William Hawthorne, or Hathorne (the spelling was either way, but the pronunciation the same in both), was a passenger on board the "Arbella," and disembarked in Boston, in 1630, when he was twenty-three years of age. While still a resident of Dorchester, and before he had entered upon his thirtieth year, he twice acted as Representative; and after his removal to Salem, in 1637, he filled the position of Speaker during seven or eight years. His parliamentary activity seems to have been suspended for one year,1643, but in 1644 he was again Speaker and Deputy, and remained so until 1661, when he was fifty-four years old. Some echoes of his eloquence have come down to posterity; and it must have been of a sturdy and trenchant sort, to hold the ears of Puritan law-givers so long. Unquestionably, this William Hawthorne was a man of restless energy, as well as unusual powers of mind. He put his vigorous hand to every improvement and enterprise that was going forward in the new settlement; he cleared. the woods, he fought the Indians and treated with them, he laid plans for the creation of a great Fur Company, he led adventurous expeditions into the untrodden wilderness, the latest being made in his seventieth year, along with Captains Sill and Waldron; and in the same year, in his capacity as Magistrate, he caused the execution of one John Flint, for the crime of shooting an Indian. Justice, with him, does not seem to have been tempered with mercy. Quakers received the lash at his command, and itinerant preachers and vagabonds were happy if they escaped with the stocks or the pillory. He was Commissioner of Marriages in 1657; in 1681, a gray-headed old man, he led the opposition against Randolph. It was in this year, moreover, that he died, full of years and honors; for his life had been as successful as it was vigorous and versatile. There was scarcely any field of activity open to him, in which he had not exerted himself. Even religion received the benefit of his zeal and eloquence, as may appear from this passage in a letter written by Miss Elizabeth Hawthorne to her brother: "Perhaps you never heard that our earliest peculiar ancestor, whose remembrance you have made permanent in the Introduction to the 'Scarlet Letter,' preached, besides all his other great doings. Taylor, the minister at Manchester, a man addicted to antiquarian pursuits, called to ask me if I knew anything about it. He said he thought it possible I might have paid some attention to my ancestry, and told me that this old Major, with about a dozen others, whose names he mentioned, used to go by turns to Manchester to preach. He had the information from Mr. Felt," who, it may be observed, was the author of "The Annals of Salem," a painstaking work containing much curious information about the respectable old town and its inhabitants. - Mr. But the chief testimony in support of Major Hawthorne's claims to statesmanship and a prominent position among his fellow-colonists, is the document which he wrote, under an assumed name, to Mr. Secretary Morrice, in the year 1666, at the age of fifty-nine. One cannot read it, and note the turns of argument and expression, without feeling that he has gained some insight into the character of its author. It is subtle, ingenious, politic, and audacious; indicating a keen understanding of human nature on the writer's part, as well as a wise and comprehensive grasp of the whole situation as between the Colonists and the King. The occasional ambiguity of the language calls to mind the speech which Scott puts into the mouth of Oliver Cromwell, in one of his romances; it seems to be an intentional ambiguity, as of an intrepid and resolute man, who yet prefers to resort to cunning and policy rather than to open defiance, when the former may gain his end. What Secretary Morrice thought of this communication is not known; but, at all events, Governor Bellingham and Major Hawthorne did not go to London at the King's command. Miss Hawthorne, in writing of this document, says:— "Mr. Palfrey told Mr. Hawthorne that he felt certain the memorable letter referring to the order from England for Governor Bellingham and Major William Hathorne to repair thither, was written by our aforesaid ancestor.' 'The letter,' he adds,' was a very bold and able one, controverting the propriety of the measure above indicated.' It was a greater honor to defy a king than to receive from him such nobility as so many great families owed to Charles Second. I cannot remember the time when I had not heard that the King sent for our forefather, William Hathorne, to come to England, and that he refused to go. And I have always been pleased when monarchs have met with opposition." The document is endorsed in Nathaniel Hawthorne's handwriting as follows: "Copy of a letter, supposed to have been written by Major William Hawthorne, of Massachusetts, defending that Colony against the accusations of the Commission of Charles II., and excusing the General Court for declining to send over Governor Bellingham and himself, in compliance with the King's orders. (From the State Paper Office, London. Rec'd July 24, 1856.)" I give it below in full, with the alteration only of the spelling. Account of the Massachusetts Transaction. From the MASSACHUSETTS COLONY IN NEW ENGLAND, SECRETARY MORRICE, RIGHT HONORABLE: That good character from sundry hands received of you, doth embolden to give you the trouble of these following lines, although not so meetly digested and disposed of as becomes your dignity and honor, yet hoping it may be a service to his Majesty, I shall venture the bearing of your just censure for my folly and ignorance, being here resident for some years past, and diligently observing the guise and temper of all sorts of people, I shall briefly give you this following account. And whereas, by a copy of a signification that came to your hands of the Governor and Magistrates of this place (as I am informed) referring to their actings with the Commissioners sent over to them by his Majesty the last year, they are charged with denying his Majesty's jurisdiction over them, the account of their actings with the said Commission being by the General Court at large sent over to England, and (as it is here said) lies on file with my Lord Chancellor, I shall not now insist on the particulars thereof; yet this I assuredly know, that the Commission had more kindness and respect shown them by the people and Government of this place, than from any other,nay, I may truly say than from all the rest of his Majesty's Colonies in New England. This Colony being for their entertainment, and raising of soldiers for their assistance in reducing the Manhattoes, at a very considerable charge, and, would Colonel Cartwright speak his conscience, he very well knows it was the countenance this Colony gave them, and the assistance of their messengers in treating with the Dutch, that did greatly alleviate that undertaking. And as to that charge of denying the King his jurisdiction over them, I shall briefly acquaint your Honour with the more general answer of the people thereto, viz. They thus say, that they left their native Country and dear relations there, not with any dislike of his Majesty then reigning, or of monarchical power, for they esteem it the best of Governments, and the laws of the land they highly honor and esteem; but it was, that they might, without offence to any, worship the Lord according to His own |