with a glass of wine. This is all we
ascertained there. The minister of the place goes there morning and
evening to make prayer, and has charge over them; besides him, the
students are under tutors or masters.[426] Our visit was soon over,
and we left them to go and look at the land about there. We found the
place beautifully situated on a large plain, more than eight miles
square, with a fine stream in the middle of it, capable of bearing
heavily laden vessels. As regards the fertility of the soil, we
consider the poorest in New York superior to the best here. As we were
tired, we took a mouthful to eat, and left. We passed by the printing
office, but there was nobody in it; the paper sash however being
broken, we looked in, and saw two presses with six or eight cases of
type. There is not much work done there. Our printing office is well
worth two of it, and even more.[427] We went back to Charlestown,
where, after waiting a little, we crossed over about three o'clock. On
our way home our skipper, John Foy, met us; we spoke to him, and in
our respective names, paid him the money for our passage, six pounds
each. He wished to give us a bill of it, but we told him it was
unnecessary, as we were people of good confidence. I spoke to my
comrade, and we went out with him, and presented him with a glass of
wine. His mate came to him there, who looked more like a merchant than
a seaman, a young man and no sailor. We inquired how long our
departure would be delayed, and, as we understood him, it would be the
last of the coming week. That was annoying to us. Indeed, we have
found the English the same everywhere, doing nothing but lying and
cheating, if it but serves their interest. Being in the house again,
Ephraim's brother-in-law, Mr. De Key, and his wife made us a visit.

[Footnote 425: The first building of Harvard College, the building
"thought by some to be too gorgeous for a Wilderness, and yet too mean
in others apprehensions for a Colledg" (Johnson, _Wonder-Working
Providence_, p. 201), had partly tumbled down in 1677. The building
now visited was the "New College," the second Harvard Hall, built with
difficulty 1672-1682 and destroyed by fire in 1764. Edward Randolph,
in a report of October 12, 1676, writes: "New-colledge, built at the
publick charge, is a fair pile of brick building covered with tiles,
by reason of the late Indian warre not yet finished. It contains 20
chambers for students, two in a chamber; a larg