Show A TALE OF INTOLERANCE 4 In these latter days of schemes for the restriction of immigration and of statutory statutory statu statutory statu- statu tory laws for the suppression of unpopular lar religions the following letter written over two hundred years ago will make curious if not instructive ive reading reading- SEPTEMBER 1 ER 15 1682 To ye Aged ged and Beloved Mr John Higginson There be now at sea a ship called the Welcome which has on board a hundred hundred hundred hun hun- dred or more of the heretics and malig- malig nants called Quakers with W. W Penn who is the chief scamp at tl the e head of them The General Court has aC accordingly given n secret orders orders' to M Master aster Malachi lala hi t 1 f i Mill Hus ott of the brig rig Porpoise to waylay way way- way waylay I lay the said W Welcome e come sly slyly I y as near the cape cape of Cod as may maybe be and make captive the said Penn and his ungodly crew rew so that the Lord may be glorified and not mocked on the soil of this new country with the heathen worship of these people Much spoil can be made by selling the whole lot to Barbadoes where slaves fetch good prices in rum and sugar and we shall not only do the Lord great Service by punishing the Wicked but we shall make great good for his minister and people Master feels hopeful and I will set down the news when the ship comes back Yours in the bowels of Christ COTTON 1 MATHER A THER The 1 genuineness of the above letter is vouched for by the Philadelphia Press The original document is still to be found in iri the Book of Records kept in an anold anold old ld Quaker meeting meetinghouse house at Greenpoint R. R I. I |