1706. to Charlestown with his prize, and about 90 prisoners. Of 800 men, who had engaged in this expedition, nearly 300 were killed or taken. M. Arbuset, their commander in chief by land, with several sea officers who were among the prisoners, offered 10,000 pieces of eight for their ransom. The loss sustained by the provincial militia was very inconsiderable. Carolina of credit. The expenses incurred by the invasion, fell heavily on the issues bills invaded colony. No taxes had yet been laid on real or personal estates. The sum of £8000 was now issued for defraying the newly incurred expenses; and an act, laying an imposition on furs, skins, and liquors, was continued, for the purpose of cancelling these bills of credit.1 N. Jersey. Act in favour of the clergy. Act of parliament. Hebron. The foundation of St. John's church was laid at Elizabeth Town, in New Jersey.2 The legislature of Connecticut passed an act for the encouragement of the clergy; by virtue of which the ministers of that colony were exempted from taxation.3 By act of parliament a large bounty was given on the importation of tar, pitch, rosin, turpentine, masts, yards, and bowsprits, from the British colonies.4 Hebron, in Connecticut, was incorporated.5 William Jones, deputy governor of Connecticut, died, aged 82 years. 1707. May 13. AN unsuccessful expedition from New England was made ful expedi- against Port Royal, in Nova Scotia. Two regiments, under the tion against command of colonel March, embarked at Nantasket in May, in Port Royal. 23 transports, furnished with whale boats, under convoy of the 1 Archdale, 10. Hewatt, i. 179-196. Ramsay, Hist. S. Car. i. c. 2. From this time there was a gradual rise in exchange and produce; and, soon after this emission, 50 per cent. advance was given by the merchants for what English money there was; that is, £150 Carolina paper currency for £100 English coin. 2 Humphreys, Hist. Account, 189. 3 Trumbull, i. 428. The legislature had previously released their persons from taxation, but not their families and estates. The colony, at this period, was in very low circumstances. Its whole circulating cash amounted only to about £2000. 4 Pitkin, Statistical View. 5 Trumbull, i. 430. The settlement of the town began in 1704. The first settlers were from Windsor, Saybrook, Long Island, and Northampton. 6 Ibid. 399. He was a son in law of governor Eaton. He brought over a good estate from England, and made a settlement at New Haven. He was either magistrate or deputy governor of the colony of New Haven, or Connecticut, about 36 years. The general assembly sitting at New Haven at the time of his decease, voted, "that, in consideration of the many good services, for many years done by that honoured and religious gentleman, a sum should be paid out of the treasury towards defraying the charges of his funeral." Deptford man of war, and the province galley. Arriving before Port Royal, they had some skirmishes with the enemy, and made some ineffectual attempts to bombard the fort; but, from disagreement and a misapprehension of the state of the fort and garrison, they soon abandoned the enterprise.1 1707. Various provincial acts had been passed, since the Revolution Harvard of William and Mary, for enlarging the privileges of Harvard College. College; but they were disallowed in England. All hope of a new foundation being now relinquished, the old charter was resorted to, and observed until the revolutionary war.2 The assembly of Carolina passed an act to limit the bounds of Yamasees. the Yamasee settlement, to prevent persons from disturbing the Yamasees with their stocks of cattle, and to remove such as are settled within a certain limitation.3 cut. A small episcopal church was formed at Stratford, in Con- Connectinecticut; and this was the introduction of the church of England into that colony.* The Quatoghes, lying to the south of lake Michigan, sold their Indian lands to the king of England.5 lands. An act was passed by the British parliament for the encourage- Act of parment of the trade to America." 1 Hutchinson, ii. 165-171. Belknap, N. Hamp. i. 342-344. Penhallow, 42. Adams, N. Eng. 176. Trumbull, i. 429, 430. Charlevoix, Nouv. France, ii. 318-321. This expedition was projected by governor Dudley. Fairfield writes in his Diary, under the date of March: "Our general court sat a considerable part of the month; the most they did was to conclude about a descent on poor Port Royal. What it will come to time will evidence. People were generally dissatisfied at the discourse of it; insomuch that the deputies of the General Court who were known to vote for it, were almost all left out the next choice; from whence arose more inconvenience than is easy to be enumerated." Under the date of "Nov. 27," he writes: "The descent on Port Royal drained the inhabitants of this province of £22,000, and more of their money. We lost of lives in that expedition about 30." 2 Hutchinson, i. 171-174. One of the provincial acts was passed in 1697. The reason assigned for the several failures of the provincial acts in behalf of Harvard College, is, that Sir Henry Ashurst refused to allow a clause in the charter for a visitation by the king or his governor. 3 Trott, Laws Brit. Plantations. The act reserved a right, if afterwards thought proper, to lay out a convenient parcel of land for a church and glebe lands, and also lands for the use of a schoolmaster to instruct the Indians in the Christian Religion. 