. The two first officers primarily took their oaths before each other ; — afterwards, they and the Secretary, also other officers, were severally sworn by two of the Council.
The Gov- The Governor was chief magistrate^ and invested with supreme executive authority. He had power to convene, adjourn, and even dissolve the Legislature, and to nominate, and with advice of Council, appoint all judges, sheriffs, justices of the peace, and other civil officers ; — their names being first placed seven days upon a nomination-book. To him and the Council, was given jurisdiction of all probate matters, and the right of drawing by warrant from the Provincial treasury, all appropriated public monies. As Captain- General, he was empowered to organize the militia, and appoint and commission all military officers ; also to erect and demolish fortifications ; — but he could not march any inhabitant out of the Province without his own consent, or that of the Legislature previously obtained. He could negative as many as thirteen of the Councillors chosen, and also the Speaker of the House, if they were displeasing to him ; — a prerogative often exercised by him in high party-times. The two Legislative branches, after organizing themselves in the spring, were usually addressed by him in a speech ; at other sessions, his communica- tions were by written message. He presided at the Council- board,* and no law or order passed by the two houses, or by either, was valid till approved by him. Lieui.Gov- The Lieutenant-Governor always filled the executive chair, when the chief magistrate was absent ; but at other times, during a series of years, he sat and voted with the Council.
charter aUo included the live northerly Isles of Shoals, as embraced in Gorges' charter : viz. Hog Island— Hay ley' or Smutty-nose Island — Duck, Cedar^ and Malaga Islands.— See 1st vol. chap. vi. A. D. 1639. ♦ He presided during executive, not legislative debates ; — thoHgh Lord
Bellamont did in both 2 Hutchinson's History, p. 107,— The places of
Councillors negatived^ were not filled that year.
ChaP. I.] OF MAINE. 1 1
The Legislative power was vested in two distinct branches — A. D. i692
1 IT., TT '^93.
each having; a negative upon the other. 1 he ujpper House was .j.^^^ called the Council^ or Board of Assistants, consisting of 28 laiure. members ; — the other was the House of Representatives.
By the charter, three of the Council were always to be j^e Coun-
from the Province of Maine, and one from Sagadahock ; — who cii. must at the time, " be inhabitants or proprietors of land within "the territory," which they were chosen to represent. The whole number of Councillors were, at first, by name inserted in the charter, who were to hold their places till the election in May, 1693. Those in Maine were Jol) Alcot,'^ Samuel DonnelLf and Samuel Heyman ; and for Sagadahock, Sylvanus Davis.
Mr. Alcot and Mr. Donnell both resided at York, and both of them were afterwards sometime Justices of the Inferior Court or Common Pleas. — Mr. Alcot was one of the ancient, most ^i^^, substantial and wealthy inhabitants of his town, and had been commander of the militia company twenty years before ; never- theless, being somewhat advanced in years he was never rechosen
into the Council. But Mr. Donnell was elected the next year
1 TT 1 1 ] • Donnell.
and once subsequently. He also represented his town two years
in the House. Mr. Heyman, having an oversight and interest in Heyman. the public alTairs, at Berwick, received this mark of distinguish- ed respect on account of his personal worth ; yet, owing proba- bly to his short life, or to his short residence in Maine, he is not known to have been a member of the Board after his charter- term expired, nor to have filled any other public office in Maine. Mr. Davis was a gentleman of good capacity and great fidelity. Davis. He had been an inhabitant of Arrowsick : and in superintending the interests and affairs of Clark and Lake upon that Island and in the vicinity, he acquired an eminent character for integrity, business, and prudence. When that Island was laid waste, he removed to Falmouth. No other man was more thoroughly ac- quainted with this eastern country,f or with the Indians, and while a prisoner at Quebec, his reputation commanded particular re- spect. He was a worthy magistrate, and the next year, was elect- ed a member of the Council.
To fill the places of Messrs. Alcot and Heyman at the Coun-
* Written, or spelt sometimes, « Alcock," and sometimes »' Alcot." — See *Dte — the burning of York, 1692. f Sulliran, p. 890.
12 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. 15^2^692 cil-board, in 1693, Francis Hook and Charles Frost were elected. They had been members of President Danforth's
Messrs, /-i m j
Hook, Council, and were two of the most popular and useful men in
Frost
vviieei- the Province of Maine. In the first Inferior Court, or Com-
wriffhi, and -j, , i i t i
j^yiiiie, mon rleas, they were both Judges ; and Mr, Hook was two years Judge of Probate. In 1694, they were re-elected. The game year, the places of Mr. Donnell and Mr. Davis were filled by Mr, Samuel Wheelwright, of Wells, son of the Rev. John Wheelwright, tlie original and principal proprietary settler of that town ; and by Mr. Joseph hynde, who was a non-resident proprie^ tor of lands, within Sagadahock. He lived in Boston and was Province treasurer, Indeed, the Sagadahock territory was rep-^ resented in the Council by a non-resident landholder, with a few exceptions, through a period of sixty or seventy years. When elected, and before taking the qualifying oath, he usually made affidavit at the Board, that he was such proprietor, Annun! The Council were annually chosen on the day of the general IilrCoiIi)%. election in May, by the members of the old Board and the new House of Representatives, assembled in convention ; and if any vacancies happened, during the political year, they might be filled in the same way by the two branches united, ^even form-* ed a quorum for transacting business ; the Board being both a CO'^ ordinate branch of the General Court, and an advisatory Coun- cil of the Governor. Nay, when the offices of both the Gov^ ernor and Lieutenant-Governor were vacant, all acts of executive power were exercised by a majority of the whole Council ; and there have been many instances, especially in the Revolution, when commissions were signed by fifteen Councillors. House of fpjjg other branch of the General Court, called the House, Olives. constituted of deputies, or representatives elected by towns-
corporate. Governor Phips, for the first time, issued warrants, May 20, 1692, unto every town, to choose Uwo and no more;' and appointed a session on the 8th qf June, when 153* were Member» returned. In this Legislature, eight appeared from Maine ; Kittery, f.om Maine. YqpI^^ Wells, and the Isles of Shoals, [Appledore,] severally re- turning two representatives. f Subsequent to the first year, how-
• That is to say, ffQ m Plymouth 12; Essex 30; Middlesex 35 ; Suffolk 25; Hampshire 12 ; Barnstable 11 ; Bristol 16 ; Martha's Vineyard 2 ; Nan- tucket 2; and Maine S ;=153.
fin 1692, from Kitltty^ James Emery and Benjamin Hodsdon ; fronj
Chap, i.] of malne. 13
ever, those Isles were never represented in the General Court ; a. d»^ig92 nor did any town in Maine, afterwards, for sixty years, return at th6 same time, more than a single member to the House. Some of its towns were always represented, during that period, except in 1697 ; though the whole delegation from this Province, in any single year, never exceeded ten or eleven.* The entire number in the House for the first ten years, was usually between 60 and 80; never till 1735, exceeding 100 members. Forty constituted a quorum for doing business ; and every one was entitled to a daily compensation of 3s. for his attendance, but was finable 5s. if absent a day without leave.
To be entitled to the right of suffrage, a man must be 21 years .^"[o of^"*^ of age, own an estate, worth £40 sterling, or a freehold, which [-[Jj^"*^"^*' would yield an annual income of 40 shillings. In the first leg- islature, the ratio of representation by towns was graduated to the number of their respective voters ; every town having 120 might return two ; — 40 and upwards, one 30 and less than 40, one, or in the latter case the town might elect one or none at pleasure : — having less than 30 voters, it might unite with the next adjoining town in the election of a representative.
To the General Court, was given full power to establish Powm or with or without penalties, all manner of wholesome and reasona- coun. ble laws, statutes, ordinances and orders, not repugnant to those of England, — ^to name and settle annually, all civil officers, whose appointment was not otherwise prescribed,— and to levy taxes needful for the support of government, and the protection of the people. But all " orders, laws, statutes and ordinances'*^ were Laws to be to be transmitted by the first opportunity after enactment, to the by Ujc king, king for his approval, under the royal signature. f If, however,
Torfc, Jeremiah MoultoQ and M. Turfrey ; from Wells, Eliab Hutchinson and John Wheelwrig-ht ; and from the Isles of Shoals, Roger Kelley and William Lakeman. In 1693, from Kitlery, James Emery. In 1694, from the same town, William Screven; and from York and Wells united, Eze- kiel Rogers, Jr. In 1G95, from Kiltery, James Emery, and in 1696, John
Shapleigh, In 1697, . In IfiSG, frpn) Kiltery, Richard Cults, and
from Yorki Abraham Preble.
* The non-rresident act was passed in 1694, by which no man might " serre *' in the House for any town, unless where he did at that time live and dwell."— 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 78.
f Hence these were denominated the StattUes of the reigning monarch ivho approved them, as * the StattUes of William and JUary ;* * AnnCj SfC*
14 THE HISTORY [VoL. II .
A- i>.^jG92 any one of them were not expressly disallowed by him in privy council, within three years, from the day it reached the Board, it had, after that period, full force and effect by lapse of time. Manifest inconveniences attended this process and requirement, though not without some beneficial effects. For great pains were taken to render the enacted bills perfect ; — besides, a needless multiplication of them, so reprehensible in later times, was greatly prevented. In legislation, the General Court soon became more parliamentary than formerly, — each house sending bills to the other for concurrence, amendment or rejection. How- ever, to avoid transmitting every minor legislative measure across
Resolves, the Atlantic, the General Court often acted by " Resolves and in this way, introduced an anomaly into legislation, still exten- sively practiced, though the reason has long since ceased.
TKe Judici- rpj^g General Court, being authorized by charier to erect Courts of Justice, for the trial of all cases, criminal and civil, arising within the Province, immediately effected a thorough revision of the judiciary department. Some of the first legislative enact- ments provided for the erection and establishment of five judicial tribunals ; a Supreme Court, Common Pleas, Quarter Sessions, and Justice's Courts ; — and afterwards. Probate, Chancery, and Admiralty Courts,
The Su- 1 . The Superior Courf^ consisted of one Chief Justice and four Couru * puisne,' or Side Judges, — any three of whom formed a quorum.
It was a tribunal of law and justice in all civil and criminal cases, through the Province, and of assize and general gaol-delivery in each county. But the statute establishing it, was not approved by the crown, till three years had nearly elapsed, subsequent to its passage by the General Court ; so that none of the judges, except the chief justice, was permanently commissioned, till 1695, nor before Governor Phips' return to England. In the meantime, the jurisdictional powers of this tribunal were exercised by special commissions of Oyer and Terminer,* one of which, for instance, was issued by the Governor, June 2d, 1 692, to try witches. But after the statute took effect, it was found in its practical operation not to be sufficiently broad and explicit ; and another was passed
♦ One special commission was filled with Lieut. Gov. Stoughton, Major Saltonstall, Major Richards, Major B. Gedney, Mr. Wait Winthrop, Capt. Samuel Sewall, and Mr. Sargent. — 1 Doug. Summ. p. 450.
Chap, i.] of maine. 15
in 1699, which gave to the Court a jurisdiction of all matters, A. D.^j692 civil and criminal, — including appeals from the lower courts, re- views and writs of error, as fully to every intent, as the courts of king's bench, common pleas and exchequer had within the king- dom of England. The judges were appointed in 1695,* and held terms in most of the counties, twice in every year. June was the month for the sessions of the Court in Yorkshire ; and the shire town, till the close of the present Indian war, was Kit- tery — subsequently York.
2. An " Inferior Court,^^ or [Common Pleas] was established pfeTs?°" in each county, consisting of four Judges, who had cognizance of
all civil actions, arising within its limits, *' triable at the common law." The statute fconstituting this Court was also revised in
1699, but not essentially altered. The first bench of Judges, commissioned in Yorkshire, now more commonly called * the county of York,' were Job Alcot, Francis Hook, Charles Frost 7^*^ Jutiges
' ' ' ^ 111 the Conn-
and Samuel Wheelwright. The high sheriff was Joseph Curtis, of York. The terms in this county, were holden at York, on the first Tues- days of April and July ; and at Wells on the first Tuesdays oi January and October. Appeals lay from the decision of this Court, to the next Superior Court sitting in the same county.
3. The Court of General Quarter Sessions of the peace, was The Quar- holden by the Justices of the Peace within the county, at ^j^g
*1. The Chief Justice was Williani Siovghton, born at Dorchester, A. D. 1632, graduated at Harvard Colleg-e 1650, and was appointed the first Lieut. Governor under the charter of William and Mary. Though he was in the executive chair alter Governor Phips left it, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1695; which oflSce he held till
1700, when he aj^ain took the chair on the death of Lord Bellamont. He died 1702. — 2. Thomas Danforlh, late President of Maine, was a roan of great probity and stern political virtues— the idol of republicans. His name was not inserted among- the chai ter Councillors, though expressly desired by the agents. *• The people received the intelligence with sur- prise and grief." He held the office of Judge till his death, 1699. — 3. ElU sha Cook; a physician of Boston. Hs was a high liberty man," and a popular leader in the General Court near 40 years. He was an assistant in 1681 ; and appointed Judge in 1695 ; left the bench 1702 ; and died 1715, — aged 78. — 4. Samuel Sewall of Newbury, a graduate of Harvard College, 1671, was put into the special commission in 1692 ; appointed Judge, 1695; and Chief Justice, 1718 : and left the bench, 1728.— 5. Wait Winthrop, appointed, 1696 ; left the bench, 1717. Each Judges' pay was a grant of £40 a year, till 1700, when it was raised to £50.— J\Ia^s. Rec. p. 391.
1 6 THE HISTORY [Vol.. n.
A.Dgj692 same times and places, the Court of Common Pleas held their terms : having authority to " hear and determine all matters re- lating to the conservation of the peace, and punishment of of- fenders, cognizable by them according to lavjr." But it being a needless expense for all the Justices of the county to attend court, four times in the year, merely for the trial of a few minor offences; they were made by the revising statute of 1699, to consist only of those designated for the purpose, in the commis- sion itself. Still, though the list of Justices was not large, it was a numerous and expensive court, till the Revolution. Appeals were allowed from this tribunal, to the Superior Court — the ap- pellant being put under recognizance to prosecute the cause, to file his reasons, and produce copies of the process, and of the evidence adduced at the trial. Justices of ^- Justices of the Peace were civil officers known under the u>e Peace, charter of Gorges, — never hitherto in the Colony of Massachu- setts ; the Assistants acting as Justices through the jurisdiction. An indefinite number, though not great, was now appointed and commissioned for each county by the Governor with advice of Council; — to hold their offices during good behavior. Each one had jurisdiction of all civil causes to the amount of 40s. and of all crimes, so far as to commit or recognize to a higher tribu- nal, if they were heinous, and to punish such offences, as assaults and batteries — violation of the Sabbath — gaming — drunkenness — profanity — and breaches of the peace, — either by the stocks, cage, a fine of 20s. and even stripes not exceeding ten. Court of ^' Probate business, until the colony charter was vacated. Probate, transacted in the County Court. But in 1 687, amidst the
cmmges of government, Joshua Scottow* of Scarborough, was commissioned Judge, and his son Thomas, a young graduate of Harvard College, was appointed recorder for Yorkshire. — Now, under the new Province-charter, a Judge and Register were commissioned by the Executive, during good behavior, for each County; and in Yorkshire, 1693, Francis Hook was appointed Judge, and John Wincoln, Register. Any appeal made from this Court, went directly to the Governor and Council.
6. A Court of Chancery was established with power, *' to hear
* Previously, under President Danforth's administratioD, Mr. Scottow had been one of the Provincial Council of Maine.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 17
all matters of equity, not rellevable at common law." It was a. d. 1692 holden in Boston, by three Commissioners, assisted by five
Court of
Masters in Chancery, — all of whom were appointed by the Gov- Chancery, ernor and Council.
7. There was likewise an American Vice-Mmiralty Court ; ^.^^^^f'^^ and Wait JVinthrop* was appointed. May 22, 1699, by the crown, or by the high admiral of England, the Judge for New-England and New- York. Besides this, there was a Provincial Justiciary Court of Admiralty^ holden by the Governor and Council, sit- ting with that Judge and the Secretary of State, — for the trial' bf piracies and other crimes, committed on the high seas.
From any decision of the Provincial judicatories or courts, in Appeals lo any personal action, wherein the matter in difference exceeded "own, £300 sterling, an appeal was allowed, by the charter, to the king in council.
To revise and regulate the Militia, a statute was passed, in The Miiiiia, 1693, which directed all the male inhabitants, between 16 and 60, other than specified exempts,f to be enrolled and to do military duty four days in a year ; who were all to be well armed and equipped wiih a firelock, and its appendages, furnished at their own expense. They were organized by the Captain-Gen- eral and Commander-in-Chief, into companies, severally of 60 men, and classed into regiments, whose musters were directed to be triennial. All military officers of and above an ensign's rank, he himself without the advice of Council, appointed and commissioned ; and all under that rank were appointed by the captains. On any alarm given, which was understood to be — a discharge of three guns in succession at measured intervals, — all the soldiers in the same town were required, under heavy pen- alties, to convene in arms at the usual place of rendezvous, and await the orders of their officers. But no officer could quarter or billet a soldier upon any other inhabitant than an innholder without his consent.
All christians, except papists, were expressly allowed by the
* The successive Judg-es of this Court were Messrs. Atvvood, Mempes- son, Nathaniel Byfield, John Menzis, Robert Achmuty, and, in 1747, Chambers P».ussel. — 1 Doug. Suram. p. 494.
f These exempts were many — extending not only to all members of the legislature, ministers, deacons, and all judicial and executive officers ; but to Masters of Arts, herdsmen, and sea captains. Vol. II 3
THE HISTORY
[Vol.
II.
Mod-titles
Bill of rigbU.
charter, ''^ liberty of conscience in the worship of God." No at- tempt to legalize the old platform of church government, met with any success ; nor would the General Court, after this period, be persuaded to interfere in any ecclesiastical disputes, otherwise than to recommend an arbitrament or compromise.* To every church, however, was given and secured, by a new law, all its former rights and privileges in worship and discipline — also the power of electing its own minister. But if the choice was non- concurred by the town voters, a council, consisting of three or five neighboring eiders, or delegates from their respective churches, was to be called, — whose decision was by the statute of 1695, to be conclusive. One great and important duty was still enjoined upon towns by law,- — which required them to be constantly provided with an able, learned and orthodox ministry.
In defence of government, justice, liberty and religion, the corner-pillars of the community, there were now provided with no less assiduity than formerly, what were esteemed their indis- pensable safeguard and panoply, viz. — schools and early educa- tion ; the ardor for mental culture and improvement having no- where undergone any abatement. Nay, such was still the public zeal for learning, that every town of 50 householders was by a new law finable, that failed to employ a schoolmaster constantly ; and when the town embraced twice that number of families, the instructor must be capable of teaching the sciences and learned languages.
Land-titles were a subject of great importance and early con- sideration. By a colony ordinance of 1652, confirmed by stat- ute in 1692, peaceable possession, five years, acquired a title^ in fee-simple. As the limitation, however, was very short, the law provided, that the owner should not lose his right, if he pursued his claim, within t(jat length of time, after the close of the present or second Indian war. This provision was intended for the particular benefit of the settlers in Maine. But no territorial purchases of the Indians were considered valid, unless they were sanctioned by the laws and usages, extant within the constituent sections of the Province, where the lands lay.
In short, the political axioms of this period, drawn into a stat- ute 6*7/ of rights, and passed in X692, shew in a more peculiar
* Nor has any Eyaod since b«ea called. — 2 Hulch. Hist. p. 18.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 19
manner the sentiment, sense and intelligence of the federative a. D. 1692
. . . . 10 1693.
community. By these, no one might be despoiled of his liber- ties, or rights, except by the judgment of his peers or the laws of the land. Justice shall never be sold, denied nor deferred ; nor shall any one be twice tried, or sentenced for the same of- fence. All trials shall be by juries of twelve men, or by prior established law. Bail shall always be allowed, except in cases of treason, and in capital felonies ; wherein reasonable challenges shall be 2;ranted at the trials. Writs of habeas corpus shall never Habeas be prohibited, — * nor shall any tax be levied or laid upon the Taxes, people, without -an act of the legislature.'*
Former laws were perpetuated for a period, by a special statute, ^ till opportunity was given, either to amend, to revise or re-enact anU usages, them ; — all usages retained and practices approved — as the legal expletives of such legislative acts as remained unrevived, if not inconsistent with the charter, becoming in after time the accredit- ed parts of our ' common law.' For the furtherance of justice, any judgment rendered in the courts of Yorkshire^ since 1686, might, by a provisional law, be reviewed in the new court of Com- mon Pleas. Judicial process and legal remedies became as- similated, by degrees, to the free principles of the English com- mon law ; — a code, in most of its parts, too sacred rn the peo- ples' view, ever to be touched by a despotic hand. Inheritances were made divisible or partible, equally among heirs, excepting to the oldest son a double portion. Every justice of the peace was authorized to solemnize marriages within his county ; and every settled minister within his town. But all questions of di- Yorce and alimony, were committed to the decision of the Gov- ernor and Council. Rules were given to counties for the man- agement of their prudential affairs ; also particular duties and re- strictions were prescribed to licensed houses. JThe powers and obligations of towns were revised in the choice and number of town officers ; in the support of their poor ; in the repairs of their highways ; and in the regulation of public ferries, and even of fences between man and man. Nay, almost every object of con- siderable importance, or public utility, received the particular
* But the Crown refused to approve this Bill, for the ministry foresaw that if the act was approved, it would be a security against parliamentary taxatioB.
