Penhallow's Indian Wars Seems to Have Been Predestined to Become a Scarce Book

PENH ALLOWS INDIAN WARS A Facsimile Reprint of the First Edition, Printed in Boston in 1726 With the Notes of Earlier Editors and Additions from the Original Manuscript Notes, Index and Introduction by EDWARD WHEELOCK BOSTON 1924 no."/ The edition of this reprint is limited to 250 copies Introduction Penhallow's History of the Indian Wars is one of the rarest books of its class. When it first appeared it doubtless was read by some who may have been able to recall the setting up of the first printing press in New England; to most of its early readers the impressions of that first press were familiar objects. Though we may thus associate the book with the earliest of New England imprints, its age alone does not account for the scarcity of surviving copies, for many older books are more common. Its disappearance seems better explained by the fact that matters concerning the Indians were, excepting possibly religious controversies, of the greatest interest to the readers of that time and that such books as these were literally read to pieces; they were issued moreover in only small editions for relatively few readers, as there were probably not 175,000 people in the New England Colonies in 1726. Here, moreover, the facilities for the preserva- tion of printed matter were in general poor; too often in the outlying settlements the leaky cup- board was the library and the hearth with its flickering pine knot was the study. At the writer's elbow lies a copy of Penhallow's rare History, the mutilated survivor of a fireplace ii INTRODUCTION. accident. The reader of long ago, tiring of the story of the atrocities of the red Indian, or the white man, fell asleep and dropped the book beside him. A live coal now fell upon the little volum.e and, beginning in the very center of the cover, burned through the first thirty pages, when presumably, the fumes of burning leather awoke J. Hempsted, or the reader of ''J. Hempsted, His Book, 1728.'' To the New England colonist the depredations of his Indian neighbors were of literally vital interest. The pioneer in the new settlements de-forested his land, tilled his fields, gath- ered his harvest and, on the Lord's Day, walked to his meeting-house, at all times armed with his flint-lock for self defence against the native whom he had armed at a sinister profit with musket, powder and lead. When at last, Anglo- Saxon determination had conquered and the In- dian was eliminated from the problem of pioneer existence, the growing generation of New England boys and girls read into fragments the ''Narratives," ''Captivities" and "Histories" of those of their forebears who providentially had escaped the enemy, or redeem.ed after "capti- vation" had lived to print the tale. Never before the colonization of America had the English come into continued and intimate contact with savages and in the contest for suprem.acy that followed, they were but poorly prepared with their incomprehension of primi- tive society and their ill-conceived policies of fanatical proselytism. On the other hand the Indian of the Altantic coast had experienced little INTRODUCTION. in in his acquaintance with the early explorers, English or others , that had prejudiced him fav- orably toward white men. These had kidnapped him to exhibit him as a curiosity in Europe or to sell him into slavery; they had shot him in little else than wantonness or for petty thiev- ery. When colonization began and the Indian himself had furnished the valuable food-plant without which permanent settlements at that time would probably have failed, he saw his own planting places overrun by cattle, his game driven away, his fisheries ruined by mills and mill-dams, his people destroyed by the firearms, diseases, vices, fire-water, indeed by the very religion of the whites. He was human. Natur- ally enough, before he was overwhelmed, he de- vastated outl>ang settlements and decimated the colonists; during the half century preceding the publication of this History, more than eight thousand New England settlers lost their lives and few families there were who mourned no relative or friend. In such a community the interest in Indian affairs was predominant. A specific instance of this interest is seen in the practice of making Indian affairs the chief topic in the published serm.on—the newspaper of that day. Whatever the occasion, this dis- course afforded the opportunity for publishing, with appropriate comments, the latest news of important events—conflagrations, m^arine dis- asters, earthquakes and the always important accounts of depredations and massacres in the frontier settlements. Our author, for instance, acknowledges his indebtedness for the latest de- iv INTRODUCTION. tails in his narrative of LovewelFs fight (p. 115) to such a sermon by the ''ingenious Mr. Synames." He, the minister at Bradford, seems