The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-06-03
COLONIAL DANES SOCIETY
(Continued from First Page.)

years has interest, it is proper to men, tion that 1t is not a ships log as known to sailors but a veritable history of the New Plymouth plantation and was probably compiled from an older jour nal commenced about the year 1630 and from other papers in Governor Brad lords collection. A similarity to those in his mutilated letter book, now ex- tant in the library of the Massachusetts to testify that from some such source Historical society library would seem he made this compilation.
 The original work is written on the front side of each leaf of linen paper in round, clear hand of the early part of the seventeenth century, and bound in white parchment wrapped and soiled by the hand of time. The volume as bound is a folio of 270 pages, twelve inhees long by seven and a half wide, and bears date of 1647-s, and positive evidence that 1t is in the handwriting of William Bradford, who succeeded Plymouth colony in 1921. The last few lines indicate that he might have writ ten it as late as 1850.
 The inside of the cover has several memorandums in ink but nearly faded out, and which I had not the time to decipher but the name of Mercy Brad ford is to be seen (probably a daughter of the governor), and words in Hebrew with their English equivalent are writ ten in Bradford's handwriting on sev- eraI pages of blank fly leaves. The first two pages in Hebrew words are writ ten in English characters. Afterward in and on one of the blank leaves of the volume not to be seen in the fac simile is written, This book was Tit by geof- ner William Bradford and gifen to his son Major William Bradford and by him to his son Major John Bradford; Tit by me Samuel Bradford Mar. 20, 1705."
 At the end of the manuscript are five double column pages all in Bradford's handwriting giving names of those who came over first in ye year 1920 and were (by the blessings of God) the first beginners and in sort the foundation of all the plantations and colonies in New England"
 There are also two very interesting notes written on one of the pages by the Rev. Thomas Prince of the Old South church. Boston, who died in 175S.
 Tuesday June 4th, 172S, calling at Major John Bradford's at Kingston, near Plymouth, son of Major William Branford, formerly deputy governor of Plymouth colony, who was eldest son of Wm. Bradford, Esq, the 2nd Gov. and author of this history, ye Sd. Major John Bradford gave me several manuscripts octavoes, which he assured me were written with his said grand father, Gov Bradford's own hand He also gave me a little pencil book wrote with a blue lead pencil by his Sd. Father we Dept Gov. Bradford, and he also told me that he had sent and only lent his Sd. Grandfather, Gov Brad ford's History of Plymouth Colony, wrote by his own hand to Judge Sewell; and desires me to get it for him or find it out and take out of it what I think proper for my New England Chronol- ogy; which I accordingly obtained and this is Ye Sd. History which I find wrote in ye same Hand writing as ye Octave Manuscript above sd"
 Thomas Prince.
 'I also mentioned to him my desire of lodging this History in ye New Eng land Library of Prints and Manuscript which I had been then collecting for twenty three years, to which he signi- fled his willingness, only yet he might have ye perusal of it while he lived. T. Prince.''
 Princes book-plate is pasted on the same leaf.
 Prince died in 175S and he left by will the library (which he had gathered; and which had been kept in the steeple chamber of the Old South church in Boston, to that church under the care of it's deacon and it is highly probable that this manuscript was in this col lection at that time. The most com monly received opinion is that it was taken from the Old South church tower by some one who knew it's value, during the time when Boston was occupied by British troops in 1775-1776 and was car ried off to England upon the evacua- ton. At the same time Bradford's let ter book which the Bradford family had deposited there for safe keeping was purloined, and the remnant found twenty years later by MT. James Clark of Boston in grocer shop in Nova Scotia; three hundred and thirty pages had already been used for wrapping paper. MT. Clark rescued the remain der and it has been printed in the col lections of the Massachusetts Historical society.
 The consistorial convention of London by decree in April last intrusted the Bradford history to Ambassador Bay ard, who gave receipt for it to the bishop of London to deliver in person this manuscript to Governor Wolcott of Massachusetts. This was accom-