and country which
he describes. In his account of the motives which led the Puritans to
seek an asylum beyond seas, he says:--"The God of Heaven served, as it
were, a summons upon the spirits of his people in the English nation,
stirring up the spirits of thousands which never saw the faces of each
other, with a most unanimous inclination to leave all the pleasant
accommodations of their native country, and go over a terrible
ocean, into a more terrible desert, for the pure enjoyment of all his
ordinances. It is now reasonable that, before we pass any further,
the reasons of his undertaking should be more exactly made known
unto posterity, especially unto the posterity of those that were the
undertakers, lest they come at length to forget and neglect the true
interest of New England. Wherefore I shall now transcribe some of them
from a manuscript, wherein they were then tendered unto consideration:

"General Considerations for the Plantation of New England

"First, It will be a service unto the Church of great consequence, to
carry the Gospel unto those parts of the world, and raise a bulwark
against the kingdom of Antichrist, which the Jesuits labour to rear up
in all parts of the world.

"Secondly, All other Churches of Europe have been brought under
desolations; and it may be feared that the like judgments are coming
upon us; and who knows but God hath provided this place to be a refuge
for many whom he means to save out of the general destruction?

"Thirdly, The land grows weary of her inhabitants, insomuch that man,
which is the most precious of all creatures, is here more vile and
base than the earth he treads upon; children, neighbours, and friends,
especially the poor, are counted the greatest burdens, which, if things
were right, would be the chiefest of earthly blessings.

"Fourthly, We are grown to that intemperance in all excess of riot, as
no mean estate almost will suffice a man to keep sail with his equals,
and he that fails in it must live in scorn and contempt: hence it comes
to pass, that all arts and trades are carried in that deceitful manner
and unrighteous course, as it is almost impossible for a good upright
man to maintain his constant charge and live comfortably in them.

"Fifthly, The schools of learning and religion are so corrupted, as
(besides the unsupportable charge of education) most children, even the
best, wittiest, and of the fairest hopes, are perverted, corrupted,
and utterly