< 
234 Discoveries 
comprehended that part of the Continent of North Ame- 
rica-^ which had been formerly ftiled North Virginia and 
Norembegua^ and the way it acquired this Name, was 
thus When Captain Smith made his Voyage thither, 
which has been before mentioned, he went afiiore, with 
no more than eight Ferfons j and at that time drew a 
Plan of as much of the Country as he had feen. This, 
as I apprehend, was in the Year 1614; and upon his 
return he jfhewed the Prince of JVales his Account of the 
Country, and the Map he had drawn of it. Mis then 
Royal Highnefs, afterwards King CharUs I. read the one, 
and examined the other, giving feveral Englijh Names to 
Places, diftinguifhed by Indian Appellations in th^ Book*, 
and from Captain SmitVs Information of the Soil and Clk 
mate of the Country, called it New England^', which 
Name it has ever fince borne. This Work, thus feen, 
perufed, and approved by the Prince, Captain Smith 
publifhed to the World, under the Title of A Defcription 
of New England^ in which he gave a very fair and true 
Account of it, as well as of the Advantages that might 
be hoped from a Settlement there *, in attempting of 
which, however, he had the Misfortune to be taken Pri- 
foner by the French *, but notwithftanding this, his Trea- 
tife produced the intended Effedt, and adfually brought 
about that Eftablifhment, of which we have already given 
the Hiftory. He likewife wrote and publifhed another 
Book, which he called New England's Trials, which was 
very well received, infomuch that we may fafely aver, 
that all the Advantages derived fince to N"eat Britain, 
from the feveral Settlements made in this large and fruit- 
ful Country, are originally due to the Virtue and Induftry 
of this indefatigable Man. 
The Name and Bounds of this Country being thus 
fettled, it is necelfary next to take notice of the feveral 
Plantations made in New England in the proper Order of 
Time, and then we fhall fhew, in what Situation they 
now ftand. We have already given an Account of New 
Plymouth, which was the firft of them ; and we are next 
to fpeak of that which, tho’ later in Point of Time, is 
now become the moll conliderable in every Refpedt, and 
which had its Beginning and Progrefs much in the fame 
manner with it. For in the Year 1^25 (as the New Eng- 
land Hiftorian relates) Mr. White, Minifter of Dorchefter, 
obferving the Succefs of the Plymouth Colony, projebled a 
new Settlement in the Maffachufets Bay m New England, and 
prevailing with Mr. Conant, and fome others, to go over, 
and make choice of aproper Settlement, he and his Friends 
purchafed, or procured, a Grant from the North Virginia, 
or New England, Company, in the Year 1622, to Six Henry 
Rofwell, Sir John Young, Knights ; Thomas Southcot, 
John Humphreys and Simon Newcomb, Efquires ; their 
Heirs, Affigns and Affociates, of all that Part of New 
England which lies between the great River Merimack and 
Charles River, at the Bottom of the Maffachufets Bay, 
and all Lands, three Miles North of Merimack River, 
and three Miles South of Charles River, and in Length, 
or in Longitude, between thofe Rivers, from Atlantic to 
the South Sea •, and obtained a Patent from King Charles!. 
to hol^ the fame as of his Manor of Eaft Greenwich in 
common Soccage, yielding and paying to his Majefty a 
fifth Part of fuch Gold and Silver Ore as jfhould be from 
time to time found within thefe Limits. Thefe Gentle- 
men, having taken in Sir Richard Saltonftal, Mr. Ifaac 
Johnfton, Samuel Addefly, John Van, Matthew Cradock, 
Thomas Gpff, George Harwood, Samuel Moor, and feveral 
more, the following Year, 1628, procured a new Patent 
with the Names of the laft-mentioned Gentlemen inferted, 
as the Proprietors ; by which Patent they, and all others 
who lliould join with them, were incorporated by the 
Name of. The Governor and Company of the Maffachufets 
Bay in New England ; and were impowered to eleft a 
Governor, Deputy-Governor, and Magiftrates, and make 
Laws for the Good of the Plantation, not repugnant to 
the England \ and Liberty of Confcience was 
granted to all that fhould fettle there. The Adventurers, 
by Virtue of this Patent, eledled Mr. Cradock their Go- 
vernor, and Mr. Endicot their Deputy-Governor, and 
feiit over the latter immediately to reinforce Mr. Conant, 
who was fettled at Neumkeak, now Salem, fituated on the 
and Settlements Book I. 
