colony there, and maintaining a garrison, which has kept and preserved the possession we had taken in the year 1683, of the lands and islands, which are situated in the gulf of Mexico, between Carolina, on the east, and Old and New Mexico, on the west."

The right of France to this vast extent of country, was disputed, both by Spain and Great Britain. Ferdinando de Soto, was probably the first European who visited the Mississippi, in the interior of the country. In his celebrated expedition, through what was called Florida, he, in 1541, crossed the Mississippi, at latitude thirty four, between five and six hundred miles from its mouth. The English claimed to have discovered this great river long before the expedition of la Salle or Father Hennepin.

As early as 1654, Col. Wood, who dwelt at the falls of James river in Virginia, sent several persons, who passed the Allegany mountains, entered the country of the Ohio, and in ten years space, discovered several branches not only of the Ohio, but of the Mississippi itself.* And there is strong ground to believe, that la Salle himself first obtained his information relative to the interior of the country from certain Indians, who had previously accompanied some New England adventurers, who are supposed to have visited the Mississippi as early as 1678. About the year 1699, Daniel Coxe, published a pamphlet, descriptive of Carolana, with an intent to show the importance of the country, and to prove that the English claim to it ought to be maintained, against the claims and encroachments of the French. In this, he gives an abstract of the first memorial presented to King William, being "a demonstration of the just pretensions of his majesty the king of England, unto the province of Carolana, alias Florida, &c." In this memorial, it is stated, among other grounds of claim, "that in the year 1678, a considerable number of persons went from New England, upon discovery and proceeded as far as New Mexico, one hundred and fifty leagues, beyond the river Mischacebe; and at their return rendered an account to the government of Boston, as will be attested among many others, by Col. Dudley, then

t

* Vol. 3 of the History of the British Empire, supposed by Entick.

one of the magistrates, afterwards governor of New England, and at present, deputy governor of the Isle of Wight, under the honorable the Lord Cutts." "The war soon after breaking out between the English and Indians, many of the Indians who were in that expedition, retreated to Canada, from whom Monsieur de la Salle received most of his information concerning that country, by him more fully discovered: and they served him for guides and interpreters; as is attested by Monsieur le Tonty, who accompanied Monsieur de la Salle, as also by Monsieur le Clerk, in a book published by order of the French King. For which reason, and divers other passages, favoring inadvertently the English pretensions, his journal, printed at Paris, was called in, and that book of one livre's price, is not now to be purchased for thirty livres."

We have never seen these facts stated in any other work than that of Mr. Cox. In the edition of le Tonty, which we have seen, none of them are noticed; yet we can hardly believe the whole to be a fabrication.

A spirit of adventure has always characterized the people of Massachusetts. Between the years 1660 and 1670, a number of them emigrated to Carolina, and settled at Cape Fear,* and it is not improbable, that some of these, or others who followed them, allured by accounts received from the natives, should have explored the interior of the country, even beyond the Mississippi, and either have returned themselves, or sent an account of their discoveries to their friends in Boston. Nor is any thing more probable than that the French in Canada, should have received information of this from the Indians, who accompanied them in the expedition. It is also well known, that at that period, the Massachusetts traders often visited the north part of Carolina, called Albermarle, settled principally from Virginia, and where a separate government was established, and were well acquainted with the country.†

In corroboration of the facts stated by Mr. Cox, we would observe, that the British Court, in answer to the claim made by

Chalmers, p. 506, and Hutchinson, vol. 1, p. 238, note.
VOL. I.
5

† Chalmers, p. 535.

France, to this country, have always declared that their discoveries of the Mississippi and the interior country on the east side of that river, were prior to those made by France; and particularly mentioned the years 1654 and 1678, in which they were made.

Georgia was the last of the English colonies established in North America. The charter of this colony was granted in 1732, and comprehended the country on the south part of the Carolinas, between the rivers Savannah and Altamaha, and extending westward from the heads of these rivers, in direct lines, to the south sea. To secure an asylum for the poor and wretched, in London and other places, in England and Ireland, as well as to prevent the encroachments of the Spaniards and French, were the principal objects of this grant. It was made to twenty one persons as trustees, who were incorporated for the purpose of settling and establishing the colony.

CHAPTER II.

Different forms of governments in the Colonies-Puritans settle Plymouth in 1620— Form a government for themselves—Intercourse of the Dutch with the people of Plymouth-Massachusetts second Colony in New England-Obtains a Charter from the King-Government of the Colonies placed in the hands of Commissioners-Their powers and conduct-Surrender of the great Plymouth Charter to the Crown-Reasons for it-People first represented in the General Court in Massachusetts in 1634-Governments established in the Colonies of Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Haven-Confederacy of the New England Colonies-Proprietary governments of Maryland, the Carolinas, New Jersey and Pennsylvania-Disputes between the Proprietors and Settlers-People of South Carolina renounce the Proprietary Government-Proprietors of New Jersey surrender their government to the crown-Royal governments-Government of Virginia under the London Company and during the civil wars in England-Application of Virginia for a CharterGovernment of New York under the Dutch and the Duke of York-People of New-York first represented in the Assembly in 1683-Government of LeislerConduct of Governors Slaughter and Fletcher.

THE sufferings, the hardships, the distresses, of the first English settlers in the new world, and particularly those of Virginia and New England were without a parallel; and their patience in enduring them, as well as their perseverance in the pursuit of the objects they had in view, justly entitle them to the gratitude of their descendants. The dangers and hardships of the sea were nothing in comparison with those they were doomed to encounter in a perfect wilderness, from toil, from cold, from famine and from savages. Determined, however, to enjoy in the new world those blessings and advantages of which they were deprived in the old, no hardships discouraged, no dangers appalled them; and here, by divine assistance, they laid the foundation of those happy forms of government, and those valuable institutions, the benefits of which are now enjoyed by their posterity. Briefly to trace the origin and progress of these will next claim our attention. In the settlement of the different Colonies. three forms of government were established. These were usually denominated Charter, Proprietary and Royal governments. This difference arose from the different circumstances under

which the colonies were settled, as well as the different objects of the first emigrants. The Charter governments were confined to New England. Religious disputes, it is well known, peopled this part of North America. Early in the reign of the first of the Stuarts, a number of people, (from their peculiar religious tenets, denominated Puritans,) to avoid prosecution under the laws relating to uniformity in matters of religion, and to enjoy in peace that mode of worship they deemed most consonant to the scriptures, removed, with their celebrated teacher Mr. Robinson, to Holland. Here they remained until 1619, when they determined again to remove, and form a settlement by themselves, in some part of America, within the limits of the South Virginia Company.

For this purpose, a patent was obtained through the agency of one of their friends, from that company, with a view to plant themselves somewhere near Hudson's river.

The Dutch, however, unwilling that they should settle in their neighborhood under the authority of the Virginia Company, bribed their pilot to land them at some place north of the Hudson.

They were, therefore, carried to the barren coast of Cape Cod, where they arrived on the 9th of November, 1620. After searching many days for a place of settlement, they at last fixed upon a spot which they called Plymouth, and commenced the first settlement in New-England. They landed on this spot on the 23d of December, to the number of one hundred and one, including men, women and children, and commenced, at that inclement season, the erection of buildings for their common use.

Never were any civilized people placed more completely in a state of nature than this little band of pilgrims, as they have been justly called. They had, indeed, literally, a world before them; but that world was a wilderness, and Providence was their only guide. Being without the limits of the South Virginia patent, they were destitute of any right to the soil on which they landed; nor had they any powers of government derived from authority. Sensible of the necessity of some compact or form of civil government among themselves, they voluntarily entered into and