raganset Bay, from whence the infection would easily spread into these churches, (the people being many of them much taken with the apprehension of his godliness.) Whereupon a warrant was sent to him, to come presently to Boston to be shipped, &c. He returned answer (and divers of Salem came with it,) that he could not come without hazard of his life, &c. Whereupon a pinnace. was sent with commission to Capt. Underhill, &c. to apprehend him, and carry him aboard the ship, (which then rode at Nantasket ;) but, when they came at his house, they found he had been gone three days before; but whither they could not learn.

"He had so far prevailed at Salem, as many there, (especially of devout women) did embrace his opinions, and separated from the churches, for this cause, that some of their members, going into England, did hear the ministers there, and when they came home the churches here held communion with them."

Ann Hutchinson, her opinions, &c.-Mrs. Hutchinson, the wife of one of the most respectable New England planters, came over to Boston in 1636. She was treated with respect and much noticed by Mr. Cotton and other principal persons, particularly by Mr. Vane, the Governor. Being a woman of superior abilities, she set up religious meetings of her own, where she repeated the sermons which were delivered on the Lord's day before, adding her remarks and expositions. Her lectures, which made much noise, were attended by 60 or 80 of the principal women. Countenanced and encouraged for a time by Mr. Cotton and Mr. Vane, she advanced doctrines and opinions which involved the colony in disputes and contentions, which seemed to threaten ruin both to the church and state. Mr. Wheelwright, her brother in law, a minister of learning and piety, was firmly attached to her, and suffered with her on account of his tenets. The progress of her sentiments occasioned the Synod of 1637. Mrs. Hutchinson was finally banished to Rhode Island, and from thence, in 1642, after her husband's death, she removed into the Dutch country beyond New Haven, and the next year she and all her family, consisting of sixteen persons, were killed by the Indians, excepting one daughter whom they carried into captivity.-The following extracts from Winthrop's Journal, will serve to show the proceedings against her, and the opinions which she advanced.

and

1637, mo. 10." The court also sent for Mrs. Hutchinson, and charged her with divers matters, as her keeping two public lectures every week in her house, whereto 60 or 80 persons did usually resort, for reproaching most of the ministers, viz. all except Mr. Cotton, for not preaching a covenant of free grace, and that they had not the seal of the spirit, nor were able ministers of the new testament, which were clearly proved against her tho' she thought to shift it off, and after many speeches to and fro, at last she was so full as she could not

contain, but vented her revelations, amongst which this was one, that she had it revealed to her that she should come into New England, and should here be presented, and that God would ruin us and our posterity and the whole state for the same. So the court proceeded and banished her; but because it was winter they committed her to a private house where she was well provided, and her own friends and the elders permitted to go to her, but none else.

mo. 10. "Upon occasion of the censures of the court upon Mrs. Hutchinson and others, divers other foul errors were discovered which had been secretly carried by way of inquiry, but after were maintained by Mrs. Hutchinson and others, and so many of Boston were tainted with them, as Mr. Cotton finding how he had been abused, and made (as himself said) their stalking horse (for they pretended to hold nothing but what Mr. Cotton held and himself did think the same) did spend most of his time both publicly and privately, to discover these errors, and to reduce such as were gone astray. And also the magistrates calling together such of the elders as were near, did spend two days in consulting with them about the way to help the growing evils. Some of the secret opinions were these, That there is no inherent righteousness in a child of God-That neither absolute nor conditional praises belong to a christian-That we are not bound to the law not as a rule &c.-That the sabbath is but as other days-That the soul is mortal 'till it be united to Christ, and then it is annihilated, and the body also, and a new given by Christ-That there is no resurrection of the body.

1638. mo. 1, 22. Mrs. Hutchinson appeared again. She had been licensed by the court, in regard she had given hope of her repentance, to be at Mr. Cotton's house, that both he and Mr. Davenport might have the more opportunity to deal with her, and the articles being again read to her, and her answer required, she delivered it in writing, wherein she made a retraction of near all, but with such explanations and circumstances as gave no satisfaction to the church, so as she was required to speak further to them.

