there is nothing of appreciable value from them that is not embodied in some of the authorities above cited. This latter remark might be made of Thacher's "History of Plymouth," and of most others mentioned as secondary authorities.

Governor Bradford is the supreme authority. His History extends from 1606 to 1646, and under the date of 1650 it has a notice of each of the hundred and two passengers in the "Mayflower." His manuscript was used by Morton, Hubbard, Mather, Prince, and Hutchinson. It was finally deposited in the New England Library, which was kept in the tower of the Old South Meeting-house at Boston. About the time of the occupation of this edifice by the British troops on the opening of the Revolution this document disappeared, and with it were lost Bradford's Letter-Book and several small volumes written by him, together with a Pencil-Book kept by his son, the deputy-governor. The loss of these manuscripts was long deplored by historical writers, and intense regret felt that no better use had been made of them by the compilers above named.

Near the close of the last century, however, James Clark, of Boston, found the remains of the Letter-Book in a baker's shop at Halifax, N. S., where three hundred and thirty-eight of its leaves had been used as wrapping-paper. The rescued portion is printed in the first series, vol. iii. of the Massachusetts Historical Society's Collections (1794). The smaller books have never been found.

In 1855 J. W. Thornton lent to Mr. Barry a small historical volume by the Lord Bishop of Oxford (Wilberforce), which contained various extracts known to be from Bradford, but credited to a "MS. History of the Plantation of Plymouth ... in the Fulham Library." Various other quotations from the same source were made, but they were not recognized as any portion of the Governor's known works. Dr. Drake and other antiquaries inferring that this manuscript must be

Bradford's long-lost History, Charles Deane, the enthusiastic secretary of the Massachusetts Historical Society, at once communicated with Rev. Joseph Hunter, of London, and soon obtained and caused to be printed a verbatim copy of this invaluable work. One Anderson, of England, in his "History of the Church of England in the Colonies," had, seven years before, mentioned and abused Bradford's manuscript; it is a fact not very complimentary to Mr. Anderson that his work, in the main candid and learned, attracted so little attention that this portion of it caught the eye of no historical student. While Bradford's History is invaluable, it covers much less than half the lifetime of the Colony, and makes many serious omissions of details, and even of topics. It is quite necessary that in connection with it should be read:

(1) Mourt's Relation, and Winslow's writings. The former is a daily Journal by Governor Bradford, extending from the discovery of land by the "Mayflower," Nov. 20, 1620, to the re-election of Carver, April 2, 1621; also of four narratives by Governor Winslow, detailing the chief subsequent operations down to the return of the "Fortune," Dec. 21, 1621. That ship carried home this Relation, which was printed in London in 1622. Its preface is signed "G. Mourt," supposed to be a printer's error for G. Mourton (Morton). As it did not bear its authors' names, not having been intended for publication, it took the name of "Mourt's Relation." In 1624 John Smith quoted largely from it, and in 1625 Purchas inserted about half of it, with many errors, in his "Pilgrims." In 1802 the Massachusetts Historical Society reprinted this half in vol. viii. (first series) of their Collections, and in 1822 in vol. xix. they reprinted an inaccurate copy of the remaining parts. In 1841, in "Chronicles of the Pilgrim Fathers," Dr. Young gave the first complete reprint of the work that ever appeared. In 1849 Dr. G. B. Cheever published an edition of it, but lessened the value of his book by not

properly separating his own concurrent matter from the original. In 1865 Dr. Dexter edited the first verbatim reprint, which was as nearly fac-simile as might be, and added many very valuable notes.

(2) "Chronicles of the Pilgrims also contains Winslow's Relation, or "Good News from New England," which brings the narrative from the end of Mourt down to the return of the "Anne" on Sept. 20, 1623. This latter work, printed at London in 1624, was mutilated by Purchas like its predecessor, and was reprinted in imperfect halves in the Historical Collections at the same time with the fragments of Mourt. Dr. Young has given as above the only full reprint of this book. He also adds Winslow's "Brief Narration," never before republished. This was printed in London in 1646, and was full of reminiscences of Leyden, including Robinson's farewell address to the Pilgrims. Dr. Young adds Cushman's Discourse, Bradford's Dialogue, and various lesser matters, all of which are elucidated by rich and copious notes by himself and Dr. Freeman. Recent discoveries have left these notes in much need of a general revision; but Dr. Young's loving labors are entitled to grateful recollection, and his Chronicles to rank as a vade-mecum with every student of New England history.

