to come might know them, even the children which should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children. Psal. lxxviii. 36. Boston, re-printed by John Boyle, 1775.

This work composed by the Rev. W. Hubbard, whose history of Massachusetts after remaining so long in MS. was recently published by the Historical Society, was first printed in 1677, as appears by an imprimatur signed by S. Bradstreet, D. Dennison, and I. Dudley, deputed by the Governour and Council to examine and license it. Although a history of this kind becomes fatiguing, from the constant repetition of ravages and massacres on so small a scale that they rather make villains than heroes, still there are many traits of romantick bravery, and relations of perilous adventures and escapes, that might furnish scenes of strong interest for a romance or a melo drama. Through the whole book there is a constant allusion to supposed parallel situations of the Hebrews; and it is frequently enlivened with classick quotations. The writer speaks with great harshness and abusive epithets of the Indians, and this is pardonable, when it is considered how the inhabitants were harrassed by their horrible mode of warfare. Their houses burnt; not only men, but women and children murdered in cold blood; sometimes tortured, or carried into a captivity of the severest kind. In Philip's war, these calamities were spread over the whole country, and from Cape Cod to the Connecticut, from Rhode-Island to the Kennebeck, the whole country was alarmed, and villages in every part of it exposed to ravage and desolation.

Several of the Sachems who were the allies or the enemies of the first colonists, were men of remarkable character. Among those who were friendly, were Uncas, chief of the Mohegans, Canonicus of the Narragansetts, and Massasoit, the sachem of Mount-Hope; the latter, however, always shewing a strong aversion and enmity to the christian religion. Among those who were inimical, Sassacus, chief of the Pequods; Miantonimo, nephew of Canonicus of the Narragansetts; and Alexander and Philip, sons of Massasoit; over all whom Philip bore a fatal preeminence, by the energy, talents and implacable animosity he discovered, and the injuries he inflicted on the whites. In considering these characters, it should be recollected, that we

have only the representations of our own historians, who were highly exasperated against them; "the lions had no painters. The Sachems of Mount-Hope exercised a sovereignty over the neighbouring chiefs and tribes; whether this was owing to the mere accident of superiour talent in Massasoit and Philip, or to some established right, does not appear.

In spite of savage manners, and the most deplorable cruelty in war, there was no want of sagacity in some of these untutored Indians. Thus the advice given by the Pequods to the Narragansetts, when persuading them to have made peace with them, if they had succeeded in this would probably have destroyed the first colonies; as the author observes, "Machiavel himself, had he have sat in council, could not have insinuated stronger reasons. At page 127 and the following ones, there is a lively account of the capture of Canonchet; the conclusion of which, is extracted as a specimen of these Indian warriors. "One of the first English that came up with him, was Robert Stanton, a young man that had scarce reached the twenty-second year of his age, yet adventuring to ask him a question or two, to whom this manly Sachem looking with a little neglect upon his youthful face, replied in broken English; "you much child, no understand matters of war; let your brother or your chief come, him I will answer;" and was as good as his word; acting herein, as if by a Pythagorean Metempsycosis, some old Roman ghost had possessed the body of this western Pagan; and like Attilius Regulus, he would not accept of his own life, when it was tendered him, upon that (in his account) low condition of compliance with the English, refusing to send an old counsellor of his to make any motion that way, saying, he knew the Indians would not yield; but more probably he was not willing they should, choosing rather to sacrifice his own and his people's lives to his private humour of revenge, than timely to provide for his own and their safety, by entertaining the counsels of a peace, so necessary for the good of all. He continuing in the same obstinate resolution, was carried soon after to Stonington, where he was shot to death by some of his own quality, and the young Sachem of the Mohegins, and two of the Pequods of like quality.

*Page 24.

This was the conclusion of a damned wretch, that had often opened his mouth to blaspheme the name of the living God, and those that made profession thereof. He was told at large of his breach of faith, and how he boasted that he would not deliver up a Wampanoag, or the pairing of a Wampanoag's nail; that he would burn the English alive in their houses; to which he replied, others were as forward for the war as himself; and that he desired to hear no more thereof. And when he was told, his sentence was to die, he said, he liked it well; that he should die before his heart was soft, or he had spoken any thing unworthy of himself. He told the English before they put him to death, that the killing him would not end the war; but it was a considerable step thereunto, nor did it live much longer after his death, at least not in those parts; for after Sudbury fight, when the sun of their hopes was at its highest, April 18th following, it visibly declined, till it set in a night of obscure and utter darkness upon them all, as is to be feared."

