Lord Chatham, in his letters addressed to his nephew, the Earl of Camelford, advises him to read "Nathaniel Bacon's Historical and Political Observations, which is, without exception, the best and most instructive book we have on matters of that kind." This book, though at present little known, formerly enjoyed a high reputation. It is written with a very evident bias to the principles of the parliamentary party, to which Bacon adhered. It was published in 1647, again in 1651, secretly reprinted in 1672, and again in 1682, for which edition the publisher was indicted and outlawed. The author was probably related to the great Lord Bacon.[312:A] Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., came over to Virginia about the year 1672, when the third edition of that work was secretly reprinted in England. In the quarto edition the author, Nathaniel Bacon, is said to have been of Gray's Inn. It was published during the Protectorate. He appears probably to have been, in Oliver Cromwell's time, recorder of the borough of Ipswich, and to have lived at Freston, near Saxmundham, in Suffolk. His son, Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., styled the Rebel, married, against the consent of his father, who violently exhibited his disapprobation, Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Sir Edward Duke, and sister to Sir John Duke, of Benhill-lodge, near Saxmundham. Ray, who set out upon his travels into foreign parts in 1663, says he was accompanied by Mr. Willoughby, Sir Philip Skippon, and Mr. Nathaniel Bacon, "a hopeful young gentleman."[312:B] He owned lands in England of the yearly value of one hundred and fifty pounds; and after his marriage, being straitened for money, he applied to Sir Robert Jason for assistance, conveyed the lands to him for twelve hundred pounds sterling,[312:C] and removed with his wife to Virginia. Dying, he left Elizabeth a widow, and children. She afterwards married in Virginia Thomas Jervis, a merchant, who lived in Elizabeth City County, on the west side of Hampton River,[312:D] and upon his death she became his executrix, and in 1684 claimed her jointure out of the lands sold to Jason, under a settlement thereof made by Bacon on his marriage, in consideration of her portion.[312:E] Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., was cousin to Thomas, Lord Culpepper,[312:F] subsequently governor of Virginia. Jervis appears to have been owner of a vessel, the "Betty," (so called after his wife,) in which Culpepper sailed from Virginia for Boston, August 10th, 1680. Elizabeth, relict of Jervis, married third a Mr. Mole. There are, at the present day, persons in Virginia of the name of Bacon, who claim to be lineal descendants of the rebel.

FOOTNOTES:

CHAPTER XXXVII.

1676.

Upon Bacon's death, toward the end of 1676, the exact date of which can hardly be ascertained, he was succeeded by his lieutenant-general, Joseph Ingram, (whose real name was said to be Johnson,) who had lately arrived in Virginia. Ingram, supported by George Wakelet, or Walklett, his major-general, who was very young, Langston, Richard Lawrence, and their adherents, took possession of West Point, at the head of York River, fortified it, and made it their place of arms. West Point, or West's Point, so called from the family name of Lord Delaware, was at one time known as "De la War," and is so laid down on John Henry's Map, dated 1770. There is still extant there[313:A] a ruinous house of stone-marl, which was probably occupied by Ingram and his confederates. A bake-oven serves to strengthen the conjecture.

As soon as Berkley heard of Bacon's death, he sent over Robert Beverley, with a party, in a sloop to York River, where they captured Colonel Hansford and some twenty soldiers, at the house where Colonel Reade had lived, which appears to have been at or near where Yorktown now stands. Hansford was taken to Accomac, tried, and condemned to be hanged, and was the first native of Virginia that perished in that ignominious form, and in America the first martyr that fell in defending the rights of the people. He was described by Sir William Berkley as "one Hansford, a valiant stout man, and a most resolved rebel." When he came to the place of execution, distant about a mile from the place of his confinement, he appeared well resolved to bear his fate, complaining only of the manner of his death. Neither during his trial before the court-martial, nor afterwards, did he supplicate any favor, save that "he might be shot like a soldier, and not hanged like a dog;" but he was told that he was condemned not as a soldier, but as a rebel. During the short respite allowed him after his sentence, he professed repentance and contrition for all the sins of his past life, but refused to acknowledge what was charged against him as rebellion, to be one of them; desiring the people present to take notice that "he died a loyal subject and lover of his country, and that he had never taken up arms but for the destruction of the Indians, who had murdered so many Christians." His execution took place on the 13th of November, 1676.[314:A]

