ght propound good ends to himselfe, yet it no way
justifies his doing it. Our maine diference is in ye 5.& 9. article,
concerning ye deviding or holding of house and lands; the injoying
whereof some of your selves well know, was one spetiall motive, amongst
many other, to provoke us to goe. This was thought so reasonable, yt
when ye greatest of you in adventure (whom we have much cause to
respecte), when he propounded conditions to us freely of his owne
accorde, he set this downe for one; a coppy wherof we have sent unto you,
with some additions then added by us; which being liked on both sids, and
a day set for ye paimente of moneys, those in Holland paid in theirs.
After yt, Robert Cushman, Mr. [John] Pierce, & Mr. [Christopher] Martine,
brought them into a better forme, & write them in a booke now extante;
and upon Robarts [Cushmans] shewing them and delivering Mr. [William]
Mullins a coppy thereof under his hand (which we have), he payed in his
money. And we of Holland had never seen other before our coming to
Hamton, but only as one got for him selfe a private coppy of them; upon
sight wherof we manyfested uter dislike, but had put of our estats & were
ready to come, and therfore was too late to rejecte ye vioage. Judge
therefore we beseech you indifferently of things, and if a faulte have
bene comited, lay it where it is, & not upon us, who have more cause to
stand for ye one, then you have for ye other. We never gave Robart
Cushman comission to make any one article for us, but only sent him to
receive moneys upon articles before agreed on, and to further ye
provissions till John Carver came, and to assiste him in it. Yet since
you conceive your selves wronged as well as we, we thought meete to add a
branch to ye end of our 9. article, as will allmost heale that wound of
it selfe, which you conceive to be in it. But that it may appeare to all
men yt we are not lovers of our selves only, but desire also ye good &
inriching of our freinds who have adventured your moneys with our
persons, we have added our last article to ye rest, promising you againe
by leters in ye behalfe of the whole company, that if large profits
should not arise within ye 7. years, yt we will continue togeather longer
with you, if ye Lord give a blessing.--[Bradford adds in a note, "It is
well for them yt this was not accepted."]--This we hope is sufficente to
satisfie any in this case, espetialy freinds, since we are asured yt if
the whol