William Dyer’S Younger Brother and E Sisters Was Record D at Milbourne Port , but No Record of His

i )

W I""IAM D"E R ,

N "AND A S"M E RSE T R""A"IST IN NE W E G .

D I enclose for publication in the pages of S. . N. 1 i l exc (8 . histo r ca " a letter of some interest , written under ep ’ tionally pathetic circum stances by my grandfather s great grand ’ W m an father s grandfather , illiam Dyre (Dyer) , a Somersetshire wh o , along with eighteen others , founded the town of Portsmouth , th 1 6 8 Rhode Island , on March 7 , 3 , and was one of eight 2 8th Englishmen who founded Newport , Rhode Island , on April .

1 6 . 3 9 , upon which day he was elected Clerk of the new Colony

H e was a Somersetshire man (1 ) according to a tradition which I have t raced back amo n g his numerous descendants i n America as far as the unpublished memoirs o f j o se ph Chesbrou gh n i Dyer, a great great great gra dson of his , who was born n New n n 1 80 E gla d in 7 , and whose life (most of it having been spent in ’ u 1n c tzona r o Na fz ona l Bzo m /z Manchester) may be found the y f g p y , (2 ) This family tradition is in a measure conﬁrmed by the p e cu z or e liar orthography of the word soar , spelt in the appended I t it “) letter , where have on that accoun italicized

I Th e u es t on h as een r ais ed b an e er t wh eth er an n t al z for s in ( ) q i b y xp i i i , su c a o r d as s o ar— h ch do e s no t l ke enu in e d al ec t or ds o ack to n h w w i , i g i w , g b a o l d n l r i n — n e denc f th e om er s etsh r h E g ish o gi al ca b e vi e o S i e abit o f s p eech . In el l atte sted e am l es of om er s ets h r e w e h a e o e er s u c or m s as z it for w x p S i v , h w v , h f y c t h e = and vashion for ash on and th t es z on soar m u st I t nk b e cl assed . i y f i , wi , hi , Th e pu bli cation of th e l etter is p os tp oned u ntil th e next num b er of th e

1 . S (3 N . (8 . . D . " I have , in the course of several years past , looked up facts and dates about a very large number of Englishmen who lived at the end of the sixteenth and the beginning of the seventeenth W centuries, and bore the name of illiam Dyer . The only one with whom it is possible to identify the writer of the appended l etter is entered in the 1 6 2 3 "is ita tion of Som er setshi r e among the W Dyers of Sharpham Park , Glastonbury , as illiam , the eldest son n of George Dyer , of Bratton St . Maur (Seymour) , near Winca ton , - u n and a great nephew of the disting ished Elizabetha judge , Sir

james Dyer . This George Dyer of Bratton was a nephew o f Sir W n James Dyer , and the grandfather of Sir illiam Swin erton Dyer , ’ m y whose father s elder brother was , according to identiﬁcation , n the writer o f the above letter . There is no me tion of this W t American Colonist , illiam Dyer , in English documen s other n than Colonial , unless we identify him with his amesake , William a 6 1 6 2 Dyer , stated to h ve been 3 years old in 3 , according to the n Somerset "isitation of that year . The o ly mention of the latter upon which I have come is in the wil l of his grandmother , “ n f W a o f Bratto n of o h u n . o n J ne Dyer . Seymour , widow j Dyer , " , y ’ — Som er set W111: 6 t 6 canlton 5 h . . 0 , Somerset see Brown ( Ser , pp and The baptism of this William Dyer’s younger brother and e sisters was record d at Milbourne Port , but no record of his

baptism is found , so far as I know . There are some reasons for W believing that this illiam Dyer followed the sea to start with , t o and before he emigrated New England , but I doubt very much whether he can be ide n tiﬁed with the Captain Dyer who gave to ok evidence at the trial of Sir Walter Raleigh . This trial place 1 6 0 1 6 2 in 3 , when the William Dyer of the 3 visitation could not 1 6 n have been more than about years ol d , while the New Engla d — 1 — In colonist who died about 6 7 7 can hardly have been older . ’ W y 5 n the following sketch of illiam D er life , I ve ture to take for granted that the colonist and the son of George Dyer of Bratto n can be identiﬁed .