Captain Wilford, Captain Farloe, and several others of less note, were put to death in Accomac. Wilford, younger son of a knight who had lost his estate and life in defence of Charles the First, had taken refuge in Virginia, where he became an Indian interpreter, in which capacity he was very serviceable to Bacon. Farloe had been made an officer by Bacon, upon the recommendation of Sir William Berkley, or some of the council. He was a mathematical scholar, and of a peaceable disposition, and his untimely end excited much commiseration. Major Cheesman died in prison, probably from ill usage. His wife took to herself the entire blame for his having joined Bacon, and on her bended knees implored Sir William Berkley to put her to death in his stead. The governor answered by applying to her an epithet of infamy. Several other prisoners came to their death in prison in the same way with Cheesman.

Sir William Berkley now repaired to York River with four merchant-ships, two or three sloops, and one hundred and fifty men.[314:B] According to another account,[314:C] he sent Colonel Ludwell with part of his forces to York River, while he himself with the rest repaired to Jamestown; but this appears to be erroneous. Sir William proclaimed a general pardon, excepting certain persons named, especially Lawrence and Drummond. Greenspring, the governor's residence, still held out, being garrisoned with a hundred men under a captain Drew, previously a miller, the approaches barricaded, and three pieces of cannon planted. A party of one hundred and twenty, dispatched by the governor to surprise at night a guard of about thirty men and boys, under Major Whaley, at Colonel Bacon's house on Queen's Creek, were defeated, with the loss of their commander, named Farrel. Colonel Bacon and Colonel Ludwell were present at this affair. Major Lawrence Smith, with six hundred Gloucester men, was likewise defeated by Ingram at Colonel Pate's house, Smith saving himself by flight, and his men being all made prisoners. The officer next in command under Smith was a minister. Captain Couset with a party being sent against Raines, who headed the insurgents on the south side of James River, Raines was killed, and his men captured.

Meanwhile Ingram, Wakelet, and their companions in arms, foraged with impunity on the estates of the loyalists, and bade defiance to the aged governor. They defended themselves against the assaults of Ludwell and others with such resolution and gallantry, that Berkley, fatigued and exhausted, at length sent, by Captain Grantham, a complaisant letter to Wakelet—or, as some say, to Ingram—offering an amnesty, on condition of surrender. This was agreed to, and in reward for his submission, Berkley presented to Wakelet all the Indian plunder deposited at West Point. Greenspring was also surrendered by Drew upon terms offered by Sir William Berkley. A court-martial was held on board of a vessel in York River, January the 11th, 1676-7.[315:A] Four of the insurgents were condemned by this court: one of them, by name Young, had, according to Sir William Berkley, held a commission under General Monk long before he declared for the king; another, a carpenter, who had formerly been a servant of the governor, but had been made a colonel in Bacon's army; one, Hall, was a clerk of a county court, but, by his writings, "more useful to the rebels than forty armed men."

When West Point was surrendered, Lawrence and Drummond were at the Brick-house in New Kent, on the opposite side of the river. On the nineteenth day of January, Drummond was taken in the Chickahominy Swamp, half famished, and on the following day was brought in a prisoner to Sir William Berkley, who was then on board of a vessel at Colonel Bacon's, on Queen's Creek. The governor, who, through personal hostility, had vowed that Drummond should not live an hour after he fell into his power, upon hearing of his arrival, immediately went on shore and saluted him with a courtly bow, saying, "Mr. Drummond, you are very unwelcome; I am more glad to see you than any man in Virginia. Mr. Drummond, you shall be hanged in half an hour." He replied, "What your honor pleases." A court-martial was immediately held, in time of peace, at the house of James Bray, Esq., whither the prisoner was conveyed in irons. He was stripped; and a ring—a pledge of domestic affection—was torn from his finger before his conviction; he was condemned without any charge being alleged, and although he had never borne arms; and he was not permitted to defend himself. Condemned at one o'clock, he was hurried away to execution on a gibbet at four o'clock, at Middle Plantation, with one John Baptista, "a common Frenchman, that had been very bloody." Drummond was a sedate Scotch gentleman, who had been governor of the infant colony of North Carolina, of estimable character, unsullied integrity, and signal ability. He had rendered himself extremely obnoxious to the governor's hatred by the lively concern which he had always evinced in the public grievances. Sir William Berkley mentions him as "one Drummond, a Scotchman, that we all suppose was the original cause of the whole rebellion." When afterwards the petition of his widow, Sarah Drummond, depicting the cruel treatment of her husband, was read in the king's council in England, the lord chancellor, Finch, said: "I know not whether it be lawful to wish a person alive, otherwise I could wish Sir William Berkley so, to see what could be answered to such barbarity; but he has answered it before this."[317:A]