Among savages, the condition of women is generally too degraded, to admit of their being often mentioned: they are only honoured and respected in a state of civilization, and the degree of civilization may be surely tested by the degree of respect and honour, which that sex receive from the other. There are some few occasions, where female Indians inspire some interest. The author is speaking of the complete overthrow of the Pequods; "Amongst the rest of the prisoners, special notice was taken of the wife of the noted Indian called Mononotto, who with her children submitted herself, or by the chance of war, fell into the hands of the English: it was known to be by her mediation, that two English maids (that were taken from Wethersfield upon Connecticut river) were saved from death, in requital of whose pity and humanity, the life of herself and her children was not only granted her, but she was in special, recommended to the care of that honourable gentleman, Mr. John Winthrop, for that time being the worthy Governor of Massachusetts; who taking notice of her modest countenance and behaviour, as well as of her only request (not to suffer wrong, either as to the honour of her body or the fruit of her womb) gave special charge concerning her, aocording to his noble and christian disposition."

There is a remarkable instance of bravery in a young girl, related at page 220; the occurrence took place in

Maine, and at the assault of a house, " wherein were fifteen persons, yet all women and children, who without doubt, had all of them fallen into the hands of the too crucl and barbarous caitiffs, had not a young maid of about eighteen years of age, first espyed them; who being endued with more courage than ordinarily the rest of the sex use to be, (the blessing of Joe! light upon her) first shut to the door, whereby they were denied entrance, till the rest within escaped to the next house, that was better fortified; that young heroess kept the door fast against them so long, till the Indians had chopped it in pieces with their hatchets, when entering the house, they knocked the poor maid down with their hatchets, and gave her many other wounds, leaving her for dead upon the place; after which they passed on toward the next dwelling, in their way meeting with two children that had escaped the house first broken open by them, they killed one of them of three years old, which could not follow fast enough, or else they that carried it could not convey it soon enough over a fence to save themselves and it; and carried away the other of seven years old, which however, was returned safe within half a year after. The poor maid that had ventured her life so far to save many others, was by a strange Providence enabled to recover so much strength after they were gone, as to repair to the next garrison, where she was soon after healed of her wounds, and restored to perfect health again."

Massasoit was the friend of the colonists, as before remarked, but held their religion in contempt. His sons Alexander and Philip, felt equal enmity to both. Alexander the eldest succeeded him, and was said to be secretly plotting against the Colony of Plymouth, when the government sent to summon him. This message was intrusted to Major Winslow, who conducted his mission with equal boldness and skill; while on his way to Mount-Hope, he met the Sachem, who was on a hunting party accompanied by eighty men; he got possession of their arms, and then at the head of his few followers, summoned him to go to the Governour's house. Excessively indignant, it was only by the advice of his chief counsellors that he consented to go, but his proud spirit was so irritated, that it threw him into a fever, and being unable to g, he promised to send his son as a hostage, and then departed for home, but died before he reached it. Philip succeeded him, and soon began to

develope his hatred. He procured all the tribes between the Connecticut, the Kennebeck, and the sea, to join against the Colonists; and waged a war of extermination. He appears to have been one of the most remarkable of all the Indian Sachems who encountered the whites. From the very imperfect accounts we have of him and those too from his enemies, he discovered great sagacity, great energy, and commanding superiority of character over all the neighbouring chiefs. He foresaw that his countrymen must waste before the whites, and made a desperate struggle to cut them off to the last man. But this was a contest between savage and civilized life, with their respective resources, in which the former must be inevitably vanquished.

The author, page 199, after mentioning the principal settlements then existing in Maine, says, they are situated on rivers, "whose streams are principally improved for driving of saw-mills, those late inventions so useful for the destruction of wood and timber, especially of fir trees, which do so abound in those coasts," &c. this passage would shew the saw mill to be an invention not very ancient.

Description Geographique et historique des costes de l'Amerique Septentrionale; avec l'histoire naturelle du Pais. Par Monsieur Denys, Gouverneur, Lieutenant General pour le Roy, et proprietaire de toutes les terres et isles qui sont depuis le Cap de Campseaux, jusques au Cap des Rosiers. A Paris chez Louis Bellaine, 1672. 2 vols. 12mo. pp. 750.

The first volume of this work contains a description of the harbours and coasts, included between the capes named in the title, which whole country was claimed by the author, under a grant from a company established in France. The second is a minute account of the Fisheries and all the preparations made in prosecuting them, with some account of the wild inhabitants biped and quadruped, of those regions. None of these accounts are now very interesting. It appears that the different French proprietors made war upon each other, destroyed the forts and buildings constructed by each other, and conducted their own private undertakings, as if possessed of sovereign rights, with impunity. It was several years after the first attempts at settlement were Vol. III. No. 7.

2