Whatever seafaring experiences William Dyer may be sup n posed to have had in his earliest ma hood , we ﬁnd him at the age of 40 or thereabout (1 6 2 7 ) in London a s a milliner i n the ” New Exchange . There is no trace of him on the records at ’ Haberdashers Hall , but something might perhaps be found in ’ the records of the Mercers Company . H e may perfectl y well have bee n a seafaring man enrolled as a member o f a Londo n ’ “ o f his - Guild . One father s hal f brothers was Richard Dyer, citizen ” and M erchant Taylor of London , whose will was proved at St . ’ 2 th 1 86 i Dunstan s in the West on July 7 , 5 , and conta ns a bequest ” ’ to my brother William , our William Dyer s youngest uncle and ’

Som er set Wil l s 6 . . . putative godfather (Brown s , Ser , p so) For the fact that he was a milliner in the New Exchange , we depend upon two statements to that effect by no less a person than William Dy er . — Governor John Winthrop made in (October) see Col onial ’ 1 6 8— Wintﬁ ro s " l I". . i i Pa er s o . p , , No 7 4 ; and aga n n 3 see p Di a ry .

It is well attested that the Dyers in Somersetshire were on e the losing side in the struggle betw en Charles I . and the

Roundheads . Accordingly, the falling fortunes of his people might be assigned as William Dyer' s reason for emigrating to the

Massachusetts Bay . He appears in Boston , having married , pre

um abl . s y after he emigrated H owever that may be , he and Mary if oine d W his w e j the Church of the Reveren d Mr . ilson at Boston 1 6 2 0 th th e in 3 5 (December) , and on the of same month their

S . ﬁrst son and child , amuel , was there baptiz—ed H e married , . o u then , at the age of 47 It has been conjectured what grounds ' — a I know not that Mary , his wife , was of the same family ( " i Somerset family ) with Odias (H erodias) Longe , mentioned n A sh fo rd i the will of John y (Ashford) , of Devon , a planter n Bar ’ — ll s om er set We t . b adoes S h . Brown s (4 Ser , p

H owever sincerely a man of Somersetshire Royalist stock might conceive him self to adhere to the views of a congregation " anta o chie y composed of East Anglian Puritans , the essential g nism between the West and the East could not fail to m anifest W itself in the long run . Scarcely a year passed between illiam ’ W ’ Dyer s reception into Mr . ilson s Church and his signature , on 1 th 1 6 fﬁ March s , 3 7 , of a remonstrance a rming the innocence of

. W e Mr heelwright , and that the Court had cond mned the truth ” of Christ . For this he was disfranchised just eight months afterwards . The galling and unnatural intimacy with people naturally antagonistic to him to which William Dyer an d his wife during these eight months were forced to submit , is vividly shown f by a curious paper now at the Public Record O ﬁce , London , C ni l a ol o a P er s I". stamped as of the Conway papers ( p , , and “ We h r e nt o M attach u s tts . signed by John pp , Gent . of the It is entitled : A monstrous berth brought forth att Bost on in New n 1 6 E gland , October , 3 7 . H ere Governor Winthrop sets forth W that One Mary Dyer , wife of illiam Dyer, sometime milliner in the New Exchange , London , being both young and very ‘ - comely persons , was del ivered o f a woman child still borne

(having life a few bowers before) two months before the time , yet ’ as large as ordinary children are . Its ears were like an ape s , h o o kein u wa rdes the nose grew g p , itt had noe fore ” h 1n ead , but the place therof were fower perfect horn es ricke s th or nb acke it was full of scales and sharpe p , like a instead of toes itt had on each foot three c l awes with sharpe

. l W talents like a fowle And then the court y Governor inthrop , wh o might have been recording in the above fantastic and gru e ’ ae - some minuti some old wives tale current in the colony , is at l a D er 6 Wil i m y . pains to declare in closing this d iscredit able document : I saw ” afﬁ rm e rel acdn r this monster and doe this to be t ue . How came it that so sensible a man could think he had reason to vouch for such a monstrous absurdity " oTh e ans wer appears in the same W ’ Governor inthrop s own diary , edited by the acute M r . Savage .

There Winthrop says that none but Mrs . Hutchinson and the ’ midwife , one Hawkins wife , a rank familist also , and another woman had a glimpse of it , who not being able to keep counsel S as the other two did , some rumor began to pread that the child ” W n . was a mo ster . hen M rs Hutchinson , for theological views ’ akin to M r . Wheelwright s , was expelled from the congregation ,

. w her friend Mrs Dyer walked out of the Church ith her . For ” W Mrs . Dyer going forth with her , says inthrop , a stranger asked what woman it was . The others answered it was the ” woman which had the monster . An elder taxed M rs . Hutchin son with having concealed the event , and she declared that she - b . had acted y advice o f Mr Cotton , the well known divine .