20 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.DM692 attention of the General Court, within its first three or four years of legislation, under the province charter. Nor will the writer
Remarks, be charged with a needless multiplication of remarks upon the form of government, and the general administration of affairs—- when their importance is realized, and when it is further consid- ered, many of the most prominent laws and regulations, occasion- ally revised and amended, were not only continued in operation till the American revolution, but are the foundation of the " acts" that fill our present statute books.
In no department, it is said by able civihans, do the lights and
Laws. shades of a people's public character appear more conspicuous, than in their code of ' criminal law,^ — in the scale and species of penalties and punishments. If Eutopean governments, in their progress, tarnish its pages with more and more blood, it is a happy consideration, that with us, practical experience and im- proved policy, have taken a juster view of crimes, and pursued them with a correspondent moderation as to penalties. By ed- ucating the mind, and deepening the moral sense, crimes may be prevented — not by aggravating the forfeitures, or sharpening the punishments. According to a classification in the code at that
offences.*"^ time enacted, — murder, treason, piracy, rape, robbery on a sec- ond conviction, bestiality, arson, polygamy, and witchcraft were all capital crimes : Burglary, forgery, blasphemy, perjury, adultery and larceny were public offences of the second class : and the third embraced assaults and batteries, gambling, drunkenness, irauds, usury, sabbath-breaking, and all breaches of the peace.
Though among the penalties and punishments, torture no lon- ger makes its appearance, ingenuity seems to have been not a little exerted in the work of inventing new and various kinds and modes ; — some of which were cruel if not barbarous. In truth, that age, mistaken as it was, appeared determined to try by tests of experiment, what indelible marks of disgrace upon the body could effect, towards preventing crimes, and reforming the heart and habits of the offender. For, besides a confinement in the pillory, stocks or cage^ and sitting on the gallows, convicts were whipped ; their foreheads branded ; their ears cut off or nailed to a post ; and the tongue of a convicted blasphemer, perforated with a redhot iron. Even ten stripes might be inflicted by a constable, in execution of a sentence awarded by a justice of the peace.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 21
Idolatry and heresy, which had been capital, were no longer A. D^^I692 considered offences punishable by law ; and it is greatly to be re- gretted, that a page of the statute book should be again sullied, by a re-enactment recorded against witchcraft, — more especially since the penalty affixed was death.* If such a crime were ever com- mitted, the difficulty of proving it, necessarily borders on utter impossibility. The trials of the accused were principally in Sa- lem (Massachusetts); and the height of the delusion was in 1692, when the country was involved in a bloody war with the eastern Indians. Of the whole number, convicted of witchcraft, 19 were,.,. ,
' , . Witchcraft.
executed ; and fifty others were prisoners in close confinement, when the spell was dissolved, and this master spirit of delusion, became effectually expelled from distempered and credulous minds, by force of good sense and sound principles in religion and reason.
Though we have no record of a conviction for this crime in Maine ; a single case of one, formerly an inhabitant, may without Bmrmighs. impropriety be mentioned. George Burroughs, a native of Essex county, and a worthy minister of the gospel, who preached at Falmouth between 1685 and 90, was arrested at Danvers, and tried for witchcraftf at Salem, in 1692, on three indictments ; and
* To encounter a ' demoniacal spirit of delusion,' a colon}- ordinance was passed against icitchcrafl in 1646. The first execution under it, was at Charlestown in 1650. There were several other cases in different parts of New-England before 1688, when the infatuation became more dreadful; and in the course of three or four successive years, filled Massachusetts with misery and alarm. The sufferers said they were pinched, pressed and otherwise tortured by an invisible hand— accusing- some one, who was hence soon arrested and tried. — See 2 Hutch Hist. p. 22-62.
f The Indictment alleged—' that the said Burrotighs, late of Falmouth,
* Clerk, on the 9th day of May current, and divers days and times before
* and since at Salem, certain detestable acts, called witchcrafts and sorce-
* ries> wickedly and feloniously hath used, practised and exercised, in and « upon one Mary Walcot of Salem village, singlewoman ; by which said < wicked acts — she is tortured, afflicted, wasted and tormented — against « the peace, and contrary to the form of the statute in such case made and
* provided.' He pleaded, that he was " not g'wiZ/y."--On the trial the
evidence was such as follows : — One witness said, upon oath, ' I have seen
* Burroughs put his finger into the muzzle of a gun and hold it out straight •
* and though he said an Indian present did the same, none of us could re- ' collect an Indian was present, and we supposed the being must have been ♦the blackman, or the devil, who' (they swore they had no doubt) « looks 'like an Indian.'
22 THE HISTOKV [Vol. II*
A.D. 1693. though the evidence was of a most extraordinary and incredible character, the jury returned verdicts of Guilty on each of them 5 — and he was executed.* Fortunately, however, for the honor of humanity, he was among the last sufferers. The doors were soon thrown open to the wretched prisoners ; and all witchcraft, with the prosecutions ceased. Gov. Phips The administration of Sir William Phips continued only about recalled years and a half- To answer for some personal violence
done to Brenton, the collector of the customs, and to Short, cap- tain of the Nonesuch frigate in Boston-harbor, both of whom had refused to obey the Governor's orders, he was required to make iflSi^^' his appearance at Court. He embarked for London Nov. 17, H.s death. 1694^-|- where he died the ensuing February. He was a man of benevolent disposition and accredited piety, though sometimes unable to repress the ebullitions of temper. He was not only
Samnd Wchher testified that he, while living- at Casco bay, conversed with Burroughs about his great strength, when he said — " I have put my "fingers into the bunghole of a barrel of molasses, and lifted it up, and
" carried it around me and set it down again." Susannah Skelden swore,
that ' Mr. Burroughs' apparition came and told her, he had killed both his
* wives, two of his own and three of his neighbors' children.' J^Iercy
Lewis testified thus — " Mr. Burroughs took me up on a high mountain " and shewed me all the kingdoms of the earth, and offered them to me if " I would write in his book ;" — declaring, he'd " throw me down and break " my neck, if I would not." 'I keep, (said he) the devil, a servant in my t shop.' Jinn Pulman stated on the stand, to this purport. — ' On the 8tb
* of May instant, I saw the apparition of Burroughs; it grievously tortured
* me and urged me to write in his book. Presently the forms of two women
* appeared to me in winding sheets with napkins about their heads. They « looked very red and angry on Burroughs, and said their blood cried for
* vengeance against him ; — and they should be clothed in heaven with tchiCe ' robes, and he would be cast doxon to hell. His spectre then vanished away j
* and they told me they were Burroughs'' two wives — he had murdered them :
* And Jilrs. Lawson and her daughter told me this morning, he had murder- *ed them. —See 6 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. 265— 271.— Also trials if filches in Suffolk {Eng.) published A. D. 1684. — Mr. Burroughs was graduated at Harvard College, A. D. 1670, late in life for a man to close a classical course : — yet it seems his object was to qualify himself for the ministry.
* JVeaVs J^ew-England.-^2 Hutch. Hist. 58-61.— Sw//. 208-12.— One ac- count says he was 80 years old.— [6 Coll. Mass. His. Soc. 268 ;] but thi» must be a mistake. — 1 Doug. Sum. 450-1.
t Governor Phips was at Pemaquid in May, 1694, and there obtained from Madockawando, a deed of the lands at St. Gcorg^es' River. — 2 Huieh. Hist. p. 72.
Chap, l.] OF MAINE. 23
energetic and exceedingly persevering in his purposes; but he A. D. 1C94. possessed good abilities, unsullied integrity and strong attachnnents. His unremitting assiduities to promote the best interests of Maine, the Province of his nativity, and to enforce measures devised for its defence and relief, are evidences, monumental of his pat- riotism and his high sense of obligation and duty.
After his conquest of Nova Scotia, in 1690, Massachusetts Nova Sco- assumed ilie government of that Province; appointed John Nel- j'^jv^^j^^^^ son, Governor ; and gave commissions to judges, justices and ^o^- other officers. But the Acadian Provincials consisted of a mixed r^^^ Acadi- race, some born in the country, — some French emigrants — some ""s. resident traders — some half breeds of Indian extraction, with a few English ; and the most of them were lamentably ignorant, poor and miserable. Naturally attached to the French interests, and bigoted to the Romish religion, they were under the des- potic influence of the Jesuit missionaries ; and though they took the oath of allegiance to the English crown, they had changed masters so many times, that no confidence could be placed in their fidelity. Required by both to obey and yet protected by neither ; they became dispirited, — and tamely obsequious to any power, that would permit them and their families to live. Even they had in a partial degree, corrupted their language with half-English words,*
Villebon, appointed Governor of the country, established him- ^..^^ ^ ^ self at St. John,f seized Nelson and sent him to Quebec ;{ or-Cov.atSi. dering the English flag to be struck at Port-Royal, Nov. 26, 1691, and the French fjag hoisted. He then opened a lucrative trade with the Indians; supplying them with arms, provisions and warlike stores, without which they could not have continued the war. In 1692 and 5, unsuccessful attempts were made to re-^ ^ jgg^ move Villebon ; as Massachusetts considered herself in virtual possfl»Bion of the Province, especially the great peninsula. The people chose deputies, and in some places, selectmen — being officers borrowed from the New-England colonies ; yet there was no regular system of government. In case of a general disturb- ance, or any affair of public interest; a village or district was convened, a consultation had, and a messenger sent with prayers or complaints to their Governors,
* 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 13-37-93. f Called Naxoat.— 2 Hutch, Hut. p. 98. 1 1 Coll. Macs. Hist. Soc. p. 136, 3d Series.
24 I'HE HISTORY [Vol. ii.
A.D. 1695. But after the capture of Fort William Henry, and a nominal Massacini- reposscssion of Nova-Scotia, in 1696, by the French ; Massachu-
sells resis;ns ^ ^ ...
Nova Sto- setts was convinced of her inability to recover or protect the
tin to the . , ^
Crown. country, though within her charter ; and therefore she suppli- cated the crown, to be relieved from any further expense in de- fending it; praying that Port-Royal and St. John's might be gar- risoned at the national charge.* This was equivalent to a resig- nation of her jurisdictional rights to JVova-Scotia, which were never afterwards reclaimed by her. She permitted an inter- course with Port-Royal and other })laces, till she found, that ves- sels, under color of carrying provisions and necessaries to the suffering inhabitants, were actually freighted with military sup- plies,— when she forbade all trade whatever to that Province, f
Protects On the contrary, Maine and Sagadahock, not only united with Massachusetts by the charter, but by the stronger ties of com- munity and attachment, were objects of her unremitting care and protection. Though she was herself in a distressed condition, her treasury exhausted, her public credit low, and her expendi- ture great ; and though perplexed with an uncommon maledic- tion, produced by the infatuations of witchcraft mentioned, she constantly exercised a provident liberality towards this eastern country. In the new and equal administration, she extended to it and its inhabitants, where any remained, all the favors of a good, a protective and a watchful government. Troops were sent hither from year to year, whose support and supplies incurred great expense. Besides the erection of Fort William Henry, Major Converse, in 1693, built a strong stone fort at Saco falls, J in which a small garrison was kept till the close of the war. The next year, the zeal of Gov. Phips carried him too far for his own reputation, in his endeavors to urge Short, captain of the None- such frigate, to cruise upon the eastern coast, in search of pica- roons and privateers. Every expedient was adopted to p*«erve and defend the country. A bounty of £50 was offered in 1605-6, for every Indian woman or child under 14 years, taken prisoner, or for an older Indian's scalp, produced at the board of war.§ For three years or more, the portion of the public or Province taxes assigned to Yorkshire were wholly remitted. Special en-
* 5 Mass. Rec. p. 579. f 1 Halliburton's N. Scotia, p. 79.
X Fort Mary. } 5 Mass. Rec. p. 437 — 2 Hoi. A. Ann. p. 10.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 25
couragements, in the midst of the war, were offered the people to a.d. 1696, abide in their habitations and defend their remaining possessions. The plantation of Newichawannock was revived in the very heart of the war. To encourage ihe pious settlers, so struggling with war and want, the General Court made them a gratuity towards the support of a gospel ministry ; — religion being pat- ronized as indispensable to the welfare of every new settlement. The emigration also of French protestants was much favored ; who, fleeing from the sword of persecution, were received with open arms ; while those of that nation who were " of a contra- ry religion," had been, in 1692, forbidden by a legislative statute, to reside or be in any of the seaports or frontier towns in the Province, without license from the Governor and Council.
A few facts will show the indigence and distress of the re- indi^enca maining inhabitants in Yorkshire towards the close of the war. shire!"^'^ They were even unable to pay tlieir county taxes. Nor could they so much as repair their gaol, and render it sufficiently strong and secure to hold culprits, till the General Court had given or- ders to Joseph Curtis, the sheriff of the county, to expend the fine-money in his hands for that purpose. So feeble and strait- ened were the people of York, two or three years after the town was ravaged and despoiled by the enemy, that they, in their cor- porate capacity, contracted with a gentleman from Portsmouth, to erect a mill for grinding their corn ; giving him, as a reward, the site itself, the use of the stream, and a lot of land, with some peculiar privileges in cutting timber, and agreeing, that they and the inhabitants would always afterwards carry their corn and grain to that mill, so long as it were kept in repair.* A similar enterpfize was undertaken, in 1693, by John Wheelwright of Wells, upon Cape-Porpoise river. He proposed to erect a saw- mill there, and the General Court thought it expedient to encour- agoihiB, by permitting him to take board-logs, from the public lands.f To persuade the people of Wells, either to rebuild or repair their principal garrison, all their taxes were remitted to them, in 1 696 — beside the supplies actually furnished for their support and defence.
The great interests which Massachusetts possessed in Maine,
* S Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. p. 8. Vol. II. 4
f 5 Mass. Rec. p. 287.
26 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.D. 1G96. were not only affected by the war, — they were indirectly, though Acts of Par- sensibly touched by Parhament. For that legislature enacted,
liament " '
to lands and (ui 1696) that no charter proprietor of lands in America, should
navigation. , i , , .
sell them to any other than natural born subjects, without a license from the crown.* Another act of equal importance, though of a different character, renewedly required, that all ships in the plan- tation trade, should be English or plantation built, and their car- goes registered as English or plantation property. About the Irade^'and ^amc time, the ' New Board of trade,' styled " The Lords Com- pianiaiions. missioners for trade and plantations,^'' vf^s established in England consisting of seven members. To these the Provincial Governors were to make all their communications, and from them receive their instructions.
A.D. 1697. These colonial regulations were followed by the treaty of Rys- Treatyof wick, Sept. 11, 1697, before mentioned, which happily put a RysvMtk. gpggjjy period to the war in America. — By the 7th article, it Nova Sco- was Stipulated, that mutual restitution should be made of all the tlTihe"*^^'^ countries, colonies and forts, taken by either party during the French. n^fij- > virtue of which, unfortunately, Acadia or Nova Scotia, without any definite boundaries, returned once more to the undis- puted possession of the French. Neither in the war, nor in the treaty, was any thing effectually done towards determining the western limits of that Province. Only in this, as in the treaty of Breda, provision was merely made for the appointment of com- missioners to settle that question. Meanwhile, the state of the BoUMhey case Spontaneously revived the controversy France, by treaty, and chusetis Massachusetts, by charter, both strenuously claiming the Sagada- daiiock.^"^ hock provincc, or country between Kennebeck and St. Croix.
Moreover the French, not content with their territorial posses- sions eastward, presently undertook to make themselves sole pro- prietors of the eastern fisheries, and even proceeded to take pos- session of Louisiana.f A.D. 1G98. In the summer of 1698, a frigate on her passage from France to Port-Royal, meeting with an English colonial fishing vessel, near Cape Sable, gave the master a translated order from the French king, authorizing the seizure of all English vessels found
* 2 [lolmes' A. Ann. p. 32.
+ Origin of the French claim to the river Mississippi. Country piii chased by the United States, A. D. 1803.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 27
fishing on the coast. He was also told, to give all other vessels a.d. i698. notice of the order ; Bonaventure, in the Enviux, soon afterwards boarding several and sending them to their homes, with a similar errand.
Governor Villebon was more definite. In his letter, Sept. 5, YiUeht'n from St John,* to Lieutenant-Governor Stoughton, he stated, that he was directed by his royal master, to maintain his claim -a ^j^^pei to the country, as far westward as Kennebeck river from its source to its mouth — leaving the course of the river free to both nations ; that the Indians dwelling upon its banks, must no longer be considered subjects of the English crown but free natives ; and that all American fishermen, on the coast, or traders to the French ports, eastward of that river, will be seized : For, said he, you cannot be ignorant how plainly " it is prohibited by the treaty " between the two crowns, which you yourself sent to me." To strengthen the claim and secure the alliance of the Canibas tribe, the French this year built at Norridgewock, a catholic chap- el ; and this was followed by a frequent epistolary correspondence, between Ralle, the resident missionary, and the Governors of Canada and Nova Scotia.
When complaints of these encroachments were presented to Pemaquid the Lords of Trade and Plantations, they replied, that they should always insist " on the English right as far as the river St Croix and strongly urged the government of Massachusetts " to rebuild " the fort at Pemaquid — a work, they said, " which ought " long before to have been done."
The controversy was renewed — proceeding upon the former Tj,e ri^ht to grounds taken by the disputants. The French still insisted, that ho4^1n"dis- " Acadia" was expressly conceded to them by the treaties of P"*®- St. Germains,f of Breda,J and now of Ryswick — a country which in fact extended much farther westward than Kennebeck ; and that they had always claimed, and frequently occupied, as far as that river. But the English contended, that *' JVbm Scotia-^ was the Province resigned, and no more ; and that when the two crowns were in alliance, and Andros was Provincial Governor under James II, he established a garrison at Pemaquid, and took possession of Penobscot. It is true, the question was somewhat
* In 1700, the entire garrison and settlement removed to Port-Royal, t Ante, A. D. 1632. t Ante, A. D. 1668.
28 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1699. embarrassed by Lord Cromwell's charter of the country, granted forty-two years before, to Sir Thomas Temple by which the western limits were fixed at St. Georges' river, or perhaps Mus- congus. Even John Nelson, before mentioned, when a prisoner in Paris, wrote, January 26, 1698, that though the French and Indians should claim to Kennebeck, they might, without much difficulty, be restrained to the river St. Georges, " for," added he, " this was always the ancient boundary in my late uncle Thomas Temple's patent. "f May 26. RicHARD e«rZ Bellamont arrived at Boston, May 26, 1699, mom s^c-^ ^^^^ New- York, of which he was the Governor, and now also Phlps^'^^* successor of Sir William Phips. Thoroughly acquainted with the nature and extent of the eastern claim, as pursued by the officers of the French, and knowing the intrigues of that cab- inet with the Stuart succession of kings, he in his speeches to the General Court expressed himself with warmth upon those subjects ; not failing at the same time to exalt his royal master. Divine Providence, (said the Governor,) in bringing to pass the late happy and wonderful revolution in England, has been pleased to make king William, the glorious instrument of our deliverance, from the odious fetters and chains of popery and despotism, which had been artfully used to enslave our consciences and subvert all Qur civil rights. It is too well known what nation that king favored, of what religion he died, and no less, what must have been the execrable treachery of him, who parted with Acadia or Nova Scotia and the noble fishery on that coast. But his present Majesty, a true English king, entirely in the interest of his people, has restored to our nation the character of valor and greatness, exposing his royal person, in the fronts of our battles.
J. Bridges, In the short administration of Lord Bellamont, the public atten- veyor^Gen- tion was particularly turned towards the Provinces of Maine and Sagadahock. By the charter, all timber trees upon the crown lands, two feet in diameter 12 inches from the ground, were re- served for the use of the royal navy ; and any person felling a tree of that size, without license, incurred a penalty of £100
Ante, A. D. 1656-7, p. 363. f 1 Coll. Jlass. Hist, Soc. p. 136, 3d series.— 3 Charlevoix's jV. F. p. 348-9.— He says Villieuand a British envoy, agreed upon St. Georges as the boun- dary. But quere ?
Chap, i.] of maine. 29
sterling. The first surveyor-general was John Bridges. He was A. D. 1699. commissioned by the king, and came over with Lord Bellamont. His jurisdiction embraced New-England. He usually had four deputy surveyors; and in a few years, the annual charge was about £800 sterling."^ Often called in the course of their duties, to deal with wood cutters and rough men, they found the respon- sibilities of their trust great, and its performance sometimes diffi- cult.
But it was among the greatest anxieties prevailing on the re- turn of peace, to revive the wasted and weakened towns and set- tlements of this eastern country. Destitute of homes:^ yet attach- ed to the places of their birth, hundreds of freeholders, or the heirs of deserted realties, returned, during the season, and visit- ed former abodes, or half wilderness lands ; many repaired their dilapidated cottages, and more perhaps constructed new habita- tions. Men with their families removed to the peninsula of Cas- Falmouth, CO, Purpooduck and Spurwink, in Falmouth ; to Black-point and Sa'co and ' Blue-point in Scarborough ; to Winter-Harbor and the Falls vived.^ in Saco ; to Cape-Porpoise ; and to Cape-Neddock ; — and during the present and succeeding summer, those places were re- peopled with several abiding families. To assist York, Wells, y^^|.j^ j^^^ and Kittery, "including the precinct of Berwick," — towns which had survived the war, and were struggling with embarrassments ; s'sted. the General Court, within the period of three or four years, grant- ed them more than £100, out of the public treasury, towards the support of a gospel ministry. Besides these encouragements, Wells in particular, was aided in building a meeting-house by a generous public donation. Settlements were also undertaken on both sides of Pejepscot Lower Falls, f by gentlemen of energy Pejcpspot. and pecuniary ability ; and those, as well as the preceding towns, might have risen and flourished, had not some adventitious cir- cumstances soon prevented.
