In
Col Henchman's to me (Dated
Boſton July 30. 1756)
is y.
e following Paragraph "I was deſired Some time since
to write to you from The Gentlemen the
Com̅iſsrs for the Indian Affairs, Which I unhappily forgot & Omitted — but now inform
you that they deſire you would write to them of the Circumſtan‐
ces of The two Children with you and what you apprehend
may be the Beſt way to promote their Inſtruction — and
the Good Ends propos'd by you & Others in this Important
Affair, and the Methods you think to go in, in
order to ac‐
compliſh it. And if they Like the Scheme &c they will doubt‐
leſs do what they can out of the Fund in their Hands to
Encourage it — If
you will write to the
Hon.le Andrew Oliver Es[gap: tear][guess: q.]
r who is Treaſurer to
the Com̅iſsrs he wil
com̅unicate it in order
to their meeting & doing what they Shall Eſteem
Neceſsary
for them in the Affair." —
The Conſiderations Moving Me to
^it^ were — The obligations lying upon
N– England — & Their publick Guilt
for
^on accot of^
paſt
Neglect — which, I cant
but
underſtand
y.e Judgements of God
^think God has been in a very Eſpecial manner pointing at &
Teſtifying
againſt^ in permitting the Savages from
year to year to make Such Ravages,
and Spoil of us,
^&c^
as pointing
at in a very Eſpecial manner. — The many and great Advan‐
tages in ſending to them by their own Children — againſt whom
they have No Such Prejudices as are conſtantly found to be a mighty
Impediment in the way
^to the ſucceſs^ of an Engliſh
Miſsion among them —
Their children can talk their Language — know
their Cuſtoms — can
live &
fair as they do — no Trouble nor charge to procure &
Support Interpreters — and
will give that
^herein we ſhall do that^ which will be to
them the moſt convincing Proofs &
Demonſstrations of the ſin‐
cerity of Our Intentions —
and
^they^ be under the beſt Advantage
to counteract Jesuits — Attack their Reſpective Notions in y
e
Engliſh
Intreſt. — &c
&c
&c And I was not a little Encoura
‐ged in the Affair by the Succeſs of
Some
^the^ Endeavors I
[illegible]'d
by the Aſsiſtance of the
Hon le
Com̅iſsrs in y.
e Education of
Samſon Occom who has been useful to them beyond what
could have been Reaſonably expected of an Engliſh man.
& wthout
^leſs than half of y.e Expence^ Soon after I Sent for these Boys I viſited
M.r Joshua More of
Manſfield
^& invited him^ to
I[illegible] devote a part
of his large Eſtate to ſuch a
Purpose he was pleaſd with the proposal and bought a Small
Tenement in the Center of this Place
for which he gave £500
^[left]O.
Ten.r^ and made a Deed of it to
Coll.
Eliſha Williams Esq.r The Rev.
d
Meſs
rs
Sam.l
Moſely
Benjamin Pomeroy
&
Myſelf for the
Foundation use & Support of a
Charity School for ſuch
a purpose
^forever^ — and we convenanted with him & his Heirs to
Improve that and all other Donations
^made
to ſ.d
ſchool^ for that Purpose —
at which School we proposed
they Sho
d be inſtructed
in Read
g Writing &
^ſuch
woſe parts &
diſpoſns as ſhod invite us to it. in^ all Liberal Arts & Sciences &
Eſpecially
in y
e
Knowledg and Practiſe of Chriſtianity and be fitted
for y.
e Gospel minſtry
in Such of them whose parts and
Diſpoſitions
ſhod Invite us to it. under the Conduct of the
moſt Learned & Godly Maſter we can obtain — and y
t in this School they be treated in all Reſpects as Engliſh
Schollars excepting
^with reſpect to^ their Lodging & Some things in which
Prudence Shall
ld dictate, a conformity to
their ow
^n^ Nation —
to be Expedient — we ha' got ſubſcript
ns for about £500 lawfull
money, towards a Fund for the Support of a maſter —
^& think yt^ £1000
we sup‐
pose
will be Sufft with the Improvement of
M.r More's Grant and ſuch
Donations
^Gifts^ as we may reaſonably Expect
upon so great a Road as this if the thing
^deſign^
Shall
proſper.
^will be ſufficicient^ but we are
Since
adviſed by Gentlemen
Learned in the Law y.
t Some kind of Incorporation by Civil authority is
Neceſsary. & by
[illegible] Advice of his Hon.
r our Late
Gov.r Woolcott,
^& others^ we have
conſulted
y
e
Hon
le
Wm Smith Esq.r of
N. York who Adviſes
y.
t an
Incorporation cant be had from a Corporation
as our
Government is but proposes two methods
^for the remidying the Difficulty among ourſelves^ 1. by a Delagation of y.
e
Exerciſe of part of
the
ir
[illegible][guess: Original]] Power
^of [illegible]
Gov.r
& Company.^ . or 2. by two ſets of Truſtees
y.
e one to have
y
e fee of y.
e Land by Deed and to Declare their Truſt by Deed to another
Lot after the manner that Lands are apropriated to y.
e use of Ch-hs
in the Southern Colonies. but adviſes that an Incorporation from y
e Crown
^if it can be had^ is much more Eligeble. and we have conſidered
y.
e
Diſtemp
-er'd
& Divided Sentiments of the preſent Day with reſpect to Religious
matters — & that Either of the two former methods proposed
^if y.[illegible] can be come into^ will
not be ſo likely to Invite charitable Donations as ſome
found
n that is more known and more Certain
^&
yt if this can be obtaind there is a proſpect of a n.o of [illegible] Donations ſoon^ and that there are ſuch
political as well as Religious Reaſons as we perſwade
ourſelves
will Induce
his Majeſty to incorporate us, if his Ear can be had.
Accordingly we have
provided meterials for that Purpose and ſent
them to y
e Care of the Rev.
d
Preſid.t Burr, which we suppose are
gone ſome weeks ago — The Duplicate to which I have Sent to
y.
e Care of
Coll. Henchman
Esq.
r
of Boſton &c
The education of these boys when they came to me was, I think
much to y.
e
Hon
r of
M.r Brainerds Miſsn. they have ſince
behavd
well and make good proficiency in learning Nothing appears but
y.
t
Coſt
^pains^
&
Expence
bestow
d upon them will be to good Purpose
Eſpecialy upon y
e Younger of them.
I have had Some Aſsiſtances from ye Charities of perticular Gentlemen. towards their ſupport.
^tho' it has lain mainly upon me^ I have Sent for, & daily Expect, another, Whom
M.r Brainerd thinks to
be full as Likely as Either of these. & thus
^Sir ^ I have, tho' imperfectly
ans
d
y
e
Deſ
r of
ye
Honle
Com'iſsrs
[illegible][guess: and] if y
e
acco.
t be not ſo
per-
ticular in any
[illegible][illegible: [guess: reſpect]] as they Deſire if they will pleaſe to hint it to me I will
^gladly give [illegible] full information^
perticular in my Acco.t
as they Shall Deſire
pleaſe to give moſt
reſpect
[illegible][guess: l]]
Salutations to those Good Gentlemen
ye
Hon.
Com̅iſsrs and accept the same =