W . inthrop then sent for Mr Cotton , having ﬁrst interviewed the

. de sc ri midwife , whom he regarded seriously as a witch The p tion quoted abo v e is a verbatim reproduction of the statement made to him by this woman . H e had the infant exhumed with advice of some other o f the magistrates and o f the elders of

B oston , and though it were much corrupted , yet most of those ”

m & c . things were to be seen , as the ho es and claws , the scales , After this the excellent Winthrop adds that there were alarmin g noises and shakings that accompanied the birth of this child . Winthrop seems to have spent a great deal of time in dissem i t t nating accounts of this visi a ion of God upon the unorthodox . n Roger Williams at Provide ce had all particulars from him , and a h writes b ck , I al so t ank you for that sad relation of the

&c . : monster , The Lord speaks once and twice H e be pleased ” to open all our ears to His discipline . Governor B radford of Plymouth also writes to Winthrop : I thank you for your letter touching Mrs . Hutchinson . I heard since o f a mon strous and prodigious birth which she should disown amongst ” you . Even the father o f the child had to take his part of blame for this family misfortune—made into a crime by theological hatred . As Winthrop piously relates The father of this ’ monster was , the next Lord s Day , questioned in the

Church for divers monstrous errors , as for denying all inherent

&c . righteousness , , which he maintained , and was for the same ” w W admonished . Plainly Winthrop agreed ith the godly elde , n o f the same Colony , in thi king here was a case of God testify in g His displeasure against their "pinions and practices as clearly i n as if He had pointed with H is ﬁnger , causing the two foment n ing women , in time o f the height of their o pi ions , to produce o f out of their wombs , as before they had out their brains , such W ’ monstrous birth s . Mr . Savage , inthro p s editor, rightly William Dy er . 7 calls attention to the fact that the persecutions instituted against

Mrs . Dyer and Mrs . Hutchinson were the cause of these physical disasters so fantastically misrepresented by Winthrop , Welde , and “ atto rnie s W others , acting as proxies or for the Most H igh , to hose displeasure they scrupled not in attributing the cross accidents ”

b f l . e e . that their opponents From Mr Cotton , who had advised u the hushing p of the whole misfortune , the congregation required and received a handsome and public apology . W The exasperation of illiam Dyer , who was disfranchised , 1 th 1 6 on November 5 , 3 7 , within a month of h is theological admonition and of so gross an outrage upon his family life , can 2 0 th only have been increased when , on November , ﬁve days and afterwards , he others were disarmed because the opinions

W . and revelations of Mr . heelwright and Mrs Hutchinson have seduced and led into dangerous errors many of the people here in ” New England . More than ever , he and his wife might pass ” with Winthrop for very censorious and troublesome , as indeed t he describes them . It is accordingly not a surprise to ﬁnd tha these two much outraged persons left the Massachusetts as soon 1 6 8 as they might . In March , 3 , William Dyer j oined in founding t an d 1 6 Por smouth , R . I . , in April , 3 9 , h e ﬁgures among the founders of Newport , R . I . Indeed , his motives for abandoning the Massachusetts Bay Colony are set forth in the preamble of the Charter of Rhode Islan d as subsequently granted to him among t 1 6 6 . others by Charles I I . in 3 The gran ees , it is there stated , ’ did not only , with the encouragement of His Majesty s pro genitors , transport themselves into America , but not being able to bear in those parts their different apprehensions in religious concernments , again left their desirable habitations , and trans planted themselves into the midst of the mo st p otent Indian people of that country

So much remains to be said of the career of William Dyer in —of n an d Rhode Island the trial , condem ation , execution of his n W wife , and ofthe experiences of their seco d son , illiam Dyer , jun - Surveyor General of Customs in North America for Charles I I . and James II that I reserve these topics for a second communi cation .

r D e Lo u s u .

6 8 . , Banbury Road , Oxford

W I""IA M D"E R , D A S"ME RSET R""A"IST IN NE W E N G "AN .

nti n u ed C o . ) My narrative l eft William Dyer resolved to emigrate by way o f rescuing him s e l f an d his wife and s o n from the i ntolerable posi tion made for them in the Mas s achusetts Bay Colony . This was 1 6 n s late in 3 7 . For similar reaso , Roger Williams had already a n t - planted Provide n ce at th e head o f N a rr ga se t Bay . South east o f n ward Providence , betwee the West Passage and the East n in Passage , l ies a group of isla ds the narrows or roads com B f th n n n a . o e s e ma di g the entra ces of the y The largest , called by ” “ " A u idne c k th e a r the Narragansetts q , is Island of the Straits p ll e ce ex ce n . n The ce , after it was colonized , th e nam e Rhode Island seems to have inve nted itself (1 ) to take the place of the