A false and malicious report was fabricated and sent into cir- Theindians culation among the Indians, representing, that though they, by fa^i^e^^gp^j-j*^ the late treaty, were the king's subjects, and had a pledge of his protection ; his Majesty's colonists were preparing to fall upon the tribes and utterly extirpate them. So much were they pro-
* 1 Doujj. Sum. p. 484.
+ 3 Mass. Hist. Soc. p, 141. — Especially Topsliain.
30 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1699. voiced and incensed by this story, that many of them strove to excite a general insurrection. The rumor probably originated among the French.* Callieres, successor of Count Frontenac,f now engaged in establishing a treaty with the Five Nations, or Mohawks, was determined to destroy, if possible, the subsisting harmony and peace between the English colonists and the eastern natives. These he intended to make his own steadfast and per- petual allies ; and his emissaries, more malevolent than himself, were the authors and heralds of the false and mischievous story.
The Gov- As it could not be foreseen to what height this excitement
■ernor's Pro- ^ _ °
clamaiion. might rise, the Governor issued his proclamation, cautioning the people, and requiring them to give the Indians no just provoca- tion ; to watch their motions and behavior ; and to adopt all prac- ticable means for their own safety and defence, if any injury should be offered. | Town-watches were also required, by stat- ute, to be kept from nine in the evening till morning. The pub- lic, how^ever, being disturbed, nothing could fully allay their fears. They entertained strong suspicions, though without cause, that the frontiers were actually infested with hostile savages. A D 1700 1" March, 1700, there was a special meeting of the General plepara- Court, whcn provision was made for a levy of soldiers, and for holding the militia in constant readiness. Eliakim Hutchinson^ was appointed purveyor of supplies, — 30 soldiers were posted at York, 1 5 at Kittery, and 1 5 at Wells ; and the legislature allowed to 12 or 13 men in the county of York, £137 for their indefati- gable services during the late alarm. To terrify or remove the popish missionaries from the eastern parts, who were, by report, seducing the Indians from their allegiance to the king, and exciting them to a rupture ; a legislative aqt was passed, which required them to depart the Province, before the 10th of the ensuing Sep- tember, otherwise they would, if taken, be the subjects of exem- plary punishment.
mom checks ^^ord Bellamont, after a year's tarry in the Province, returned piracy. iq New-York : and what rendered his administration memorable.
* 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 113.
t Frontenac died in 1698, ag-ed 78, | 6 Mass. Rec. p. 57.
§Eliakim was tlie son of William Hutchinson, who came over to Boston in 1636, and who, in 1673, purchased of William Phillips, a large tract of land on the westerly side of the Saco, and owned mills at Newichawannock. In 1750, Kliakim sold the Saco estate to Mr. Allen, for £l,200.
Chap, i.] of Maine. 31
were his judicious measures and uncommon successes against the a.d. i700, pirates and bucaneers. They had infested the coasts for thirty years, and now became bold, since the late war, to a fearful de- gree. The chief freebooters, Kidd and Bradish, also several other desperadoes, were seized, sent to England, and executed ; and happy it was for the eastern coasters and fishing vessels, that they were, at length, delivered from such a pestiferous annoyance. It was another proposition of the Governor's enlightened policy, to fortify Great Island in the mouth of the river Piscataqua. For Proposes to
fortify
either if piracy were not wholly subdued, or war should be the Great Isi- alternative ; or if there were a desideratum for a military depos- ^" ' itory upon the eastern coast, or for a place of naval resort in peace ; he thought the Island when strongly fortified, would be of great public importance, especially a defence to New-Hampshire. But the latter considered it an enterprize of equal interest to Maine ; and as she had been impoverished by the late war, she felt herself inadequate to the undertaking, without the assistance of Massachusetts.*
The apprehensions of a rupture with the Indians gradually sub- JJ^^^^JJ^^'j^g sided ; and the hopes of a continued peace gave encouragement, country, and even an impulse to those engaged in the resettlement of Maine. But an undertaking so broad and difficult, after the deso- lations ot ten years war, was attended with every discouragement. No mills, no inclosures, no roads ; but on the contrary, dilapidat- ed habitations, wide wasted fields, and melancholy ruins : — These were the dark shades with which to portray a map of this ill-fated country, at the present period. Deeds and the muniments of land-titles were either mutilated or destroyed ; and therefore to remedy, as far as possible, this singular evil, and prevent contro- versies, the General Court established a Committee of Claims. ^°™f".'^^*'^ consisting of seven members,f some of whom were acquainted with the law, and all of them were men of intelligence and repu- tation. They appointed times and places for their regular ses- sions ; and after receiving and examining all titles and claims to
* 1 Bdk. JV*. H. 245. — Great Island, however, was fortified not long- after this period, and became a stronj^ fortress. It was called " Fort William and Nary.^''
I The committee, were Samuel Sewall, John VValley, Eliakim Hutchin- ^ son, Nathaniel Byfield, Timothy Clark, Samuel Phips, and Israel Tay. — 6 W Jlass. Rec. p. 158,
32 '''ti'- history; [Vol. ii.
A. D. 1701. lands in these eastern provinces, they, in obedience to their di- rections, reported their proceedings with facts, to the legislature. May. But the aspect of affairs, the next spring, 1701, being more
Lt. (jov
apprehends dark and portentous, gave new and fresh damps to the ardor and fortitude of settlers. The peace in Europe appeared not to be settled. On the contrary, Lieut. Governor Stoughton, in his address to the two branches of the legislature, at their May ses- sion, told them, that from intelligence received, the clouds gath- ering over the eastern continent, seemed to forebode a returning storm ; and that extensive hostilities among the nations were se- riously apprehended. In such an alternative, it was foreseen, he said, that this country must be a large and suffering partaker ; and it would be gaining a great point " to fix the natives in his " Majesty's interest, and to prevent them from joining with the " French."
tlie^eastern ^^^^ purpose, several gentlemen, early in the season, visited
4nbes. the eastern tribes ; and in the important labors of reconciliation, met with considerable success. It was believed, much might be effected by sending protestant missionaries among them ; and in aid of this policy, king William established " A Society in Eng- land for projaagating the Gospel in foreign par is. Jealousy of Never had the American French looked with a more invidious eye than at present, upon this eastern region. The Indians were tranquil ; settlements were reviving ; and the English people, en- gaged in the Newfoundland fisheries, were making great voyages. About 2,700 fishermen, and 220 vessels were employed this sin- gle year ; and they took and cured 200,000 quintals of fish, besides 4,000 hogsheads of train and liver oil. Old jealousies were not only awakened but increased ; and while the English colonies deprecated a war, the French seemed to desire it. Lord^BeHa- ^^lat added peculiar interest to this important crisis, were Governor deaths of Several distinguished persons ; — happening with- stoughton, in a period, short of thirteen months. Earl Bellamont died at
James II, *
and wil- New- York, March 5, 1701 ; — the Governor of that Colony, Mas- sachusetts, New-Hampshire and Maine. Alw^ays " condescend- ing, affable and courteous;" and professing to be "of the most moderate principles in religion and government," he rendered himself universally popular. His death was followed by that of Lieutenant-Governor William Stoughton, who deceased July 7th, leaving a character justly ornamental of the various important
Chap, i.] of mal\e. 33
offices he had so honorably filled. These events committed the A.D. noJi, executive reins and management, for the first time, to the Coun- cil, acting by majorities of members present, never less than a quorum. Also at St. Germains, Sept. 16, died James II. having now more than twelve years since abdicated the British realm. His son, surnamed in England, the " Preteiider,^^ immediately aspired to the throne of his father ; and the French monarch by declaring in his favor, enkindled anew the flames of war. For, as the Pretender was a catholic, the English nation had resolved to limit the crown to the protestants of the royal line, and finally concluded to settle it upon Anne, princess of Denmark, another daughter of James, and sister to Mary, the late wife of William, — whenever there should be need ot a successor. The event was at hand, as king William died March 8, 1702 ; a monarch deeply lamented by his American, as well as British and Dutch subjects. As Anne immediately ascended the throne, she only delayed till the 4th of May, to publish a declaration of war aeainst France, ^'^y^
. . . . Queen
Her ministry persisted in asserting an exclusive ownership of the Anne's wnr
, . . wilh
Sagadahock Province, and a common right with the French, to France, the navigation and fisheries of the Acadian seas.
This doctrine so much disrelished by Villebon, was utterly con- pifficiiies. temned by Brouillon, his successor. Countenanced by him, the
J ^ J ^ eastern
son of le Bourgne revived an ancestral claim to the easterly sec- French, tion of the great Acadian peninsula ; and as soon as he heard of war, he exacted of every English vessel, 50 crowns, for license to trade on that coast.* The New-Englanders were so highly affi-onted by this and other aggressions of a similar character, that they sent out vessels, with orders to make a general sweep over these waters. Consequently some of the wrongdoers they seized — some they drove into the woods, — nor were they hardly restrained from hanging up one Capt. Baptiste as a pirate. f Even the Nova Scotia Indians, on the rumor of war, seized three fish- ing vessels, belonging to Massachusetts ; and if they, through the interposition of Brouillon, were restored, Callieres fully justified himself for exciting the Indians to hostilities. — By his treaty with the Five Nations, three years before, he had acquired great credit
•* 4C Univ. Hist. p. 135.
1 Univ. Hist. p. 148. — Brouillon, declared, if they did not desist, he ' would amply avenge himself by reprisals.' Vol. II. 5
34 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1702. as a negotiator ; and he said, the Indians, who were proprietors of the eastern country, had long since committed themselves to the French as their protectors ; while the English were intruders upon their property, and invaders of the French jurisdictional rights.
fe/s arWvai Quecu Anne commissioned Joseph Dudley, Esq. Governor aiBosiou. Massachusetts, Maine and New-Hampshire, and Thomas Povey, Lieutenant-Governor ; both of whom arrived at Boston on the 11th of June. Mr. Dudley, a native inhabitant of Massa- chusetts, had been as well her agent at the British court, as a colonial assistant, and the president of New-England. He was one of the mandamus Council in Andros' administration, who was seized in the revolution of 1689, and confined twenty weeks. He was afterwards Chief Justice of New- York ; and returning to England, was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of the Isle of Wight, and elected member of Parliament for Newtown, before he received his present commission. The Gov, Governor Dudley, accordins: to instructions from the crown, bui"dii/The ^^'^^ Strongly urged the General Court, in his first speech, to ^o^' .at Pern- make appropriations for rebuilding the fort at Pemaquid. The foundations (he said) were entire. — most of the walls were stand- ing,— lime in great plenty could be made in the vicinity ; — the entrenchments remained, and if a garrison were established there, it would be the means of keeping possession of the country, and affording relief in emergency. Besides all this, he expected, the Queen would probably, at the expanse of the crown, man it with a hundred soldiers. He wished to see the eastern provinces in a flourishing and safe condition ; and he did not hesitate to say, that in his opinion, Port-Royal itself might be captured, by two ships and a thousand men. But the House of Representatives opposed building the fort. They thought the Province unable to bear the expense ; and if the establishment were renewed, it must be maintained, and a wider seaboard defended ; Falmouth being the remotest eastern settlement yet revived since the last war. May, 1703. At the general election in May, 1703, the Governor gave his 5 Coundf. negative to five of the new elected Council ; who were men of talents, popularity and influence. But he remembered the part they acted in his arrest and imprisonment, fourteen years before, and he was not disposed to repress his resentments. In other re- spects, he manfully applied his splendid abilities, his courtly man-
lors.
Chap, i.] of maine. 35
ners, and his extensive knowledge, to render all the acts of his a.d. 1703. administration acceptable to every class of people.
As hostilities between the English and French crowns had ^ r^n^of °^
_ ^ _ Indian lios-
commenced in Europe ; a war with the Indians appeared inevit- ^iiities. able. The first intelligence he received of a meditated attack, was from Lord Cornbury, Governor of New-York. He stated, that if the stories of the christian natives were worthy of credit, a mixed army of French and Indians, were preparing to make a descent upon Deerfield, and perhaps upon some other frontier settlements in Massachusetts, or possibly in Maine.
Full of solicitude to know the temper and disposition of the Gov. Dud- eastern Sagamores, Gov. Dudley sent them messages, by which wUh'thl^" he requested them to meet him on the 20th of June, upon Casco junemh^' peninsula in Falmouth. Attended by a considerable retinue, '"^ ^^sco. consisting of gentlemen belonging to the legislatures of Massa- chusetts and New-Hampshire, and many other respectable indi- viduals, he had the pleasure of a conference with a large delega- tion from the Penacooks, the Sokokis, the Anasagunticooks, the Canibas, and the Tarratines.* All the Indians appeared to great advantage. They were well armed, — handsomely clad, — some of them fancifully decorated — and the most of their faces so painted, as to give them looks truly terrific. Probably no one tribe was so fully represented as the Anasagunticooks ; for about 250 of them arrived, in a flotilla of 65 canoes. A tent was spread, large enough to enclose and accommodate the Governor and his attendants, with the principal Sagamores and Sachems. Among these, when seated, the English promiscuously dispersed themselves; being not wholly without apprehensions for their own safety.
The Governor, arisins:, addressed the Indian assemblage to this
' ^ ' ^ ° The confer-
purport : — / have come to you, commissioned by the great and ence. good queen of England. I would esteem you all as brothers and friends. Yes, it is even my wish to reconcile every difficulty,
whatever, that has happened since the last treaty. After a
short interval, Capt. Simmo, the chief speaker, gravely replied ;
* The Sag'amores were Adiwando and Hegen, Penacooks ; Waltanum- moriy of Peg-wacket [Saco] ; JSIesamhomell and Wexar. from Androscoggin ; Moxus and (another) Hopehood, of Norridgewock ; Bomaseen and Capt. Samuely of Kennebeck; and Warrungunt and Wanadugunbuent^ from Penohscol.-^Penhallow's Indian Wars,— I Coll. JsT. H. Hut. Soc. p. 20.
36 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1705 We thank you, good brother, for coming so far to talk with
us. It is a great favor. The clouds fly and darken — but we still sing with love the songs of peace. Believe my words. — So far as the sun is above the earth ; — are our thoughts from war, or the least rupture between us. They then presented the Governor with a belt of wampam, — the usual token of sincerity and good faith ; and received at his hands several flattering pres- ents, with much apparent satisfaction. The parties then repaired to two stone pillars or heaps of portable rocks, pitched at a former treaty, called by the significant name Two Brothers, where the solemn professions of friendship were further ratified by the addi- tion of other stones.
The parley had evidently been commenced by the Sagamores, with some degree of reluctance. Wattanummon said, their council was incomplete. Consequently, wishing to have the treaty embrace as many tribes as could be drawn into it, the Gov- ernor submitted to some delays in the negotiation, which was in progress two or three days, before it was finished. Several sub- jects were discussed ; and it was finally agreed, that trading houses should be established, the price of commodities stated and settled, and an armorer provided at the public charge. Boma- seen and Captain Samuel, frankly acknowledged, that *' several " missionaries from the friars, lately among them, had endeav- " ored to break the union and seduce them from their allegiance " to the crown of England, but had made no impressions on them, " for they were, (he said) as firm as the great rocks, and should " continue so as long as the sun and moon endured."
S*^""*^'" happy conclusion of this interview was confirmed by
firing a grand round on each side. In this ceremony, the Indians were requested to take the lead. They admitted the compliment and fired first. Their treachery was now abundantly manifest ; for it was perceived that their guns had all been loaded with bul- lets : — so charged, probably with intent to have made the En- glish the victims of the negotiation, had they not been promiscu- ously seated in the general meeting, among the Sagamores. Ac- cessions of 200 French and Indians, three days afterwards, con- firmed the suspicions, that in the delays requested, the Sagamores only awaited their arrival, when, with their aid, they would have probably seized the Governor and his attendants, and sacrificed
Chap, i.] OF MAINE 37
the inhabitants at pleasure. If these circumstances, however, A. d. 1703. cast no just imputations upon the fidelity of the Indians, "every " thing assumed the promising aspect of a settled peace." As usual on such occasions, they made themselves merry with sing- ing, dancing, and raising loud shouts, or acclamations of joy.
The result of the conference on the whole, greatly revived the n^^pes of desponding hearts of the people, and enlivened their hopes, that p^ace."*''* this country might escape the awful destiny of another Indian war, " The eastern inhabitants, says Mr. Penhallow,^ who before had *• thoughts of removing, were now encouraged to stand their " ground ; several more were also preparing to settle among them, " partly from the fertility of the soil, the plenty of timber, the " advantage of fishery, and several other inducements as well as from encouragements offered them by proprietors and by gov- ernment. But all these prospects were mere illusions, which subsequent events speedily dissipated.
* His " History of the wars of IN ew-England with the eastern Indians." -p. 5.
I The population of New-Eng-land has been variously estimated : — In 1692, at 200,000.-39 Univ. Hist. p. 323.— In 1696, at 100,000, and in 1701, at 120,000.-2 Holmes' A. Ann. p. 31-54.— In 1750, at 354,000.-2 Doug. Summ. p. 180. These cannot all be correct. The quotas of men to be fur- nished in 1701, [1 Belk. H. 246, Note *J to assist New- York ag-ainst the Indians, were thus : — Mass. and Maine, 350 ; Connecticut, 120 ; Rhode Island, 48 ; New-Hampshire, 40 ; New- York, 200 ; East and West Jersey, 120; Pennsylvania, 80; Maryland, 160, and Virginia, 240.~But the popu- lation of Massachusetts, in 1742, was. 164,000; of Rhode-Island, in 1738, 15,000;— the towns of New-Hampshire, A. D. 1699, were only five. Hence the -probable population in Kew-England^ A. D. 1703, was at least 150,000 s — viz.
Massachusetts, 70,000 Rhode-Island, 12,000 New-Plymouth, 15,000 New-Hampshire, 12,000 Connecticut, 35,000 Maine, 5 or 6,000
120,000 -1
80,000=150,000.
38
THE HISTOHY
[Vol. 11.
CHAPTER II.
The third Indian loar — The French draw some of the Eastern Tribes to St. Francois and Becancourt — The Colonists and In- dians— Mischief done by the latter ; and the former despoil the habitation of Castine the younger — The Indians attack at once, 5 of the eastern towns— The enemy repulsed at Casco — Black- point, York and Berwick attacked — Bounties for scalps — Pc- quods stationed at Berwick — Col. Church's Gth E. Expedition — Saco fort defensible — Hilton's scout — Exchange of prisoners — Illicit trade to Nova Scotia suspected — Gov. Dudley urges the rebuilding of the fort at Pemaquid — Mischiefs done at York and Kittcry — Indians tired of the war — Hilton' s feats at Black-point — Col March's expedition against Port-Royal — Attacks on the re- maining toivns in Maine — A smart skirmish at Saco — Also at Berjvick — 3Jiserics of Maine — Rumors of a contemplated attack from Canada — Nicholson' s proposed expedition against Port-Roy- al— Gov. Dudley's remarks — Port-Royal captured, changed to Annapolis, and Vetch appointed Governor — Mission of Living- ston and the younger Castine to Quebec — Attacks by the Indians — Chiefs go to England — Expedition against Canada fruitless — 26 persons killed iti Maine — Skirmish at Wells — Treaty of Utrecht — Peace negotiated with the Indians at Portsmouth — Incidents of the war — Character of Bomasecn, Assacombuit and Castine the younger.
A. D. 1703. An Indian war always has associations, which Strike the mind The Indian with pain. So shocking to the attributes of hunaanity, are the cir- cumstances, which frequently attend its progress, that were ca- lamities, cruelties, carnage and suffering, or even personal exploits and hardships, its only characteristics, it might justly be consider- ed a burden to history. But every war with the natives, devel- opes facts and peculiarities, worthy of the notice it claims. It has its own features and own cast of character. l$t,orking The first one would have been a fair sample of savage war- pjimp's {^x^^ had not the Indian warriors used firearms, instead of the bow and arrow. Skulk, ambush, surprize and massacre, were its traits and footsteps, from beginning to end. They fought single-handed, without the arts or aid of Europeans. Their
Chap, ii.] OF MAINE 39
numbers were respectable, and their motives comparatively noble. A. D. 1703. For though their design was partly to avenge themselves of in- juries ; it was principally to disperse the obtrusive settlers, and recover their entire native country. King Philip's war was short, continuing only about three years. By a long one, they are al- ways tired and exhausted. The time chosen by them for closing it, was in the height of their successes, when they could com- mand for themselves an honorable peace.
