The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-09-13


wards Cleeve, naively says, that he told him
that be might become a tenant to Trelawny
somewhere else, after warning him from the
place where he had built and planted. To this
proposal, which we may properly imagine t.
have been made with the offensive manner SO
so natural to one acting subordinately
to a powerful employer, Cleeve, who
had seen enough of the oppression of
the tenancy system in Old England, with that
manly spirit Of independence which less than
a century and half later transformed aprov-
| ince into a nation, replied that she would be
tenant to never man in New England
Five days after the arrival of Winter, Cam
mock, who had sailed before Winter, reached
Richmonds island, after a long and stormy
passage. From him, Cleeve and Tucker could
Of course obtain no comfort, and their position
must have been unpleasant in the extreme.
Winter at once took steps to eject them from
their new home and applied to Captain Wal.
ter Neale for his official aid. This was prompt
ly granted, and Cleeve and Tucker were served
with formal notice to quit. But Cleeve was
not man to regard mere paper notices, and
Winter was not in a position to employ force,
as he had come here only to make arrange
ments for future settlement, and was to re-
turn Immediately to England for men and ma
terials necessary to carry on the enterprise.
Needing men to leave in possession of the
| island, he engaged three men whom he
found sin the house at Casko"
namely, John Badiver and Thomas and An
| drew Alger, who it seems probable were some
| of the men left there by Levett, presuming that
| "the house at Casko'' was the one erected
| there by him in 1884. Leaving these men
at the island, Winter set sail for Plymouth in
the month of July, leaving Cleeve and Tucker
| to harvest the crops which they had planted
| that year. They well knew, however, that he
| would return again ere long, unless prevented
i by the clements when they would be obliged
| to depart or to become his tenants, the latter
| alternative being one not to be entertained
| and they began casting about for new place
| where they could erect another house. A neck
| of land in Casco bay, several miles northerly
| from their present habitation, promised favor
ably, and when John Winter returned on
March I'd, 1888, they were ready to strike out
| again for new spot of earth from which they
might wiring a meagre support, and
| borrowing a boat to aid them in trans
| porting the family of Cleve and their
scanty household goods, they de-
| parted, leaving Winter in sole possession Of
| Richmond's island, and their dwelling place
| on the Cape Elizabeth shore. But his posi-
| ton was far from being secure. Not only had
| ships from Barnstable, England been at the
| island during his absence and regardless OF
| his employers proprietary rights and the pro-
| tests of those left in charge taken possession
| of the fishing stages he had built, but threats
/ from one who had been pillaging settlers
/ farther east reached his ears. For the protec-
ton of the people and property in his charge,
he at once set about the task of putting the
island in a proper state of defence, and, ere
long, he could defy attack from any ordinary
enemy.
For the next twelve years. or until the death
| of John Winter, which took place in l645,
this island was a noted station for fishing and
trade. Ships coming to New England drop
| ped anchor in its harbor which was often
crowded with vessels, some being from Eng
land on private fishing enterprises some on
| voyages for trade with the settlers and Indians
along the coast, and others from Spain and the
West Indies with liquors and wines to be ex-
changed for fish. Some of these ships which
bore fire water to work ruin among the red
men and the hardy toilers of the sea, scattered
along the coast, bore striking names, as the
ship Holy Ghost; the Angel Gabriel; the
| White Angel of Bristol, and others of similar
| nomenclature, for this was an age when piouG
phrases were more common than practical
piety.
The shores of this island are now npeopled.
The memorials of those who lived here have
persisted. The dust of John Winter
and of his associates is beneath our feet, and
the waves sing the same incomprehensble
song which they sang when de Monts landed
here or when the treacherous Indian pulled
his birchen canoe upon the beach, intent upon
the murder of Bagnall. Yet here came Rich
ard Mather fleeing from oppression; VIII
liam Wood, the quaint author of New
Englands Prospect; Tom Morton, who wrote
the New English Canaan; Thomas Josselyn
Gent, made immortal by his Two Voyages !;
the old knight, his father; Richard Vines, the
trusted friend of Georges and the founder of
Biddeford; Richard Gibson, the first clergy
man of the Church of England, who estab-
hshed himself on the soil Of Maine; Robert
Jordan, his successor, who began preaching
here in l64l; and many others as well
known. Here, nearly two and half centu-
ries ago, Robert Jordan, the ancestor of the
thousands of Jordans in this country,
preached to Winters little colony.
We can see with the minds eve, the grave
and discreet John Winter in his suit of ''kersey
OF sad colour" his energetic and capable
| wife Jane and daughter Sarah in smart scarlet
| petticoats and 'shoes of the number eight
size going to hear the young minister not
| long from Old England, and in the motley
company gathered with them, we note the
| Algers, ancestors of SO many well known men
John Libby the father of a multitude;
Ambrose Boaden, John Burrage, Nicholas
Edgeeomb and many others. Nor must we
overlook the fair Wilmot Randall You will
find by the Trelawny papers that she came
| to this island probably with Robert Jordan
and bound herself to service with the VIM
tiers for a stated time. Edgecomb, whom
Sullivan sIfpposes to be connection of the
| famous English family of that name, saw and
| won her; but Mrs. Winter was not of a TO-
| mantle turn of mind and would not cancel
her bond. But while it is time that "the course
of true love never did run smooth" it is
| equally time that "Love laughs at locksmiths,"
and the lover
With a silver key,
| He set her free,
or in other words, he paid Mrs. Winter suf-
ficient sum to secure her release from her en-
gagement, and bore her away in triumph to
the new settlement on the Saco, where they
became the ancestors of all the Edgecombs here
about All these figures and many more pass
before our view, and we would fain remain
with them, and dwell upon the events con-
nected with the history of this island during
the seventeenth century: the many conflicts
between Winter, his SON. in-law, and successor
Jordan and George Cleeve, their life long an
tagonist; the Indian war which ragged here.
and other interesting events; but time will
not permit and if it did 1 could but family
present them, for but an echo of them remains;
A slumberous sound, sound that brings
| The feelings of q dream
As of innumerable wings
| As when bell no longer swings,
Faint the hollow mnrmur rings,
Der meadow, lake, and stream.
The Grafton was listened to with deep aiten-
tsDtion and elected much app'ause.
vote OF thanks was passed to Mr.. Baxter.
DR. Charles e. Banks then read sketch Of
| WALTER BAGNALL.
The first known occupancy iof Richmond
Island by tho English ended in "a tragedy aud
| Walter Bagnal was IT'S victim. Hs nal come
| to this country ia 1923 with Can't Thomas
| AIartcr, l.-.A..n - 10 ~