more outlan dish Aqu idne ck . This island and those adjoi n ing were purchased of the Nar r agansetts by William C oddington and 1 6 an d y his friends early in 3 7 , thither went William D er in ’ n — n Coddington s compa y , all of them more or less deﬁ itely out lawed by the oligarchical theocracy which governed M as sac h u a n d sets so sternly , exercised a sort of theological suzerainty

over the elder colony at Plymouth . n This outcast people , formerly from our mother natio s , an d W t n in England , Scotland ale s are apparen ly mea t , the daie s an d n n e w n Bishops , si ce from the rest of the E glish over ” 2 n zealous Colonys ( ) numbered about 50 men . They la ded n A u idne ck n n near th e north easter end of q Isla d , and ineteen of “ n n a their umber , acti g for th e whole body , signed compact in the presence of Jehovah i n corporati n g the m s e lves i nto a Body ” Politick . Of this Body Politick William Coddi n gton was n amed

u an d . a n o n 1 j dge , William Dyer clerk This h ppe ed March 7 , 1 6 8 In 3 . a short time the wiser heads amo n g th e Colo n ists dis o f m n covered , apparently , that this ﬁrst place settle e t was ill

(I ) Th e earl i es t u s e of Rho de Isl and for A q uid n e ck wh ich I h ave di s cov er ed 15 in a d e o s t on m a de b C o dd n ton da ted A r il 6 I 1 2 . p i i y i g , p 4 , 5 2 See th e A cts and "rder s o f th e G en er al A s s e m l a t Ne or t con e n ed ( ) b y wp , v M a 1 1 6 8 hi ch ado ted a etter to i ch ar d C r om ell r om h c th e y 7 , 5 , w p l R w , f w i h a o e or ds ar e taken b v w . chosen moreover an eccentric person . Samuel Gorton , from n La cashire , seems to have turned the heads of the more illiterate t e s le n u se tlers . At al l ev nt the who co stit ted government of the n n t n n u t t i cipie t ow , which had bee named Portsmo h , met toge her o n 2 8th 1 6 n n e w to April , 3 9 , and sig ed a compact propagate a ” n in n e a n d t o pla tation the midst of the isla d or elsewher s , bear ” t i n n equal charge answerable to our es ates commo . William t u Dyer signed his as clerk and Coddington as j dge , there were d 0 th seven other signatures . Two ays later , on April 3 , those who u n 2 8 chose to stay behind at Portsmo th with Samuel Gorto , in al l , sign ed or affixed their marks to a third compact ackno wledging “ themselves the legal subjects of his M ajesty "ing Charl es and “ n n m t in his name bi di g the selves in o a civil body politick . ” unto his laws according to matters o fju stic e . Among th e 2 9 who n t signed this embryo constitutio , sixteen were unabl e to wri e their o wn names . Plainly the nine who signed the agreement to settle s w el e here were the picked and intelligent men of the community . "ne other West o f E nglan d man among these besides William Dyer n was Nicholas Easton of Lymingto , Hampshire , and it is there fore n o t an accident that t he fi r st settlement was called Port s an d e b — t mouth , the second took its nam from near y, Newpor in t the Isle of Wigh t. Indeed the gradually accepted name o od o Island may be connected with the currency i n th e West o f E n gland of road in the sense exemplified by Cowes Road o ff 1 Portsmouth . ( ) The New England Newport which these picked colonists fi nally chose to plant is the one pre-eminently desi rable dne c k t e harbour in the whole of Aqui Island . The Set l ment 1 6 there was made in the course o f the summer of 3 9 , and as the intending settlers sailed southward along the west coast o f A u dne c k q , they passed a small island not far from the entrance to Newport Harbour and William Dyer desiring a spot of land n o f u s as we passed by it , we did gra t him our right in the said ’ islan d and n amed it Dyer s (2 ) This islet stil l b e ars its n origi al name . A very turbulent member of the new colony at Newport was R n h e andall H olde of Salisbury , but managed to make his peace t t h e - t t wi h self consti uted au horities , thereby devoting himself to t n t t n W plan i g a set lemen on th e mai land , south of Roger illiams nc th e ne w Provide e Plantation . H e named town where settle 1 6 ment was begun in January , 43 , Warwick , not without obvious

I M r end Dr Wr t E ditor of th e E n l s a ect ct onar n orm s ( ) y f i , . igh , g i h Di l Di i y i f ’ m e t at th e u s e of o ad in th e s ense o f a s a e r e u e fo r s s h as ne er h R , f f g hip , v l in al l ar ts een o ca in E n l and bu t e on s to th e an u a e . b l g , b l g l g g p