The next war was in a trreat decree instigated and manasjed 2^,-. '^'"g
o ° o ° William's
by the French; who had made themselves thoroughly acquaint- war. ed with the disposition and habitudes of the Indians, and the springs by which their subserviency could be completely control- led. The Jesuits had strongly infected their superstition and pre- judices, with papal fanaticism. The Canadian French had en- titled themselves to great merit, in the estimation of the Indians, by furnishing them with arms and ammunition, — leading them to war, — fighting by their side, — and helping them to achieve vic- tories. Campaign, siege, undermining, and other arts of war- fare, were taught and promoted ; captives and scalps were con- sidered the greatest trophies ; premiums being offered and paid for them by the French. — The latter was a long war, lasting about ten years ; for after they had sued for peace and entered into treaties, French artifice was able to give the savages an effectual impulse to acts of treachery, their vengeance was re- kindled, and their minds inflated with new-formed expeditions.
Another, called Queen Anne's war, now opened under circum- 3d, or stances differing from either of those preceding. A short inter- Anne's war. val of peace had, in no considerable degree, recruited the strength of the Indians. They saw that their tribes were thinned ; and that they had gained nothing permanent by former wars. Every hope of enjoying their native land, freed of white men, was full of despondency. Their fathers had conveyed extensive territories, and what was recovered in war, if any thing, was presently lost in peace, if ^not actually resigned by treaty. They agreed with the French, in their aversion to the English, and in a hatred of their free politics and religious sentiments; and when such passions, in minds undisciplined, are inflamed by fanaticism, they know neither restraint nor limits. All their acquaintance with the arts of civilized life, seemed rather to abase, than ele- vate their character. They made no advancements in mental
40
A.D. 1703.
The Freiic'u.
Becancourt -and Si. vFraiicois.
The
French draw the sh a lie red tribes to thai place.
THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
culture, moral sense, honest industry, or manly enterprize. In- fatuated with the notion of catholic indulgences, they grew bolder inranimosity, insolence and crime ; their enmity was more im- placable ; their habits more depraved ; and a keener appetite was given for ardent spirits, for rapine, and for blood. Dupes to the French, they lost all regard to the sanctity of treaty obliga- tions ; and Indian Jaith among the English, became as proverbi- ally bad, as the Punic, among the ancient Romans^ Their natu- ral love of country had degenerated, and their fire uf patriotism was evidently abating.
Aware of the fact, and observing the Indians averse to wars, which reduced their numbers, without any other considerable emoluments or rewards, than the few spoils taken, Callieres,* the Canadian Governor, adopted a new expedient, which was ardently prosecuted by M. de Vaudreuil, his successor. They persuaded the shattered tribes to collect and settle at Becancourt and St. Francois in Canada ; — two small rivers, which empty into the St. Lawrence on the southerly side, — the one formerly the Perante, about 80, and the other 90 miles above Quebec. The Indian village of Becancourt is situated at a small dis- tance above the mouth of the river ; consisting of several wig- wams in a cluster, favored with a chapel, and accommodated with a ferry over the St. Lawrence to Trois Revieres on the op- posite shore. That of St Franpois on the eastern side of the same river, six miles from its mouth, is " a most eligible sit- *' nation." It soon became a large hamlet of wigwams, adorn- ed with a chapel and parsonage-house, and furnished with a mis- sionary and interpreter. f
To these places, the French had the address to draw the wan- dering Wawenocks, the Sokokis, the Anasagunticooks, and also the Algonquins, from Trois Revieres ; who, intermingling, formed what have since been called " the St. Franpois Indians." At these places, designed to be the rendezvous of the natives, the French intended to command their trade and plunder ; to plan their excursions, and direct their motions against the English fron-
Vaudreuil, late Governor of Montreal, was a any of his predecessors. — 40 Univ. Hist. p.
* He died, May 26, 1703. man of abilities superior to 136.
t Jeffreys, p. 9-11. — T. Hutchinson's Topograph. Description, p. Bouchetf 8 Canada, p. 33S.
6*7.
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 41
tiers ; and likewise to make them a defence against the Mohawks, A.D. 1703. in case of war with that people.* At present the latter were in a state of neutrality with the French, who were determined, in the opening war, to avail themselves of this and every other ad- vantage. Their remarkable successes, in 'ihe late one, were, in the eagerness of anticipation, only preludes to complete victories.
In these savage wars, the English settlers and their assistants The English
colonists.
fought altogether on the defensive. All parts of the country hold- en under charter or purchase, or broken from a wilderness into fields of partial cultivation or clearing, were considered by the men of this generation, as rightfully belonging to them in fee. — Here were their only homes, and even the birth-places of many, whose attachments to the country were enlivened by natal patriot* ic ardor. Duty as well as inclination impelled them to defend it, at every hazard and every sacrifice. Though torn or driven away from it in the late war, they had determined not to abandon it ; — their spirits were not fatally broken, nor their courage subdued* Personal exertion, intrepidity and exploits had often reflected im- perishable honor even upon their defeats. Valor is in truth fre- quently more genuine when personal ; and human nature shines with brighter lustre, when the merit is individual. Many of the dead were mantled in glory, and the living, though anxious for a continuance of peace, were not backward to put on armor, when- ever duty or country might require. The}^ believed, however, if the Indians were left to themselves, they would not recommence hostilities.
But no measures, neither courtesies, presents, nor the sacred The Indians renewal of treaty-engagements, could keep ihem quiet. When arKpm.e-*^* there was war between the English and French crowns, it was Jll^ tn^'i'jsh impossible for their colonies to be at rest. A plan of operations, J;ou„eer contrived by the French, was now evidently maturing in Canada, ^'^sime's In the meantime, the impatient Indians were guilty of some mis- chief at Kennebeck, and a small party of Englishmen) unadvised, rashly committed an outrage at Penobscot, the late residence of Baron de Castine. — He had himself, since the last war, gone with his accumulated riches to France, never to return j leaving a son by a Tarratine wife, before mentioned, known by the name
phiiider the 3 ouiiee Castine hou.se.
* 1 Doug. Summ. p. 12.— 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 131.— 5 Charlevoix's N. F. p, 164-177.
Vol. II. 6
42 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1703. of ' Castine the younger.^ Under tlie mask of pretended friend- ship, the foolish and wicked men visited his house, at 'Biguyduce [Castine], and besides perpetrating " great spoil," plundered it of all its most valuable articles. Every one looked upon the transaction as a base treachery ; and when he complained to the government, he was assured, that ample restitution should be made and the ofienders severely punished. This act of violence occasioned much deeper regrets, because there were daily appre- hensions of hostilities from the Indians, and a general resolution to give them no provocation. Outrageous, however, as it was, the well-minded sufferer only complained and expostulated, with- out avenging himself; for in policy and sentiment h<8 was the friend of tranquillity. The Indians The, tribes, on the contrary, were induced to join the war ; and \Veiis, fifty days after renewing the treaty of Casco, mentioned,* a
po^ise, Sac'o, ^°^y hundred men, mostly Indians under French leaders,
and^ai-' ' ^^^^ upon the eastern frontiers. Tliey divided themselves into six mouih. or seven parties, and at the same time, (August 10th,) attacked Wells, Cape-Porpoise, Saco, Scarborough, Spurwink, Purpooduck and Casco, being the principal settlements which had revived since the close of the last war. Wells, which had defended itself with so much bravery and success, in the two former wars, was now assailed with such violence, that in a short time it sustained a loss of thirty-nine killed and taken, besides the wounded. — Cape-Porpoise, inhabited principally by unshielded fishermen, was wholly desolated. The garrison at Winter-harbor, and the fort at the head of the tide, in Saco, fought the assailants with great spirit, till at last, the former, overpowered by numbers alto- gether superior, was compelled to submit to terms of capitula- tion ;f and the latter was barely able to make good its defence ; having several killed and wounded. The people of Scarborough happened to be mostly in garrison ; and the enemy, fearful or unwilling to encounter it, sent in a captive with a flag of truce. Fully acquainted with their perfidy and intrigues, and conse- quently paying no regard to the message, the commanding officer kept the captive and vigorously resisted a long siege — till he and his men were extremely exhausted, and on the verge of capture ;
* 2 British Empire, p. 87.
I In the assault of this fort, 11 were kilie.I, 24 taken prisoners and car- ried into captivity. — FoJsoin., j). 198.
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 43
when happily a reentbrcement arrived and administered seasona- A. D. 1703. ble relief. But none of the settlements suffered so severely as Spurivink and Purpooduck, in Falmouth ; these were entirely destroyed. In Spurwink. principally inhabited by the Messrs. Jordans and their families, twenty-two were killed and taken cap- tive. Purpooduck, containing nine families, unprotected by any fortification, was attacked when there was not a man at home. Here th.e savage enemy butchered twenty-five and carried away eight prisoners. Among other horrid spectacles, was the body of Michael Webber's wife, near confinement, who was mangled and exposed in a manner too shocking to be described.
The garrison at Casco, still the remotest eastern frontier, was A decoy under the command of Major March. The first knowledge he bascofort. had of tlie enemy's approach, was in the appearance of a small party, under Moxus, Wanongonet and Assacombuit, who exhib- ited themselves unarmed, and sent him a message under a flag of truce ; pretending they had some important matter to communi- cate. Apprehending no immediate danger, he proceeded with a guard of only two or three men, to hold a parley. With the first words uttered, each of the Indians drew from his mande, a hidden hatchet, and struck at March with great violence — at the same instant, an ambush rising, sliot one of his attendants to the ground. March, being a man of great personal courage and strength, wrested a hatchet from one of the assailants; and while he was parrying the blows aimed at his head, Hook, his sergeant, with a file of ten men from the fort, rescued him from immediate death. In this affray, two of his companions, Phippenny and Kent, were slain. They were worthy men, yet unfitted by age and debility, to act as champions. Disheartened by this bold and unexpected rebuff, the enemy withdrew, and for a week, lurked around, upon the peninsula ; setting fire lo the slender houses and cottages in the vicinity, and committing still baser acts of mischief. But when the main body of the en- emy, not less than 500 in number, had collected, they proceeded to Casco, under the command of Mons. Bobasser, to renew the work of destruction. They first took a sloop, two shallops and considerable plunder ; and encouraged by success, they strove two days and nights, to undermine the fort from the water side, as had been done in the last war. Soon the English must
44 THE HISTORY [VoL. II,
A.D. 1703. have submitted to a capitulation or to death, had not the fortunate arrival of Capt. South wick in the province galley prevented. He raised the siege, retook the shallops, and scattering the ene^
About 500 my's flotilla of about 200 canoes, put him to flijrht. There
of Iho eiie- *' ^ . .
myrepuis- were at least one hundred and fifty-five of the English killed and Our loss Ic6 taken in these several attacks; which, with others in different
places, alarmed the whole frontier settlements from Casco to
ConnecUcut river,
The country beine; thus thrown into fearful confusion : the wo-
Two troops . . .
of horse, men and children retired to the garrisons. The men went armed to their work, and ported sentinels in the fields. A troop of horse was quartered at Portsmouth, and another under Capt. Wadley, at Wells, Three hundred and sixty men were marched by or- Sept.26. of Governor Dudley, Sept 26, towards Pegwacket, one of
the enemy's principal head-quarters, and another party, under Capt. Davis, went to Ossipee ponds, but made no discoveries. People at The enemy still infested the eastern seaboard, determined to kiU'<i:Iud' desolate every settlement and reduce every garrison. As Cap- ^ba'ildoi'ied. tain Hunnewell and 19 of his neighbors, at Black-point, were going to work in the meadows, Oct. 6, ihey were waylaid by 200 Indians, and all except one were killed or taken captive. The fort there, left under the command of Lieut. Wyatt, and manned by only eight men, was the next object of attack. En^* coura^ed and supported by Captains Willard and Wells, two shipmasters, then ia the harbor with their vessels and crews, the fort made a bold resistance, till nearly exhausted ; when the brave defendants, influenced by the dictates of discretion, retired on board one of the vesselis. With a great shout, the triumphant enemy now set the deserted garrison on fire. Anoth- er party led on by one Sampson, against York, slew the family of York and Arthur Brai>:don, consistins; of his wife and five children ; and
Berwick at- ° ° '
lacked. carried Mrs. Hannah Parsons, a widow woman, and her young daughter into captivity. f At Berwick, five fell into an ambush ; — - one was killed, one wounded, and the other three made prison*
* Charlevoisc[Bd vo!. J\r. F. p. 423^9] says, 250 men were sent out this year under Hertel, to assist the Abpnaques, who made 15U prisoners— be» sides those slain,
f This is supposed to be the g-lrl, whom the savagies on their march, in 1706, being linsnccessfiil in hunting^, pre[)arcd " a fire to roast, when a dog, falling in their way, supplied the child's place." — 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 149.
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 45
ers. Also, two houses were burned, and a descent made upon a.d. i703. Andrew Neale's garrison of the same place, which was under the command of Capt. Brown. In this, the assailants were quite unsuccessful, being repulsed wnth a loss of nine killed upon the spot, and as many wounded. Unable otherwise to retaliate, they lastened Joseph Ring, a captive, to a stake, and burnt him to death ; raising hideous shouts at his agonies and groans. Indians were still strolling about Casco ; and as a store-ship, intended for the relief of the garrison, was entering the harbor, they killed the master and three men at the first shot, and w^ounded two others in the boat.
The enemy then retiring to the woods, were pursued by Maj. p^^^my March, of Casco, at the head of 300 men, as far as Pegwacket. '.vj^'",?'' At this place he killed six, and made prisoners of six more — the ^^'''^i'- first reprisals in the war ; — returning laden with considerable plunder. Hence, the Legislatures of Massachusetts and New- Hampshire were encouraged to offer a bounty of £20, for every Indian prisoner under ten years ; and twice that sum for every Bmmtips of- one older or for his scalp. Moved by so liberal a premium, scalps" Capt. Tyng of Falmouth,* and others, made excursions in the depth ot winter, upon snow-shoes, though without success ; the enemy being engaged in an expedition against Deerfieldf and other western settlements. The government was determined, if possible, to keep possession of Saco, and therefore at the expense ^^^^ ^^^^ of £164, repaired the garrison near the falls. f repaired.
The returning spring was a season of distressing melancholy- — jy ^^q^ aggravated by an early renewal of hostilities or alarms and as ll^Ji"',!^^ Berwick was an important pass, Major Mason was posted there, i^erwick. with 95 Pequods and Mohegans, from Connecticut; who were at first a great terror to the enemy. Nevertheless, they did not cover the settlement ; for on the 25th of April, Nathaniel Mea- dar was shot dead, when at work in his field, and his body most barbarously mangled ; and about the same time, two men were killed, and one taken on the road in Wells. Afterwards, a par- ty fell on York, where they slew Matthew Austin near the garri- son, without being able to do any more mischief in this visit.
* Sou of Col. Edward Tyng-.
t Od the last day of Feb, 1704, 250 Indians, under Mons. Artel or « Her- tel" destroyed Deerfield, carrying- away Rev. Mr. Williams, and many others — See his " Redeemed Captive^* Sfc. \ Mass. Rec. p. 2-3.
46 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.I). 1704. The bold and persevering incursions of tlie enemy into Maine, S'-asirri. ^^^^ towns wcstward ; and the appearance of French priva- expeditiou. iQQYs upon the coast, induced the government to adopt wider plans and more efficient measures. The truth was, an attempt to de- fend and secure a frontier, open and exposed in a hundred places, was utterly vain. Policy required, that the war should to be car- ried into the enemy's country, and the conquest of Canada and Nova Scotia achieved, whence all our evils flowed ; such being evidently the only means of acquiring a permanent and lasting peace. In furtherance of this plan, it was deemed expedient first, to scour the eastern coast, and if practicable, discover and break up the head-quarters of the Indians, in the interior, also to carry retaliation and dismay, among the Acadian provincials. Hence, a force of 550 men besides officers was raised, and the command given to the celebrated Church.^' now holding a Col- onel's commission. Furnished with 14 transports, 36 whale- boats, and a scout-shallop, he sailed from Boston, May 21, under convoy of the Jersey and Gosportf ships of war, attended by the Province galley. The particular places of destination ap- pointed him, were Metinicus, Penobscot, Mount Desert, Machias, Passamaquoddy, and the settlements upon the bay of Fundy ; likewise Norridgewock on his return, if there were a lodgment of the enemy at that place. His sick and wounded, he was di- rected to send either to the garrison at Casco, or to Pepperell's fort at Kittery-point. „ . . The little fleet came to anchor at the Island Metinicus, out of
Ho visits '
Pei.obscot Penobscot bay ; from which Col, Church sent out two boats to
bay. '
one of the Green Islands, where three French residents, a father and two sons, by the name of Lafavre, and also a Canadian In- dian, were all taken into custody. The prisoners were sullen and obstinate, unwilling to answer enquiries or act as pilots, till they were terrified by threats, or softened by promises ; when they became submissive, and' stated, that there were several fami- lies of French and Indians, living about the margin of the Penob- scot; and that Mons. Gourdon and Sharkee, French officers, who
* John Gorham was his ]/ieut. Col. and Winthrop Hilton his Major. His captains were John Brown, Constant Church, James Cole, John Dyer, John Cooke, Caleb Williamson, Edward Church, Joshua Lamb, Isaac Mirick, John Harradon. — Church's oth Expeditions p. 165.
t One of 48 ^uns, Cypt. Smith; the other of 32 f^-uns, Capt. Rogers,
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 47
had lately furnished them and the informants with ammunition A D. 1704. and other necessaries, were then engaged in building a fort at Passamaquoddy.
Church, under pilotage of the prisoners and one Young, taken out of Boston gaol for the purpose, proceeded with several of his transports and whale-boats, into the bay and river of Penob- scot. In this excursion, " he killed and took a considerable num- ber both of French and Indians;" and among the captives w^ere baron de Castine's daughter, and her children. She represented, that her husband had gone to visit her father in France, where he, since leaving this country, was living on a large estate.
At Mount Desert, Col. Church joined the three ships of war, Ranges the
. ^ roast to
and taking a fresh supply of provisions, hastened into the waters Passama- of the Passamaquoddy, at the head of his men, in whale boats, skirmish Through fear of alarming the enemy, he rowed by night and rest- ed by day ; never permitting a gun to be discharged, even at an Indian, provided he could be otherwise killed or taken. Church and his men went ashore upon an Island, June 7th, probably Moose Island, where they made prisoners of a French woman and her children ; and from the main, near her abode, they took M. Lotriell and his family. In ascending the river, they seized upon Gourdon and his family, and Sharkee and his domestics, both lately commissioned from Canada, to form an expedition against the English. They were at the time dwelling in tempo- rary cottages ; and that .of Sharkee was plundered of some valuable articles. Church, observing his men hover around the dwelling of Gourdon, demanded the reason : — Because, as one replied, some of the people within will not come out. In a fit of passion or haste. Church exclaimed, then kill them. Instantly the in- habitants received a discharge from the soldiers, and several fell. The faults and blemishes of eminent men, are often too severely censured. Church was highly provoked, to observe so much insubordination and exposure of his men, occasioned by the obsti- nacy of those who ought to submit without resistance ; yet he could frame no excuses entirely sufficient, to satisfy a sensitive public. He then proceeded as far as the falls of the river, in the work of capture and destruction ; Chartiers, a French offi- cer and resident, being the only one who escaped.*
* 1 Coll. N. H. Hist. Soc. p. 32-35.-2 Hutch. Hist. p. 133.
48 THE HISTORY [Voii. II.
A. D, 1704. Next the armament sailed into the bay of Fundy, and there ^|^'"'rch vis- divided ; — the ships of war proceeding against Port-Royal, and of Fiuuiy. the whale-boats against the remoter settlements. After destroy- ing Minas [Horton] and two other "populous villages," and mak- ing several prisoners, Church rejoined the ships in the harbor of Port-Royal. But a council of war, called July 4, misappre- hending the strength of the fortress, determined not to attack it ; and the ships sailed for Boston.^ Cliurch then laid waste the Finisiies his ^^"^"^'T ^hout Cliicgnecto ; and visiting Passamaquoddy, Mount fioii'^^^''^ ■^^^^'"^j Penobscot and Casco on his return, finished his fifth and last eastern expedition, about three months after its commence- ment; receiving from the legislature, as a reward for his services, a vote of public thanks. Gov. Dudley in his next speech to the General Court represented, that ' Col. Church had destroyed alt
* the settlements in the vicinity of Port-Royal, and taken 100
* prisoners and a large amount of plunder, with the loss of only
* six men.'
This expedition, while it in a great degree averted from Maine, the hostilities of the enemy through the season, f was a most destructive one to the ill-fated Acadians.f Church was an officer who made thorough work, and carried retaliation in this instance far enough : For their condition, in view of winter, was truly wretched ; they, until now, having never experienced the direful distresses so often brought, by their French and savage coadjutors, upon the English settlements.
The principal sufferers in this war, were the people of Mas- Massaobu- sachusctts, New-Hampshire and Maine. Their frontier was a Hampshire sheltcr to the rest of New-England, — or it was defended at their tile suffer-^ cxpcnsc, both of livcs and means. The government of New- war." '^"^ York had entered into a treaty with the Six Nations^ or Mo- hawks ; who had engaged to observe strict neutrality both towards the English and the French. Nothing surely could be more grateful to the inhabitants of that Province ; as it favored a lu- crative trade with the Indians, which the Provincials would, by
* According- to one account, [40 Univ. Hist. p. 152,] Port-Roj'al owed its deliverance to 60 Canadians and St. Castine the young-er, who had thrown themselves into the fort the day before the English appeared io the basin. f The enemy " killed a lad near Casco foTt.'^—Penhallow.
I Church's 5th Expedition, p. 158-193.
{, Sometimes called the " Five ISations."