4 Humphreys, Hist. Account, 315-315. Trumbull, Century Discourse, 28; Hist. Conn. i. 477. The first service was performed by Rev. Mr. Muirson, who was sent, a few years before, missionary to Rye, in New York, by the Society for propagating the gospel in foreign parts. Mr. Cutler, rector of Yale College, Mr. Johnson, minister of West Haven, and Mr. Wetmore, declared, about this time, for episcopacy. Mr. Cutler was soon after settled in an episcopal church at Boston; and Mr. Johnson, in one at Stratford. These gentlemen, with one or two others, were the principal fathers of the episcopal church in New England. liament. 1707. Deaths. French and Indians make a descent on Fitz John Winthrop, governor of Connecticut, died, in the 69th year of his age.1 Samuel Willard, minister in Boston, died, in the 68th year of his age. Abraham Pierson, minister of Killingworth, and rector of the college at Saybrook, died.3 Samuel Torrey, minister of Weymouth, died, in the 76th year of his age.1 1708. A LARGE army of French and Indians marched from Canada on the 16th of July, against the frontiers of New England. The Hurons and Mohawks soon found pretexts for returning N.England. home. The French officers, however, accompanied by the Algonquin and St. Francis Indians, making collectively a body of about 200, marched between 300 and 400 miles through the woods to Nikipisique, expecting to be joined there by the Eastern Indians. Though disappointed in that expectation, they went forward, and, on the 29th of August, about break of day, surprised the town of Haverhill, on Merrimack river; burned several houses, and plundered the rest. Mr. Rolfe the minister, Surprise 1 Trumbull, i. 431. Hutchinson, ii. 171. He was a son of John Winthrop, the first governor of Connecticut under the charter, and was born at Ipswich, in Massachusetts, in 1638. In 1690, he was appointed major general of the land army designed against Canada. On the dispute relative ro the command of the militia, he was sent an agent for the colony of Connecticut to the British court in 1694. After his return, May 1698, he was chosen governor; and he was annually rechosen during his life. He appears to have been of popular estimation, and of unblemished character. 2 He was a son of major Simon Willard, who commanded the army sent against the Narragansets in 1654, and who was a member of the council. The son was educated at Harvard College, and first settled in the ministry at Groton; but when that town was destroyed by the Indians, he was invited to the Old South church in Boston, "where he became a great blessing to the churches, and of eminent service to the college." After the resignation of president Mather in 1701, he presided over the seminary, as vice president, till his death. He was a man of strong intellectual powers, of considerable learning, and of exemplary piety and zeal. His publications were numerous; his largest, which was one of the posthumous, is a folio volume, entitled "A Body of Divinity." Pemberton's Discourses. Eliot and Allen, Biog. Dict. Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. iii. 300. 3 Trumbull, i. 488. He was a son of the minister of Branford, and was educated at Harvard College, where he was graduated in 1668. "He was a hard student, a good scholar, and a great divine.” He was installed the minister of Killingworth in 1694. In 1700, he was appointed a fellow of Yale College, and, on the establishment of the college at Saybrook in 1701, was chosen to preside over the seminary with the title of rector. He instructed and governed the infant college with general approbation. He composed a System of Natural Philosophy, which the students at college studied for many years. Pres. Clap, Hist. Yale College, 11-14. 4 He was settled at Weymouth in 1656, and continued there "a faithful, laborious, exemplary minister" 51 years. He was invited to preach the Election sermon three times (in 1674, 1683, and 1695), “and the discourses are excellent." Eliot, Biog. Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. ix. 105. and Wainwright the captain of the town, with 30 or 40 other 1708. persons, were killed; and many taken prisoners.1 The legislature of Connecticut, at its session in May, passed Saybrook platform an act, requiring the ministers and churches of that colony to adopted. meet and form an ecclesiastical constitution. A synod was accordingly holden at Saybrook on the 9th of September. This synod agreed, that the confession of faith, assented to by the synod in Boston in 1680, be recommended to the general assembly, at the next session, for their public testimony to it, as the Faith of the churches of that colony; and that the heads of agreement, assented to by the united ministers, formerly called presbyterian and congregational, be observed throughout the colony. It also agreed on articles for the better regulation of the administration of church discipline. The confession of faith, heads of agreement, and articles of discipline, were, in October, presented to the legislature; which passed an act, adopting them as the ecclesiastical constitution of the colony.3 Durham and Killingly, in Connecticut, were incorporated.1 The English people, who had settled the Bahama islands Bahama under the auspices of the proprietors of Carolina, and built the islands. town of Nassau at New Providence, after having been repeat 1 Hutchinson, ii. 172-174. Charlevoix, ii. 325, 326. This French author says, about 100 English were killed in the different attacks. The two daughters of Mr. Rolfe, 6 or 8 years old, were remarkably preserved. His maid, at the moment of the alarm, sprang out of bed, ran with the two children into the cellar, and covered them with two large tubs, which the Indians did not move. One of the preserved children was afterward the wife of colonel Hatch of Dorchester; the other was the wife of the reverend Mr. Checkley of Boston. 