Lebanon
Jany
ye
7th 1757
Son Samſon
Whereas
Samſon Occom Who Some years Since was Enployed
at
Long Iſland in The
Government of New
york by Sum of The
Inhabitants there to Keep an Indian School and afterward, to Preach
the
Gospel to Them and who upon applycation Made to The
Comiſs:rs after he had
Engaged in S..
d Service was allowed by Them Twenty Pound, p.
r annum is
Notwithſtanding his Several allowances fallen in Debt & Thereby brought
Into Difficulties —
Voted as a further Encouragement To Said
Samſon To Continue in The
Indian Service There be allowed him Twenty
Pounds in order To Enable him
To Diſcharge his
[worn_edge: [guess: Debts]]; The
Comiſs..rs Expecting That Those who originally
Employed him afford him There
aſsiſtsance
Likewiſe for This Purpose —
and in as much as Said
Samſon is Repreſented To be a Perſon of a Virtuous
Life and Usefull as a Preacher To the Indians; The
Comiſs.rs Would recommend
it to The
Revd
M:r
Eleazer Wheelock
&
M.r Pomeroy and other Miniſters
of The Same aſsociation to Conſider of the Expediency of
^his^ being ordained
To The Paſtoral office and to Proceed to Do it if They Shall Think Best.
and That there be
allowed To S.
d
Samſon a common Pace Book to the Bible
and Cruden’s
Concordence
you observe That They Direct
M.r Pomeroy and Myſelf To Call in other
Miniſters to Examine you and Conſult of The
[illegible: [guess: Expeeding]] of your bing
Ordained We are in Doubt of The Propriety of our Doing it, Thinking it
Rather
The Right of
The Rev:d
Preſby:ty on
The Island
unleſs you Should take the
Pastrol Charge of the Indians on The main but at this Diſtance we are not
able to judge of That Matter not knowing either the Number or Dispoſition
of Those Indians among whome you are, & have been Labouring, We have
underſtood that there is a conſiderable
on Number on This Side The water
who Desire To have you for There
Miniſter and we have Conſidered The
Distance and Difficulty of Crosing
the Sound
&c,
and have Therefore agreed
[illegible] To adviſe, That you Deſire
ſome Neighbouring
Miniſter To Viſit, and Try The Minds of your People and Send us a
[illegible: [guess: True]]
Repreſentation
of There number and Diſposision Towards you and then that you Viſit The
Rev.
d
Miniſters of
That Preſbytery
Shew This To Them and alſo Represent to
Them The State of The
indians at Muntauck and Deſire
Said Miniſters to
Manyfest to us wheather They approve of our Proseeding according to The foregoing
Vote of
Comiſs:rs
&c, and if So That They Give us Proper Testimonials of your
Moral and Chriſatian Character, And That you accomplish This as Soon as may
be. and you Must
Consider That it will be Some Time after your are Examined
before The Matter Can be
accomplished if we Shall have To Viſit The Sevaral
s
Tribes of Indians upon the Main in order To your ordination. The Lord be with
^your^ your Sperit
Derct your
^ways^ and Keepe you from Fawling into the Condemnatio
^n^ of The Divel upon Such an occation. Give Mine and
M.r Pomeroys Love to
your Spouse. and Except The Same
f your Self From him, as well as, I
PS
Mr Oliver in his To me has This Paſsage which becauſe
it Concerns you I Transcribe here viz “
Capt Shaw of
New London has
usu
^a^lley
Supplyd
Samſon and taken his orders upon me for it, and
where
^were^ you
Do send
^to ſend^ him Copy of what Relates To him would I Doubt
not To Do it
Still Not be G
^l^ad to Do it Still.”
Copy.