The Republican journal., 1908-12-10

milk and honey, but these Pilgrims found
a frozen coast, snow and ice, and the
winter upon them. Yet their hearts re-
joiced exceedingly when they discovered
the waters of the bay teeming with fish
and the scallops and clans plentiful along
the shores, although they found many
unfit to eat, the shellfsh being, as Brad
ford quantity says, too strong even for
the stomachs Of the sailors.
Listen to the brave account
''This bay is most hopeful place. 1t
has innumerable store of fowl, and ex-
cellent good; and cannot but be of fish
in their seasons. Skate, cod, turbot, and
herring, we have tasted of. Abundance
of mussels, the greatest and the best
that we ever saw. Crabs and Holsters in
their time infinite.
The land, for the crust of the earth is
splits depth, excellent black mould; and
fat in some places. Two or three great
oaks, but not very thick. Pines, walnut,
beech, ash, birch, halle, holly, asp, sas-
safras in abundance, and Vines every
where. Cherry trees, plum trees, and
many others which we knew not. Many
kinds of herbs we found here in winter;
as strawberry leaves innumerable, sorrel,
yarrow, carvell, brook-line, liverwort,
watercresses, great store of leeks and
onions, and an excellent strong kind of
flax and hemp. Here are sand, gravel,
and excellent clay, no better in the world,
excellent for pots, and will wash like
soap; and great store of stone, though
somewhat soft; and the best water that
ever we drank; and the brooks now begin
to be full of fish. -
-. 1t was at first esteemed a great
hardship by the Pilgrims that their sup
ply of ale, the then common table bever-
age in England, was exhausted, as the
drinking of water was considered un-
healthful, but Gov. Carver set the ex-
ample of using water for all meals and
the others soon found this a very wise
custom.
The greatest suffering during the first
winter was from the lack of vegetables
and the exposure which could not be pre-
vented and the terrible sickness was
combination Of rheumatism, scurvy and
typhoid fever, which left all in a terribly
weakened condition in the spring.
Corn and wheat and peas We're planted
but only the corn came to harvest the
first year, so that they were obliged to
face the second winter scantily provided
for, as corn must be carefully husbanded
for the seed. The first vessel to come
to them, the Fortune, which arrived in
November of 1921, instead of being an as
sistance was a hindrance in the line of
stores. The young spendthrifts who were
on board had wasted their supplies which
should have furnished their return voyage
and the Pilgrims for humanity's sake
were forced to give of their scanty store
in order to provision the ship.
Well we know, too, of that second sum-
mer, when there seemed likelihood Of
failure of crops, when the corn ration
was reduced to five grains day, and the
drought seemed pitiless. We have read
of the faith of the dear old Elder, when
he could say over his dish of roasted
clans, minus bread, minus butter, minus
all the rest which make a meal for us,
praise be to the Lord who hath given
us to suck of the abundance of the sea
and of the treasures hid in the sand. -
We know of that dreary summer day
when the solemn fast was appointed, how
the little children and the women gather
ed with the men at the fort meeting
house and were led in prayer and service
for nine weary hours without food and
through the eXhausting heat, and we
have felt with our suffering Pilgrim sis
tiers the throb of JOY when the announce
ment came from the sentinel on the
lookout "a goody ship is sailing into
the harbor, and dark clouds are rolling
up from the west" With the rain to
save tIlell ldlltIlS NloP9, ehlie~ YIN NNi4-iA'S
of the ''Anne" with abundance, the
worst of their troubles were over and
the safety of the settlement assured.
And here we may leave the Mayt1oWer
women to their spinning and weaving,
their brewing and baking which followed
in the happier times to come, the years
when they could look upon their suffer
ings as tale that is told, and could bring
up their children in dutiful obedience TO
themselves and loving reverence to God
who had delivered them.
Well may the Mayfower, blooming
in our New England woods, stand to US
as the type of the Puritan maidens from
whence we sprung.
Fragrant, filling the air with strange and
wonderful sweetness,
Modest and simple and sweet the very type
of Priscilla"
RED NOSES.
Do YOU suffer the embarrassment of carrying
i. ~.N3 Nt on