THE HISTORIC TREES OF MASSACHUSETTS 



found that the length and harshness of their 

 words were almost overwhelming. Cotton 

 Mather says that men would stand aghast 

 at some of the instances — sighting as an 

 example the expression "our lusts" which 

 requires a word of thirty-two letters in the 

 Indian language. "Behold, ye Americans," 

 says he, "the greatest honor that ever ye 

 were partakers of! The Bible was printed 

 here at our Cambridge; and is the only 

 Bible that ever was printed in all America, 

 from the very foundations of the world. 

 The whole translation he writ with but one 

 pen, which pen had it not been lost, would 

 have certainly deserved a richer case than 

 was bestowed upon that pen with which 

 Holland writ his translation of Plutarch." ' 



In loyalty to the man who did so much 

 for them, the Indians built the first meeting- 

 house near the spot where their apostle 

 was accustomed to speak to them. The 

 white oak stood at its easterly end. At the 

 westerly end there was a red oak of vast 

 proportions. In 1850 when this tree was 



1 Mather's " Magnalia," B III, p. 197. 



n4o3 