Mrs. Afra Behn celebrated Bacon's Rebellion in a tragi-comedy, entitled "The Widow Ranter, or the History of Bacon in Virginia." Dryden honored it with a prologue. The play failed on the stage, and was published in 1690; there is a copy of it in the British Museum.[317:B] It sets historical truth at defiance, and is replete with coarse humor and indelicate wit. It is probable that Sarah Drummond may have been intended by "The Widow Ranter." It appears that one or two expressions in the Declaration of Independence occur in this old play.

On the 24th of January, 1677, six other insurgents were condemned to death at Greenspring, and executed. Henry West was banished for seven years, and his estate confiscated, save five pounds allowed him to pay his passage. William West and John Turner, sentenced to death at the same time, escaped from prison. William Rookings, likewise sentenced, died in prison. Richard Lawrence, with four companions, disappeared from the frontier, proceeding on horseback and armed, through a deep snow, preferring to perish in the wilderness rather than to share Drummond's fate. Lawrence was educated at Oxford, and for wit, learning, and sobriety, was equalled by few there. He had been one of the commissioners for adjusting the boundary line between Maryland and Virginia in 1663. He had been defrauded of a handsome estate by Berkley's corrupt partiality in behalf of a favorite. The rebellion, as it was called, was by most people mainly attributed to Lawrence; and it is said that he had before thrown out intimations that he hoped to find means by which he not only should be able to repair his own losses, but also see the country relieved from the governor's "avarice and French despotic modes." Lawrence had married a rich widow, who kept a large house of entertainment at Jamestown, which gave him an extensive influence. Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., probably had lodged at his house when search was made for him on the morning of his escape. The author of T. M.'s Account says: "But Mr. Bacon was too young, too much a stranger there, and of a disposition too precipitate, to manage things to that length those were carried, had not thoughtful Mr. Lawrence been at the bottom."

FOOTNOTES:

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

1677.

On the 29th day of January, 1677, a fleet arrived within the capes, from England, under command of Admiral Sir John Berry, or Barry, with a regiment of soldiers commanded by Colonel Herbert Jeffreys and Colonel Morrison. Sir William Berkley held an interview with them at Kiquotan, on board of the Bristol; and these three were associated in a commission to investigate the causes of the late commotions and to restore order. They were instructed to offer a reward of three hundred pounds to any one who should arrest Bacon, who was to be taken by "all ways of force, or design." And the other colonies were commanded by the king not to aid or conceal him; and it was ordered, in case of his capture, that he should be brought to trial here; or, if his popularity should render it expedient, be sent to England for trial and punishment. They were authorized to pardon all who would duly take the oath of obedience, and give security for their good behavior. Freedom was to be offered to servants and slaves who would aid in suppressing the revolt.[319:A] The same measure had been before adopted by the Long Parliament, and was resorted to a century afterwards by Governor Dunmore. It is the phenomenon of historical pre-existence. The general court and the assembly having now met, several more of Bacon's adherents were convicted by a civil tribunal held at Greenspring, and put to death—most of them men of competent fortune and respectable character. Among them was Giles Bland, whose friends in England, it was reported, had procured his pardon to be sent over with the fleet; but if so, it availed him nothing. It was indeed whispered that he was executed under private orders brought from England, the Duke of York having declared, with an oath, that "Bacon and Bland shall die." Bland was convicted March eighth, and executed on the fifteenth, at Bacon's Trench, near Jamestown, with another prisoner, Robert Jones. Three others were put to death on another day at the same place. Anthony Arnold was hung on the fifteenth of March, in chains, at West Point. Two others suffered capitally on the same day, but at what place does not appear, probably in their own counties.[320:A]

In the month of April, Secretary Ludwell wrote to Coventry, the English secretary of state, "that the grounds of this rebellion have not proceeded from any real fault in the government, but rather from the lewd disposition of desperate fortunes lately sprung up among them, which easily seduced the willing minds of the people from their allegiance, in the vain hopes of taking the country wholly out of his majesty's hands into their own. Bacon never intended more by the prosecution of the Indian war than as a covert to his villanies."

