A Beginner's History. William H. Mace
Puritans who came with Winthrop were people of property, and not only parted from friends and kindred when they came to the wild shores of America, but both men and women gave up lives of comfort and pleasure for lives of suffering and hardship. In America, the men had to cut down trees, work in the fields, and fight Indians. Only brave men and women act in this way. But no one among them gave up more or was willing to suffer more than their leader. The people elected him governor almost every year until his death, in 1649.
Character of Winthrop
John Winthrop was a firm man with many noble qualities, and not once, while governor, did he do anything merely to please the people if he thought it wrong.
When a leading man in the colony sent him a bitter letter, he returned it saying that he did not wish to keep near him so great a cause of ill feeling. This answer made the writer Winthrop's friend. When food was scarce in the colony, Winthrop divided his last bit of bread with the poor, and worked with his laborers in the fields.
Many new towns in Massachusetts
While Winthrop was ruling the colony, hundreds of settlers came and settled many other towns around Boston, and the Massachusetts Bay Colony grew large in the number of its people. Later the old Plymouth Colony was united with it to form one colony. But these settlers did not always agree, especially in regard to religion and government.
JOHN ELIOT, A SUCCESSFUL MISSIONARY TO THE INDIANS
THE NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS
Eliot translates the Bible
49. John Eliot. The treatment of the Indians by the colonists was generally just and kind. Trading with the white man had brought the Indians better food and clothing. Schools were being set up to give them some of the white man's education, and many preachers tried to teach them to become Christians. One man who spent his whole life in this work was John Eliot. His first care was to learn the language of the Indians of Massachusetts. He succeeded so well that he was able to translate the entire Bible into the Indian language and to preach to the Indians in their native tongue.
The converts that he made he gathered together into communities which settled near the English towns. These converts were taught how to build themselves log cabins and to live and dress like the English. The principal village established by Eliot was at Natick, Massachusetts. Others quickly followed Eliot's example, and several other Christian Indian villages sprang up. These communities flourished, and in a few years Eliot could count as many as four thousand converts among the Indians of Massachusetts.
Eliot continued to preach until his death in 1690. Even the fierce King Philip's War could not check his success.
KING PHILIP, INDIAN CHIEF AND HATER OF WHITE MEN
The Indians are persecuted
50. King Philip. After the death of old Massasoit the friendship between Pilgrims and Indians soon came to an end. More and more white settlers came in and built homes. The Indians began to fear that they would be crowded out of the country which belonged to them and to their fathers before them. No longer were they treated with respect as at first. They were a proud people, and grew bitter because they saw that they were despised.
One of the proudest of the race was Philip, son of Massasoit and ruler of his people. Several times the governor of Plymouth forced him to do things against his will. This hurt the pride of Philip, and he began to hate the English. His own people also came to him frequently with complaints against the white men. Philip grew surly, while the colonists began to distrust him.
The bad feeling grew on both sides, and gradually both Indians and colonists came to believe all the evil stories that were told of each other. Both sides collected arms, powder, and lead. After a short while war with all its horrors began. The Indians burned many villages and massacred hundreds of white men, women, and children.
Philip is defeated and killed
There was much fighting, and finally the Indians were completely defeated. Most of the braves were killed; those who were captured were sold as slaves. Philip's family was killed or captured. He himself fled to a swamp, where he met death at the hands of one of his own people.
INDUSTRIES, MANNERS, AND CUSTOMS
The Pilgrims have a hard struggle
51. How the New England Colonists Lived. The Puritans and the Pilgrims had a hard struggle in their new homes. The winters were long and colder than in England. For the cold weather they had to build warm houses and barns, and store up much grain, hay, and provisions. The summers were cool and short; tobacco and even corn did not ripen so well as in Virginia. Most of the land was hilly and stony and hard to cultivate. But these things did not discourage the settlers, who merely worked so much harder. Soon they raised all the corn, wheat, cattle, and sheep they needed, and even had some left to sell. Where the streams had waterfalls they built mills with big water wheels. In these they ground their flour and meal and sawed their lumber.
While the men farmed the land, or ran mills, or fished, the women also did their share of the work. They made butter and cheese, spun and wove the wool into cloth, and made many other things which now we buy from stores.
The Pilgrims build towns and villages
Unlike the Virginia colonists, many people of New England lived in towns and villages. They built churches, schools, and town halls. All the people went to church. Most of the children attended school. Whenever any question arose in which every one was interested, they talked it over at the town meeting. In these ways the New England colonists differed from the Virginians.
SUGGESTIONS INTENDED TO HELP THE PUPIL
The Leading Facts. 1. The Puritans first migrated to Holland to gain religious freedom. 2. Later they decided to go to America, where they planted the colony of Plymouth, made peace with the Indians, and began to worship in their own way. 3. John Winthrop founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony of 700 Puritans. 4. He was such a good governor that he was elected almost every year until his death. 5. John Eliot converted many Indians and established several Christian Indian communities. 6. King Philip was goaded into a war with the whites of Massachusetts. 7. He was defeated and treacherously killed.
Study Questions. 1. Why did the Pilgrims decide to leave England? 2. What new danger threatened them in Holland? 3. Picture the Mayflower in a storm at sea. 4. Tell the story of Miles Standish and his little army. 5. What useful things did the Pilgrims learn from the Indians? 6. Why would putting dead fish in the hill help the corn to grow? 7. Why have Americans loved the Pilgrims so well? 8. How did the Pilgrims' treatment of the Indians compare with that of the Spaniards? 9. Tell the story of John Winthrop and the Puritans. 10. Tell the story of John Eliot. 11. What did he do before he began to teach the Indians? 12. Tell the story of King Philip.
Suggested Readings. Pilgrims and Puritans: Pumphrey,