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 49
no means, have disturbed. It however occasioned great com- A D 1705. plaint in Massachusetts ; for the plunder, taken from the frontier settlements eastward of Connecticut river, was often merchandize in Albany. On the contrary, the French, who had suffered so much in the wars with that fierce and savage people, soon saw and realized the great benefits of the neutrality ; and therefore, permitted no hostile movements to proceed against any part of New-York.
Massachusetts, in her provident care of Maine, being stiJl de- J^efenceof termined to keep possession of Saco, ordered, that the fort stand- scout' to ing at the head of the tide be dismantled and abandoned, as it wock!^^ was originally erected only to cover the Indian trade ; and that the one at Winter-Harbor be strengthened and put in the best posture of defence. Moreover, in the winter, when the snow was four feet deep, Col. Hilton, who had been a Major in the late expedition under Church, was sent by government with two hun- dred and seventy men, including twenty Indians, to Norridge- wock, on snow-shoes. They took twenty days' provision with them; the season for their march was favorable ; and seldom, if ever, were the fatigues of a winter campaign undertaken and en- dured with more fortitude and patriotism ; the officers themselves having only the pay of soldiers. Arriving, they were, after all, disappointed, for they found none of the enemy ; — nothing but *' a large chapel with a vestry" and deserted wigwams, all which they reduced to ashes. This and the successful enterprizes of Church and others the last year, had greatly provoked the French ; and in January, Subercase, late ruler of Placentia, having sue- g^bgrcase ceeded Brouillon in the government of Nova Scotia, made a bold fj^^f^^jj^. descent upon the Islands, Newfoundland and St. John's, at the land, head of 550 men, collected in Canada and about Port-Royal ; in which he was assisted by a body of savages under the noted chief Assacombuit. Great ravages were made among the settle- ments, many of the English were killed, and 140 taken prisoners.
By this time the belligerents felt their respective prisoners to be a burthen ; and in May, Gov. Vaudreuil despatched from Can- of^p'S-Loners ada to Boston, Capt. Hill, who had been taken captive the last year in Wells, and directed him to negotiate an exchange. On his arrival, he was able to communicate to mourning friends the intelligence, that there were of their countrymen, about 117 in Vol. II 7
50 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1705. charge of the government, and 70 with the Indians. William Dudley, a son of the Governor, and several other gentlemen were appointed commissioners to Quebec ; and with them were sent 70 prisoners, and yet only 60 were obtained in return. Guilty of detestable hypocrisy, Vaudreuil pretended, that " the Indians *• were an independent and freeborn people ; and that he had no " right nor power to demand their captives whereas they were, in fact, well known to be entire dupes or vassals to his will. How- ever, the mission of the Governor's son was protracted several months, under pretence either of effecting a farther exchange of prisoners, or of negotiating a neutrality ; — though his continu- ance there, was in truth a matter of policy, to delay excursions or sallies against the English frontiers. Vetch dnd Afterwards, William Rowse was sent twice with a vessel and cused oTil- flag of truce to Nova Scotia ; but returned with only 24 deliver- licit trade. Captivity. As deep suspicions shaded his conduct, he,
as principal, his friend Samuel Vetch, subsequently Governor of Nova Scotia, and two merchants of Boston, as accomplices, were charged with carrying on thither an illicit trade, whereby the en- emy was furnished with military stores ; and consequently they were thrown into prison. Yet they finally escaped heavy penal- ties, only because the queen refused to sign the legislative acts, passed for their punishment. Gov. Dud- There were furthermore whispers, that the Governor himself, Jey uupopu- concerned in this disgraceful traffic ; and he found it difficult to wipe off the unjust aspersion, deepened as it was by popular prejudice. His notions of government, it is true, had too much of an aristocratic tincture ; and he was far from having the gen- eral love and esteem of the people. Nay, it was expected, at one time, that he would be removed, and Sir Charles Hobby appointed to the executive chair. The Governor's influence was certainly limited, and his unpopularity, a check to public meas- ures, if not an embarrassment to the prosecution of the war. Urges the According to the instructions of the ministry, he again urged oM"ema5 upon the General Court, to rebuild the fort at Pemaquid, and to an? Repair- Contribute towards the repairs and support of fort William and vJfn[°"nd Mary* on Great Island opposite Kittery. But the House thought Mary. Pemaquid to be * out of the usual road traversed by the Indians ;
* See ante, A. D. 17J0.
Chap, ii.] of Maine, 51
* and being an hundred miles distant from any English planta- a. d. no6.
* tion, it was merely a place of occasional anchorage for coasters
* or fishing boats, and could be of no great benefit — no " bridle " to the enemy — no barrier to our frontier." The original ex-
* pense of erecting it was great — not less than £20,000 ; and
* the charge of rebuilding and supporting it, would be greater
* than the Province could possibly sustain.' — In excuse for not complying with the other proposition, the House replied, that the fort was originally built at the charge of New-Hampshire, and to her it properly belonged ; that the whole expense of the repairs was only about £500 — a sum not equal to the quota of several single towns in Massachusetts, for one year's charge of the pres- ent war ; that all the trade and navigation on the northern as well as southern side of the river Piscataqua, paid an excise towards the maintenance of the fortification ; and that Massachu- setts had been at great expense in the protection of New-Hamp- shire, and of the parties employed in procuring timber and masts for the crown ; while the latter Province had done nothing towards the support of the garrisons, the land-forces, and sea- fencibles, though as truly protective of her as of Maine or Mas- sachusetts. Equally unsuccessful was the Governor in urging
upon the Legislature another proposition, which was the estab- Governor's lishment of settled salaries, for the two first executive officers of ^^'^'^^* the Province ; the Governor being usually allowed an annual sti- pend of only £500.
Through the summer and autumn, our cruisers were continu- r^
° ' Our vessel!
ally on the eastern coast ; nevertheless, the French privateers seized and
, ^ carried to
took seven of our vessels and carried them into Port-Royal. Pon-RoyaJ. Nor could the remaining towns and plantations in Maine prevent j^j^^^^ or escape attacks and losses, though they had regular sentries, J*^^^^^' nightwatches and videttes perpetually in service ; for they lost, during the season, as many as twenty-one or two of their inhab- itants, killed or carried into captivity. In Kittery, at Spruce- Creek, five were slain and as many made captives. Among the former was Mrs. Hoel, a gentlewoman of very respectable connex- ions and fine accomplishments. Enoch Hutchins lost his wife and children ; John Rogers, three weeks after, was dangerously wounded ; and James Toby was shot. Another party of eighteen Indians, rushing from the woods, October 15th, seized Mr. Sto- rer's four children, near the garrison at Cape-Neddock, in York.
52 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.D. 1705. One, being too young to travel, they knocked on the head, and another they afterwards killed, probably amid torture, out of re- taliatory revenge, according to savage usage ; because one of the assailants was shot down on his retreat. A. D. 1706. There were some apprehensions of an attack upon the frontier in the subsequent winter ; owing principally to intelligence receiv- ed from Col. Schuyler of Albany, that a force of 270 men was preparing to march from Canada to some place unknown. There- fore Governor Dudley, ever watchful of the enemy, gave orders for a circular scouting march, once a month, round the head of the towns, from Kingston, N. H. to Salmon Falls.— The enemy Cruellies of first appeared in Maine, at Kittery, April 29, where a party of at Kiue'ry!^ them rising from an ambush, upon Mr, Shapleigh and his son, as they were travelling through the town, killed the father and car- ried the' son to Canada. On their march, the savages exhibited a specimen of their barbarous disposition ; for they bit off the ends of their young prisoner's fingers, and to prevent their bleed- ing, seared them with burning-hot tobacco-pipes. There were likewise other instances of cruelty. One Sampson, an overgrown savage, undertook to hang Rebecca Taylor, his prisoner, with his girdle tied around her neck and drawn over the limb of a tree. But, unexpectedly, his girdle broke, and she, half suspended, fell. This so exasperated the monster, that he was about to plunge his hatchet into her head, when the noted Bomaseen, passing that way, humanely rescued the fair sufferer from her pains and perils. Ravages in Much mischief was perpetrated, this summer, by the Indians, ^eufand^N. ^t Dover, Exctcr, and Dunstable, in New-Hampshire ; and at Hampshire. Q^Qton, Chclmsford, and Sudbury, in Massachusetts ; and hence the government resolved upon a more vigorous prosecution of the war. In a new tariff of bounties, for every Indian scalp, a regu- lar soldier was offered £10; a volunteer, without wages, £20, and without being furnished with rations or supplies, £50 ; yet, so shy and seldom seen were the savages, that it is said, every Indian scalped, killed or taken, cost the Province £1000, The Indians But, fortunately, the tribes considered the war a burden, and
tired of the . . , .
war* were heartily tired ol it, as was conceded by the French them- selves. Usually, a war of three years' continuance is long enough for Indians. In the present war, they may have gratified their revenge, — certainly they had acquired no permanent advantage, no considerable booty, or other emolument. Thev had not utter-
Chap, ii.] of mal\k. 53
ly destroyed a single town or plantation in Massachusetts or New- a. d, 1706. Hampshire ; and those they had laid waste in Maine, yielded nothing to the destroyers. The white men of this age were well acquainted with the manner of savage warfare, and were more than a match for their foes. The unhappy natives saw their tribes wasted and distressed, liable to be utterly extirpated from the beloved land ol their fathers ; and yet unable elsewhere to obtain a support for themselves and for their needy families.
A neutrality was proposed by the Canadian French, which is fl^^i^ces de> supposed to have been rejected. Charlevoix* says, that Gov. 'Jg*^^^'^^^ Dudley in this dilemma was 'much affected with the cries of Canada.
* the inhabitants, no longer able to improve their lands, which
* were continually ravaged by the Indians ; and he thought the
* only way to put an end to their distress, was to remove the
* French from Acadia.' It is true, the Governor had great rea- son to expect, that a complete conquest both of that country and Canada would soon be attempted ; since the promise of an arma- ment from England, the current year, remained unperformed, only because of some changes in the political affairs of the realm. He was exceedingly anxious to see Port-Royai reduced ; as such an event would complete the entire conquest of Nova Sco- tia, and convert it into an English Province. It would also serve to shew, that, though it were falsely said, the Governor's impolitic management of affairs towards that Province had cost Massachusetts £30,000, he was successful as well as indefatiga- ble in his labors and plans for the public good.
Another excursion eastward, was undertaken by the estimable . ,^a«
' ^ A. D. not.
Colonel Hilton, in January, 1707: and a shallop was sent to
^ ton's success
Casco with stores and provisions for his forces, consisting of ^20 a^.^^'a^^k- men. So mild and unsettled was the weather, however, and ^*^'"^* open the winter, that they were unable to prosecute their march to the extent intended ; yet in pursuing an Indian track upon which they struck, near Black-point, tliey surprised and killed four savages, and took captive a middle aged squaw with a pap- poose. To save her life, she conducted them to a party of eighteen, lying asleep on a neck of land not far distant and un- guarded ; all of whom except one, they killed about break of
* 2 Charlevoix's N. F. p. 313.
54 "I'HE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.D. 1707. day, and took the other a prisoner.* This occasioned the great- er joy and triumph, because of the difficulty, at this period, of coming across the Indians or finding their haunts. e?ped tio^n ^ Early in the spring, the Governor raised two regiments for asiainst K the eastern service ; and 2;ave the command of them to Cols.
Koyal. ...
Wainwright and Hilton. The officers embarked with the troops, at Nantasket, May 13, in 23 transports, convoyed by the Dept- ford man of war and the Province galley, and furnished with a competent number of whale-boats. The chief command of the expedition was given to Col. March ; who was well beloved by the soldiers, and had behaved bravely in several scouts, and ren-
M 26 counters with the enemy, though never tried in service difficult ^ like the present. Arriving at Port-Royal, on the 26th, about 1000 men were disembarked ; and a skirmish ensued, in which Subercase had his horse shot under him and retired ; while the inhabitants took shelter in the fort. Misapprehending its force and condition, a council of war supposed it " was more than a match for our raw undisciplined army and the forces all re- embarked, June 7, in a disorderly manner.f Several of the officers went to Boston for further orders ; and some of the transports put in at Casco, and one at Portsmouth. The Gov- ernor at Boston, being thrown off his guard by the inciting influ- ences of passion and chagrin, declared if another vessel arrived, not a man should come ashore " on pain of death." He was de- termined, and at last by dint of effort, was able to effect a rally and return to the siege of Port-Royal. Yet thinking it inexpe- dient actually to supersede Col. March in the command, the Governor appointed three gentlemen of the Council, supervisors of the enterprize now so boldly renewed. The troops relanded
Aug. 10. before the town, August 10; — but the spirits of March were crippled and his health affected, — the men were sickly, and dis- heartened,-—the enemy's forces were increasing ; and no means could inspire an union, firmness and skill equal to the emergency. In ten days the whole affair was at an end ; yet the army though sufficiently mortified, really sustained no greater loss than sixteen killed and as many wounded.
*The report of this affair with little variation from the truth, was in cir- culation at Portsmouth, on the mornings it happened, thoug-h 60 miles dis- tant.— Penhalloxo's Indian War, p. 40. _ t 2 Charlevoix, p. 318-321.
Chap, ii.] of maine. 55
In consequence of this unfortunate expedition, the French A. d. 1707. were much more able to arouse the Indians to a renewal of their All iheeas- spoliations. Beginning the last of June, 1707, they, in the course men s as- of three months, made bold advances against Kittery, Berwick, York, Wells, Casco and Winter-Harbor, being all the surviving towns and garrisons in Maine. As if actuated by personal malevo- lence towards William Carpenter, a party pushed forward to his dwellinghouse, in Kittery, and slew him and all his family. Four Kittery. men, riding in company with Mrs. Littlefield, on the road between York and Wells, were waylaid, August 10th, and all slain except Aug. lo. one, who hardly escaped an equally expected fate. Mrs. Little- field had money to the amount of $200 about her person, of all which, it is said, the same bloody hands plundered her. After- wards Mr. Littlefield, Lieutenant of the latter town, was taken and carried to Canada. The savages seemed both to hate and fear all men of military titles, rank, or character. But fishermen were mere playthings in their clutches. Lurking about Casco, Casco. they intercepted a fishing smack, sailing among the Islands, and, as in like cases, they made an easy conquest of her and her crew, killing three of them and taking the other two prisoners.
Yet much the boldest movement made this year, was on the A severe 21st of September, by a party of 150 Indians, coming in 50 ca-saco!^'^ noes* to Winter-Harbor. Here they attempted to take possession of two shallops lying at anchor, while Capt. Austin, Mr. Har- mon, John Cole, sergeant of the garrison, and five others were on board. By waiting till the enemy was near, and then all fir- ing at once, they threw the savage flotilla into great confusion. Recovering themselves, (as the narrator says,) the Indians re- turned a discharge of musquetry, with so much spirit, that our men were forced to abandon one of the shallops ; and entering the other, we cut her cables, endeavored to spread the sails, and put to sea. The Indians, instantly taking possession of the little prize, had up the mainsail, before ours was half mast ; and plied their oars and paddles so dexterously on each side, as to render their pursuit fearful. Their bark however, was a dull sailor, and themselves unskilful mariners ; and when they saw they were falling astern of their competitors, a number of them, in a dozen canoes, by means of fishlines, undertook to tow her ahead. In
* They usually appeared three in a canoe."
56 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1707 the chase, a breath of air breezed up, and by hauling her too near the wind, she came several times to stays, — which greatly retarded her progress. A perpetual firing was kept up by the parties on each other ; and so near together were they at times, — so smart was the skirmish,— and so daring the Indians, that they attempted to seize the blades of the oars, as our men were rowing. The engagement lasted about three hours ; and when the chase ceased, our men had scarcely five charges of pow- der left. Our loss was only one man, Benjamin Daniel, fatally wounded in his bowels; who exclaimed, I am a dead man^ but give me a gun ta kill one more before I go : — ^Yet the brave man had not strength to fire. About nine of the enemy were killed in this well-fought skirmish, and twice as many wounded.
The l^st outrage of the Indians this season, in Maine, was at a^Iili'b'Let. Berwick ; where a small scouting party of them killed two, as they were returning from public worship. This aroused the in- habitants, and a band of them, acquainted with their paths, laid in wait for them, and thus by having the first fire, threw them into such consternation, that they dropped their packs, contain- ing three, scalps and some articles of value, and fled to the woods.
The misery '^^^^ ^ "^^^^ trj^^S J^^^ remaining people of this
of Maine. Province. They could not even stir abroad, though well armed, without imminent hazard of their lives. They were under the ne- cessity of crowding their families into garrisoned houses, and tilling lands, only where they were situated within call from the sentry-boxes. The lumber trade and fishery were wholly at an end ;* the means of a livelihood were extremely slender j and all anticipations of speedy relief appeared truly desperate, as the fifth summer had now closed, without any prospect of peace.
A.D> 170S. But happily for the Province, it lost only two of its inhabitants tmTlef- ^" the next year, 1708 ; — these were Robert Read and David Hutchins, who were killed at Kittery. In the succeeding year, the people suffered comparatively nothing from the enemy's in- cursions ; and therefore hopes began to be entertained, that the days of extreme darkness and distress were passed.
Various rumors however, during the current season continually
* Gov. Dudley's speech, 170&.
Chap, ii.] of maine. 57
agitated the public ; and scouts were all the time in service, a.d. 1708 Spy-boats were also kept out along the coast between Piscataqua Alarming and Winter-Harbor. At length, a story was sent into circulation, by way of Albany, that there was a great army collecting in the north, which consisted of Canadian volunteers and Indian warriors from different tribes, — such as the Algonquins, the Hu- rons, the Mohawks, and the St. Francois Indians— to be joined by the Abenaques and Tarratines ; and that the whole force was preparing to attack suddenly some part of the New-England frontiers. This was a French manoeuvre to unite all these na- tives, and bring them, if possible, to act in concert agamst the common enemy. The Hurons commenced their march, Julyj^,^jg 16; when one of them accidentally killed his companion; — an event, which all considering an ill omen to the expedition^ they turned back. The Mohawks said their men were affected with a contagious distemper, and refused to proceed. Nevertheless, Vaudreuil, nowise discouraged, sent to his officers fresh orders, — directing them to prosecute the enterprise, even if " the Al-* gonquins and St. Francois Indians themselves should leave him also." Therefore two hundred of them or more proceeded on ; and, though disappointed, in not receiving a re-enforcement at the place appointed, from the Abenaques and Tarratines, they surprised Haverhill, in the night of August 29, and made it a Haverhill heap of ruins. But they proceeded no farther ; — for the eas- A^ugSt^lg. tern Indians were quite needy, and heartily desirous of peace. If we may credit a letter of Subercase to a friend, * the Mick- ' maks were naked ; and the Indians on the Kennebeck and Pe-
* nobscot would be so too, had they not carried on a trade with
* the English, through the medium of the natives about Hudson
* river, where a pound of beaver was worth a crown, and goods
* were sold at a reasonable price.' " Thus," says Charlevoix, " our own enemies relieved our most faithful Indian allies in their " necessities ; while they were daily hazarding their hves in our " service."*
To weaken the enemy, or hold him more effectually in check, ^-^1^^]^^,^' and to retrieve the political character of the government, in some ^^^^^^J'JJ* measure sullied by former expeditions against Port- Royal ; anoth- Scotia.
* 4 Charlevoix, p. 100-20, 3d vol. p. 452-65. Vol. II. 8
58 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A D. 1709. er was about to be undertaken.* Of this, Francis Nicholson, late Lieutenant-Governor of Virginia, was appointed Commander- in-Chief, and Samuel Vetch, before mentioned, a late trader to Nova Scotia, well acquainted with the Acadian settlements, was Adjutant-General. In England, they had obtained the queen's promise, to send over several ships of war to aid in the enter- prise. But none arriving, the whole project failed, — The Mo- Treachery hawks, though they had lately joined the English, were both jeal- hawks.^° ous and treacherous. One of their speakers in a great assembly previously holden, said with boldness, — ' You know the English
* and French are each a great people ; if one of them should ' destroy the other, the conqueror will strive to make us slaves.' Besides this, there was a report, that these Indians threw skins into the stream, where the English soldiery had lately encamped, near lake Champlain, which gave the water poisonous qualities.f
Governor's In February, the Governor says, ' twenty days since, accord- scouts. « ing to my former usage, I marched a scout of 150 men from
* Casco bay to all the old settlements or lodgements of the In-
* dians in the Province of Maine, in order to keep them from ' their dwelling-places, and convince them their new masters, the ' French, were unable to defend them ; though they have suppli- ' ed them with ammunition, and assisted them to carry on the war
* against us, about thirty years. — So bigoted,' adds he, ' are the ' French to the Romish religion, so inveterate against all protes-
* tants, and such their colonial contiguity to New-EnglancJ, that
* we shall never be long at rest, until Canada and Nova Scotia « shall constitute a part of the British Empire.' The Indians themselves might be easily rendered tranquil, were they removed from French influence ; — tor they were, this year, actually suing
sue^fj?*^'^"^ for peace ; a delegation being sent from Kennebeck to Boston, P®^<=®- Yvith a flag of truce. Nor were the eastern tribes generally en- gaged with the French in their movements, either the last or present year. They had been told of some disagreeable things, stated of them in Canada, which had given affront ; and at the instance of their delegates, the government sent Mr. Lewis Bane, of York, to Sagadahock, clothed with authority to make arrange- ments for negotiating a treaty.
