embraced the whole of Long Island, together
with five leagues round about it, the main land as well as the islands.
He had also full authority from Mary, dowager of Sterling, but this was
all. Nevertheless the man was very consequential, and said on his first
arrival that he came here to see Governor Stuyvesant's commission,
and if that was better than his, he was willing to give way; if not,
Governor Stuyvesant must yield to him. To make the matter short, the
Director took copies of the papers and sent the man across(2) in the
Falconer; but as this vessel put into England, the man did not
reach Holland, having escaped there, and never troubling the captain
afterwards. The English have since boasted of this very loudly, and have
also given out that he had again arrived at Bastock,(3) but we have not
heard of him. It is to be apprehended that if he came now, some new
act would be committed, for which reason it would be well to hasten the
redress of New Netherland.

(1) Andrew Forester, of Dundee.

(2) Across the ocean.

(3) Boston.

Of The Fresh River.

After Fort Good Hope, begun in the year 1623,(1) on the Fresh River,
was finished, some time had elapsed when an English bark arrived there.
Jacob van Curler, factor of the Company, by order of Director Wouter van
Twiller, protested against it, but notwithstanding his protest they did,
a year or two afterwards, come there with some families. A protest was
also made against them; but it was very manifest that these people had
little respect for it, for notwithstanding frequent protests, they have
finally seized and possessed the whole of the Fresh River, and have
proceeded so far in their shameless course as, in the year 1640, to
seize the Company's farms at the fort, paying no regard to the protests
which we made. They have gone even still further, and have belabored the
Company's people with sticks and heavy clubs; and have forcibly thrown
into the river their ploughs and other instruments, while they were on
the land for the purpose of working, and have put their horses to the
pound. The same things happened very frequently afterwards. They also
took hogs and cows belonging to the fort, and several times sold some of
them for the purpose, as they said, of repairing the damage. Against all
these acts, and each one in particular, protests were repeatedly made,
but they were met with ridicule. Several sharp letters about this were
written in Latin