was like him a century man and who did not escape the and of but whose amiable personality and qualities of made him the principal figure in the like two or three of the conspicuous actors in our later history owes his distinction to the moral elevation of his character quite as much as to his considerable mental gifts for character multiplied into sagacity is better than genius for some kinds of work he was a late comer in the enterprise in the the great year after had brought over a colony composed mostly of servants of the company and of the individual a second company of had been sent over with a commission to as governor on the place assisted by a council a church had been formed at now set in a larger agitation in favor of to new england the course of events in england was so adverse to that those who were devoted to that church which was as yet invisible except to the eye of faith began to look toward america every door for public action in state or church was closed to the in england closed and barred by courts of high commission by the star chamber and by the tower into one of the rooms of the latter had lately gone at the arbitrary command of the king that high spirited martyr to constitutional liberty sir john finding no way by which to come out again except a of deliberately chose to and die in prison the almost hopeless outlook at home the example set by s to new england in and by that of s company in perhaps also the ever active of father white of set among the a interest in the subject some of the leading minds thought it a noble work to a church in a new country since in their view the of england under had taken up its chap iv rise of the great of the book ii note t paper his character notes march backward this purpose of planting a church in america now began to take the first place even the of the indians which had been the chief purpose hitherto fell into the background the manuscript paper entitled reasons for new england to which reference has already been made was widely but secretly and frequently copied after a fashion of that time prevailing especially in the case of tracts or books of a kind to shrink from print it contained arguments in favor of removing to new england with answers to the various objections made against several copies of these reasons or considerations have come down to us in various and the has been attributed now to one now to another to to white of to sir john himself it appears to have been in its earliest form the production of there were horseback journeys some of them by night made about this time for the purpose of secret consultation a country gentleman of in and an attorney in the court of wards was a strict desiring above all a church and the of god in their purity as the phrase of the time went in everything and inclined to ideal aims he had been religious from boyhood had married at a little over seventeen years of age and had been made a justice of the peace while still very the great young he studied divinity and only the of friends kept him from entering the of temper he came to be often consulted upon points of conscience which gave much trouble in that age of and scruples his kindly visits to those who were in any trouble of spirit were highly he himself makes much of the of his nature and of his but generosity and purity of spirit like his are born and not acquired his accompanied by a habit of self criticism in the presence of infinite justice doubtless gave additional vigor to his virtues for the rest he was a man of independent estate of prudent and carriage of a clear but not broad mind what as much as anything else fitted him for his function was that all his virtues were cast in and all his prejudices had a set when the question of was under discussion other gentlemen who thought of going turned to as the natural leader declaring that they would remain in england if he should desert them he was not only the official head but he was indeed the soul of the of and he went to america confident of a call divine like that of moses ix it is a fact worthy of note that the three steps toward the establishment of free government chap iv his influence note o the book ii t plan mass records july in america were due to englishmen who did not themselves cross the sea the great of to the virginia colony and the large patent to the were granted as we have seen under the of sir governor of the virginia company of london the third of the measures which placed government on a popular basis was due to the governor of another engaged in colony planting on the th of july while and his friends were their removal to new england a wealthy and liberal merchant who held the office of governor or as we should say president of the company read in a general court or meeting of the company certain conceived by himself as it is carefully recorded he proposed that for the advancement of the plantation the and encouraging persons of worth quality and rank to themselves and families thither and for other reasons � reasons which probably it was not thought best to spread upon the records but which were the core of the whole matter � for these reasons proposed to transfer the government of the plantation to those that shall there and not to continue it in to a commercial 