* To meet the expense, £15,000 were emitted in bills ; and July 17, the Govenor says, 1,200 men are raised, and 17 transports provided.— 7 JIass. Rec. p. 426. t Penhallovv.
Chap, ii.] of Maine. 59
But the conquest of Port-Royal, in the spring of 1710, was A.D. i7io. the ereat and absorbing; topic. Nicholson had been several New expe-
^ . . , . , ditiou
months in England, pressing upon the ministry the most weighty against Port arguments and solicitations in favor of the enterprise ; and on the fjiy^'s. 15th of July, the fleet arrived in Boston, himself being on board. In conformity to the queen's command, four regiments were im- mediately raised in New-England, commanded by Charles Hob- by and Col. Tailer of Massachusetts, Col. Whiting of Con- necticut, and Col. Walton of New-Hampshire. There were besides, a royal regiment of marines, commanded by Col. Red- ding. Nicholson, as before, was Commander-in-Chief, and Vetch, Adjutant-General ; — the officers being commissioned by the queen. The fleet consisted of the Dragon, Chester, and Martin, 4th rates ; the Leostafie, and Feversham, 5th rates ; the Star, a bomb-ketch ; the Province galley ; a tender, and four transports from England, and 24 colony transports,* — in all, 36 sail, besides hospital and store ships, and open floats, carrying boards and necessai'ies for the cannon.
They sailed September 18th, and all arrived safely before Port- sept. 24. Royal, on the 24th, except one transport, commanded by Capt. Sn'of Su- Taye, which, running ashore at the mouth of the river, was lost, p^Royar^^ and 26 men in her, drowned. The forces were landed without opposition. Subercase, the Governor, had only 260 effective men with him ; and the most of these he was afraid to employ beyond the limits of his out-works, through fear of their desertion. As the army was marching towards the fort, several men were killed by particular aim of the inhabitants, cowering behind houses and fences. Our engineers had three batteries open, Oct. 1, within 100 yards of the fort, from which a heavy cannonading was commenced, and continued without intermission. Suber- case, in the evening was summoned to surrender, when he agreed upon a cessation of arms, and the next day, signed articles of capitulation.! By these, the fortress, munitions of war and other effects of the French crown, were transferred to the Queen of England ; the inhabitants within a league of the fort,t with
* That is, 14 were in the pay of Massachusetts— 5 of Connecticut— 3 of Rhode-Island, and 2 of New-Hampshire.— 2 Htitchinsori' s History, p. 164.
t See particulars, Penhallow's Indian Wars,—\ Coll. JV. H. Hist. Soc. p. 63-67.
I The number of souls within these limits was 481.— 2 Hutch. Hist. p. 167.
60 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1710 iheir property, were, upon taking the oath of allegiance, to be protected, two years ; and the prisoners were to be transported to France or be permitted to remove to Canada or Placentia, at their election.*
Col. Vetch, The English lost only 14 or 15 men, besides those who miser-» Governor, ^j^j^ perished in the transport. The place and the people within the protective privileges of the article, was called by General Annapolis. Nicholson, Annapolis Royal, in compliment to the queen.
Leaving Col. Vetch, appointed Governor of the country, in com- mand of the garrison, and with him 200 marines, and 250 voU unteers, he returned safely to Boston, Oct. 26, attended by the fleet and army. The expedition cost New-England £23,000, which were afterwards reimbursed by parliament,! l^evingston It was' agreed before Nicholson embarked from Annapolis, to sent tQ c^ii- send Major Levingston, a meritorious officer of the army, and Cas-- ^ ^' tine the younger, who was among the French in the garrison, with despatches to Governor Vaudreuil in Canada ; informing him, that Acadia had fallen into the hands of the English ; that all its inhabitants, except those within the pale of Port-Royal, were prisoners at discretion ; and that if the barbarities, practised upon the frontiers of New-England by the savages, under his control, were not discontinued, reprisals would be made, or re- taliation inflicted, upon the French of Nova Scotia. J Their jour rJ^^^ messengers with three Indian guides, proceeded to Pe- nobscot, where Castine spent a few days with his family, at 'Biguyduce ; Levingston in the mean time receiving from him every mark of hospitality and attention. They then paddled up the river in their canoes " to the Island of Lett, where they met *^ with fifty canoes, and twice as many Indians, besides women " and children. This was probably Oldtown. Here the In- dians detained them, several days ; in which time, a prisoner taken shortly before at Winter-Harbor, had, in hunting with his master on a neighboring Island, effected his escape, carrying off both the Indian's canoe and gun. This so exasperate.d the native,
♦ Articles entire, /6. p. lG6-7.—Subcrcase styled himself "Daniel Aii- jjer of Siiljercase, Governor of I/Accada, of Cape Breton Island and of " land from Cape Rosier, as far west as Kennebeck River." — Muss. Lit, Book, p. 104-5. f- 1 Halliburton's N. S. p. 88.
\ 2 Charlevoix's N. V. p. :i {2-6.— 39 Univ. Tlist, p. 257-8.
\ Penhallov7's Indian Wars.— I Col. N. H. Hist. Soc. p. 07.
Chap, h.] of Maine. 61
that he determined to kill the first white man he saw ; and there- a.d. i7io, fore the moment he again met with Levingston, he seized him by the throat, and drawing back his hatchet, would have despatched him with a single stroke, had not the noble-spirited Castine thrust himself between them, and rescued his companion from instant death. They left Oldtown, or Lett, Nov. 4, and were 42 days in the woods, before they arrived at Quebec. The day after they started, Levingston's canoe was overset, his gun and all he had were sunk, and one of the guides drowned. The other canoe, when the ice made, became leaky and entirely unsafe ; and hence they were obliged to leave it and perform the rest of their tedi- ous journey on land. They travelled by their compass ; and much of the weather was so stormy or foggy, that for nineteen days in succession, they never saw the sun. They travelled over some mountains, through dismal deserts, and around ponds and heads of rivers ; oftentimes fording streams unknown and dangerous, traversing swamps thick with spruces and cedars, and some days wading in snow knee-deep. To aggravate their sufferings and their fears of perishing,— six days before they could reach a human habitation, they had consumed all their provisions ; subsisting afterwards upon the leaves of wild vege- tables, the inner rinds of trees, and a few dried berries, they oc- casionally found.
They arrived at Quebec, December 16th, and reached Albany Their imer-
1 no J 1 • • 1 1 • • '11 view with
1^ ebruary 236, on their journey homeward ; brmgmg with them, the Gov. at as the fruits of their most fatiguing and hazardous mission, only a letter from Vaudreuil, in which he says, * never have the
* French, and seldom have the Indians, treated their English cap-
* tives with inhumanity ; nor were the French, in any event, ac-
* countable for the behavior of Indians. But,' added he, ' a truce,
* and even a neutrality, if the English had desired it, might
* long since have terminated the miseries of war ; and should
* any retaliatory measures be adopted by the English, they will ' be amply revenged by the French.'
The conquest of Nova Scotia, which has ever since been a Nova Sco- British Province, was an event highly important and interesting Province.'^ to the Provinces of Maine and Sagadahock. For it laid the long controverted question asleep, about boundaries ; the royal jcharter of William and Mary being definite enough upon that subject, as it respected the dividing lines between territories of
62 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A D. 1710 the same crown. Likewise the eastern country and coast, after this, became far less exposed to the depredations of the Indians^ inasmuch as a contiguous Province could no longer be their hiding place.
Till this period, as it will be readily perceived, the history of the SagadahocJc Province has been so intimately blended with oc- currences in JYova Scotia, that a narrative of events and affairs in the Jormer, could not be understood, without tracing also the chain of events which have transpired in the latter *
But neither the conquest of the Acadian Province, nor yet the desires of the Sagamores to negotiate a peace as proposed by them more than a year since, did wholly deter the Indians from committing mischief and even taking life. For early in the The Indians spring, they killed Benjamin Preble of York; and, August 2, a Saco; and party of 50 French and Indians, slew a woman at Wmter-Har- Waiton. bor, and took two men prisoners — one of them, Pendleton Fletch- er, whom the garrison redeemed, had been three times before taken captive. A week after this, a larger company visited the Saco, killed three, and carried away six. To amuse themselves, they actually took the skin from one of the slain and made girdles. Still later, about the time they visit their " clam banks," Col. Walton, having returned from Port-Royal, proceeded at the head of 170 men to reconnoiter the eastern shores. At Sagadahock, he took a Sagamore of Norridgewock, his wife, and a number of their companions, decoyed or drawn to him by the smoke of the soldiers'^ fires. The Sagamore was so surly, and so deaf to every inquiry, that the friendly Indians were permitted to dis- patch him. Farther east the scout came across three, and made them prisoners ; and on their return to the Saco, either killed or took five more. On the other hand, the Indians, seizing one Ayres, presently dismissed him, and sent him to the garrison, at fort Mary, with a flag of truce, requesting a pacification. Nicholson But nothing at this time was desired with half so much ardor force'^ ^ and avidity, as the entire conquest of Canada. Such an event cinada. would secure to New-England perpetual quiet ; and Col. Nich- olson after his return from Port-Royal, proceeded to England, and again urgently besought the crown for assistance. To pro-
* For while Nova Scotia was subject to the French, they claimed pos- session as far westward as to Kennebeck, and actually occupied as far as Penobscot.
Chap, ii.] of MAINE. 63
mote his purpose, he took with him five Mohawk Sagamores ; A. D. I7ii» who, when arriving in the kingdom, attracted universal attention. The higher orders of the people were anxious to see them, and the mob flocked in crowds after them, wherever they went. Even little portraits of their faces, were stricken off, — hundreds of which found a ready sale in the streets. As the court were then in mourning,* the Chiefs were clad in black at the royal charge ; and in heu of blankets they were mantled with scar- let cloaks, edged with gold tinsel. In this costume, they were conducted in two coaches to the palace of St. James, by the Lord Chamberlain, who introduced them to her Majesty. In the few remarks made, one expressed himself to this effect : — Should you take the Canada country, and put the French under your feet, it would give us great advantage in hunting and war. Let your princely face shine upon us. We are your allies. We will never turn our hacks — never leave our well beloved country. We all stand firm — nothing shall move us.
To the surprise and joy of the colonists, Nicholson returned june and to Boston, June 8, 1711, followed by a fleet consisting of '^^i^llofihe ships of war, 43 transports, and 6 store ships, under Admiral ^''P^^'^'o"- Walker ; bringing seven veteran regiments of the Duke of Marl- borough's army, and a battalion of marines. These troops and two New-England regiments of 650 recruits, formed the army, which was provided with a fine train of artillery. The arma- ment left Boston, July 30 ; but unfortunately, eight transports were wrecked in the St. Lawrence, upon Egg-Island, where about 1,000 men perished. The officers were so disheartened by this disaster, that they abandoned the expedition and return- ed, full of disappointment and chagrin,f and yet obnoxious to the severest stricture and obloquy. It was a most disastrous event. It even emboldened the Acadians to revolt ; nor would any consideration probably have induced them to lay down their arms, had they been able to find an experienced and skilful com- mander to lead them against Port-Royal, and into fields of victory.
But the conquest of Nova-Scotia, and the great expedition ^^^""gi^^p^g against Canada gave a turn to the views and movements of the
* For Prince George, the husband of Queen Anne. — Hume. t 2 Charlevoix's N. Y. p. 355-361.-2 Brit. Emp. p. 273-6.
the eastern coasL
64 THE HISTORY [VoL. If.
A. D. 1711. Indians, highly favorable to the frontiers. For though in the winter of 1710-11, three sloops in the pay of Massachusetts^ carrying 180 men, ranged the eastern coast, — they saw neitheV a Frenchman nor an Indian. The same number was led by Col. Col. Wai- Walton, during the autumn, as far eastward as Penobscot; yet prise.^"^*'*^ he only made a small number of Indians his prisoners, and burnt two or three vessels, designed for cruisers or privateers. There were however, a few renegado Indians still strolling over the country, and three or four men were killed in Maine, this season. Two of these fell in Wells, while at work in the field ; and one in York, who was fishing in a pond, his companion at the same time being severely wounded. Reviving and returning to the garrison, he told how he and his deceased friend were waylaid by five Indians ; one of whom, running at him with great fury^ knocked him down, scalped him, cut him deep in the neck, and evidently thought him expiring. But, said he, / retained my senses perfectly ; I neither struggled nor moved ; and in this way escaped death.
A.D. 1712. The next year, 1712, was much more calamitous and event- killed.*^**"' ful to the distressed inhabitants of Maine ; about twenty-six be- ing killed, wounded or taken captive in York, Kittery, and Wells. The enemy first appeared at York ; and, in April or May, shot Samuel Webber, between that village and Cape-Neddock. Anoth- er party fell upon several men with teams, in Wells ; when three were killed and as many wounded. Among those who fell, was Lieut. Littlefield, a brave and valuable man, whose death was deeply lamented.^ He had for a long time commanded the militia company of his town. He was an ingenious, useful citi- zen and a skilful engineer, especially in waterworks. He had been taken a prisoner four years before, carried to Canada, and lately ransomed from his captivity. The Indians soon after were bold and daring enough to penetrate into the heart of the town, where they caught and hurried away two of its inhabitants with shouts ot triumph. The repetition of these desperate adven- tures, was enough to wither every hope, and fill every heart with despair. No age, no condition, no place, could enjoy the least rest or security. One boy was killed and another taken about this time at Spruce-creek, in Kittery.
■"Supposed to be the same Josiah Littlefield, who represented Wells ia the General Court, A. D. 1710.
Chap, ii.] of maine. 65
As a scouting party was marching from the garrison at York, a.d. 17I2. towards Cape-Neddock, May 14, it was assailed by a body of May. 30 French and Indians ; when Nalton, the sergeant, was shot, York, Kit-
• ^ lory tind
and seven others seized and confined. The commander and the Berwick, survivors fought on a retreat, till they arrived at a great rock. This sheltered them from the fire and fury of their pursuers, and enabled them to keep their ground, till relieved by Capt. Willard and a flying guard from the fort. Every motion and movement of the inhabitants seemed to lie under the inspection of a lurking malignant foe. John Pickernell, at Spruce-creek, was shot June 1, as he was locking his door, on the way with his family to the garrison. His wife, also, was wounded, 'and a child scalped, that ultimately recovered. Seven weeks after this, a man was killed at Berwick, another at Wells, and a negro taken captive. The black soon escaped, probably by the Indians' consent, for they always had a mortal aversion to negroes.
But the last memorable skirmish with the enemy, which oc- Skirmish at curred in Maine, before the close of this tedious predatory war, weddmg oc- happened in the autumn, at Wells. It was on the wedding day of Capt. Wheelwright's daughter. To witness the nuptials, a considerable number of guests were present, some of whom had attended Mr. Plaisted, the bridegroom, from Portsmouth. When the marriage was consummated, and the attendants were prepar- ing to depart, they were informed that two of their horses were missing and could not be found. Several proceeded immedi- ately in search of them, two of whom were shot down at a short distance from the house, and others seized by savages. Alarm- ed at the report of guns. Captains Lane, Robinson, and Heard, despatched twelve men from the garrison, across lots, to meet or intercept the assailants ; while they themselves, in company with Mr. Plaisted and his friends, mounted the bridled horses, and gave them whip and rein in pursuit. But in a few minutes, these all fell into an ambush ; Robinson was killed on the spot — the rest were dismounted, and yet every one of them, except Plais- ted, effected an escape. As this event was in degree afflictive to the guests and the br'de, so much the more triumphant was the savage party in the possession of their valuable prize. How- VoL. II. 9
66 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1713. ever, in a few days he was redeemed by his father, though the extravagant ransom demanded and paid, exceeded £300.*
The cessation of hostilities, being the next news from England, was published in Boston, Oct. 27, and followed by the celebrated treaty of Utrecht, signed March 30, 1713. By the 12th article, Treat^f " Nova-Scotia, or Acadia, with its ancient boundaries, also Utrecht. u tjje city of Port-Royal, now Annapolis Royal, and all other " things in these parts," < belonging to the crown of France, or N. Scotia * any subjects thereof, and also the inhabitants of the same, are the Enlfish! ' resigned and made over to the crown of Great Britain forever and in May, the whole of the country was actually and formally surrendered to the English, having ever since been under the government of that nation. The Indians This closcd the scene of blood. The Indians had long been peace. impatient for peace. Some of them visited Casco fort, as soon as the joyful tidings of a pacification arrived, and requested an armistice. At the winter session, the General Court concluded to receive the eastern tribes into favor, upon their humble acknowl- edgement of the offences they had committed, a renewal of their allegiance, and a subscription by their chiefs to such arti- cles of treaty as the Governor and Council might dictate or re- quire. High ground was now manifestly taken by Massachu- setts ; for she even demanded hostages of tlie Indians, for the faithful performance of their stipulations, and required them to be supported at their own charge. These were, it is true, rigid terms, but it was thought their treachery deserved severity. July 11 By a request of the Sagamores, presented through Capt. If*Poc^^^ Moody, at Casco garrison, to the Governor, he appointed a con- mouih. ference to be holden, July 11, at Portsmouth. Accordingly, his Excellency and 20 Councillors, viz, 9 from Massachusetts, 9 from New-Hampshire, and 2 from Maine,f accompanied by other gentlemen, met the sagamores and delegates from the rivers St. John, Penobscot and Kennebeck, at the time and place appointed, and entered upon a negotiation. Though the Indians upon the Saco, Merrimack and Androscoggin, were not express- ly represented by tribes, being mixed with the motley clan at St.
* 3 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. p. 140.
t These were John Wheelwright and Ichabod Piaisted,
Chap, ir.] OF MAINE. 67
Francois ; they were nevertheless all declared by the delegation A. D. i7i3. present, to be included.
In this treaty, they acknowledged their offences, renewed their allegiance, and made fair promises. They conceded to the English all their territorial settlements, possessions and rights in the eastern country, free of every claim, — with a reserve of nothing, except the Indians' own grounds, and the " liberty of *' hunting, fishing and fowling, and all other lawful liberties and " privileges, as enjoyed on the 11th of August, 1693," when the treaty was made with Gov. Phips. Trade was to be regu- lated by government, truck houses established, and the Indians never to be allowed a traffic at any other place. All future controversies were to be settled according to a due course of law and justice. — Eight Sagamores,* then casting themselves upon her Majesty's mercy, prayed for her pardon and favor, and signed the treaty, July 13th, in solemn form ; each making /;on- nected marks, descriptive of the fish, bird or animal,f claimed as the insignia of their respective families-
To give the treaty a more extensive ratification, several gen- rpj^^ ^.^jj^ tlemen proceeded to Casco, where they found a large body of^^^*^""^^ Indians, waiting the result of the negotiation. Upon hearing the articles distinctly read and explained, by sworn interpreters, they expressed their united satisfaction " by loud huzzas, or acclama- " tions of joy."
Moxus was present, who pretended he was Sagamore of " all *' the eastern parts, though he did not sign the treaty." Valua- ble presents were distributed to all the tribes represented, and also to him. The next day, however, he complained to the English, that the young Indians, for some reason, unknown to him, had purloined the articles ♦given him, and he hoped the English gentlemen would in their generosity, be free to make him other gifts. He was a chief of native subtlety, and his rep- resentation improbable ; for the Indians, especially those that are
* Those who signed, were Kirebenuit, Iteansis, and Jackoid, Tarratine chiefs of Penobscot ; Joseph and Aeneas^ Marachite chiefs of St. John ; Warraeensit^ Wadacanaquin and Bomaseen, Canibas chiefs of Kenne- beck. — See articles entire, 1 Coll. JV. H. Hist. Soc. p. 82-86.
t Joseph's mark was a picture of a Jlsh ; that of Kirebenuit, a raven. This, Capt. Francis says, is the mark of his family.
68 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A; D, 1713, young, always treat their Sagamores and seniors with the utmost
civility and respect. The condi- ^^^'^ distressing war of ten years, Maine lost more than a
tiou of fourth, perhaps a third, part of her inhabitants.* Numbers of
Maine. / .
them, full of discouragements, left the country, to see it no more. Some famiHes had become entirely extinct ; — and all the others were in mourning for friends, either dead or in captivity. The slender habitations of survivors, if not utterly destroyed, had de- cayed and become miserable. Their outer fields wholly laid waste, or neglected, were overgrown and full of wild shrubbery. There was now remaining scarcely a vestige of the fur trade, the lumber business, or the fisheries. What men call enterprise ex- cited no emulation. The virtues of the people in these times, were of another and higher order ; — courage, fortitude, and broth- erly kindness. These appeared in nameless exploits, and in thousands of occurrences every year. When the men, ever care- worn, were exhausted with toil and war, the duties of sentinels were performed by females, and the products of the field were frequently the fruits of their labor. Now the war was over, nothing so wrung the hearts of survivors, night and day, as their anxiety to embrace from captivity, their long-lost kindred and friends. Nor was there a lapse of many months, before a ship Exchange was despatched to Quebec, to exchange and redeem prisoners.f of^prison- rjij^^ ecstacy of those on meeting, can only be painted by the im- agination, not drawn by the pen nor pencil. The The French were prominent in the war Avhen it opened. It
irenoh ^^^^ assumcd Something of campaign, siege, and battle; and sev- eral French officers appeared among the Indians, as leaders or commanders. But they were never able to form the Indians into regular companies, nor bring them to military discipline or order. Unrewarded, neglected and ill fed, they would have abandoned the French two yeara before the close of the war, had not the attractives and ties of catholic superstition prevented. The losses The Indians, on the whole, were the principal sufferers by the gUih, ^" war. More than a third part of their fighters, had within ten
* Maine lost, in killad and taken capLive, 282. From 1675 to 1713, " 5 or 6l00 of the youth of tiic country pei ished by the enemy, or by dis- tempers contracted in the service." — 2 Huldi. Hist. p. 183.