' ’ See W il l iam dd n t s d o i n dated "ct . 1 8th 66 . C onﬁrm ed (2 ) C o i g on e sit o , 1 9 W s H e is b th e co ncu r rent tes t m on o f R an all H olden r om a s ur t . r e y i y f S li b y , il , then a no t er W es s e m an to b e c ou n ted am o n th e o r nal l anter s o f Ne w , h x g igi p or t a t ou h e w as no one of th n ne w h o s ned th e com ac t to sett e at , l h gh t e i ig p l

ewpor t . reference to negotiations then m progress for a regu lar charter to w d be given by Charles I through Earl War ick , then the Lor n High Admiral . Roger Williams had been sent to Engla d from n 1 6 2 e t n Provid e ce in 4 for the especial purpos of ge ti g a charter, ’

n 1 1 6 . which he duly obtai ed on March 7 , 43 Lord Warwick s -a th e n charter , copy of which is recorded amon g Colo ial papers 1 1 6 — inh abi under date of March 4, 44 is addressed to the “ ” n t h an d . ta ts of he towns of Providence , Portsmout Newport “ It gran t s them a free and absolute C hart er o f incorporation to be known by the name of Providence Plantation in th e ” Narragansett Bay in New England , and reserves the right to dispose of the general government as it stands in reference to ” the rest o f the plantatio n s in America . H ow very vague were ’ n the grantors notions as to this last reservatio , and as to the relation s between the New England Col onies is sh ow n by a noth er 1 0 1 6 n e grant made by them on Dec . , 43 , which co veyed the whol — n mainland of the Narragansett Bay , coveri g Providence and n n M a ssach u ssetts also Warwick , to the gover or an d assista ts of “ n Bay Colony , with reservation of all lands heretofore gra ted ” and possessed by the "ings Protestant subjects . "nder this r last grant , the men of Massachusetts nearly b oke up Randall ’ - t H olden s new set lement at Warwick , and imprisoned H olden

. y himself at Boston for a time H e was finall released , and a loose conglomeration of all plantations in the Narragansett Bay W country , including arwick as well as th e three towns named in ’ - Lord Warwick s first charter , Providence , Portsmouth an d t — t 1 6 Newpor , was organized under that Char er in 47 B ut Coddington was not satisfied by any such arrangement . H e was a man of great ambition and wished to be at the head o f He an absolutely independent government on Aquidneck island . to 1 6 accordingly went England in 49 , and obtained a Commis sion as Governor of Rhode island which superseded the charter o f

Lord Warwick so far as Portsmou th and Newport were concerned . ‘ Indignation against him ran very high among the Narragansett t - s colonists , since his move of his frustrated their long cheri hed hope of cementing such union among themselves as should s e cure “ them against the intense illwill and overt attacks of the ne w - ” English over zealous colonies . Also Coddington was known to t be in cons ant correspondence with Massachusetts , where the

men of Port smouth and Newport were still o u tlawed . Further more Codd ington had been high -handed and grasp i n g 1n the matter of the distribu tion of lands when the colony a t Newport t ook shape . ’ The brunt of resistance to Coddi ngton s encro a chments in - ~ th e a tt o f e W D w m er land f ll upon illiam yer , hose life was em

1 See C o lo ni a a er s 1 -1 66 0 () l p p 57 4 .

2 See C olon a a ers 1 -1 0 () i l p p 57 4 66 . n n n bittered by co te tio s with this wealthy , energetic and powerfully n co n n ected East A n glian . For Coddi gton came from Boston in

n an d a n . Li colnshire , may count as East Anglian The gist of the matters in constant controversy is set forth by a n indignant remonstran ce which William Dyer made i n writing against en c r o a ch m e nts by Coddi n gto n upon the regularly established high

o f . 1 th ways Newport This declaration was made on February 5 , 1 6 n 1 6 n 54, but the encroachme ts go back to 3 9 , whe William - e n a Dy r was appoi ted to apportion lands , duty which he