2" A most happy Union has been lately made between those two eminent parties in England, which have now changed the names of Presbyterians and Congregationalists for that of United Brethren." C. Mather," Blessed Unions," printed 1692. 3 Trumbull, i. b. 1. c. 19; where the articles, relating to church discipline, are inserted entire. The "Heads of Agreement, assented to by the United Ministers, formerly called Presbyterian and Congregational," are in the Magnalia, b. 5. 59-61, and in Neal, N. Eng. Appendix, No. 3. The Assembly, having recited the doings of the Synod, declared "their great approbation of such an happy agreement," and ordained, "that all the churches within this government, that are, or shall be, thus united in doctrine, worship, and discipline be, and for the future shall be owned and acknowledged established by law; provided always, that nothing herein shall be intended or construed to hinder or prevent any society or church, that is or shall be allowed by the laws of this government, who soberly differ or dissent from the united churches hereby established, from exercising worship and discipline in their own way, according to their consciences." 4 Trumbull, i. 400. On the petition of the inhabitants of Guilford, a plantation was granted at Cogingohaug in 1698. The petitioners were 31, but few of them moved on to the lands. The two first planters were Caleb Seward and David Robinson from Guilford. The plantation received the name of Durham in 1704. In 1707, the number of families was but 15. After the incorporation, it rapidly increased. There was a great accession of inhabitants from North ampton, Stratford, Milford, and other towns. 1708. Louisiana. Deaths. Projected expedition against Canada. edly expelled by the French and Spaniards, were now entirely dislodged from their settlements.1 The affairs of Louisiana having hitherto been in a very languid state, M. d'Artaguette was now sent to that settlement, in quality of regulating commissary; by whose representations the French court was induced to the resolution of "carrying this settlement into a colony."2 John Higginson, minister of Salem, died, at the age of 93 years; Ezekiel Cheever, of Boston, in the 94th year of his age.4 1709. AN expedition was determined on for the reduction of the French in North America. The plan was extensive. The French were to be subdued, not only in Canada and Acadie, but in Newfoundland. A squadron of ships was to be at Boston by the middle of May. Five regiments of regular troops were to be sent from England, to be joined by 1200 men, to be raised in Massachusetts and Rhode Island; and this force was to attack Quebec. Fifteen hundred men, proposed to be raised in the colonies south of Rhode Island, were, at the same time, to march by the way of the lakes, to attack Montreal. In America, every thing was prepared for the enterprise. In England, lord Sunderland, the secretary of state, had proceeded so far as to despatch orders to the queen's ships at Boston, to hold themselves in readiness; and the British troops were on the point of embarkation. At this juncture, news arrived of the defeat of the Portuguese, which reducing the allies of England to great straits, the forces, intended for America, were ordered to their assistance, and the thoughts of the ministry were entirely diverted from the Canada 1 Wynne, ii. 527. Those islands had been granted to the proprietors of Carolina by Charles II. They remained depopulated from this year until 1718. 2 Univ. Hist. xl. 283, 284. Charlevoix [Nouv. France, ii. 330.] says, Louisiana was then in its infancy, and extremely weak. "La Colonie de la Louisiane étoit encore dans sa premiere enfance; rien n'étoit plus foible, que les deux, ou trois etablissemens, que nous y avions." He also says, the English of Carolina took great umbrage at the French settlements in Louisiana. 3 Hutchinson, ii. 176. Rev. Mr. Noyes' Elegy on Mr. Higginson. Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. vi. 264. He had been 72 years in the ministerial office; 49 in the ministry at Salem. He was a son of Francis, the first minister. See 1630. Judge Sewall [MS. Diary] calls him "the aged and excellent divine." 4 Hutchinson, ii. 175. He was the preceptor" of most of the principal gentlemen in Boston, then on the stage." To many of us now on the stage, his Latin Accidence is familiar. Mr. Cheever was born in London, and came from England to Boston in 1637. In less than a year, he removed with the first settlers to New Haven, where he taught a school 12 years; and then went to Ipswich, where he taught 11 years. Next he went to Charlestown, where he taught 9 years; and at last to Boston, where he taught 38 years. He was a pious and learned divine, as well as preceptor. He was singular in wearing his beard to the day of his death. Stiles, MS. Literary Diary. |