After she was excommunicated, her spirit which seemed before to be somewhat dejected, revived again, and she gloried in her sufferings, saying that it was the greatest happiness next to Christ, that ever befel her. Indeed it was a happy day to the church of Christ here, and to many poor souls who had been seduced by her who by what they heard and saw that day, were, thro' the grace of God, brought off quite from her errors, and settled again in the truth.

At this time the good providence of God so disposed, divers of the congregation (being the chief men of the party, her husband being one) were gone to Naragansett to seek out a new place for plantation, and taking liking of one in Plymouth patent, they went thither to have it granted them, but the magistrates there knowing their spirit, gave them a denial, but consented they might buy of the Indians an island in the Naragansett Bay.

After two or three days the Governor sent a warrant to Mrs. Hutchinson to depart this jurisdiction before the last of this month, accord

ing to the order of court, and for that end set her at liberty from her former constraint, so as she was not to go forth of her own house 'till her departure; and upon the 28th, she went by water to her farm at the Mount, where she was to take water with Mr. Wheelwright's wife and family to go to Piscat: but she changed her mind and went by land to Providence and so to the Island in the Narragansett Bay, which her husband and the rest of that sect had purchased of the Indians and prepared with all speed to remove unto. For the court had ordered that except they were gone with their families by such a time, they should be summoned to the General Court.

1641. Mrs. Hutchinson and those of Aquiday island broached new heresies every year. Divers of them turned professed anabaptists, and would not wear any arms, and denied all magistracy among christians, and maintained that there were no churches since those founded by the apostles and evangelists, nor could any be, nor any pastors ordained, nor seals administered but by such, and that the church was to want these all the time she continued in the wilderness, as yet she was. Her son Francis and her son in law Mr. Collins (who was driven from Barbadoes where he had preached a time and done some good, but so soon as he came to her was infected with her heresies) came to Boston and were there sent for to come before the Governor and council, but they refused to come except they were brought, so the officer led him, and being come (there were divers of the elders present) he was charged with a letter he had written to some in our jurisdiction, wherein he charged all our churches and ministers to be antichristian, and many other reproachful speeches, terming our king, king of Babylon, and sought to possess the people's hearts with evil thoughts of our government and of our churches &c. He acknowledged the letter, and maintained what he had written, yet sought to evade the confessing there was a true magistracy in the world and that christians must be subject to it. He maintained also that there were no gentile churches (as he termed them) since the apostles times, and that none now could ordain ministers &c. Francis Hutchinson did agree with him in some of these, but not resolutely in all; but he had reviled the church of Boston (being then a member of it) calling her a strumpet. They were both committed to prison; and it fell out that one Stoddard, being then one of the constables of Boston, was required to take Francis Hutchinson into his custody 'till the afternoon, and said withal to the Governor, sir, I came to observe what you did, that if you should proceed with a brother otherwise than you ought, I might deal with you in a church way. For this insolent behaviour he was committed, but being dealt with by the elders and others, he came to see his error, which was that he did conceive that the magistrate ought not to deal with a member of the church before the church had proceeded with him. So the next Lord's day in the open assembly, he did freely and very affectionately confess his error and his contempt o authority, and being bound to appear at the next court he did the like there to the satisfaction of all; yet for example's sake he was fined 20s. which, tho' some of the magistrates would have had it much less,

or rather remitted, seeing his clear repentance and satisfaction in public left no poison or danger in his example, nor had the commonwealth At the same court Mr. Collins or any person sustained danger by it. was fined £100 and Francis Hutchinson £50 and to remain in prison 'till they gave security for it. We assessed the fines the higher, partly that by occasion thereof they might be the longer kept in from doing harm (for they were kept close prisoners) and also because that family had put the country to so much charge in the synod and other occasions to the value of £500 at least: but after, because the winter drew on, and the prison was inconvenient, we abated them to £40 and £20 but they seemed not willing to pay any thing. They refused to come to the church assemblies except they were led, and so they came duly. At last we took, their own bonds for their fine, and so dismissed them. Other troubles arose in the island by reason of one Ni: Eason, a tanner, a man very bold, tho' ignorant, he using to teach at Newport where Mr. Coddington their Governor lived, maintained that man hath no power or will in himself, but as he is acted by God, and that seeing God filled all things, nothing could be or move but by him, and so he must needs be the author of sin &c. and that a christian is united to the essence of God. Being shewed what blasphemous consequences would follow hereupon, they professed to abhor the consequences, but still defended the propositions, which discovered their ignorance, not apprehending how God could make a creature as it were in himself, and yet no part of his essence, as we see by familiar instances. The light is in the air, and in every part of it, yet it is not air, but a distinct thing from it. There joined with Ni: Eason, Mr. Coddington, Mr. Coggeshall and some others, but their minister Mr. Clark and Mr. Lenthall and Mr. Harding and some others dissented and publicly opposed, whereby it grew to such heat of contention, that it made a schism among them.