Coaft of New England, between the Promontories of 
Marblehead and Cape Anne. 
This new Colony was fupported with the fame Spirit 
and Vigour as the former, and fuch mighty Embarkations 
made for its Service, as fhewed plainly enough of how 
great Confequence it appeared to thofe who were its Pro- 
testors in England \ and fb much they were fet upon 
having fome Man of Diftin6lion on the Spot, that in the 
Year 1630 they cYiok John Winthorp, Efquire, Gover- 
nor, in the Room of Mr. Cradock, who declined going 
over, and he appointed Mr. Thomas Dudley his Deputy- 
Governor ; both of them embarked the fame Year, with 
Sir Richard Saltonftal, Ifaac Johnfon, Efquire, and the 
Arabella, his Wife, Nix. Eaton, and feveral other 
Patentees, on board a Fleet of ten Sail of large Ships, 
with about two hundred Planters every way completely 
furnifhed : So that foon after their Arrival they eredled 
two new Settlements *, the one ftyled Charles-Town, 
on the North-fide of Charles River ; and the other Dor- 
chefter, at the Bottom of Maffachufets Bay \ and in a fhort 
time part of the Inhabitants of Charles-Town, paffing over 
to the oppofite Shore, erebted Bofton, which is now the 
Capital of New England. As new Planters arrived every 
Year, the Colony quickly became over-fbocked ; and 
Divifions breaking out amongft them, one Mr. Roger 
Williams, who was Paftor of a Church of Brcwntfts, 
went and fettled without this Government ; and called his 
new Plantation Providence, which afterwards was united 
to the Government of Rhode Iftand \ of which we fhall 
fpeak in its proper Place. 
In 1635, arrived a larger Fleet from England than at 
any time before, and amongft other Perfons of Diftinblion, 
who came over in it, was Henry Vane, Efquire, Son to 
Sir Henry Vane, Secretary of State to King Charles I. 
vdth whom the People were fo taken, that they elebted 
him Governor, in the Room of Mr. Winthorp ; but as 
he had the Misfortune to have a very roving and extra- 
vagant Genius, he quickly loft his Credit with them, and 
faw his Predeceflbr reftored : Upon which he formed a 
Projebt of erebling a new Plantation to the North-weft of 
the Maffachufets j which, however, he did not carry into 
Execution ; but returning into England, was knighted, and 
made an extraordinary Figure under the Name of Six Henry 
Vane the younger, as every body knows that is acquainted 
at all with our Hiftory. But the Projebl; for a Planta- 
tion on ConnelHcut River was not dropped, though SxxHenry 
Vane did not proceed in it. This Settlement was become 
the more neceffary, becaufe the Pequet Indians began to 
grow very troublefome ; and as the building a Town 
and ‘Fort on that River, would make a good Frontier 
on that Side, Agents were fent to view the Country, who 
made fuch an advantageous Report of* the Fruitfulnefs of 
the Soil, and Largenefs of the River, as made many of 
the Planters of Newton, Dorchefter, Weatherton, and 
Roxbury, entertain Thoughts of tranfplanting themfelves 
thither, being already ftreightened for Room where they 
were. 
Nix. Hooker, Minifter of Newton, put himfelf at the 
Head of thefe new Adventurers, about a hundred in Num- 
ber, who fet out in the Month of July, and travelling on 
Foot with their Children and Baggage, about nine or ten 
Miles a Day, came in ten or eleven Days to the Banks of 
the River, where they began a Town, which they called 
Hartford ; after thefe came another Draught from Dor- 
chefter, who built a little Town, which they called Windfor ; 
a third Detachment from Waterton, built Weathersfield ; 
and a fourth from Roxbury, built Springfield. The P owns 
the Planters built on this River were fifty and fixty Miles 
from its Mouth, fo that the Ship freighted with Provifions 
for thefe Planters at the Maffachufets, came fo late in the 
Year that it was frozen up at the Mouth of it, fixty Miles 
from the Plantation ; upon which, m.any of the new 
Adventurers travelled back in the Depth of Winter, and 
others who attempted it were frozen to Death. The 
Calamities which attended them, are fuch as all new Set- 
lements are liable to ; but, however, thofe that had Cou- 
rage to ftay till the Spring, carried on their Settlements 
with fuch Succefs, that they were not only in a Capacity 
of fubfifting, but making head againft their Enemies. 
