Of Plymouth Plantation: Historical Account. William Bradford
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Some againe (and those that were most relied on) fell in utter dislike with Virginia, and would doe nothing if they wente thither. In ye midds of these distractions, they of Leyden, who had put of their estats, and laid out their moneys, were brought into a greate streight, fearing what issue these things would come too; but at length ye generalitie was swaid to this latter opinion.
But now another difficultie arose, for Mr. Weston and some other that were for this course, either for their better advantage or rather for ye drawing on of others, as they pretended, would have some of those conditions altered yt were first agreed on at Leyden. To which ye 2. agents sent from Leyden (or at least one of them who is most charged with it) did consente; seeing els yt all was like to be dashte, & ye opportunitie lost, and yt they which had put of their estats and paid in their moneys were in hazard to be undon. They presumed to conclude with ye marchants on those termes, in some things contrary to their order & com̅ission, and without giving them notice of ye same; yea, it was conceled least it should make any furder delay; which was ye cause afterward of much trouble & contention.
It will be meete I here inserte these conditions, which are as foloweth.
Ano: 1620. July 1.
1. The adventurers & planters doe agree, that every person that goeth being aged 16. years & upward, be rated at 10li., and ten pounds to be accounted a single share.
2. That he that goeth in person, and furnisheth him selfe out with 10li. either in money or other provissions, be accounted as haveing 20li. in stock, and in ye devission shall receive a double share.
3. The persons transported & ye adventurers shall continue their joynt stock & partnership togeather, ye space of 7. years, (excepte some unexpected impedimente doe cause ye whole company to agree otherwise,) during which time, all profits & benifits that are gott by trade, traffick, trucking, working, fishing, or any other means of any person or persons, remaine still in ye com̅one stock untill ye division.
4. That at their com̅ing ther, they chose out such a number of fitt persons, as may furnish their ships and boats for fishing upon ye sea; imploying the rest in their severall faculties upon ye land; as building houses, tilling, and planting ye ground, & makeing shuch com̅odities as shall be most usefull for ye collonie.
5. That at ye end of ye 7. years, ye capitall & profits, viz. the houses, lands, goods and chatles, be equally devided betwixte ye adventurers, and planters; wch done, every man shall be free from other of them of any debt or detrimente concerning this adventure.
[29] 6. Whosoever cometh to ye colonie herafter, or putteth any into ye stock, shall at the ende of ye 7. years be alowed proportionably to ye time of his so doing.
7. He that shall carie his wife & children, or servants, shall be alowed for everie person now aged 16. years & upward, a single share in ye devision, or if he provid them necessaries, a duble share, or if they be between 10. year old and 16., then 2. of them to be reconed for a person, both in trāsportation and devision.
8. That such children as now goe, & are under ye age of ten years, have noe other shar in ye devision, but 50. acers of unmanured land.
9. That such persons as die before ye 7. years be expired, their executors to have their parte or sharr at ye devision, proportionably to ye time of their life in ye collonie.
10. That all such persons as are of this collonie, are to have their meate, drink, apparell, and all provissions out of ye com̅on stock & goods of ye said collonie.
The cheefe & principall differences betwene these & the former conditions, stood in those 2. points; that ye houses, & lands improved, espetialy gardens & home lotts should remaine undevided wholy to ye planters at ye 7. years end. 2ly, yt they should have had 2. days in a weeke for their owne private imploymente, for ye more comforte of them selves and their families, espetialy such as had families. But because letters are by some wise men counted ye best parte of histories, I shall shew their greevances hereaboute by their owne letters, in which ye passages of things will be more truly discerned.
A letter of Mr. Robinsons to John Carver.
June 14. 1620. N. Stile.
My dear freind & brother, whom with yours I alwaise remember in my best affection, and whose wellfare I shall never cease to com̅end to God by my best & most earnest praires. You doe throwly understand by our generall letters ye estate of things hear, which indeed is very pitifull; espetialy by wante of shiping, and not seeing means lickly, much less certaine, of having it provided; though withall ther be great want of money & means to doe needfull things. Mr. Pickering, you know before this, will not defray a peny hear; though Robart Cushman presumed of I know not how many 100li. from him, & I know not whom. Yet it seems strange yt we should be put to him to receive both his & his partners adventer, and yet Mr. Weston write unto him, yt in regard of it, he hath drawne upon him a 100li. more. But ther is in this some misterie, as indeed it seems ther is in ye whole course. Besids, wheras diverse are to pay in some parts of their moneys yet behinde, they refuse to doe it, till they see shiping provided, or a course taken for it. Neither doe I thinke is ther a man hear would pay any thing, if he had againe his money in his purse. You know right well we depended on Mr. Weston alone, and upon such means as he would procure for this commone bussines; and when we had in hand another course with ye Dutchmen, broke it of at his motion, and upon ye conditions by him shortly after propounded. He did this in his love I know, but things appeare not answerable from him hitherto. That he should have first have put in his moneys, is thought by many to have been but fitt, but yt I can well excuse, he being a marchante and haveing use of it to his benefite; wheras others, if it had been in their hands, would have consumed it. [30] But yt he should not but have had either shipping ready before this time, or at least certaine means, and course, and ye same knowne to us for it, or have taken other order otherwise, cannot in my conscience be excused. I have heard yt when he hath been moved in the bussines, he hath put it of from him selfe, and referred it to ye others;16 and would come to Georg Morton, & enquire news of him aboute things, as if he had scarce been some accessarie unto it. Wether he hath failed of some helps from others which he expected, and so be not well able to goe through with things, or whether he hath feared least you should be ready too soone & so encrease ye charge of shiping above yt is meete, or whether he have thought by withhoulding to put us upon straits, thinking yt therby Mr. Brewer and Mr. Pickering would be drawne by importunitie to doe more, or what other misterie is in it, we know not; but sure we are yt things are not answerable to such an occasion. Mr. Weston maks himselfe mery with our endeavors about buying a ship, but we have done nothing in this but with good reason, as I am perswaded, nor yet that I know in any thing els, save in those tow; ye one, that we imployed Robart Cushman, who is known (though a good man, & of spetiall abilities in his kind, yet) most unfitt to deale for other men, by reason of his singularitie, and too great indifferancie for any conditions, and for (to speak truly) that17 we have had nothing from him but termes & presumptions. The other, yt we have so much relyed, by implicite faith as it were, upon generalities, without seeing ye perticuler course & means for so waghtie an affaire set down unto us. For shiping, Mr. Weston, it should seeme, is set upon hireing, which yet I wish he may presently effecte; but I see litle hope of help from hence if so it be. Of Mr. Brewer you know what to expecte. I doe not thinke Mr. Pickering will ingage, excepte in ye course of buying, in former letters specified. Aboute ye conditions, you have our reasons for our judgments of what is agreed. And let this spetially be borne in minde, yt the greatest