•f It was not lis! the next year, when Messrs. VViilianis and StodilarJ spent four months in collecting- the Eng-li:h captives. Some never re- turned.
Chap, ii.] of maine. 69
years, wasted away or been killed; and probably an equal or A. D. 1713. greater proportion of their women and children : So that among the remaining tribes of the Abenaques and Etechemins, the fight- ing men by estimation^ did not now exceed 300. Three tribes, the Wawenocks, Sokokis, and Anasagunticooks, had lost their distinction or provincial character, by a gradual decline and an association at St. Francois, with the Algonquins and others ; and hence they are not by tribes so much as named in the treaty. Hunted from their native country by foes, and allured away by pretended friends, they might justly bewail their cruel destiny. To the humiliating terms of the late treaty, they would never have submitted, had they not, through a consciousness of their poverty and distress, been ready to perish. Their strength and importance were broken, never to be repaired. In this war, the Indians manifested less malice, and were guilty of less cruelty^ than in the two, which preceded. Nor did they exhibit charac- ters of equal notoriety and fame, with those in former wars.
Three of their most distinguished men were, Bomaseen, Assa- combuit, and Castine the younger ; though in the commencement of the war, Wagungonet and Capt. Tome are mentioned as leading Sagamores.
Bomaseen, now advanced in years, was a man of good sense Bomaseea^ and humane disposition. In the last war, he was seized at Saco A. D. 1694, and carried a prisoner to Boston, where he was made acquainted with the principles of the protestant religion. He was a Canibas chief, and signed the late treaty.
The character of Assacombuit was peculiarly remarkable for Assacomba its turpitude and ferocity. According to Mr. Penhallow, who was his cotemporary, none of " all the Indians that were ever known " since King Philip, have appeared so inhuman and cruel as As-
sacombuit." He was a " monster ;" or, as another says, " a " noted chief," ' always dreaded by the English upon the fron- ' tiers, from the report of his demoniac cruelties.' He is sup- posed to have belonged to the Anasagunticook tribe. In 1705, Vaudreuil, to encourage the Indians in the war, sent him to France, and caused him to be introduced to the royal presence. He was an object of curiosity ; and when appearing at Court, he lifted up his hand and exclaimed, — this hand has slain 150 q/ your Majesty^ enemies within the territories of JVew-England.
70 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1713. This SO pleased the unfeeling monarch, that he forthwith knighted him, and ordered a pension of eight livres a day to be paid him, during life. On his return home, he undertook to exercise a des- potic sway over his brethren, in which he murdered one and stabbed another, and thus exasperated their relations to such a degree, that they sought to take his life, and would have killed him, had he not fled and forever abandoned his country. Castine ihe There was never a greater contrast, than between him and Cas- younger. ^jj^g ^j^g younger.* This man possessed a very mild and gener- ous disposition. His birthplace and home were at Penobscot, upon the peninsula of 'Biguyduce, the former residence of his father. Though a half-breed, the son of Baron de Castine by a Tarratine wife, he appeared to be entirely free from the bigoted malevolence of the French, and the barbarous revengeful spirit of the savages. He was a Chief Sagamore of the Tarratine tribe, and also held a commission from the French king. By his sweetness of temper, magnanimity, and other valuable prop- erties, he was holden in high estimation by both people. Nor were the Enghsh insensible of his uncommon merit. He had an elegant French uniform, which he sometimes wore ; yet on all occasions, he preferred to appear dressed in the habit of his tribe. f It was in him both policy and pleasure to promote peace with the English ; and in several instances where they had treated him with abuse, he gave proof of forbearance wor- thy of a philosopher's or christian's imitation. The great con- fidence they reposed in his honor and fidelity, as the com- panion of Major Levingston through the wilderness from Port- Royal to Quebec, was in every respect well placed and fully confirmed. He was a man of foresight and good sense. Per- ceiving hqjv these wars wasted away the Indians, he was hu- mane as well as wise, when he bade earliest welcome to "the " songs of peace." These immediately drew home fathers and brothers, and " wiped away the tears" of their famihes. He thought his tribe happy only, when they enjoyed the dews and shades of tranquillity. In 1721, he was improperly seized, at 'Biguyduce, his dwelling-place, by the English, and carried to Boston, where he was detained several months. The next year,
* See ante, A. D. 1703.
1 40 Univ. Hist. p. 180.
Chap, ii.] of maine.
according to Charlevoix,* he visited Bearne in France, — to in- herit his father's property, honors, fortune and senioral rights ; from which country, we have no account of his return.
* Charlevoix [jV. F. 4th vol, p. 117,] expresses himself thus ; " II repas- sa peu de temps apre's en France, et uUa recueiller la succession de son pere en Beam d'ou il n'est point sortie clepuis."
Note. — Capt. Francis says, the younger Castine's residence, was at J/arcAe6i^ac?wce, (as he pronounces the word,) and farther states, that he had a son, whom he called by a French name Rohardee^ whose daughter's son, Capt. Sokes, is now one of the captains of the Tarratine or Penob- scot tribe. Francis mentions some traditional particulars of Baron Cas- tine ; stating that " he lived at the same place ;"— " was a great trader — " sold the Indians guns and powder," S^c,
72
THE HISTORY
[Vol. ii.
CHAPTER III.
The late war — A good administration — Councillors — York, Kitte- ry and Wells, survive the war — Berwick incorporated — Their ec- clesiastics— Committee of claims — Orders to re-settle 5 towns — Saco, called Biddcford—Scarhorough — Falmouth — and Arundel— Money — George I. — Gov. Shutc — Claims — A road ordered from
Bcnvick to Pejepscot Kittery, a port of entry — Pejcpscot-
Purchase — Fort-George — Georgetown — Offers to settlers — Cush- noc-fort — Resettlement of Kennehcck — Sturgeon-fishery — York- shire extended to St. Croix — Gov. Shutc arrives — Natives rest- less— Gov. meets them — Treaty renewed with them — Timber-trees — Bridger, Survey or Gen. — Disputes with him — Armstrong's pro- ject— Settlements revived east of Kenneheck — St. George's fort — Fort Richmond — Timber — Gov. and House disagree — Guards sent into Maine — Coram' s project — Nova Scotia — Indians plun- der Canseau — Rixle — Indians at Penobscot — Notaries public — Paul Dudley's case — People begin to remove from Maine — The Canibas — Rkle — Parley at Arrowsick — Castine the younger — North-Yarmouth — Gov. Shute returns to England.
A. D. 1702 A more promising prospect, at length, opens to these eastern to 1712. Provinces, — presenting a revival and gradual advancement of the late wan their settlements, and political importance.* The force of the natives appeared to be in some measure broken, and the tribes greatly disheartened. As conquest or achievement is a great point with them, the reverses of fortune attending the French arms, in the late war, had filled the tribes both with disappoint- ment and distrust. For instead of recovering from the English colonists any part of their territories, so eagerly coveted by the French, and claimed so strongly by the Sagamores ; the former had actually lost, and the English acquired, the whole of Nova Scotia. The event was important to both nations ; and in the estimation of Massachusetts and Maine, it ought, in no small de- gree, to enhance the joys and advantages of peace.
* For nearly 30 years past, few records of town-meetings were to be found in any part of Maine.
Chap, hi.] OF MAINE. 73
The benefits of good government, in the Province, enjoyed a. D. ^1702 now for more than twenty years, were extensively felt and duly ^ appreciated. The evils of sectional conflicting jurisdictions, and a e;ood ad- the discrepances of anomalous rulers, formerly so perplexing to tion. the people of Maine and Sagadahock, were all lost in the unity of a settled and vigilant administration. The affairs of the war had been managed with care and adroitness, and the minuter in- terests of the community were treated with particular attention. When a system of jurisprudence was fully established, trials ; ap- peals ; the process of forcible entry and detainer ; the manner of assigning dower ; the admission of town inhabitants ; the relief of the poor and insane ; the appointment of watches and fire- wards ; the limitation of real actions ; the term set for redeem- ing lands mortgaged or taken by extent of execution, and other legal proceedings, received from the hand of the legislature an original form, or evident improvements*
In 1 700, the office of Coroner was first introduced. He was improve- appointed by the executive, and a summary of his duties pre- SutVcoJe. scribed by statute. Another law provided originally for the choice of Town treasurer, A third, passed the year following, regulated the professional* practice of Attorneys, and the rights of parties in courts of law. To every one was expressly secured the privilege of pleading or defending his own cause, or employ- ing whom he chose. Upon taking a statute-oath prescribed, which has never since been altered, practitioners at the bar were admitted officers of the Courts, and authorized to tax an attorney's fee in every suit. Mills were uniformly considered as being of public utility, and their owners, the objects of particular favor. There were two evils, frequently attending this species of prop- erty, which arose from the number of individual proprietors, and the back water occasioned by dams. In both, a remedy was pro- vided by committing the management of all mills to the major voice of the partners ; and by prescribing a summary process, to settle all questions of damage caused by a reflow of water.
Common schools and an orthodox ministry, which had gone Schools and
. ministers.
hand m hand since the first settlement of the country, were still high in popular estimation and legislative support. Time and change had rather increased than abated the ardor. Besides sharpening the penalties against towns, remiss and negligent, in Vol. 11. 10
74 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D.^1702 support of schools as required by law, they were rendered liable to be indicted by the grand jury ; and in such towns as failed to raise the monies requisite for the support of the ministry, the Courts of Quarter Sessions were empowered to appoint assessors Laws to purpose. In the zeal of the times for the purity of morals,
prevent im- — lotteries were denounced as pernicious to the public : and in
moralities. ^ r ?
1712, a memorable act was passed, which forbade all singing and dancing at taverns or in the streets, after dark ; all walking abroad during public worship on the Sabbath ; and all sporting in the evening of that day. Nay, an obscene song or pamphlet, or a " mock sermon," incurred a fine of £20 or the pillory, — the culprit having at the same time the name of his crime placed in capital letters over his forehead, hidians^"^ Colored people, increasing in numbers, had become exceed- ingly obnoxious and despicable. A duty of £4, therefore, was exacted and paid for every negro imported ; and so depraved, ignorant and shiftless were slaves, that not one of them, even in this age of freedom and equality, might be manumitted, unless security was first given for his maintenance. All negroes and mulattoes were expressly excluded from watches and military duty, as well in war as in peace ; and whoever presumed to join one of them in marriage with a white person, incurred a heavy penalty. Equally great was the general antipathy towards In- dians. They were heathens, ignorant, lazy and revengeful ; — the authors of accumulated evils to New-England. By law, it was strictly forbidden to bring into the Province any of this race, either for slaves or servants.* Coins; At this period, several acts of parliament were passed concern- and timber- ing the Colonies. These prescribed the value at which foreign coins should pass current within them ;-\ established a general Post-Office ; J and provided for the preservation of white pine and other timber-trees. The latter, enacted in 1710, had evidently in view the Sagadahock forests, which were extensive and be- longed principally to the crown.
In the upper House of the General Court, the eastern Provin-
* Province Law, A. D. 1712. f Passed, A. D. 1707.
I Post-OfTice first attempted, A. D. 1692, in Virginia and failed ; estab- lished by Parliament, A. D. 1710, in America. A general letter office was opened in London ; another in New- York; and others in each colony. A single letter from London to New- York, 1*.— thence, 60 miles, 4d.
Chap, hi.] of maine. 75
ces, Maine and Sagadahock, were uniformly represented by the A. D,^1702 number of Councillors prescribed in the charter; and some of j^^^j^^^^ them were men of considerable eminence. Those, during the '^e Council, late war, were, for Maine, EUsha and Eliakim Hutchinson, Ben- jamin Brown, Joseph Hammond, Ichabod Plaisted, and John WJieelwright :— For Sagadahock, John Leverett and Joseph Lynde, The Messrs. Hutchinsons resided in Boston. Elisha, a gentle- Eii?iia and man of military distinction, was chief commander of the Massa- Hutciiiuson. chusetts militia, in 1692, and was one of the Council, sent in 1707, to revive and prosecute the enterprise against Port-Royal. Eliakim sustained an excellent character, though less eminent. The former was senior Councillor for Maine two, and the latter a member, twenty-one years.* Mr. Broivn,f who was member of g, jirown. the Board six years, is supposed to have been a son of the benev- olent William Brown, whose residence was in Salem, and whose daughter was the wife of Wait Winthrop. Mr. Hammond was j. Hain- an inhabitant of Kittery, where he died, February 24th, 1709,™**"*^* after having been a Councillor nine years. He was also one of the Judges of the Common Pleas — a man of great integrity and worth, whom the people held in high estimation. He left a son of the same name, the worthy heir of his virtues, who first rep- resented his town in the legislature in 1711 ; and in 1718 was chosen into the Council, of which he was a member twelve years. Mr. Plaisted lived at Berwick, where he died, November 16th, j, piaisi-d. 1715, in the 52d year of his age, deeply lamented. He was a member of the Council, from his first election in 1706, to his death. He was also several years a Judge upon the bench of the Common Pleas. No other name at this period, in the Pro- vince of Maine, was more distinguished for military intrepidity, than that of Plaisted. J Mr. Wheelwright resided in Wells, J^^i^ht^'"
* They both died in 1718— Elisha ag-ed 78, and Eliakim 77 ; the latter, and probably the former, being' son of William Hutchinson, of Boston, who settled there in 1636 ; and in 1673 purchased a large tract of land at Saco, of William Phillips, which Eliakim sold in 1750. — Elisha married Mrs. Phillips' daug-hter by her Sandford husband, and had an interest in Phillips' great Indian purchase, made in 1661, embracing mostly Sandford, Alfred, and Waterborough. Elisha's son Thomas, was father of the Governor.
t The widow of Capt. Roger Plaisted, who was killed by the Indians in 1675, married Mr. Brown, of Salem ; after whose death she returned to Salmon Fails, where she died.
X Ante, A. D. 1675. Ichabod Plaisted was the grandson of Capt. Roger Plaisted, and the father of Samuel Plaisted, who died March 20th, 1731, aged 36.
76 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.D.^I702 probably upon the patrimonial estate of his grandfather, Rev.
John Wheelwright,* who was one of the original settlers of the town, in ] 643, and of his father, Samuel Wheelwright, the min- ister's son, who was a member of the Council six years, from 1694. He died in 1700. John, the grandson, was first elected into the Council in 1708, and continued a member twenty-five years. His death was in 1745. He was also a Judge of the Common Pleas many years, — a gentleman of talents, merit and
J. Leverett. distinction. Messrs. Leverett and Lynde were both non-resi- dents. The former, a son of the colonial Governor Leverett, was a member of the Council, only in 1706, being the next year elected President of Harvard College. He had previously been
J. Lyude. a Judge of the Superior Court five years. Mr. Lynde was one of the Charter Councillors for Massachusetts, and resided in Bos- ton. At the first election, in 1693, he was omitted; but the next year he was chosen for Sagadahock, and afterwards had an annual re-election until 1716, inclusive, except the year Mr. Leverett was Councillor.
ihrSuV^ On the memorial of the councillors and representatives from
Court re- the Province of Maine, the General Court, June 5, 1711, re- vived, ' 3 7 7
vived the annual term of the Superior Court appointed by law, to be holden at Kittery for the county of York, — which for six or seven years prior, had, by reason of the war, been entirely sus- pended. This was followed, the next year, by a settlement of the county treasurer's accounts, a speedy return of order, and the regular administration of law and justice. York, Kit- The late treaty closed a period of eight and thirty years' al- Weiis"'^ ternate wai-fare and peace with the natives — a period, in which very little more than a third part of the time could be consider- ed tranquil. Amid those uncommon wastes, occasioned by French and savage hostilities, three towns, York, Kittery and Wells, maintained their ground with a fortitude and persever- ance, which redounded highly to their credit. Every year dur- ing the last war, the two former were represented in the General Court, — and Wells, five years, including that of peace. But be- sides their own meritorious exertions, and the liberal supplies furnished them by government, they were otherwise frequently aided and encouraged. In 1 706-73 £257 of their taxes were
* Edward Rishworth married Rev. John Wheelwright's daughter.
Chap, hi.] of Maine. 77
remitted, and there were granted out of the pubHc treasury to A. D. I7i3. York, £65, and to Wells, £56, for the support of their respec- tive ministers.
The northern settlements of Kittery, denominated " the parish Berwick in-
_ , '■ corporaled.
of Unity,"* and the " precinct of Berwick," having been success- fully defended through the late war, the inhabitants renewed their application to be incorporated. Disposed to gratify their wishes, the General Court, by an order of 1711, caused a survey to be made of the township, or rather of its northern limits ; and on the 9th of June, 1713, by another orderf erected all above Thompson brook, into a town by the name of Berwick. J It was subsequently quite flourishing ; the soil being good, and the inhabitants a respectable well-informed people. The heart of the elder parish was at Quampeagan, where a church was gath-
"f" This was incorporated the parish of Unity, in 1673. — Sullivan, p. 243- 246. t 8 Mass. Rec. p. 251.— Sullivan's Hist. p. 245-253.— MS. Letter.
J This had been called the plantation of JVewichawannock^ and is the ninth town established in the present State of Maine. [The other 8 are Kittery, Yo^k, Wells, Cape- Porpoise, Saco, Scarborough, Falmouth, and JVorth-Yarmouth.l The original settlement of Berwick, was at Quampea- g-an Falls, and Great-works river, by men whose surnames were Frost, Heard, Shapleigh, Chadbourn, Spencer, Broughton, Leader, Plaisted, and Wincoln. In 1720, the town was extended eight miles above Quampeagan to Stair Falls, thence from the river, N. E. by E. 8 miles and 298 rods, to Bonnebeag pond, thence S. E. to Baker's spring and a rock — being the bounds between York and Kittery. At that time there was not a house standing " between Quampeagan and Canada.** All, which were built here, between 1690 and 1745, were of hewed logs, sufficient to oppose the force of small arras. There was a block house on the western side of Sal- mon Fall brook, a mile above Quampeagan, where William Gerrish lived ; a mile higher, was Key's garrison ; — next were Wentworth's and Good.- win's block houses. The fort on Pine Hill, called Hamilton's garrison, was standing in 1750. It was made of poles 20 feet high, and picketed at the upper end. — As to land-titles of the settlers, Mr. Spencer, A. D. 1643, purchased of Sagamore Rowles or Knowles, a tract on the banks of New- ichawannock and Great-works rivers. George Broughton, the same year, obtained lands of the Sagamores, between Spencer's and Salmon Falls ; where Broughton and Wincoln had lands granted by the town of Kittery, on condition of erecting a mill. Lands above, are holden under proprietary grants — Berwick was first represented in the General Court, in 1714, by Elisha Plaisted. In 1751, the town was divided into two par- ishes ; and the first parish was made a town, in 1814, by the name of South Berwick. In 1790, Berwick contained 3,894 inhabitants. Since the divis- ion, upper or Old Berwick contains 30,000 acres ; — had within it ten mills, in 1820, 6 of them being at Doughty Falls on Great-works river.
78 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A.D. 1713. ered, and Mr. John Wade, settled in 1702. Dying the next year, he was succeeded in Nov. 1707, by the Rev. Jeremiah Rev. J. Wise, who was their minister upwards of 48 years ; — a man of learning, " eminent piety and goodness." But the learning, in which he made so much proficiency, exhibited, according to the taste and passion of the age, the efforts of deep and scholastic investigation, rather than the beauties of rhetoric, or the solids of philosophy. Five years before his death, a new or northern parish was formed, over which, John Morse was first settled, who was soon succeeded by Rev. Matthew Miriam. Kittery The same year Berwick was incorporated, the residue of Kit- parishes, tery was divided into two parishes. The new one was at Stur- geon-creek, [Eliot] where a church was gathered, and Rev. John Rogers* i2o^er5, settled in 1715; whose ministry was continued during the uncommon period of 52 years.* — In the old parish at Kitte- ry-point, a parsonage, provided as early as 1669, and subsequent- ly improved, was occupied, and an annual stipend received, by J Rev. John JYewmarch,-f in consideration of ministerial services, ISewmarch. for 1 5 years, prior to 1714; when a church of 43 members was formed, and himself ordained. He was afterwards, more than 35 years, the faithful minister of an affectionate people ; re- ceiving the late Doct. Benjamin Stevens, May 1, 1751, his col- league ; whose pastoral connexion was dissolved by death at the end of forty years. { It was at Kittery-point, near the residence of the celebrated William Pepperell, that the courts of judica- ture were holden several years. ]^^^^g In York, the successor of the beloved and lamented Dummer, Moody. was the Rev. Samuel Moody. He was a graduate of Harvard, in 1697 ; and in 1700, received his ordination. He declined a settlement upon a stipulated salary ; choosing rather to live through faith, dependant upon his Divine Master, and the voluntary con- tributions of his people. He continued in the ministry 47 years ;
* Rev. Mr. Spring was ordained his colleague, June 29, 1768, and died in 1791. He was succeeded the next year by Rev. Samuel Chandler.
t He was graduated at Harv. Col. in 1690, married at Kittery-point, and lived on the westerly side of Spruce-creek, near the ferry.
