here, who both departed this life since my brother Robinson; and as in England we have a new king, Charles, of whom there is great hope of good, so here likewise we have made of Prince Hendrick, general, in his brother’s place, who is now with the Grave of Mansfield with a great army, close by the enemy, to free Breda, if it be possible, which the enemy hath besieged now some nine or ten months; but how it will fall out at last, is yet uncertain. The Lord give good success, if it be his will. The king is making ready about one hundred sail of ships; the end is not yet certain, but they will be ready to go to sea very shortly. The king himself goes to see them once in fourteen days. And thus fearing lest this will not come to your hands, hoping as soon as I hear of a convenient messenger, to write more at large, and to send you a letter which my brother Robinson sent to London, to have gone to some of you, but coming too late, was brought back again. And so for this time I cease further to trouble you and rest

Your assured loving friend,
Roger White.

Leyden, April 28, 1625.

Capt. Standish likewise brought the sad news of the death of Mr. Robert Cushman, their ancient friend, whom the Lord took away also, this year, about the same time, who was as their right hand with their friends the adventurers, and for divers years had done and agitated all their business with them, to their great advantage, of whom, occasionally, there hath been honourable mention formerly made in this book.¹⁴

Descendants of Cushman are numerous in Plympton, Duxbury, and Middleborough.

About this time they received divers letters from their friends at Leyden, in Holland, full of sad lamentation for their heavy loss by the death of their pastor, Mr. Robinson, above named; and although their wills were good to come over to their brethren in New England, yet they saw no probability of means how it might be effected, but concluded, as it were, that all their hopes were cut off, and many, being aged, began to drop away by death. All which things before related, being well weighed and laid together, it could not but strike them with great perplexity, and to look humanly on the state of things, as they presented themselves at this time, it is a marvel it did not wholly discourage and sink them, but they gathered up their spirits, and the Lord so helped them, whose work they had in hand, as now, when they were very low, they began to rise again; and being stripped in a manner, of all human helps and hopes, he brought things about otherwise in his divine providence, so as they were not only upheld and sustained, but their proceedings both honoured and imitated by others, as by the sequel will appear.¹⁵

1627.

This year they sent Mr. Isaac Allerton for England, and gave him orders to make a composition with the adventurers, in reference unto some particulars betwixt the plantation and them, which Capt. Standish had. begun, as is before hinted, and at the ordinary season of the year, for the expectation of the ships, he returned with some success in the business he was employed.

Likewise this year they began to make some distribution of lands, having had hitherto but to every person one acre allowed him, as to propriety, besides their homesteads, or garden plots, the reason was that they might keep together, both for more safety and defence, and the better improvement of the general employments; which condition of theirs brings to mind that which may be read in Pliny, Lib. 18, chap. 2, of the Roman’s first beginnings in Romulus’s time, how every man contented himself with two acres of land, and had no more assigned them; and, chap. 3, it was thought a great reward to receive, at the hands of the people of Rome, a pint of corn; and long after, the greatest present given to a captain, that had got a victory over their enemies, was as much ground as he could till in one day; and he was not accounted a good, but a dangerous man, that would not content himself with seven acres of land; as also how they did pound their corn in mortars, as these people were forced to do, many years before they could get a mill.

Notwithstanding, as aforesaid, so small a portion of land served them at the first, yet afterwards for divers reasons moving thereunto, they were necessitated to lay out some larger proportions to each person; yet