Now furder, I hear a noise of slavish conditions by me made; but surly this is all that I have altered, and reasons I have sent you. If you mean it of the 2. days in a week for perticuler, as some insinuate, you are deceived; you may have 3. days in a week for me if you will. And when I have spoken to the adventurers of times of working, they have said they hope we are men of discretion and conscience, and so fitte to be trusted our selves with that. But indeed the ground of our proceedings at Leyden was mistaken, and so here is nothing but tottering every day, etc.

As for them of Amsterdam I had thought they would as soone have gone to Rome as with us; for our libertie is to them as ratts bane, and their riggour as bad to us as the Spanish Inquision. If any practise of mine discourage them, let them yet draw back; I will undertake they shall have their money againe presently paid hear. Or if the company thinke me to be the Jonas, let them cast me of before we goe; I shall be content to stay with good will, having but the cloaths on my back; only let us have quietnes, and no more of these clamors; full litle did I expecte these things which are now come to pass, etc.

But whether this letter of his ever came to their hands at Leyden I well know not; I rather thinke it was staied by Mr. Carver and kept by him, forgiving offence. But this which follows was ther received; both which I thought pertenent to recite.

Another of his to the aforesaid, June 11. 1620.1

Salutations, etc. I received your le[tte]r yesterday, by John Turner,2 with another the same day from Amsterdam by Mr. W. savouring of the place whenc it came. And indeed the many discouragements I find her, togeather with the demurrs and retirings ther, had made me to say, I would give up my accounts to John Carver, and at his comeing aquainte him fully with all courses, and so leave it quite, with only the pore cloaths on my back. But gathering up my selfe by further consideration, I resolved yet to make one triall more, and to aquainte Mr. Weston with the fainted state of our bussines; and though he hath been much discontented at some thing amongst us of late, which hath made him often say that

1" June 11. O. S. is Lord's day, and therefore 't is likely the Date of this Letter should be June 10, the same with the Date of the Letter following." (Note by Thomas Prince.)

'John Turner came with two sons in the Mayflower; all died in the first winter.

save for his promise, he would not meadle at all with the bussines any more, yet considering how farr we were plunged into maters, and how it stood both on our credits and undoing, at the last he gathered up him selfe a litle more, and coming to me 2. hours after, he tould me he would not yet leave it. And so advising togeather we resolved to hire a ship, and have tooke liking of one till Monday, about 60. laste,1 for a greater we cannot gett, excepte it be tow great; but a fine ship it is. And seeing our neer freinds ther are so streite lased, we hope to assure her without troubling them any further; and if the ship fale too small, it fitteth well that such as stumble at strawes allready, may rest them ther a while, least worse blocks come in the way ere 7. years be ended. If you had beaten this bussines so throuly a month agoe, and write to us as now you doe, we could thus have done much more conveniently. But it is as it is; I hope our freinds ther, if they be quitted of the ship hire, will be indusced to venture the more. All that I now require is that salt and netts may ther be boughte, and for all the rest we will here provid it; yet if that will not be, let them but stand for it amonth or tow, and we will take order to pay it all. Let Mr. Reinholds2 tarie ther, and bring the ship to Southampton. We have hired another pilote here, one Mr. Clarke, who went last year to Virginia with a ship of kine.3

You shall here distinctly by John Turner, who I thinke shall come hence on Tewsday night. I had thought to have come with him, to have answered to my complaints; but I shal lerne to pass litle for ther censurs; and if I had more minde to goe and dispute and expostulate with them, then I have care of this waightie bussines, I were like them who live by clamours and jangling. But neither my mind nor my body is at libertie to doe much, for I am fettered with bussines, and had rather study to be quiet, then to make answer to their exceptions. If men be set on it, let them beat the eair; I hope such as are my sinceire freinds will not thinke but I can give some reason of my actions. But of your mistaking aboute the mater, and other things tending to this bussines, I shall nexte informe you more distinctly. Mean space entreate our freinds not to be too bussie in answering matters, before they know them. If I doe such things as

1 Sixty last equals 120 tons.

'Reinholds was the captain of the Speedwell, the vessel which abandoned the voyage.

3

This was John Clarke. Rev. E. D. Neill has shown that a Captain Jones, whom he believed to be identical with the captain of the Mayflower, went to Virginia in 1619 in command of a vessel with kine, and that a man named John Clarke was employed by the Virginia Company to go with him. But see post, p. 87, note 1.

I cannot give reasons for, it is like you have sett a foole aboute your bussines, and so turne the reproofe to your selves, and send an other, and let me come againe to my Combes.1 But setting a side my naturall infirmities, I refuse not to have my cause judged, both of God, and all indifferent men; and when we come togeather I shall give accounte of my actions hear. The Lord, who judgeth justly without respect of persons, see into the equitie of my cause, and give us quiet, peaceable, and patient minds, in all these turmoiles, and sanctifie unto us all crosses whatsoever. And so I take my leave of you all, in all love and affection. I hope we shall gett all hear ready in 14. days.

June 11. 1620.

Your pore brother,

ROBART CUSHMAN.