I Another church was organized at Spruce-creek, in 1750, where Rev. Josiah Chase was a settled minister, till Dec. 1778. He was succeeded, in 1782, by Rev. Joseph Littlefield.- Greenleafs Ecclesiastical Sketches, p. 83. See ante, A. D. 1647, and 1652.
Chap, hi.] of matne. 79
when he died, — greatly endeared to his charge, and highly re- a. d. 1713. spected by his country. His praise is in all the churches of this region, as a godly minister and useful man. Amidst his pastoral zeal, many of his eccentricities afford curious anecdotes, which will be related in story to a succession of listening generations.*
Seventeen years before his death, he had the pleasure of see- Scotland ing a religious society formed in the north-west section of York ; ed!^'*^ and of assisting, in 1732, at the ordination of his only son, the Rev. Joseph Moody. A Harvard graduate, at the age of 18, Rev. j. this gentleman lived in his native town 14 years, and held the^°'''^^* offices of Town Clerk, County Register of Deeds, and a Judge of the Common Pleas, before he was ordained. f He was a man of talents, piety, and peculiar sensibilities of mind. This, the second parish in York, was settled in Cromwell's time, by Scotch people, and has been since called Scotland. The Protector, having obtained a victory over a body of Scottish royalists, thought transportation to be the best disposition he could make of the prisoners ; and therefore he sent them to America. Acquainted with Gorges, who had taken arms in the civil wars on the same side, they settled upon a section of his patent.
Few towns, not wholly destroyed, ever experienced greater priva- Weiis. tions and severities in the Indian wars, than Wells. After the Rev. Mr. Wheelwright finally left the place, the inhabitants were favor- ed only with the pastoral services of unlocated or itinerant preachers, during that century. J But on the return of munici-
* His wife was the daug-hter of John Sewall of jNewbiiry. He had two children, Joseplj and Mary. The latter married Rev. Mr. Emerson of Maiden. Mr. Moody died, Nov. 13, 1747, Mi. 72. An ingenious epitaph on his gravestone, near his meeting-house, shews wliere his relics are de- posited. In 1749, he was succeeded by Rev. Isaac Lyman, a graduate at Yale, in 1747, who died, 1810.
f After six years he fell into a gloomy state of mind, and died in March, 1753. His successors were, in 1742, Rev. Samuel Chandler, and in 1754, Rev. Mr. JLiankton, who died in 1794. — Greenleofs Ecc. Sketches, p. 13.
I Rev. Joseph Emerson of York, was employed in 1664, for 2 or 3 years ; Rev. Robert Payne, 1667, for 5 years, with a salary of £45 ; Rev. John Buss, Sept. 2, 1672, 10 years, having- a salary of £60, and <* a parsonage house and land ;" Rev. Percival Greene, in 16S3, 5 or 6 years ; — and in 1689, Mr. Richard Marten, a schoolmaster in town, became the people's minister. — They voted him £50, besides the parsonage, to be paid thus ; — wheat at 4*. — rye at 2s. 6 J.— peas at 4s. per bushel ; pork at 2^d. per lb. ; boards at 19«. and staves at Ms per thousand. — Messrs. Greene and Mar-
80 THE HISTORY [VoL. 11.
A.D. 1713. pal order, subsequent to the close of the second Indian war, the inhabitants became anxious to enjoy the stated ministrations of the gospel ; and hence, twelve professors of religion entered into an ecclesiastical covenant ; — and in October, 1701, by the Rev. s. concurrent voice of them and the people, ^r. Sarri^l Emery recei^- s!"jefferds. cd the rites of ordination over the whole town.* His ministry of 24 years, was succeeded by that of Rev. Samuel Jefferds, a graduate at Harvard, in 1722, and a spiritual teacher, who in the course of his professional labors and untiring zeal, through a pe- riod of 26 years, had the high satisfaction of witnessing the re- peated effusion of divine influences, upon the people of his Kcnnebunk charge.f — Nor was it till 1750, that the second or Kennebunk iTTiLUe^^'i'"^**^ was established, and the Rev. Daniel Little setded ;{ — before which time, the town formed a single religious society, containing at no period more than a thousand inhabitants. §
These cotemporary and successive ministers of the altar, had no small influence in forming the moral taste and general charac- ter at a rising community ; and they acquitted themselves of the high trust, in a manner which entitles their names to the particu- lar notices of history. Their emoluments were small, though their labors and privations were great ; being eminent examples of fortitude, and worthy patterns of disinterestedness. Condition of 'pj^g eastern Provinces, at the close of the late war exhibited a
the eastern '
countiy. melancholy aspect. More than 100 miles of coast, once interspers- ed and adorned with flourishing settlements, improved estates, and comfortable habitations, lay unpeopled and desolate. Title-deeds, records and other papers of value, were either burnt or lost ; and so many years had succeeded the wastes of several places, that they had resumed the appearance of their original solitude.
leo were both Harvard g^raduates, in 1680. — 1 Coll. Maine Hist. Soc. p. 263-5.
* The meeting-house had been burnt by the Indians, but " the settlement was advancing."—! Coll. Maine Hist. Soc. p. 265 Mr. Emery was grad- uated at Harvard, 1691.
t Mr. Jefferds died, Feb. 1752, ^Et. 48. In 1754, Rev. Gideon Richard- son succeeded Mr. JefFerds. After his death, Rev. Moses Hemmenvvay, Aug. 8, 1769, was ordained; and in Feb. 1811, Rev. Mr. White was settled with him as colleague pastor. — See Wells, ante, A. D. 1653.
\ Rev. Mr. N. H. Fletcher was associated as a colleague with Mr. Lit- tle, in August 1800, who died Oct. 1801.
\ Number in Wells, 1790, 3,070.— See 3 Mass. Hut. Coll, p. 138-140.
Chap, hi.] of Maine. 81
Yet the government, the landholders, and the former inhabitants A. D. 1713. or their descendants, appeared ready to eneaee with courage and Committee
TT • claims
spirit in a resettlement of the country. Hence, " a Committee and settie- of eastern claims and settlements"* was appointed, in 1713, by the General Court, consisting of nine gentlemen, f four from the Council, and five from the House ; and after appointing clerks, and notifying by printed circulars, the times and places of their meetings, they were directed to receive and examine all exhibited claims to lands in Maine or Sagadahock, to sanction the titles of such as appeared sound and clear, and report the residue. — In reviving the wasted towns, it was thought to be more conducive to the people's safety and quiet, if they were to replant them- selves in neighborhoods of 20 or 30 families, — near the seaside, — upon lots of three or four acres to a family, — united in a close and defensible manner, and possessed of out-hnds in quantities equal to their necessities or wishes. Accordingly the General order of Court authorized the resettlement of five towns ; — these were courtTo Saco, Scarborough, at Black-point ; Falmouth, at Casco-penin- scarboro'"' sula; J^orth' Yarmouth, ^ and one at the mouth of Sagadahock ^^[.'[j^^Y^j.^ includins; Arrowsick Island. In no other than these and the sur- '"""^^
^ ^ _ Arrowsick.
viving towns previously mentioned, were people allowed to re- plant or resume habitances, without licenses from the Govern- or and Council ; till the proper designations and plans, through the medium of the Committee, could be matured.
The next year, 1714, these towns became inhabited by sever- ^ ^ j^^^ al returnins; families ; to which accessions were annually made, Saco reset-
° ' . . lied and
until they were enabled to resume their municipal privileges, named Bid- The settlement of Saco was so rapid, that the inhabitants, in 1717, settled Mr. Short as their minister, and exhibited at Win- ter-harbor a compact hamlet. To encourage their pious zeal, £40 were annually granted out of the Provincial treasury, for
* A Committee of this sort was first appointed in 1700.
f Of the Council, Elisha Hutchinson, Isaac Addington, John Phillips and Paul Dudley [Attorney General] ; — of the House, John Clark, Edward Quimby, Thomas Oliver, William Dennison and the Clerk of the House. — 8 Mass. Rec. p. 288. — The General Court said " the settling of the eastern " parts and frontiers will be of great benefit to this Province." — Preamble Statute, 1715.
I But North-Yarmouth was not resettled till about 1721 — 2. The In^ dians were peculiarly hostile towards the settlement of this place. Vol. II. 11
82 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1714. four or five years, in aid of his support. The General Court also confirmed the ancient bounds of the town, lying on both sides of the river ; and the next year, ordered, that 50 families at least, be admitted and settled in a defensible manner, according to the directions of the Committee, and that after the 18th of Nov. 1718, the name of the town be changed to that of Biddeford.* Scarboro' SCARBOROUGH, prior to 1714, had been without inhabitant resettled. ^^^^^ ^gjj years. The settlement of the town was recommenced at Black-point, and was immediately followed by another at Blue-point and Dunstan. Though the government had found it im- practicable to protect the people at their homes from the ravages of a savage enemy, it had provided for their retreat to places of safety, and was now active and generous in aiding their return to their wasted abodes. In December, 1719, a town meeting was
* Biddeford [or Saco] was settled about 90 years before its present re- vival. It had been a seat of government, and always a noted place. The Bufferings of the settlers were great in each of the three first Indian wars, being twice destroyed ; though a garrison was maintained there through the whole of the last war. In 1718, the town agreed to erect a meeting-house at Winter-harbor, 35 feet by 30. Here, Sept. 30, 1730, Rev. Mr. VVillard, the father of the late President Willard of Harv. College, was ordained pastor of a Congregational Church, organized at the same time. He was succeeded by Rev. Mr. Morrell ; and he, in 1779, by Rev. Mr. Webster. — Saco was a territorial corporation as early as 1643-4 ; made a town, in 165$ ; divided in 1772, and all on the eastern side of the river incorporated into a town by the name of Pepperellborough ; — chang- ed to Saco, in 1805. Between 1730 and 40, the settlement at Saco village was made. But from the first Indian war, to 1715, a period of 40 years, there is a chasm in the records of the town. Biddeford was first repre- sented in the General Court, in 1719, by Humphrey Scammon; who lived two miles below the Falls. Benjamin Blackman, a graduate of Harvard College, 1668 ; and B. Pendleton, Deputy-President of Maine, in 1680, both lived in Saco. — On the west side of the river, lived Richard Vinesy about 20 years, till he sold, Oct. 20, 1640, to Doct. Robert Child, and re- moved to Barbadoes. The most of his patent was purchased, in 1656 and in 1659, by Major William Phillips^ who resided there, and also purchased of different Sagamores, in 1661, the great tract between the rivers Mou- sum and Little Ossipee, and in 1664, the country between Saco and Ken- nebunk rivers, and most of HoUis and Limington. Phillips removed to Bos- ton, in 1675, and the next year made partitions of his estate. He died, 1683. — John Sandford, Secretary of Rhode-Island, was the first husband of his wife, whose son Peleg, was Governor of that colony, 1680-3. — On the west side of Saco river, resided several years James Sullivan, Gov. ; George Thatcher, Judge of S. J. Court, Mass. ; P. Meilen, 1st Chief Justice of Maine.— Sec 1st vol. A. D. 1653.
Chap, hi.] of maine. 83
holden, and the next year, the records, which had been preserved A. D, 1714. in Boston, were safely returned ; the number of families resettled at that time, being about thirty. No minister was ordained over this people, till 1727 ; when a Congregational Church was form- ed, and in September, Rev. William Thompson inducted into the pastoral office. His weekly ministrations were alternately at the two settlements, until the second parish was formed at Dun- stan, about 1743, or perhaps until a short time before the Rev. Richard Elvins was settled there, in 1 744. Both ministers were paid by the town, during the life of Mr. Thompson, without dis- tinction of parishes.*
None of the desolated towns, however, were resettled earlier Falmouth
. ... reseuled.
than ancient Falmouth. A strong garrison was maintained through the last war at Fort Loyal ; and one account states, that some of the former inhabitants were, as early as 1708-9, making preparations to return. f Within a short period, several dilapi- dated cottages upon the Neck were so far repaired, as to be ren-
* The town records were preserved by the Governor and Council ; and transmitted to Lieut. Gov. Wentworth of New-Hampshire, who had an in- terest in the town, and who swore the bearer William Cotton, « that this book of records was the whole he had received from the Gov. and Coun- cil ;' and also swore James Jeffries ' to make a fair copy of them.' The successors of Mr. Thompson, were Rev. Thomas Prince, in 1762 ; and Rev, Thomas Lancaster, in 1775. In 2d Parish, Rev. Mr. Elvins was suc- ceeded, in 1776, by Rev. Benjamin Chadwick ; in 1600, by Rev. JSTathan Tilton. One account says, the 2d parish was established in 1758. — Thom- as Cammock settled in Scarborough, 1633, and died, 1643. — Henry Josce- lyn removed hither, about 1635, and resided at Black-point and Prout'a neck, 33 years. He married Cammock's widow. He sold his estate to Joshua Scottow, who removed hither, about 1680, and died in Boston, 1698. — Rev. John Thompson, born here, was settled in South-Berwick. — Rev. Joseph Willard, though born in Saco, " was reared from a child in Scarbo- rough"— and afterwards. President of Harvard College This town was
the native place of Rurus King,— (New- York) ; William Kino, first Gov. of Maine, and Cyrus King, member of Congress — all brothers. Most of the land-titles are derived from Gorges through Cammock and others ; but a tract between the hamlets was purchased by Andrew and Arthur Algier, of Jane alias Uphannan's, an Indian woman, and descended to Andrew's grand-daughter who married John Milliken, — and hence the ♦< Milliken claim." — The town was represented in the General Court, in 1728, by Arthur Bragdon.—JtfS. LetUr Rev. JV. Tilton, »ee anteyVol. 1. A, D. 1658.
t JVr. Sullivanj {Hist. p. 197,) says, " the inhabitanta began to return ^ again about the year 170&."
84 THR HISTORY [VoL. II.
Ai D. 1714, dered habitable ; the first new framed house being built by Mr.
Ingersol,* about the year 1714. To encourage the people in support of the ministry, while they were building a meeting-house, in 1715-16, the General Court granted them £20 ; there being at this time upon the peninsula, about 20 families. The territory of the town was extensive, and settlements were begun at differ- ent places, — especially at Purpooduck, Spurwink, and later at New-Casco, near the mouth of the river Presumpscot. In those places there had been fortifications ; and the Legislature, in 1714, consented to have the two former [now Cape-Elizabethf ] estab- lished as a township. But this was delayed ; the ancient boun- daries of the town as reported by the Committee of claims, in 1718, were sanctioned by the General Court ; and Nov. 11, of the same year, Falmouth was restored to all its corporate powers and privileges. It was represented in the House, the next year, by William Scales; and on the 8th of March, 1727, a Congre- gational Church was formed, and the inhabitants settled the Rev. Thomas Smith. For several years, his ministerial services were performed alternately at the meeting-house upon the peninsula, the block house upon Purpooduck-point, and the fort at Spur- wink ; — and sometimes at New-Casco, [now Falmouth.] Cape-Por- The resettlement of North-Yarmouth was delayed five or six iS^and'^'* years ; and Cape-Porpoise became the town which had a simul- Ar'undei. taneous revival with those just mentioned. Though it had never before its destruction compared with its neighbors in wealth or population, it had been inhabited by a bold and spirited people ; and in 1716, they and the proprietors joined in a prayer to the Legislature for a restoration of town privileges. The subject was referred to Mr. John Wheelwright, and orders given him to take the records into possession wherever he could find them. It seems
* For this cause called " Governor Ing-ersol."
I Cape-Elizabetli was incorporated, Nov. I, 1765; Portland, July 4, 1786 ; Westbrook [Stroudwater,] in 1814; — all being' parts of ancient Fal- mouth. Mr. Smith vs^as the son of Thomas Smith, Esq. Boston; — a gradu- ate of Harvard College, 1720; and when he was ordained, the churches of York, Kittery, Berwick and Wells assisted, being" all there were then in the Province of Maine. In town and proprietor's meetings, there was no distinction till 1730, when all settlers were admitted on paying- a sum of money — or shewing a continued possession ; others were excluded. — Ante vol. I. A. B. I6b8,—Sullivan, p. 197.
Chap. III.] OF maine. 85
their town officers were chosen the next year ; and June 5th, a i). nu. 1718,* the town was re-established by the name of Arundel.! In 1723, it was represented in the General Court by Alanson Brown, its first deputy in that Body.
Besides the resettlement of the eastern country ; another sub- pg^g^ j^q^- ject of much importance arrested the public attention. This was^^' the paper money which had flooded New-England, and now, since the war, exhibited the many and complicated evils of a fickle depreciating currency, connected with every pecuniary transac- tion of life. All agreed, that improvement was indispensible, while different projects excited unhappy divisions. One party was in favor of wholly substituting specie for the bills ; another advocated the establishment of a banking company, whose capital stock was to be real estate ; and the third, and predominant party, induced the Legislature to authorize a public loan of bills to any New loans one for a limited time, upon notes with interest, secured by mort- ' gage of real estate ; — the interest to be applied towards the sup- port of the government. So universal and so warm was this con- troversy, that it " divided towns, parishes and particular fami-
lies and, unfortunately, the respective parties for the bank and the loan were nearly balanced.
In this rage of party-spirit among the people, it was impossible Q^^^^g | for rulers to be neutral. But a change in the administration being accedes to
° o the throne
expected, upon the accession of king George, who was proclaim- of England, ed in Boston, September 17th, 1714, Governor Dudley demean-
* One account says it was in 1719. But 9 JIass. Rec. p. 207, says 1718.
f Arundel, [Kcnnebunk-port, since 1820,] was made a town, A. D. 1653, by the Massachusetts' Commissioners, and mLmei^ Cape-Porpus.\a) — The lands were orig-inally granted by Gorges, and also by Rig-by. The agent of the latter conveyed to Morg-an Howell 100 acres, in 1648; and in 1661, to John Bush 400, to Gregory JefFery 200, and Richard Moore 400, all "within the villag-e of Cape-Porpoise, and Province of Lyg^onia ;" re- serving- « to Col. Alexander Rigby, Esq. President of the Province of Ly- g-onia," a yearly quitrent of 10*. per 100 acres. — Sullivan, 229. This place was settled as early as A. D. 1632, probably earlier.— Winthrop's Journal, p. 43. There are a few fragments of the town's doings between 1678 and 1689.— About 1719, Rev. John Eveleth was preaching- at Cape-Porpoise, and afterwards, for a period, his ministerial labors were alternate at this place and Saco, till 1726; and at the former, till 1729, with a salary of £20. That year. Rev. Thomas Prentiss was settled ; succeeded, September, 1741, by Rev. John Hovey ; in 1771, by Rev. Silas Moody ; and in 1816, by Rev. George Payson. (a) As then spelt.
86 THE HISTORY [VoL. II.
A. D. 1714. ed himself with the wisdom and prudence best calculated to smooth his path to retirement. He was not actually displaced, however, till about two years* after this, and was then succeeded
Gov. shute. by Col. Samuel SHUTE,f — and Mr. Tailer, by Lieutenant-Gov- ernor William Dummer. J The Governor's commission embrac- ed New-Hampshire as well as Massachusetts and Maine ; and the appointment met with general acceptance.
AiD. 1715, The Committee of claims and settlements, in 1715, consisted
of'SaimT of two Councillors, Messrs. John Wheelwright and Ichabod Plaisted, of Maine ; and six members of the House.§ They were able and influential men, and at their suggestion, the General Court perceived the inability of the people and proprietors, who
, . . . owned lands and real estate eastward of Piscataqua, to recover
Limitation ^ , ^
of real ac- them by legal process within the five years Hmited by a former statute, because of the late war ; and therefore allowed them the same period after July 31st, of the present year, to resume and estabhsh their claims to houses, lands or other real estate, within the territories of Maine or Sagadahock. This gave to all inter- ested, additional and fresh encouragement. The General Court, dcredloTe ^^s°> ^^^^ further advice of the Committee, ordered the sur- Jvom^Ber- °^ ^ ^^^^ ^^^^ Berwiclc to Pejepscot lower falls, and ap- Jcpsco? **** propriated £50 to be disbursed from the public treasury towards opening it.
Another subject, though of a different nature, which excited made'^ the public attention at this time, was the improper duties exacted port of en- New-Hampshire from the merchants and fishermen trading at Piscataqua. To obviate the difficulty, our government made the harbor at Kittery-point a port of entry, and adopted measures to
* The delay was occasioned by the appointment, in the first place, of Col. Eliesus Burges, who was anxious for the office. But it being; thought by our ag^ents and friends in Eng-land, that he could not be an acceptable person to the people of these Provinces ; he was induced to accept from them £1000, and resign his commission.
•f Col. Shute belong-ed to a good family. His father was a dissenter, and an eminent citizen of London, and his mother was the daughter of a noted dissenting minister ;— his brother. Lord Barrington, was in Parliament, at the head of the dissenting interest. The new Governor had served under the Duke of Marlborough, in Flanders, where he acquired great military reputation.
I Mr. Dummer was a native of Massachusetts, and lived in Boston, $ These were, Oliver Haynes, Edward Hutchinson, Adam Winthrop, Samuel Phips, Lewis Bane, and John Leighton.
Chap, hi.] of maine. 87
make its authority respected. A breastwork was erected north- A. D. 1716. erly of the point ; a platform laid <