The Portland daily press., 1877-03-23

, behind. '-i-D'
The Dutch had just surrendered New York
! lntoithe hahdslof Sir Edmund Andres. and there
was no Dutch foothold this side of West Indies
New Holland
| Line two Dutch officers andRhoades resolved
, 10 proceed to New Holland and keep possession
ana carry on trade with the Indians till
Dulch force and government should De sent
there. They purchased one vessel and hired
another, and armed as well as they
could. They persuaded four or five English
meu TO Join them IN this enterprise GovernoI
AeVerett suspected the design or THESE men, ana
sent for Rhoads and demanded what he In
tended. Rhoads told him he was going east
ward to trade where others were going.
by the first of December the flag of the
Prlnce of Orange waved from the topmast OF
these two vessels making their way into the
Penobscot bay. They visited Pentagoet, where
they had the first struggle with the French
four months previous. They found the French
Inhabitants still quietly submitting to the au-
taoIlty of the Prince of Orange. me English
of Pemagud had been there during the absence
| OF the Dutch and treated the Inhabitants WITH
some insoence ami carried away the iron and
other articles found in the ruins of the fort Pro-
| ceeding farther eastward they soon met some OF
the Boston vessels which had been trading IN
Acadia They recognized some OF the persons
who had been refused in Boston leave TO come
mere. They seized these vessels and took from
them the peltry and other articles which mad
come from Acadia. They then dismissed them
and bad them begone out of the jurisdiction OF
the Prince of Orange fot the trade there be-
| longed to the Dutch.
| At Machias they set up an establishment, but
it had not been there long when Boston vessel
| put in there, and being the strongest, overcame
the Dutch and destroyed their abode. Pro-
ceeding onward towards the st. John River,
they were met with information that the
French at Gemsec had revolted and returned
to their former allegiance; that Boston vessel
L had I'D from
al TO Gemsec.
Meantime news was carried to Boston of the
seizure of Boston vessels by vessels under
Dutch cOlors, and was attracting public atten-
| ton. The bark Phillip-an OminOus name
seized by them, belonged to John Freke and
| Samuel Shrmpton, merchants OF Boston.
| Freke complained to the Governor that his yes
sci had been practically seized by John Rhoads
| and his associates, and asked that a force might
be sent to seize them and to bring them to
| Boston. He asked that Capt Samuel Moseley
| Wight be put in command of the force to be
sent out. The Governor and assistants after
considering this application and seeing the ad-
vantage it would be- to have Acadia open to
| Boston trade, ordered Capt Moseley to proceed
| there with sufficient force and to "Seize and
surprise and bring them forthwith to Boston"
| All ships in Boston barbor bound eastward
were ordered to stay till Capt. Moseley had
sailed. This was the middle of February, 1915.
The master of Freka's vessel, the Phillip,
/ was George Munning. He was wounded at the
| time he was captured by the Dutch. After be-
| ing taken hs attempted to get away and offered
some violence to his capt0rS. They proposed to
| set him adrift in boat and to keep his vessel.
| At length he offered to join them and to let
them have his vessel at eight pounds per
| month. They agreed and hired his men. Dutch
colors were hung out on the Phillip.
This state of things had not lasted long when
Capt. Moseley from Boston appeared on the
scene. Munnipg forthwith revolted and be-
trayed both Dutch vessels into the hands OF
Moseley. The capture was an easy one. Nose
| ley sailed for Boston where he arrived the sec
ond day of April, bringing in both Dutch YES
sells and all that were on board when they were
taken in the waters of Acadia. The Dutch ves-
sells Were appraised and delivered to John
Freke who was to be responsible for them to
the amount of their appraisal.
The two Dutclf officers and their six English
associates including Rhodes, were committed
to prison. In few weeks formal charges Of
piracy were made out against them all. A |
special Court of Admiralty, as the record calls
1t, met in Boston, consisting of the governor,
deputy governor, and ten assistants, being the /
chief civil officers Of the Colony. Although a
Court of Admiralty jury was in attendance /
with Anthony Checkley, noted man in the
Colony, as foreman. |
The prisoners all denied piracy, and justified !
their action under the authority of Peter Rod
rigo, one of the Dutch officers. Rodrigo justi-
fed under the authority of Capt Aernouts who
bad made conquest of Acadia for the Prince of
Orange and given him authority to gather a
force and keep possession OF 1T till further Or |
der.
