16 NATURAL AND CIViL 



1696, Colonel Fletcher, governor of New York,^ 

 made a grant to Godfrey Delliiis, a clergyman 

 at Albany, of a tract of land on the east side of 

 Hudson's river : This tract extended from the 

 northernmost bounds of Saratoga, to the Rock 

 Rossian, (now called Split Rock, in the town- 

 ship of Willsborough) about seventy miles in 

 len;ijth, and in width, twelve miles from Hud- 

 son's river. In 1699, this grant was declared 

 by the government of New York to have been 

 extravagant, and vacated on that account.* In 

 1716, a tract of land was granteffby the general 

 court of Massachusetts, in the south east part of 

 the state, containing more than one hundred 

 thousand acres. But it M'as not until the 

 year 1724, that any settlement was made, 

 ■within the bounds of Vermont : The govern- 

 ment of Massachusetts, then built fort Dummer, 

 upon Connecticut river. This fort, was then 

 admitted to be within Massachusetts, afterwards 

 it was found to be in New Hampshire, and is 

 now in Vermont. This was the first settlement, 

 any civilized nation had ever m*ade, in this state. 

 On the other side of the state, the French made 

 their advances up lake Champlain, and in 1731, 

 built their fort at Crown Point, and began a 

 settlement on the east side of the lake. This 

 part of America became of course, the seat of 

 war, and was constantly exposed to the depre- 

 dations of both nations, and their Indian allies ; 

 and it was dangerous and impracticable to settle 

 the country. 



The wars havhig terminated in the reduction 



* Laws of New York, Vol. I. p. 32. Edit. 1774. 



