Letter on Indian Affairs (Fragment)

Gentlemen,

Our counsel now sitting at Boston received yours dated the            of this instant April 1653 and therein take notice of your readiness to give timely notice to the English about you and to this colony also of such intelligence that comes to you of the Dutch and Indians Combining together in a mischievous plot to cut off the English in the several colonies.  We are remote from them and have heard several reports besides what we have heard from you, all which gives just grounds of1 suspicion.2 Your care for the preservation of the English nation and of us with yourselves we take kindly and thankfully. For your request that we would spare you two or three small field pieces, the last stands thus with us at present, that we have not enough for our own use.3 Not further but wishing you still to keep due watches amongst you, least you may be surprised and to gain such further intelligence as may tend to your own and the English’s safety.

We, the counsel, of this committee wealth having heard from several parts the same rumors concerning the Dutch conspiring with the Indians to do us mischief) that we heard from yourselves.  We are suspicious of such designs but have no certainty of any things.  We have therefore taken a speedy course to understand the truth of all these things which if it can be attained we shall act according as God shall please to direct us which shortly you may hear of .  Touching your motion of field pieces, we have not enough for own use.  This is all present

Cataloguing:  27a

• 1. The words hostility and jealousy are crossed out.
• 2. The phrase that Satan and his instrument are at work is crossed out.
• 3. The following is crossed out in the original Should there be any occasion and that we must needs cast some of those we have into better molds then they are now in before we can use them had we enough for or own use in such times of danger for the preservation of any English we hope we should not be wanting to supply with what in a way of prudence we might spare with Respect to or own safety