The commissioners, who assisted in the trial of these prisoners, now proceeded to inquire into the causes of the late distractions; they sat at Swan's Point. The insurgents, who comprised the great body of the people of Virginia, had found powerful friends among the people of England, and in parliament; and the commissioners discountenanced the excesses of Sir William Berkley, and the loyalists, and invited the planters in every quarter to bring in their grievances without fear. Jeffreys, one of the commissioners, was about to succeed Governor Berkley. In their zeal for investigation the commissioners seized the journals of the assembly; and the burgesses in October, 1677, demanded satisfaction for this indignity, declaring that such a seizure could not have been authorized even by an order under the great seal, because "they found that such a power had never been exercised by the king of England"—an explicit declaration of the legislative independence of the colony. Their language was stigmatized by Charles the Second as seditious.[321:A]

The number of persons executed was twenty-three,[321:B] of whom twelve were condemned by court-martial. The jails were crowded with prisoners, and in the general consternation many of the inhabitants were preparing to leave the country. During eight months Virginia had suffered civil war, devastation, executions, and the loss of one hundred thousand pounds,—so violent was the effort of nature to throw off the malady of despotism and misrule. Charles the Second, in October, issued two proclamations, authorizing Berkley to pardon all except Nathaniel Bacon, Jr.; and afterwards another, declaring Sir William's of February, 1677, not conformable to his instructions, in excepting others besides Bacon from pardon, and abrogating it. Yet the king's commissioners assisted in the condemnation of several of the prisoners. An act of pardon, under the great seal, brought over by Lord Culpepper, was afterwards unanimously passed by the assembly in June, 1680, and several persons are excepted in it who were included in Sir William's "bloody bill" in February, 1677.[321:C]

The people complained to the commissioners of the illegal seizing of their estates by the governor and his royalist supporters; and of their being imprisoned after submitting themselves upon the governor's proclamation of pardon and indemnity; and of being compelled to pay heavy fines and compositions by threats of being brought to trial, which was in every instance tantamount to conviction. Berkley and some of the royalists that sat on the trial of the prisoners, were forward in impeaching, accusing, and reviling them—accusing and condemning, both at once. Sir William Berkley caused Drummond's small plantation to be seized upon and given to himself by his council, removing and embezzling the personal property, and thus compelling his widow, with her children, to fly from her home, and wander in the wilderness and woods until they were well-nigh reduced to starvation, when relieved by the arrival of the commissioners. At length the assembly, in an address to the governor, deprecated any further sanguinary punishments, and he was prevailed upon, reluctantly, to desist. All the acts of the assembly of June, 1676, called "Bacon's Laws," were repealed, as well by the order and proclamation of King Charles, as also by act of the assembly held at Greenspring, in February, 1677.[322:A]

The assembly granted indemnity and pardon for all acts committed since the 1st of April, 1676, excepting Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., and about fifty others, including certain persons deceased, executed, escaped, and banished. The principal persons excepted were Cheesman, Hunt, Hansford, Wilford, Carver, Drummond, Crewes, Farloe, Hall, William and Henry West, Lawrence, Bland, Whaley, Arnold, Ingram, Wakelet, Scarburgh, and Sarah, wife of Thomas Grindon. Twenty were attainted of high treason, and their estates confiscated. The provisoes of the act virtually left the whole power of punishment still in the hands of the governor and council. Minor punishments were inflicted on others; some were compelled to sue for pardon on their knees, with a rope about the neck; others fined, disfranchised, or banished. These penalties did not meet with the approbation of the people, and were in several instances evaded by the connivance of the courts. John Bagwell and Thomas Gordon, adjudged to appear at Rappahannock Court with halters about their necks, were allowed to appear with "small tape;" in the same county William Potts wore "a Manchester binding," instead of a halter.

