Bacon's Rebellion

and had rather wee should be murder’d and our ghosts sent to our
Slaughter’d country-men by their actings, than wee live to hinder them
of their Interest with the heathen, and preserve the remaining part
of our Fellow Subjects from their crueltyes. Now then wee must
bee forced to turne our swords to our owne defence, or expose our-
selves to their Mercyes, or Fortune of the woodes, whilest his majes-
tyes country here lyes in Bloode and Wasting (like a candle) at both
ends. How Incapable wee may be made (if wee should proceede)
through Sicknesse, want of Provisions, Slaughter, wounds lesse or more, none of us is void of the Sense hereof.

      Therefore while wee are sound at heart, unwearyed and not
receiving damage by the fate of Warr, lett us descend to know the
reasons why such Proceedings are used against us, That those whome
they have raised for their Defence, to Preserve them against the
Fury of the Heathen, they should thus seeke to Destroy, and to
Betray our Lives whome they raised to Preserve theirs. If ever
such Treachery was heard of, such wickednesse and inhumanity
(and call all the former ages to Witnesse) and if any, that they suf-
fered in like nature as wee are like by the sword and Ruines of warr.

      But they are all damn’d Cowards, and you shall see they will
not dare to meete us in the Field to try the Justnesse of our cause
and soe wee will downe to them etc.

    To which they all cry’d “Amen, amen, wee are all ready
and will rather die in the Field than be hang’d like Roges, or
Perish in the woods, expos’d to the Favours of the mercylesse
Indians.”

      How unhappy, unsuccessfull and how fatale this avocation
prov’d the consequence will but too Plainly Shewe. For
Bacon (then the hopes of the People) was just upon the Point
of marching out, and nothing could have call’d him back, or
turn’d the sword of a civil warr into the heart and bowels of
the country but soe ill-tymed a Project as this Prov’d.

      And although it is asserted by some that at this tyme there
was a Paper publickly read to the People that the Governor
designed onely to raise a Partie to goe out against the Indians
and not against Bacon offering not onely their Estates, But by
a solemne oath to bind and confirme this Pretention to the
People, yet this did noe feates with the People, or tooke any
other impression on them, save onely that it still more con-
firmed that Bacons cause was not onely as Good as the Gov-
ernors (when their Pretensions were now equally ag’t the In-