The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-11-27
When Did the Pilgrim Fathers
Land at Plymouth?

- = - A@SsAsAs
Up TO the 18th it had been all un-
cstsinsy; and in the records there ia
nowhere the least alIusion to any
particular spot having been selected,
or to any particular spot having been
visited, by that party in the S azlop.
History and tradition seem to be in
entire accord. Some other date, then.
than the 21st must be looked for as
the date for their landing.
That memorable day was not this
Wednesday. the Goth, when posse g.
sion Was taken OF Plymouth, and
twenty of the people remained there.
"The mex! morning" says the careful
journalist. "being Thursday the 81.
31st N. 3. of December, it was
stormie & welt. that wee could not
goe ashore" But this is a eualihca-
ton only of the preceding statements
in the same sentence of the resolu-
ton of the night before -''resolving
in the morning to come all ashore &
to build houses" That "wee could
not'goe ashore" does not mean that no
body did go, but that the purpose OF .
general landing was frustrated by the
bad weather; for before noon OF this
day, SO We are told before the para.
graph is finished, ''the shallop went
off with much adoe with provision"
from the ship. On Friday even this
was impossible; bat on Sunday the
storm abated, and then $50 many as
could went on shore, felled and carried
tymber to provide themselves stufis
for building"
So many as could, but not the
whole. This careful and reiterated
distinction between the whole and
part can hardly have been without
purpose; bat whether it was or not,
We get atithe exactfsct. the appoint
ment of time for the Decentralization
of the whole company, and its delay
from day to day by the storm. The
event which tradition perpetustes, the
journalist. whether ne meant to or
not, carefully distinguishes-the land
ing OF all the Pilgrim Partners. not
part OF them. upon Plymouth Rock.
Turn once more to Mourt's Rela.
ton: monday the 25th day, We
went on shore, some to fell tymber,
some to saw, some to rue riveI, q
some to carry, 80 no man rested all
that day." Here "we" means the
whole company; all on that day
landed upon the Rock; all fer the
first time took part in the new home;
"no man rested all that day." Turn
then to Bradford's History. He re-
| lates suecinctly the sailing from Pre-
vincetoWn harbor, and the arrival in
Plymouth bay. "And afterwards, ="
be continues, they ''tooke better view
of ye place, and resolved wher to
pitch their dwelling: and ye % day,
BECAME to erecte ye frst house Tor
comone use to receive them and their
goods" 1t was "they," the whole
body of the colonists, wto resolved
wher to pitch their dwellings," alter
coming from Provin cetown harb0ri
not a pioneer party who visited the bay
before, And surely Bradford knew,
for he was one Of that party IN the
shallop. Indeed. it is probably Brad
ford who wrote the Relation as wal
as the History.
This, then. was the day which,
thirty or forty Yeas afterwGrd, the
boy Faunce heard the old men talk
about as the day they landed from
the Hayfoa0er upon Plymouth Rock
it was the distinction of being the first
20 leap ashore on this day, when for tht
first time the women seem to have
left the ship ct Plymouth, that II
given by tradition to Mary Chiffon
and John Alden,-the 25th of Decem
Der, 1920, which in New Style fall
upon the 4th of January. 1921.