The assembly, in accordance with one of Bacon's laws, declared Indian prisoners slaves, and their property lawful prize. An order was made for building a new state-house at Tindall's (Gloucester) Point, on the north side of York River, but it was never carried into effect. Many of the acts of this session are almost exact copies of "Bacon's Laws," the titles only being altered—a conclusive proof of the abuses and usurpations of those in power, and of the merits of acts passed by those stigmatized and punished as rebels and traitors. Such likewise was the conduct of the British Parliament in relation to the legislation of the Commonwealth of England. The fourth of May was appointed a fast-day, and August the twenty-second a day of thanksgiving.

Sir William Berkley, worn down with agitations which his age was unequal to, and in feeble health, being recalled by the king, ceased to be governor on the 27th of April, 1677, and returned in the fleet to London, leaving Colonel Herbert Jeffreys in his place, who was sworn into office on the same day. His commission was dated November the 11th, 1676—the twenty-eighth year of Charles the Second. In July, 1675, Lord Culpepper had been appointed governor-in-chief of Virginia, but he did not arrive till the beginning of 1680; had he come over when first appointed, it might have prevented Bacon's Rebellion.

Sir William Berkley died on the thirteenth of July, 1677, of a broken heart, as some relate,[323:A] without ever seeing the king, having been confined to his chamber from the day of his arrival. According to others, King Charles expressed his approbation of his conduct, and the kindest regard for him, and made frequent inquiry respecting his health.[323:B] Others again, on the contrary, report that the king said of him: "That old fool has hanged more men in that naked country than I have done for the murder of my father."[323:C] Sir William Berkley was a native of London, and educated at Merton College, Oxford, of which he was afterwards a fellow, and in 1629 was made Master of Arts. He made the tour of Europe in the year 1630. He held the place of governor of Virginia from 1639 to 1651, and from 1659 to 1677—a period of thirty years, a term equalled by no other governor of the colony. He published a tragi-comedy, "The Lost Lady," in 1639, the year in which he came first to Virginia. Pepys, in his Diary, mentions seeing it acted. Sir William published also, in 1663, "A Discourse and View of Virginia." He was buried at Twickenham, since illustrated by the genius of Pope. Sir William Berkley left no children. By a will, dated May the 2d, 1676, he bequeathed his estate to his widow. He declares himself to have been under no obligation whatever to any of his kindred except his sister, Mrs. Jane Davies, (of whom he appears to have been fond,) and his brother, Lord Berkley. Sir William married the widow of Samuel Stephens, of Warwick County, Virginia. She, after Sir William's death, was sued by William Drummond's widow for trespass, in taking from her land a quantity of corn, and in spite of a strenuous defence, a verdict was found against the defendant. In 1680 she intermarried with Colonel Philip Ludwell, of Rich Neck, but still retained the title of "Dame (or Lady) Frances Berkley."

Samuel Stephens was the son of Dame Elizabeth Harvey (widow of Sir John Harvey) by a former marriage.[324:A]

It does not appear when Colonel William Clayborne, first of the name in Virginia, died, or where he was buried, but probably in the County of New Kent. There is a novel entitled "Clayborne the Rebel."[324:B]

Colonel William Clayborne, Jr., eldest son of the above mentioned, was probably the one appointed (1676) to command a fort at Indiantown Landing, in New Kent, together with Major Lyddal,[324:C] as the father was probably then too old for that post. Some suppose also that it was the son that sat on the trial of the rebels. A certificate of the valor of William Clayborne, Jr., is recorded in King William County Court-house, signed by Sir William Berkley, dated in March, 1677, attested by Nathaniel Bacon, Sir Philip Ludwell, Ralph Wormley, and Richard Lee.

Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Clayborne, only brother of William Clayborne, Jr., lies buried not far from West Point, in King William County. He was killed by an Indian arrow which wounded him in the foot. It appears that each of the sons of Secretary Clayborne had a son named Thomas. Colonel Thomas Clayborne, son of Captain Thomas Clayborne, is said to have married three times, and to have been father of twenty-seven children. One of his daughters married a General Phillips of the British army, and is said to have been the mother of Colonel Ralph Phillips, of the British army, who fell at Waterloo, and of the distinguished Irish orator who died recently. Another son, William Clayborne, married a Miss Leigh, of Virginia, and was father of William Charles Cole Clayborne, Governor of Louisiana, and of General Ferdinand Leigh Clayborne, late of Mississippi. He assisted General Jackson in planning the battle of New Orleans. The widow of this Governor Clayborne married John R. Grymes, Esq., the eminent New Orleans lawyer. And a daughter of the governor married John H. B. Latrobe, Esq., of Baltimore.

