to
light, and by the accusations of the corporal. The corporal, seduced
by the solicitation of Jacob Reintjes, sold him the arms as often as
desired, though the Latter knew that the guns and gun-barrels belonged
to the Company, and not to the corporal. There was confiscated also a
parcel of peltries (as may be seen in the accounts) coming chiefly from
the contraband goods (as appears from the letters). And as the said
Jacob Reintjes has been in this country since the confiscation, he would
have made complaint if he had not been guilty, especially as he was
sufficiently urged to do so by the enemies of the Company and of the
Director, but his own letters were witnesses against him.

Joost de Backer being accused also by the above named corporal of having
bought gun-locks and gun-barrels from him, and the first information
having proved correct, his house was searched according to law, in which
was found a gun of the Company which he had procured from the corporal;
he was therefore taken into custody until he gave security [to answer]
for the claim of the fiscaal.

As the English of New England protected among them all fugitives who
came to them from the Manhatans without the passport required by the
usage of the country, whether persons in the service of the Company or
freemen, and took them into their service, it was therefore sought by
commissioners to induce the English to restore the fugitives according
to an agreement previously made with Governors Eaton and Hopkins, but
as Governor Eaton failed to send back the runaways, although earnestly
solicited to do so, the Director and Council, according to a previous
resolution, issued a proclamation that all persons who should come from
the province of New Haven (all the others excepted) to New Netherland
should be protected; which was a retaliatory measure. As the Governor
permitted some of the fugitives to come back to us, the Director
and Council annulled the order, and since then matters have gone on
peaceably, the dispute about the boundaries remaining the same as
before.(1)

(1) Theophilus Eaton, governor of New Haven 1639-1658, and
Edward Hopkins, governor of Connecticut seven times in the
period 1640-1654. The recriminations and retaliations
alluded to took place in the winter of 1647-1648. Two
months before the date of this Answer, Stuyvesant had
arranged with the Commissioners of the United Colonies at
Hartford a provisio