attended to more zealously than others who shared it with him . u n n n in 1 6 n Th s , when Coddingto we t for E gland 49 , a d - n n retur ed triumphant with his Commissio , William Dyer and h e e a n d n u had been rep atedly at law , it was o ly nat ral that the in dignant colo n ists shou ld select Dyer as their agent to join the C l ar ke in n o f , , n se c u r age t Providence John , going to Engla d to ’ n the abrogatio n o f Coddi gton s Commissio n . In the details of a lawsuit pe n di n g between these two e n emies at th e time when William Dyer we n t to Englan d (1 6 5 1 ) no thing is more noticeable t han th e bias of al l Newport m e n against Co ddi ngton a n d in ’ Dyer s favour . In 1 6 53 Dy er return ed with letters from th e Cou n cil of State ' n n u n n n a nd nt a lli g Coddi gton s Commissio , was appoi ed Com - - u ma n der l n Chief on the sea against the D tch . Gradually th e n consolidation of the Narragansett colo ies was achieved , and the u n t s u b whole sit atio , poli ically speaking , was simplified by the n n b missio o f Coddi gton , and finally legalized y the Charter n n 1 6 6 gra ted by Charles II . i 3 to the Narragansett Bay Settle n fi act m e ts as a body corporate and politique in and name , by th e n ame o f the Gover nor (1) and Company of the E n glish Col ” l onie of R hode. Islan d and Provide n ce Plantatio n s . This charter was the Constitution of the State of Rhode Islan d an d ” 2 Providence Plantatio n s until the year 1 84 . o r R L u s D "E . 6 8 n , Ba bury Road , Oxford .

1 No te that th e G o er nor nam ed i n t s c ar ter is Ben ed ct A r no ld o f ( ) v hi h i , C es el our n e r s e hir h l - r o ts e t e e o n 1 end of W ll am e . h b , D , if l g f i i i Dy ‘ ‘ 1 e r e ar e a ddi t ons in cil r ere sh o n b s u ar e racke ts en c a e . h i p , whi h h w y q b " W I""IA M D"E R ,

A S"M RS T R "A"I T IN NE W E E " S E N G "AN D.

But the last and tragic chapter in William Dyer’s life con cerned his wife , Mary , whose inconceivable experiences at the hands o fthe Massachusetts Bay authori ties were de tailed in my ﬁrst note on this subject . Mary Dyer sailed for England , according to a “ Go ve rno rWi nth r o 1 6 0 letter from Coddington to p , in 5 , by the ﬁrst ” n n ship with Mr . Travice . Her husba d , detai ed by his suit

. t against Coddington , sailed nearly a year later H e re urned to b e Newport four years before his wife , who had in the meantime n 1 6 come a "uaker , and was a minister of that faith whe , in 57 , she returned to Boston on her way to Newport . Promptly ar in n rested Boston and there impriso ed , she was released upon ’ her husband s intercession , and he had leave to take her home to

Newport , but was bound in a great penalty not to lodge her in an any town of the colony , nor to permit y to have speech with ” ’ her in the journey . Much of William Dyer s energy had lately n n u t been expe ded in the buildi g of a suitable ho se at Newpor , m 1 6 - and he was permitted to have his fa ily there during 57 59 . e arl i n But y the latter year , his wife , ﬁlled no doubt with added indign ation against the Massachusetts govern ment of that time because of the wanton and superstitious cruelty with which she 1 6 n n had been pursued by their predecessors in 3 7 , i sisted upo returning to bear witness again in Boston to her faith . This t e su l ted in her condem n ation to death along with Marmad u ke William D er y .

o n 1 st 1 6 . Stephenson and Wil liam R binso , on October 3 , 59 She was taken to execution and reprieved wh e n the ro pe was already W around her neck , at the instance of her second son illiam

Dyer , Junior , a youth just in his early twenties , who was at the

time captain of a coasting ship .

in n n I ﬁnd the Bodleian Library a pri ted broadsheet , bou d u p under the title "uakers and with the shelf reference Wood 6 45 which runs as follow5 "

A DE C LA R A TI"N of th e GE NE RA L C ""RT o f th e

M A H " E H d n a A C o e t Bos ton in New E n l and "cto er 1 8 1 6 . S S S TTS l g , b , 59

o ncer n n th e E ecut on o f C i g x i tw o "uaker s .