Colonel Augustine Clayborne, son of Colonel Thomas Clayborne, was appointed clerk of Sussex County Court in the year 1754, by William Adair, secretary of the colony. His son, Buller Clayborne, was aid-de-camp to General Lincoln, and is said to have received a wound while interposing himself between the general and a party of British soldiers. Mary Herbert, a sister of Buller Clayborne, married an uncle of General William Henry Harrison. Herbert Clayborne, eldest son of Colonel Augustine Clayborne, married Mary, daughter of Buller Herbert, of Puddledock, near Petersburg. Puddledock is the name of a street in London. Herbert Augustine Clayborne was second son of Herbert Clayborne, of Elson Green, King William County, and Mary Burnet, eldest daughter of William Burnet Browne, of Elson Green, and before of Salem, Massachusetts.

The Honorable William Browne, of Massachusetts, married Mary Burnet, daughter of William Burnet, (Governor of New York and of Massachusetts,) and Mary, daughter of Dean Stanhope, of Canterbury. William Burnet was eldest son of Gilbert Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury, and Mrs. Mary Scott, his second wife. Thus it appears that Herbert Clayborne married a descendant of Bishop Burnet.

FOOTNOTES:

CHAPTER XXXIX.

1677-1681.

The agents of Virginia, in 1675, had strenuously solicited the grant of a new charter, and their efforts, though long fruitless, seemed at length about to be crowned with success, when the news of Bacon's rebellion furnished the government with a new pretext for violating its engagements. By the report of the committee for plantations, adopted by the king in council, and twice ordered to be passed into a new charter under the great seal, it was provided, "that no imposition or taxes shall be laid or imposed upon the inhabitants and proprietors there, but by the common consent of the governor, council, and burgesses, as hath been heretofore used," reserving, however, to parliament the right to lay duties upon commodities shipped from the colony. The news of the rebellion frustrated this scheme; the promised charter slept in the Hamper[326:A] office; and the one actually sent afterwards was meagre and unsatisfactory. Colonel Jeffreys, successor to Berkley, effected a treaty of peace with the Indians, each town agreeing to pay three arrows for their land, and twenty beaver skins for protection, every year. He convened an assembly at the house of Captain Otho Thorpe, at Middle Plantation, in October, 1677, being the twenty-ninth year of Charles the Second. William Traverse was speaker, and Robert Beverley clerk. The session lasted for one month. According to instructions given to Sir William Berkley, dated in November, 1676, the governor was no longer obliged to call an assembly yearly, but only once in two years, and the session was limited to fourteen days, unless the governor should see good cause to continue it beyond that time; and the members of the assembly were to be elected only by freeholders. During this session regulations were adopted for the Indian trade, and fairs appointed for the sale of Indian commodities; but the natives being suspicious of innovations, these provisions soon became obsolete.

In 1677 Colonel Nathaniel Bacon, Sr., by a warrant from the treasury in England, was appointed auditor of the public accounts. At this time Colonel Norwood was treasurer, but the governor and council, from motives of economy, united his office with that of auditor.

It has before been mentioned that the king, by proclamation in 1677, revoked and abrogated Sir William Berkley's proclamation of February of the same year, as containing "an exception and exclusion from pardon of divers and sundry persons in his said proclamation named, for which he hath no ground or authority from our foresaid proclamation, the same being free and without exception of any person besides the said Nathaniel Bacon, who should submit themselves according to the tenor of our said proclamation."[327:A]