Their defence was in writing, and it is pro- /
duction worthy of Grotius himself. No better
nor ADLER argument was ever made before any
tribunal. But it did not avail them before the
jury, and they were all found guilty Of piracy
and sentenced to die, except Cornelis Andre
son. and two Of his English associates. The
court was unwilling that Anderson should go
free, and the. sent the jury out again to find
what they could against him, and the jury
found him guilty of theft and robbery.
This Cornelis Anderson is, without doubt,
that mysterious Dutchman mentioned by all
our old historians and writer's of that period,
who figured in King Phillips war under Capt.
Moseley. Some of his exploits were heroic.
Who he was or whence he came has not been
known till now.
Peter Rodrigo, the chief of this party, was
found guilty and sentenced to be executed.
Leave was granted to him to apply to the gen.
eral court for pardon. He did so and it was
granted.
The four Englishmen, Richard Fu'ford, John
Rhoads, Peter Great and Randall Judson
were fourd guilty aid sentenced to be executed
the first day of July. But when that day came,
King Phillip had been ten days on the war
path, and every white man in eastern Massa-
chusetts stood fearful of the awful issue pre-
scented by the enraged red man. Their execu-
ton was respited from time to time till near
the end of the year they were set free on condi-
lions. Fulford was early released without con-
dtions. He belonged in Muscongus and had
married daughter of Richard Pease there. A
petition of his in the Massachusetts Archives
led me to discover all that is new OF this great
event in this paper.
When the directors of the Dutch West India
Company, in Amsterdam, heard of this con-
quest of the Dutch arms in Acadia, they awoke
to new enterprises. Their first action, Sept.
IL, 1876, was to recognize the services of John
| Rhoads of Boston, the famous pilot of the |
Dutch cruiser, in making the conquest. They
| authorized him to hold possession of Acadia |
| and to carry on unlimited trade with the ma.
tives. A month later the directors commits
stoned Cornelis Steenwyck. distinguished for
eminent services in the late Dutch government
of New York, to be governor of Acadia.
1t does not appear, however, that anything
was ever done by either of them under this au-
l thority More than two years had elapsed
l since the conquest was made, and the French
had now fully re-possessed themselves Of
| Acadia. The return of the French was not,
| probably then known ia Amsterdam. Be-
| sides peace had not been concluded between
l France and the United Provinces. If the West
India Company INDUCED any expectancy that
| Acadia would remain to Holland by the terms
| of any treaty of peace they were mistaken. The
| treaty of Nimuegin was signed year after is
| suing these commissions and no mention is
l therein made of the Dutch conquest of Acadia
The French had peculiar views of the char
| acter of this conquest OF Acadia Notwith-
l standing war existed between France and the
l United Provinces when Captain Aernouts
! made conquest of Acadia, Froutenac oharac-
l terzed the act buccaneering one, and declared
| that it was encouraged by Boston. The French
| historians have persistently asserted that the
| Flying Horse sailed to Acadia from Boston.
| This was hasty inference from the facts that
/ the pilot was of Boston; that the Flying Horse
| disposed of her plumber there, and that Boston
l traders rushed into Acadia and took up the
/ rich trade with the Indians.
Frontenac wrote to Governor Leverett ex-
pressing his astonishment. and complaining Bit
/ terly that the English should allow the Dutch
cruisers to come there, bringing the French
officers as prisoners of war, and to dispose of
the plumber gathered in Acadia, while there
| was peace between France and England.
What answer Levelett made to this letter does
| not appear.
But this affair did not end in Boston with
the trial and condemnation of the Dutch Off
GERS and their associates in the early summer of
| 1915. When news of the captuIe Of these
persons by Captain Moseley and of there being
Imprisoned in Boston, reached the States Gen
| eral, more than six months after the event.
they Immediately instructed their ambassador
in London to demand satisfaction of the Eng
fish government and release of their subjects,
| held as prisoners in Boston. This application
1 was made to the English government in Janu-