The Plymouth Records and the Plymouth Laws have been reprinted in admirable form by the State of Massachusetts, and are widely distributed in first-class libraries.

"The Founders of New Plymouth," by Rev. Joseph Hunter, Deputy-Keeper of the Rolls in the Tower of London, was the first book to make known the fact that Scrooby was the original seat of the Pilgrim Church, and that Elder Brewster resided at that place as a Government officer.

Morton's Memorial was written under the auspices of the Colonial authorities. Morton came to Plymouth in 1623 at about the age of eleven, and grew to manhood in the family

of his uncle, Governor Bradford; in 1645 he became the secretary of the Colony, and so served for forty years. Besides his own resources, he had in 1669 the full use of his uncle's papers and the most free communication with John Howland and wife, John Alden and wife, Mrs. Susanna Winslow, George Soule, Mrs. Mary (Allerton) Cushman, Mrs. Mary (Chilton) Winslow, and others of the "Mayflower's" company. A history of the greatest value was therefore to be expected from his industrious and faithful pen. It is truly astonishing that the meagre result should have satisfied either his patrons or himself. His book is made up of a short series of unskilful abridgments from Bradford, with some trifling additions, interspersed with fearful accounts of comets foretelling great disasters, of lightning-strokes as punishment for particular sins, and of the blasting of the wheat crop to punish the owners for wearing too good clothes and drinking too freely. In the absence of Bradford's History, the Memorial enjoyed a high reputation, on account of what Morton honestly professed to borrow from the former; but now it has little value except to show the very worthy secretary's inadequacy to his undertaking.

Hubbard's History was also highly considered by the last generation, but it was shown by the printing of Winthrop's Journal that the author had pilfered from that work nearly all the reliable portion of his book, save some little from Bradford.1 Dr. Prince's Annals are made up of admirable but brief selections, duly credited; but they substantially leave Plymouth matters at 1629. Hutchinson treats the subject candidly and clearly, so far as he may, in the appendix to his second volume.

Dr. Palfrey, whose work is one of the best historical productions extant, in the narrow space which such a treatise can give to a single subject, contains as good an account of

1 See note, page xiii.

Plymouth Colony as could well be put in the same number of lines. Barry, with equal advantages, might have done as well; but his account of the Pilgrims, with many excellencies, is inexcusably careless and inaccurate.

Judge Baylies' Historical Memoir, in two volumes, exhibits much research, and it was of great repute until the recent developments of the subject. The want of Mourt and Winslow in a perfect condition, and of Bradford and Hunter, made it impracticable for him to write with great accuracy, and the desire to appear impartial seems to have led him to make some harsh criticisms without sufficient grounds. But while the earlier part of his work is marked by omissions and misconceptions, his summary of Plymouth legislation and the acts of the Confederacy, his various town histories and his account of Philip's War, with other events of the last years of the Colony, render his work of much value for reference. It is a pity that he could not have lived to rewrite his "Memoir" in the light of recent discoveries, and to construct it according to the present ideas of book-making; his volumes contain nearly one thousand octavo pages, arranged in four parts, each paged independently of the others, and accompanied by no explanatory titles and no index. Dr. Drake has recently added a supplementary book and an index; but the difficulties of reference are still great.

Freeman's "History of Cape Cod," in its early Pilgrim matters is deficient, erroneous, and prejudiced; but his biographies and town-histories are worthy of much praise. The other works named are of widely different degrees of merit; the student can neither spare them, nor unquestionably rely upon them. But to all adverse criticism is an exception to be taken in behalf of the too scanty and all too modest contributions of Dr. Dexter. It is most earnestly hoped that he may yet be able to cover this entire ground in the formal History which he is so pre-eminently fitted to give to the world.