Besids these things, ther fell out a differance amongs those 3. that received the moneys and made the provissions in England; for besids these tow formerly mentioned sent from Leyden for this end, viz. Mr. Carver and Robart Cushman, ther was one chosen in England to be joyned with them, to make the provisions for the vioage; his name was Mr. Martin,' he came from Billirike in Essexe, from which parts came sundrie others to goe with them, as also from London and other places; and therfore it was thought meete and conveniente by them in Holand that these strangers that were to goe with them, should apointe one thus to be joyned with them, not so much for any great need of their help, as to avoyd all susspition, or jelosie of any partiallitie. And indeed their care for giving offence, both in this and other things afterward, turned to great inconvenience unto them, as in the sequell will apeare; but however it shewed their equall and honest minds. The provissions were for the most parte made at Southhamton, contrarie to Mr. Westons and Robert Cushmans mind (whose counsells did most concure in all things). A touch of which things I shall give in a letter of his to Mr. Carver, and more will appear afterward.

The writer of this letter was a wool-carder in Leyden; by "combes" he meant the cards or combs used in his trade.

'Christopher Martin, of Billericay, came in the Mayflower and died January 8, 1620/1.

To his loving freind Mr. John Carver, these, etc.

Loving freind, I have received from you some letters, full of affection and complaints, and what it is you would have of me I know not; for your crieing out, Negligence, negligence, negligence, I marvell why so negligente a man was used in the bussines. Yet know you that all that I have power to doe hear, shall not be one hower behind, I warent you. You have reference to Mr. Weston to help us with money, more then his adventure; wher he protesteth but for his promise, he would not have done any thing. He saith we take a heady course, and is offended that our provissions are made so farr of; as also that he was not made aquainted with our quantitie of things; and saith that in now being in 3. places, so farr remote, we will, with going up and downe, and wrangling and expostulating, pass over the sommer before we will goe. And to speake the trueth, ther is fallen already amongst us a flatt schisme; and we are redier to goe to dispute, then to sett forwarde a voiage. I have received from Leyden since you wente 3. or 4. letters directed to you, though they only conscerne me. I will not trouble you with them. I always feared the event of the Amsterdamers striking in with us. you must excommunicate me, or els you must goe without their companie, or we shall wante no quareling; but let them pass. We have reckoned, it should seeme, without our host; and, counting upon a 150. persons, ther cannot be founde above 1200li. and odd moneys of all the venturs you can reckone, besids some cloath, stockings, and shoes, which are not counted; so we shall come shorte at least 3. or 400li. I would have had some thing shortened at first of beare and other provissions in hope of other adventurs, and now we could have, both in Amsterd: and Kent, beere inough to serve our turne, but now we cannot accept it without prejudice. You fear we have begune to build and shall not be able to make an end; indeed, our courses were never established by counsell, we may therfore justly fear their standing. Yea, ther was a schisme amongst us 3. at the first. You wrote to Mr. Martin, to prevente the making of the provissions in Kente, which he did, and sett downe his resolution how much he would have of every thing, without respecte to any counsell or exception. Surely he that is in a societie and yet regards not counsell, may better be a king then a consorte. To be short, if ther be not some other dispossition setled unto then yet is, we that should be partners of humilitie and peace, shall be examples of jangling and insulting. Yet your money which you ther must have, we will get provided for you instantly. 500li. you say will serve; for the rest which hear and in Holand is to be used, we may goe scratch for it. For Mr. Crabe,' of whom you write, he hath promised

"He was a minister." (Br.)

to goe with us, yet I tell you I shall not be without feare till I see him shipped, for he is much opposed, yet I hope he will not faile. Thinke the best of all, and bear with patience what is wanting, and the Lord guid us all.

London, June 10.
An°: 1620.

Your loving freind,

ROBART CUSHMAN.

I have bene the larger in these things, and so shall crave leave in some like passages following, (thoug in other things I shal labour to be more contrate,) that their children may see with what difficulties their fathers wrastled in going throug these things in their first beginnings, and how God brought them along notwithstanding all their weaknesses and infirmities. As allso that some use may be made hereof in after times by others in such like waightie imployments; and herewith I will end this chapter.

The 7. Chap.

Of their departure from Leyden, and other things ther aboute, with their arivall at South hamton, were they all mete togeather, and tooke in ther provissions.

Ar length, after much travell and these debats, all things were got ready and provided. A smale ship' was bought, and fitted in Holand, which was intended as to serve to help to transport them, so to stay in the cuntrie and atend upon fishing and shuch other affairs as might be for the good and benefite of the colonie when they came ther. Another was hired at London, of burden about 9. score;' and all other

1 "Of some 60 tune." (Br.) That its name was the Speedwell is not stated by Bradford, and first appears from the statement of his nephew Morton, in New England's Memorial (1669).

2 The ship was the Mayflower, of 180 tons. Questions are often asked about her dimensions. At that time the method of computing the tonnage of a doubledecked vessel (which we know she was, because Bradford says that when her main beam was sprung a post was placed under it resting on the lower deck), was as follows: Ascertain the length above the deck from the fore part of the stem to the after part of the stern-post, deduct three-fifths of the width, multiply the remainder by the width, multiply the product by one-half of the width and divide