try. Their first descent was on Dunstable, the 3d of July, where they fell on a garrison that had 20 troopers to defend it; but through their negligence and folly, not keeping a good watch, they suffered them to enter; they killed one half of them. They then attacked Daniel Galeucia's house, which he defended for some time, but at last surrendered; upon which he acquainted them with the weakness of the garrison they had made an attempt on before, as there were but two men and a boy in it; one they had killed. Upon this information, they returned with greater courage and resolution, and assaulted the garrison; upon which one of them, with the boy, made their escape on the back side, leaving only Jacob to fight the battle; who for some time. bravely defended himself, but being overpowered, and finding none to assist him, made his escape alsó; but before he had got far, far, the enemy laid hold of him twice, yet with much struggling he rescued himself and escaped their fury. The next day a party of the enemy fell on Amesbury, where they killed eight. Two that were at work in the field, hearing the outcry, hastened to their relief; but being pursued, they ran for shelter to a deserted house, which had two flankers. To these they repaired, in each of which they found an old gun, unfit for use, without powder or shot. Thrusting the muzzles of their guns out at the port-holes, they cried out, "Here they are, but do not fire till they come nearer;" which put the enemy into such a fright, that they instantly drew off.

One Joseph English, a friendly Indian, was slain, in company with a man and his wife on horseback, going from Dunstable to Chelmsford; the woman was taken prisoner, but the man made his escape. On July 8, five Indians surprised a woman with eight children in an out-house in Reading; they instantly killed four, the woman with the three youngest; the rest they carried off. But the youngest of them, not able to travel, they knocked on the head, and left in a swamp, concluding it was dead, but after was found alive. They made severe strokes on Chelmsford, Sudbury, and Groton, where they waylaid three soldiers as they were going to the public worship; two of the company were killed, the third made an escape. The people in the neighborhood pursued them the next morning so close that they recovered three of the captives, and put the enemy

into such a terror that they quitted their plunder and several blankets, and the other captives.

At Exeter, a company of French Mohawks lay lurking about Captain Hilton's garrison, and observing some to go with their scythes to mow, lay in ambush till they laid their arms by and were at work; they then rushed on suddenly, and intercepting them from their arms, killed four of them, wounded one, and carried three captive; so that out of ten two only escaped. The two that escaped were Mr. Edward 'Hall and Samuel Myals, who after some time found means to make their flight from the enemy; but the fatigue and difficulty they went through, besides the terror and fear of being taken again, was almost incredible, for in three weeks together they had nothing to subsist on excepting a few lily roots and the bark of trees.

Several captives still remaining in the hands of the French and Indians, Mr. Sheldon went a second time with a flag of truce to Canada, and brought 45 with him, and might have brought more away, had not the Jesuits prevented him.

The poor captives, in the hands both of the French and Indians, many of them, met with hard usage, according to the tempers and dispositions of those who had the command of them; for scarce a day passed but some act of cruelty was committed, insomuch that through fear of the continuance of life on the one hand, and the terrors of death on the other, they were continued daily martrydoms, as Mr. Penhallow expresses it.

It would be endless to relate the cruelties and hardships that the captives underwent in their travels and insults of their heathen and savage masters, especially some of them into whose hands they fell, and many signal deliverances granted in the wise and merciful overruling providence of God, when in utmost hazard, which ought never to be forgotten. I shall here insert two or three, superadded to some spoken of before, and which may be further added in the course of this narrative.

The first I shall mention is of one Rebecca Taylor, according to her own account after she returned from her captivity. One Captain Sampson, before mentioned, that was her cruel master, resolved to hang her (without any provocation that she knew of), and for want of a rope he made use of his girdle, putting it about her neck; but in hoisting

her up to the limb of a tree, the weight of her body broke his girdle. The disappointment enraged this furious monster to that degree, that he resolved to make a second attempt, and if that failed, to beat out her brains with his hatchet. But before he had power to effect it, Bomaseen came to the place, and seeing the tragedy in hand, prevented the fatal stroke.

1

The next was a child of Mrs. Hannah Parsons, which they intended to make a sacrifice to satisfy their hunger, being much straitened for food, and purposed to roast it alive. But while the fire was kindling, a company of French Mohawks came down the river in a canoe, in which they brought some dogs. Upon this they offered to give this child for one of their dogs in way of exchange; but this the other party slighted. At last they offered them a gun, which they readily accepted. Thus by a strange providence the poor child was delivered from their voracious, bloodthirsty jaws.