A l thou h the ustice o our r oceedin s a ainst W am o nson g j f p g g illi R bi , M arm aduke te en s on and M ar er Su te h r t this S ph y Dy , ppor d by t e A utho i y of C our t the a wes o the C ountr and the "a w o G od m a r ather erswade us , L f y ; f , y p to ex ect ineour a em ent rom all rudent and iou s m en then convince us o p g f p p , f ‘ an necessit to A ol o iz e or the s am e et or as m uch as m en o weaker ar ts y y p g f , y f f p , out of pitty a nd com m iser ation (a com m endabl e a nd C hr istian v ir tue y et easily a bused and sus ceptibl e of s inister and danger ous im pr ess ions ) for wa nt of full ih orm a tion m a e l ess satis ed 6 m en o er verser r inci les m a take occas ion f , y b fi , f p p p , y her eb to ca l um niate us and r ender us as bl ood er secu tor s to sa tis e the y , y p , fi one and sto the m ou ths o the ther w t ou ht i e u is e l ar e h at o e h t r ite to d c . p f , g q T abou t three year s s inc e diver s p er sons pr ofes s ing them s elves "uakers (of who se er n c ou s " n ons an d Pr ac ti ces w e h ad r ece ed n te l en ce from o o d ands p i i pi i iv i l ig g h , ro m Bar badoes to E n l and arr ed at Boston s e er s ons er e o n s e f g . ) iv , who p w ly cur ed to b e sent a a b th e fi rs t o or tun t th ou t censure o r un s m ent w y y pp i y , wi p i h , al t ou t eir r o ess ed tenents tu r u l en t and contem tu o u s e a our to h gh h p f , b p b h vi A u th or t ou d h a e u s t fi ed a s e er er an m ad er s on et th e ru den ce o f t s i y w l v j i v i v i , y p hi C ou r t w as exerci sed onel y in m akin g pr ovi sion to secur e p eace and o rder h ere establ ish ed agains t th eir a ttem pts who se design (w e w er e well a s su r d o f by ou r o w n e eri ence as e as b y th e e am e o f t e r r edecess or s in M unster xp , w ll x pl h i p ) was to u nder m n e and ruin th e s am e A nd a c cordin l a "aw w as m ade and i , g y p u bli sh ed pr ohibitin g all M aster s of Ship s to brin g any "uaker s into thi s ju ri s di ction an d them sel ves fr om com m ing in on penalty o f th e H o us e o f C or r e c tion

t e cou d b e s en t a a o t t s tand n c b a ack o or t e . t ill h y l w y . N wi h i g whi h y b D h y o und en tr ance and th e ena t n"icted o n t em se es r o n n su fﬁ c ent to f , p l y i h lv , p vi g i i r es tr a n t e r m u dent and i ns o ent o tru s o ns w as ncreas ed b th e os s o f i h i i p l b i , i y l th e ear s o f t o se th at oﬁ ended th e second t m e c al so e n to o w eak a h i , whi h b i g d e ence a a ns t t e r m etuou s fanatick u r neces s tated u s o end ea ou r our f g i h i i p f y , i t v s ecu r ty an d u on s er ou s co n s der a t on a ter th e orm er e er m en ts b t e r i , p i i i f f xp i , y h i nces s ant as sau l ts a "aw w a s m ade t a t su c er s ons s ou d b e an s ed 0 11 i , h h p h l b i h a n o f eat accord n to th e e am l e of E n l and in t e r r o i s on a am st p i D h , i g x p g h i p v i g esuites i c s en tence e n re u arl rono un ced a t th e as t C our t of Ass s tants [ , wh h b i g g l y p l i a ains t th e ar t es a o e n am ed and th e e t er r etu rn n o r cont nu in r e g p i b v , y i h i g i g p um tu ou s in t s u r sd c t on a ter th e t m e im ted er e a re en ded and s p ly hi j i i i , f i l i , w pp h , o n n t em sel es to be th e er so ns an s ed er e s entenced b th e C our t to w i g h v p b i h , w ( y ) d eat a ccord n to th e "aw a or es a d c at e en e ecu ted u on tw o o f h , i g f i whi h h h b x the m M ary Dy er u pon th e peti tion o f h er Son and th e m er cy a nd cpem en cy of

t i s C o ur t h ad er t t o de ar t ith n tw o da es c sh e h ath ac ce ted o f. h , lib y p w i y , whi h p h e cons der a t on o f o u r r adua r o ceed n ll nd cate u s rom th e T i i g l p i g , wi vi i f cl am orou s accusation s o f severi ty ; ou r own jus t and neces s ary defence c al l ing u n u s o t er m eans fa lin to o ffer th e o n t h ch t es e er sons av e v io po ( h y g) p y , w i h p h

Th es e m arks indi cate th e e nds o f li nes in th e capitali z ed h e adi ng . H t r William Dye . 3

l entl and ul r u sh ed u on and t er e ecom e elons de so ch m t it y , wilf ly p , h by b f , whi igh en r e ented and th e Sov er ai n "aw Sal us o uli een r es er ed ou r h ave be p v g p p b p v , rm er r oce ed n s a s el l a s th e s ar n M ar D er u on an i ncons der a l e fo p i g , w p i g y y , p i b inter ces s on ll m an es tl e nce w e des re the r l es a sent r ath er th en th e r i , wi if y vi , i i iv b , i d eat r es ent h p . Pri nted by th eir or de r in e r nted in ondon NE W E G A R p i L , N L ND

E dwar d R a wson cr e tar . , Se y I F IN S .

