“Hereupon one of his countrymen stood up:  Sir, said he, leave it not for us, for you may be sensible we have reason to sentence them to the gallows:  besides, Sir, this fellow, Will Atkins, and the two others, proposed to us, that we might murder you all in your sleep, which we could not consent to:  but knowing their inability, and your vigilance, we did not think fit to discover it before now.

“How, Signor, said I, do you hear what is alledged against you?  What can you say to justify so horrid an action, as to murder us in cold blood? So far, Sir, was the wretch from denying it, that he swore, damn him but he would do it still.  But what have we done to you, Seignor Atkins, said I, or what will you gain by killing us?  What shall we do to prevent you?  Must we kill you, or you kill us?  Why will you Seignor Atkins, said I, smiling, put us to such an unhappy dilemma, such a fatal necessity? But so great a rage did my scoffing and yet severe jest put him into, that he was going to fly at me and undoubtedly had attempted to kill me if he had been possessed of weapons, and had not been prevented by three Spaniards.  This unparalleled and villainous carriage, made us seriously consider what was to be done.  The two Englishmen and the Spaniard, who had saved the poor Indian’s life, mightily petitioned me to hang one of them, for an example to the others, which should be him that had twice attempted to commit murder with his hatchet, it being at that time thought impossible the poor slave should recover.  But they could never gain my consent to put him to death, for the reasons above mentioned, since it was an Englishman (even yourself) who was my deliverer; and as merciful counsels are most prevailing when earnestly pressed, so I got them to be of the same opinion as to clemency.  But to prevent them doing us any farther mischief; we all agreed, that they should have no weapons, as sword, gun, powder, or shot, but be expelled from the society, to live as they pleased by themselves; that neither the two Englishmen, nor the rest of the Spaniards, should have conversation with them upon any account whatsoever; that they should be kept from coming within a certain distance of our castle; and if they dared to offer us any violence, either by spoiling, burning, killing, or destroying any of the corn, plantings, buildings, fences, or cattle, belonging to the society, we would shoot them as freely as we would do beasts of prey, in whatsoever places we should find them.

“This sentence seemed very just to all but themselves; when, like a merciful judge, I called out to the two honest Englishmen, saying, You must consider they ought not to be starved neither:  and since it will be some time before they can raise corn and cattle of their own, let us give them some corn to last them eight months, and for seed to sow, by which time they’ll raise some for themselves; let us also bestow upon