File:The story of New England, illustrated, being a narrative of the principal events from the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620 and of the Puritans in 1624 to the present time (1910) (14782868052).jpg

Identifier: storyofnewenglan01skel (find matches)
Title: The story of New England, illustrated, being a narrative of the principal events from the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620 and of the Puritans in 1624 to the present time
Year: 1910 (1910s)
Authors: Skelton, Edward Oliver
Subjects:
Publisher: Boston, Mass., E. O. Skelton
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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worlds history the philosophical fiction of a social com-pact was realized in practice, and that compact becameimmortal for the reason that it constituted the Pilgrims, abody politic, the first in America, and down through all thecoming ages will that compact be ever memorablCo On the opposite page is presented a photographic illus-tration of the page in Gov. Bradfords handwriting, in his his-tory, of the compact. It seems so wonderful to be able to look,after a lapse of about three centuries, on the handwriting of theauthor of that compact and know that it is so well preserved.The history of the final disposition of the compact, with allthe signatures of that blessed company attached, is not -positively known, but it is believed that it, with all the otherrecords, excepting those of the Church, of the Pilgrim colony,were stored in the attic of the County Court House atPlymouth, and that early in the nineteenth century, whenthat building was greatly damaged by fire, the debris was 21
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collected and without being examined thrown into the bay,and in addition to the compact it is presumed that thepatent or charter shared the same fate, although, singularly,the box in which it came is still preserved. Following the signing, the company chose John Carveras their first governor. William Brewster, although notordained, was chosen elder, the spiritual head of the Church,and Myles Standish was made captain and military com-mander. The morning following the signing of the compactthe first landing on American soil was made at Provincetownby Capt. Myles Standish and sixteen men. Exploration ofthe territory within a few miles, during which signs ofIndians were observed, convinced them of the undesirablenature of the location, and upon reporting it to the com-pany, it was decided to take a small shallop and cruise alongthe -coast; this was done and the first nights stop was at whatis now AVellfleet. Here they were attacked by Indians, whofled at the first fire from Standishs men

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