Difficulties with Gorton.-Samuel Gorton, the first settler of Warwick, R. I. came to this country in 1636, and in a few years occasioned a good deal of disturbance by the religious principles which he advanced. Leaving Boston, he went to Plymouth, and disturbing the church there, he was whipped and required to find sureties for his good behavior, which not being able to do, he was driven, it is said, to Rhode Island. At Newport he was also whipped for his contempt of the civil authority. From this place he went to Providence, where Roger Williams, with his usual humanity, although he disliked his principles and practice, gave him a shelter. Gorton afterwards purchased some lands of the Indians, and having made some encroachments, complaints were entered against him in the court of Massachusetts. Being required to answer for his conduct, by the court, he treated their summons with contempt. In May, 1643, Capt. Cook, with about 40 soldiers, were sent against Gorton and his associates, who were taken prisoners and carried to Boston. He was sentenced to imprison

ment and hard labor; for which banishment was afterwards substituted. In 1644 Gorton went to England and obtained an order from Parliament, securing to him the peaceable possession of his lands. He died after the year 1676 at an advanced age. The following, relative to Gorton, is from Winthrop's Journal:

1643, 8 m. 13. "The next Lord's day in the forenoon the prisoners would not come to the meeting, so as the magistrate determined they should be compelled. They agreed to come, so as they might have liberty after sermon to speak if they had occasion. The magistrates answer was, that they did leave the ordering of things in the church to the elders, but there was no doubt but they might have leave to speak so as they spake the words of truth and sobriety. So in the afternoon they came and were placed in the fourth seat right before the elders. Mr. Cotton (in his ordinary text) taught them out of Acts 19. of Demetrius pleading for Diana's silver shrines or temples &c. After sermon Gorton desired leave to speak, which being granted, he repeated the points of Mr. Cotton's sermon, and coming to that of the silver shrines, he said that in the church there was nothing now but Christ, so that all our ordinances, ministers, sacraments &c. were but men's inventions for shew and pomp and no other than those silver shrines of Diana. He said also that if Christ lived eternally, then he died eternally; and it appeared both by his letters and examinations that he held that Christ was incarnate in Adam, and that he was that image of God wherein Adam was created, and that the chief work and merit was in that his incarnation in that he became such a thing, so mean &c. and that his being born after of the Virgin Mary and suffering &c. was but a manifestation of his sufferings &c. in Adam. Likewise in his letters he condemned and reviled magistracy calling it an idol, alledging that a man might as well be a slave to his belly as to his own species: yet being examined he would acknowledge magistracy to be an ordinance of God in the world as marriage was, viz. no other magistracy but what was natural, as the father over his wife and children, and an hereditary prince over his subjects."

"After this they were brought before the court severally to be examined (divers of the elders being desired to be present) and because they had said they could give a good interpretation of all they had written, they were examined upon the particular passages, but the interpretation they gave being contradictory to their expressions, they were demanded then if they would retract those expressions, but that they refused, and said still that they should then deny the truth."

"One of the elders had been in the prison with them, and had conferred with them about their opinions, and they expressed their agreement with him in every point, so as he intended to move for favor for them, but when he heard their answer upon their examination, he found how he had been deluded by them, for they excel the jesuits in the act of equivocation, and regard not how false they speak to all other men's apprehensions, so they keep to the rules of their own meaning. Gorton maintained that the image of God wherein Adam