invited and sent for Mr. Charles Chansey,1 a reverend, godly, and very larned man, intending upon triall to chose him pastor of the church hear, for the more comfortable performance of the ministrie with Mr. John Reinor, the teacher of the same. But ther fell

1 Mr. Chancey came to them in the year 1638, and staid till the later part of this year 1641. — Bradford.

Charles Chauncy (1592-1672) was born at Yardley-Bury, Hertfordshire, took his degree of A.M. at Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1617, and held for a time the professorship of Greek. In 1627 he became vicar of Ware in his native county. Charges were brought against him (Mass. Hist. Soc. Proceedings, XIII. 337), but, apparently, he made his peace with his superiors. Again as a result of his hasty temper and ill-considered utterances, he got into trouble, in consequence of which he was cast into prison. He then showed weakness, and published a recantation, of which he subsequently repented. Convinced at last of the impossibility of holding the views he did and retaining a pulpit in the Established Church, he emigrated to New England. Landing at Boston he was invited to Plymouth. Winthrop describes him as "a great scholar, and a godly man." His controversial habits, "being an active man and very vehement," led to much disturbance.

Harvard College was established by the General Court of Massachusetts Bay at Cambridge in 1637. Chauncy was at New Plymouth in the following years, and the move in behalf of a more advanced education found its echo there. In a letter to Winthrop, October 10, 1640, Winslow wrote:

"I suppose you haue heard what was the issue of the day of humiliacion concerning the eleccion of Mr. Chancey. But things are like still to goe ill, for on the 2d day of this weeke a močon was made by Mr. Paddy and some that inordinately cleaue to him for his setling at Jones river, some three miles from Plimouth, who purposeth there to lay the foundačon of an Academy, and reade the arts to some that are fitt for that purpose, that so they may also haue use of his gifts. I manifested my dislike to the Gouvernour who still pressed his gifts, but I told him they must still retaine his errors, etc. with his gifts, which were like to weaken if not destroy both the Congregacions of Plymouth and Duxburrow, being seated in the midst equally between both, having already manifested his judgement to be more rigid then any Separatist I ever read or knew, he holding it lawfull (nay a duty for ought I heare) to censure any that shall oppose the major part of the Church, whether it be in eleccion of officers or receiving in or casting out of members if they will not be convicted and yield, by which meanes ten or more may be cast out to receiue in one. But what will be the issue of these things the Lord onely knoweth. I feare the Lord hath a quarrell with us, and the rather because Mr. Bradford and Mr. Reyner are both drawn to yield to the mocion which is so contrary in my apprehension to the peace of the Churches, especially when I consider the confidence or rather selfewillednes of the man. Truly Sir, I

out some differance aboute baptising, he holding it ought only to be by diping, and putting the whole body under water, and that sprinkling was unlawfull. The church yeelded that imersion, or dipping, was lawfull, but in this could countrie not so conveniente. But they could not nor durst not yeeld to him in this, that sprinkling (which all the churches of Christ doe for the most parte use at this day) was unlawfull, and an humane invention, as the same was prest; but they were willing to yeeld to him as farr as they could, and to the utmost; and were contented to suffer him to practise as he was perswaded; and when he came to minister that ordnance, he might so doe it to any that did desire it in that way, provided he could peacably suffer Mr. Reinor, and shuch as desired to have theirs other wise baptised by him, by sprinkling or powering on of water upon them; so as ther might be no disturbance in the church hereaboute. But he said he could not yeeld therunto. Upon which the church procured some other ministers to dispute the pointe with him publikly; as Mr. Ralfe Partrich, of Duxberie,1 conceiue if you conceale how you came by your informacion, and giue your Christian advice to Mr. Bradford spedily about it, you may be the instrument of much good; for my self however I am ready to demand a dismission from them, yet I simpathise with them and desire their welfare as much as ever, and for me to oppose, he hath such a party as I might rather expect dismission with a censure then otherwise." 4 Mass. Hist. Colllections, vi. 169. The letter indicated that Chauncy was distrusted by Winslow, but had the support of Bradford. Nothing came of the proposed Academy, and the favorers were probably those who received, in November, 1640, “meddowing in the North Meddow by Joanes Riuer," viz. — John Doane, Thomas Willett, John Reyner, Charles Chauncy, Stephen Hopkins, Nathaniel Souther, Phineas Pratt and William Paddy. Plymouth Col. Rec., 1. 166.

1 Partridge arrived at Boston, November 17, 1636, and was settled over the church at Duxbury, as its first minister, in the following year. Sewall notes the death on May 15, 1700, of John Wadsworth, of Duxbury. "I used to be much refreshed with his company when I went to Plimouth; and was so this last time. He gave me an account of the beginning of their Town, and of his Fathers going over to fetch Mr. Partridge." Diary, 11. 15. Savage, Genealogical Dictionary, gives Christopher Wadsworth as in Duxbury as early as 1632, and as having a son John, born in 1638. Mather in his Magnalia, Book III, ch. xi., writes of Partridge: "There was one singular instance of a weaned spirit, whereby he signalized himself unto the Churches

who did it sundrie times, very ablie and sufficently, as allso some other ministers within this govermente. But he was not satisfied; so the church sent to many other churches to crave their help and advise in [241] this mater, and, with his will and consente, sent them his arguments writen under his owne hand. They sente them to the church at Boston in the Bay of Massachusets, to be comunicated with other churches ther. Also they sent the same to the churches of Conightecutt and New-Haven, with sundrie others; and received very able and sufficent answers, as they conceived, from them and their larned ministers, who all concluded against him.' But him selfe was not satisfied therwith. Their answers are

of God. That was this: there was a time when most of the ministers in the colony of Plymouth left the colony, upon the discouragement which the want of a competent maintenance among the needy and froward inhabitants gave unto them. Nevertheless Mr. Partridge was, notwithstanding the paucity and the poverty of his congregation, so afraid of being any thing that looked like a bird wandring from his nest, that he remained with his poor people till he took wing to become a bird of paradise, along with the winged Seraphim of heaven." The foregoing is Mather's characteristic enlargement of what Morton wrote in New-Englands Memoriall, under the year 1658, when "Mr. Ralph Partridge died in a good old Age, having for the space of fourty years dispensed the word of God with very little impediment by sickness: His pious and blameless life became very advantagious to his Doctrine; he was much honoured and loved by all that conversed with him. He was of a sound and solid judgement in the main Truths of Jesus Christ, and very able in Disputation to defend them; he was very singular in this, That notwithstanding the pausity and poverty of his Flock, he continued in his Work amongst them to the end of his life. He went to his grave in peace, as a shock of Corn fully ripe, and was honourably buried at Duxbury." Morton also prints some funeral verses, probably of his own composition. Partridge attended the Synod of 1647, assembled at Cambridge, the only member from Plymouth, and probably not delegated by the church. Winsor, History of Duxbury, 171–178. His youngest daughter, Elizabeth, married, May 11, 1643, Thomas Thacher, a pupil of Charles Chauncy, and the successor of Samuel Newman at Weymouth.

1 So far as is known none of these papers have been preserved in manuscript. In the Cambridge Synod of 1662 the attitude taken by the majority towards the question of baptism did not satisfy Chauncy, and he prepared a tract Anti-Synodalia Scripta Americana, which first appeared in England in that year. See Brinley Library Catalogue, 845. There is no reason to believe that Chauncy had modified his views on the disputed point in the interval.