The Brook is a good friend of mine I suspect it has shared many reciprocal emotions with the dwellers. in this old country-house and that I am merely the latest of a long line to know it; thus pleasant thoughts come infectious to me of the cheer, the gladsomeness its friendship has communicated to my predecessors.

the

After it leaves the wood-land-and it has a right merry leap through the birch and hemlock woods-the Brook purls and meanders through the pasture and then slipping under highway (swiftly, as if to get away from the ugly concrete culvert) it races merrily through the meadow to the rushing River, which as tributary joins the Connecticut on the border of this same meadow. And the stately Connecticut, flowing on to the distant sea, carries on its bosom the clear crystals of my Brook.

This in short is the life history of the Brook; it is the history of all brooks and all friendships-this merging of self into the harmony of altruism.

On the old maps the Brook had a name, an ordinary name-one wonders why? Perhaps the settlers on this river highway between Canada and the provinces, busy clearing the forest, planting corn, and watching for marauding Indians, regarded life quite literally and named the stream for the man who built the first cabin on its bank. If he were a wise man he raised his roof-tree on the knoll high above for in the spring of the year the Brook goes mad-mad Ophelia and drowns itself under the grey willows; you hear it weeping even above the March winds.

as

No, I cannot rename it; if it is Ophelia in March why is it not Perdita when spring at last arrives? Perdita whose silvery laughter mocks me as she runs under the tender bud

But sweeter than the lid of Juno's eyes, Or Cytherea's breath."

A Brook will not harbour dull care or grumpiness of mind-in summer! In winter one takes from it what one reads into it, and as for the most part only the stout-hearted are afield in winter I think that the Brook gives them back stout cheer-making of their valiancy an order of merit, as it were.

In the winter-time I follow its course through the meadow: when I am on snowshoes its banks are pillowed by soft snow and its waters, dark and glassy, swirl between them past me; when I am on skis the banks are crusted and the stream is ice. Then I think of little Robert Louis and his faithful Alison, for "Water now is turned to stone

roots,

Nurse and I can walk upon;" and the Spirit of Childhood is with. me gleefully sliding on the ice. But there are other times when the thin snow on the stubble permits neither snowshoes nor skiis; then I foot it musingly along the banks, watching little icicles form about tree watching the waters which hardly move, they are so sluggish. I suddenly realize that the Brook is about to freeze and stand long minutes in the crisp air waiting: now there is an abatement of current, the water becomes just tremulous and in its depths is a gelatinous cloudiness which slowly spreads; the surface of the Brook wrinkles, stiffens, and is ice, and beneath the gelatine has set. Thus the Brook has frozen. But the wind, stinging my face, urges me back to the hearthside. Tomorrow I will come again.

The settlement of New Hampshire was first undertaken by Captain John Mason. The actual grant of this early New England province, like several of the other provinces, is difficult to unravel because the English Crown granted and re-granted the territory within which it lies. In every instance, however, John Mason figures as one of the grantees, and in three specific instances, at least, he is the sole grantee.

"There were three charters granted to Captain John Mason solely, and three to him associated with others. Those to him solely were Mariana, March 9, 1621-2; New Hampshire, November 7, 1629; New Hampshire and Masonia, April 22, 1635."(1)

Those in association with others were the province of Maine, August 10, 1622 and Laconia, November 17, 1629. These two grants were made to Mason and Gorges, jointly. On November 3, 1631, the Crown also made the grant of Piscataqua Mason and seven other proprietors.

to

With the exceptions of Mariana and Maine, every one of the above grants falls wholly or partially within the present confines of the state of New Hampshire. Evidently, however, of the four grants relating to the present boundaries of New Hampshire, none save the grant of New Hampshire, November 7, 1629, could stand the test of time for it is related that in (2) "the case of His Majesty's Province of New Hampshire, upon two appeals relating to the boundaries between that Province and the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, to be heard before the Right-Honorable, the Lords of the Committee of His Majesty's Most Honorable Privy-Council, for hearing appeals from the Plantations, at

(1) Dean. J. W. Capt. John Mason.
(2) N. H. Prov. Fapers, Vol. I, p. 28.
(3) N. H. Prov. Papers, Vol. I, p. 22,

the Council Chamber at Whitehall, 6th of February, 1637, and 20th of July, 1738....the only grant referred to and relied on by the parties in controversy," so far as New Hampshire was concerned, "was that to Captain Mason, November 7, 1629; ......the inference is, that all the other grants had failed, through some defect, informality, or want of compliance with conditions." It is therefore plain that the so-called Laconia grant, 1629, and the Masonia grant, 1635, the two most important grants next to the New Hampshire grant of November 7, 1629, which appertain to the first settlement of the province of New Hampshire, were considered entirely void less than a decade after the patent was issued.

According to the principal grant, therefore, on which the Mason heirs later relied to prove prove successfully their ownership of the land contained within the present boundaries of the state of New Hampshire, the (3) "Indenture witnesseth that the said President and Council (of Plymouth) of their free and mutual consent, as well to the end, that all their lands, woods, lakes, rivers, waters, islands, and fishing, with all the traffic, profits and commodities whatsoever, to them or any of them belonging, and hereafter in these presents mentioned, may be wholly and entirely invested, appropriated, served and settled in and upon the said Captain John Mason, his heirs and assigns forever, as for divers special services for the advancement of the said Plantation, and other good and sufficient causes and considerations, them especially, thereunto moving, have given, granted, bargained, sold, assigned, aliened, signed, aliened, set over, enfeoffed,