This appears to be unjust to the governor; for the words of the king's proclamation of October are: "And we do by these presents give and grant full power and authority to you, our said governor, for us and in our name to pardon, release, and forgive unto all such our subjects (other than the said Nathaniel Bacon) as you shall think fit and convenient for our service, all treasons, felonies," etc., evidently investing the governor with discretionary powers. The capitulation agreed upon with Ingram and Walklet, at West Point, appears to have been violated by Governor Berkley and the assembly. Colonel Philip Ludwell, alleging that he had suffered loss by Walklet's incursions, sued him in New Kent for damages. The defendant appealing to Jeffreys, he granted him a protection. Whereupon, Ludwell declared that "the governor, Jeffreys, was a worse rebel than Bacon, for he had broke the laws of the country, which Bacon never did; that he was perjured in delaying or preventing the execution of the laws, contrary to his oath of governor; that he was not worth a groat in England; and that if every pitiful little fellow with a periwig that came in governor to this country had liberty to make the laws, as this had done, his children, nor no man's else, could be safe in the title or estate left them." Jeffreys having laid these charges and criminations before the council, they submitted the case to a jury who found Ludwell guilty. The matter was referred to the king in council; and in the mean while the accused was compelled to give security in the penalty of a thousand pounds, to abide the determination of the case, and five hundred for his good behavior to the governor.

Westmoreland was the only county that declared that it had no grievances to complain of, and the sincerity of this declaration may well be doubted. Accomac claimed as a reward for her loyalty an exemption from taxation for a period of twenty years. A letter, bearing date December the 27th, 1677, addressed by the king to Jeffreys, informed him that Lord Culpepper had been appointed governor, but that while he (Jeffreys) continued to perform the duties of the office, he should be no loser, and stating the arrangement which had been made as to the payment of their salaries. Jeffreys dying in December, 1678, was succeeded by the aged Sir Henry Chicheley, deputy governor, who entered upon the duties on the thirteenth of that month, his commission being dated February 28th, 1674.

Thomas, Lord Culpepper, Baron of Thorsway, had been appointed in July, 1675, governor of Virginia for life—an able, but artful and covetous man.[328:A] He had been one of the commissioners for plantations some years before. He was disposed to look upon his office as a sinecure, but being reproved in December, 1679, by the king for remaining so long in England, he came over to the colony in 1680, and was sworn into office on the tenth of May. He found Virginia tranquil. He brought over several bills ready draughted in England to be passed by the assembly, it being "intended to introduce here the modes of Ireland."[329:A] His lordship being invested with full powers of pardon, found it the more easy to obtain from the people whatever he asked. After procuring the enactment of several popular acts, including one of indemnity and oblivion, he managed to have the impost of two shillings on every hogshead of tobacco made perpetual, and instead of being accounted for to the assembly, as formerly, to be disposed of as his majesty might think fit. Culpepper, notwithstanding the impoverished condition of the colony, contrived to enlarge his salary from one thousand pounds to upwards of two thousand, besides perquisites amounting to eight hundred more. After the rebellion, the governor was empowered to suspend a councillor from his place. It was also ordered, that in case of the death or removal of the governor, the president, or oldest member of the council, with the assistance of five members of that body, should administer the government until another appointment should be made by the crown.[329:B]

In the year 1680 Charles the Second granted to William Blathwayt the place of surveyor and auditor-general of all his revenues in America, with a salary of five hundred pounds to be paid out of the same, Virginia's share of the salary being one hundred pounds.

In August of this year, Lord Culpepper returned to England, by way of Boston, in the ship "Betty," belonging to Jervis, who married the widow of Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., (a cousin of Culpepper,) Jervis being also a passenger. Elizabeth, or Betty, was the Christian name of Bacon's widow. The vessel having run aground in the night, his lordship landed on the wild New England shore, one hundred and thirty miles from Boston, with two servants, each carrying a gun, and made his way twenty miles to Sandwich, where he was furnished with horses and a guide, and so reached Boston, where the Betty arrived ten days thereafter. In a letter, dated September the twentieth, addressed to his sister, he mentions that he has with him, "John Polyn, the cook, the page, the great footman, and the little one that embroiders." The Betty conveyed soldiers, servants, plate, goods, and furniture. Culpepper was received at Boston by twelve companies of militia; and was well pleased with the place, "finding no difference between it and Old England, but only want of company."[330:A]

Virginia now enjoyed repose, and large crops of tobacco were raised, and the price again fell to a low ebb. The discontents of the planters were aggravated by the act "for cohabitation and encouragement of trade and manufacture," restricting vessels to certain prescribed ports where the government desired to establish towns.

In the year 1680 Charleston was founded, the metropolis of the infant colony of South Carolina. By the grant of Pennsylvania, made by Charles the Second to William Penn, dated in March, 1681, Virginia lost another large portion of her territory.

FOOTNOTES: