HOLLAND DOCUMENTS: VII. 547 justice adhere especially in case hostilities were commenced here in Christendom against the English, as the English Nation in that country make such demonstrations as if they meant to surprise our lands there by force, having already not only forbidden all trade, correspondence and transport of provisions to our colonies, but also endeavored by evil practices to seduce the inhabitants (mostly English by birth) of divers villages under obedience and sworn fidelity to their High Mightinesses and the Company, to throw off these obligations as being of no force, and that on a false supposition and unfounded calumny; yet, in the hope that a desirable peace might be concluded between this State and the present government of England, said Directors are of opinion that 'tis highly necessary that the ambassadors gone to England, be instructed to commend this boundary to government of England, so that the same may be the actual confirmed agreeably to the Description aforesaid. But duly considering that that nation cannot be easily removed from the lands of which they have, for so long a time been in usurped possession, and that it were unwise in the Company, unless driven thereto by extreme necessity, to come to contention or hostilities with that nation, inasmuch as they are much stronger in point of numbers than our people, the Directors therefore, regardless of our well-founded pretensions, would deem it more necessary to agree with that nation even to the extent of assenting to the Provisional Boundary concluded by our Director with them at the Meeting of the Colonies at Herfort, in the year 1650, as is to be seen by the despatch dated 2G"' November, from which it can be noted, that the only condition mutually agreed to, is, that they will no longer encroach on each other; this was so stated on account of the straits our nation find themselves in at present in that country.