The Portland daily press., 1883-01-02

| sidered felony and punishable with death.
The culprit was "lusty fellow" and one OF
the court made an grafton, TO the effect, that
they could not spare an able bodied man, clos
| ing as follows:
''Sayes hee, you all agree that one must die,
and one shall die, this younge mans oloathes
| we will take off and put upon one, that is old
| and impotent, sickly person that cannon es-
| cape death, such is the disease one him con-
cloathes on this man and let the sick person
| behanged in the others steede: Amen sayes
one, and so sayes many more"
"This story of the INSCRIPTIONS Morton,
says Young, furnished Butler with the mate
| rails out of which he constructed the follow
ing fable in his Hudibras:"
| "our brethren Of New England use
Choice malefactors to excuse,
Aud hang the guitless in their stead,
Of whom the churches have less need
| AS lately happened. In town
There lived cobbler, and,but one,
That out of doctrine could cut, use
| And mend mems lives as well as shoes,
| This precious brother having slain,
| In times of peace, an Indian,
| (Not out of ma ice. but mere zeal,
/ Because he was an inidel.)
The mighty Tottipotymoy
Sent to our elders an envoy,
Complaining sOrely of the breach
OF league, held forth, by Brother Patch,
Against the articles in force
Between both churches, his and ours;
| For which he crayed the saints to render
| Into his hands, or hang the offender.
But they naturally having weighed
They had no more but him of the trade
| maa that served them in double
Cal atity, to teach and cobble
Resolved to spare him; yet to do,
The Indian Hoghgan Michigan too,
| Impartial justice, in has stead did
Hung an ola aoecsuer, that t1ds bed rid.
Morton, from this point, opens most CALLING
| fire on the Plymouth people, as will be seen
| from the headings OF some of his chapters, viz:
| How the 9worthies put mine Host of Mare
Mount into the inchaunted, Castle at Plim-
mouth, and terrified him with the Monster
Briareus." "Of mine Host of Ma.re-Mount
how he played Jonas after hee had bin in the
Whales belly for time" So obnoxious did
Morton become that he was banished from he
Country. Bradford speaks of him as follows:
"Morton became lord of misrule TAT Mount
Wollaston) and maintained (as it were
school of Misunderstanding a. drinking
both wine and s'rong waters in great xsess.
And, as some reported 10 lbs. worth in morn
ing. They also set up May-pole, drinking
and dancing aboute it many days togither, in
wing the Indian women for their consorts,
dancing and frisking togeather (iike SO many
fairies or furies rather) and worse practlses. AS
If they had new revived and Celebrated the
feasts of ye Roman Goodies Flora or ye beasly
practises of We Madd BacchinaliaDs. Morton
likewise Ito show his poetrie) composed sundry
rimes q verses, some tending to lasciviouSues,
and others to We detraction & scandal of
some persons, which he affixed to this idle or
idol May-pole. They changed also the
name of their place and in stead of calling it
Mounte Wollaston, they call 1t Marie-Mounte
as if this joylity would have lasted ever But
this continued not long, for after Morton was
sent for England, las follows to be declared)
shortly came over that worthy gentleman, Mr.
John Indecott, who brought over patent un-
I..n~r 49, g. r1fry
Massachusetts, who visiting those parts caused
Vt May-polle to be cult downe, and febuked
them for their profannes, and adminished
them to locke ther should be better walking; so
they now or others, changed ye name OF their
place agsine and called 1t Mounte Dagen."
Morton gives a humorous account OF his
capture by the Puritans, nick-naming the re-
doubtabe captain Miles standish as Capt.
Shrimp and John Endicott as Capt. Little
worth. After bantshment he returned in 1929
with Mr.. Allerton, who was Cd OF the Kenne-
beck patentees aud who was about Richmoad's
Island, and coasted eastward frequently, and
it may have been at this time that Morton
visited the Island. He was however
banished agane in 1880, as Bradford says she
got free again and writ an infamouse
& scurillous book against many cody &
cheefe men of ye countrie; full of lyes & SIAN
ders, and fraight with profane callumnies
against their names and persons, and We ways
of God" The first edition of the New En-
lish Canaan was printed at Amsterdam in
1857. The copy from which these extracts
are made is among Firces' Tracts, and bears
date 1852, which is considered fictitious date,
as Woods New England Prospect, from
which he quotes was not printed until 1854.
From all this it will be seen, that Morton was
a great wsg; in fact his book is full of conf
calities, and his meaning often concealed
Now for the extract partially quoted in the
PRESS:
There is a very useful Stone in the Land,
and as yet there is found out but one place
where they may be had, in the whole Country
Ould Woodman, Chat was choaked at Plm-
outh after hee had played the unhappy
Markes man when hee was pursued by a
careless fellow that was 7e10 come into the
Land) they say laboured to get patent of it
himselfe. Hee was believed of mary, and had
many soDnes, that had a minde to engrosse
that commodity. And I cannot spie any men,
ton made of it in the wooden prospect.
Therefore begin to suspect his Anne; that it
was for himselfe and therefore will / not dis
cover it, it is the Stone so much commended
by OUid, because love delighteth to make his
habit,tion in building Of those materials
wheIe hee advises. Those that seeks for love
to doe it, Duris in Cotibus liam.
This stone the Salvages doe call Co.'S and of
these ION the North end OF Richmond Islaud)
are store, and those are very excellent good for
edg'd tooles: l envy not his happinesse. |
have bin there viewed the place, liked the
commodity: but will not plant so Norther,y
for that, nor any other commodity that is there
to be had"
The parenthesis after could Woodman,' is
what seems to confuse this passage. Billing
ton. the man undoubtedly alluded to, and who
shot John Newcomin, (note Morton's play up
on the words sNeacconsinto') was great scam
dial to the Puritans, "having shuf1ed into their
C Company" and who Bradford prophesed
would die as a knave. What more natural
than that Morton, who was full of malicious
jokes, should pretend to confound the respect
ed author of the New England Prospect, whom
he nicknames could Woodman" and his book
the wooden prospect, with the pilgrim
Ellington, whom Morton's Puritan enemies
were SO ashamed Of? Note, too, the playful
manner in which he says he twill not discover
it, and very soon lets out the secret. III the
words alluded to in parenthesis are left out, the
meaning will appear quite evident that the
could Woodman" is the author of the Pros
peet. With respect to the first grant of Rich
mond's Island, there can be but little doubt
that it was the one to Bagnall, who was killed
at Rchmond's Island in 1851. Winthrop says:
"This Bagnall was sometimes servant to one in
the bay, and these three years had dwelt alone
in the said isle and had gotten about e400 most
in goods The grant to Bsgnail as dated
Dec. I'd, 1851, after his death, the news of
which had not reached England. With re-
spect to whetstones, which Morton says the In
dams called Cos, there is species of slate quite
abundant on Richmond's Island, and some
other islands in Casco Bay, which has been
used for oil stones. Josselyn, in his voy-
ages says that tables of slate could be got