’ t day Mary Dyer s answer to this , wri ten the after her reprieve was : Once more to the General Court i n Bosto n speaks Mary Dyer even as before My life is not accepted nor availeth me i n ” comparison of the lives and liberty of the truth . H ow she went a - n —o ff round about way from Boston to Shelter Isla d , the extreme t e n d n — Eas ern o f Lo g I sland , and tarried there for a time with u th e t other " akers , under protec ion of Nathaniel Sylvester , will be realized by those who have seen the mon u ment erected some

1 6 years ago on Shel ter I sland by the late Professor Horsford . 1 6 6 0 By the end of May , , this intrepid woman again appeared in Boston an d summoned authority there to execute their iniqui

t . ous law upon her , or else to abolish it In spite of the eloquent n plea from her husba d , which is subj oined , Mary Dyer was

n 1 8 . ha ged from a tree , which only perished in 7 9 But she had n her way , for , within a year , Charles II . required the abolitio of

the death penalty against "uakers .

‘ " T WI LLIAM D"RE T" GO E RNO R EN DIC OT .

d f Ho n or S n o an d It is little greif o f mind , sadness o f hart that I am I d n ecessitated to be so bould as to supplicate yo H onor sel f wth bl e r r the H o n Assembly of yo Ge n eral l C ourte to extend yo fau or mercy and once agen to me my children , little did I ’ dream that euer I s hu l d haue had occasion to p etit on you in a deu ine ro ui matter of this nature , but so it is that throw the p dence an d yo r benignity my so n n o btayn e d so much pitty o r mercy att y hands as to enj oy the life of his mother , now my ’ ’ su pplic at o n to yor H onor s is to begg affectio natly the life of my deare wife tis true I haue not seen her aboue this half yeare therefor cannot tell how in the frame of her s pi ritt she was a aine moued thus g to runn so great a Hazard to hersel f, and per pl exity to me mi n e all he r fre inds well wishers : so itt is from Shelter Il an d about by Pe qu id Narragansett to th e n Pr ou idence s e c r e ttl s ee d l ou r n e d Tow e of she y p y y j y , as s e c rettl n u nh a ou rn y from thence came to yor jurisdictio , ppy j y,

‘ No tr ac s s n h l " e exi t o f th e or iginal p r intin g in New E gland er e a l u ded to . Poss1bl th e not on t at t s do cu m en t w as a r e r nt ar o s e in E n l and h er e y i h hi p i g , w l ts a ol o et c tem er ul d i e n r p g i p wo exc t o su pr i se . t i ' ll am D r Wi i y e .

’ e ne rat o n iue s may I say , woe to that g say I that g occasion thus of greif trobl e (to thos that desires to be quiett) by help ing one another (as I may say) to Hazard their l iu es for I k n o w n o t whatt end or to what purpose ; if her zeale be so greatt as adu e ntu re or fauo r F thus to , oh Lett y itty surmount itt saue her life Lett not yor fo r w o nte d compassion bee conquered by m ddne s s or r e no w n her inconsiderate a , how greatly will y e bee S reade p if by so conquering you become victorious , what shall I all say more , I know you are sensible of my condition . and lett ’ " etit on the re ect bee , and you will see whatt my p is and what

will gine me mine peace , oh Lett mercies wings once more " & wh il st I r O RE aboue justice ballance , then line shal l I exalt yo goodness butt o th e rwaye s ; twil l be a languishing sorrow yea so great that I sh u l d gladly suffer the blow att once much rather : I shal l fo rb eare to tr o bl e yout Honr s w th words neyth e r am I in a capacity to expatiat myself att present I only say this yo r s el u e s haue been are or may bee husbands to wife or wiues so dearel be l ou ed : de ri ue am I , yea to one m ost y oh do not you p c me of her , but I pray giu her me once agen I shall bee so o bl ei ed much g for euer , that I shal l endeavor continually to utter ‘ th ankes oI H o nl : itt my render y Loue most renowned p y mee , h "s w t o I begg itt teares , and rest y most humbly suppliant ’ th d Po rts m o 2 : 1 6 6 0 7 of 3 Wm . Dyre .

r d ’ Most H on Sf Lett these li nes by yo fau o r bee my Petit on to " H bl e d on n : S W. yo Ge erall Court at present sitting D .

r "E Lo u s D R .

6 8 , Banbury Road , Oxford .