Upon the first settlement of this land the miserys those poor and allmost famish'd Creatures underwent were incredible, and had it not been for the Charity of the Indians who shew'd them where to gather some eatable roots and herbs, must inevitably have perish'd every soul of them, but what God said in anger to Adam was in mercy fulfilled, viz. thou shall eat the herbs of the fields, when they Continu'd about one year on this land, build smaU houses and huts and made other Improvements thereon with their blody sweat and labour and under the most grievous hardships and dayly Jiazard of their lives from the french and Indian Ennemys, as well as from those more dreadfull ones hunger and Cold, severall Gentlemen Came to them from Albany, declaring they had bought that land of Governour Hunter, and if they intentioned to live thereon they must agree with them, to which demand these poor people answered, that the land was the King's and that the were the Kings Subjects and had no power to agree to any thing about his Majesty's lands without his special order, upon which these Gentlemen said, Wee are King's of this land, but the German's reply'd that their King was in England, and that the land shou'd not be taken from them without his Majesty's particular order.

Some time after did these Gentlemen send the Sheriff with some others upon the land, and to take the s^' Captain by force, dead or a life, but he having timely notice of it was on his Guai-d, so they were prevented.