And though he might propound good ends to himselfe,
yet it no way justifies his doing it. Our maine
diference is in ye 5.& 9. article, concerning ye deviding
or holding of house and lands; the injoying whereof
some of your selves well know, was one spetiall motive,
amongst many other, to provoke us to goe. This
was thought so reasonable, yt when ye greatest of
you in adventure (whom we have much cause to respecte),
when he propounded conditions to us freely of his owne
accorde, he set this downe for one; a coppy wherof
we have sent unto you, with some additions then added
by us; which being liked on both sids, and a day set
for ye paimente of moneys, those in Holland paid in
theirs. After yt, Robert Cushman, Mr. [John]
Pierce, & Mr. [Christopher] Martine, brought them
into a better forme, & write them in a booke now extante;
and upon Robarts [Cushmans] shewing them and delivering
Mr. [William] Mullins a coppy thereof under his hand
(which we have), he payed in his money. And
we of Holland had never seen other before our coming
to Hamton, but only as one got for him selfe a private
coppy of them; upon sight wherof we manyfested uter
dislike, but had put of our estats & were ready to
come, and therfore was too late to rejecte ye vioage.
Judge therefore we beseech you indifferently of things,
and if a faulte have bene comited, lay it where it
is, & not upon us, who have more cause to stand for
ye one, then you have for ye other. We never
gave Robart Cushman comission to make any one article
for us, but only sent him to receive moneys upon articles
before agreed on, and to further ye provissions till
John Carver came, and to assiste him in it. Yet
since you conceive your selves wronged as well as
we, we thought meete to add a branch to ye end of
our 9. article, as will allmost heale that wound of
it selfe, which you conceive to be in it. But
that it may appeare to all men yt we are not lovers
of our selves only, but desire also ye good & inriching
of our freinds who have adventured your moneys with
our persons, we have added our last article to ye
rest, promising you againe by leters in ye behalfe
of the whole company, that if large profits should
not arise within ye 7. years, yt we will continue togeather
longer with you, if ye Lord give a blessing.—[Bradford
adds in a note, “It is well for them yt this
was not accepted."]—This we hope is sufficente
to satisfie any in this case, espetialy freinds, since
we are asured yt if the whole charge was devided into
4. parts, 3. of them will not stand upon it, nether
doe regarde it, &c. We are in shuch a streate
at presente, as we are forced to sell away 60li. worth
of our provissions to cleare ye Haven [Southampton]
& withall put our selves upon great extremities, scarce
haveing any butter, no oyle, not a sole to mend a
shoe, nor every man a sword to his side, wanting many
muskets, much armoure, etc. And yet we are
willing to expose our selves to shuch eminente dangers
as are like to insue, & trust to ye good providence
of God, rather then his name & truth should be evill
spoken of for us. Thus saluting all of you in
love, and beseeching ye Lord to give a blesing to
our endeavore, and keepe all our harts in ye bonds
of peace & love, we take leave & rest,
Yours,
&c