Robart Cushman, who is known (though a good man & of spetiall abilities in his kind, yet) most unfitt to deale for other by reason of his singularitie, and too great indifferancie for any conditions, and for (to speak truly) that we have had nothing from him but termes & presumptions.  The other, yt we have so much relyed, by implicite faith as it were, upon generalities, without seeing ye perticuler course & means for so waghtie an affaire set down unto us.  For shiping, Mr. Weston, it should seeme, is set upon hireing, which yet I wish he may presently effecte; but I see litle hope of help from hence if so it be.  Of Mr. [Thomas] Brewer, you know what to expecte.  I doe not thinke Mr. Pickering will ingage, excepte in ye course of buying [ships?] in former letters specified.  Aboute ye conditions, you have our reason for our judgments of what is agreed.  And let this spetially be borne in minde, yt the greatest pane of ye Collonie is like to be imployed constantly, not upon dressing they perticuler land & building houses, but upon fishing, trading, &c.  So as ye land & house will be but a trifell for advantage to ye adventurers, and yet the devission of it a great discouragmente to ye planters, who would with singuler care make it comfortable with borowed houres from their sleep.  The same consideration of comone imploymente constantly by the most is a good reason not to have ye 2, daies in a week denyed ye few planters for private use, which yet is subordinate to comone good.  Consider also how much unfite that you & your liks must serve a new prentishipe of 7. years, and not a daies freedome from taske.  Send me word what persons are to goe, who of usefull faculties, & how many, & perticulerly of every thing.  I know you wante not a minde.  I am sorie you have not been at London all this while, but ye provissions could not want you.  Time will suffer me to write no more; fare, you & yours well allways in ye Lord, in whom I rest. 
                                   Yours to use,
                                             John’ Robinson.

VII
the letter of the planters to the
merchant adventurers (from Southampton)

Aug. 3.  Ano. 1620.

Beloved freinds, sory we are that ther should be occasion of writing at all unto you, partly because we ever expected to see ye most of you hear, but espetially because ther should any difference at all be conceived betweene us.  But seing it faleth out that we cannot conferr togeather, we thinke it meete (though brefly) to show you ye just cause & reason of our differing from those articles last made by Robert Cushman, without our comission or knowledg.