Download Winthrop's Journal, "History of New England," 1630-1649 Book in PDF, ePub and Kindle
Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 21.] The house of John Page of Watertown was burnt by carrying a few coals from one house to another: a coal fell by the way and kindled in the leaves. One Mr. Gardiner, (calling himself Sir Christopher Gardiner,1 knight of the golden melice, ) being accused to have two wives in England, was sent for; but he had intelligence, and escaped, and travelled up and down among the Indians about a month; but, by means of the governor of Plymouth, he was taken by the Indians about Namasket,2 and brought to Plymouth, and from thence he was brought, by Capt. Underhill and his Lieut. Dudley, May.4, to Boston. 16] There was an alarm given to all our towns in the night, by occasion of a piece which was shot off, (but where could not be known, ) and the Indians having sent us word the day before, that the Mohawks were coming down against them and us. 17.] A general court at Boston.4 The former governor was chosen again, and all the freemen of the commons were sworn to this government. At noon, Cheeseborough's house was burnt down, all the people being present. 1 As to Sir Christopher Gardiner's true character and purposes much doubt prevails. He is surmised to have been a spy or agent of Sir Ferdinando Gorges. His life was not reputable, nor did he avoid giving occasion for suspicion. Probably it was not treatment unduly harsh to send him out of the country, but it was impolitic. Together with Thomas Morton and Ratcliffe (presently to be mentioned, an humbler associate, who had suffered the New England discipline), he bitterly denounced in England the administration of Massachusetts Bay. See Adams, Three Episodes, 250 ct seqq. Namasket, later Middleborough. See Bradford, History of Plymouth Plantation, in this series, pp. 286-288. ' Captain John Underhill often appears in Winthr.