to

and confirmed, and by these presents do give, grant, bargain, sell, assign, aliene, set over, enfeoff and confirm unto the said Captain John Mason, his heirs and assigns, all that part of the mainland in New England, lying upon the sea-coast, beginning from the middle part of the Merrimack river, and from thence to proceed northwards along the sea-coast Piscataqua river, and so forwards up within the said river and to the furtherest head thereof, and from thence northwestward, until three score miles be finished from the first entrance of the Piscataqua river; also from Merrimack through the said river and to the furtherest head thereof, and so forwards up into the lands westwards, until three score miles be finished; and from thence to cross over land to the three score miles end accompted from Piscataqua river, together with all islands and isletts within five leagues distance of the premises, and abuting upon the

same,

This rather indefinite grant was to include all the useful privileges and opportunities that colonial patents involved, with special reference to (4) "all havens, ports, rivers, mines, minerals, pearls, precious stones, woods, quarries, marshes, fishings, huntings, hawkings, fowlings, and other commodities and hereditaments whatsoever." The only economic reservation stipulated by the Council was to the effect that, in case gold or silver were discovered, the Crown should be entitled to one-fifth of the ore mined.

Careful provision was made for the government of the province for it was distinctly stated that (5) "the said Captain John Mason doth further covenant for him, his heirs and assigns, that he will establish such government in the said portion of lands and islands granted unto him, and the

(4) N. H. Prov. Papers, Vol. I, p. 23.
(5) N. H. Prov. Papers, Vol. I, p. 25.
(6) N, H. Prov. Papers, Vol. I, p. 56.

same will from time continue, as shall be agreeable, as near as may be, to the laws and customs of the realm of England; and if he shall be charged at any time to have neglected his duty therein, that then he will reform the same, according to the discretion of the President and Council, or, in default thereof, it shall be lawful for any of the aggrieved inhabitants or planters, being tenants upon the said lands, to appeal to the chief court of justice, of the said justice, of the said President and Council." It later developed that Mason failed to provide a stable and satisfactory government with the result that the scattered settlers were compelled to appeal to Massachusetts Bay for protection and a definite form of government.

The records of this colonial province disclose the fact that, aside from the disputed claim to the territory made by Massachusetts Bay, title to the New Hampshire colony, in part, at least, was claimed by Rev. John Wheelwright and his followers. It was alleged that on May 17, 1629, a treaty and deed was drawn up between several Indian tribes and the Wheelwright company which gave most of the territory now included in the state to these exiles from Massachusetts Bay Colony.

This grant by (6) "wee the Sagamores of Penacook, Pentucket, Squamsquot and Nuchawanick," however, is considered by the more reliable authorities to have been a forgery. Certain it is that the document never was seriously considered as giving the Wheelwright malcontents any jurisdiction over the province.

II

THE FOUR SETTLEMENTS The first settlement in this ill-defined Masonian area was undoubtedly made at Strawberry Bank which later was to take its present name of Ports

mouth. The date of actual settlement is a bit uncertain but it is now historically asserted to have been in 1623, less than three years after the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth. (7) "Some merchants and other gentlemen in the West of England, belonging to the cities of Exeter, Bristol, Shrewsbury etc. made

some attempt of beginning a plantation in some place about Piscataqua river about the year 1623." The settlement did not flourish, however, to any considerable extent during the next few years for in 1631 only three houses had been built. In 1631 Captain Mason sent over agents and supplies. A man named Chadbourne at this time erected the Great House, as it was called, and another gentleman named Williams was designated to take charge of the salt works which were developed following the arrival of the men despatched by the proprietor. Such growth had OCcurred by 1633 that need was felt for the establishment of some kind of government. Accordingly Williams was chosen governor. The records show that he was still in office in 1638, being re-elected annually by vote of the inhabitants. These dates must be taken on faith, however, for the original records were destroyed by fire in 1652. A court record of 1643, however, proves that the Williams governorship was a reality and that the combination was entered into at an early period following the original. settlement of the place.

The first church was built in 1640. Religious harmony prevailed in the small settlement up to this date and the erection of the house of worship was the result of the combined efforts of all the inhabitants of the first settlement, for it was noted(8) "how the inhabitants of Strawberry Bank having of their free and voluntary minds, and good will, given and granted sev

(7) N. H. Prov. Papers, Vol. I, p. 108.
(8) N. H. Prov. Papers I, p. 111.
N. H. Prov. Papers, I, p. 119.

(9)

eral sums of money for the building and founding of a parsonage house with a chapple thereunto united, did grant fifty acres of land to be annexed thereunto as a Glebe land belonging to the said parsonage, and all was put into the hands of two men, viz., Thomas Walford and Henry Sherburne, church wardens."

Some time during the year 1623 it is believed Edward and William Hilton and Thomas Roberts, with their families settled at Wecohannet, which a few years later was to be known as Dover. No record exists to show that any additional settlers arrived in Dover prior to 1631. Two new names, Edward Colcott and Captain Thomas Wiggins, were added to the town list at this time. It is to be presumed, however, that more settlers had arrived for it was necessary to have a governor in 1631 and the office was filled by Captain Wiggins. The governor made a trip to England in 1632 and returned the following year with a large number of colonists. From this date, therefore, the success of the Dover settlement was assured.

The inhabitants of Dover anticipated their neighbors at Portsmouth in the matter of building a church for in 16349) "they built a meeting house, which was afterwards surrounded with an entrenchment and flankerts." This first church erected in the province of New Hampshire remained intact until Major Richard Waldron constructed a new edifice in 1653. Captain Wiggins had taken care to bring over a minister, the Rev. William Leveredge, on his return from England in 1633. Conditions could not have been very prosperous in the little town, however, for in 1635 the reverend gentleman was compelled to forsake his parish "for want of adequate support."

It proved an unfortunate incident in the history of the little town for