to have secured, by reason of his proximity to the scene of that memorable encounter, ''exclusive informa- tion" as it would be called in modern journal- istic speech and to have hastened its early publication. Aside from all this, Penhallow's Indian Wars seems to have been predestined to become a scarce book. Its author was a public man and perhaps the best known officer of New Hamp- shire. The various brief biographical sketches of him in books of reference are chiefly abstracts from Nathaniel Adams' Memoir, prefixed to the Reprint of the Indian Wars in the Collections of the New Hampshire Historical Societ^^, Vol. I, pp. 9-13. Samuel Penhallow was born in St. Mabon, Cornwall, England, July 2, 1665. In his youth he was a student in the school of the silenced dissenting minister, Charles Morton, at New- ington-Green and with Morton, in 1686, he came to New England. It is circumstantially stated that in leaving England, Penhallow had in mind a continuation of his studies under Morton, and, finally, a preparation for missionary labors amxong the Indians, but his biographer does not seem to have known that his entrance into Harvard College was contemplated. This we learn from a note that some former owner of the Field copy laid into that book. It recites that the Rev. Increase Mather, President of Harvard, received in 1685 a letter from his brother Na- INTRODUCTION. v thaniel, written "in behalf of this gentleman, ye bearer his kinsman, Mr. Penhallow of Falmouth, in Cornwall, who designs to spend a year or two in New England, in your colledge, for ye prfecting his learning." (Field Catalogue, p.255.) With Morton, he remained some time in Charles- town, but we hear no more of his preparation for missionary labors. The political troubles about that time are alleged as the cause of his discouragment. He next removed to Portsmouth, New Hamp- shire, where he began a prosperous career in business and poHtical life. Here he m^arried a wealthy heiress, Mary, the daughter of President Cutt, part of whose patrimony was valuable land in Portsmouth. He accumulated what in those times was described as a great estate, but many details of his life have been lost owing in part to the destruction of his diary m the great fire of 1802. He was elected the Speaker of the House, August 7, 1699, and held office for three years. From 1702 to the time of his death, he was an influential member of the Royal Council, holding concurrently the offices of Treasurer of the Provmce and of Recorder of Deeds. As Councilor, he won popular ap- plause through his controversy with Lieut.-Gov- emor George Vaughan. At that time he was suspended by Vaughan, who was himself soon removed from office by Samuel Shute, the Colo- nial Governor of Massachusetts and New Hamp- shire. Penhallow resumed his place and by vir- tue of his office, took part in the ratification of the treaties with the Indians, of which he has vi INTRODUCTION. given us a descripticn in this history. He was appointed to the Superior Court of Judicature in 1714; of this Court he was Chief-justice when he died December 2, 1726. He is said to have Hved in a style superior to that of most of his fellow townsmen in his brick house at the head of the pier, entertain- ing every stranger of distinction. His biographer thus describes him as '* given to hospitality/' wherefore the following Order, found in the Pro- vincial Papers of New Hampshire may be of interest, bearing as it does upon the am.enities of official life two centuries ago. This directs that: "Mr. Treasurer Penhallow take care to provide for the Gentlemen Commrs .. who are going- to Casco fort to the Eastward to publish the Articles of Ratification of peace with the Indians, with all such provisions, wines. Liquors and other necessaries as may be proper ..." [July 14, 1713.] Of thirteen children, one son. Captain John Penhallow was an early proprietor of Phipsburg (Georgetown,) Maine, Governor of Arrowsick and a prominent officer of the militia under Col. Thomas Westbrook. Our author's prominence in official and business life must have stimulated his attention to the Indian affairs of his time and the resulting personal familiarity with his subject is perhaps his strongest claim to authority as a writer of his book. In the pubHcation of this work, he secured a sponsor, if that was needful, in one of the most popular of Boston ministers. Dr. Ben- jamin Colman, of the Brattle Street Church. — INTRODUCTION. vii Dr. Colman looms larger in the enterprise, than at first appears; he ends his Preface after the manner of his profession with the moral that the tale should teach^ having begun it by group- ing the historians of New England into two classes, ''honest and worthy Persons and some learned"—an allusion now obscure, but as he speci- fically mentions another Indian history, the Decennium Luctuosum, by the Rev.

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