The third was of one Samuel Butterfield, sent to Groton a soldier. As he, with others, was gathering in the harvest, he was attacked by the Indians. His bravery was such that he killed one, and wounded another; but being overpowered, was constrained to yield. It happened that the slain Indian was a sagamore of high esteem among them, as he was active and dextrous in war, which increased their lamentation and gave a keener edge to their rage and furious disposition. But not agreeing among themselves in what cruel and barbarous manner to glut their revenge on him, at length determined to leave the issue to the decision of the squaw-sachem, who replied, "Fortune de la guerre ;" which I ` well remember was a phrase frequently used by the French when I was their prisoner. The English of it is-The fortune of war. But when some appeared uneasy hereat, she said, "If by killing him you can bring my husband to life again, I beg you to study what death you please; but if not, let him be my servant,"-which he was, and met with much kindness from her in the whole time of his captivity.

[On account of the unexpected length of this article, the remainder is deferred to a future volume. Publishing Committee.]

To the Honorable THOMAS L. WINTHROP,

President of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

SIR,

Carthage, Costarrica, Febr'y. 16th, 1837.

I had the honor of transmitting to the Society from London, my Chorographical Description of this State and Central America in general. The Introduction is by Captain John Washington, R. N., Secretary of the Royal Geographical Society, a native of Cheshire, in England, who assures me he is a relation of your great liberator. Father Gage, mentioned therein, was the first author who gave any account of Central America, in the English language. He travelled through the greater part of our five States, just two centuries ago, and, as far as I am enabled to judge, his History is one of great veracity, excepting where his superstition misled him.

Thomas Gage was born in England, at the latter end of the 16th century, the second son of a highly respectable Catholic family. His father, resting every hope on having Thomas educated for a Jesuit, sent him in 1614 to the College of St. Omers in France. Incurring his father's most vindictive anger, he however professed as a Dominican at Valladolid in Spain, and passed to the monastery of that order in Xerez, under the name of Fray Tomas de Santa Maria. In consequence his father wrote him that he would have preferred seeing his son a scullion in a College of Jesuits, than a general of the Dominican order; intimating to Thomas never to see him again, and that he would disinherit him; which threat the old man, dying some years afterwards, kept punctually.

Banished from and disinherited in his native land, friar Thomas was induced to abandon Europe, and join a mission of Dominicans destined to the Philippines. In the port of Cadiz, however, he was nearly detained by a particular order from the king of Spain, that no English priest should

pass to the Indies, having a country of their own to convert. Nevertheless, his brother Dominicans, and their superior, Antonio Calvo, smuggled him on board, hiding him from all search in a biscuit barrel.

The route of the mission was by Vera Cruz, Mexico and Acapulco, across the Pacific. The fleet in which they sailed, touched at Guadaloupe, which island they found still (1625), solely inhabited by the aborigines, whom Gage describes as Indians, with straight hair; whereas the sole remnant of the Caribs, who were transported in 1796 by the British government from St. Vincent to the Bay of Honduras, were and are a race of negroes at the present day. These Guadaloupe Indians, though at first apparently friendly, set upon a watering party of Europeans on shore, and killed and wounded several with poisoned arrows.

The Dominican mission was lodged nearly five months in a country house near the city of Mexico, waiting the period for their proceeding to Acapulco. But the evening before Calvo and the rest of the monks departed, Gage and three others fled from Mexico for Guatemala, deterred from following their original destination by bad accounts they heard of the Philippines, and the great distance of the voyage, to those islands. An Irish friar had agreed also to accompany his companions in their flight; but his heart failed before the day arrived, and he proceeded with Calvo to Acapulco.

The runaways were well received in the convents of the kingdom of Guatemala, and Gage remained about six months in that of Chiapas, as professor or teacher of Latin. He however had previously determined to practise philosophy and divinity in the university of Guatemala, and set out for that city in September, 1626. He describes the prior of the cloister at Comitan as a Frenchman, and the only foreigner besides himself in the whole country. He speaks in most grateful terms of that prior's civilities, which he experienced on his way to Guatemala from Chiapas.

The following year, Gage was appointed reader of arts in the Dominican convent of Guatemala, and two years later received a formal authorization from the bishop to preach, hear confessions &c., throughout the diocese.

Shortly afterwards, he joined friar Francisco de Moran, prior of the Dominican convent of Coban, in an expedition to cross the continent from Verapas to Yucatan. The two

36